Our family celebration of Bealtaine (May Day)

Our family celebration of Bealtaine (May Day)

We were delighted with the arrival of Bealtaine (May Day) as the Sun was shining, the air was warming up and we had the hope of warmer days and garden growth.

We have been observing the “unfurling” of nature as a family… the first call of the cuckoo, the arrival of our beloved house martins, the scents and perfumes in the air as the gorse blossoms and our familiar hedgerow plans arrive one by one. The season was bursting upon us and we wanted to mark the occasion, together as a family.

The lovely Rowan Tree
The lovely Rowan Tree

 

Bealtaine has long been an important event in the old Celtic calendar. The Festival of Fire… it marked the beginning of Summer. We decided it was an event worth celebrating so I gathered the clan and we discussed what we wanted to do to mark the day.

The Rowan tree played a very important part in Bealtaine ceremonies and customs, thought to hold magical powers of healing and protection it was used to protect families, livestock and produce. It was an ancient practice to bring sprigs of the tree into the house on May Day eve and place some at the windows and doors to keep the house safe and bind it in the Rowan’s protective magic.

We have a beautiful Rowan tree just outside our kitchen window. Planted as a young sapling we watch it mark the passing of the seasons as it grows tall and proud. In fact we have such a liking for this tree that it inspired our third child’s name! The flowers are just emerging on the tree at the moment, soon they will delight us with their heady scent. We felt we must include it in our little celebration.

It is also customary to tie ribbon to trees on May Day and it is a good day to make wishes for the season ahead. We decided to combine the Rowan, the ribbons and the wishes into our little ceremony.

For the wishes….. I found some pretty wooden heart shapes and ribbons in a local discount shop.

It was simple to punch holes in the heart (well simple for my husband once I recruited him!) and thread them with the pretty ribbons.

These would serve as our little wish tokens.

Our little May Day "wishes"
Our little May Day “wishes”

 

We decorated the Rowan tree with our little tokens, each making their own wish as we did so. Obviously nobody wished for good weather, because it has been raining ever since!

 

Decorating our "May Day Tree"
Decorating our “May Day Tree”

 

We then gathered sprigs from the tree to decorate and protect our home. This part really upset our youngest who did not appreciate us cutting bits off HIS tree. He was only mildly placated when he was allowed place a sprig on the windowsill of his bedroom!

 

Rowan to protect our home
Rowan to protect our home

 

It was a short and simple ceremony, but I am so glad we did it. It was lovely to get the whole family involved in deciding how we wanted to mark this special day.

If you would like a lovely craft project for Bealtaine, check out this post on the beautiful “Where Wishes Come from” blog.

 

Did you do anything special to mark Bealtaine? If so let us know in the comments below!
Mystery Creature revealed _ the Drinker Moth

Mystery Creature revealed _ the Drinker Moth

How did you do wIth last week’s Mystery Creature? We found it on our little Adventure in our local bog…. it was the DRINKER MOTH CATERPILLAR (Euthrix potatoria).

Although I have not actually seen one of these caterpillars before they are quite common in Ireland and the bog terrain where we found it is very typical habitat. The creature supposedly gets its name from the caterpillar drinking dew from the grasses on which it feeds.

The Drinker Moth Caterpillar
The Drinker Moth Caterpillar

The caterpillars are usually seen between April and July while the Moths (which are nocturnal) can be spotted between June and August.

The caterpillars tend to be more colourful than the moths… the males are a pale brown while the females are a bit more colourful with a yellow hue. The moths have two white spots on the fore wing and a wing span of approximately 70 mm.

photo credit: ajmatthehiddenhouse via photopin cc
photo credit: ajmatthehiddenhouse via photopin cc

To ensure that I had correctly identified this moth I sought confirmation from Michael over at Nature Learn who knows everything there is to know about Irish butterflies and Moths. Michael also had these interesting points to add about “hairy caterpillars”…

 The hairs help them from being predated by birds though the cuckoo is able to eat them

Some hairy caterpillars can cause severe itchiness if touched so best not handled

 

Check out Nature Learn on Face Book for some wonderful wildlife photos and facts or find out more from this interview.

