A Fairytale Unfolds… #4

Alrighty, fast forward 1 week; Adima and I traveled down to Miami, FL on Thursday the 9th and spent the night @ the hotel w/ my mom and aunts. 

The next day everyone else started arriving .

Here’s Adima, mommy, and my bestfriend’s mom putting together favor boxes in the hotel room

 

and my bestfriend

Us downstairs in the hotel lobby.  We were getting ready for our “pre-reception” that night (night before the wedding) at the hotel. 

In this shot you can see I had my twists pulled back into 1, then the front tied down.

The hotel where we stayed. Holiday Inn Bayside, great location overnight stays before cruises

there’s a full outdoor mall across the street too.  I highly recommend this as a place to stay if you’re doing a pre-cruise overnighter in MIA.

So later than night we had planned a “pre-reception” on the top floor of the hotel for all our guests.  Reason being, we knew our actual reception after the wedding on the ship would be short and we wanted people to get to know each other before.  So we planned a super informal get together with food, drinks, music, games etc. and invited everyone to come.  It was SUCH a success!!

Here’s Adima and his oldest sister that night @ the pre-reception.

Guests arriving. Notice the varying hairstyles: L-to-R: my uncle is bald (used to have long locks), his daughter is natural (mixed), my cousin has long locks in a stocking cap, my aunt is permed, and my other aunt is almost bald (just cut off locs).

The table settings

My mom got these printed and didn’t even tell me. The napkins had the same thing on them too. And the boxes were filled with black cake, a Virgin Islands tradition.

Cakes and tarts my mother smuggled to Miami  … just kidding!  She got all them approved by the TSA

Dranks…all non-alchi, although my aunt did end up ordering wine from the caterer

The spread

My sister in law playing around w/ our new camera.

Adima’s hair:  cornrows braided low into box braids, then all of it braided in 1 cornrow.

Adima, my dad and my brother…my men.

My good friends, Armand & Lolita.  Armand rocks a chunky fro and Lo’s is relaxed in this shot (she is currently natural in 2009).  They were my videographers AND Lo praise danced during my ceremony.

DeVaria and my mom chatting. Check out DeV’s locs!!!

A closer shot

The view from our 10th floor room. Downtown Miami harbor…beautiful!

The “DJ” on his iPod

The room filled up quickly w/ family and friends

a shot of my hair

I was having a blast ya’ll!!!!!

My beautiful mommy

Another shot of Adima’s style

How could I not marry this man?  … LAWD HIM SO FOINE!!!!!!!

yes, I could not stop taking  pictures of DeVaria’s locs!

My cousin’s cornrows

My crazy uncle accosting my fiance

See, my gestures are hereditary!  … my mommy’s bestfriend arrives and she’s elated.

Adima closed out the night talking to my mom’s friend.  He’s so intrigued by her ’cause she’s from Haiti and speaks french (and so does he sorta kinda).  Her hair is natural as well and she has always worn it like this for as long as I remember her. The lady in the salmon shirt next to her is her daughter…notice the vast different in hair texture.

Me and my bestie closing it down.

Even though my mother da
ng near begged me to stay in the room w/ her and my dad I opted to get my own room the night before my wedding. I wanted peace and quiet and sleep. My friends tried to congregate down there but I eventually threw them out

That night I put my hair by myself and rolled the ends of the twists on soft rollers like so

I smooth the top out with my shea butter mixture and eventually tied it down with the pink and white satin scarf around my neck.

I had no problem falling sleep that night, which shocked me. I prayed, and went to bed.  God is good.