Wanna Play a Game?

Since you're attending my bridal shower by blog, I thought you might like to take the game offered. Answers are provided at the bottom - but DON'T YOU CHEAT!!!!!

HEY! I said stop it! NO CHEATING!! (Ryan - I'm especially interested to hear how you did on this quiz.)

Tell me how many you got right and you'll win an invisible prize. HA! :) And if you had any especially funny answers, tell me those too.

READY??

1. What is Bekah's given name?

2. What is her favorite color?

3. What is her favorite food?

4. What is the name of the book Bekah wrote. (STOP cheating!)

5. What is her least favorite household chore?

6. When is her birthday? (My mom got this one WRONG! Can you believe it?)

7. What is her favorite movie?

8. How tall is Bekah?

9. What is her shoe size?

10. How does she like her coffee?

11. Where does she like to get her coffee?

12. What does Bekah like to do in her spare time?

13. Where did they go on their first date?

14. How did Ryan and Bekah meet?

15. What would Bekah say is Ryan's best feature?

You thought I was going to put the answers RIGHT HERE after so you could cheat, didn't you?

People. Not my first blog post.

So while you ponder.....

Okay. Now for your answers:

1. Rebekah Joy Freelan. Always told Mom that Rebekah Cranky Freelan would have been a lot easier to live up to.

2. Purple. (Poor Ryan. He's so graciously moving into my purple palooza bedroom. And he hasn't complained.)

3. Pizza. I had several complaints that the answer wasn't chocolate. Chocolate is a great answer. But I was trying to think of the one food I could eat every day for every meal and never get tired of it - and that is pizza.

4. His Advent: Still His Greatest Gift

5. Dishes. I would rather throw them away and buy new ones than wash them. And I may or may not have done that once or twice in my lifetime. Don't judge me.

6. May 14th. Born on Mother's Day. Made her work on her own holiday.

7. Where the Heart Is. Has Natalie Portman in it. Movie about the Wal-Mart baby. Ironic that anything to do with Wal-Mart would land on my favorites list, isn't it? :)

8. 5'6"

9. Size 8. Or 8 1/2. Or 9. Depends on how the shoe is made.

10. With cream and sugar. Another great answer given at the shower was "all the time." LOL!!!

11. Starbucks - or really anyplace that sells it. Not a coffee snob.

12. Scrapbook. Or kiss Ryan. But my mom was at the shower, so I went with scrapbook.

13. It was an all day date, so acceptable answers included: White River State Park, the Canal, the zoo, and Red Robin.

14. Technically we went to school together throughout elementary and high school but we really didn't know each other until we met at church.

14. The real answer? Hiney. And let me tell you the expression on my mother's face when I announced THAT to everyone while standing in a church. (I'm SORRY! It's TRUE!!!!) So I quickly changed it to smile.

How did you do?? How many did you get right?

A Virtual Bridal Shower

Saturday was another first in the land of the engaged FreeShaffers...a bridal shower!! Since so many of you said you've loved going along this journey with me, I thought you might like to go to the shower via blog post! (And don't worry. I won't post any of the ultra embarrassing pictures.) (Maybe.)

And this may take a couple of posts. Hope that's okay!

My shower was held at Greentown Wesleyan Church, and Ryan's mom was the mastermind behind it. She did an AMAZING job. I so appreciated her hard work!!

The shower had a coffee theme. Hmmm. Wonder what inspired her to do THAT!?!?! :) All the tables were decorated with candles and coffee beans. Loved it so much.

This was the first time I'd seen my Aunt B since I got engaged, so she wanted to see the ring. Boy that was a tough request to fill... :)

The lovely ladies of my family in attendance. Of course you know my Mom...and then Julie came up from Indianapolis for the occasion...and Aunt B, too! :) I think Mom failed to get the scarf memo...

This is "Grandma Sue." She has been a longtime friend of our family, and she goes to church with Ryan and me. Back in my desert days, she listened to my cry for hours on the phone and prayed valiantly for me. She figured out before most at church that Ryan and I loved each other and said she loved the idea of the two of us together. Nita asked her to pray over our food and the shower - and I loved being prayed for by Grandma Sue! (She said I could call her that...and since my own grandmas are in Heaven now, I'm so grateful for her!!)

I call this piece - Bridal Smorgasboard. I kept telling myself...remember the dress. You have to fit into the dress. Don't get too fat for the dress. :) All the food was so good. We had breakfast casseroles and French toast bake and fruit salad and breads and muffins and..and...and...

