Kicking off fall and getting cleaned up

 We have made quite a bit of progress around here in our 2+ weeks back home. And that's in several different areas; general cleaning, yard work, squaring away the cars, doctor's visits, and food shopping and prep work. 

My craft room was in pretty good shape when we left for the summer but after bringing in everything from the car it's right back into the chaos zone. Very hard to tame. It usually helps if I can find a box full of things to donate, just to feel a small psychological lifting of heaviness. Does that make sense?

I've got a fairly heavy schedule of shows for the next month, which is good, as I have a bunch of sparkly inventory. 😉 The first is MystiCon, an indoors show which is somewhat "woowoo" with tinctures, potions, crystals, tarot and other assorted stuff. I'll be bringing a few dragon-laced pieces. Ever since reading the Anne McCafferty Pern series all those years ago I've been a dragon lover.

 So I'm going through my setup supplies to make sure my ducks are in a row. There are a lot of moving parts, and after using a simplified system to good affect this summer while out west, I'm wanting to lighten the load to make load-in/out easier. My back has issues so anything I can do will surely help.

Let's do a bit of a rewind:

There were a few shots I wanted to include from out west that I forgot on the last post so here there are. It'll give you a taste, and remind me all winter of our "happy place". When the sun first comes up enough to start the warm-up (it's usually in the mid to high 40's), and there is virtually no breeze, we like to get some stretching in and have a small stroll before breakfast.

Out for an early morning stroll around the park.
The sun on the sides of the canyon is so peaceful.
Don't mind the cars, this is an overflow parking area
by the bathhouse and playground.

The river got very low this summer. I was
able to collect a few round rocks to paint this fall.

Heading home It's always so soothing to see the vastness of Wyoming.

While driving through Georgia, I loved not only the endless swaths of cotton fields but also the rows upon rows of pecan and peach trees. Beautiful country.

Zinging by so quickly I could barely get a shot. Very majestic though.

Thanks for dropping by and see you next time.

Good "button-up", nice safe trip home and HIT IT!

 This post has been a long time coming. I got very obsessed over the summer with the making of Dazzlers and the subsequent occasions for re-homing them. 😀 Not only to visitors, friends and their relatives around the park but also at 3 craft fairs in the local region. It was fun and I sure met some super nice people. 

My set-up was quite simple as I didn't bring anything more than my PVC rack & grid display. It breaks down readily. Put that together with a table and I was all set. Here's a couple of shots from 2 different shows.

This was for "Fire Days" at the Red Feather Lakes Firehouse
on Labor Day weekend. I was all the way at the end but had
a great day!! The couple next to me selling jams/jellies were well
known in the area and sold a bunch as well. YAY!

I was a bit of an outlier here as well. Another Firehouse setup
just west of us up the canyon. Not as many visitors but a lot of 
cool artisans and goodies.

In between shows I was rebuilding stock, (I sold 60+ across the summer shows).  I have 2 large fall craft fair commitments here in FL. That's in addition to my 2 regular Sat shows/month heading into the busy fall/Christmas season. A lot of fun designing new pieces, honing my skills and enjoying the *bling* factor.

One of the big highlights of the summer was a short, surprise visit from our oldest daughter Michelle. It was so wonderful to have time to sit together and have lengthy visits with this beautiful woman. What a special soul! 💕 We did some hiking, some thrifting, some auto-touring and some eating. Tons of fun. 

She stayed in the covered wagon, which sounds rustic but is really glamping with full bath and HVAC/Heat.

We hiked just a ways up the Big South Trail, (some of us have bad feet), alongside the Poudre River. Really nice leg-stretcher, and a few shots to boot.

What a wonderful visit - so glad you came!!

We were being smiled upon from up high for sure, here's a heart shot from our hike, and during our auto-touring, up the dirt road to Red Feather Lakes, Michelle spotted another God Wink nod in the sky, a cross cloud and a heart cloud right next to each other. Another really cool moment.

I think all our hearts were full. 💗

As far as the summer went, all in all, the weather was beautiful, my flowers were so large & colorful by the end of the season we hated to leave, but high 30's at night made it pretty obvious it was time to go.

We are well-schooled in buttoning-up Rocky and had a week to work up to the final steps. After an overnight in Cheyenne, Wy. as usual, we headed out onto I-80, asking the Lord for safe travels back home. He answered by sending His angel to keep an eye out. 🙏💗

I mean, REALLY! How cool was that?!

Mostly the usual stops of Cheyenne, Wy., Chillicothe, Mo., Jackson, Tn., and Perry, Ga. before a mid-day arrival back in Orange Park.

So, after the unloading, laundry and cleaning chores it's all about the shopping-up and cooking. Love getting all my ducks in a row with my short-cut freezer tricks and getting some savory stews and sauces frozen and ready for those easy suppers when a busy day calls for one.

I made a beautiful pork stew with lots of smoky chipotle spice & cumin flavors plus tomatoes, pintos, black beans, carrots, celery, bell peppers, onions/garlic and hominy for a real taste of Tex/Mex food. Served with rice and a piece of fresh-out-of-the-oven cornbread - to die for and YUM.

Anyway, it's been soggy here, there are still some pretty tall weeds that need pulling, and more cooking to be done, so for now, I'll leave it with you until next time.

Thanks for visiting and sorry you had such a long wait!