scenes from my home from last evening....

frogs and fire!


isn't this a cool photo!!  He's climbing up our back family room window, which faces our woods...and the sun was setting...giving us this very cool illusion of the frog climbing the trees :D

ok, so this is obviously not a frog; but my gnome didn't want to be left out :D 

ahhhhhhh, peace...my forest was ALIVE last night...wow!!

when the weather's warm, there are always at least three greeting us from our front porch:)

took Piper for an evening stroll, being VERY careful not to step on the toads on the road:)  As I was saying the forest was ALIVE last night, as were the ponds...heard a wonderful symphony of Carolina Frogs....I personally only know the tree frog, barking tree frog, squirrel tree frog, and the Eastern Narrowmouth Toad (they are LOUD...they got into my girls' little kiddie pool last year;)...and the bull frogs (where where very active at the ponds)...I'll have to learn to identify more frogs...we have SO many!

I just found this very cool websight identifying the frogs native to my area, by looks and by sounds:
http://srelherp.uga.edu/anurans/index.htm 

and finally, after our little stroll, we came home to this guy hanging out on our patio door (and apparently using it as its toilet :D)  I wanted to open the screen, without letting it in the house...so I gently nudged it with a stick, when it proceeded to hop onto my shoulder.  I confess I squealed a tad ;)

Life with Froggie tales, to be continued:)

DIY Fire Starter

Journey Meditations (see link below for ordering details)

 
click HERE for ordering details:

6 plants that repel insects

Feverfew

Feverfew is great for repelling mosquitoes and other flying biting insects. It is ideal for planting around outdoor seating areas, pathways and close to doorways and windows; for maximum benefit, plant in conjunction with citronella grass and lavender (see below).
In addition to its insect repellent qualities, feverfew also has many medicinal uses. It is historically used to help treat nervous disorders, headaches and it also works as a laxative and helps ease bloating.

Pyrethrum also known as Chrysanthemum

Pyrethrum helps to repel a whole host of insects and bugs, including: aphids, leafhoppers, spider mites, harlequin bugs and ticks.
Pyrethrum is best used as a ‘companion plant’ to protect other plants with its insect repellent properties. It is planted close to plants which are affected by the insects above.
Additionally a natural pesticide can be made with pyrethrum flowers. The flowers need to be dried and crushed and mixed with water. It is beyond the scope of this article to give specific instructions on potency etc., so please carry out further research before trying this, as even though the pesticide is completely natural, it can still be harmful to humans in certain situations.

Pennyroyal

Pennyroyal helps to repel mosquitoes, gnats and also ticks and fleas!
Pennyroyal is often used in commercial natural insect repellent creams and sprays. Pennyroyal is great to plant in the garden, but it is best utilized as a topical insect repellent applied to the skin.
If you crush pennyroyal leaves and rub them onto your skin, this acts as an effective insect repellent.  Additionally, you can also crush the stems and put them in pockets, bags and hats.
Crushed pennyroyal leaves and stems can also be rubbed on dogs to help repel ticks and fleas. Actually you will often see dogs rubbing in pennyroyal patches when outdoors.

Lavender

Lavender is most useful for repelling mosquitoes and gnats when planted in the garden; it can also be planted in pots and placed by doorways and windows.  As with feverfew and citronella grass; lavender is best planted in the garden around seated and eating areas and also around windows and doors.
Cut and or dried lavender can also be placed on windowsills to stop mosquitoes entering the house. Additionally, dried lavender flowers can also be used in wardrobes to repel moths and keep clothes smelling fresh.
Lavender also smells amazing and has many medicinal properties, it aids relaxation and helps promote restful sleep.

Marigolds

As with pyrethrum, marigolds are best used as a ‘companion plant’ to help protect other plants; however, marigolds do also have some mosquito repellent properties, so it’s a bit of an all-rounder.
Marigolds contain a chemical compound called thiopenes in the roots. This plant repels aphids, cabbage maggots, white flies and many other pests. Marigolds are particularly good at protecting tomato plants.

