A Place That Beckons

At the beach, life is different. 
Time doesn't move hour to hour but mood to moment. 
We live by currents, plan by the tides, and follow the sun. 
~ Unknown

We are bidding adieu to the bitterly cold, snowy winter.
Not sorry at all to see it in our rear view mirror.

We are packing up our Maizie Grace and escaping someplace warm and happy and comforting.

Someplace that continually beckons our hearts and calls to our souls.
A place that heals.
A place where we feel God's presence in an incredibly tangible way.

We are bagging up our sadness and stress

and dumping it in the trash can on our way out the door.

We are going to quickly adapt to becoming lazy beach bums

with sunburned noses and tangled beach hair;

squinty tan lines around our eyes,

and peeling shoulders;
wearing a fragrance of salty air and suntan oil.

We are going to spend hours gazing at the rolling waves;

doing absolutely nothing but

listen to the tinkling of the shells being pulled back into the ocean

watch sandpipers scurry up and down the beach

drink too many Angry Orchards
read piles of books

walk miles along the coast
watch Maizie explore and discover sandy treasures

 chill out with tanned feet propped up on a porch railing
watch a sherbet colored sun kiss turquoise waves.

We will not think of returning;

only focusing on the present moment with toes sunk deep in the warm, shell strewn sand

with clacking palm trees overhead.

We will tilt our heads together in love.

Walk hand in hand through the surf.

Heave deep sighs of relief.
Relax. Unwind.

Hug, smile, and hug again.

We are going to regroup.

Reconnect.
Heal.
Remember what it's like to laugh again.

Lift our faces to the warmth of God's never failing love...

appreciate how blessed we truly are...
and savor every single moment He gives us.

~  Eucharisteo  ~

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Sun In My Heart

"God meets us in the stillness of our souls.  
It is there that he seeks to commune with us."
-  excerpt from "Jesus Calling" 

Car loaded with luggage and snacks.
Pointing the car toward the warm breezes of Florida.
Driving past meadows and prairies,
hills and mountains,
walls of stone spouting waterfalls,
with little Garmin
(fondly called"Road-duh")
leading the way.

Two 12-hour days of driving and our eyes see
the causeway.
My heart beats faster
knowing that the hot sun will soon spread across my shoulders
as I press my feet into shell-filled sand.

The island main street is a welcome sight
holding the promise of slow moving, stress-free days ahead ~
if only for a little while.

Our sweet little cottage with a screened porch overlooking the ocean...

and a charming little room that would ensure nights of drifting off to sleep to the sound of the ocean waves caressing the ocean's hem;
with the ceiling fan clicking softly overhead
as we sweep sand off our feet before tucking them between covers.

Making our way up sandy paths past beach grass, sea oats, and sea grape
tossed by the salty breeze
for early morning walks together.

Mornings broken by a foggy mist
rising above palms.

Mystical, moody, and mesmerizing...

turning to days of brilliant blue.

Always in the company of tern and seagulls...

our feet churning through warm sand;
thighs burning after miles logged.

Seashells offered up by the ocean and scattered along the shore as far as the eye could see.





Discovering sandy micro-worlds
and collecting seashells with holes and rough edges ~
giving up secrets of time spent under the waves.

Footprints and paw prints leaving untold stories in the sand.

Bare toes and brown shoulders.

Flip flops and frizzy hair.

Grasping every lazy thought winding through my mind
and transferring it to paper.

Sunshine, dancing diamonds, and sea foam.

An endless sugar sand beach under an azure sky.

Evenings witnessing God's glorious artistry.

A few mornings painted with stormy clouds...

changing ocean blue to sea green.

Solitaire snowy egret watching dolphins surface in the waves;
their soft dove-grey backs slick with salt water.

Spending every sunny hour on the beach...

lounging together....

next to mermaids in the sand.

Reading a good book in Coppertone scented sea air.

Holding the sun in my heart.

Watching it kiss the ocean...

and melt into a sorbet night ~

whispering on seagull wings...


"Remember me."

~  Seaside Blessings  ~

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The Sound of Music

Good morning, heavenly friends!

I made a date with Murphy this morning.

Murphy's Oil Soap, that is.

 I love cleaning with that stuff.  Don't you? The smell is almost intoxicating to me. I have used it for years. The house always smells so warm, comforting and inviting afterward. Especially in the winter when the windows are always closed and the scent lingers for almost a week at a time. There's just something about that smell. Heavenly. I've always wondered why they've never made a scented candle from it....

(Yeah, yeah, yeah.  Call me crazy. Now you know that I don't have both oars in the water....)

But, as I was cleaning and mopping away - moving things out of the way to get waaay back in those nooks and crannies, 

I kept noticing the things in the house that I find myself swooning over - again and again. Things that I've placed around the house that mean a lot to hubby and me, that carry a boatload of memories.  Things that I'm so happy I discovered, uncovered, dug out, bargained over, bartered with....

...or stole.

(just kidding! don't get your knickers in a knot.)

But here they are --- a few of my favorite things at Heaven's Walk... 

(I do believe I hear Julie Andrews singing in the background.  lol!)

My vintage rockers on the deck...

....all my fav colors in one pillow next to my pale sea green linen pillow shams  
(not to mention the perfect pattern combo)...

...Yankee Candle in "Sun and Sand"... (seriously, it does smell like sun and sand!)

...a picture painted by my father years ago and I've treasured ever since...

...Ile De Tahiti coconut-vanilla lotion...

...a piece of driftwood twisted in all the right places picked up on an island in Florida...

...a small wire basket filled with shells next to an antique aqua Ball jar...

...our bed - simply dressed for summer...

...drifting off to sleep with an ocean-scented candle bowl filled with shells on the nightstand...

...new summer pillow shams on the bed...(just plain yummy)

...a seashell doorstop...

...starfish on the pie safe hung with a piece of twine...
(thank you, Sarah at abeachcottage, for that charming idea!) 

...and JOY...

I'd love to hear what some of your favorite things are! 

"...I suddenly remember my favorite things....and then I don't feel soooo bad!"  lol!

Peace and joy to you at your little slice of heaven,

~ laurie