The Real Queen to Be . . .

After seeing Princess Keisha and her Prince, I thought they would be perfect for my Love Jones column at Jones Magazine. Their story ended up being even more amazing than I could have imagined. As the queen of saying "I have a boyfriend" when I didnt and being Miss Independent, I totally related.


See their story:
It was the busiest time of the year for model Keisha Omilana: New York Fashion Week. On the heels of her national Pantene ad, she was trying to find a casting and chatting away with her Ford Models agent in 2004.

Prince Kunle Omilana watched her and waited half an hour. He then introduced himself, said she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen and asked her out. She declined, made up a fake boyfriend and went down the train station stairs.

“My woman’s intuition said go back,” she says. “And when I did he was there waiting and told me ‘This is the best decision you have ever made.’ ”

And it has turned out to be just that. “I knew he was special on our first date. He had rose petals that led to our table and looked in my eyes the whole night.” Now the two are happily married and run the Wonderful Brand, which features fashion, television and online properties. Along with business, their style is also in sync.

Nigerian Prince Kunle came to New York from London to find his bride, a la “Coming to America.”  Princess Keisha had no clue he was royal, until meeting his family shortly before he proposed. She was happy to find a man who celebrated her success. “The first thing he loved about me is that I was driven, independent and a career girl.”

 On their fourth wedding anniversary Princess Keisha snagged this black gown from the Christian Dior outlet in Florida. “I wanted to feel like Old Hollywood that night, so I wore the mink throw passed down in my family from my great, great grandmother.”

Check out the rest and their adorable son here: http://jonesmag.com/fashion/love-jones-princess-keisha-and-prince-kunle-omilana/

Thoughts on My First Love

From Heart & Soul.com:

In my relationships workshops with teens and college students, I always ask about their first love. What was the person like? What did you like about them?
After smiles and talk of childhood sweethearts, I kindly burst their bubbles (sorry ladies).
Like most women, my first love is mom dukes. It is the original relationship and the first person’s acceptance and love we crave.
And last week I got to spend some time with my first love. I got to be surrounded by the first arms I ran to feel around me, and curl up in the first shoulder nook I claimed ownership to.
The older I get the younger my mother gets to me. I am increasingly able to see her as a woman complete with her own desires and dreams, and not just my shield and comforter. I flipped through old pictures and along with wishing they had saved me some of the fab clothes, I felt closer to the women in my family seeing pictures of them through the years.
These ladies did a lot for me to have the freedoms I enjoy, including living out my dreams in New York and heading to a book party tonight to celebrate the release of “Daring to Be Ourselves” by Marianne Schnall.
The book features quotes from inspiring women including Maya Angelou, Gloria Steinem, Cameron Diaz, Eve Ensler, Kerry Washington, many other phenomenal women . . .  and Charreah Jackson.
After the shock (read intimidation) and excitement of being included, I wondered what I said that was being published alongside game changers and poet laureates.  When I got my copy in the mail, I could only smile.
Under the section of what inspires you, there I was quoted about how seeing my grandmother and the powerful women before me do so much with a little kept me moving, along with wanting to do the same for my own granddaughters. I had shared that with Marianne more than a year before, a few months after losing my grandmother.
So tonight I am celebrating my first love, her first love, and the power that comes from standing on fabulous shoulders
Check out “Daring to Be Ourselves” now on sale: http://www.daringtobeourselves.com/