Moonshine Junkyard

blossoming bliss

2012-01-26T11:57:00.000-08:00

i love wednesdays.

i have the day off and darin has to sleep during the day because he works a graveyard shift overnight tuesday night. so i usually have a quiet morning to myself, doing whatever the hell i like.

this is what i wore yesterday for a trip to the thrift stores in folsom.

i will be sixteen weeks tomorrow! i think my little belly is really blossoming. at night it even looks much bigger than this. my regular clothes still fit though, which is nice. but really that just shows that my regular clothes are built for comfort, not style! i do think that soon i'll have to pack up my fitted-waist skirts, and probably my gunnes too.

supposedly my baby can hear my voice now, and can make facial expressions and stretch out.

i was thinking yesterday about how i love my alone time. after taking these photos i packed myself a little snack and got in my car. i had my ipod on shuffle and the best songs were coming on, from cat stevens to bon iver to nina nastasia to joanna newsom. the sun was shining; i had the windows down and i was singing along and my heart was soaring.

i thought about how soon i won't be alone much at all. at this point, the idea thrills me. having my own little baby along with my on every adventure sounds like the best thing in the world; it will be like alone time plus. i think about how much fun we're going to have and how lucky i am to have a little sidekick that i have the honor of helping to shape as a human citizen during the time we spend together. how every single moment will become more visible, more palpable and pure, because of that new life's discovery of it and new immersion in time.

but still, it is weird to imagine that all this time i have to myself, right now, and for the past, say...15 years...purely to myself for nonsense or whimsy, will soon whisk away into the mists of the path.

it makes me glad. my bells ring. i had it all, and now i have even more.

i think that's why i experienced such bliss yesterday, realizing things like this.

i've been in such a good mood lately that i even allowed band practice saturday night...in our living room. they usually practice in the stuffy little back room, but this way they get to spread out and can really hear themselves. they had a blast doing this while i was gone in utah, but when i came home to a slightly rumpled, rearranged living room i kiiindda put my foot down. not for long. i'm a pushover. i said as long as they didn't move the couch, go crazy.

and they sounded so good! i couldn't help but dance along like a big dweeb a little bit as i had my late night cottage cheese snack in the kitchen :)

to top off my series of happy days, i received a parcel of sweet magic blessings in the mail yesterday afternoon. herbal love, a baby book, flower essences, a valentine, and a gorgeous dress from the amazing, wise and wonderful mary of terralectualism....

look how cute she looks, pregnant in this perfect dress! i am incredibly honored to continue that circle of belly love.

mary included a note filled with inspiring words, kind and true, moving my heart to unknown places and new beauties that fit in so perfectly from my thoughts of earlier in the day. she writes: "i thought of you, how stillness will find itself in your heart, but soon, rarely outside of you. the way you swirl through life, in a swirling skirt, will include the rhythm of your babe. forever, i think." i love that so much, and she perfectly captured in words that ephemeral lovely thought i'd been tripping round.

mmmmm, now i just drank a homemade fruit smoothie with blackberries, raspberries and blueberries. i hope i'm not spiking my blood sugar but dang, it was worth it.

hope you all are having bliss filled winter days!!!

oh, and guess what?

our new nephew was born down in los angeles to darin's brother dave and his wife ashley...isn't he adorable?

i had to steal this from fb, sorry the quality sucks. his name is jackson cruz and i think he looks an awful lot like his daddy. can't wait to have tiny cousins to hang out together!

my outfit:

hat, just thrifted this week $1.00

vintage purple tee shirt, thrifted $2.50

turquoise sweater: thrifted during recent utah trip, $2.00 (do you like the many missing buttons?)

pink floral skirt, handmade: free, clothing exchange

gray floral leggings: thrifted $2.50

brown boots: thrifted a long time ago

triangle necklace: christmas gift from mom

moonstone earrings: made and gifted by em two years ago

Wizard King Video

2012-01-22T22:40:00.000-08:00

here is a little video i made in celebration of darin's birthday back in november, with footage from the trip we took to joshua tree and the coast.

it's a little late :) but with all the me,me,me lately i thought i'd give my man some airtime!

"In canyon country, you pick your own path."

2012-01-19T16:37:00.000-08:00

all together on saturday morning we left the hustle and bustle of provo and struck out with our wild adventurous hearts for the desert canyonlands of moab, utah.

couldn't resist a stop in the weird dusty little town of green river. it was fill-a-bag for $2 day at the thrift store, and we made quick work of the place.

we had a big laugh at this next picture later - - thrifting is serious business for these two!

arriving in our beloved red rock country. i am glad i just finished another Terry Tempest Williams book, An Unspoken Hunger, so i can return to it now for echoes of these places that invigorate and inspire our souls.

"Hands on the earth, I closed my eyes and remembered where the source of my power lies."

addie is especially enamored of these lands. it feels like the very heart, the center, of her body she says.

"Each of us harbors a homeland, a landscape we naturally comprehend. By understanding the dependability of place, we can anchor ourselves as trees."

bursting out of the car in some of his weird thrifted finds, my brother matt couldn't help but do a jiggity figgity dance with wild abandon. crazy coyote soul!

we hiked to Corona Arch. you have to cross these train tracks that go straight across the wide empty desert landscape. i wonder if the train still runs? i can feels old songs in those rails.

red sand, sage, yucca, saltbrush. even in january the desert is a rusty sunlit wash of color and texture.

as far as the eye can see....

when we arrived at corona arch, there was a bald eagle soaring up over it, white head shining in the late sunlight.

"In these moments, I felt innocent and wild, privy to secrets and gifts exchanged only in nature."

we had sunset at the arch all to ourselves. amy and matt did a little photo shoot for their etsy. they like to take photos in all the beautiful and varied spots they visit, to give their shop a little pizzazz.

"As women connected to the earth, we are nurturing and we are fierce, we are wicked and we are sublime. The full range is ours. We hold the moon in our bellies and fire in our hearts. We bleed. We give milk. We are the mothers of first words. These words grow. They are our children. They are our stories and our poems."

i have said it before and i will say it again. so many times that the words are truths that echo through each of my footprints in red dirt or mossy floor, swing out through the tips of my fingers...it is so good to hike in nature with those you love. under the sun, or clouds or the moon, through the trees or canyons or snow. laughing and glowing like every thirst is quenched.

after a good hike, you get to have whatever you want for dinner ;-)

i had the best veggie burger of my life at Eddie McStiff's.

i am NOT a food photographer, nor a foodie for that matter, and the pictures never come out looking as appetizing as real life. but let me tell you, this hit the damn spot!

next day was a cold one in Arches National Park. this handsome raven seemed to be enjoying some winter peace, and was making the most quirky talkative noises.

we hiked to sand dune arch, through a wide sandy canyon that the kids could play in like a giant sandbox.

"There is no defense against an open heart and a supple body in dialogue with wilderness. Internal strength is an absorption of the external landscape. We are informed by beauty, raw and sensual."

to be in a place like this, hours at a time, looking up, stretching your neck and your bones and your heart, cracking like ancient rocks, letting light in, you become more alive and full, full of a raw bleeding pure love that cycles through dirt and skin, cloud and rain, fire and sweat and back again.

we had time for a little etsy shoot here too. i modeled a rad crocheted afghan-sweater for matt and amy.

the vistas in arches are so incredible. there is no real capturing with a camera, even a nice one. it is all around you, like a tornado of beauty.

we left arches in the afternoon and headed to another area in the very center of utah, a strange and magical little land called Goblin Valley.

hooray!!! it might be cloudy, but the sun hasn't set yet! the kids were free to roam and play to their hearts' content here where the strange and ancient hoodoos go marching in neighborly groups, in shapes resembling giant snails and bears and aliens.

wearing about ten layers, but some exploring and climbing brings the warmth to your cheeks.

cool tiny tunnels and cubby holes for kids to make forts in, ambush from, or slide through.

"What most humans really desire is really something quite different from industrial gimmickry -- liberty, spontaneity, nakedness, mystery, wildness, wilderness." - Ed Abbey

as the sun set, the clouds parted a little and the land was bathed in the most heavenly rosy glow.

you go dizzy from the beauty. you get goofy. you run and dance in that light and you know you and everything around you is pure magic.

amy and i had matching coats, which we were more than happy to show off!

we ended up witnessing the most spectacular sunset you could dream of. so fresh and vibrant it stings the eyes. cold winter sun so alive and pure that every cell vibrates to its song.

i think the road trip gods were with us.

we even had the luck to arrive just barely on time to a brewery in Price, utah for dinner. on a sunday in utah it aint easy to find a good place to eat, especially in the tiny towns dotting the remote roads up through the center of the state. Pinnacle Brewery, aka Groggs, provided big fresh salads, pizza and beer and all the other goods to a hungry, happy, desert satiated family. plus, rustic old tools on the walls and a fire blazing in a stone fireplace and a cheerful server who didn't mind our tardiness, well what more could you want?

thanks for sticking with me! it was a long one i know, but those rambles always stick in my skin for a few days after and haunt me awhile. D.H Lawrence writes, "In every living thing, there is a desire for love, for the relationship of unison with the rest of things." i carry my wilderness love with me, i share it here, and i invoke it for the tiny child inside.

again, many of these photos are addie's and can be found here.

to their high desert home

2012-01-18T12:19:00.000-08:00

first off, i want to thank you all for your lovely and heartwarming response to my last post. this is really a special time for me and i feel so blessed and wrapped in love and support to be able to share it with such an emboldening and enlightening group of bloggy friends. thank you from the bottom of my belly :)

next up, it has become something of a tradition to brave the cold and ice and make a winter pilgrimage out to visit our utah family: matt, amy, and kids. this time it was addie, pops and i who hit the road together.

