Jantzen gets married

The Road to Wisconsin

Last Wednesday, Jantzen and I drove from Chicago to Neenah, WI, where his (then) wife-to-be spent much of her childhood.  Jantzen's family and the wedding party slowing trickled in, bringing a great deal of excitement, laughter and absurd group games to fruition.

Bachelor Hike & Cheese Factory

On Thursday, Jantzen's brother Jerome did a phenomenal job of putting together some activities to commemorate Jantzen's final day as a bachelor.  We drove up to Lake Winnebago (at one point on an unpaved road...by "accident"), until we got to a serene trail head.

After hiking for a bit and coercing Jantzen to prove his macho-love for Jessica (see video), we had Jantzen jump from a tree branch into the arms of his groomsmen, to communicate his trust and our willingness to support him through uncertain times.  Actually, we just wanted to razz him a little because he was getting married the next day, but the "trust-fall" excuse really came in handy.

After hiking, we headed to a cheese factory, which is a rare find in Wisconsin. *cough* But really, the cheese was delicious, except the squeaky cheese, which I did not care for.  Also, did you know you can make Fudge Cheese? Of course not, because you can't.  But Wisconsin can.  And as weird as it sounds, they do a pretty good job of it.

After that, we went out to a lake, made Jantzen open a few faux gifts (one of which contained our lunch), and spent a few minutes talking about and praying for his married life.

Ceremony & Reception

On Friday, we slept in, dressed up, strutted around Wal-Mart with our tuxes on, and made our way to the church where the Loza union would be declared.

The pre-ceremony pictures were ridiculous and fantastic.  Some of which included a corn field, a giant fish mailbox, a playground and a *cough* broken slide.  Until the wedding began, the other groomsmen, Jantzen and myself sat in a room and (seriously) read scripture and prayed.  I love how God-centered my friends are.

Anyway, because Jantzen is a photography buff, he gave each groomsman a disposable camera, in order to take pictures of him and Jessica when they kissed during the ceremony.  That moment is forever immortalized.  Jantzen, you are a clever man.

At the reception, after a half-chicken dinner, excellent best-man/maid-of-honor toasts and some peculiar activity with a cake and a knife, the dance floor was opened.  The time that followed (approximately 4 hours) was an absolute party.  When Jantzen found out that his DJ was from a "Family Friendly" group called "Rock the Flock," and that they wouldn't dare play anything by Michael Jackson or Marvin Gaye, he was really concerned that the reception would be a flop.  The groomsmen and I assured him, however, that we were going to make the most of a hyper-conservative, Christian music dance party.

And make-the-most, we did.  Whenever something cheesy was said, one of us yelled out (usually me), "Rock the Flock!" in utter mockery and ironic support.  The more cheese, the more outrageous laughter!  And we all know, Wisconsin has a lot of cheese.  We did interpretive dancing, scottish line-dancing (kilts and all) and even limbo (special thanks to the bar tender for letting us use her broom handle).  Toward the end, the DJ played the hardest trasher-Christian-rock I have ever heard (and didn't know existed).  Each song became more and more un-danceable.  But we pressed on, until finally the towel was thrown in and the flock couldn't rock any longer.


Car Decoration

Following clean up, the wedding party headed out to the parking lot to let our creative energy have a go at Jantzen's and Jessica's get away car.  We tied on balloons, attached bottles to the back bumper, and tagged up the windows with lots of cutesy marriage phrases.  The car was a masterpiece.

Then the whole gang, minus Jantzen and Jessica of course, drove over to Perkins (owned by the same company as Marie Calendar's) for a late night snack.  Upon returning to the hotel parking lot, where Jantzen's car was located, Jerome and I found that the rain which had started only minutes before, had completely stripped away any trace of attractive decoration, leaving only a gloppy mess in it's place.  We were devastated.

The next morning, as the photographer, Rob, and I were getting ready to head back to Chicago, we came across Jerome in the parking lot re-doing the car decorations.  This guy really was the best man!  Rob and I were happy to help Jerome redeem the disaster, so that Jantzen and Jessica wouldn't be left wondering why the wedding party trashed their car the night before.

The Road to Chicago


Rob and I headed back to Chicago, passing numerous farms, lots of dairy-producing animals, and sharing memories of Jantzen, our own life adventures and heartaches.

My wedding trip to Wisconsin was truly a happy time.  Patrick, Andrew, Jerome and I were so honored to stand next to our man Jantzen.  He and Jessica will do well, because they are obedient to the voice of Christ.  May your love be divine.