Happy Beltaine!

May is upon us, but man oh man does it feel like August out there today.  The sun is burning the leaves of our swiss chard, and I am hiding from it inside our cool stone-walled little cave.  The cooking, gardening, and outdoor projects can wait until the worst heat of the day passes. 

Yesterday brought the opening day of our local farmer's market, and I pulled myself out of bed after two hours of sleep to make it there on time... I was hardly even tired, it felt like Christmas morning!

We were pleased to discover several produce stands, folks selling goats milk and organic raw cow's milk, and even a guy growing pesticide-free greenhouse tomatoes!

We left with two bunches of asparagus, a bunch of kale, three bags of spinach, a bunch of rhubarb, half a gallon of raw milk, three tomatoes, and plenty of yukon gold taters. 

My plan for this evening is to make pierogis, rhubarb crisp, and kale/chard pie.  Nomnomnomnom.....

Last night I hosted a women's circle in celebration of the full moon and of Beltaine, and I found it incredibly refreshing to spend time with 12 other women of different ages and backgrounds discussing the challenges we're all facing regarding balance, success and happiness.  I've felt the need for more feminine energy in my life lately, and feel recharged and inspired today.

Time to make the best of this summer-like day and make some sun tea!