getting started, i figured i'd offer a glimpse at my growing belly. in the few days i was gone on this trip my little protuberance has grown :)

my traveling partners:

here's addie on our cozy bed downstairs in matt and amy's movie room. amy always sets us up with that amazing patchwork quilt i am so in love with, and that chunky colorful afghan. we sleep so well here.

and pops, in the downstairs hallway. this is how he decks himself out for sleeping! yes, he sleeps in the hat (which was a gift from mikie and amber) and yes, we have always made fun of him for tucking his sweat pants into his socks.

right away upon arrival after midnight, we had to marvel over matt's beard. this is the biggest beard he's ever worn and i think it looks mighty handsome. plus, it's so RED! maybe we beattys have got some irish blood in there somewhere.

our first day in utah was Pop's birthday! he is the most unassuming and sweet person and was very nonchalant and humble about his big day, but we made it a fun one anyway. we went out to lunch at a place called Kneaders Bakery, with delicious fresh homemade bread for sandwiches and a line out the door. wouldn't you know it, pops treated US?!

look at these treats! and i'm not supposed to touch any of them :(

i tested borderline for gestational diabetes, so i have been monitoring my blood sugar levels with a prick to the fingertip after each meal. it has actually been kind of fun, even during our travels, and my levels have stayed normal so i am not too worried. in fact, i learned during this trip that i could have at least a couple bites of something sweet and still maintain a healthy blood sugar level, so i think my body is working just fine.

ready to go thrifting! bella rocks some sweet prairie girl style.

nice to have a mama who finds you purses like this at the thrift store:

we spend hours here....

and then to the movies, to see the Muppets...soooo cute. i was loving the Flight of the Conchords influence, especially in the following song, which i was pleased to find out was written by Bret McKenzie:

these kids are cuckoo for arcade games.

back at home we took some time to play with the new kitty, Link. he is a wild man with long legs, a black and pink nose, and loads of character. he sees a lot of action with those beatty kids, and he fits right in.

and he's got the triforce on his shoulder! thus, Link.

we learned new things about jarom; he has taken to songwriting:

and arm wrestling! he is a ferocious opponent, as pops discovered.

next up was the moment the kids had been waiting for! since they weren't with us for christmas in placerville, we brought their christmas to them.

they are really fun to give gifts to, because not only do they exclaim and make a big fuss at the moment of unwrapping, they also continue to use the item faithfully. for example, bella wore these mittens from joey and emily continuously for the remainder of the trip!

orion immediately wanted to make hot cocoa for his new spiderman mug.

as amy got pop's birthday cake ready, a coconut cream pie from Kneaders. i got a couple bites, couldn't resist this pure deliciousness.

late at night, i heard music and wandered upstairs to find amy practicing her ukulele. she's really good and plays and sings the prettiest little tunes.

matt was sifting through the thrifted finds of the day...his weakness is books.

while amy's is clothes. they are working really hard on their etsy shop and constantly updating their stock.

matt models a rad vintage sweater.

i am sure we stayed up late talking books, etsy adventures, travels and music.

next morning we would be leaving on another mini road trip, all together down to Moab: desert sunsets to come!

note. many of these photos are addie's, taken from here.

beyond my wildest dreams

2012-01-11T22:43:00.000-08:00

hi friends. i have been waiting to post this for a long time now. i start to think about what i will write in this post all the time, and i get really nervous and excited, so guess what...i'm just going to blurt it out, finally, right now, with a huge explosion of mental and spiritual fireworks like a parade's calliope in the sky:

I'M PREGNANT!!!!!!!

for anyone who doesn't know our background i'll try to put it simply: we have been trying for a really.really.really. long time. a loooonnnng time. i have had countless conversations with friends and loved ones in which i have said, "i just know it is going to happen for us somehow, someday." i tried never to be too concerned or make it a big negative stressful deal in our lives. but you probably all know or intuit how badly we want to be parents; i feel like it is blatantly and utterly obvious. luckily i never had the kind of experience where i struggled emotionally when those i loved got pregnant and had babies; on the contrary, i have been completely overjoyed to have plenty of baby love in my life. but still, all along, i have had such longing in me. pure wild tameless longing. i seek to express it otherwise but i don't know how. it is something i have dreamt all my life: to be pregnant, to breastfeed, and to mother. i knew there was a chance that i would need to find new creative ways of mothering, or that we would eventually adopt. but if you have ever struggled with fertility, you may have glimpsed the pure life-breathing desire to conceive a child within one's own body. there was no disregarding it. my body, mind and spirit craved to be with child.

and not a moment has gone by, not one moment, in which i am not eternally, blindingly, astonishingly grateful for this fact.

maybe so grateful, in fact, that i tend to be worried all the time that something might go wrong. i am not ashamed to admit that and have found that expressing myself honestly helps me deal with fears and anxieties in a healthy way. pregnancy, at least for me it seems, is a time of worrying. before this, i have never considered myself a worrywart. i think of myself as the most laid-back, go-with-the-flow, non-anxious member of my family. that's why i love road trips. i can eat anywhere, sleep almost anywhere, set off to climb any mountain in any terrain as long as i have some water.

ha! not anymore. now that my body is growing and protecting new life, i find that i am much more hesitant about what i will do, where i will go, what i eat, who is around me, what place in my house i want to sit, what i will read or what film i will watch, how much work i will do, what i will lift or touch. it's crazy! did any of you other mothers experience this?

there are a hundred, a thousand, life-altering things i could talk about related to this. i am still getting comfortable with the idea. every day seems so slow. and yet i look back to early november, right before i found out i was pregnant, and it seems like yesterday. climbing hills in joshua tree, spinning on the beach at big sur. i was just barely starting to suspect, but i wouldn't even admit it to myself yet. i have always been so careful not to "get my hopes up." and yet, my own body's hopes were up. i was wild with energy and love on that trip. that's why i chose to post these pictures. i was studying the Wild Woman, the woman who runs with the wolves, and i was running.

embracing the wild woman, what i was really doing was embracing myself as mother.

despite my worries, there are things i am so confident about. i am confident about bringing up a happy child in this world. through all my journeys, through wild times and quiet times and days i feel young and days i feel old, it is something i have always felt strongly about. i cannot wait to show my love and enthusiasm for this earth and its inhabitants to a new person. i can't wait to watch darin imbue his child with mysticism, with rampant curiosity, music love, wild humor and vivid active knowledge seeking.

and truly, at the heart of it all, i am confident in my body. i always have been and i am determined to continue to glow with health and energy. a part of me has not made this easy on myself. i sink into the couch. i eat too many sweets because nothing else sounds good. there were definitely difficult, exhausted, anxious times in the first trimester. not much of a cryer, i have wept. not much of a whiner, i have whined. just ask anyone i live with. everything is changing in my life (and you wondered why i've been blogging less ;) and i am sure there are a million changes to come. but i will face them with spirit and love and kindness, and be true to myself. to me, that is what makes a mother. a wild woman, a true woman, and a mother at heart.

i'm starting my second trimester and i am really, really, REALLY excited. i've had more energy the last week or so, less nausea, and a lot of pure bliss.

there are so many more things i want to say, but for now i am going to leave it at that. my excitement. i hope it is bursting out of your screen about now, cause that's how it feels.

Warm Winter

2012-01-05T18:41:00.000-08:00

feeling jaunty these fresh new january days.

i started doing yoga on new year's morn, and find that it puts me in more of a sparkly mood throughout the day.

the days are sunny and warm, sunny and warm, sunny and warm.

nothin in the forecast but....sunny and warm.

i try to wear sweaters, cause it feels cold inside the house, then i go out and start shedding layers immediately.

tonight, even though the air is cooling, after a warm day and being outdoors, i actually have that slight sweet smell of b.o (hope it doesn't gross you out, i kinda like it ;) that makes me feel so springtimey!

i think this renewed energy also comes from all that sweet vitamin D i'm getting from the gentle sun rays, reading outside on my days off and working on projects round the yard.

i was wearing rather a ho-hum outfit, but i felt so good i had to take pics anyway.

especially to show off my new favorite earrings and necklace, both christmas gifts.

mikie's girlfriend amber, a talented artist, made me these feather earrings that i am dying over.

and my mom got me the silver beaded necklace at a craft fair; i think it's moonstone. i am lovingly drawn to the triangle symbol lately.

i absolutely love wearing short dresses with boots and bare legs. it looks cute and feels free...but the weather is rarely just right for me to pull off this look. (usually i am sweltering in my boots and have to switch to sandals). hello, january! (!?)

my trademarks...

messy hair....

and lots of cat pictures.

here is the household's youngest kit, tiny fern, (who yes, does resemble her old great grandpa c.p.) running around on the structure we built for the stage. she is quite the acrobat.

all the cats are LOVING this weather. it's all day, outside, running amok, playing together, then cozy nights exhausted.

bobey is king of the yard and castle.

and especially, his favorite playground, the ashes of the burn pile. it's like catnip for him!

the doors and windows were thrown open all day long.

joey and i worked on the patio, setting it up with little tables and chairs. we are ready for company, barbecues, and late night conversations under the twinkly white lights. won't you come over? you can spend the night in my little gypsy hut.

here's to a whimsical, magical, sweet, homey, ever-growing, sprouting and blossoming new year!!!

the magic of christmas day

2011-12-29T12:28:00.000-08:00

there is nothing more magical than christmas morning. it's like time stops. you are surrounded by family and everything is warm and cozy and there are treats all around, people are laughing and it is the heart of winter and you are snugly wrapped in bliss.

