Salad From the Greenhouse

One more reason to love our greenhouse...  Homegrown salad in Winter!  (Although, so far, this winter has been mild enough a greenhouse really hasn't been necessary.)

Delicious cool season veggies were gathered again this week.  Lettuce was a special treat!  This is the first lettuce harvested since late Spring.  The seeds were free from  Songbird Garden's Class .  I planted them the weekend before Halloween.  The carrots continue to do well.

A few small scallions were pulled from our garden to complete this lovely salad!

Mmmm...  Tasty and nutricious!  Did I mention I love our greenhouse?  ;-)  -Marci

Inspiration Cafe Guest Post

It is such an honor to be guest posting today at

 

Inspiration Cafe

 

The article is all about making jewerly!  (Now I have your attention!)  ;-)

 

Will you please hop over to Inspiration Cafe and visit me there? 

 

;-)  -Marci

 



Aunt Linda's Soapmaking Class

Recently, I was blessed with the opportunity to travel to  Ozark Folk Center  in Mountain View, Arkansas for Aunt Linda's Soapmaking Class. It was a wonderful experience!  May I tell you all about it?  ;-)

Linda Odom's classes were featured in Country Living Magazine's March 2012 issue.  She has taught soapmaking to people from all across the United States.  

The word you hear most often to describe her?  Sweetheart!  I couldn't agree more, and she has the prettiest, sparkling, blue eyes!

You can find her teaching at the  Ozark Folk Center  Apothecary.  This particular class was limited to only two participants.  I was thrilled to be one of them!  Meet my classmate, Heidi!  She's from the south east corner of Arkansas!  It's funny that we both drove three and a half hours from opposite corners of the state!  Heidi is delightful!  All three of us have lots in common! 

It is really quite remarkable how many projects we accomplished in only two days.  Everything we made went home with us!  Linda's experience as a 9th Grade General Science Teacher had her well prepared!  Each student received a folder with complete instructions for everything we created.  She also included tips on how to use lye soap for things like home made laundry detergent!

All lessons were completely hands on.  With Linda's instruction, we made three batches of lye soap.  Three batches!  As we measured, stirred and combined, options for alternate ingredients were discussed.  The fragrance for our first batch was holiday inspired and held orange essential oil with cinnamon.  Our feminine soap fragrance blended lavendar with rosemary and peppermint.

 

For a masculine touch, our third soap creation was lemon, eucalyptus and tea tree oil.  Working with Linda's collection of essential oils was such a treat!

Look at all those options!  We were allowed free rein to mix them!  Linda taught us to use cotton swabs to test a blend before actually using it in a project.

 

 

While our handmade lye soap was setting, Linda taught us how to make adorable soap bunnies!

Lotion bars were on the agenda, too!
 

Soap on a rope is a messy good time!

Lastly we made bath salts and spritzers!

The Ozark Folk Center Apothecary smells lovely any day of the week, but with all our hard work using the essential oils, it smelled so fabulous! I wish we had a "Scratch and Sniff" option in blogging! I would love to share that with you!

Completing the last of our projects was somewhat bittersweet.  I had spent two days in Crafty Girl Heaven!  It was hard to leave, but there really is no place like home!

We teased Linda that she needed to change the name of her class from "Soap Making" to "Everything You Will Ever Need to Clean Anything Making".  (She's gonna need a bigger business card!) 

If you have any questions about how to make hand made lye soap, Aunt Linda's Soap Making Class is the answer!  It is an absolute joy to spend two days with her!

When you visit  Ozark Folk Center , please give Linda a hug for me!  She's the sweetheart with the sparkling blue eyes!

;-)  -Marci

Sisterhood of the World

 

 

Thank you, Holli, of  Holli's Hoots and Hollers for nominating me for an award!  This is my first one and I am OVER THE MOON honored.

So the rules of the award are as follows:

 

• Include award logo in blog post
• Thank the nominee and link back to their blog
• Post 7 interesting facts about yourself (See below)
• Pass the award to 7 deserving sisters

 

(It was HARD to choose only seven, so I chose eight!) 

And my nominees are:

 

** Kathryn of   The Dedicated House

 

** Danni of  Silo Hill Farm

 

** Noel of  Noel's Beautiful Life

 

* Aubrey of   Homegrown & Healthy

 

** Anne of   Domesblissity

 

** Sandra of   Beneath this Roof, Within these Walls

* Tiffany of  Songbird Gardens

** Debi of   Adorned from Above

As for seven interesting facts about myself...
Oh gee, I hope you think these are interesting!

1.  My family is very large.  I am the youngest child of six.  My mother is the youngest of six.  My father is the youngest of eight.  I am the Baby of the Babies!  ;-)

2.  I grew up on a farm in a rural part of Arkansas.  Our family rode horses and was active in rodeos.  My favorite event was steer riding.  I still have my spurs and I still have my bull rope!

3.  I am in the Benton County Master Gardener program and was the featured gardener for March 2012.

4.  As a teenager, I was active in pageants and actually won a couple.

5.  I've been the Program Coodinator for the Herb Society of NW Arkansas for three years.

6.  I am the proud mother of a United States Marine.

7.  This February we will celebrate our 27th Wedding Anniversary!  

Thanks again to Holli, of Holli's Hoots and Hollers  for the nomination!

;-)  -Marci

 

Kati in the Garden

We have the sweetest, silliest cat ever.  Her name is Kathryn Elizabeth.

 

 

Let me tell you the story of how she came to live with us. 

 

One day I was doing chores in the garden and heard something crying.  Looking around, I did not see anything and kept working.  The pitiful sounds continued.  I left my tasks and began an active search to find the upset creature.  Across the street from me was the cutest, little, gray kitten with white paws. 

 

 

I knelt and called her.  She immediately hopped toward me just as a mini van was cruising down our street!  Thankfully, the mini van stopped in time and I scooped up the tiny kitten.  She was obviously well cared for and very affectionate.  

 

Kati and I walked around the neighborhood, knocking on doors, looking for her home.  Returning to our property I thought surely someone would come looking for her.  That was four years ago! 

 

I guess we get to keep her! 

;-)  -Marci