Season 17
Catmint leaves ready to make tisane or herbal tea
Every Thursday I treat myself to watching YouTube videos from Her86m2 and The Cottage Fairy. I’ve watched them throughout this year for inspiration and comfort. Each of the videos in its own way is such a beautiful portrait of daily life and seasonal changes. I learn something new every time I watch them whether it’s a new skill or just a new perspective. I will continue sharing some of my favorites in the coming weeks, but I recommend them if you need a moment to give yourself a gift of beauty.
Her 86m2 *Spring Vlog: New Kitten, Sowing Seeds, Cooking, Houseplants (great tips on bringing home a new furry family member and re-potting your house plants plus a recipe for delicious soba noodles with king trumpet mushrooms)
The Cottage Fairy *This is Where I Live and *My Life is Changing (a wise reminder to lean on your village when you need help)
*If you see an asterisk next to a link, it links to a video with sound. Just a heads up in case you need to turn the volume down or pop on your headphones.
($) If you see this dollar symbol in a post, the link is an affiliate post. I will receive income if you purchase that item. Income from the products in these links helps me to keep this blog growing.
HOME
Our Lady Emma Hamilton roses from David Austin Roses are blooming. Tangerine-colored petals hide inside this beautiful pink bud.
Mother’s Day is coming up on May 9th in the United States. If you’re looking for a few ideas for that mom, dog/cat mom, plant mom, grandmother or mother figure in your life, here are a few ideas to get you started. ($) Keep reading this post for more ideas on how to honor that strong mother figure in your life.
For some, Mother’s Day might come with complex emotions. If you have experienced loss in any way, I encourage you to dive deeply into the gardening section of this blog post and find solace in working with your hands in the soil and watching something grow. I also share a resource for processing grief and providing comfort to caregivers and others experiencing grief in the wellness section of this post.
GARDEN
Gardens are therapeutic for people in many types of settings. One way to begin gardening is to start with a theme. This works especially well for beginner gardeners and children. If you love pizza, *plant all the ingredients needed for topping your pizza. Love salsa? Create a salsa garden with peppers, onions, tomatoes, and cilantro with this Indoor Salsa Garden Starter Kit. ($)
Woolly thyme ($) creates a carpet where kids and adults can walk barefoot to feel the soft carpet-like softness. Although our woolly thyme is newly planted, we hope it will carpet an area in front of our garden bench.
Sensory experiences can be transformative for children in school or home settings or seniors in nursing homes (especially those with dementia and Alzheimer’s). By planting a variety of textures, plants with movement, scents and tastes, sensory gardens inspire eager explorers.
*Sensory Garden for Kids - Part I
*Sensory Garden for Kids - Part II
*How to Garden with Baby or Toddler & Create a Sensory Garden
Borage in bloom
I happen to love tea and have enjoyed planting a small container with herbs and flowers that can be steeped to make “tea” as well as sprinkling in herbs throughout the garden.
A tisane or herbal tea is a “tea” made with petals or leaves from the garden. This weekend I tried my first tisane using catmint. It was delicious! It reminded me of the mint you find growing wild by the creeks here in Central Texas. If you're interested in growing catmint in your garden, you can purchase catmint seeds online here.($)
When researching ideas for how to use herbs for making tisanes, I found these great resources:
How to Grow a Tea Garden - New York Times
How to Grow Your Own Tea Garden
*My Garden Diary: Herbal Infusion
Clasping Venus’s Looking Glass is thriving in our pollinator garden
I’ve been using the Seek app (great for kids!) and iNaturalist to identity plants in our pollinator garden. Over the years we’ve planted so many seeds that each year is a surprise as to what is going to come up! Once we’ve identified each of the new plants, I do some research to find more about each new find.
Currently in the garden we have several plants thriving including:
Near the smaller pond in our backyard is an edible weed called Carolina pony’s foot.
Blackfoot daisies, Indian Blanket and Black-eyed Susan
If you’re interested in finding more about edible plants, I recently found this great resource while researching: Foraging Texas
*Isn't nature is fascinating? Watch this video of a titmouse plucking hair for a nest from a fox 's fur while she sleeps. I could watch this live feed of sleeping baby foxes and raccoons all day. The cuteness makes my heart ache.
WELLNESS
Why you might be languishing right now.
If you are in need of help processing grief or supporting someone experiencing grief or supporting a caregiver, I found this resource. I’ve also put together a list of gifts to support someone whether they are a caregiver or someone going through the journey of grieving or experiencing illness.
For your next reading or creative time, I’m sharing a playlist from Spotify to set the mood. I find listening to music that evokes emotion can also be helpful to process those deeply felt emotions we delve into when we create or read. Paola from The Cottage Fairy channel on You Tube recommended the artist Alexix Ffrench and I have absolutely loved his work.
CREATIVITY
This week I played with sealing envelopes with wax seals. You can find this wildflower wax sealing kit ($) for cards on Etsy. I found the process immensely satisfying and surprisingly really simple. The kit came with a spoon, but I just lit the end of the wax with a flame and let it drip down onto the envelope before pressing the wax with the seal. It comes off cleanly and looks timeless.
If burning wax isn’t your thing, but you like the look of a wax seal, you can also just buy the wax seal bee stickers ($) to add a special touch to your next card.
BOOKSHELF
Why not treat mom (or a good friend) to a bouquet of good books this spring?
For the Mamas ($) - my list of Mother’s Day book gift ideas on Bookshop.org
Mother’s Day Book Bouquet - a fun way to create a floral book bouquet!
In case you are looking for book recommendations for kids (or yourself!), gift ideas for all ages or want to peek into my TBR List for 2021, head over to the 52 Seasons Book Shop on Bookshop.org. ($)
A bordered patch butterfly lands on the coreopsis in our pollinator garden
COMMUNITY
Teacher Appreciation Week is May 2-8.
Thank a teacher this coming week for their hard work this year ESPECIALLY with this year’s extra challenges. They are truly superheroes in our community!
Check out my Etsy Teacher gift list for a few ideas ($)
Truly Texas Mexican on Amazon Prime is worth a watch.
Have some great ideas for moms or caregivers to share? Share in the comments below.
"Do your little bit of good where you are; it's those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world." - Desmond Tutu
Thank you for taking time out of your day to read 52 Seasons. I’d love to hear your feedback and ideas so that we can grow together.
Check out some of my favorite resources here.
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