...and COFFEE!! HELLO!!!!!!!

Before we started the main part of the shower, Grandma Sue asked if she could share something. She told a story that she'd told me back when I was in the desert. You can read the full story here if you want - very very cool redemptive story.

Anyway. So she told that story to all the ladies present - which were a mix of my family, Ryan's family, and ladies from church. Everyone had tears in their eyes when she finished speaking - and I just so appreciated what she had to share! Thanks, Grandma Sue!

And then we played a game called...how well do you know Bekah? I was a bit afraid that I might not know myself all that well!! :)

Everyone working diligently on their answers....

Getting ready to give the answers - with my future mother-in-law, Nita. Isn't she beautiful?

Singing a little opera. Okay just kidding. Reading the answers. And you can't see it but I still have a firm grip on that coffee cup!! :)

So that's the bridal shower...part A. Hope you liked it. I think tomorrow I'll let you take the quiz. See how well you know your bits girl!!!! :)

It's the Weekly Recap!!

Last Sunday, Ryan took me to my first ever Colts game! He LOVES football and I'd never been to a pro game before. So he found us some tickets and off we went! I still understand (ahem) NOTHING about this game, but I made a fun day of it anyway and just adored being part of something he loves so much. Even better...the Colts WON! 

* Monday night I got to meet more of Ryan's extended family and that was one loving bunch. They welcomed me to the family with many hugs (and pizza) and I loved it! I did not take pictures so they wouldn't sit around 40 years from now and talk about that day the crazy Bekahrazzi girl showed up with the camera. :)

* Tuesday night I had dinner with Jenny - for the first time in a LONG time. I'd missed her! She brought a little gift for Ryan and me - our very first "Mr. and Mrs." gift! LOVE IT!!!

Then I went home and Ryan came over to help me work on the office. It was a MESS. (Seriously. Hoarders should have showed up.) We worked for a couple of hours and got it whipped right into shape. So thankful for a fiance who isn't afraid to jump in and help (and in truth, does a way better job of it than I do).

* Wednesday night: night #2 of premarital counseling. We learned how to argue. Yes. I actually needed lessons in that! And after that...we had a little coffee/dirt pudding date. MAN it was good. (Random trivia fact: dirt pudding was the very first thing Ryan ever made for me. Good choice. Way to my heart = through a dirt pudding filled tummy!)

* Thursday was the only day we didn't see each other this week - sob. I hate those days! But I got a lot done, including stopping by Rachel's to get my wedding jewelry.

I did a little wedding shopping for odds and ends and then many chores at home. It was a good night to get stuff done but I much prefer nights that include Ryan.


* Friday night I lost several years of my life in line at Meijer. It seriously looked like Christmas Eve in there. Good GRIEF!!! I put on Facebook that if I didn't make it out...people could send my Christmas cards to Meijer, attention aisle seven.

Then Ryan and I road tripped to Indianapolis to pick up my best friend, Lynnette, who came in for the weekend to be part of my wedding shower and bachelorette party! SO glad to see her!

* Yesterday (and I'll post much more about this in the coming days) I had my first ever bridal shower and bachelorette party! Such a WONDERFUL day to be able to spend with my friends. They loved me so well! Here's a sneak peek:

Pinterest Inspiration: I found this one this week when I hunted around for Thanksgiving ideas:

Source: thedatingdivas.com via Rebekah on Pinterest

You write a message on a piece of paper and bake it into a crescent roll. I just bought a tube of dough - this girl doesn't make rolls from scratch. (That's my Mom's gig, not mine.) And I printed the little free printable for Ryan - because I appreciate him so much! OH! And I rolled the dough in cinnamon and sugar before I baked it - just to give it a sweet edge.

Random Thoughts from the Engaged Brain

I have so many small thoughts rushing through my head...not enough to each merit their own post, but perhaps if I brain-dump them all into this post, that will create some free space in my head. So I suppose that means...welcome to life in Bekah's brain. I'd wear a hard hat if I were you.

* THANK YOU, thank you, thank you for all your ideas (and effort in that direction for those of you...ahem...Julie...who found yourself with Friday brain) toward my something old. Y'all are CREATIVE! Thanks for the comments and emails...you've given me some great inspiration. I love it. There were so many good ideas, I'll probably have 12 "something old's." LOL!!

* WHAT is this new bridal show called "Bada bling." Seriously? These dresses are um...a lot of dress. (AKA I think the dress I posted yesterday would fit well on some of these brides.) I just think it's in poor taste for the dress to weigh more than the bride. But that's just me.

