The White Witch’s Hot Cocoa & Other Extras

This fall, while doing book events for Advent in Narnia, I’ve developed a few more activities for families, individuals, or churches that I want to share here since I’m too late to include them in the book (at least until the next – ?! – printing). Amazingly, the book has sold almost 2500 copies since it was released […]

Mint is Impossible (The Mint Project, Part 3)

Mint is in the Bible twice! Who knew? I like to imagine King David, Peter, or Lydia enjoying it in their tabbouleh, but it’s only Jesus who mentions it, when he accuses Pharisees of being overzealous in the tithing of their crops: Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint, dill, and cumin, and have neglected […]

A Minty Memorial Day Weekend

I have become obsessed with my backyard mint project.  Over the holiday weekend, I tried seven (7!) different mint recipes. Adam thinks I’m nuts. He has also had to empty our dishwasher (his job in our division of home labor) like, eight times in three days. I might have a problem. I will share the results with you, […]

The Mint Project

My bucolic suburban homestead is slowly being taken over by backyard mint. I admit, I opened myself to this invasion when I bought two plants four years ago – one “chocolate” mint, one spearmint – and planted them. Not in a pot. Not in two pots. Not in a window box. In naked, unprotected ground. I planted […]

Potatoes to Grow and Eat

I planted potatoes for the first time this year: purple, red, white, and gold. I’ve always felt sort of intimidated by growing potatoes, but this year I decided to give it a try because people kept telling me it was really very easy. Here’s where they were – a 5×5 plot in a raised bed. […]

“Take 12” for June

“Take 12” is a project to take 12 photos on the 12th of every month. I’ve been doing this all year (admittedly, sometimes on the 13th and 14th), and haven’t quite gotten around to posting here. So finally, 12 pictures from my life on the 12th of June, 2012: Nasturtiums in my garden. Bright orange […]