A Salsa Here a Stitch There...

I hope you are savoring every last moment and taste of summer. 

It has really gotten quite pleasant, after we (here in the Ozarks) weathered an extremely rainy May, then a few nice days, and then a complete plunge into days and days of 100-plus degree madness! I have to say, the tomato plants still did fairly well, but many of my squash varieties just didn't make it. For one, they didn't go in the ground early enough, and then the extreme early heat just did them in.

So, to make the best of it, I am savoring these last gorgeous days, and trying to make the goodness last by canning my salsa.

I especially love to preserve batches of my garden tomato salsa in these little fat specialty Ball jars--they are not only just too cute, but they are very pretty to serve the salsa in, and the wide mouth has plenty of room for chip dipping. If you'd like to try my recipe, you can find it here from last year's post. http://eatwritedreamstitch.blogspot.com/2010/07/dancing-with-tomatoes-salsa-making-and.html

My baby basils grew up!

There is still plenty to do in the garden. Along with the tomatoes, I have a few surviving cucumber and spaghetti squash plants, and a huge patch-o-basil for bruschettas, pasta dishes and plenty of pesto making. I feel quite spoiled right now, having all the fresh basil I could possibly want. Hmmm...I think that makes me the richest girl on the block! Love it, love it, love it!

My cutting flower garden is not as big as last year, but it is still providing me with a few fresh bouquets for the house every week--I couldn't ask for more.

Bouquet of the Day

I have been busy stitching, and was happy to come up with an embroidery design on a patch of fabric to frame some big cross-stitched hearts. Here are the hearts I stitched first.

And then I appliqued them onto a piece of soft white denim, and stitched up a whole new design to go around them.

This is going to be the centerpiece of the little cross-stitch quilt I am dreaming up as I go.

And sew it goes!

In the meantime, Minnie is waiting for her 6-o-clock kiss-on-the-lips!  
Who wouldn't want to kiss those lion lips!

Happy summer dreaming and stitching!





LOVE these jars!