Gathering the Girl Tribe

When we were little our mom, like every other mom out there, forced Belinda and I to share. For most our lives we shared a room and no matter how hard we tried to label or hide our things, we learned to live with the fact that our sister was going to steal our stuff. Everything from makeup to clothes and even hobbies we learned to share. Sure, I didn't love it when Belinda stretched out all my shoes with her big foot feet and I am sure Belinda wasn't thrilled when I would steal her quirky clothes that I would never buy for myself because my taste was far less adventurous but I loved once they were in her closet (I still do this). As we have grown we have become expert share-ers (yes, that's a word). And the best thing we share is our collection of friends. Through the years we have collected a group of friends between us that have become like a second family to us. Most of these friends started as Belinda's friends from high school that I started tagging along with when most of my friends started moving away, but now because our mother taught us so well, we wholeheartedly share this lovely group of women and rely on them daily to keep us sane. Without this group of friends we would not be the sisters, mothers, wives, girl bosses or straight up people we are today. They help us in every way possible whether it's being a safe place to vent about the stupid thing our husbands did that day or an emergency hotline when one of the kids have developed a weird rash. They give me advice on what to do when Deyton goes into hysterics over me trimming her finger nails (true story) and they happily offer to take our kids when we just want to go to the doctor alone. These women are second moms to our kids and I feel the same protective mama bear instinct when I think about what I would do if anyone tried to mess with their kids...I would CUT them! Beyond just being amazing moms, these ladies are gorgeous, kind and freaking talented! Each of these ladies have skills that I totally and completely envy. Which is why it is no surprise to me that when two of them, Genevieve Tharp and Rylea Foehl, invited us all to collaborate on a styled shoot, it turned out so. damn. good! This styled shoot that was featured on Sunset Magazines Food and Drink blog was the creative genius of both Genevieve and Rylea. Rylea wanted to use her 100 year old barn as the backdrop and inspiration for a girls only "friendsgiving" type feast so she ran the idea past Gen and from there, Gen with all her event planning skills, ran with the idea taking it from a few Pinterest pins to a real life event. She wrangled us in when we (okay, I) tried to take the look from classy rustic to Little House on the Prairie dorky and she made sure we all remembered our outfits, showed up on time, didn't laugh too hard so we looked a fool in the photos, set the gorgeous table and convinced a few of her close vendor friends to hook us up (see the list below). As you can see in the photos that Rylea took, the event was gorgeous, but more importantly it was real. It was a real group of friends, laughing real belly laughs that made our noses crinkle who came together to support one another once again. When I look at the photos I am overwhelmed not just because Rylea knows how to capture real moments like no other photographer I know but also because I am overwhelmed with how amazing my friends are and how lucky I am to have them. Enjoy! Styling, Events Northwest. Photography, Rylea Foehl Photography. Cocktails, Happy Camper Cocktail Company. Simple Syrup, Simple Goodness Sisters. Wine, Gallaghers Where U Brew. Florals, Oak & Fig Floral. Desserts, Peach Pit Cakery. Table & Benches. Puget Sound Farm Tables. Rental Chairs, Fiona Louise Design.

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