Well I had a awesome trip to the bay this summer, it was SOOOOOO worth missing Heritage for!!!
So my sister and the kids dropped me off at the airport Monday eve, July 15th!!!
.I was wearing my AZ pride hat, it says, Desert Hair, Don't care! With a adorable Sahauro on it!
As soon as I got there, I got my luggage and headed outside and began enjoying the weather!!!
If your from Arizona, I HIGHLY recommend getting a close friend in the bay, its the best summer escape, and free hotel if you have a bestie out there!!!!
(LPC HUMOR!!!!)
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Annnnnnnnd let the pre-wedding partying BEGIN!!!!
My space after being there for 10 minutes...STUFF ALL OVER!!!
Soooooooo I got up early of course on Tuesday and was planning to go out walking and exploring and coffee, I mean, that's me!!! I just don't like to be held to my bed or closed in for too long when there is beautiful weather and a world to explore. I was going to just leave, BUUUUUUT didn't want to freak her out, so I'm like whispering, Hanna, Im going to go get coffee!!! She's like, you know where it is? I'm going to follow google maps...she's like, is it safe? I'm like, UH YEAH! She's like, Oh...and falls back asleep. I'm like, in my head like, ummmmm...I'm going to be 36 in a day...I think I'm good!!!
Buuuuuut I did soon find out what she was worried about...ahahahaahahahaaaa!!! Buuuuuuut I made it, and didn't mention ANY of it till the week was over!!!! She was like, I knew it!!! You didn't say anything!!! I was like, I couldn't NOT let you let me out of this house in the morning!!! I'll get clausterphobic and feel locked in! The weather was just too amazing to stay in and I don't want anyone else to have to get up early on account of me, buuuuuuuuuut, I have to be active and explore and enjoy God's beauty even if it is admidst ghettoness...I just have to!!!
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When we did get up, we headed over to Hanna's families house where I got some good, strong and much needed Ethiopian espresso....white girl style, heavy on the milk and medium sugar...okaaaaaay I can't do it like a true Ethiopian...I just can't!!!
Annnnnnnnd I got me a plate of Ethiopian food...NOW that I can handle Ethiopian style!!! No utensils please!!!
Minus the fact that I have to remind everyone that I can't eat as much as I once could, sooooo when I don't finish my plate, it does NOT mean I don't like the food...I just literally, CAN NOT EAT ANYMORE!!! LOL
Hanna's brides maid gift, a cute little bag with my name on it...I happen to love little bags to keep in my big bags, it helps me to keep my stuff more organized...
I don't really remember all that much of the rest of the day buuuuuut I feel like we may have gone shopping or something...its really slipped from my mind...I just know I was overly tired from lack of sleep...I'm not used to going to bed late...bedtime is NORMALLY between 8:30 and 9:45...the early you go to sleep, the earlier your ready to rise and shine and start the next day!!! I'm a 5 am kinda girl!!!
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Sooooooooooo Wednesday, July 17th, the day before my 36th birthday, goes down in history as one of THE FUNNNNNNEST DAYS EVERRRR!!!
It started off with we went to Red Bay Coffee house, which is proudly African owned and known for their charcoal lattes and latte art...have I told you all how much I love latte art???
We then headed over to the Korean Family spa and had the funnest, most hilarious and most relaxing time everrrrr!!! And the only picture I have is the one below...sometimes you just have to much fun to even take pics...WEEEEEEEEEEEELLLLLL that and the fact that we had to lock up our phones in our lockers before we began....AHAHAHAHAAAA!!!
Look at how refreshed our faces look!!!!
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We were then starving
sooooooo we headed over to her mom's because HEEEEEEEYYY...
FREE FOOD!!!
Annnnnnnnnnnnd GOOOOOOOOD FOOD!!!!
And there was a HUGE Ethiopian cookout going on preparing for the Ethiopian party on Sunday!
I really wanted a picture stirring the pot as well, buuuuut the ladies didn't seem amused by us being enthralled by it...I guess in their eyes it was equal to someone wanting to watch and take pics as we cleaned the toilet...the toilet, they were just WORKING, there was nothing exiting about it!!!
Awwwww....buuuuuut what I wouldn't do for some Miser whot right about now!!!! Yuuuuummmm!!!
.This was an absolutely amazing cup of tea Gana made up for me! It's their mom's famous tea, buuuuut warmed with a little sugar and milk...SOOOOOO GOOOOOOOD!!!!
Okaaaaaaaaaaay sooooooo I don't want to ruin the surprise for you all to seeing her on her ACUAL wedding day...buuuuuuut we THEN went to the bridal shop for one last wedding dress fitting!!!
Ain't she just LOVELY???