 

A little Adventure

A little Adventure

We spent the last day of the Easter Holidays enjoying the great outdoors right on our doorstep.

We are lucky enough to have a lovely two mile long lane into the bog right beside our house, so we decided to take advantage of it and headed for a family adventure in the lovely sunshine.

The boys were allowed "ride shotgun" once we got into the wilderness
The boys were allowed “ride shotgun” once we got into the wilderness

 

We drove to the end of the lane and then walked along by the stream in search of a little waterfall we hear was nearby.

The adventure continues "on foot"
The adventure continues “on foot”

 

Of course there was a picnic (as all true adventurers need food). Plenty of sandwiches and a left over Easter egg for that extra treat!

Time for some food!
Time for some food!

 

We didn’t find the waterfall but we did find lots of other treasures.

Clockwise from top left: Grass of pernassis, a frog, violet and a hairy caterpillar
Clockwise from top left: Grass of parnassus, a frog, violet and a hairy caterpillar (see tomorrows Mystery Creature post)

 

Why go around the muddy puddles when you can go through them… especially when wearing sandals?

"We can't go over it, we can't under it, Oh no, we have to go through it!" from A bear hunt by
“We can’t go over it, we can’t under it, Oh no, we have to go through it!” from We’re going on a bear hunt by Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury

 

It is a long way back to the car, especially when you are only four and a half.

It is always good to have a back up plan
It is always good to have some alternative transport arranged!

 

We had a wonderful Easter break and hope you did too!
Green Eggs and Ham

Green Eggs and Ham

 Do you like 
green eggs and ham 

I do not like them, 
Sam-I-am. 
I do not like 
green eggs and ham. 

 

dr. Seuss's Green Eggs and Ham
dr. Seuss’s Green Eggs and Ham

I am sure this would suffice as an add on to the coloured egg experiment post but we had so much fun with this I felt it deserved a post all to itself!

 

We repeated the experiment but this time on two eggs, one of which we coloured red as before and the other one we coloured green… because the children (especially the BIG ones) couldn’t let it go without trying to make “green eggs” and ham!

 

The first day we dissolved the shell away in vinegar and then yesterday we transferred the eggs a cup of coloured water and left them overnight. We had the fun of checking them out when we got up this morning… and they didn’t disappoint!

 

 

Two coloured eggs
Two coloured eggs

 

A handful of coloured eggs
A handful of coloured eggs
Squishy eggs
Squishy eggs

 

The colouring step definitely worked, but we still wanted to cook a coloured egg.

We snipped the membrane of the green egg and scrambled it, and finally we had our “green eggs and ham“!

 

Green eggs and ham
Green eggs and ham

Doesn’t look too appetizing, does it? But I persuaded the Science Wows team to try it out…

 

The Science Wows Team tuck in
The Science Wows Team tuck in

 

And how does it taste?…

 

How did it taste?
How did it taste?

 

 

 

 

It tasted awful!!!

 

But we had fun!

 

I would not eat green eggs and ham. 
I do not like them, Sam-I-am. 

 

 

It is International Earth Day – and this is what is on my mind!

It is International Earth Day – and this is what is on my mind!

photo credit: woodleywonderworks via photopin cc
photo credit: woodleywonderworks via photopin cc

It is International Earth Day today.

I have been thinking of the Earth a lot lately, even more than usual.

Global warming, endangered species, renewable energy have all been in the news lately, and well they should be.

But that’s not what I am thinking about.

I am thinking about plastic!

In fact I am thinking about plastic so much I am trying to think about anything else!

But I can’t!

 

 

 

My ten year old daughter did a project on plastic for school recently.

Here are just some of the facts she shared with her class…

photo credit: jschneid via photopin cc
photo credit: jschneid via photopin cc

Plastic takes 500 to 1000 years to degrade.

It has been estimated that over ONE TRILLION plastic bags are used worldwide EACH YEAR and only 0.5% to 3% of all these bags are recycled.

In 2006, the United Nations found that each square mile of the ocean has 46,000 pieces of plastic in it.