Citronella grass

Citronella grass is an old favourite; everyone knows it is commonly used as an insect repellent in outdoor candles, which are used around outdoor eating and seating areas. Citronella grass is a great mosquito repellent and it can be planted and used in a similar way as citronella candles, to keep flying insects away.
For best results, plant citronella grass in the garden and use in conjunction with feverfew and lavender.
Additionally, citronella grass has also been found to have a calming effect on barking dogs, which is worth considering if you have a dog which barks excessively day and night. Your neighbours might thank you for at least giving it a try!

http://knowledgeweighsnothing.com/six-insect-repellent-plants-to-grow/ 

dinner is ready

before breakfast :D

Healthy and delicious pumpkin bread

Recipe source Our Best Bites
Ingredients:
2 cups all purpose flour (can substitute for whole wheat)
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoons nutmeg
1/4 teaspoons ground cloves
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon table salt
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 cup white sugar (could substitute with stevia)
6 ounce container vanilla greek yogurt
3 eggs, slightly beaten
15 ounce can pumpkin puree
1/2 cup canola oil (could substitute with apple sauce)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chocolate chips (optional)
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Combine flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, salt, baking soda and baking powder in a medium sized bowl.
In a separate mixing bowl combine both brown and white sugar.  Add yogurt, eggs, pumpkin, oil, and vanilla extract and whisk until smooth.
Slowly add dry ingredients to wet and stir until combined. Next, stir in the chocolate chips.  Then divide the batter between into two 9×5 loaf pans (sprayed with non-stick spray) and sprinkle a few extra chocolate chips on top.  Bake around 50  minutes or until lightly browned.

various ways to treat mosquito bites (might work for other insect bites too?)

1.) Place a used dry teabag on the bite.
2.) Rub Raw Honey on the bite.
3.) Apple Cider Vinegar, use a cotton ball and apply to the bite.
4.) Baking Soda, this is the cheapest and being a dry powder can be stored in your pantry for years. Take a small amount and add a little water to make a paste and apply the paste to the bite.
5.) Take the skin of a Banana and rub the inside part of the banana peel on the bite.
6.) Take a leaf off of an Aloe Vera plant and rub the bite with the leaf of the plant.

Sunshine Grows the Spirit (see link below for ordering details)

click HERE for ordering details:

Hippie Peace Chic (see link below for ordering details)

click HERE for ordering details: 

My Little Ballerinas

preparing for their upcoming peformance of "The Wizard of Oz."  They will be The Poppies.  Little Angel is VERY excited to have received a solo part!

 



I have to say, Fairy girl (second in the front from the left)...has VERY artistic form; wouldn't you agree!!  (or is that just a biased mommy thing;)

just a scene from my neck of the woods

We *NEED* an International Clarinet Day!!!!

So, I confess I was a bit envious that the tubas have a special international day of recognition...first Friday of May. So I hit the net; there MUST be a day in honor of clarinet...there must!!!! And the only thing I found was this quote from John Philip Sousa: "because of its dubious intonation...the Eb clarinet should only be played on February 29th...and then, very softly." :(

(*please note: for those who don't know, the Eb clarinet is smaller in stature and higher in pitch than the traditional Bb clarinet.  By nature, most Eb clarinets are tremendously difficult to play in tune consistently.....given this, the Eb clarinet is not the most "popular" instrument in the band....and yes, I DO double on the Eb clarinet :D*)

Chocolate Chip Macaroon Bars

(***note from me: I made this the first time with the full amount of sugar and it was sickening....I've cut the recipe back by 1/2 cup of sugar; 1/2 into the crust, 1/2 into the topping blend)

1/2 cup butter

1 cup plus 2 T. all-purpose flour, divided

1 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed and divided

2 eggs, beaten

1/4 tsp salt

1 cup chopped pecans

1 1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Mix together butter, one cup flour and 1/2 cup brown sugar.

Pat into the bottom of a 13 x 9 greased baking pan.

Bake at 325* for 15 minutes.

In a medium bowl, blend together remaining flour, brown sugar, 

eggs, salt, pecans, coconut, vanilla and chocolate chips.
Spread mixture onto baked crust.

Bake for an additional 25 minutes.

Cut into bars when cool. 

