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Sparkle (1)
Today we rose to a sun that was trying it's darndest to burn through the mist that shrouds the redwoods. It'd peek through momentarily, lighting up the whole living room, and within minutes hide again beyond the mist.
Finally at ten o'clock the entire sky opened up, the great blue visible at long last. So the kids and I slipped on our boots and headed outside to let those poor chicks out (they've been waiting quite impatiently this week for their teeny snippits of outdoor time). And in that short period of sunshine we danced, and sang, and walked about enjoying all the life that's busily happening out there.
Spiders in cloudy-pillow holes. Toadstools poking through the meadow once again. Ferns unrolling on the forests edge. Rolly-pollies to catch. Irises taking their turn in the dance of the flowers. Chickens learning to scratch for delicacies. And dandelions...
And I remembered a recipe I ran across two years ago. (Aren't our minds amazing?!) Yes, this Dandelion Lemonade caught my eye when we were still living in Southern California...and dandelions weren't quite as plentiful as they are here.
So we grabbed pails, our loupes for study, and tromped out to collect some dandies. And two hours later, the raindrops grew heavy again, the sky clouded over, and rain. Yes, pouring rain returned.
But it didn't matter. We were busily preparing our bit of sunshine indoors. So, if you need a bit of sunshine in your neck of the woods, here's our own adaptation of the recipe found a few years ago.
HOW TO MAKE SUNSHINE
firstly:
Need help identifying dandelion? Look at this picture, this site and this.
you'll need:
* a jar (or one small jar per person if working with children who would like some independence)
* water
* a lemon (1 per person works quite well)
* a sweetener (we used honey, but I'm sure most other sweeteners will dilute just as well and take the bite off those lovely citrus gems)
* and a handful of de-stemmed dandelions, rinsed gently
what to do:
1. Rinse your dandies gently with water.
2. Juice a lemon and pour into a jar of any size. (We each made a jar for ourselves. And we simply guess-timated. Roughly 1 lemon to 1.5 cups of water per person.)
3. Drop in some sweetener and shake vigorously till thoroughly mixed. (It takes more sweetener than you'd guess unless you like very sour lemonade.)
4. De-stem your dandies and then add them to the water/lemon mix. Stir or shake again.
5 .Now let sit for as long as your patience allows. And enjoy your bit of sunshine.
By the way, did you know that dandelions naturally relieve symptoms of depression?
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