Backblog: The Shire

Back at the end of August, a big group of my girlfriends and our kids ventured out to rural Issaquah to the childhood home of my dear friend Stephanie. I've been hearing about this place for forever. Stephanie's parents are self-proclaimed hobbits. Norwegian hobbits--does that make them gnomes? Her dad even talked about installing a round door on the front of the house, which is befittingly referred to as The Shire.

When we arrived, we were given flannels and buckets and the assignment of harvesting the blackberry brambles. Later, I climbed a tree to shake out apples for a pie. There were four babies, four kids, five girlfriends, six Platters, and two husbands over the course of the afternoon and evening. There was a blue moon (the last until 2015!), formal tea with homemade pastries and chicken salad, an evening blaze at the firepit, and an impromptu dance party in the Platter kitchen.

These are the kind of days born of a summer dream. 

  

And these were the photos Bridget captured from the evening--some great shots of the porch and sunroom, pie baking, and Auntie Stephanie with the little ones. She did a (much timelier!) post about it here