* It's still fun to run into someone in the store that I've not seen since I got engaged...and hear them say, "Did I hear that you're...." (Almost as if finishing the sentence would negate the engagement.) (Actually it might be kind of funny to fill in the sentence with something totally unrelated and watch their reaction.) (Why do I not think of these things while I'm in the store?)

* Ryan had a long day yesterday and it was such a joy to come home and make dinner for him and spend the evening spoiling him. I'm sorry his day was rough but I was so glad that spending the evening together made it better.

*Braeya is obsessed with this new bed. Ryan moved his bed over last weekend (leaving him stuck at home on a couch for the next three weeks - BLECH!) and Braeya is IN LOVE.

This is where you'll find her most of the time. Curled up watching I Love Lucy.

* Believe it or not, we have almost everything done for the wedding. I have about 2 craft projects left to do - both pretty minor - and I think that is extraordinary for a wedding that had only 8 weeks to be planned. To be 3 weeks away and not be scrambling has to be some sort of Bekah-record.

* Curiosity question - for those of you who are married - how long did it take you to sort of figure out a regular schedule together after you got married? Ryan and I talk often about the things we need to prioritize into each day but I know the meshing of schedules and commutes will take an adjustment. Just curious how long it took some of you to settle in.

* So excited that my best friend is here this weekend! She came in for my bridal shower and bachelorette party. So excited to see her! Welcome to weddingland, Lynnette!

Well...New, Borrowed and Blue, Anyway

Okay, peoples.

Help.

I've just been ITCHING to tell you all about the wedding plans and show you stuff because, well, I'm a girl and I like to do stuff like that. But there are some things Ryan and I want to keep a secret until the ceremony, so...sigh...I wait.

But I've run into a glitch, so I need your help. You know that whole "something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue" saying? Yep. Struggling with that one. Let me show you what I have.

My something new is my beautiful dress:

Hee hee hee. That may or may NOT be my actual dress. (Hint...it's not.) Although if I'd picked that one, I never ever would have to suck in during the wedding.

And then there's the something borrowed. One of my blognonymous friends let me borrow her veil, and I adore it. (This picture feels so Father of the Bride to me...)

 And then there's my something blue:

 Aruba Blue, to be exact! (Don't worry. It's not going on my fingernails. Just on my tootsies.)

And because blue is one of our wedding colors, I also went to my friend Rachel for some of her amazing handmade jewelry. One of these two will be my necklace. I have to get the dress back from alteration and try it on with both necklaces to see which one I want to use.

Anyway.

I DON'T HAVE SOMETHING OLD!!! At this rate, I may have to be my something old. :)

I'm not carrying a traditional bouquet, so a lot of the things I initially thought about are out (brooch, handkerchief, Bible, etc.).We don't really have heirloom jewelry in our family. So what should I use for my something old?

Any ideas?

Things I Look Forward to Enjoying

Twenty-four days remain until I become Mrs. Ryan Shaffer...and I adore writing that.

Most days I still can't believe that this is my life...that he's chosen me and that very soon the wedding I attend will be my own. How is this possible? I'm waiting for the moment to hit when I fully absorb that I'm the bride this time.

But this I can tell you. There are so many things I look forward to about the post-wedding life. Things I have longed to enjoy for many years, though some of them might seem silly when I type them outright. Even so, I fully intend to enjoy every moment of these things.

* Morning coffee. Ryan and I are both avid coffee drinkers and I'm excited to find our own version of morning coffee. Reminds me of my grandparents (who lived out their marriage in this very house) and their daily ritual of morning coffee and devotions.

* Being a car passenger on a snowy day. I hate driving. Well, I mean, I don't mind it entirely but when given an option, I'd ALWAYS rather be the passenger. I can't imagine the joy of being in the car on a snowy day - and NOT being the one to drive.

* Someone to pray with. Of course I can pray by myself but there is something so lovely about sharing that with someone else.

* Cooking dinner for Ryan. How many times have I longed to have someone here to cook for? To plan for? To shop with? Now he's here and I can't wait to fulfill that dream and desire.

* Decorating the Christmas tree together. When you put up seven trees, you need help. (In a variety of ways.) But I"m not just looking for a helper. I"m looking for someone to SHARE with. And I found him!)

* NOT walking into family gatherings alone. In fact, I'm ready to not walk into ANYTHING alone anymore. Family gatherings, church, weddings, you name it.