Over 100,000 mammals are suspected of dying due to plastic pollution every year, on both land and in our oceans. 

Marine trash, mainly plastic, is also killing more than a million seabirds each year.

 

 

But it is not so bad, right? We can recycle the plastic we use!

Unfortunately not!

My obsession has run to reading all the fine print and checking the recycle symbols of the packaging we use everyday.

Supermarket shopping has become a major stress… it is not enough that it is Irish, locally grown or organic… the plastic it comes in cannot go in my recycle bin!

The more I look, the more I see…. and I wish I didn’t! I wish I could go back to a previous state of ignorance, but I can’t!

It is driving me mad.

So what will I do? Little old me, what can I change… and what difference will it make?

I am not sure what difference it will make, but I have to do something. I may rant and rave here from time to time but I am not a big activist.

So I am going to start off small.

One piece of plastic at a time!

I am going to bring a cloth bag for my vegetable.

I will change to choosing loose vegetable whenever possible and they will go into my cloth bag, not a little plastic one that is on offer for such purposes!

I will choose more farmers markets, where loose produce are more readily available.

I will join a local scheme that delivers a selection of in-season fruit and vegetable to my door each week. It may cost a little more but if I cook wisely I can make these go further.

I can grow more vegetables in my own garden.

Small changes I know, but often small things can lead to BIG changes… so I will keep reminding myself of the Butterfly Effect theory, every time I eliminate one plastic bag from the shopping trolley!

 

So that is what is on my mind this Earth Day, what’s on your mind?

 

The best Easter Egg Hunt… ever!

The best Easter Egg Hunt… ever!

We are spending a lovely few days away as we visit Grandparents and the children get to catch up with cousins. After a long chocolate and fun filled day, some very happy children went to bed declaring “That was the best Easter Egg Hunt ever” …

The loot for hiding
The loot for hiding

 

We chose seven hiding places around the garden and prepared seven rhyming clues for the children to work out where each stash was hidden.

 

There was a treat to find at each hiding point
There were treats to find at each hiding place

 

Clues to find...
Clues to find…

 

There was a lot of reading and deciphering of clues
…and read and decipher!

 

 

There was lots of searching...
There was lots of searching…

 

...and running!
…and running!

 

And the best bit of all was the personalised mini mug by Colorines Wonderful for each child! A real treasure!

 

Very happy with their treasure
Cousins…. very happy with their treasure

 

We hope you had a very happy Easter too!!

 

As everything turns green – it is nettle pesto time again

As everything turns green – it is nettle pesto time again

The lawn mowers are out, leaves are appearing on trees and all things green are starting to emerge…. including the nettles; but don’t despair, when you look at them change your thoughts from annoying, stinging weed to… nettle pesto!

 Young nettles are great as a diuretic, a natural anti-inflammatory (used for allergies, asthma, rheumatism) and to treat high blood pressure… to name but a few benefits!

Last year we decided to put all this natural goodness to some use and tested some nettle pesto recipes, tweaking the ingredients to what we had to hand, and what flavours we preferred. Here I revisit an old blog and share our preferred recipe.

First up…. harvest your nettles, even better if you can recruit a helper or two, this was my “helper” for the task – gloves, hat and all!

My nettle picking helper... complete with gloves!
My nettle picking helper… complete with gloves!

 

Wearing our nettle protecting gloves we headed out into the back garden and collected a large basin full of lovely nettles (harvesting the top two to three bracts)…

Our fresh nettle harvest
Our fresh nettle harvest

 

Next I removed the leaves and washed them, ending up with a colander full!

Picked, washed and ready for the pot
Picked, washed and ready for the pot

 

Next step was to blanch the nettle leaves, so they were added to a large pot of boiling water for two minutes then removed with a slotted spoon and added to iced water.

2 minutes in boiling water
2 minutes in boiling water

 

 

Then straight into iced water
Then straight into iced water

 

Then I placed all the nettles into a clean tea towel and squeeze out the water until the nettles were fairly dry

Squeezing out the nettles
Squeezing out the nettles

 

Ready to make pesto
Ready to make pesto

 

This left me with 100 g nettles, I was ready to make my pesto!

