Henna and sunshine

The American and French family in town for the Moroccan wedding were very interested by the henna ceremony incorporated within it.  Because of all the interest my father-in-law was kind enough to get a woman to come to the house and do henna on all the girls visiting, Americans and French alike. It was a big hit with everyone!

Emma showing off her first hand finished!

Cousin Brenna's feet drying in the sunshine.

Henna is a plant that is dried, ground up, and traditionally mixed with orange-blossom water to make a paste, then applied on hands and feet with a syringe to form beautiful designs. Natural henna paste is brown, and applied wet. Once it dries you scrape it off and it leaves an orange stain on the skin which washes out after a few days. Nowadays the natural mixture is often mixed with additives like hair dye to change the color (often to black) and have it last longer, but can then cause allergic reactions so we steer clear of that. Henna is prevalent in many cultures and in Morocco you see women with henna decorating their hands all the time.

Tessie went first, and here she is playing with Alyssa who was 
waiting her turn! My sisters had all sorts of fun playing with the 
two little French cousins, despite the language barrier.

Bia being cute by the pool as she waits for her henna to dry.

Finally Alyssa's turn! 

They had to keep their hands outstretched while
 they were waiting for the henna to dry, and it was
 cute how serious they were about it.

I'm melting. My family had heard so much about
these girls, and they loved meeting them. Now
 they understand why I love them so much!

Cousin Brenna and friend Demi just chilling. You can 
see the orange henna tattoos on their hands!

While Bia naps in the sun...

...Tessie takes advantage of the backyard pool!