we woke up late on christmas morning after a wrapping extravaganza the night before. joey and i made monkey bread and my little household relaxed waiting for the whole fam to arrive.

i went and put on the dress i've been saving for the big day. i procured this pretty gunne back in the summer i think! the velvet trimming at the bust is a deep forest green, set against the scarlet red calico, in the classic gunne prairie-girl style...she's my ideal holiday frock!

beattys begin to gather....

ready to hand out gifts....

being older and wiser now...giving gifts to each other is super fun in a whole new way. nothing too extravagant, a lot of special handmade items, and always hand picked for the individual in mind.

one of my absolute favorites this year, that brought tears to my eyes, was a photo album darin put together for me. all the photos were from recent trips and excursions, sometimes just the two of us, sometimes with the whole family, sometimes just me by myself in nature. looking through it, i felt like a queen or a famous person, like a goddess, so loved and blessed by all the beauty i've encountered. plus, we never print out our pictures anymore so it was just so fun to see them there in front of me in a little book, each hand chosen by my husband with his artistic eye, and with a beautifully textured and hand-drawn cover and binding that he designed. here's my dad looking at it....

he made a little album for joey and em too, choosing his favorites of photos he has taken of them on our adventures.

and mikie made this rad wood-engraved frame for addie, which brought tears to her eyes. we are nostalgic and sentimental folk, through and through.

by this time it was late afternoon. we all headed down the hill to sacramento where my 99-year-old grandma georgie is in a care facility because she fell and broke her arm. she looked so old and fragile in that bed without her glasses or her teeth, but her spirit was just the same as ever! she was coherent and funny and cute and talkative.

here she is cracking up with addie and joey.....

mostly she was just thrilled to see her little room so squished with family.

she has always been the most family-oriented person i know. she has about a hundred grandkids and great grandkids, and she knows all their birthdays. we are all eagerly awaiting her big 100th bash this feb!

back at home, it's getting late and we set right to work making out big mexican feast!

i made veggie enchiladas, joey made a mexican style frittata, mikie made spanish rice and black beans, and we chopped up a whole ton of salad fixins on the side. plus dad made two huge containers of his famous salsa! by the time we ate we were so starving that we polished off plates as high as hillocks.

everyone stayed late playing Seinfeld Scene-It, laughing, and eating all the leftover fudge and goodies.

what a day. it is enchanting to have a whole day like that. darin and i slept out in the living room by the fire, and i felt so blessed as i snuggled in to read, look through my photo album one last time, and finally rest my head.

hope you all had the sweetest christmas ever!

have a holly jolly christmas

2011-12-23T15:39:00.000-08:00

all kinds of goofy celebratory festivities are going on round here....

solstice night i baked. the perfect long-winter's-night cozy activity.

it rapidly became clear what my favorite baking ingredients are...

butter, coconut, chocolate, nuts, more butter....

it is widely known that i love aprons, so naturally i have a collection of vintage or homemade christmas aprons. they remind me of being a little kid and helping my mom bake plates of goodies for our neighbors. in fact, i use her old one all the time and it makes me feel just like mrs claus! for baking night i pulled out my Holly Hobbie christmas apron, sorry i didn't get a good picture.

while i baked away, darin made a fire and stayed busy doing this:

next day we finished up our christmas shopping on main street. i decided (following a similar holiday dressing rule as sasha) to throw on everything green in honor of winter and the evergreen.

clashing shades welcome!

i just got this wonderfully festive patchwork vest in a surprise package from brigit!

just in time, and soooo cute, thanks b!

the wrist warmers were an early christmas gift from my mom and i love them.

although it was sixty degrees out...i just like to pretend its wintry here...

down on main street, some high school kids were playing music.

the shops were jam packed. there was nowhere to park.

and the merchants were smiling.

i love holidays in a small town.

we visited zack at his shop, which is doing quite nicely through the holidays.

i think artwork is the perfect gift if you know someone's tastes.

for example, wouldn't a Zelda lover go nuts for this giant map printout from the original nintendo version?

rebecca and sylvan were also getting decked out for some holiday shopping.

we met my dad for lunch at Old Towne Grill, home of the famous Earthburger, mmmmmm.

darin left us and my dad and i finished out the afternoon shopping. i am helping him discover the joys of shopping local :)

success.....it's a hit! he found everything he needed, santa filled all his lists, and the elves are now busy wrapping up packages.

hope you all are having a marvelous countdown to the big day.

i am wishing you the merriest, most joyous, peaceful and magical holiday ever!

Back with a Bizarre Bang!

2011-12-19T22:56:00.000-08:00

Spent another magical day at the Nevada City Winter Bizarre.

A perfect welcome back into blogging, and by the way, sorry for my unintended absence. Lots of wintry Christmassy goodness has indeed been happening, and this event takes precedence on my list of fun stuff I've been wanting to post.

Becky and I were back in our corner booth, flanked by outrageously stylish and cool neighbors vending things like colorful hoods and the raddest crochet pants.

I got to spend the day with the cutest fam on earth....

Surrounded by gorgeous vintage goodies....

And meeting up with all kinds of friends old and new.

We were just a hop and skip away from Amber, yippee! Always the purest delight to catch up with a kindred spirit sister.

And to see heartfelt individualism on so many levels....

I love these dear ladies. They make my spirit glow.

This year a lot of my Placerville friends set up booths of their own.

Here are Chelsea and Jen, who were just around the corner and passing out homemade cookies along with their vintage frocks.

Zack actually closed down his own shop to come set up here for the day...

it was a family affair...

and Sylvan got to do a little shopping of his own; as a curator of interesting odds and ends he found many a bizarre ware to strike his fancy.

cmon, look at this kid. so rad.

Another sweet Placerville friend is the lovely and talented Monique, who came all the way down from Covelo, California where she has her own amazing little shop called Red Moon Arrow. You can read all about its beginnings here.

She is such a crafty creative soul. She came up with the idea for her racks, shaped like teepees on the ends with the rustic wooden bars ending in arrows. Her boyfriend Gus is a builder extraordinaire and helped make her lovely idea a reality!

She also makes amazing handcrafted jewelry and accessories.

It is so fun to see your own creative friends and comrades in action with their beautiful wares!

Amber discusses the obvious benefits of the perfect red crochet dress:

Check out her festive signage:

How could you not be joyous surrounded by faces like this?!

Some of the fun in our own little corner included beer drinkin:

a wild dance party next door:

playing in Violet Folklore's sale bins:

and lots of rapid-fire crawling action, with a breakdance style turnaround that would blow your mind.

All this entertainment equals happy ladies.

not to mention trades that involve the most exquisite vintage afghan dress:

I got to take a wee break to see my own sis perform!

Coal Beautiere was lovely as usual even though she thought it went terribly. She's just dramatic ;) Or maybe I only got to witness the three best songs, all I know is, I was swept away into a world of swirly cocktails and daydreamy housewives and 60s innocence and desire. Her songs tell the most delicious stories.

After which, she hung out in our booth sipping whiskey and getting tipsy.

Warms your heart right up, you know?

Twas truly a beautiful day and this is just the tip of the iceberg my friends. There were sooooo many other amazing women, and men, and booths and handmade items and creative innovations and stories going around that I could tell. I didn't even get a photo of some of my favorite ladies, like Sasha or Suuzi or Kerry who I finally got to meet in person tho it felt like we go waayyy back! It was all around inspiring to be surrounded by such amazing sister souls in such a fun environment with good food and drinks and live music...what a day. What a perfectly festive and joyful day!

windstorm christmas tree

2011-12-03T17:29:00.000-08:00

it's never all that windy here, so it was very exciting on thursday to go out christmas tree hunting on the windiest day of the year!

the whole household went together: darin, me, joey and emily, in search of the perfect, slightly-charlie-brownish-but-still-nice-and-bushy-comfy sweet tree.

we headed to Sacred Paths organic farm, operated by our friend stephanie sorenson, a place of good vibes, rustic outdoor fire pits, medicine wheels, herbs in abundance and all sorts of wild growing things, and love.

ahhhhh, fresh cedar and fir trees, radiant oaks, wind blowing all the leaves and pinecones around, cool and lively, a madcap swirly day.

all the power was out from the east side of placerville on up the hill, including all the tree farms and apple hill businesses.

luckily, you only need man power to cut down a christmas tree.

we got a real cutie.

happy!

there are all kinds of goodies at sacred paths, from dried lavender bundles to the raddest outdoor kiva, to rustic wooden chairs for tots.

miss stephanie herself, such a wise and wonderful earth mama soul.

evergreen hair decor:

we couldn't resist a stop for some fruit and goodies at Boa Vista orchard on the way home.

their stands and goodies were literally blowing away! they had no power and were only doing cash transactions. there were only a few other customers and a nice darkish feeling of comraderie as we bought our goods during the windstorm.

then back home for an afternoon of tree trimming.

i can't imagine much else cozier.

awwww how i love december!

happy holidays to all of you.

captain's wife

2011-11-30T11:23:00.002-08:00

i recently finished reading Ahab's Wife by Sena Jeter Naslund and loved being lost in that seafaring world. snuggled by the fire with my cats on these cold november nights, i've also been cabin boy, lighthouse keeper, reluctant whaler, ferryboat passenger and captain's wife.

i love the waterways of the early days of America. in the first half of the 19th century traveling overland for long distances was not considered; you traveled by steamboat! soooo romantic. boats and ships provided every possible link to the world outside america, whether industry, communication, transportation or trade. captains were like god on the sea, the rivers, the lakes, the land.

