Shortly after returning to the States from Iran, Mohammad and I were off to Cali for my older brother's wedding! Yes, he is my older brother. I'm not sure why I keep getting comments about me being the older sibling... do I really look that old?!?! I guess it's time to start buying anti-aging and anti-wrinkle creams.
Okay, first thing first.. what to wear to my brother's wedding?!?! It was a formal-ish wedding (for American weddings, which means suits with tie for men and cocktail dresses for women). The problem is... I'm a hijabi. Unless you are a hijabi living in the west, you have no idea how difficult it is to find formal/semi-formal dresses that are appropriate! Actually, the truth is that there aren't any available in the U.S. Usually, I end up buying a regular sleeveless dress in a size or two too large (so that it doesn't cling to my curves) and then pair it with an undershirt, leggings, and a shrug. As usual, I end up in two to three layers of clothing plus a hijab and I just pray that the wedding location will have awesome A/C. But, this is my brother's wedding! I needed something better than my usual layering! Good thing I live in Houston where there are just tons and tons of non-Americans (Houston was recently rated the #1 most diverse city in America). Best solution: go for ethnic wear. At the first Indian/Pakistani clothing store I found some awesome material that could be made into an appropriate dress for me in less than 3 days and for custom wear it was super affordable! However, at the second store, I found a pre-made dress in a color I really loved that was even cheaper. Yay!
Let me just say, I LOVE California! To me, California has it all. Mohammad and I literally ran from the airport to the rental car pick-up (where I thought we were getting an Aggie colored car so I made Mohammad take a pic with it, then I realized we were actually getting the car next to it... oh well!) then we drove slightly faster than we should (which is just how Californians drive all the time) to my brother's wedding rehearsal.
Yay! Weddings! So the location was GORGEOUS! I'll post pics from the wedding below. After the rehearsal lunch Mohammad, my lovely sweet little sister, my brother, and I hung out for a bit. It's always nice hagging with my siblings. We're a sarcastic bunch, but we love each other and like helping each other out. My bro had to leave for some wedding preparations, but my sister, Mohammad, and I had a nice Mexican dinner (NOT TexMex) and then I met my sister's boyfriend, who is super nice. He's not quite as sarcastic as we are, but I think with time, he will get there.
On the wedding day, Mohammad and I went to hang on Coronado Island for the day. We sat watching to bay, had some ice cream, and tried our best not to get sunburn. After we were sufficiently worn out, we went back to our hotel to get dressed, where we promptly received a call from my bro asking us to head over in like 45mins. Ahhhh! I think it took us like an hour to get ready, but we rushed over and then the festivities really started!
The wedding was pretty awesome! My bro and new sis-in-law wrote their own vows, which were super cute and fun and romantic! The location, again, was so so awesome! There was this giant koi pond and an outdoor dance floor with a formal dining area just full of friends and family all having a good time and talking away. Of course, with my family, we were just so silly and fun. I also introduced the clicking of the glasses for kisses, which was just so fun. At the end of the night, we were all super exhausted and the lightest mist just stating falling from the sky making everything sparkle. Such an awesome night!
The next day Mohammad and I went to Disneyland. I LOVE Disneyland. I don't think I will ever grow out of my love for Disneyland. I can't wait to take my future little kiddos there (InshaAllah/God willing). This was Mohammad's first REAL trip to Disneyland (what?!?!?! such a deprived life!).
On our last day in Cali we had a nice huge breakfast at our favorite spot (If you're ever in Temecula, pls eat at Penfold's Cafe! Great food, good price, and can't beat the staff) with My Mom, Dad, Brother, Sister-in-law, my sister-in-law's mother, friend, and brother.
Quick shout-out to our airline, Frontier Airlines. They were super efficient, on time, and seats were more comfy than United. Down side, they truly check your carry-ons to make sure they fit in the carry on bin (so no over-sized carry ons).