Makes 2 dozen

Sweet, chewy, crunchy and delicious! 

http://grammasinthekitchen.blogspot.com/2013/03/chocolate-chip-macaroon-bars.html

some Old Moss Woman's Garden photos

I LOVE these: 

Yoga Mat for Sale on Craig's List (this is hilarious, you really should read this post!!!)

I copied and pasted this, because it's one of the funniest things I've ever read.  I couldn't stop laughing.  I can't believe somebody really posted this as an ad!!  It's long, but it's worth reading for a good laugh.  Enjoy:)



It looks like someone in Seattle is selling a yoga mat for $1. The mat was only used once and comes along with this hilarious usage timeline detailing the seller's experience in a hot yoga class. (Not such a good experience).

I doubt the room got up to 175 degrees, but nonetheless, funny.

I also doubt the seller used Heidi Kristoffer's super-easy method for yoga mat cleaning.

Any takers?

Here's the full text from the Seattle Craigslist ad below:

Yoga mat for sale. Used once. - $1 (Bellevue)

Yoga mat for sale. Used once at lunch hour class in December 2009. Usage timeline as follows:

11:45a
Register for hot yoga class. Infinite wisdom tells me to commit to 5 class package and purchase a yoga mat. I pay $89.74. Money well spent, I smugly confirm to myself.

11:55a
Open door to yoga room. A gush of hot dry air rushes through and past me. It smells of breath, sweat and hot. Take spot on floor in back of room next to cute blonde. We will date.

11:57a
I feel the need to be as near to naked as possible. This is a problem because of the hot blonde to my left and our pending courtship. She will not be pleased to learn that I need to lose 30 pounds before I propose to her.

11:58a
The shirt and sweats have to come off. I throw caution to the wind and decide to rely on my wit and conditioning to overcome any weight issues my fiancée may take issue with. This will take a lot of wit and conditioning.

11:59a
Begin small talk with my bride to be. She pretends to ignore me but I know how she can be. I allow her to concentrate and stare straight ahead and continue to pretend that I don't exist. As we finish sharing our special moment, I am suddenly aware of a sweat moustache that has formed below my nose. This must be from the all the whispering between us.

12:00p
Instructor enters the room and ascends her special podium at the front of the room. She is a slight, agitated Chinese woman. She introduces me to the class and everyone turns around to greet me just as I decide to aggressively adjust my penis and testes packed in my Under Armor. My bride is notably unfazed.

12:02p
Since I do have experience with Hot Yoga (4 sessions just 5 short years ago) I fully consider that I may be so outstanding and skilled that my instructor may call me out and ask me to guide the class. My wife will look on with a sparkle in her eye. We will make love after class.

12:10p
It is now up to 95 degrees in the room. We have been practicing deep breathing exercises for the last 8 minutes. This would not be a problem if we were all breathing actual, you know, oxygen. Instead, we are breathing each other's body odor, expelled carbon dioxide and other unmentionables. (Don't worry, I'll mention them later.)

12:26p
It is now 100 degrees and I take notice of the humidity, which is hovering at about 90%. I feel the familiar adorning stare of my bride and decide to look back at her. She appears to be nauseated. I then realize that I forgot to brush my teeth prior to attending this class. We bond.

12:33p
It is now 110 degrees and 95% humidity. I am now balancing on one leg with the other leg crossed over the other. My arms are intertwined and I am squatting. The last time I was in this position was 44 years ago in the womb, but I'm in this for the long haul. My wife looks slightly weathered dripping sweat and her eyeliner is streaming down her face. Well, "for better or worse" is what we committed to so we press on.

12:40p
The overweight Hispanic man two spots over has sweat running down his legs. At least I think its sweat. He is holding every position and has not had a sip of water since we walked in. He is making me look bad and I hate him.

12:44p
I consider that if anyone in this room farted that we would all certainly perish.

12:52p
It is now 140 degrees and 100% humidity. I am covered from head to toe in sweat. There is not a square millimeter on my body that is not slippery and sweaty. I am so slimy that I feel like a sea lion or a maybe sea eel. Not even a bear trap could hold me. The sweat is stinging my eyeballs and I can no longer see.

