Ashley and Chris were married July 31, 2009, in Petoskey, Michigan.

This was the first time since before we graduated from college that all of our group, lovingly referred to as the Clap (yes, there's a good story to that moniker), had been together at one time and in one place, despite reunions in Boston, Washington, Chicago, and Pittsburgh, and mini-reunions in Royal Oak and Ann Arbor over the past five years.

It was truly a a beautiful celebration for Ashley and Chris, and a special occasion for our gangs—hailing from the East Coast and the Midwest, and now including Oceania.

Mom picked me up at the airport on Thursday afternoon, and we headed to Best Buy to get an iPod attachment for the Yukon before the road trip began. I dropped her off at work and headed back to the airport to pick up Jo and Mike (who flew in from Washington) and Steph and Dale (arriving by car from Pittsburgh).

After saying our hellos, we piled into the Yukon and started the drive up to Petoskey, listening to music, catching up, chatting about their upcoming nuptials, and working on a Globe crossword puzzle that I hadn't finished.

Many thanks to Steph and Dale, as most if not all of these pictures are from their cameras.

We arrived just before 11 pm and checked into the hotel. I even managed to get a room to myself for Thursday night so I didn't have to bother either of the couples. After settling into our rooms, Jo and I had a little pow-wow to review the design for her wedding invitations, then met up with the rest of the crowd and headed to the Noggin Room (the hotel bar) where the rest of the wedding guests had gathered.

Ash and Chris joined the party soon thereafter. Ash was sick the day (or rather, week) before the wedding, but looked gorgeous. After visiting for a bit, we all headed to bed.

I woke up early on Friday morning for a run along the bay, taking some photos and generally enjoying the gorgeous scenery and weather, and preparing for the rest of the festivities.

Jo, Mike, Steph, Dale, and I met for breakfast at the hotel dining room before heading out to the annual sidewalk sale. On the way to check out the church where the ceremony would be held, we browsed and Dale was (shockingly) prohibited from taking a picture of the doggie bakery's confections. We headed to the pier to admire the picturesque view and beautiful wedding-day weather.

On my morning run, I discovered a little park with a small waterfall, bridge, and stream to the bay, plus a winding staircase (maybe five stories?) that provided an even wider-angle view, so I snapped some pictures with my phone.

As usual when we're all together, time flies, and we soon realized that we needed head back to the hotel and start getting ready for the 3:00 ceremony. Janel and Alan arrived, and the gals congregated in Steph's room. I'm fairly sure the guys got ready in record time and headed to the bar for a little pregame.

We managed to catch the last trolley to the ceremony, held at St. Francis Xavier Parish in Petoskey. The ceremony was lovely, and Mike and I provided Jo with a play-by-play ("they're kissing," "they're kneeling," "Dr. Adamczyk is coming!") since she couldn't see over the crowd. (Love you, Bebe!)

After the ceremony, we donned sunglasses and decided to make the short walk back to the reception (held on the veranda of our hotel) in the sunshine.

We located our table (#1, of course, with the best view) and waited for Ash and Chris to make their first appearance as Dr. and Mr. Zuzelski.

Each place setting featured one of Ashley's favorite treats, a chocolate chip cookie from Tom's Mom's in Harbor Springs.

At some point during the reception, someone (fairly sure it was Nellie) realized there was a statue nearby. A trip and photos ensued, including Janel politely—albeit loudly—asking a passerby to snap a couple photos of the whole group.

Does this remind anyone else of Michigan football games at the Big House and Keith Jackson saying, "Woah, Nellie!"

Ah, memories.

Chris and Ash finally stopped getting hounded for photo opportunities and could actually dance, uninterrupted, on the floor and on guests' shoulders.

After the band finished, we headed to the Noggin Room to relax. Serendipitously, we ran into my friend from college, Chris, and his mom, Shirlee. Their family has a house in Petoskey not far from Ashley's condo at Trout Creek.

Steph and Mrs. Kipp chatted about New Zealand and Australia, as Mrs. Kipp and Chris's sister, Katie, had just returned from a trip there. Chris and I caught up about what we'd been doing for the past few years. It was a nice surprise to run into them both.

On Saturday morning, we met for brunch with the rest of the wedding guests to say goodbye to Ash, Chris, Janel, and Alan before heading back downstate to drop Jo and Mike off at the airport.

Steph and Dale came back to Rochester for a night with my parents before heading back to New Zealand early Sunday morning. I spent Sunday with my parents and friends before heading back to Boston on Monday.

Here are a couple more shots from my Friday morning run. Not exactly sure what type of flowers these are, but they were growing right along the trail.