It was a beautiful Sunday morning in Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey. The afternoon wedding was time frame to start at 11 AM and ends at 3 PM. I was working at Sunset Ballroom at the Lobster Shanty. It was a little overcast and the temperature was about 65°, there was also a slight breeze that gave you that filled the air with the sent of the ocean.

Michael and Dana went to the Dominican Republic to get married so this really wasn’t a wedding reception, it was more of a wedding celebration. Mainly for those guests that could not make the trip to the Dominican Republic to see them get married and celebrate the wonderful occasion with them.

For those who don’t know what a wedding celebration is, it’s very much like a wedding reception without the introduction of the bridal party, parents and bride and groom. Now sometimes there is a first dance with the bride and groom and sometimes there is not. Michael and Dana chose not to do their first dance at this occasion.

Now even though this was not a traditional wedding, it was still just as fun. I’d spoken with Dana over the phone several times due to the fact that we could not get a date together to meet face-to-face. She explained to me that she wanted her cocktail hour to have a Caribbean feel. So I put together a special cocktail hour mix for her that consisted of some reggae, and some beachy music. Right after cocktail hour I welcomed everybody to the wedding celebration for Michael and Dana. I still introduced the parents and our bride and groom just not in a traditional grand entrance that you would have at a typical wedding.

Right after they had a buffet brunch. Again I put a special mix together that included a little bit of an island feel and a couple of newer relaxing songs for everyone to listen to while they were eating.

Now that brunch was over it was time to open up to dance floor. Dana had given me a request list that had a wide range of music. It was perfect for her party. The guests took a little bit of encouragement to get our party going, but once I got them on the dance floor I couldn’t get them off the dance floor! I played everything from the electric slide to classic rock to sing-alongs and today’s new hits and everybody was dancing to everything I played.

At the end of the day Michael and Dana were so happy. They told me, “It was perfect, we couldn’t have asked for anything better”. They were an awesome bride and groom to work for and had great family and friends. I feel comfortable saying it might have been the best Sunday wedding I ever had the honor to DJ.

The beautiful photos are courtesy of Natalie from Reminisce Photos, www.reminisce-photos.com.