 

My ingredients

Pesto Ingredients
Pesto Ingredients
Ingredients:

100 g preped nettles
50 g pinenuts
Juice and zest of one lemon
150 mls olive oil
30 g parmesan cheese
1 clove of garlic
Sea salt to taste
Pepper to taste

All that remained was to add all the ingredients together and blend, blitz or pound them to the preferred consistency.

Grind to your preferred consistency
Grind to your preferred consistency

 

I got about 250 g of pesto from this, nicely filling four 150 ml bottles…

The finished product!
The finished product!

 

This pesto goes really well with plain old pasta, or just spread on nice crusty bread. It makes a lovely homemade gift too… just be sure to keep a jar for yourself!

 

Further reading:

Stinging nettle pesto recipe
Nettle pesto recipe
Latest science on Rooibos and Nettle Tea

 

Mystery Creature reveal… the Potoo

Mystery Creature reveal… the Potoo

Last week’s Mystery Creature was the Potoo, in this case the Common Potoo (Nyctibius griseus). Here are some interesting facts about this very unusual bird:

Potoos can be found in Central and South America, although fossil finds dating back to the Oligocene and Eocene suggest ancestors of these birds were once also found in France and Germany.

Potoos make some very unusual sounds. As thy need to communicate through a vast habitat they need a noise that can travel. Each species makes a unique call: The common Potoo, for example makes a series of mournful whistle type noises that deepen with each call. Legend has it that this sound is a mournful lament for a lost love – the moon.

Potoos are nocturnal animals. As they spend their days perched on trees and branch stumps they need some effective camouflage. Their elaborate plumage helps them blend in with their arboreal surroundings. Once the Potoo is perched it is very hard to spot as blends into the bark of the tree or takes on the appearance of a branch stump.

photo credit: julian londono via photopin cc
photo credit: julian londono via photopin cc

Potoos usually mate for life.

Potoos do not build nests; instead they will lay a single, spotted egg in the stump of a branch or appropriate nook on a tree.

Both parents will guard the egg and tend to the hatchling.

Potoos have small beaks but very broad mouths, helpful for catching insects such as moths and beetles while in flight.

An interesting feature of the Potoo is that it can still see even when it closes its eyes… a useful feature when relying on camouflage for protection. Their eye lids have little kinks to allow them a discrete peep-hole view of their surroundings.

 

 

 

In this short video clip Sir David Attenborough gets up close with one of these elusive birds.

Colorine Wonderful Mug review

Colorine Wonderful Mug review

There is nothing quite like a cup of tea really, is there?

Well actually I have just discovered something even better and that is… a cup of tea in my very own personalized mug!

I love the blog over at Colorines Wonderful, so when I heard that the talent behind those wonderful doodles was expanding into personalised mugs I was delighted, especially when one was designed just for me!

I know its my mug because it says so on the side!
I know its my mug because it says so on the side!

 

I gave Patricia (the talent behind all this creativity) a couple of ideas and a few days later the mug arrived in the post.

I was so pleased with the results…

this mug really is for me

(it even says so on it!)

 

 

 

I love all the different features that Patricia added to the mug… especially the coke and mentos experiment!

Dr. How has her very own mug!
Dr. How has her very own mug!

Each mug is hand painted and they are all dishwasher and microwave safe.

 

They really do make a lovely gift, so if you fancy treating yourself, or someone else, then check out all the great options and designs at the Colorine Wonderful Etsy shop.

These mugs now come in mini versions…. perfect for the smaller people in your life 😉 There are lots of great Easter ideas on the facebook page and shop. My family is planning a big gathering of the clan soon with the traditional Easter Egg hunt for all the children. I think a personalised mug for each child at the end of the hunt would be a perfect find.

If you haven’t already done so, please check out Colorine Wonderful’s blog and facebook page.

Disclamer: Although I did receive a Colorine Wonderful mug, this is not a sponsored post. All opinions expressed here are my own.