traveling by water makes sense to me; you are still connected to the earth, the ebb and flow, directed by the connecting powers of land, sky, and human hand. i wish the world would slow down. i wish we still had to plan out days worth of travel by river to visit long distance friends. i would stitch quilts and watch the water along the way. buoyed by water, floating and flowing and rolling with waves, watched by the moon.

i've always been fascinated by stories of women sailing around the world (like Tania Abei, the youngest person to circumnavigate the globe solo, read Maiden Voyage)

also...women lighthouse keepers. for years, as a kid, that was my dream job. i didn't realize yet that it was already obsolete.

i used to sit in Point Reyes Lighthouse at the little desk and meditate on living there. it is the windiest point along the pacific coastline. you are in a whirlwind of wind and mist and fog and ocean spray. whales may go by, dolphins or pelicans. if you tended the light, you would polish each delicate panel of the Fresnel lens so it could beam its vibrant light twenty four miles out to sea. you would carry milk in wooden buckets from the dairy farm. you would record the sights and sounds into a massive logbook with miniature lines. you would light oil lamps and wind the clockwork and trim the wicks and climb the wooden stairs, crawling against the wind.

it makes me sad that lighthouses are all automated now. a lost life of connection, strength, endurance, vigor and devotion. not surprising that these are values that we are losing sight of on a larger scale.

woman staring at sea here

big oceans in my heart as the seasons change. colder nights mean daydreaming, hibernating, making plans and storing up.

the words that fill my soul are driftwood, scrimshaw, rigging, shanty, mermaid, gale.

Grateful, Cozy ...

2011-11-26T13:27:00.000-08:00

around these parts, we were especially grateful to spend this one last thanksgiving with old Cream Puff.

we knew his time was near. but he was cozy by the fire and we each took turns snuggling him.

he loves having lots of people around, so i'm sure he thought we were throwing him one last party.

also, i was so grateful to be surrounded by my family. they are so fun, sweet, wise, talkative, and rad.

everyone shared the cooking, we had two tofurkeys and tons of root veggies and stayed up late watching Planes, Trains and Automobiles.

it was a perfect celebration of home, family, food and love.

cream puff died this morning, peacefully at home.

we will miss him dreadfully but mostly, we are so thankful for his long and extraordinarily full life and our wonderful times with him.

land of dreams - part three BIG SUR and the wild coast

2011-11-21T10:58:00.000-08:00

bright morning, we headed up the california coast to the most enchanted of wild lands: Big Sur. dreamplace of henry miller's rhapsodies and jack kerouac's oceanic trampings. a stretch of coastal lands that deeply haunts our hearts in every season.

we usually travel north to south; this time we came up from the south so we stopped first to watch the elephant seals of Piedras Blancas have a few arguments, chortle in glee, and then snuggle back in together.

at Plaskett Creek we found the most cushiony green beautiful camping spot in all the world.

headed across the bluffs to watch the sunset,

and sighed with joy to know that this is the sound we'd be sleeping to all night.

meanwhile, behind us, the full moon rose over the Santa Lucia Mountains.

back at our camp we put on all our layers and made dinner in the dark and built a fire, the coziest feeling.

next morning we wanted to go out to coffee. little did we know that, coming up from the south end, there is nothing ahead of you but wild ragged coastline until the tiny town of big sur about 30 miles ahead. there was also a new bridge being built and roadwork, so we got used to the long leisurely stops to wait for our turn for the detour. got pretty friendly with the workers there. one guy was feeding bits of a pastry to an eager chipmunk. at least if you're going to be stuck waiting for roadwork, be stuck in the most beautiful place in the world, overlooking the vast sparkling turquoise morning Pacific, with cypress trees and coastal redwoods and chaparral down to the sea.

finally made it up to the big sur bakery for the most perfect espresso ever.

plus the gardens and flora and sunlight made our morning venture well worth it.

but now we had to head back down the coast (longest coffee run ever) to return to our campsite, pack up our stuff, and go to the beach!

Sand Dollar Beach is right across from Plaskett Creek. the thing about big sur is, there are really not very many beaches, like the lounging-about-in-soft-sand-and-sun variety. it is mostly craggy cliffs and wide vistas of the sea, or creeks and mountainous hikes to breathtaking views. but we have found a couple beaches that are as inviting as a secret caribbean hideaway.

we practically had the entire sweep of beach to ourselves!

wandered the little tidepools, splashed out into the waves a bit, the water was cold but not too cold and the warm sun sparkled down on everything.

we made friends with this gorgeous fella:

and these little suction cups, so squiggly and shy when you touch them:

it was a day for dancing, twirling and frolicking. i had energy from the sun and water pouring through my bones.

late afternoon, we decided to make our last night on the road the coziest one.

got a room at one of my very favorite places on earth, where we stayed for our second wedding anniversary, Fernwood.

the reason i love fernwood so much is how it is such a far cry from the parts of big sur that are fancy and expensive and pretentious and bourgeois. fernwood is homey and cozy and down-to-earth. this is the real big sur to me, bohemian and friendly, an enchanted little world away.

we got the tiniest room, Room M. it was a little nest built just for two, with a heater and the softest bedding and a nice hot shower.

more of what i love about fernwood: plants in pots everywhere you look. abundance, greenery, love.

the coziest saloon in history. every bar should be made of all wood and have tiny lights strung up and offer good local brews.

and please: a stone fireplace, soft lamps, comfy couches, and free wifi would be nice!

best of all are the redwood garden pathways all throughout fernwood, from the campsites to the tent cabins to the deli-store and tavern. every path lined with ferns and succulents and blooming flowers.

this is the staircase up from the tent cabins, where we stayed last time.

painted rocks, goddess sculptures, an outdoor fireplace and rustic picnic tables. a little wooden stage for summer shows. can we get together and build a place like this?

next morning, one more trip to the beach before heading home. this time we found Pfeiffer state beach, just a mile or so down the road from fernwood, you turn down a secret winding foresty road that goes on down to the sea.

another perfectly glorious california coastal day in november!

this is the happiness i want to glow with all the time, back at home, at the bookstore, in my belly, in my bones:

i take it from the places i go, the air i breathe, the ocean and the desert, the cities and the wild.

and then i bring it home, to my own bed, my friends and snugglers:

thank you big sur!

what a way to ring in our birthdays!

and thank you sweet readers for going on this journey with me.

land of dreams - part two: joshua tree to LA

2011-11-16T13:12:00.000-08:00

woke up in our little desert abode for our last day in joshua tree. the day dawned brilliantly sunny, just what we'd been hoping!

stopped in yucca valley for coffee again and i admired the colors and murals and dirt roads of a desert town. everything is so much prettier with adobe and colors and kivas... i want to surround my life with this feeling!

and on down the road into joshua tree again...

we hiked up Mt. Ryan, a "moderately strenuous" hike straight up the mountain that was just perfect and refreshing.

we spent about an hour at the summit. i sat and meditated and drew pictures, and darin made a little time lapse movie of the clouds moving. it was heaven. at the top there were other hikers gathered of course, and one was a little group of young thespians doing some singing activities in a circle. they were making a beautiful sound with their voices spontaneously rising together. i smiled at them. as we left i heard one of the young women say, "did you guys see that adorable couple?" and for some reason that just made me feel so good, a little gift from a stranger that made my heart glow.

we headed down south through the park to the boundary where the two deserts collide: the cooler and damper mojave meets the drier and hotter Colorado which climbs up from mexico.

suddenly: cholla and ocotillo cactus in abundance, like a prickly fairytale garden.

we made lunch at the Cholla garden loop.

then took a turn around the twisting paths to see our intricate and strange fellow creatures.

we saw four coyotes in joshua tree. the first three were together, like a roving band of sisters, chasing a chipmunk up a tree. they were beautiful and fit and wild, loping off together confident and proud.

the fourth was alone, heading down a wash as we left the southern end of the park. he headed up a hillside and stood alert and true silhouetted against the sky. i felt so moved to be in their presence, comfortable and free in their desert home. i remember when we lived in southern california as kids, hearing them at night and sometimes losing kittens to their cunning ways. i respect them and want to know more of their secrets.

after leaving joshua tree we headed to Los Angeles. our two brothers who live in LA actually live very close to each other near Griffith Park. we headed to darin's brother's first. dave is a producer for sports radio and some friends had come over to watch a very important football game. dave's wife ashley is 7 months pregnant! we had so much fun talking about the baby's room and her plans for the future.

dave and darin talk books, movies, and music almost constantly. sprinkled with a big dose of hilarious stories.

so fun to see old friends!

next morning, we headed over to meet mikie at the hollywood farmers market. how nice to have a bustling year-round outdoor market!

spent some time in amoeba, a classic activity when we go to LA. darin loves to dig through these bins. and dave was so sweet to sell back a bunch of cds and give darin the credit as a birthday gift!

right nearby is Space 15 Twenty and Project Urban Renewal (PUR), where they feature and sell handpicked vintage items from some renowned vintage colllectors.

and guess who's stuff is there? our very own BECKY, yep, oliver's mom and cofounder of Velvet Leaf and Black Sheep vintage. it was so fun to see her and oliver in the shop photo and to peruse some of her lovely treasures on display!

mikie took us over to the old shakespeare bridge in los feliz. built in 1926, it had the perfect gothic vibe for the grey skies and sprinkly rain.

darin took some photos of me since i was proud to be wearing a dress i recently got on etsy.

