Contest Winners!

So sorry to all who participated in the contest for my delay in announcing a winner. The polls closed yesterday, July 4th, with three votes: all for Cleavers/Bedstraw and all of you were correct!! {give yourself a pat on the back}

Now, only two of those three contacted me with their Name/Email/Vote so my plan was to put those two names in a hat to pick the winner of the lip balm.... BUT. I've decided to let them both chose a lip balm as a thank you for participating in my first online give-away!!!

Make your selection out of the options below and send your address to my email so I can send your FREE lip balm straight to your door!!

Butter Pecan Biker Balm - Just Peachy - Mint Truffle - Tropical Dreams - Hazelnut Latte - Sugar Beet Watermelon

Give-A-Way

It's about time that I have a little contest on here of my own! So it will go like this: Vote in the poll on the sidebar >> and email me with your choice [or guess] and when the poll closes on July 4th I will draw a random winner from a hat! (Unless there is only one person who votes correctly, then I won't need to get out my hat :^).

What herb could it be??

If you win, you will get to chose one of my all natural lip balms for FREE!

Your choices include:



Butter Pecan Biker Balm  - Just Peachy - Mint Truffle - Tropical Dreams - Hazelnut Latte - Sugar Beet Watermelon

Bareing Fruit

I just got home from a Woman's Conference hosted by the ladies of the Christian Motorcyclist Association. [where I had a vendor booth and sold my lip balms, hand made accessories and an all new product... Soap! More on that later..] It was a fun filled weekend with lots of great advice and practical implications for well loved, Biblical truths.

One speaker mentioned the 'Christ-like fruit' and the 'satanic opposite', as spoke of by Paul in Galatians 5
In my notes, I really wanted to focus on the fruits of the Spirit, and during the talk I jotted down a few thoughts on each fruit:

Love - is sacrificing for others
Joy - is living in the truth and power of being God's Girl
Peace - is being content in where God puts me
Long-suffering - is patient endurance during all circumstances
Kindness - is affection, or simple gestures of love
Goodness - is holiness, morality, or your conscience [telling you to do the right thing]
Faithfulness - is believing all of God's promises
Meekness - is silently professing love
Self-control - is not allowing circumstances or feelings to determine your actions

[Photo credit]

"Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness [or meekness], self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit."            
-Galatians 5:19-25 [emphasis added]

TP Roll Pots - Tutorial

With so many 're-uses' for things, I save A LOT of stuff. One thing I cringed at throwing out was toilet paper rolls... For some reason I just knew they had an ingenious purpose in a second life as a __________. [fill in the blank] I just could never think up something smart enough to justify to my mother that we really should save them.

:Meanwhile - On Pintrest:

[light-bulb]

Someone, somewhere, is a genius....

This is so easy it's not even funny. Once it has fulfilled its sacred duty, take your newly retired TP roll and cut four equally spaced slits about 1" deep on one end.

Then fold one quart of the edge over...

Then the next quarter... [sorry its blurry... New camera is on the 'wish list'; until that become a reality you'll have to suffer through the grain... again, truly sorry]

Then.. you guessed it, fold that next quarter...

And the last one...

I took empty half gal. milk cartons and cut them in 2"-3" sections and they tightly hold five little TP roll pots. Then I moisten my seed starting mix and fill the pots to the top. Place a seed or two in each pot and watch as God makes them grow!

I like to water the pots about every other day with warm water to help encourage germination, mainly because our house tends to be cooler [in some places because we heat with wood]. Once they sprout I don't water them for a few days. The cardboard retains quite a bit of moisture and if I keep them too wet the seedlings mold or rot. I like to put a fan on them to imitate wind and make the roots stronger and also to let the soil dry out a bit. They don't like to be too soggy!

Yumm, can't wait for Tomatoes this summer!!

___________________________________________

What ideas have you discovered to re-use TP rolls??

Any clever gardening tips you'd like to share?

Have a great weekend,

Kerry

Give this way...

WINNERS CHOSIN

A friend and fellow blogger is hosting a give-away on her blog. I have submitted an item from each of my shops to be listed among the prizes!

Check it out here:

http://savoriesoflife.blogspot.com/2012/02/win-lots-of-prizes.html



^^ Congratulations, Lyudmila! Hope your package arrives safely in Russia!! Enjoy  ^^

Mullien - Verbascum Thapsus

As the crazy weather of January fluxes [we've had 60*F days then to 17*F here in SE MO] I find comfort in the promise of spring and all that God offers in nature to please, ease and comfort our ails.

I found these photos from a day of wildcrafting I did last summer. I was so busy that I didn't make time for a veggie garden like I always do; I felt quite like something was missing, for sure. The most I really did with plants was wildcrafted, so I'll tell you a bit about that.

Here we have a wild Mullien plant. The leaves are large and very fuzzy. The lower leaves get very broad and I've been told that Pioneers used them as diapers long ago! It certainly would be a great choice for a possibly sore, damp, baby bum when we take a look at it's medical properties.

Medical Properties: Demulcent, Emollient, Vulnerary, Analgesic, Anti-Inflammatory, Astringent, Anti-catarrhal, Expectorant, Diuretic.

These photos are pretty early in the growing season for this plant, by the end of summer the center has grown 4'-6' tall in one slender spike and will have clusters of yellow blooms along the top 1-2 feet of the spike.

This shows the leaves after washing, cutting and laying them out to dry before I use them. I will post again soon to tell you about some suggested uses for Mullien herb.

*This is intended for infromational use only, these statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. It is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

Herba Smoothie

Herba Smoothie, anyone?

I just got this herbal blend in the mail yesterday from the Bulk Herb Store. I put a rounded teaspoon in the blender with frozen berries we picked from our garden and wild off our property here in SE Missouri. Then I added some yogurt and apple juice and a fresh apple. Blended on high for a min. and presto! A beautiful smoothie full of natural vitamins and minerals found in their whole, untampered, form. Simple nutrition in a form our bodies can readily utilize.

Here's to a happy and healthy new year! Cheers!

-Kerry-