12:55p
This room stinks of asparagus, cloves, tuna and tacos. There is no food in the room. I realize that this is an amalgamation of the body odors of 30 people in a 140 degree room for the last 55 minutes. Seriously, enough with the asparagus, ok?

1:01p
140 degrees and 130% humidity. Look, bitch, I need my space here so don't get all pissy with me if I accidentally sprayed you with sweat as I flipped over. Seriously, is that where this relationship is going? Get over yourself. We need counseling and she needs to be medicated. Stat!

1:09p
150 degrees and cloudy. And hot. I can no longer move my limbs on my own. I have given up on attempting any of the commands this Chinese chick is yelling out at us. I will lay sedentary until the aid unit arrives. I will buy this building and then have it destroyed.
I lose consciousness.

1:15p
I have a headache and my wife is being a selfish bitch. I can't really breathe. All I can think about is holding a cup worth of hot sand in my mouth. I cannot remember what an ice cube is and cannot remember what snow looks like. I consider that my only escape might be a crab walk across 15 bodies and then out of the room. I am paralyzed, and may never walk again so the whole crab walk thing is pretty much out.

1:17p
I cannot move at all and cannot reach my water. Is breathing voluntary or involuntary? If it's voluntary, I am screwed. I stopped participating in the class 20 minutes ago. Hey, lady! I paid for this frickin class, ok?! You work for me! Stop yelling at everyone and just tell us a story or something. It's like juice and cracker time, ok?

1:20p
It is now 165 degrees and moisture is dripping from the ceiling. The towel that I am laying on is no longer providing any wicking or drying properties. It is actually placing additional sweat on me as I touch it. My towel reeks. I cannot identify the smell but no way can it be from me. Did someone spray some stank on my towel or something?

1:30p
Torture session is over. I wish hateful things upon the instructor. She graciously allows us to stay and 'cool down' in the room. It is 175 degrees. Who cools down in 175 degrees? A Komodo Dragon? My wife has left the room. Probably to throw up.

1:34p
My opportunity to escape has arrived. I roll over to my stomach and press up to my knees. It is warmer as I rise up from ground level - probably by 15 degrees. So let's conservatively say it's 190. I muster my final energy and slowly rise. One foot in front of the other. One foot in front of the other. Towards the door. Towards the door.

1:37p
The temperature in the lobby is 72 degrees. Both nipples stiffen to diamond strength and my penis begins to retract into my abdomen from the 100 degree temp swing. I can once again breathe though so I am pleased. I spot my future ex wife in the lobby. We had such a good thing going but I know that no measure of counseling will be able to unravel the day's turmoil and mental scaring.

1:47p
Arrive at Emerald City Smoothie and proceed to order a 32 oz beverage. 402 calories, 0 fat and 14 grams of protein -- effectively negating any caloric burn or benefit from the last 90 minutes. I finish it in 3 minutes and spend the next 2 hours writing this memoir.

3:47p
Create Craigslist ad while burning final 2 grams of protein from Smoothie and before the "shakes" consume my body.

4:29p
Note to self - check car for missing wet yoga towel in am.

Any takers?! 

http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-3153/Hilarious-Yoga-Mat-for-Sale-Ad-on-Craigslist.html

we planted flowers in the fairy garden

 
Just because :)

the flowers I bought myself, in honor of having to go grocery shopping and all :)


Happy Beltane!

went grocery shopping....

got myself a little treat :D

Field Trip Day!

Had a fun day out with our local homeschool group.  Today we hit the Kazoo factory, met up at one of our favorite parks for lunch and playtime (and then two school busses of kindergarteners suddenly showed up and all these kids came charging out of the busses ..... it was like a scene from a scary movie, haha:D)  And, then the girls and I hit our beloved Chocolate Tree (field trip was in our original SC neck of the woods when we first moved down...so the chocolate was for purely nostalgic reasons;)

 
Check out these snazzy kazoos!






Gotta love the old south carriage tours! 



the end (and I'm quite certain we already polished off our chocolate stash as well :O )

just poppin in to say...

hey (in some Island Cowgirl Bling....LOVE!)

Blessed Beltane!