* Someone to plan for. My day planner has scribbles of all sorts of dates I want to plan and execute just to make him smile. I love having someone to plan for!

* Not falling asleep by myself. And while we're at it - not waking up by myself.

* Someone to laugh with - and believe me - we do a LOT of that already!

* Weekend road trips!! Taking off for something fun - and having Ryan by my side!!

* A new last name! I'm updating the post to include this one because I'm SO excited about it. So excited to be a Shaffer. (And not just because making a cursive S is more fun than a cursive F.)

 I love it.

Let's do THAT.

My First Colts Game

There's this thing called football...ever heard of it? I really hadn't either until I started dating. But while I don't understand anything about the game, let it never be said that your Bits Girl doesn't give valiant effort to full participation in those things that quicken the heart of her man.

And so it was that last Sunday, I donned a new Colts shirt (gift from the love of my life) and Colts socks (gift from the love of my life) and Colts earrings (gift from the best future mother-in-law on the planet) and blue nail polish (chosen and applied by yours truly) and a Colts sweatshirt (borrowed from the love of my life) and two strands of beads (bequeathed from my Colts loving sister)...

...and we went to a Colts game!

 We were right in the middle of this photo opp when some guy on a bike said, "Oh are you selling those tickets?" Do we look like people who are prepared to sell these tickets? I think not.

 My official photo with Lucas Oil Stadium. And an ill-placed pole that blocked part of our view.

 Our seats. GREAT seats for photos. Great seats period. But when you're afraid of heights, these seats cause you to cling a little more tightly to the one you love.

 He didn't seem to mind.

 This bad boy flew around before the game. Ryan said if he were in charge of flying it, he'd be tempted to fly it as close to the crowd as possible. I so hope he never gets the itch for his pilot's license...

 Not that I ever watched Dallas Cowboys Making the Team show...but if I had, ever in my life, I'd have to say their coaches would have not liked these lines. But it's still better than I could have done. (Their non-matching outfits messed with my OCD!!)

 Welcome to the field, boys!!! Wanna know something funny? Never saw Andrew Luck the entire game. Found out later he had one of the best games of his career. And I didn't even know he was in the house! Football fail.

 Perhaps because I was too busy being fascinated by the giant inflatable horse?

 Loved the National Anthem (sung by a man who could actually sing and didn't try to be all fancy pants) and the giant flag that covered the field.

 KICK OFF!!!

 My patient, long-suffering sweetheart who paused for photos. I hope he watched a little of the game amid my shoulder-pokes and "what's that??" So like taking a two year old to a game.

 The only Dolphins fan in our section. If he was standing and no one else was, I knew I shouldn't clap.

 TOUCHDOWN BABY!!!!!!! (That's a good thing.)

 The one thing I learned in the game. When to yell FIRST DOWN!!!! It only took until the 4th quarter to get that one.)

 Enjoying my first game. From a seated position.

 Photo of my friend Ehrin, who was in this section. See her?

 In my next career I want to be Blue. You don't have to suck in.

 COLTS WIN!!! 23-20!!! (I understood that part.)

 Goodbye first Colts Game ever in my life!

And you've now enjoyed a football game post which contained no actual photos OF THE GAME. Rookie.

In Which I Prepare for a Wedding

Y'all, I'm weary. In an effort to keep everything above reproach, I've spun circles around myself to explain that I am NOT pregnant, I am NOT cohabitating, and a host of other NOTS. So in that vein, I say to you - you have every right to judge me for the content of today's blog. You have every right to lecture me. But this post is just supposed to be a funny story about wedding prep. So can you just judge me ever so quietly and let me continue to giggle at myself for the ridiculousness that is this portion of the adventure?

I am a schedule sort of girl. I pride myself on specific chunks of time set aside for things like devotions and exercise and basic I'm-really-not-a-hoarder cleaning. But I think when the Bible said that pride goes before destruction, it was referring to the engaged woman. The engaged woman whose life (especially when only possessing 60 days in which to plan a wedding) is suddenly taken over by things like dress shopping, vow writing, alteration appointments, hair color, and making lists of things to pack. (Plus about 400 more things.) (Plus trying to see all the friends who want to meet my fiance before the wedding.) In order to do those things, you have to give up life's more basic pleasures.

Like showering. (I'm KIDDING. I still take showers.)

