There I stood. The perfect dress. The prettiest flowers. The veil I had dreamed of. Shoes so cute, I’d marry them too.
My bridesmaids scrambled to take their places. “I’m alone?” I thought to myself as I waited at the bottom of the staircase, grasping my bouquet. God’s presence seemed to shine through the windows and the love of my dad filled my heart. Not alone, but in the company of angels.
My two brothers came around the corner and took me arm-in-arm — our eyes sparkled with tears as we walked up the staircase. The three of us grasped each other as the moment quickly passed. The doors opened, my eyes darted down the aisle, and there he was … my best friend, my sweetie, my favorite.
Our eyes locked. Just as they locked three years ago. The first time I saw him, I knew. He stood on the opposite side of the street and waited next to his car as I crossed. “Well, this is it,” I thought then, on our first date, and I thought now, on our first day as husband and wife. “There he is. There’s my husband.”
The world, as it was, seemed to stop. I didn’t notice the flower petals or the pew bows … I didn’t see my friends from Florida, or the photographer, or the videographer … I didn’t glance over at the brass quintet, or at my mom, or at the calla lilies. I don’t know if my bridesmaids were tearing up, or if the groomsmen’s vests matched perfectly. All I saw was him. My love. And if the roof happened to blow off the church, I’m 80 percent certain I wouldn’t have blinked.
Welcome back, friends. I’m totally married. 🙂 Whether you’re a past bride or future bride-to-be, one thing is for certain: Your wedding day truly is the Best. Day. Ever. It’s pure magic. I’ve never smiled so much, laughed so much, danced so much, or been in the combined presence of so many amazing, inspiring friends and family members.
My apologies for a bit of an extended absence in the blog world. (I say that as if you actually missed me.) Tommy and I got back from our honeymoon just a week ago, and last week was dedicated to e-mails, editing and (of course!) … photo sessions. I can’t thank you all enough for your kind words, well wishes and cards! When I get an actual wedding gift from a client, it almost brings tears to my eyes. (You know who you are.) 😉 Cool clients are my equivalent of good office friends.
When we get our wedding photos back from our photographer, I fully intend to post some to the blog for you all to see! Our photographer has been a friend and mentor of mine for several years; he totally rocks, both as a photographer and as a person. You’ll see! 🙂
But first, I’ve decided to share some photos Tommy and I took on our honeymoon. That’s right, honeymoon first! Everyone sees the wedding photos, but seriously, who ever gets to see honeymoon pics?
Tommy and I left for San Francisco the day after our wedding. In the days before we got married — as our heads hit our pillows, entirely exhausted from Hurricane Wedding — we laughed about our non-existent honeymoon itinerary. “We’re going to get to San Francisco, see the tall buildings, suffer in the crazy traffic and say, ‘Where’s Brookfield??'”
Well, thanks to a split-second decision to purchase the 2011 Foder’s San Francisco guide, and a totally AWESOME husband, we had a blast … minus the four-hour nap I accidentally took on Day 1. (It was the absolute first time ever Tommy has woken me up from a nap.) I’ll call it the thank-goodness-our-wedding-is-over nap. 😉
The first photo is of Tommy doing a little exploring in Bridalveil Falls, located in Yosemite National Park. I’m all about a little rock jumping, but I’m also the proud owner of a couple very expensive cameras that don’t play well with rocks, so … I stayed behind.
As I was sitting at the base of the falls, I wanted so badly to capture what I saw, what I felt. Yosemite holds a peace and beauty you cannot describe. Not in a thousand words and not in a single photo. I tilted my head back, put on my widest lens and snapped the next shot. At least I’ll have the memory.
Camera timer fail. 🙂
If I had to pick just one spot from our honeymoon trip that absolutely left me breathless, it would be Yosemite’s Glacier Point. The first time you see it, you thank God for the gift of sight.
As you’ll notice in nearly all our photos, Tommy carried my backpack full of gear, which I could totally get used to. As some of you know, I’m a waist pack photographer (my back is more important to me than my vanity), but when I travel by air, I bring my Think Tank bag, for a million-and-one reasons.
This last Yosemite shot is for Tommy and my brothers … guys, see how nice deer can be if you shoot them with a camera? 😉
Alright, let’s head downtown for a bit. Saaaaan Fraaan!! Home to the Golden Gate Bridge, cable cars, the steepest one-way streets you’ll ever live through, and Fisherman’s Wharf.
You see, on your honeymoon, you get a full, uninterrupted week with your best friend — no cell phones, no e-mail, no text messaging, no Facebook, no nothing. And it’s pure heaven. But this leads to some interesting conversations. Tommy and I did quite a bit of driving, which left plenty of time to solve the world’s greatest problems, such as: What would you do if there was a bear in our back seat? (Tommy said he’d pull over and run like hell; I, on the other hand, would appease the bear with my sour gummy worms, and THEN run like hell.) It also leaves time to play, “Never Have I Ever.”
“Never have I ever been directly under the Golden Gate Bridge, and still haven’t been able to see it.” We took a boat ride under the bridge and around Alcatraz … but the famous San Francisco fog showed no mercy for two Wisconsin tourists.
Did you know the huge cable that helps support the Golden Gate Bridge is made of hundreds of tiny little cables bundled together? Me neither. Now we know.
Let’s talk a little about Lombard Street. It’s the crookedest street in the world. Before we left for our honeymoon, Tommy’s mom begged us to take a taxi down Lombard instead of driving it. I tended to agree — we can’t exactly afford any extensive auto body repairs. Which led to a Tommy and Katie 30-second Spat. He won this one — we drove it. (By “we,” of course I mean “he.”) And it was exciting!!!
I thought it was so funny how Lombard Street showed up on our GPS …
Looks like this guy should have taken the taxi cab shown above …
Down at Fisherman’s Wharf, nothing says, “I Love You” more than your diabetic husband stopping by the candy store to buy a half-pound of saltwater taffy …
Check out the view from the top of our hotel! I’ll take one office here with a window, please.
Skylines are cool, but redwoods are cooler. Tommy and I went to Muir Woods and Golden Gate Park to see the beautiful trees in person … at last, we felt short.
This is the type of light that warms you from the inside out.
The day we chose to drive Highway 1 was super foggy, but nonetheless, it was still a dream. Tommy’s first time on the coast of the Pacific!
Mussels!
Tommy spotted an awesome starfish on a rock where the tide was coming in, so as I chased back and forth, trying to steal a pretty picture, I asked him to let me know when the waves were about to hit. But he forgot about the rock full of mussels I had just photographed — with one of my cameras in hand, the poor guy fell backwards over the rock and performed the BEST camera save I’ve ever seen! He happened to be photographing me photographing the starfish with my backup camera … and although he was absolutely soaked, the camera hardly touched the sand. That’s why he’s my CEO. 🙂
Finally, friends, I’d like to share Napa Valley with you. We have an overwhelming amount of photos from our trip and it’s been hard to decide which ones to post, but I’d like to end with Napa. It was spectacular. We took a tour of Rubicon Estate, which is Francis Ford Coppola’s winery. There was a moment during the tour where our guide led us up a hill to overlook a valley filled with acres of grapevines. When we reached the top of the hill, the sun shown down on our faces and I have to say, it was one of my most favorite memories from the week. The view was nothing I can capture with a camera. The sun on my face was some of the warmest light I have ever felt. And these grapes make my mouth water …
And there you have it, a San Francisco honeymoon seen through our eyes! If any of you are actually still reading (bless your heart), you might see a few more California pictures pop up from time to time on my blog … far too many memories to share all at once.
Stop back soon, y’all! Lots of exciting changes coming up this winter. 🙂
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