Transitional Season

The soft pastels of summer are quickly slipping away,

being replaced by the Crayola colors of autumn.

Changes are taking place at Heaven's Walk, too.

It's a transitional time.

The tomatoes in our organic garden ripened beautifully with the rains and coolness of the passing summer.  It was time to can our infamous salsa.

After four sessions, 300 pints and quarts were ready for the pantry shelves

to be enjoyed in the cold months ahead

in chili, goulash, soups, roasts, and dips.

Numerous quarts of sweet corn and green beans were frozen and nestled next to the 15 quarts of blueberries already in the freezer.

I did take some time off to do some antiquing and hit the Allegan Antique Market on Sunday.

My radar is always tuned in to vintage rugs, old tables, and any bit of bling,

and was thrilled to take home this French-inspired upholstered chair.

It is an identical match to the one I already have at my desk. 

I couldn't believe it.

A soft gold and purple prayer rug was given to me for half price after standing and staring at it for a while.  I guess the vendor got tired of me drooling over it.

And, of course, who could resist that sweet blue vase?

The little primitive table stole my heart with her square nails, pine green chippy top, and deep mauve base. I had been looking for something a bit more rustic for my living room

to 'ground' all the white.

After debating whether or not to take my paintbrush to it,

I asked for help from my sweet friend, Tausha, and followed her trusted suggestion.

I lightly sanded the top to remove some of the stains and paint splotches,

then rubbed on a coat of ASCP clear wax to protect it.

It was shabby perfection.

It brought a feeling of depth, warmth, and coziness to the room.

Perfect with dusty mauves, blues, and pinks,

and complimenting vintage oak floors.

I also created a dream catcher for a friend of a friend who is battling cancer.

I felt honored to do this for her,

and pray that it brings her peace and joy.

I sold a member of my family, too.

My 1996 Blazer had served me well,

and it was time for her to move on.

We sold her in five days...

...and welcomed a 2009 Acadia into our fold.

We purchased it from my sister-in-law.

I must be honest and tell you that I have never had such a luxurious vehicle in all my life.

I am beyond humbled and thrilled. 

I love driving it.

So, with a full pantry and freezer,

a dependable vehicle in my garage,

and watching autumn quietly explode in the tree tops ~

I now turn my attention to selling my parents' house 

before winter makes its cold, snowy appearance,

when I will snuggle in to my favorite place to be...

here at Heaven's Walk.

~  Eucharisteo  ~

Linking to the linky parties on the lower right of my sidebar.

Late Summer Days

Over the past few months, my summer days have been very busy creating dream catchers.
I love spending my hours making each one unique to the requests I receive from friends and customers!
No two are exactly alike.  :)

Among them, Petite "Chincoteague" and Petite "Starlight" are headed for London, England.

I also created a couple sweet little dream catchers for a friend's two granddaughters
for Christmas gifts.

Petite "Bella's Song"

Bella loves purple, green, and pink.

Colorful, playful, sweet and whimsical!

Petite "Lily's Dream"

Lily has a love for cottage.

Pink and white florals mix with rustic beads and little bells.

I have a new dream catcher style floating around in my mind that I can hardly wait to start on, too.
Stay tuned for that!
(*wink*)

~~  ♥  ~~

Late summer days also bring a multitude of hummingbirds busily battling over our feeders.

They're refueling for their trek to Mexico or the Yucatan Peninsula.

They know when it's time to leave due to hormonal changes that are affected by the decrease in the late summer's daylight.

The males leave first with the females following a few days later.

Did you know these tiny miraculous creations flap their wings at 80 times per second?

They lick the sweet syrup with their long tongues

at a rate of 13 licks per second.

We will miss our happy hours on the back porch
(sipping our homemade FatCat*HappyDog wine)

listening to their constant chatter and watching them dip and dive

through the flowers and pines;
occasionally stopping to study us like we were strange beings in their world of speed and flight.

~~  ♥  ~~

Late summer days also mean harvesting our garden.
We had our second canning session last week.
After picking four bushels of tomatoes from our 8' foot tall plants...

we spent the day canning 90 quarts of delicious, homemade salsa.
Six hours of chopping vegetables, blanching tomatoes,
and taste testing to perfect our "recipe"....
which really isn't a recipe at all.
We totally wing it and go by color and taste.
Then in to the jars it goes before being hot bathed in the canner for 15 minutes.

Full of our organically grown tomatoes, carrots, green peppers, jalapenos,
celery, onions, and hot chili peppers.
We use it in most of our crock pot recipes, chili, goulash,
tacos, burritos, soups, and even in our omelets.

We'll can an additional 200 quarts/pints by the end of the season.

~~  ♥  ~~ 


Late summer days also mean BIG news!!

Doster Emporium & Heaven's Walk are having a HUGE
End of Summer Sale
Friday and Saturday
August 30 & 31 from 10am - 4pm!  

So, mark your calendars and stop by for some ice cold refreshments while you nab some great deals from
50 -75% off!

~  Blessings  ~

Linking to the linky parties on the lower right of my sidebar.

The Salsa Dance!

Good summer morning to you, mi amigas!

Despite the tremendous heat and humidity Michigan's been having this summer, 

when it's time to do the Salsa Dance, 

you've gotta get those feet moving!

You pull out your glasses...

top your head with a lid....

don't forget a ring!

grab your partner, 

and let the Salsa Dance begin!

With the radio blaring "The Lion Sleeps Tonight", 

(...In the jungle, the mighty jungle, the lion sleeps tonight; 

in the jungle the quiet jungle the lion sleeps tonight;

we eeeee weamammaway...!) 

(ok, so that's not exactly a salsa song, but it's one of my favs.)

we blanch. 

Tomatoes, that is.

We pause to slice...

 and then twirl around the mobile sink that Hubby built for canning.

 Salsa dancing can be rough on the feet hands, you know.

I mambo over to the bowls of veggies I sliced all afternoon while listening to the birds sing and watching the butterflies sip from the wet soil outside the garage...

(...in the jungle, the quiet jungle....!) 

and toss in the carrots, celery, onions, bell and banana peppers, jalepenos, and chilis 

with the tomatoes.

 Oops!  Pause to stir!

Then we rhumba in the hot, steamy water. 

Plucked out of the bath to cool on the counter, we count out 54 pints of homemade salsa made with veggies straight from our garden.

Time for a taste test!

Now, if you're wondering what weird room we danced our afternoon away in, 

we do most of our canning in Hubby's tool room. 

We clear and clean off the counters, set up the portable sink he built just for this purpose, and haul out the turkey fryer cookers.

This works out for me us really well since Hubby has a reputation of flinging food around while cooking.

A happy wife + a happy kitchen = a happy life for Hubby.

That much he has learned...

So, with glass of wine in one hand and a scoop of salsa in the other,

we dip the evening away...

{Hugs} and happy dancing!

(Oh!  And don't forget to check out all the other "morphing" going on over at Metamorphosis Monday at Susan's at Between Naps on the Porch right here!)

~ laurie