Tasty Teas # 4: Goddess Tea

This is one of my favorite FAVORITE teas.  Wait, did I mention this is one of my favorite teas? I probably drink this one more often than any other tea in my arsenal.  I call it Goddess Tea because it is particularly good for women, especially for those that are pregnant and breast-feeding.  The combination of herbs was first given to me by my herbalist during my pregnancy with Silas and I even remember drinking a rendition of it years ago while pregnant with Serafin.  I loved it so much that I continue to drink it in large quart size jars at least 3-4 times a week.  In my opinion, it's WAY better that the "Pregnancy Tea" you get in the super market, plus if you buy the herbs in bulk, it's much cheaper too.  

This tea is good for pregnant mamas, breast-feeding mamas, mamas in general, women in general, PEOPLE in general!  One of the reasons why this tea is probably more geared towards pregnant women is because of the red raspberry leaf, which is known to aid in reproductive health and tonify the uterus.  The tea also has Oat Straw, rich in calcium and great for building bones (it has a reputation for being great for those with osteoporosis) and Nettles an herb that helps strengthen blood vessels, is full of iron and keeps swelling down in the body.

For pregnant women, I recommend drinking this tea throughout gestation, but particularly in the third trimester, at least 3-4 cups a day (please be sure to check with your care provider to cover all bases).  Here's what I did, and still do (!).

I buy the herbs in bulk and mix them together in a large jar for fresh keeping.

Goddess Tea:

2 parts Raspberry Leaf

2 Parts Nettles

1 Part Oat Straw

Make the tea in the morning in a large quart size jar, use about 1 tablespoon per cup,  let it steep for a few hours, the longer it sits, the richer it gets.  Sip through out the day and enjoy!  When I drink it I feel the goodness seeping into my cells.  It really is one of my favorites!

Where to Buy Your Herbs, . . .

Mmmmmm, just went to the "herb store" today.  I was low on a lot of goodies that I was in need of, especially after this last bought of stomach flu.  When I got home I re-stocked and admired the beautiful colors in my full herb closet.  Drinking tea is that much more enjoyable when everything is easy to get at and looks pretty.

Some of you have asked where I get my herbs.  Before mom died, I used to go and scour her garden to see what yummy things I could find there.  Aside from being an amazing herbalist, she also had a very green thumb. In her garden, you could find anything that would be in a standard herb garden such as peppermint, oregano, lavender, and rosemary, to other wonderful herbs like lemon-balm, cat nip, St. John's wort, calendula, echinacea, mullen and so much more.  In the spring, her garden blossomed to its fullest potential, we would walk together and she would tell me "what was what" and "what it was good for".  After she passed, my beginner herbalist knowledge only recognized about 35% of it, I should have taken notes!

Now I learn as I go.  I have some wonderful resources for natural healing and my knowledge grows slowly and as needed.  When I can't get my herbs fresh from a garden, I usually go to a local herb store.  I like to look and smell inside the jars when I ask for something.  I also like speaking with a person directly incase I might have any questions.  For those of you in the east bay area, you can find herbs at the Lhasa Karnak Herb Company, they have two locations, but I recommend the Telegraph store as it is larger and has more to offer.  I always enjoy my trips there, they are knowledgeable and friendly.

For those that don't have the time or desire to make a trip out just for herbs, an herbalist friend of mine, very trustworthy, has suggested two places to shop online.  Mountain Rose Herbs and Pacific Botanicals.  I haven't tried them yet, but I'm sure if (and when) we move, I won't have the luxury to shoot down to the local herb shop.  These two places will be my starting point.  

Anyway, that's all for now!  Hope you find your herbs!  

"The Crows of Pearblossom" Art Project Part I: The Nest

One of Serafin's favorite books is The Crows of Pearblossom by Aldous Huxley.  In this book, a rattlesnake sneakily eats the eggs from the nest of a female crow, Mrs. Crow, while she is out for the day.  When she catches him in the act and tells her husband about it, him and a friend figure a way to outsmart the snake.

I can't tell you how many times we've read this book, it's one of my favorites too!  Since it's been so rainy and we are always looking for new activities, I thought it would be fun to create some of our own story props, that way we can play with them and read the book at the same time!  I first started with the nest, . . .

It took me two rounds to figure out how to get the nest to work out.  I think if I did it a third it would turn out even better.  I, however, am going to stick with what we've got for now,  it will do for our purposes!  


To make up the nest, Serafin first picked some pieces of construction paper that she liked the colors of, I then stuck them in the shredder.  I used about five large sheets and was surprised that I actually ended up using all of it.  

