It's the Weekly Recap!

My first weekly recap as a married woman! :) Love it!

* Not much happened last Sunday. You know...just GOT MARRIED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :) Hope you've been enjoying the wedding coverage this week. I guess there's no point in rehashing the day when I've been doing so all week and am not done yet! :) But here is one of my FAVORITE pictures of the day, taken by my friend Christi:

* Monday we went our for our first meal as a married couple...breakfast at the Broken Egg in Siesta Key! Weather was amazing, so we ate outside! We took it easy that day - just kind of lounging around the resort, enjoying the beach and pool. And we had a great dinner out that night too!

* Tuesday (are you ready for this? Brace yourself!!!!) we went kayaking. Yes. Your Bits girl is SO in love that she allowed herself to be talked into getting into a little rent-a-boat (literally) and went on an excursion in alligator infested waters. Ok that last part was a joke. I hope.

* Wednesday evening one of my bucket list wishes came true because we went on a sunset dinner cruise around Sarasota Bay. I was completely enamored with the whole trip. Loved it so so much. I think Ryan loved watching me be so giddy happy about the whole thing!!

* Thursday, Ryan's world became complete when we spent part of the day riding a tandem bicycle. My dear people, there will be much more about this at a later time and TRUST ME. You do not want to miss it.

* Friday we said a sad, sad farewell to our week in paradise and began our long trip home. We were not happy to leave the beach (and shorts weather) but we were really excited about our stop on the way home - at a bed and breakfast in Georgia! Check THIS out:

* And yesterday we completed our journey home...and we decided we really enjoy traveling together. Any couple who can survive that many hours in the car together and still feel love toward each other...has a great shot, I'd say. :) We are so excited to begin life.

Pinterest Inspiration: Someone sent this one to me on Facebook the weekend of the wedding:

Source: via Becca on Pinterest

So we tried it!

Families and Such (Lots of And Such)

For those of you wondering...will we ever get to see the wedding?? Yes, indeed you will. Someday. (Still waiting on some pictures to complete it.) Meanwhile, hope you're enjoying the behind the scenes footage.

We decided to take a little tour around the grounds and on the way, I felt compelled to check the mail. Looks like Ryan was expecting something exciting!!

 Hand in hand with my love.

 We liked this tree. So we had our picture taken in front of it. Sorry I have no more exciting explanation than that.

 This is where we stayed for the week and where our wedding was held. I have to say - Ryan did an amazing job when he picked this one out. We came here sight unseen and we really enjoyed it. Almost all the rooms are ground level and are big. We had a full kitchen and a table and a couch and a king size bed. There are a couple of pools, easy beach access, free movies and coffee in the office, and it's in walking distance of a lot of restaurants and shops! (So if you're needing a place to stay on Siesta Key, we loved it at Tropical Beach Resorts!) The price was so great that most of our guests stayed here too! They all loved it as much as we did!

 Okay back to the wedding. :) Our paparazzi following. (I loved it!!)

 This is the guy that gave us our free breakfast burritos the day of the wedding. We thought he was the best food cart we'd ever eaten from!!! He was really friendly, made AWESOME breakfast burritos and we also had bagels and hot dogs from him too. We stopped by in our wedding gear to have our picture taken with him. If you ever stay at Tropical Beach Resorts, visit him!! He's great!

 Ryan was so good - carried my train (or tail, as he called it) for me all day long.

 We were pleasantly surprised at how many of our family members traveled from Indiana to be part of our wedding day! This is Ryan's grandma, Blanche and her husband, Bob. They have been so sweet to me, welcoming me right into the family. They really seemed to enjoy their time in Florida and the wedding itself! (His grandma told me it was the most beautiful wedding she'd ever seen.)

 Ryan's dad, Gary, and his step-mom, Lynn. I've really enjoyed getting to know them. We didn't know if they'd be able to come, but they did, and we appreciated that so much!

 Ryan's mom, Juanita, his step-dad, Allen, and his sister, Bre were also there. So appreciated all Ryan's mom's hard work to take pictures the weekend of the wedding (and all our engagement pictures too)! Ryan also has a brother and another sister...I was so sad they couldn't be there too, but I was really glad Bre was able to join us!

 And the Freelan mafia! This picture just continually cracks me up. It was so bright outside and because there were so many of us, we had to stand outside the gazebo. I suggested we keep our sunglasses on and my mom was the only one who didn't have any. So Sara loaned Mom her glasses and once she had them on, I heard Sara yell out, "HEY MARILYN!! Ever worn Victoria's Secret before??? You're wearing it now!!!" I thought Mom would rip the glasses right off and throw them in the palm trees but she was a good sport and kept them on. Hee hee hee.

 (From the left - Mom and Dad, then Cassie's boyfriend, CJ, and Cassie, Jeff and Lori, and Julie. Julie is married too, but her husband wasn't able to join us for the wedding.)

Dad talking to Ryan before the ceremony. I so appreciated him taking time to give good wishes to Ryan. Not sure what all they talked about - but this was a special moment for me to watch. And yes, Dad is wearing a baseball cap that says "How Old I Art." We are still giggling about that.

 We didn't have boutonnieres for the family members but I made one for Jeff. When Jeff found out Dad was going to walk me down the aisle, he said he'd rather have Dad wear it. I failed at putting it on Dad, so Ryan took over. No bleeding!!!

 It was SO hot out there that I was sweating pretty badly. I kept yelling for my iced tea! (Not bridezilla yelling. Just yelling because no one was really paying attention.)

 Walking away for more pictures in a different location. Ryan and I exchanged lots of laughs that day.

 Telling stories to Ryan, Adam and Sara. No idea what I was saying, but this is such typical Bekah.

