hey look! a new post :)

Smiley face at a restaurant in Fayetteville (rehearsal dinner) similar to Samurai in Miami

Okay so my last post said "post comming soon" ...I really meant later and in the prior post to that I said I would be posting about the wedding...so I'm waaaay behind!

One of my best friends, Teshina, got married! I can't believe it. She joins the Peace Corp goes to Madagascar and in less than two years finds a husband! Those were the first thougthts that ran through my mind when she told me she was engaged. My best friend was getting married and I never met the guy. I was anxious and worried. Really, she's engaged?
I purchased my tickets early and planned to stay in Fayetteville for about a week so I could see my family and chill with my friends. I was excited to know that the wedding was on the same day as my mother's birthday! :) Unfortunately, my mom had to fly to Puerto Rico that week to help my grandmother recover from pneumonia. (grandma is doing great now!) So I did what any friend would do. I bought my tickets as far in advance, requested off from work and made arrangements to get to the airport.
When I arrived to the local airport of Fayetteville, NC I realized how small of a town Fayetteville is in comparison to lil ole Miami! Its been about 5 years since I've made it back home where I spent my teenage years. Fayetteville is almost exactly the same except for a boom in Real Estate, homes and apartments scattered through out the city.
I got a chance to meet Teshina's husband and their friends from The Peace Corp. All very incredible people. The stories from overseas were hilarious but also very humbling. The night before the wedding we went to a little club located in a strip mall. Attire: shorts and t-shirt A-okay for a night of dancing in Da' Ville (not something u would see in Miami) We had a blast. The best man got the groom toasted. I was DD but still had a great time. I also paid for the cover charge for all the guests in the party... thirty bucks...something else u would never see in Miami. I've paid twenty bucks (for myself) just to get into one club in M-I-A. Boutchu and I bonded at this outing in a simple little club in a strip mall in Fayetteville.

Most of the time on this mini-mini vacation I was hanging out with Jenn (another best friend) from Fayetteville. We haven't seen each other in 2 years! Her mom made my favorite dessert called Blueberry buckle just for me :) (Val and Anne Marie one of u gotta see if u can bake it!) I like to call it happiness in a pan j/k It is like a blueberry muffin cake w/ a sugar topping (like coffee crumb cake). This dessert is soooo good warmed up w/a few scoops of vanilla ice cream. mmm mmmm good!

It felt like the good ole days of da 'ville.



Teshina had an outdoor wedding at the local Botanical Gardens. Beautiful place to have a wedding...in late fall or early spring. It looked great in August but sweat drenched tuxedos are not so comfy! We had a high of 95 degrees I think that day. It was hard to tell if Teshina was crying... or if sweat was rolling down her face j/k (it was a little bit of both). Nevertheless she looked beautiful!!! The wedding was nice and seemed to go by pretty quick. It was fun seeing old friends at the ceremony.
Now on to the reception. After the outdoor wedding we headed on to the Hilltop Restaurant. One of the few 4 star restaurants in the city. (indoors w/ Air conditioning too-huge plus after being outside in black tuxedos for an hour in the sun!) The bestman started off with his toast, then the maid of honor (Teshina's lil sister) and then Teshina's lil brother. Half the guests decided to make a toast to the new couple except for Teshina's two best friends. I was hoping that Jen would step up and say a few good words but she was to busy boo hoo-ing. So I figured this is a once in a lifetime opportunity and we wouldn't have a chance to say how incredible teshina is and give our blessing to the new couple. I got up to say a few words and got so choked up-the words would barely trip out of my mouth. Teshina's mom and dad said a few words that touched so many of our hearts that a stream of tears covered the dinning room. Teshina's mom said something that rang so true in my mind about her daughter. It went a little something like this: Teshina's Mom: "...Teshina has always been a special girl. She was always so down to earth and she would always do her best to help others with out asking. She would lift people up when they were down... We used to go on marching trips in German (called Vocks or Vogs marches-correct the spelling Anne Marie I don't know German) and one day on one of these marches, at the age of 13, Teshina turned to me and said Mom I'm great. At this point I thought uh oh my little girl could be getting a little full of herself and not a good thing at such a young age. I asked her what do you mean you're a great person? and she said I'm great b/c I see greatness in other people and I can help them with that greatness (at that point is when i started w/ the waterworks) Me-Berto, I didnt' think I would be crying at my best friends wedding...I thought that was something that women did at events like this but I guess its different when it is somebody so close to you. I got so choked up at words similiar to those (I don't remember her full toast exactly thats my version of her toast in a nut shell) b/c its true Teshina has always been there for me and she always saw greatness in people including me. She's helped me realize who I am as an individual. She opened me up to realize that the talents God has given me are anything but ordinary. At this point I was thinking how special Teshina really is and how lucky that Boutchu and Teshina are now husband and wife and are will continue to be an integral part of my life. So special that I too would now give a toast to honor the couple. Well...I tried to give a toast but I was so choked up w/ emotion that all that came from my mouth were a few short sentences telling everybody how true all the words spoken that night are and how lucky I am to have a friend so special in my life. -Val and Lauren don't expect a toast from me at your weddings. I'm not making a fool of myself again j/k. I have to wrap this up its getting late.

I had to cut my trip short b/c I had a mandatory orientation for the Scholar Nurse Program at Baptist that I was told by the director I absolutely could NOT miss it! So $200 and 2 days prior to my original departure date I was back in Miami but to sum things up I had a great time in Fayetteville and miss my friends and family even more now but it feels so great to be back in Miami!!! :) And I'm so glad that I have the friends I have now too! Without them (and u know who u are) my transition into Miami wouldn't have been soo smooth! Thanks Val-one of my first best friends in this big city :) Good thing we never did burn down the filmroom! Next post will be about my new life...or lack of life w/ full time school. :)

Okay this post waaay too long! If u made it this far Thanks for reading! and I'm sorry for any grammatical errors. I'm on break from school (woo hoo!) and its almost 4 a.m. So u r lucky if it makes any sense!