So the wedding shop lady was like, showing ME how to button up the dress....it was like ALL complicated, there was a zipper, THEN buttons, I was like, OMW!!! I had already discussed with Hanna that I didn't think I should be the bridesmaid to help with this on her actual wedding day...I mean...Lets be real, Classic Mary Moments are funny, buuuuuuut, NOT when it's your wedding dress...NOPE....I was not gonna be the one to ruin her dress!!!! Sooooo she's like, now this is how you do the buttons and they were all like sooooo little and going through this little stretchy loop, for the life of me I couldn't get my big O fingers to even do ONE through...We tried for like a full minute with NO SUCCESS....and there were like, 20 buttons!!!! I think Hanna saw the panicked look in my eye and she came to my rescue!!!! She was like, Ummmm, Mary's actually not the bridesmaid that will be helping me with this!!!! AHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAAA!!!
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Nope, I'm just NOT THAT KINDA BRIDESMAID!!!
BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUT,
I am the kind you take with you to go shopping...
Ooooooooh YEEEEEESSS I AM!!!
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After we got everything she could possibly need for a Hawaiian Honeymoon wardrobe...it was time for a little refresher, soooooo off to iTea we went for BOBA!!!
I got a peach-oolong-white tea with sea salt foamed cream on top...Gotta say it was BOMB!!! Very refreshing, yet exotic!!!!
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Oh yeah sooooooo, officially meet the Bride and Groom,
Brandon and Hanna
Brandon and Hanna
(The Pullers)
Well, she was still only at almost-Puller at this point buuuut...NOW she is!!! hee, hee!!!
JULY 18th!!!
YEEEEEESSS...I got up early on my birthday and went exploring...life is an adventure!!!
Happy Birthday to me!!!
BTW: In case you can't tell, my birthday outfit was ADORABLE!!! Well minus the sneakers, buuuuuut heeeeey, they just made it, ADORKABLE!!!! Hee, hee!!!
Annnnnnnnnd of course we had Red Bay coffee!!!
Annnnnnnd hanging out!!!
Annnnnnd a little bit of Philz!!!
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Okaaaaaaaay so I had seen this shirt at Frys on sale before I left for the trip, I thought I was soooooo COOL!!! I was like, I should tell Jonathon about it, buuuuut then I was thinking in my head, it's probably NOT his style!!!! Soooooo just to conrirm what I already knew, I sent him a pic and asked him if he would wear this shirt!? He said he didn't think so, there was to much going on with the different sized checks and stripes!
I was like, I KNEW IT!!!! Jonathon basically said THE SAME THING!!!!
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Check out Alina in the background!!!!
She's got her Daddy's coffee...Train up a child in the way they should go...AHAHAHAHAHAAA!!!
My birthday brunch!!!!
With THE GIRLS!!!!
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I then asked Hanna if I could skip out on the whole...music practice for the wedding to hang out with her family...
Kids, people and FOOD are just more MY THANG!!!
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Hanna's little cousins...Aren't they all ADORABLE???
They were all calling me Aunt Mary by the end of the week!!! I'm like every kids Aunt, buuuuuut I didn't even tell them to call me that, they just started saying it on their own!!!
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And when the house got SOOOOO FULL I could no longer find a spot to sit or to even use the potty, I walked myself right over to the mall annnnnnnd went SHOPPING!!!! BIRTHDAY SHOPPING people...any money spent on your birthday you can just automatically NOT feel guilty about!!!
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Sooooo they have this vending machine that squeezes fresh oranges and puts the cup right there for you...you can see the orange going in and everything!!! I got a cup basically in honor of Stultz and his famous morning OJ routine!!!
JULY 19th!!!!
Day before THE WEDDING!!!!
Another day, another latte!!!!
Our cups!!!
Debating over who's more stressed about the wedding...Brandon's response will go down as one of his awesomest comebacks EVERRRR in the history of awesome Puller quotes!!! AHAHAHAAAA!!!
Cheesing it with these two!!!
You know what's soooooo cool, when I hang out with Hanna and Brandon, it's NOT like I'm just hanging out with Hanna and it's awkward cuz he's there too, it's like I'm just chilling with my two friends!!! That doesn't always happen when friends get married, buuuuut thus far it's turning out pretty well....Joe and Anali are both my friends...helps to just hook your friends up with your friends...HAHAHAAA!!
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Now it's down to BRIDESMAID DUTIES!!!
About halfway through what seemed like an endless supply, I started wondering, WHY 300 napkins were being wrapped for FINGER FOODs????
BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUT I kept wrapping!!!
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REHEARSAL!!!
The big sis Nila, also Ethiopian, Liberian, Caucasian, Jamaican and Chinese
Rehearsal Dinner!!!
Some BOMB LASAGNA!!!
Hanna's cousin Seyon the dinner and it was soooooooooooooooo GOOD!!!
I was like, DUUUUUUDE Hanna, you know I don't just say Italian food is good buuuut I'm saying this is GOOOOOOD!!! Heavy on the garlic...you just can't go wrong!!! I was making biscuits and gravy for breakfast the next morning buuuuuuut guess what, I took lasagna to eat in the morning while everyone else ate my gravy!!! AHAHAHAHAAA!!!
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The VERY TIRED BRIDE AND GROOM!!!
Hang in there guys...you'll be married SOON!!!
♥Mary Frances :)