Picture time:
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Okay, first thing first.. what to wear to my brother's wedding?!?! It was a formal-ish wedding (for American weddings, which means suits with tie for men and cocktail dresses for women). The problem is... I'm a hijabi. Unless you are a hijabi living in the west, you have no idea how difficult it is to find formal/semi-formal dresses that are appropriate! Actually, the truth is that there aren't any available in the U.S. Usually, I end up buying a regular sleeveless dress in a size or two too large (so that it doesn't cling to my curves) and then pair it with an undershirt, leggings, and a shrug. As usual, I end up in two to three layers of clothing plus a hijab and I just pray that the wedding location will have awesome A/C. But, this is my brother's wedding! I needed something better than my usual layering! Good thing I live in Houston where there are just tons and tons of non-Americans (Houston was recently rated the #1 most diverse city in America). Best solution: go for ethnic wear. At the first Indian/Pakistani clothing store I found some awesome material that could be made into an appropriate dress for me in less than 3 days and for custom wear it was super affordable! However, at the second store, I found a pre-made dress in a color I really loved that was even cheaper. Yay!
Let me just say, I LOVE California! To me, California has it all. Mohammad and I literally ran from the airport to the rental car pick-up (where I thought we were getting an Aggie colored car so I made Mohammad take a pic with it, then I realized we were actually getting the car next to it... oh well!) then we drove slightly faster than we should (which is just how Californians drive all the time) to my brother's wedding rehearsal.
Yay! Weddings! So the location was GORGEOUS! I'll post pics from the wedding below. After the rehearsal lunch Mohammad, my lovely sweet little sister, my brother, and I hung out for a bit. It's always nice hagging with my siblings. We're a sarcastic bunch, but we love each other and like helping each other out. My bro had to leave for some wedding preparations, but my sister, Mohammad, and I had a nice Mexican dinner (NOT TexMex) and then I met my sister's boyfriend, who is super nice. He's not quite as sarcastic as we are, but I think with time, he will get there.
On the wedding day, Mohammad and I went to hang on Coronado Island for the day. We sat watching to bay, had some ice cream, and tried our best not to get sunburn. After we were sufficiently worn out, we went back to our hotel to get dressed, where we promptly received a call from my bro asking us to head over in like 45mins. Ahhhh! I think it took us like an hour to get ready, but we rushed over and then the festivities really started!
The wedding was pretty awesome! My bro and new sis-in-law wrote their own vows, which were super cute and fun and romantic! The location, again, was so so awesome! There was this giant koi pond and an outdoor dance floor with a formal dining area just full of friends and family all having a good time and talking away. Of course, with my family, we were just so silly and fun. I also introduced the clicking of the glasses for kisses, which was just so fun. At the end of the night, we were all super exhausted and the lightest mist just stating falling from the sky making everything sparkle. Such an awesome night!
The next day Mohammad and I went to Disneyland. I LOVE Disneyland. I don't think I will ever grow out of my love for Disneyland. I can't wait to take my future little kiddos there (InshaAllah/God willing). This was Mohammad's first REAL trip to Disneyland (what?!?!?! such a deprived life!).
On our last day in Cali we had a nice huge breakfast at our favorite spot (If you're ever in Temecula, pls eat at Penfold's Cafe! Great food, good price, and can't beat the staff) with My Mom, Dad, Brother, Sister-in-law, my sister-in-law's mother, friend, and brother.
Quick shout-out to our airline, Frontier Airlines. They were super efficient, on time, and seats were more comfy than United. Down side, they truly check your carry-ons to make sure they fit in the carry on bin (so no over-sized carry ons).
Picture time:
The Aggie color car that was not ours...
Rehearsal time!
Beachy harbor view from Coronado
Us at the beach :)
The temple from the freeway near our hotel
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Our hotel - totally recommend. Would stay here again.
We had a lovely big suite for low price.
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Inside the hotel. Loved the little river and pond inside with HUGE koi.
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Outside the hotel, totally Cali.
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My sis and I in the hotel elevator
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Wedding time!
Yay! We match!
Love the beading on my dress
The wedding party
They're married!
My fam, minus my sis who was with the bride
My sis helping my bro get ready
Getting ready for their vows
See! Gorgeous place!
At Disneyland!!!
In case you can't see... there are fake snakes in the background
The castle at night... love!
Aren't we sooo attractive?
I loved the ride! Mohammad looks like he's smiling
but he is actually yelling, "Oh God, God save me!"
This was an intense ride... we were super tired at this point,
but we were still battling it out for the win
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