Thawing Out

It’s finally warmed up enough to thaw all the snow. Today I think it actually hit over 70*!! I was busy with making my shelf for the seedlings . . . the one that got put off. But the babies need to get started if we want the warmer weather fruits and veggies like peppers and melons.

The gardens got their mulch pulled off so they can start to dry out a bit. Rowan and I took a walk to the top of the hill that overlooks our house. The pic is from last summer from up there—it’s quite a climb. Later I got 4 flats worth of seeds planted, then did a little poi dancing. I’m a bit rusty after the long winter and knocked my glasses off my face! (I use tennis balls on the end of ropes. Ouch!) Rowan had fun talking to the cows and chickens and kitties. We found some bugs to play with too. Ah, the joys of warmer weather.

I was perusing through one of my seed catalogues and found Luffa! Yes, you can grow a Luffa, and you can eat it too!! How groovy!! I never knew. Or of course you can dry it out and use as a scrubby sponge. I also found my all time fave flower: Passiflora, or Passion Flower. And guess what—you can eat parts of that too. Other edible flowers include: bachelor buttons, calendula (marigolds), nastersium (leaves and buds and seeds, too), Salvia viridis, Hollyhock, sunflowers—seeds and petals, monarda (Bee balm), and Violas.

My Disclaimer Note: Always make sure you know your plant before you eat it!! Wouldn’t want anyone to get sick from eating the wrong plant!!

Today the kids chowed on:
bananas
grapes
figs
raisins
goji berries
honeydew
cantelope
watermelon
strawberries
kiwis
plums
spinach
carrot shreds
celery chips
cukes
tommies
pumpkin seeds
sunny seeds
walnuts
almond milk w/ flax oil and honey (w/ carob for Tris)
buckwheat groats

Hope you have a fruity day!! We sure did!!

Luminosness,
Sharilyn, Tris, and Ro-Ro

Let There Be Light

My babies (plants) have a new light source, and the shelf for the window is in the works. I can’t wait to get the shelf put together—then I can get preparations underway for this years transplants. We’ve been meandering through the first of the seed catalogues to arrive and have our tongues hanging out over some of the plants we want to try to grow. Stevia is one. I heard that it’s finally making it onto the mainstream market—someone saw a commercial advertising stevia as a replacement for sugar. Yeah! It’s such a fantastic alternative to other sweeteners, and so much healthier. If you want some detailed info on stevia, you can go to http://www.stevia.com/. There's some great articles; one in particular on the hazards of sugar was quite eye-opening.

Tristen and I worked on his pinewood derby car for scouts today. He’s making a Lego car (out of wood not Legos). I can’t wait to see the finished product. He’s got such a creative mind.
We also juiced half a crate of oranges today. Whew! That can be time consuming. But it’s wonderful to spend time together, talking about different items of interest. He also had some wonderful ideas of what to do with all the orange pulp from juicing. Orange-flax crackers are in the dehydrator as I type this.

Tristen ate:
oatmeal with honey and cloves
raw apple pie
coconut water
flax crackers
more apple pie
orange juice
sesame seed milk with carob

Rowan ate:
banana-sesame seed milk with spirulina
sweet potatoes
tomatoes
flax crackers
sesame seed milk
orange juice

Hugs to all,
Tristen and Sharilyn