Next I covered a small bowl in plastic wrap and got the glue ready.  In a tall container I put in about 1/3 cup of glue an 1/3 cup of water, I used Mod Podge because I knew it would dry clear.

 

We then added the shredded paper to the gluey mixture.

Then pushed it all down and made what we called construction paper soup.  

We then molded the nest to the plastic covered bowl.  

Admittedly, I did most of the work.  Serafin kind poked around adding scraps of paper and making the  usual amusing commentary that she does while we do projects together.

When your finished molding, you will have goopy mess, don't try lifting it off the cardboard, just pick the entire thing up and place it in front of a space heater.  It will be wet and need help drying.  Rotate it about every 40 minutes.  The first time around I tried to dry it by sticking it next to the heating vent and that just wasn't enough heat power.    The outside dried but the inside stayed wet and when I went to pick it up, the entire thing fell apart.  

When it becomes really hard on the outside, slide a knife under the nest to detach it from the cardboard, hold the nest in one hand like you would a bowl and carefully lift the cardboard.  Remove bowl and plastic wrap and put in front of the heater to thoroughly dry the inside.  In a couple of days it will be super hard and you will have your nest!

Soon we are going to work on Mrs. Crow's eggs, they are green with black spots.  I'm thinking paper mache.  It will be just in time to start decorating our Easter Eggs too!  Afterall, it's always good to kill two birds with one stone!

Who Needs Pedialyte?

Electrolyte Water (yes, this is Dr. approved):

1 cup of warm water

1 Tsp of Baking Soda

Pinch of sea salt

(for a little sweetness, you can add a Tsp of honey for kids over 1 year old)

Whew!  Being a parent is one of the most amazing experiences, . . . as well as being one of the most amazingly difficult experiences too.  Remember "The Salt Pack" that I wrote about a few days ago?  The one where I talked about our house being Barf Central?  I can officially say I have been knee deep in barf these days.  Soooo not fun and the worst part of it is seeing those that you love suffer.  I HOPE HOPE HOPE I don't get this one.

After seeing the hubby and daughter go through it, poor little Silas caught the bug.  I have never seen my little smiling boy so upset and unhappy.  He hasn't been eating hardly anything and what he does, keeps coming up. The past few hours have been a marathon of trying to get him to drink a Tablespoon of electrolyte water, I then pumped and let him suck on my nipple till he fell asleep so he wouldn't barf from getting too much breastmilk.  Poor little babe.  If he doesn't keep this down, we are off to the Dr soon.  

Lettuce and Celery Prints

I've seen these done so many times before, they always turn out so pretty.  Once again nature gets five stars for its ornate beauty.  I do have to say though, after Serafin got through with playing with the paint, we had a purple mess everywhere (what's new?).  Oh, I did I learn a new trick for keeping the back of your chairs clean, use a pillowcase!  Unfortunately I wasn't thinking ahead and it was a little late before the "aha" moment.  Good thing I'm re-upholstering them.

Fortunately I got her smock on her before this began!  Look at that devilish look!

"Forget stamping, I want to finger paint!!"

The masterpiece!

  

The Salt Pack

We've been having a series of stomach bugs going through this house.  It's been brutal.  I've been calling it Barf Central the last couple of days.  I read recently about salt packs and how they bring circulation and energy areas in need.  Salt is said to relax muscles and reduce spasms.  Perfect for tummy trouble.  

Determined to find some comfort for my sweeties (the hubby had it too) I heated up two cups of sea salt in a pan for about 5 minutes on medium heat.  I kept feeling for the temperature with my hand, once it got to hot to touch, I left it another 30 seconds and then pulled it off.  I poured the salt into two small pillow cases, one for each sicky.  On Serafin's, I tied a ribbon at each end to make it toddler proof, we don't want salt all over the bed (plus, it added a little flare).

The amount of heat was amazing!  It got very hot, very fast and retained the hot temperature for quite some time, I'd say about 30 minutes.  Both my sweeties held the packs on their bellies.  Don't know if that's what helped, but they seem to be feeling a little better today.  Can't wait for this one to be OVER!  Yack!

Tasty Teas #3: Elderberry

Elderberries are wonderful.  So rich in vitamin C.  We drink this "tasty tea" to ward off a cold or flu.  You can drink it when you start to feel a bug coming on, or when you're in the thick of it .  It helps build immunity and repair your health.  Instead of steeping these little berries, you want to make a decoction.  

Put a tablespoon of berries in a medium size pot , cover with two inches of water, bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes.  

The result is this beautiful magenta colored tea. 

 

Add a spoonful of honey and you are on the mend!  The kiddos will love it too!