puttin out fires

my mom called me the other day, desperate for something to help my 2 year old nephew, Oliver. now, since they all live in southern california and i'm way up here in portland, i figure this is my best bet for being a part of the little guy's life...

apparently he has a digestive sensitivity to citrus, but he eats clementines (aka cuties!) all the time then is just beside himself from the pain and discomfort caused by what is going on in his little diaper (he's going to kill me if he finds out about this when he's older).

so i hit the laboratory. i spent most of last night heat infusing organic extra virgin olive oil with organic herbs: calendula, st. john's wort, aloe vera, comfrey, and myrrh. all of which are anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial, healing, and calming. (this took a few hours, so i watched the fantasy movie "inkheart" in the meantime. it's actually good despite brendan fraser's attempts to be a cheeseball).

after straining the herbs, i added candelilla wax (a vegan tree wax) to make a salve, then lavender and tea tree essential oils which are astringent, and ta-da! my new baby bottom balm!

i figured i'd send some of the baby wipe solution i make too... it hasn't been selling very well despite rave reviews. Oliver's mom has been using heavily perfumed commercial wipes and i could just strangle her! (I hope you're reading this!) mine contains aloe vera gel, an organic calendula hydrosol i made myself, castille soap, apricot kernel oil, organic virgin coconut oil, lavender, and tea tree. it's nice because it's concentrated. so you can put some in warm water and use it throughout the day, or throw the bottle in your purse and spray it on a warm wet wipe as needed.

I had just sent my family a huge box of last season's preserved goods that i knew i couldn't eat... jam from strawberries i picked on sauvie's island, plum jam from my step-grandma's trees, spiced peach butter from peaches i picked in the columbia gorge, and pickled green beans from my own garden. I could have saved a few bucks by tossing in the baby products but that's what i get for trying to send surprises!

springtime

it's mid-april and that means a lot is changing around here. it has been unusually sunny for this time of year, which gets everyone in a fuss: shopping for shorts/sunglasses/swim suits, sitting with the masses on restaurant patios enjoying margaritas and bloody marys even though it's still only 58 degrees out. the weather tricks us every year by giving us just enough of a taste of sun in order to keep us/remind us why we're in portland before the rain comes back: summertime.

when the sun is out is when i'm the most productive. cleaning long forgotten dust bunnies, finally getting rid of clothes i'll never wear, mowing the lawn, planting the garden, transplanting house plants, saying yes as often as possible... i feel like myself again.

speaking of the garden: my seeds are sown! i still have some beautiful rainbow chard that thrived through the winter, despite (or perhaps in spite of) my negligence. in my 6'x4' bed, i have now planted kale (both dino and curly), broccoli, spinach, carrots, and lettuce. in my 4'x4' bed i have zucchini (i took a chance planting it early, hoping the last frost has passed) and onions. i have one large pot for strawberries and i have yet to plant cucumbers, tomatoes, green beans, and peppers. i hung two long plastic containers on my fence for my herb garden: parsley, sage, cilantro, etc. and i have starts for rosemary, lavender, peppermint, and spearmint (seen in the photo above). clearly i'm more interested in vegetables than flowers, but the one flower i do want to grow is calendula, which is a beautiful bright orange flower that is a potent anti-inflammatory.

speaking of herbs, i have exactly 5 weeks until school starts. i went by the ACHS apothecary and picked up my materials for my first classes!

now, the herbs were an understandable component of the kit. but i've never had a class require me to purchase a bath brush! having some knowledge of dry skin brushing and the benefits to circulation i can understand the need, it just looks a little weird. these materials are for my introductory class on nutrition, bodycare, and herbalism. my first of three anatomy/physiology courses only has books.

lastly, there are only 3 weeks until my 6 day vacation to new orleans! it's in the 80s there this week, so i can only imagine how amazingly miserable it will be in may :) i can't wait.