Strawberry Moon in the Garden

My last post title was "What a Day, Glorious!" I've had one of those today.  We began our day in the garden in the last hour of darkness and the first hour of the full moon.  The Strawberry Moon as it is called in the Farmer's Almanac. In the wee hours of the morning there was a partial lunar eclipse during which the moon partly enters the Earth's shadow.

We have about completed the planting and got together with Rachel to give blessings for the garden under the moon.  We sat in quiet meditation on the herb hill in the moonlight with candles and herbs burning until the morning was bright.  It was a very calming experience.  I generally start my day with some form of prayer and meditation, but this morning was a little more special.

I went to the farmer's market this morning. There were fresh strawberries and raspberries today.  I put ten pounds of strawberries in the freezer and about 5 pounds of raspberries.  I just took a vegan chocolate beet cake out of the oven.  It's a vegan twist of the red velvet cake.  Some of those raspberries will become frosting for that cake.  I will post the recipe tomorrow with the photo just before I try the first piece.  I've got a pot of beans made for our meals in the upcoming week.  I made some quinoa, not sure what I will do with it yet, but it's ready for some veggies and herbs.  I spent some artistic time with a surprise for the garden.  I have an idea for a princess of sorts in the garden.  I'll introduce you when she's completed. 

I've been waiting since I planted these babies in February to post a slide show like this.  Here's some progressive artichoke pictures.  Enjoy!

"Let the beauty we love be what we do.  There are thousands of ways to kneel and kiss the Earth."

-Rumi

Home & Peace - The Gardens

I am a lucky and grateful woman. I know there is a lot of love in my life. I've done some traveling, bonding, loving, laughing, and even a little crying. I've put a few traveling miles on my body and heart. My sister, my niece, and I meandered through four states together in a few days. A couple of those states we went to twice. We spent at least 700 miles in a car together this last week. We shared a lot of love and saw many wonderful sites. It was a memorable experience but, I am whirling emotionally and physically today. In a good way though, my sister and I get closer to understanding each other every time we see each other. It's not always easy, we have some different opinions about life, as we should. We've lived on different sides of the country for so many years and traveled different paths. This is a learning process. One of my most favorite parts of the experience was getting to know my niece, Stephanie. I didn't get to be with my nieces and nephews when they were children growing up and I feel like I am close with one of them now. I hope we continue joining each others journey from time to time and with less time in between.

I need to rest and be calm and creative. I am glad I don't have to work until Monday. I have a beautiful weekend to relax and decompress from such a long trip. I am so grateful for my life and home. There is so much love and beauty around without going to far to look for it. The sun is shining and I am breathing in the beautiful gardens around us. I just have to walk around my house and yard to find calming beauty. It doesn't take long for me to feel the healing. I noticed I was dancing in the kitchen to some great music this morning. I am going to spend the weekend quiet and calm. A quick run to the farmer's market and the produce stand and our off-site garden are all I want to see this weekend other than my warm home. A bit of turning on the tunes and creating in the kitchen is in order too.

Just a short walk around my home and breathing in all the colorful beauty popping up in the sunshine warmed my heart pretty quickly. The plants in the greenhouses are getting ready for outdoors. My friends gave me "time" for my birthday this year. My husband and Bill repaired the front door which was years overdo. Scott planted the corn starts on my birthday. Rachel worked to find my backyard again. I have not seen my steps in the backyard for a long time. I do remember standing at the top of them last year with a broken leg sad because I couldn't use them. I think I kind of forgot about them. What a wonderful birthday present. Thank you Scott, Bill, & Rachel!

Walk in Love

There is a lot of love in my life.

~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Life is Like

stepping into a boat

which is about to sail

out to sea and sink."

Suzuki Roshe

Beauty

"Let the beauty we love be what we do. There are thousands of ways to kneel and kiss the earth."   Rumi