Wedding week(s) continues next week here at Bekah's Bits!

First Looks

Remember how I told you Ryan and I threw all tradition to the wind when we elected to spend the morning together the day of our wedding? Well we also decided we wanted to see each other in our wedding attire before the wedding began. My main reason for wanting to do it was because I wanted that first exchange between us to be as intimate as possible. Even though we didn't have a ton of people at our wedding, I didn't want it to be something the whole beach witnessed. And...since we got married at sunset, we needed to be able to take a bunch of pictures before the wedding, while we had the advantage of daylight. SO. We elected to do a "first look" before the wedding.

When we arrived at the resort the day before the wedding, we walked around for a while (neither of us had ever visited there before, so we had no concept of what to expect as far as the location went) - looking for the perfect spot to see each other for the first time.

We chose a little gazebo not far from the entrance to our room. We decided to meet at 2 p.m. for our first look, so about 5 til 2, I sent Cassie outside to find Ryan and tell him I was ready. His mom was doing a photo shoot with the groomsmen...and please let the record show, they told me to wait a few minutes. Yes. AGAIN the bride was ready first. Ahhhhhh. :)

Before I show you our first look together, can I tell you about my first look at myself? I commented over and over throughout the engagement that I never really felt like a bride! Not even when I tried on the dress (when I bought it or during alterations) or when I had my bridal showers or any of it. I just never got the "bride feeling" people talked about. But when I looked in the mirror for the first time after I was completely assembled, I burst into tears.

I was a bride. ME. The girl who had prayed for this day for 30 years...was a bride.

 That was me looking back at Sara and Lynnette saying "I'm a bride!!" (Think they were crying too at that point.) I just stood for the longest time, looking at myself and absorbing that moment. I, Rebekah J. Freelan (in her last few moments AS a Freelan) was a bride. And for those of you who understand my years and years of self-esteem issues, you'll understand what a huge thing it was for me to also look in that mirror and think I was pretty. I so rarely think that. But I did that day. I looked in the mirror and thought oh if only I'd known all those many years ago....that I'd turn out pretty on my wedding day...I'd have been so relieved.

 And then it was time to go. Time to walk down the little road that separated me from the gazebo...and see my almost-husband. (It was 80 degrees that day, by the way, so this was the beginning of a serious sweat-fest.)

 Deep breath. Walking up the ramp into the gazebo. Ryan was ahead of me with his back to me. The two groomsmen, Adam and Mark were lurking nearby, and Cassie and Ryan's mom were there with cameras (one focused on each of us) -and Ryan's sister Bre was there too. They stepped back and let us enjoy our moment.

 Even before I'd seen his face, I was completely overwhelmed by the emotion of knowing the man in front of me was about to become my husband. That he had done all of this just for me. That he had worked so hard to make this day so perfect...and it was. It was perfect in every. single. way.

When I first walked in, I said, "I'm here," but I must have said it too quietly because he didn't hear me. So I stood for a few moments, and this was what I could see:

Finally, when I realized he wasn't turning around because he hadn't heard me, I gathered my composure, took another deep breath, and said, "Sweetheart?"

 And this was the look on his face when he turned to see me:

And then:

It was the most tender moment - just like I'd always hoped for.

 We just whispered to each other, all kinds of love.

 And then he wanted to take in the whole look:

 And I loved it. Loved watching his face as he looked me over and said over and over and over again how much he loved my dress.

 And I LOVED his wedding outfit. (Of course, I'd already seen it, but I still loved it.) He looked SO so handsome.

 Twirling for my almost-husband. (And by twirling, I mean turning slowly.)

 Delight.

And of course, a little kiss. (For the record, I think this wedding, pre-photos included, contained the LEAST amount of kissing of any wedding I'd been to. Apparently no one really wanted to see us kiss!)

 Okay sorry this is such a long post - but not really sorry. :)

After we had our first look, we started taking other pictures. Ryan's mom served as our pre-wedding photographer because we only had the professional photographer for two hours (essentially for the time of the wedding itself). His mom did an AMAZING job. My niece also rocked it with my camera, right alongside her. All these first-look pics you're about to see were taken by Cassie. You did amazing, Cassie! Thank you!!!

My mom was the first in my family to see me in my full gear, and she cried when she saw me.

 My mom isn't a huge crier, so this was a pretty big thing that she cried when she saw me.

(That's Ryan's grandma in the background, along with her husband. They are so sweet! Love them.)

Next up to see me was my dad. Those of you who have been close to our story know why these pictures mean so much to me. Dad also cried when he saw me, which surprised me. He wished me blessings, which was probably the biggest gift he could have given me in that moment.

 (Yes. He was in a coat in 80 degree weather. Love that guy.)

 I think second to seeing Ryan, this was the most I cried all day.

 Asking Dad if he wanted to walk me down the aisle. I wasn't sure he wanted to, so I was nervous - but I knew if I didn't ask, I'd regret it.

 My face when he said yes.

 And after that exchange, I needed Ryan. He was right there and held me while I whispered in his ear that Dad would walk me down the aisle.

Also had the chance to greet both my sisters. Julie first...

 (Please don't pay attention to the clip in her hair. She didn't mean for it to still be in for this picture.) Anyway, she loved the dress. So glad she was able to make the trip for the wedding...she did a great job with a camera for me and was the only reason my parents were able to make the flight. So appreciated her help in getting them there and back!

 Sisters!

 And Lori! So glad she could be there too - wasn't sure for a while that she'd be able to make the trip because of her work schedule.

 And Lori's husband, Jeff, who married us. He did such an amazing job.

Sorry again for such a long post but I wanted you to feel like you were there. Oh my goodness. How much I cherished this time! Loved it so so much! Memories that I will treasure always.