Sisters of Grandmother Moon...or, the Long Story of the Sisters' First Gathering

so as you probably surmised, some of the loveliest dearest blog ladies in the whole wide world all gathered together in my neck of the woods this weekend.

being together, something so magical happened that i can hardly even express it:

a sisterhood was forged out of cold air and the moon and the trees,

and it makes everything feel connected to me: shipwrecks and mermaids and grandmothers,

herbs and mushrooms and moonlight, bread and babies and pretty dresses and blood and blessings.

like an ethereal little path that i walk upon with the spirits of these sisters.

does that sound weird? i know.... it is, but in a beautiful way...

it just feels like we were all destined to know each other and if takes a little technological boost to set that in motion, well then...thank you modern world for that!

we met up first on saturday in midtown sacramento for lunch and to descend upon nicole's shop with ebullience and delight.

crimson & clover is truly the perfect vintage shop, and nicole is absolutely the most generous and warm proprietess (sorry we did not get to meet her partner kara, i'm sure we will someday!)

there are a million things that this group of gals has in common, that's what makes it so unbelievably FUN to be together. and one of the first undeniable things we all share is a true and abiding love for vintage dresses.

check out this gorgeous lacy ruffled 50s frock that amber is admiring.

these first few pictures were overwhelmed by light and i am not sure why.

all i can gather is it must be a sign of the light that was flooding my heart as i first got to hang with these pure and beauteous new friends!

dying over all the shop's sweet treasures.

and then we hit the road up to placerville. we explored my town for awhile, perused the labyrinthian corridors of the bookshop where i work, and wandered main street, finally picking up take-out from the local taqueria and heading back to my house to get cozy for the eve.

all the girls came bearing gifts! the husbands were calling it "new christmas" and oh man was it fun!

we gathered in a circle in my bedroom and the little girls played dress up in new dresses while we each perused our goodies.

milla brought the little ladies beautiful mandala coloring books drawn by her boss,

and clover dove right in to the sticker book from mycie and amber.

a glimpse at my own beauties...they will definitely be frequently popping up in future photos!

i just felt so lucky and overwhelmed with this amazing generosity.

clover and mycelia were so unbelievably entertaining.

this was the first time they had physically met, although their clever mamas had been showing each daughter little videos of the other so they'd know what to expect. well all i can say is: SUCCESS. it was like they were cousins or longtime bffs, just grabbing each other's hands and running around the entire house together, watching out for "hot lava" and jumping on the bed. it was utterly heart warming to be around them.

we made them cozy beds and graham took the sweet papa's duty of bedtime stories. 

then some of my friends from placerville (joey, emily, stan, lesley, and christian) joined us adults for some late night beer drinking storytelling vocab-enhancing good old fashioned FUN.

us new besties went out a-howling at the moon (literally) and sharing the most delicious bottle of homemade raspberry wine milla brought from the island with the perfect moniker:

Our Lady of Misspent Youth,

singing under that glorious full moon and laughing and talking endlessly on and on, walking the hills of my neighborhood late at night rhapsodizing together

just like sisters do!

i cannot tell you how happy it makes me to see these little cozy scenes around MY OWN HOME:

(charlie and cream puff)

(the girls at breakfast)

(reading time, another joy we all deeply share)

(mycie in her new dress from milla jumping on my bed full of her sweet joy)

the next morning, after some of the adults had gotten up early and (with no help from me) figured out my kitchen well enough to craft an enormous delicious breakfast with fresh blackberry jelly made by charlie and milla, and copious amounts of coffee, we packed up and got ready to head to nevada city to visit amber's neck o the woods.

first milla and i drove up to pollock pines to pick up my sis.

driving up into the mountains, milla felt right at home amidst tall snowdrifts and a white landscape;

doesn't she fit right in? :)

here comes addie up the icy path, homebrewed bottles of beer in hand!

and then the three of us headed down into the canyon to meet up with the rest of the group who had stopped for some cultural history and scenery in coloma california where gold was first discovered in 1848.

we walked across the historic bridge that crosses the American river, careful to keep the little happy-go-lucky ramblers close by!

our first full group photo, taken in the heart of gold country.

from left to right we have (and i think you probably already know but just in case):

missa, lucas and clover in front, me, addie, charlie, milla, amber, and graham with mycie in front.

girls bonding:

down across the canyon, up through the woods, across highway 80 and north into the mountains again...

upon arrival in nevada city we all converged again at Ike's, (which i wrote about before) where addie's husband art works for a richly satisfying lunch after which we all agreed we never needed to eat again.

artie is employee of the month, woot woot.

another JOY = meeting suuzi. i felt like i already knew her from amber's blog, but getting to know her in person was seriously indescribably fun. she is quite a fresh, sassy, wise and wondrous woman.

mycie wanted to ride with milla, addie and i in our car. such fun to have a sweet little sister around!

we headed up the street to the cottage where everyone stayed in nevada city.

and look who met up with us in the afternoon?!

nicole and her AMAZING FAMILY.

aaannnnd my heart expands even further getting to know this inspiring family.

across the narrow street is this very old cemetery with headstones from gold rush days.

here mycie (in my gloves, aw) plays a little ghosty emerging from the graveyard :)

we hung around downtown nevada city, checking out some of the sights like the local vintage shop right as they were trying to close (oops!)

it's fun to shop with nicole and her daughter because they've got quite the eye for interesting and unique pieces.

then we headed over to the historic National Hotel where yet another adorable friend had come from afar to hang out with our ragtag crew: sadie! she came all the way from chico with her adorable son, who unfortunately got sick so they had to cut their visit short.

here addie and charlie check out some historic martini shakers in the hotel's lobby.

this place is packed full of old timey treasures

hanging out in the opulent lobby while sadie checks in: more talking, more laughing, more all around good feelings just soaking in this old-fashioned place and the spirit of friendship.

here addie had to say good-bye.

and the rest of us walked back into this picturesque nevada city sunset.

with a quick visit to the candyshop for hot cocoa for the walk home.

i like all the red-pink mother-daughter stuff going on here...

back at the cute little cottage, we did what we seem to do best, talk talk talk, laugh laugh laugh...

this is the only shot i got of sadie...i love her impish glee! 

amber and suuzi, probably enumerating the many values of Clan of the Cave Bear.

sipping on beer and honeymead, just blissing out on each other.

i think it is a rare thing to meet, hang out, and feel instantly at home and comfortable and happy.

it's weird...hard to explain...and just plain old FUN. 

here comes the sad part.

i can hardly bear it...it was finally getting late and, having to work the next day it was time for me to head back across the canyon. i was surprised at how difficult it was to say my good-byes. it really felt like i was leaving family that i might not see for a while. my heart was overflowing with love.

sisters of my heart,

what a ramble we had.

i miss it so much as i write this my hands tingle, my heart aches, i am dizzy and a little teary eyed.

i thank you, if you are reading my blog, for bearing with my sentimentality and nostalgia.

the pure anne-of-green-gables exuberance of my heart shines through in moments like these,

and i so appreciate knowing ladies who embrace it! i feel utterly, heart-thumpingly LUCKY.