Preserve - Newest Issue of Taproot Magazine

If you have not yet found Taproot Magazine, it's time to check it out!  Focusing on gardening, farming, making, cooking, dreaming, with outstanding artwork, photography, essays and poetry, recipes & lots of DIY projects, this magazine has it all.

Each time a new issue arrives in our mailbox (yes, a real paper copy magazine to read with cup of tea in hand) my 8 year old daughter and I wrestle to see who gets to flip through it first.  She looks for the paper dolls, colouring pages, farm animal photography.  I admire the artwork, food photography, latest recipes and stories.  My husband admits he eventually makes his way through all the articles and stories too (even if it does give him pangs for a larger farm, some day).  But the magazine makes us feel connected to a larger community worldwide of those trying to live honest, simple, handmade, heart-filled lives.  We feel renewed in our efforts here on our little urban homestead to keep mending, baking, fermenting, unschooling, gardening, wild-harvesting, healing, and so forth - adding new insights and inspiration to what we already do in our day to day life.

In the current issue, check out our article - Homegrown Sprouts!  You'll learn how to grow sprouts at home, and get recipes for super sprout salad, and morning greens smoothie, plus learn a little more about how and why we love to sprout.

Sun art

We finally had a stretch of beautiful sun today - just the right amount of time to try out a sun art project.  This kit was given to our daughter as a Christmas present, and she's been waiting patiently for the right day to try it out.  It uses cyanotype paper (a light-sensitive paper).   By laying out natural objects on the paper, then placing it in the sun under a special acrylic sheet, a shadow print (also known as sunprint, blueprint or sunlight print) is made.   What fun!  First spending time selecting an assortment of favourite leaves, flowers, feathers and stems from the yard, then arranging them in interesting compositions, and finally waiting outside with a timer to make sure they are exposed to the sun for the right amount of time.  A great nature project just right for the attention span of an eager almost-5 year old!  I think some of these are frame worthy.