Boho Girl

Rosemarie Dress

I have a good story. Last December, in one of my blog posts, I had linked to my red dress (wearing it here and here) from Horny Toad that I bought at our local REI. A few weeks later, I received a warm and kind email from one of the staff members of Horny Toad. She had researched hits to their site and found many were coming from my blog. She then read through my blog for a while and decided to reach out to me. We exchanged a few emails and with all the love spread around, Horny Toad became one of my sponsors. Stephanie is such a cool gal and I hope to hug her in the flesh someday soon as she too lives in the Pacific Northwest.

We decided that we wanted to extend the gratitude towards my readers by doing a giveaway!  We are giving away one Rosemarie Dress (same style as my red one but with shorter sleeves for Summer!).  The winner will be able to choose which color/size they want (black, green, melon or yellow).  It would be a wonderful treat for yourself or the perfect gift for a loved one.  This fabric is sooooo silky to the touch and it lays fluidly on my curves in the perfect way (not too loose, not too snug) and my favorite feature is the empire waist.  So flattering!

Here is the description on the site:

“A dress so nice we named it twice. The seemingly simple yet downright sexy Rose Marie has the kind of versatility other dresses only dream of. It breathes and moves and follows your curves. It dresses up and dresses down and flatters for days with a graceful V-neck, doubled fabric bodice, horizontal bust pleats, and an empire seam that flows into a soft, A-line drape.”

Okay, so onto the rules:

• One comment per person, please
• Comment can be one word or many…whatever inspires you
• Comments will be closed on Thursday, June 3rd at 10pm PST
• Winner will be chosen at Random.org

Weeeeee!

dear cedar curls ~
i hope you forever stay on his head. spiral-ly and loopy and divine.
i will not cut you all off. i cannot do it. unless cedar wants me to.

love,
boho girl mama

i can’t believe how full my days are here. with a backyard (haven’t had one in 10 years) and the forest and ocean, trails and creeks surrounding us, most of the hours of our days are spent outside. we come in for potty, snack, meals and sleeping. and because it stays light so late here, we are all going to bed VERY late and waking up VERY late. there was a time when we had a schedule and it worked for us but right now, we are just going with the flow. sort of like when you’re on vacation and all of the schedules and must-do’s aren’t gripping you. you feel free and you just move with what feels right. i wonder if it will stay like this for a long time, this feeling. or i wonder if we will somehow fall into a rhythm with our days. for now, i am not questioning. i am just soaking all of this up like a thirsty sponge.

do these images whisper what it is i am feeling?

{yummy clothing giveaway coming soon}

I think I’ve been quiet here because I’ve been in a space of observing and listening. I suppose I feel a bit awed. Okay, a lot awed by our surroundings. Including what goes on inside of my home and the intimacy I am feeling with my boys. Right now Cedar is sleeping on our couch near me in a ball of sunlight shining through our window. I can see the shadows of dragonfly lights that we have hung on our windows on his face. Cedar has never slept anywhere but his bed or our bed. There is a peace dwelling here that we have not felt in so long.

Yesterday we took a trail that is a few streets down in our neighborhood. It led us to an old farm that sits up on a tall hill overlooking the bay and an island and the mountains. We laid out a blanket. We ate. We did more breathing and listening than talking. Our bodies were close. We held one another. Boho Boy’s hand reached for mine if Cedar was between us. I write this with a tear in my eye. So much healing. We’ve had a rough few years. I can feel it slowly melting, walls peeling and a soft underbelly feeling less afraid to exist without so much protectiveness.

The home we are in is so special. The old man that lived here before us left a legacy it seems. Our neighbors talk of him fondly and it warms my heart that they are embracing us in this home. It seems they were waiting for people to live within these walls that captured the spirit of the man who once lived here. One of our favorite neighbors, a new friend of mine, has won my heart. She is moving soon and told me she now feels safe leaving this sweet village knowing that our family will continue to live and breathe the magic of this neighborhood. For nine years I lived in a place where I felt a bit misunderstood and here, within a few short days, I am wrapped up by souls that I feel speak the language of my heart.

{when finishing this post, i thought i would take a photo of cedar sleeping…}

Last night we went for a walk after dinner. Something that we’ve always wanted to be able to do and now, its becoming a reality for us. Sigh.

The beautiful moon. She was visible in the still light sky and Cedar decided to sing a song about Her. I love that most of his songs sound like chants. Like he just knows how to communicate with vibrations of nature.

I have much more to share. More images and stories…and I promise to come here soon. I am such a nester and when I move somewhere or visit or stay in a hotel, the first thing I do is unpack and settle. But its been different here. I can’t stay inside for too long. I pack half a box and then I am out in the green with Cedar or with our family or neighbors. I am so easily distracted these days. I still have massive amounts of boxes to unpack and no decorating has been done (soooo odd for me as decorating his my favorite part!). I have hundreds of emails to respond to and some important business to take care of and yet, I feel like I am on vacation when I am not, really…but it feels like it. ; )

Here are a few images of my boys last night during our walk around the hood.

{click on images to see larger}

Boho Boy and I have looked at one another many times throughout the last few days and said “we live here!”. Last night we were all snuggled up on the couch, Cedar in the middle and we gave one another a knowing look, leaned over his head and kissed. One of the many neighbors that have stopped by to get to know the new folk in their precious community said something that has sunk deep into my bones. She was laying under our apple tree (which we didn’t know was an apple tree until she told us) and pointed to me and Boho Boy and said “you two are going to fall in love all over again here.” I had only known her for a few minutes. Yet, with her hearing just a bit of our story, she saw us deep and knew how much we needed this. She was right. I feel like that is exactly what is happening to us. Falling in love all over again. Not only with one another. But with grass and rain and sun and rock and creek and flora…and being with people in the flesh. I don’t know even how to put it into words. And I am a writer of sorts. But my heart hasn’t stopped swelling and my fingers haven’t stopped pinching myself to see if this is all real. I haven’t been outside this much in I don’t know how long. Cedar has never been so blissed out and worn out in a good way. We live in such a gem of a place and community. That is what all the neighbors tell us. “You’ll never want to leave this street and if you do, you’ll come back…like all of us.”

Today Cedar and I planned to just walk a block down the road to get some fresh air. We ran into my neighbor and new friend Annie (the one who told us about our apple tree…and cherrie and pear trees) and her two Great Dane’s. She asked if she could take us on a stroll around the neighborhood. Up until today, we had only walked down the road to the water and the train track. We’ve been so busy unpacking that we were waiting until we felt more settled to venture out the other direction. But when she asked us, I thought to myself…why not? I can leave the mess at home and start living more in the present like everyone else does around here. They move more slower and mindful and its beginning to feel really nice. I love that I befriended the neighbor that seems to know the most about he history of this community. She was like a walking encyclopedia about the homes and who lives in them now and who lived in them a hundred years ago. Along the way we ran into a little boy that people have been telling us about. I’ve heard that him and Cedar are kindreds. Two quirky souls that are bound to connect. Well, it happened naturally, of course and oh how I saw so much of Cedar in him…but 5 years in the future. This sweet boy showed us a weed that you can peel and eat and it was sweet as nectar.

I giggled to myself.  I feel like I am walking through the pages of a few of my favorite stories…Secret Life of Bees or Stand by Me.  I can’t believe this is my new life. I can’t believe all of this has happened in just a few days.  I can’t remember the last time I cried tears of joy rather than sadness.