my favorite thing about LA is the lush flora. bougainvillea, hibiscus, jacaranda, azaleas, heliotrope. despite the smog, the air is rich with blossoming abundance. plus there are eucalyptus and palm trees and climbing vines and spanish tiled rooftops. there are definitely little nooks and crannies in this vast crazy city that are loveable.

a rainbow appeared right behind the bridge!

late afternoon, we headed back to dave's to meet up and go to the griffith observatory. all this time dave and ashley have lived basically across the street, and darin and i have never been up there! we saw a perfect sunset.

our brothers and us!

james dean, the hollywood sign, and the setting sun:

inside the observatory we found a whole world of astronomical and cosmic information.

darin and mikie watching the foucault pendulum swing with earth's tilting:

the ceiling of the rotunda celebrates the connections between science, mythology, earth and sky.

mikie and dave pinpointing where in this craziness they find home. i love how LA people are LA people, very interested in the neighborhoods, cross streets, buildings, histories and tall tales of their city's culture.

darin could have stayed all night.

but we had to hurry to pick up ashley, grab some dinner at Fred 62s and then head to the cute little old fashioned movie theater on Vermont to see The Rum Diary!

what a ride. i loved it. darin and i browsed the neighborhood bookstore (open till 10 pm, wow!) for a while after that, then headed over for a mellow night at mikie and amber's apartment. they both work at the W hotel on Hollywood blvd and are figuring out how to have a down-to-earth, cozy and sweet life even in the heart of all this bustle and hoopla.

the view from their rooftop (taken by darin):

in the morning we had coffee with dave, then came back to pick up our stuff and say our good-byes to mikie to amber. we missed them all immediately and their glowing love sailed on with us up the road toward the ocean.

perfect day for a warlock

2011-11-12T21:24:00.000-08:00

this wizard husband of mine turned 34 out in the desert! november 4 we woke up with smiles on our faces in a strange new land, in our own patchwork quilt in a dusty old man room. what a morning! brewed coffee in the 1960's percolator and had ourselves a pretty view sitting by the porch in old aluminum lawn chairs.

darin got to spend the day doing all the things he loves....like....bb guns?! yep, guess he's just a real dude at heart. (shooting a little paper target of course, and not our friends the jackrabbits!)

we walked around the property and visited the horses at the neighbors' ranch:
beauties.

it was starting to rain and the desert town with dusty dirt streets smelling fresh and sweet.
a rainbow lying upon the horizon, every color vivid, right down to magical violet.

on into the town of Yucca Valley where we found the perfect coffee shop: Ma Rouge.

you can order your own carafe of fresh french pressed coffee, yum!

next we did something that sounds more like my kinda fun only, but darin actually loves it too: thrifting! we hit up about three or four little weird desert thrift shops. most of them were tucked full of odd knick knacks that were pretty much just junk, cute little old people running the joint.

then we found this vintage shop that was truly a gem!

i want to make a banner like this for our house; this was the front porch of Richochet. I bought a rad yellow skirt that fits right into my la loba vibe! you'll be seeing it here, I'm sure.

and finally: into the wonder of Joshua Tree National Park. darin says it's his favorite place in the world...perfect for the birthday boy! maybe we were just feeling extra exuberant there, but it felt so incredibly good to clamber around on these rocks and be out under this magnificent stormy desert sky. it felt like a mystic journey, or being lost in a dreamspace but feeling every yucca spine and raven so true and real.

we hiked into this area called Hidden Valley, a beautiful desert valley completely surrounded by mountainous boulders. Long ago it was used as a grazing area for cattle rustlers!

seems like a nice life for a cowboy thief.

because this valley is enclosed by mountains, much-needed desert rain funnels and collects here and creates a micro-climate transition zone quite a bit moister than other parts of the desert. so alongside the yucca and nolina cactus, there are pinyon pines and oaks. And of course the ubiquitous and strange, shaggy and stalwart joshua trees guiding the way west.

late afternoon we drove up to keys view, to watch the sunset and see the panoramic views of the coachella valley and san bernadino mountains from the highest point in the park. unfortunately, at such a high place - those clouds we'd seen above? we were now in them! and they were icy cold and sleet snowy/rain was falling sideways against us in a frozen wind. darin was taking nips from his whiskey flask to warm up. we got to see the awesome views, laugh at our umbrellas turning inside out, and watch crazy storm clouds brewing, then hurry back to get cozy in the car.

we love joshua tree so much, it makes me dizzy to think about. but we decided to come back the next day to hike more in the "brilliant sun" that was forecast for tomorrow. i think it's appropriate that darin's birthday was misty and rainy, fitting for a magician who prefers the mystery.

so at that point we headed out of the park and up the road to the most wonderful true rock-n-roll roadhouse:

Pappy and Harriets.

the style there is great, just like we love: a healthy dose of americana mixed with rock n roll, rustic charm and downhome fun. we heard it used to be a biker bar, but the crowd was way tame while we were there, and we found out too late you have to have reservations (?!) if you want to sit at a table for the music. but we still had time to eat a leisurely meal, have a beer, and then find a place near the bar to watch the music.

if the crowd were more frisky it would be just the kinda joint we'd like to run ourselves :)

ravenous from our rambles, we ordered the cheese fries as an appetizer, wowweeee!

we watched Solid Ray Woods play some hearty california-style soul.

it was too dark for good pictures, so i took the rest from their flickr just to show the vibe a little more...

best of all i love the old ones, and the story of pappy and harriet starting it and playing music there in the early 80s.

aren't they cute?! darin and i in twenty years?

we headed back through the quiet desert dark to our little hermitage in the hills. past the eerie joshua trees waving their spindly arms, past the sleeping ravens and the burrowing owls and kangaroo rats, past the coyotes and horses to our own funky little room in the desert.

a pretty magical birthday, would you agree?

land of dreams - part one: eastern sierra to the desert

2011-11-10T20:18:00.000-08:00

road trip of dreams. that's what it was. it was a celebration of our lives and life in general, it was a big firework in the night, a fresh blossom in the desert, a snake uncoiling, a vast and endless view. it's like taking a breath of fresh air deep into your lungs, you look around with clear eyes and the whole world seems to sparkle. that's how it felt, each place we went. we just got back and i am still aglow and like always, i have to tell the story here.

so we started out driving through our beloved sierra nevadas and over to the east side and down highway 395.

this time we listened to the informational cd that mom and jack brought us back from one of their many trips to the east side. it was fascinating! we learned how the mountains were formed over time, how there were actually ancient ancestors of these mountains, formed by an ocean plate colliding with a land plate 120 million years ago. They loomed into the sky. By 65 million years ago, these mountains were rolling hills like the foothills where i live. The Sierra Nevadas that we know and love didn't start to form until about 4 million years ago, the grand and epic result of so much time, volcanic and geologic activity, shifting and erosion. Crazy to think what they'll be like in another 100 million years!

road trip braids:

enjoying it all...it was a crisp fall day when we left, sunny and refreshing. in the mountains, all those leaves we saw two weeks ago were gone now! now they are tall and spindly little winter trees ready to wait out all the coming storms, brave and true.

by the time we got to bridgeport for some jalapeno poppers (road trip food, oh yeah!) it was downright cold! no one else was on the road. we were their last customers - they closed down early to go home and get cozy. we hit the road again.

arrived in lone pine in the moonlit shadows of those eerie peaks, mount whitney and her sisters guiding us all the way. our plans to camp went out the window with the cold wind. we stayed here instead:

next morning in lone pine we hit up our very favorite espresso joint:

yesterday's braids paid off!

and onward out to the alabama hills for some good old fashioned running around!

the alabama hills are a national recreation area where tons of western movies and car commercials get filmed out on hidden dusty trails. luckily, it was all quiet while we were there and we seemed to be the only ones for miles and miles on these strange little pathways hidden in the curvy rocks.

i am still reading Women who Run with the Wolves (c/o milla) and definitely embracing my wildish woman lately, feeling like a tiny outcropping, a bit of obsidian flaked from these ancestral woman and myths as old as the hills (now i get that expression!)

i wanted to run, jump and dance and howl in big skirts on this trip. i wanted to feel like a rainbow.

this was my thursday outfit: queen of the hills.

"How does one call up the soul?"

"In order to converse with the wild feminine, a woman must temporarily leave the world and inhabit a state of aloneness in the oldest sense of the world. Long ago the word alone was treated as two words: all one. To be all one meant to be wholly one, to be in oneness, either essentially or temporarily."

we struck down further south along the 395 into missile range territory, long stretches of nothing but ghost towns, straggling telephone poles, and lonely ravens.

made lunch down a little dirt road south of barstow. we could see the san bernadinos ahead of us.

almost there.

and before night fell we found our destination: a place on the outskirts of Yucca Valley affectionately called the "Ranch" by the family: it is owned by Dave's (darin's brother) father-in-law, had long ago been given to his father right after WWII. the family called this grandfather "pop;" he's been gone several years and now ashley's dad and brothers still would not change a thing about pop's place and love to use his little rusty place as their desert hideaway: a glorious one it is! a total little old man's bachelor pad in the desert, full of beebee guns and kites and dusty trinkets and ancient coffee pots. shag carpet about fifty years old, with dust from the desert holding it together. sleeping bags and floral couches and vinyl chairs. perfection.

our front yard:

La Llorona wanderings:

darin gave me my birthday gift two weeks early! he wanted me to be able to use it on the trip.

check out his hand-painted wrapping paper. he recreated images from 80s fantasy movies like Labyrinth and Legend.

it was a fancy and wonderful new lens! he is helping me learn about it, and we were able to use it a little, but we had to send it back because the manual focusing aspect was broken. i can't wait to get my replacement. i will need a new blog format to really show these photos off!

tickled. hanging out at the ranch with my love.

darin drank his Old Rasputin that emily sent along for his birthday.

we read each other's tarot cards.maybe it's taboo to photograph your reading, but this was a really really good one, marriage blessing, love and male/female balance. tickled again.

and late at night took a starry walk up the dirt road toward the strange hills.

jackrabbits crossed our paths and zig zagged away.

the moon was a curandera leading the way through the sands.

i'll be back tomorrow with more from these desert dream lands and my man's birthday! hope your hearts are full of peace tonight, fill those wild souls.

spirit will fly

2011-11-01T23:17:00.000-07:00

We're going on a trip!

