home health kit, part 2

We recently returned from the most wonderful trip to Maine.  We spent the better part of a week visiting our friends (you can follow their adventures on the lovely Crafting Mama Librarian Blog), who graciously took us to The Common Ground Fair in Unity, Maine.  The Fair is sponsored by and a benefit for the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association, and is truly a fair like no other.  If you haven't been before, be sure to keep the Fair on your radar screen for the future.

One of the vendors at the Fair was a company called Avena Botanicals.  They are the first Demeter-certified biodynamic* farm in Maine, and offer a vast selection of hand-crafted herbal remedies.  The majority of the plants used in their remedies are grown on their beautiful 32-acre farm.  I purchased a few of their remedies to add to my home health kit, including the Be Well and Herbal Zinger herbal compounds to help with cold and flu season.   I also bought the Immune Soup for overall immune health and support; I am looking forward to brewing it up this weekend!

And finally, the favorite in our home (as voted by my five-year-old daughter), the Flower Fairy Cream.  Who could resist that?!  I am seriously thinking about asking Avena if I could bring some of their amazing remedies to UrthChild, but in the meantime, visit their online store.  And share with us the remedies you have in your home health kit and tips for staying healthy this fall and winter!

*  The principles of biodynamic agriculture were first outlined in a series of lectures by Rudolph Steiner, who also founded the Waldorf education system.  According to Avena Botanicals, while biodynamic farming adheres to the same practices as organic farming, a fundamental element of biodynamic agriculture is "to help heal the earth by using specially made preparations that are applied to the soil, leaves, and compost pile following the natural rhythms of the day, the seasons, and the moon and planets.  Steiner taught that the regular use of the biodynamic preparations would help garden soils be more open and receptive to receiving the spiritual impulses radiating from the cosmic forces. He also believed that the vitality of the food and herbs we ingest, revitalized by the use of the biodynamic preparations, would help humans be more fully conscious, more spiritually awake, more aware of the divine energy present in all of life."  (Source:  http://www.avenabotanicals.com/about-avena/biodynamics/)