Happy Friday! So here we are April 6, and I am still looking forward to spring because we certainly have not seen many spring days so far this year. This past Monday we woke up to a few inches of snow, and there is a snowflake showing for Saturday, ugh! It is not even that April is usually super warm, but we typically have a few warm days here and there, not this year.

This month I have created a Citrus Rosemary Rum Punch. It is light rum, freshly squeezed lime and orange juice, rosemary infused simple syrup. It is light and citrusy sweet, the perfect drink to celebrate spring and summer coming! We don't typically have rum around the house, I picked up Sugarcane Rum made in Pennsylvania at Bluebird Distillery. I love the labels, and I am looking forward to more rum drinks this spring/summer.

Start by making the rosemary infused simple syrup. Simple syrup is 1 cup sugar and 1 cup of water, bring to a boil and then simmer until sugar is dissolved. I used raw sugar, that is why it is so dark. To infuse with rosemary, just throw some fresh rosemary in the pot to simmer with the sugar and water. For two cocktails, I squeezed the juice from 2 oranges and 2 limes, a shot of rum for each cocktail. Fill your glass with ice, add a shot of rum, pour juice evenly between two glasses, and then top off with the rosemary infused simple syrup, garnish with an orange and lime wheel.

If you don't have juice press, here is the one we have:

Oh, and don't you love the glass straws? They are eco-friendly straws, we love them!!

You can get them here:

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While spring is taking its time getting here, I have been spending my time on Pinterest dreaming of gardens. Here are a few perennials I am excited to plant.

I am hoping these perennials will be good for the bees, maybe attract some butterflies, and I would like to use the lavender and mint in my soap:)We are getting closer to having the living room done! Here are a few before pictures and progress pictures.

I am struggling with this area. When we moved in this space had a built-in bench, and I did not picture our family using it. I did think it was great space for a desk. We removed the bench and soffit, removing the soffit was much more challenging than we expected. Looking back I should have just left the soffit and replaced the light. So, we are trying to piece it back together. We are having a desktop made for this space, and two shelves will go above the desk. I am going repaint the chair and recover the seat. I am really hoping I can pull it together.

[twentytwenty]

I am deciding on a light fixture for above the dining room table. We are going to get rid of the two ceiling lights and put up one light above the table. I have it narrowed down to these three:

Light 1

Light 2

Light 3

Which one do you like best?Lastly, Josh posted about how we are preparing for bees. If you missed it, you could check it out here. I love how the hive boxes turned out, and I am excited that we are adding bees to our little homestead:)Cheers! I hope you April is full of fun and laughter!!

xo Mindy

FIRST FRIDAY - APRIL

FIRST FRIDAY - JULY

Preparing for Bees