It will be a good way to unwind from the mayhem of October, which included:

thrifting galore,

working galore,

red wine galore.

those three things pretty much defined my month.

this was my outfit last week on a thrifting day.

i felt pretty frolicsome in my bold fall colors.

then it was time to dress up in costume for festivities of all hallow's eve.

reading about the skeleton woman in Women Who Run With the Wolves, the most provocative text gifted from milla last year, (yes i am finally reading it and LOVING it)

i was in the mood to embrace the dark side. the death side, that united with life create this eternal-return cycle that turns our universe.

i love the way that dia de los muertos celebrates the spirit world, its joyous ties to life. milla wrote about it beautifully here and i was so pleased to see yet another connection in this little bloggy corner of the world.

emboldened suchwise, i encountered these other fearsome souls:

the ghost of charlie chaplin.

a lovely caveman.

queen of the fairies:

her mama kelly and boyfriend todd, gory chicken farmers, with their very own cute little chicken in tow:

unbeknowst ghosts:

a wily sperm with his own seed :)

a nostalgic mermaid.

a pink flamingo:

al swearengen himself (ah my dream man haha)

let's just call him Darengen...

the list goes on and on. i was amazed at everyone's creativity and self-expression; what a crafty bunch of folks who appreciate the sheer exuberance of costumes. emily and i realized, getting ready, that we have already been to so many themed costume parties this year alone that we are starting to exhaust our repertoires ;)

i worked all day on halloween and passed out candy to thousands of little (and big?) trick-or-treaters in their proud costumes. such a fun time of year, but i am breathing a bit of a sigh of relief that it's now passed....

and i am off on a peaceful journey with my love!

i'll be back on the 10th. wishing you all cozy days!

red skirt: thrifted

boots: thrifted

yellow tee shirt: thrifted, little boys' section

hat: thrifted

the littlest pumpkin carver

2011-10-30T22:44:00.000-07:00

our jack o lanterns all in a row.

creating quite a fright and

casting a glow on the street where cats and bats roam in the night.

jorden and becky recently moved to the cutest neighborhood in placerville, where vines grow on storybook cottages and spanish tile rooftops and adobe walls soak in gentle afternoon sun. little lights along the windows and cats out for strolls, yards full of flowers and gardens and birds.

we spent a cozy evening at their new house, and baby oliver got to reach inside a pumpkin for the first time in his sweet little life. like usual, he was fearlessly curious and observant, busy and focused and taking it all in like a little scientist.

here are some pictures from that night.

cousin alowyn was visiting and she loves pretty things and to do hair. she is quite a conversationalist too.

the dogs lazily stood watch over the whole thing and later posed with our jack o lanterns on the porch.

since then we've dressed up, spooked out, and spooked out some more. i hope you are all enjoying a delightful all hallow's eve full of tricks, treats, disguises, and spirits. i'll be at the bookstore dressed up as pippi and handing out candy to the endless parade of small town trick-or-treaters!

underfoot the divine soil, overhead the sun...

2011-10-27T00:53:00.000-07:00

when the seasons change i read walt whitman and am happy to be alive.

a reminder to go out into the world, the real world of earth and flower and fire. to feel it under your feet, on your skin, to loafe and invite your soul and be in the wild mystery.

darin and i went up into the mountains. golden yellow aspens and green pines welcomed us, a forest of explosive color and magic. it was like the daylight blew wind into our souls, fresh and cool, down into our legs and sparkling in our eyes. that is what happens.

we stopped at tragedy springs. it was totally different from when i was there as a kid; i always remembered an ice cold well or water pump and some cute little visitor center. now it is just a cluster of abandoned buildings and a gravesite.

death=life, tragedy=regeneration.

a maiden's grave becomes a blooming sage, a feathery fern.

All goes onward and outward, nothing collapses,

And the die is different from what any one supposed, and luckier.

they were blasting rock at carson pass, so we stopped to hike a while. it got quiet and an owl flew calling overhead and a tiny pond mirrored the sky. i could see the peaks of round top and thunder mountain as i wandered out, wishing i could get lost awhile.

my favorite bakery in all the world. any time we head over the mountains we stop to see the beautiful proprietess that all the boys love and taste her wickedly delectable goods. we had coffee and pie; mine marionberry, his lemon sour cream. nothing like a great slice of pie in a cozy room with a fireplace, pumpkins, wooden bar and twinkly lights.

then for more walking, creeks, burls, stones, meadows.

layers of color rich as umber, rust and blood.

I am enamour'd of growing out-doors...

off i go...I tramp a perpetual journey, (come listen all!)

i'm cheesy, but struck by how nice it is to have a crush on your own husband, it's embarrassing!

What is commonest, cheapest, nearest, easiest, is Me,

Me going in for my chances, spending for vast returns,

Adorning myself to bestow myself on the first that will take me,

Not asking the sky to come down to my good will,

Scattering it freely forever.

Stop this day and night with me and you shall possess the origin of all poems.....

The feeling of health, the full-noon trill, the song of me rising from bed and meeting the sun.

all lines from Song of Myself.

dress: $10 on etsy, came with matching vest

little brown vest: borrowed from em

slouchy hat: thrifted 50 cents

sandals: thrifted 1.50

boots: had forever, cheap knock off mocs

The Long and Mysterious Lives of Cream Puff Beatty (alias Boris Cole)

2011-10-21T23:16:00.000-07:00

Don't worry! He's still with us. Still yelling for his supper and climbing up our shoulders. Just a lot more frail and bony than years past.

BUT...I have a great story to tell about the old infamous scoundrel.

A lovely local woman named Patsy Cole sometimes reads my blog. For better frame of reference she is the creative soul who threw this gorgeous wedding with all its vintage and earthy details back in May.

Anyway, Patsy saw this post back in September and immediately made a startling connection.

Over ten years ago, her family had lost their beloved cat Boris when they moved to Placerville from a place further out in the country. They figured he hated "town life" and had run away, and they sorely grieved his loss. He had been king of their roost and their three daughters loved him very much.

When Patsy saw my post, she wondered if our "C.P" might indeed be their cat Boris?! My parents' house, where he showed up, was less than 1/2 mile from the house they had moved into.

We arranged for Patsy and her youngest daughter Cecelia to come meet him in the flesh. I warned him that he is veerrrry old, bony, and withering. But naturally, if he was indeed their long lost cat, they at least wanted to see him one last time.

Meanwhile, Patsy's oldest daughter emailed me old pictures of her "Boris," check them out:

My heart jumped. Especially the bottom one, the kohl eyeliner round his eyes, the stripes, the shape of his nose. It looked like him to me! The mouth looked a little funky, and in the top one his color was darker, but I remembered him being darker years ago anyway. And the thing with his mouth could be easily explained: he probably had a developing problem with his gums and teeth. Months on the run would have exacerbated the problem and by the time he showed up at my folks' house, he had rotten teeth and the vet had to remove them all except one. He has always been our snaggle tooth :) and has to eat only wet food. All those years ago, we wondered how old he was and the vet told us "this cat has major age." A quote that has gone down in history in our family. Everyone knows that Cream Puff is ageless and eternal.

Well these beautiful ladies may have just solved the mystery.

Patsy's husband Dave found Boris at the tennis courts at the local high school back in 1988 and he was just under a year old. That puts him at about 11 or 12 years old by the time he ran away from their new house in town in early 2000. After much discussion with my mom and siblings we figured out that Cream Puff probably showed up in late 2000 or early 2001. That makes him about 24 right now!

Here he is with Darin waaaay back in 2001. Darin always loved the guy.

As with my momma. Mom and Darin were CP's two best friends. Around that time his breath was so bad as he recovered from the rotten teeth, he was very demanding of attention and also, he drooled. The drool would land on things, make your shirt smell bad, and we liked to joke that it sizzled and burned a hole through anything it touched.

So Darin and I became his proud and loving adoptive caretakers.

He has lived with us in many different places.

From Sebastopol to our first house in Placerville on Goyan Street, to our house out in the country in Pleasant Valley. He must have got running wild out of his system, because he has always stayed right by our sides.

Fattening up for the winter.

It was really fun talking to Patsy and Cecelia about the life that he has had since he came to us. I told them that he has been a favorite of all our friends who come visit, that he loves people and being in the center of the action, preferably on a warm lap.

he has no qualms about insisting upon friendship with all our visitors!

Loves being in photo shoots:

and although he has gotten grumpy toward little kids and other cats and has left many a scar in his day, he is really just generally a lovable old guy with a lot of pizzazz, the best meow on earth, and a huge handsome strong heart.

It was hard to tell for sure 100% if our CP is their Boris, but delving into the mystery was fun and touching. So I am just going to think so.

We wondered where he went while he was alone out in the world. They wanted to know how he was when he first showed up (bedraggled and hungry but loving) and all about the vet trips and the other cats we have had along with him. They are total cat people so it was fun talking about all the nitty gritty details of our cats lives and deaths and habits and adventures.

