Spiraea Herbs

Navigating The Waters of Perfectionism

There is nothing like the abundance and dare I say, gluttony, of the holiday season to force you to bump up against your current beliefs systems.  Temptations abound and the stories that hold me back rear their ugly heads. One of the deepest challenges I have to navigate in this life has been my propensity towards perfectionism. I have been through may indurations of this story in my lifetime. In…

The Wet Sock Treatment for Fevers

It can be an overwhelming and worrisome situation when your child is sick. It’s definitely not an easy job, especially when we are trying to manage fever. Many of us were raised with the belief that fever is something that should be suppressed and often reach for the over the counter fever reducing medications.  With these in short supply, this actually brings up a beautiful opportunity to ask…

Things to Consider on Your Holistic Healing Journey

If you are about to embark on a new healing journey, embracing the world of herbs and natural treatment modalities, I am so excited for you. I remember those first days and the eager anticipation of a different experience than I had previously. If you, like me at the time, are coming from the paradigm and viewpoint of a pharmacological model, you may find your new experience with natural…

The Role of Critical Thinking In An Ever Changing World

As I lay in bed last night and again this morning, an interesting notion swirled around my head. Interesting, but also worrisome if you start to examine the fibres of the tapestry this thought weaves. My ponderings can be summed up into one simple, but dare I say, vital question. Are we losing the ability to think critically?  In a world where we’re told that all the information we could ever…

Using Herbs to Support Fever

Recently I shared a video on YouTube about using herbs to help support fever. Because this blog post is meant to be a supportive accompaniment, I would strongly suggest checking out the video below so you have some context for the list I am about to share. Please note – nothing shared with you today is meant to be interpreted as medical advice or a treatment for a specific condition. I share…

Blueberry Lavender Shrub ~ A Drinking Vinegar Recipe

I absolutely love drinking vinegars! They are a fun and healthy way of exploring fruit and herbal combinations, while preserving some seasonal crops at the same time. We recently had a lovely trip to The Blueberry Place in Midland, Ontario. A certified organic blueberry farm, they are an amazing example of what you can accomplish when you are passionate about growing food without chemicals. What…

How to Make a Liquid Clearing Spray

I know, the concept of a smokeless smoke cleanse seems rather counterintuitive, but hear me out. There are times, places, and spaces where lighting up your favourite herbs to do a smoke cleanse is not wanted or appropriate. What if you just had a particularly stressful meeting at work and you just want to clear the air energetically? Or if you have a loved one or partner that does not tolerate…

Garlic Scale Fridge Pickles – Two Ways

Once again we have been blessed with a bumper crop of garlic scapes! Each year I explore new ways to utilize this bonus crop and today I am going to present you with two refrigerator pickled scape recipes that are sure to delight. Like fermenting, fridge pickles involve very little in the way of prep work, equipment or heating up your kitchen, which are big pluses. The downside is that they are…

Garlic Scape Pesto Recipe

Tis the season for boat loads of garlic scapes. I absolutely love this amazing little bonus crop you get when you plant hardneck garlic. To be honest, one of the reasons why we plant so much garlic, is to take advantage of all of the scapes. If you are not familiar with scapes, then get familiar, because you are going to love them. Garlic scapes are the flowering stem of the hardneck garlic…

It is spring nettle season here in southern Ontario and I am taking FULL advantage. If you haven’t checked out my Stinging Nettle, Wild Leek and Potato Soup recipe I highly recommend you do, as it is quite delicious. Learning what wild foods are safe, healthy, and nutritious to eat is a vital skill. With the cost of many items including food going up, it behooves us to start to explore our most…

Bring in Spring ~ Online Circle

Greetings my friends! I am deeply excited and honoured to host another online circle for you all. The energies of spring feel potent and powerful this year and I want to help you all harness and capture some of their essence. If you feel called to work with the Earth and the plant allies that inhabit it, you are welcome to join us in this spring inspired event. This online Zoom event will…

Dry Brushing for Lymphatic Health: How To and Why

Skin brushing is one of those old practices that is quickly becoming trendy yet again and for good reason. As we navigate a world where we are quite literally steeped in toxins thanks to air and water pollutants, chemicals in our foods, products and even our clothing (yes our clothes!), our skin is constantly being exposed to substances that can harm it and impact its functioning. Our lymphatic…

Quitting Coffee & the Cascade Effect in the Body

Coffee was a part of my life for over a decade. The aroma, warmth and its bitter depths were a familiar part of my daily routine for so very long. At some point it became a crutch and a substance I could no longer live without ~ or so I thought. I am sure many can relate to this dance we do with addictions in our life. I know it’s not good for me, but I’m just not ready to quit it yet. Back in…

The Number One Skill You NEED to Thrive as a Homesteader

When you think of the homesteading lifestyle, what comes to mind as useful or necessary skills to have? Well, it must be canning or growing food right? How about animal husbandry or being able to build structures? Would it surprise you to know that when we embarked on this journey over 7 years ago that we didn’t have one single skill that I mentioned above? While they are important and vital as…

Cancel Culture and How It Impacts Health

Five years ago if someone had said the term ‘cancel culture’ to me I would little to no understanding of it. Did it even exist back then or was it birthed as a result of the times we are currently navigating? With mainstream media and figures of authority trying quite hard to polarize and divide the population, the notion of cancel culture has become rampant in our every day interactions.   So…

My Favourite Winter Tea Recipe

Nothing says winter like hot cups of tea while cozying up by the fire. Affectionately called teacher’s tea (my local friends will be familiar with this blend), this has quickly become my favourite combinations. When I first created this concoction I was thinking about the needs that teachers would have as I was trying to create a unique gift that didn’t involve sugar or a gift card for my son’s…