May your day sparkle with moments of love, laughter, good food, and goodwill. Love, love, love from us to you.
The children were nestled all snug in their beds,
Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads.
You know the verse.
But, can you tell me …
what, exactly, is a sugar plum?
My first thought:
Photo by Kristen Taylor via Wikimedia Commons
Fresh, juicy, and sugar-sweet—much like the ones that grow at my farm.
But history says that my vision of a sugar plum is not accurate, at least not in terms of Clement Moore’s famous poem.
Here’s what my days are about. Momma “Sweetheart” nurses baby Charlie while Auntie Sally O’Mally sleeps nearby. Etta Jane and her baby, Eliza Belle, snooze out of view. Maizy and Miss Daisy are in the barn asleep. Otis, Yore, Brie, and Beau Vine snuggle in another barn. Milky Way and Samson in yet another shelter.
When Charlie isn’t tucked under momma, he and his older sibling, Eliza Belle, run like the wind. Run! Eliza Belle kicks up her heels sideways (too cute), and Charlie leaps likes a deer through the snow. I mean, he LEAPS. Bounds. I’ve never seen a calf leap like he does. It I weren’t trying to get my cow book done, I’d move in with my lovely cows. “Hay guys, is there room at the inn? Your beds look so cozy.”
Meanwhile, down at the farm … peace on earth.
The three soups I featured recently were so popular, I decided to share a few more recipes.
Sauté 1 diced onion and 2 cloves minced garlic in 2 T olive oil. Add 3 cups diced carrots and 3 cups vegetable broth; bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Add ¼ cup minced parsley. Purée. Stir in 1 T honey, 1 t lemon juice, ½ t ground cumin, and 1/8 t ground allspice. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serves 4.
Buy props used in MaryJane’s books and magazine!
5% of profits will benefit www.firstbook.org, a non-profit that provides new books to children from low-income families throughout the U.S. and Canada.
Here’s how:
MaryJane will post a photo and a description of a prop and its cost along with a few details as to its condition here: https://shop.maryjanesfarm.org/MaryJanesCurations. It’s a playful way to be the new owner of a little bit of farm herstory.