We are going to keep in touch.

The name Boris fits and has immediately become his new nickname.

And meanwhile CP has some new (old?!) family in his old age,

and seems happy to be having his 15 minutes of fame.

Around these parts, he's a star!

Placerville Art and Wine Festival and introducing...Volution Gallery

2011-10-17T02:08:00.000-07:00

saturday night was a big event in our little town: the annual Art and Wine Fest. they close off the street and over 35 local wineries come pour tastes of their wines, a blues band plays live at the bell tower, they auction off the art banners that are usually on display along main street, and everyone walks around and dances and sips wine and looks at art and all the merchants stay open late.

it's a really fun night and this year was extra exciting because...

"COMING SOON the new Art gallery name Volution gallery"

our friends zack and rebecca opened their brand new little art gallery - Volution Gallery on main street!

zack is an amazing artist and for this first night, all the art on display was his own. sylvan (their son) likes to make signs. rebecca is the real organizational and motivating force behind it all, running around getting all the odds and ends done and getting insurance and all that good stuff that comes with being business owners.

darin and i came early to be at their disposal for any last minute tasks.

i got to be in charge of coffee and cookies. they had an assortment of the best cookies in the world from Magpie cafe (rebecca's brother ed is the owner).

it was fun running around behind the scenes and seeing the results of sylvan's dutiful efforts everywhere. his drawings usually tell elaborate stories and involve a lot of people making calls on rotary phones.

or else they are postings of very important security information about the building.

and...he got to replace his "coming soon" sign with a new one! a perfect rendition of zack showing off his artwork.

everything is ready......

time to officially open!

and the crowds start to pour in!

debby (darin's mom) in a new cowboy hat matthew had just bought her for their night out on the town.

as for my own sartorial choices, i wanted to look like an 80's art student along the lines of winona ryder, who just got a job in an art museum.

i wore this lacy little blouse from a clothing exchange a long time ago, a recently thrifted silk skirt and put my hair up (it came down later in a big mess of course). i felt a bit too fancy so i wore mismatched feather earrings and threw on red china flats to make it sorta funky.

a dashing husband is always a good accessory!

my station for the night:

(though i am very bad at staying in one place very long)

the crowd kept growing! more and more friends kept showing up! all the local kids, some friends from sacramento and even from san francisco. a little art gallery reunion.

and of course, the newest friends.

budding artists and creative souls,

oliver...

julian...

and zillion!

they are all within a few months of each other and all BIG.

i asked my sweet friend bridget if i could take a couple outfit shots of her. lately everytime i see her around town she is dressed up so nicely. she said she is making a conscious effort to get dressed and feel good about herself every day. i love her thoughtful approach to life's little choices.

she told me she wears these shoes as a "lesson in mindfulness." she says with each step she has to be present in the moment and feel her feet taking the step and be aware and mindful of it. she arrived on her bicycle in tennies, then changed into these :) beautiful girl with a beautiful soul.

what a great night we had!
i am so excited for my friends and for placerville, hoping that this is yet another step toward a more centered, artistic, lively town.

thanks for coming along.

our new roomies, a new dress, coziness and cats

2011-10-11T23:41:00.000-07:00

so as i mentioned, joey and emily moved back in with us.

they lived with us before, from spring of 2008 to september of 2009.

sooooo the old household is back together and settling in for some cozy times. laugh attacks, movie nights, late night pig outs, impromptu dance parties and ridiculous homemade movies.

a peek around their room. it's the big one that i painted turquoise before my epic dance party, 2009.

em's trinkets.

joey's typewriter.

by the time they are our age they might have even more books than we do.

owl pillow on joey's old man chair.

bed.

em's queen chair and the record player. they listen to most all their music on vinyl, which is nice.

joey's collection of hand drawn portraits.

more of em's trinkets and homemade frames.

their bathroom.

don't you want em's jewelry?

but.....MOST IMPORTANTLY.....the newest additions to our catworld. joey and em have three cats of their own. and we have three cats. so we are back to a six cat household, my oh my. it's fun stuff around here. 5 of the 6 are younguns, so needless to say there is a lot of action.

introducing...

CAMILLA, age 2

WOODY, age 1.5

and FERN, age 5 months

i can't resist adding portraits of my own, so here goes:

Cream Puff, my old man, age 145 in cat years.

Daphne (beanie) my shy girl, about 6 years old.

and Billy (bobey) my wild boy, 1 year.

billy and fern hit it off immediately and whole days are spent like this:

i have been sick for a few days but before that happened i had a chance to wear my new fall dress!

i ordered it from lovely heidi of gold country girls (they have a wonderful blog full of fun stuff about these here gold hills) and when she was in town visiting lori, another gold country sister, she hand delivered it to me at the bookstore, beautifully wrapped and so delightful.

i decided that plum colored dresses are perfect for fall. and this dress really hit the sweet spot, with the poofy sleeves and lace collar and fitted waist and ruffled hem. everything i love and more!

it was raining that day (still doing a rain dance) so i paired it with these little vintage black rainboots and a black cardigan. we had a cozy date to the movies: darin, joey, my dad and i.

i thought darin was looking pretty hans, so i took some pictures of him too.

it rained all day yesterday, a surprise. i was sick in bed so it actually felt extra cozy and i didn't even mind that there were clothes out on the line getting drenched. i've got the halloween decorations out and it is that time of year to gather those you love around you and make a fire in the stove and cook a pot of homemade soup.

outfit deets:

calico plum dress: from gold country girls on etsy

black leather belt: thrifted, $1

black vintage rain boots: thrifted

black vintage cardigan: thrifted

cream tights: sooooo old

moonstone earrings: made and gifted by em

red kids' umbrella with stars and moons: thrifted $1.50

darin's togs:

brown suede sweater jacket: recently thrifted $3

brick red thermal shirt: folsom outlets a few years back

jeans: thrifted

work boots: thrifted

Refreshed

2011-10-06T19:39:00.000-07:00

oh sky, thank you for sending rain by the bucket full right when i needed it.

i realized after my whiny post that i must be crazy. at the thrift store during the storm yesterday i heard other people claiming we've had too much rain this year, that it rained in june, july, and september.

well as for me, my dry old dusty heart was tumbled in the raintides and came out smooth.

this artist's smock was another brigit gift that i've been dying to wear. the colors are my exact favorites this fall, emerald green, pumpkin and violet and needless to say, a million pockets are an absolute dream come true. i want to fill them with paintbrushes, pebbles, tea bags, acorns, bits of lace, pencils and candy corn.

shiny fall roads await me. i drive up the hill and everything is gleaming and smiling and shaking off the raindrops and lifting up faces to the downpour. the pears, the blossoms, the grapevines....all so alive and refreshed like a huge barn dance of nature.

the sun comes and goes, the clouds race above, the sky changes every moment and the rain turns on like nostalgic tears that make you laugh and cry at once.

not to mention pure COZY. for three days now...it has been books, cats, tea, red wine, movies, conversation, cooking and snuggling.

we joined some of the gang at the pub for some coffee imperial stout (darin) and Ommegang hennepin farmhouse ale (me). and some good baby lovings...oliver was soooo cozy in his soft little onesie, he is the most delicious bundle to hold and bounce and talk to, busier and more inquisitive than ever.

he loves to watch live music. he is quite attentive.

it was late but darin and i stopped by to help out at our friends' new studio where the little fam was hard at work painting and getting ready. this is the big news on the street: zack is opening his very own gallery/shop/art space at 434 main street!

all this rain and cold and sweaters and coffee makes my heart burst open with love. october has about a trillion activities upcoming; joey and emily are all moved in so we have a very busy household and six resident cats who are hard at work finding their roles within this little feline community. at night i snuggle under an extra blanket (windows still open...i can't help it, i just love the sound of the rain so much) next to my sweetly sleepy husband with my cat on my pillow and lay there smiling to myself and practically crying at the nice peaceful coziness of it all.

i hope you're all loving october so far too :)

blouse smock: vintage, gift from brigit
high waisted jordache jeans: vintage, thrifted $3
socks: clothing exchange with friends
Doc Martens: thrifted ages ago
necklace: thrifted $2.50
feather earrings: two different ones, made by friends

september blues and a prayer for rain

2011-09-30T19:24:00.000-07:00

i heard that rain is coming next week.

i am doing a rain dance and bathing in pink sunset light and begging that pretty old sky .

