Spring

Water permeates all facets (and faucets – pun intended) of our lives: from what we drink, to how we bathe, to where we gather to swim, kayak, ride boats, and even travel. We’ve all heard familiar phrases like “drink half your body weight in ounces per day,” and “eight cups of water per day is the minimum of what you need,” but few of us ever bother to take a look at our water.

Yes, it can be found in a well, reservoir, tap, or bottle, but few of us are familiar with the actual source: springs. 

We've all heard how good it is to eat seasonally, but sometimes it can be hard to know what to do with seasonal produce. After all, once you find out what's in season, how do you concoct that into a healthy meal? Well, thankfully, I'm here to help. I do my best to eat seasonally, so I wanted to share with you some of my go-to recipes for the spring. These four spring dishes will make your mouth water and bring a new appreciation to seasonal foods. After all, plants that are in season taste so much fresher and tastier than in other seasons.

Adding color and beauty to gardens is something flowers do best, but let’s not forget that some flowers give us some fantastic fragrances, too. Flowers are nature’s perfume, and each variety has its own special scent. Check out these 15 fragrant flowers to grow for your outdoor garden.

As your garden plan evolves this spring…or as you continue to sow…or at whatever stage your garden is, be sure to leave some room for a few beautiful, edible garnishes! There are dozens of edible flowers you could sow, and not only are they beautiful, but they add a vibrant pop of color to any summer dish – sweet or savory. Also, adding flowers to your garden – vegetable or not – is helpful to attract and support pollinator populations.

May tends to be a pretty cool month because it’s not really “cool” at all. That’s right! It’s time to rejoice in the fact that warm sunshine is basically going to be a thing now—at least for the next five months. (Did I mention I live in California?)

Today’s walk through Mother Earth’s Medicine Cabinet will lead us down a path to check out Pine Pollen. All pine trees produce this magnificent pollen that can be harvested or purchased at a health food store. The pollen is not actually pollen -- it is technically considered to be a form of seed. It isn’t packed with flavor but it has a light nutty taste.

Not only does Spring evoke warm, happy feelings of renewal and rebirth, but it also evokes cravings, specifically for greens, salads, fruit and fresh produce in general.

You guys, it’s May! Spring is in the air; summer is on the horizon. As the weather warms up, I’m sure families everywhere will be looking for things to do, especially once school’s out for summer. Anybody else suddenly singing along to that classic Alice Cooper song, too?

May has always been super exciting for me because it meant that I had the care-free, toasty summer months to look forward to. However, since I graduated from college last May, it looks like from here on out, the excitement won’t be quite the same. Oh, well. Summer is still magical. Cheers to students!

Sunny springtime sure is lovely and all, but what about the hair (pet hair, that is)?! During the colder months, our furry friends gain their winter coats to keep them nice and warm, but, at the first sign of sunshine, those coats seem to come right off—onto our carpets, couches, clothes, etc.

Couscous is a staple in my house. The food so nice they named it twice is extremely versatile and amazingly delicious. As the weather is changing from winter to spring, there is no better way to celebrate than with a veggie-filled couscous salad.