Tax Refund and Lemon Honey

Good Morning!

So, yippee!  My tax refund is big enough for me to take the ABC's of Herbalism class that I have been fantasizing about for months!  I can't begin to express how stoked I am over this.  I'll even have some left over to put in my savings account!  Double win!  I also received my bonus from work, so I was able to become a member of the Herb Society of America over the weekend!  There is so much "herbiness" going on at my house right now, I can hardly contain myself!
Over the weekend I went out and bought myself a primrose plant (Primula acaulis) to add a little color during this gloomy winter.  It's become an annual winter tradition.  If by the middle of February I don't have at least one of these cute little colorful plants in my window, something is wrong. 

Speaking of "gloomy winter" let's talk about something happy and sunshiney and yellow - lemon honey.  It's "stupid easy " to make and use and  I think everybody should have a jar in their house.  I'm fortunate enough that my boyfriend's father sends us a 5lb tub of local honey several times a year from his property (ie. BEST GIFT EVER!), so I always have plenty of honey on hand.  I also love lemons.  I drink copious amounts of lemon water, add lemon to my herbal infusions and I make this honey.  So, I always have lemons on hand as well.  So, how do you make lemon honey you ask?!  Well,  clean, wash and dry a mason jar of appropriate size - I traditionally use a pint jar - then you fill it with your lemon slices and cover with honey.  Because honey is so viscous, you'll have to let it settle to the bottom of the jar, and then add more, and continue until the jar is, in fact, full.  You want to make sure the lemons are covered.  Ta da!  Lemon Honey.

I like to take a couple pieces of the lemon and a little "juice" and cover with boiling water.  It makes a wonderful soothing drink, especially if you are suffering from a cold/flu or have a sore throat.  A variation could be adding some fresh ginger as well.  Some places may tell you to keep this in the fridge, but I've always left it sitting out and never had a problem (I also use it up pretty quickly and have to make more!) Enjoy!

And, just because, here are a few pictures of plants from around my home:

This is one of my favorites, my lavender covered in tiny spiderlings that had recently hatched.