YES, send us rain.

i found these pictures that darin took five months ago, mayday: our backyard was achingly green, there were flowers and bees and color. (if you click to enlarge, you can see the bee's eyes staring solemnly at the camera, or at least i like to think those are her eyes glowing)

there were ladybugs mating on vibrant leaves.

remember i wrote about the greening life? now all is brittle around me. unfortunately we can't afford to keep our yard or garden green in this town, (see here if you want to know why, and actually mine is much worse than the person they interview) so everything is yellow, arid and dry. i know i've complained about this before, and it is not wise or sweet or happy to complain. this i know. and i know if i change my attitude that "dry" could be "golden" and i could be loving the fact that i still can't really wear sleeves of any kind. i really should be thankful that it is hot and sunny day after day (after day after day after day) unlike my poor friends in the city who are blanketed by cold fog all summer.

i am a seasonal person; my moods and daily energies revolve around the season. and i like things to feel the way they ought to for that season. i like seasonal beers, farmhouse ales and hefeweizens in the spring and summer, IPAs and pumpkin ales in the fall, nutty brown brews in the winter. fall should be cool and rainy and i will shut up now because i think by tomorrow my whining will cease, so bear with me :)

this old cat (my mom named him cream puff ages ago when he first showed up, we call him C.P.) is showing his age in these long dry afternoons. despite eating wet food twice a day, he is all bones now. he stumbles a little bit when he first gets up. no one knows how old he is; he's been with darin and i for over ten years now. i think he is a hundred years old. he is a local character and a real lover and i worry for him these days.

usually i welcome and embrace autumn. but this year it goes deeper, i actually feel like the rain returning and the water coming back into our dry hills will refresh the very bloodstreams of my body. all of me will thank it: my calloused feet (tho i will miss you barefeet) my withered skin, my parched lips, my dry bones.

meanwhile, thank you for not raining tomorrow...as darin and i have a wedding to film :)

wishing you all the cool, windy, drizzly, perfect cozy cuddly fall days that you deserve. or if you're in the southern hemisphere then HELLO SPRING!

that lucky old sun

2011-09-27T23:41:00.000-07:00

sunday was a blissful day. it was my mama's 60th birthday. can you believe she is sixty?! i would not stand for her feeling down about it. she is fabulous, smart, fun, happy, beautiful and in love. what better way to age?! we went to an antique fair on main street. and best of all...it was finally cool enough to wear this gorgeous yellow gauzy billowy dress that brigit sent me last month! (you guys she sent me soooo many goodies, it was like christmas. little by little i will show off some of the pieces)

i don't even think brigit had any idea that i am completely obsessed with gauzy cotton dresses. i like them free and flowy, or belted or with boots or with sandals. they are the most versatile, gorgeous, natural pieces of clothing and i could wear one every day.

i felt like a dream. just like cel posted the other day, sometimes you just feel so GOOD in what you're wearing. and everyone smiles at you and compliments your dress and you are completely comfortable and feel a little glow spreading through your skin.

plus it was fun being with my marma, who oohs and ahhhhs over each pretty little thing and loves old things with stories just like i do.

then we met up with this little troupe, headed up by a man with a mission....

i'm sure i've told you how our young friend sylvan loves and collects antiques, particularly rotary phones and pull-chain toilets. he loves all things old; he loves old buildings, and he will immediately tell you if your house is up to safety codes and where the nearest smoke alarm is and the age of your pipes. he is the raddest/quirkiest/old-man-est child i've ever known. he charged right into this particular antique store to proudly show his grandma this vintage phone booth complete with automatic runner lights that come on when you shut yourself inside. he knows the whereabouts and origins and histories of every antique telephone in town. not kidding.

later that night we all took my mom out to dinner at Cascada. which is usually a little fine for our kind. tis a nice place, you know? anyway, we had fun. we had drinks. we stayed until they closed, sharing a rich piece of chocolate cake they brought her and laughing and having presents and all that. and then we went across the street to the bar and had another drink. cause if anything it is FUN to be sixty.

our friend jen creates these wild and wonderful hair accessories and gifted one to marmy who is the best person to sport one of your creations; believe me every library lady will now be wanting one of these pups!

and i have to say, that's one hip mama.

so that's about it tonight loves. golden sun, lots of big plans coming up, a couple days off work, joey and emily are moving back in with us, the future looks bright. i feel like that lucky old sun who gets to roll around heaven all day.

yellow dress: vintage, cotton, gorgeous gift from brigit of bellisimama

belt: handmade, 50 cents (yep!) at the halloween sale local thrift store

sandals: mexican, 1.50 at the local thrift store

white cotton slip: thrifted ages ago

white feather earrings: from etsy

Wild West Soiree

2011-09-26T22:48:00.000-07:00

friday night i headed across the canyon in the cool fall eve to join my sister and her friends in nevada city for a big ol' wild west style bash that she's been cooking up for quite some time.

everyone showed up in kerchiefs, boots, leather, turquoise, suspenders, vests, holsters, bullets and feathers.

true hoe-down fashion.

i wore an antique black corset, silky blue feather boa, and poufy black bloomers with blue ribbons.

we slugged whiskey from flasks and stirred cocktails with a stick. there were cakes soaked in rum and shaped like cowboy boots. flags, stars, lights, and homemade saloon doors.

addie even had tinny ragtime music coming from hidden speakers so it sounded like it was playing in some haunted basement.

there's me frolicking with sasha. the dancing just couldn't quit.

four september birthday girls celebrated that night: addie, bee, andi, and kristen.

what grand old dames, a saucy brothel, a beauteous bevy!

kristen bids a welcome.

a wicked prop and bee.

art rocking his mega fringe jacket.

i loved getting to know all these nevada city ladies. they are so fine. in fact there were so many fine and fancy people to talk to, so many twirling dances to dance, so many late night rhapsodies and adventures...that i didn't go to sleep til six a.m! the time flew. i thought, damn girl. guess you still got it. (ok really i didn't think much at all at that point)

best of all was getting to hang out with my sis. the two of us had the bright idea to go on a moonlit hike at some point in the wee hours down to the creek down the hill from her house. that path was a little steep for me and i tumbled over the edge! laughing it off with every heft back up through the brambles. ooooddellllally!!

rip roaring my way in to the new season.

HELLO fall.

(many of these photos c/o my new friend jessica, source here)

last days of summer

2011-09-22T23:43:00.000-07:00

summer ends tonight. the days are still 94 degrees here and we've been making the most of it. yesterday we went to a local brewery to share a farmhouse ale and take some photos with our new holga-style lens.

i love it.

darin did some modeling for my shop. that's why we ended up at the brewery. he said, i'll be much more agreeable about all this if i get a beer in me.

check out that iris! damn i love embroidered shirts. you can truly feel the love and beauty and care in the stitchery.

i wore this DeGrazia pendant i thrifted earlier in the day. twice we have visited and rhapsodized over DeGrazia's Gallery in the Sun in Tucson; we were there on our road trip last fall. it deserves its own post and one day i will show it. meanwhile, i love the colors and shapes and tenderness of this papoose etching on wood.

i also wore two raggedy cotton slips as a skirt. the top one is really tattered around the waist area but i layered another one underneath, belted it all and voila! passes as presentable for me.

then today we went to the river. the canyon was already shaded by the time we hiked down the steep dusty trail, but the cold water felt great anyway.

photos from the holga lens:

non-holgas follow:

here's me after a quick skinnydip :)

these rocks are so warm, the perfect place to hang out on the last day of summer.

speaking of hanging out with my hub, here is a list of the movies we have watched in the last few days:

Drive,

The Wild and Wonderful Whites of West Virginia,

Your Highness,

Jane Eyre,

and Everything Must Go.

have you seen any of them?

that much movie watching must mean it's fall.

happy equinox and mabon everyone.

my digs from brewery day:

purple indian tank: free from a clothing exchange a long time ago

2 white cotton slips: thrifted over the ages

belt: thrifted a year ago

papoose pendant: thrifted yesterday $2.50

isis pendant: gift eons ago (i'm still going to tell that story sometime)

turquoise and purple scarf: thrifted yesterday 50 cents

earrings: gift from darin's mom

darin's embroidered shirts: both vintage, thrfited, one available here, one he chose to keep :)

apple picking days

2011-09-20T23:29:00.000-07:00

on sunday evening i got a bee in my bonnet to go to apple hill and do a little photo shoot.

now usually on a sunday in september, i would never brave the teeming crowds at apple hill, but this time it was after hours. all the farmstands had closed up shop, the craft stands were covered in canvas, the sun was going down over the western vineyards sloping down into the canyon, and i had the orchards all to myself!

i wanted to do a little modeling for my etsy shop but i am soooo very awkward about solo photo shoots for so many reasons including but not limited to:

1. if a car drives by and i think there is a chance anyone will see me photographing myself i get super flustered and embarrassed and fight the urge to run and hide and instead stand there trying to look natural and looking like a total dumbstruck moron instead

2. i feel like i am trespassing (cause i am) and glance sneakily and guiltily around all the time

3. i am mortified about changing in public, not out of any modesty issues myself but out of sympathy for an innocent bystander who might chance upon me and wonder wtf?!

add to that my paranoia about my camera possibly toppling over on the tripod, and i'm jumpy as a catfish.

needless to say, i got a whopping TWO items photographed before the sun went down.

but i did have fun frolicking that little dirt road, watching deer and jackrabbits, and gathering windfall.
despite my guilt, i came home with a basket of pears, walnuts, and apples with only a few bites and bruises.

two good signs: a flock of geese changed direction right over my head, and a woman's haunting bluesy singing voice came floating through the vineyards toward me. i felt like i had landed in a secret hilly wonderland, and the sky turned pink and violet, and the sun went down.

now...i will continue to pray for cooler days and real fall, and hope to come back after the equinox!

outfit deets:

skirt: for sale in my etsy shop

white eyelet top: from becky at a clothing exchange this summer

sandals: Blowfish, on clearance from a long ago Delia's sale

hat: thrifted

feather earrings: made by emily and gifted to me

turquoise necklace: handmade, from a local trading post that closed down

i made a little video....

2011-09-19T19:52:00.000-07:00

...of our august utah rambles....including but not limited to footage from the Extra Terrestrial Highway in Nevada, hikes in Bryce Canyon, the hike to Lower Calf Creek Falls in Grand Esclante, the campground at Kodachrome Basin, Grosvenor Arch, and a little bit of footage at a park in Beaver, Utah. which we were excited to recognize from this amazing film that we all got glued to one night last year.

if you're interested to check it out, here ye go:

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(this was shot on my little canon sureshot as it is easier to edit that way. it was supposed to end with a shot of the rainbow we saw as we headed north to provo, but i accidentally left that out. so please, envision that for a more satisfying end :)