This is the first week of the holiday madness and I already found myself at the end of a lunch, realizing my blouse was inside out. I have vowed to temper and pace, from here on in.
Tom Turkey tossed it to St. Nick last weekend, and snowflakes replaced pumpkins. There could be no more dazzling segue than the magical, Thanksgiving weekend wedding of Sharon Bush to Bob Murray.
This is a story that swells hearts and gives hope that love exists at every stage of life, keenly so in theirs. Bob, a handsome, ex-Wall Street banker, who lost his first wife to cancer, and lived in Dobbs Ferry to be close to his kids, was introduced to Sharon. And after more than a one year of courtship, there they were surrounded by family and friends, tying the knot.
We all know and adore Sharon, but didn’t know Bob well. “This is your debut”, she warned him. He passed with flying colors. Joel Osteen, the famed televangelist, and dear friend of Sharon’s, flew in from Houston to perform the nuptials.
His church seats 15,000. We were 150. The opera singer, Barbara Grizer sang “One Thousand Years” and we teared up and smiled at the same time, as Sharon and Bob sailed through the church and onto the reception at the same club where I was married, 30 years ago.
Sharon’s son, Pierce, ‘M.C.’ed the evening and Sharon’s girls showed their toasting chops. “When I was 16, I snuck out to go on a first date” her daughter Ashley told us. “My Mom is a very protective mother, and is famous for calling multiple times, but after 5 missed calls, I eventually turned my phone off … A few minutes later, my dates phone started to ring with a call from an unknown number. It was the Secret Service. Mom had told them to ‘look into him’, track us down and to call to find out how it was going. There was no second date.” Ashley is actually married to lovely, fearless fellow now, Jules Lefevre.
Lauren Bush Lauren told us “From what I know of Bob, he gardens, cooks, does crossword puzzles, is great with finance sheets, seems to enjoy planning and even composts. I can safely say, Mom does none of these things. But she will bring life, energy some Italian style passion, and love to everyone around her.” That seems to be a very nice balance. They’ll be moving into new digs on Beekman Place this month and will have a safari honeymoon in the spring.
Lisa and Donald Jackson kicked off the holiday season in their chic, 4 floors, modern apartment in a sleek Park Avenue building, tucked between the pre-war dowagers. Lisa is always on design’s cutting edge. Their daughter’s beau, Dexter Zimet’s catering company, Food in Motion tempted and sated us. Pals like Vera Wang, David Sawyer, George Farias and Danielle and David Ganek launched the silly season, happily here.
Of course, Christmas is defined by Wendy Carduner’s joyous, extravagant display at Doubles — from the polar bear down to the famed cookies. I did a double header, both lunch and dinner there in one day and feel like I had the B-12 Holiday shot, though it has only just begun. I’ll need the real shot soon. And a righted blouse.
Photographs by Debbie Bancroft and Jean-Pierre Uys (Bush Wedding)
