All right, I’ve been asleep since last Sunday.
The retreat was amazing, and exhausting, but worth every minute of planning over the last eight months. All the Broad Summit organizers love to entertain, so we incorporated lots of details.
We met up in Guerneville, CA, which is near our cabin, so I brought over my collection of vintage wool blankets. We use them at the cabin all the time, and we had a bonfire planned for the retreat, so I knew we’d need them. Bryan mocks me whenever I come home from the flea market with yet another blanket, but seeing them all stuffed into our laundry basket on the lawn was profoundly satisfying.
We got use out of them all weekend, and they smelled amazing because we store them in a cedar chest to protect against moths. When I was passing them out, I swear I heard Martha Stewart howling at the moon.
It was a small enough group that we could really personalize everything. We wanted to make sure the gift bags really felt like gifts, so before we decided how to fill them, I told Laura that my dream was to get monogrammed totes from Land’s End. She just called and Land’s End and figured out how to make it happen, then collected guests’ initials via email. Then I proposed to her.
We spent Friday afternoon stuffing the bags (more on the gifts inside later), and when they were all set up, they looked zowie — though they do sort of evoke the image of having thirty bridesmaids. I feel slightly faint at the thought of getting that many girls to wear the same ugly dress.
Instead of hiring a caterer, we arranged for a taco truck to arrive before cocktails. For a large group, it’s a surprisingly economical.
Plus, there’s something so decadent about walking up to a window and ordering whatever you want without having to dig out your wallet.
If you’re planning a casual, fun wedding, taco trucks are the way to go. Delicious, and they make for great photos.
After tacos, we headed over to the sangria and soda pop bar. There were lots of non-drinkers and pregnant ladies in attendance, so we took inspiration from Jordan Ferney’s adorable soda bar. BevMo had a huge selection of cute pop in bottles. I called Jordan last-minute to ask where we could get striped paper straws in San Francisco, she offered to tap into her extensive personal collection. Score.
After cocktails, we all changed into our pajamas for a Milk and Cookies PJ Party by the bonfire.
A few days earlier, we found this milk-carton vase at CB2. Perfect.
Cookies were from Annie the Baker, who makes cookies for folks who would prefer to eat straight cookie dough. (Peanut butter. Order the peanut butter.) We also had a selection from Bountiful Vegan, because we were hosting women with all kinds of food preferences and allergies.
We pulled over the chaise loungers from the pool area, wrapped up in blankets, and used the milk to mix White Russian nightcaps in our coffee mugs. It was very Prohibition.
If you’d like to see more, Jean Aw took some gorgeous photos of the bonfire and hotel over on NOTCOT. More details from me Monday, have a good weekend.
Mighty Girl 
The smell of those blankets in cedar + bonfire smoke must have been dreamy. Glad it was a lovely weekend!
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If all of these thinks happened to me in a week, I’d cal it Best Week Ever. But we’re only on Day 1! Can’t wait to read more details and live vicariously.
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I love Izze grapefruit soda. Now I need to find a red and white striped straw.
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i.want.a.taco.truck.at.my.next.gathering.
genius!
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I second Deborah’s comment: genius indeed.
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Love the pic where you’re all sitting at the bonfire. Reminds me of the last one I was at, flames as high as a house, and there was one madman who sat next to it. Freaky watching him smoke, but he eventually backed off before he could combust. Every town has it’s village idiot.
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milk and cookies sitting by a bonfire. perfection.
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A collection of wool blankets – what a fantastic idea!
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I think you need a Hudson’s Bay blanket. The real one – with the stripes and the 300 years of history. (Google it.)
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I want a taco truck next door to my house.
Lovely!
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Taco truck = brilliant. Oh, and you totally made me miss using paper straws.
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Another perspective. http://www.helenjane.com/2009/10/14/broad-summit-recap/
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That sounds heavenly. As a former Californian (now living in the rust belt), I miss taco trucks, weekend trips to NORCAL and fake fall. And it looks like you had awesome company. Definitely a dream weekend.
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Looks beautiful. And how adorable is that milk carton vase from CB2? I think I need one for my kitchen.
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I wanna go~!
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Maggie, As I told Helen Jane- you gals are starting the Bohemian Grove of “Mommy-Bloggers”. This is just the beginning…
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The thunk you just heard was Bossy dying of jealousy.
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Oh so lovely!
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so jealous.
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I now see a reason to blog beyond my thousands of microblogging tweets and blogging for others… I’m gonna earn me an invite to next year. Kudos ladies (I don’t think ‘kudos’ or ‘ladies’ were on any of your lists of dislikes, but I wouldn’t mind if this usage inspired their addition. I mean well, I’m just so high on the un-GirlPie-like social delight of this event, that I’m a little giddy.
LOVELY ~ !
@TheGirlPie
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I could go for a taco truck now and forever.
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I am with Bossy. Either I will find a way to get invited, or I will create one myself. Wow. Wow. Wow.
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