So the whole firm resolve to do the 30 Day Shred EVERY DAY from 30 days ago until the wedding has morphed into a flabby resolve to do a few crunches when I have 2 spare minutes between projects. (The other day, that was when Ryan was busy assembling a TV. I tumbled onto the floor beside him and started contorting into awkward versions of crunches. He stifled a laugh and said, I'm so proud of you, honey. Good answer, Love.)

Instead I've tried to cut my portions at mealtime, cut out pop, and any froofy coffee drinks that don't come in a non-fat version, and snack on things like graham crackers rather than Blizzards.

But a couple of weeks ago, when I had time to do the 30 Day Shred, I woke up the next morning and my inner thighs were SCREAMING. I saw Ryan that day and as I gingerly limped away from him, he said, "Did you hurt yourself, Baby?"

I threw a disgusted glance his way and said, "As a matter of fact, I did. I put my heart and soul into that stupid workout so I can look pretty in my dress for you and the ONLY area it seems to have affected is MY INNER THIGH. I think I'll put a note in the wedding program to please take special care to notice the slim inner thighs of the bride - WHICH NO ONE WILL SEE IN MY DRESS.

(Warning: this is the part where you might be tempted lecture. I beg you to swallow it.)

Ryan and I are getting married on the beach. As in...in the sun. Ryan suggested we tan in preparation for this.

I haven't tanned in 10 years. Last time I did so was in preparation for a wedding in which I was a bridesmaid sporting an ultra pale blue dress and my ultra Casper complexion was not a good match. So I tanned. And then I said...no more. I knew it wasn't good for my skin.

But I'm getting married. In a white dress, which, last time I checked, is even paler than ultra pale blue. And we're going to honeymoon in the sun, so it would be good to have a base, I suppose.

So I looked up a tanning bed and made my way in to buy a package.

The girl-who-is-really-good-at-her-job at the front desk also talked me into a bottle of lotion, and I made my way into the little room and prepared to tan.

But you know how it goes. You can only reach SO far when self-lotioning. And given that I'd just met the girl at the front desk, I didn't think I should run back out there to see if she could get my back. (That and the large picture window overlooking a major highway....)

So.

I did the best I could and I tanned. (And nearly had a heat stroke. They should air condition those things.)

And the next day I yelped when I got in the shower because APPARENTLY the lotion on the back failed ENTIRELY. And I'm burned all the way down my lower back and the ahem...lower than that region. WITH (oh don't miss this part) - a white stripe down my spine where apparently the bulb did not exist.

So I'm a pink and white skunk on my backside. The parts everyone can see? No visible sign of color.

So I say this to you - after I get married and you see pictures? Please take note of my hard work for slim thighs and a well-tanned back.

Sigh. At least it makes for good blog fodder.

This is Really Real!!!

Sometimes Ryan and I shake our heads and say - is this really our lives?? How did we go from where we were and the hurts we had...to being together...and being 28 days away from being married? How did this happen?

Last night we were driving home and Josh Wilson's song Before the Morning came on. Oh goodness - how many HUNDREDS of times did I listen to that song during my desert and cling to it for hope while simultaneously believing it would NEVER be true for me? That the pain I was feeling would surely kill me. Surely.

And yet it did not and the song is true - it really was just the dark before the morning.

Ryan and I spent much of this past week beginning the (apparently never-ending) process of combining our households. And with each step we took, it felt just a little more real to me!

Last weekend, we purchased our first "together" piece of furniture. An entertainment center! Here's something I adore about Ryan: he's a go-getter. We walked in the door with it...and never mind that it was 9:30 at night...he opened the box and set about assembling it. Melt.

 Ummmm....perhaps there were more pieces than he bargained for?

 For those of you wondering...Braeya has transitioned quite nicely to having Ryan around. She loves him ever so much and apparently she also loves to supervise his work.

 2 hours later and...DONE!

 So then just this weekend, Ryan and our friend Adam showed up with a trailer full of "the big stuff." As you saw in the weekly recap...one of the big things was this mattress. I did not think they would get it up the stairs. To turn that corner right there and make it up the narrow staircase is...excruciating. And I think both of them would offer a hearty amen to that. Nevertheless, they did it!

 Ryan estimated the mattress to weigh in excess of 200 pounds. I think they both deserved a frappe for that, don't you?

So it's really real...he's moving in, and every time I walk past something he brought with him...or something we've purchased together...I'm so blessedly reminded that the song is true. It really was just the dark before the morning, and now the morning is HERE!

* Clarification - again - because I had a question about it. NO we are not living together before we are married. We were just moving his stuff in so we could get the house put together before the wedding. He is still living at his house and I am still living at mine. *