Category: Hobbies

The Mint Girl Reads The Heath Cousins and The Moonstone Cave by Eileen Hobbs

Recently, I received a copy of the book, The Heath Cousins and the Moonstone Cave by Eileen Hobbs. This is the first book in a trilogy and I am really excited to read the other books.

Addie B. is a young girl who lives in London. She comes to her grandparent’s beach house in Maine. She is excited to meet her grandfather, but not at all excited to see her 3 cousins: Jack, Beanie, and Bodie. Addie’s grandfather gives her a treasure book, which her grandmother once owned. Inside it is a moonstone ring and a poem. These lead Addie and her cousins to a cave. The adventure that they go on is unlike any other.

My favorite part of the book was when Addie and Jack (and the other cousins) start to understand each other. This helps them get along better and work together to get out of the cave.

This book is perfect if you love mystery and fantasy. I was kept on the edge of my toes while following the story of Addie B., Bodie, Jack, and Beanie.

Mint Girl Goes Ziplining

When I went on my vacation to Langkawi, I was pretty surprised that our hotel was in the midst of a forest. The landscape there was very pretty and the animals galore.We saw so many trees and the water on the beach was very clear. The hotel atmosphere was very calming and the staff was very nice. We took some tours that let us see some of the best and most interesting creatures. One of my favorite parts of the trip was spotting a colugo and the other was ziplining.

I had been wanting to zipline for a long time but I was quite nervous. At Umgawa, I didn’t have to worry. The instructors there were very nice and walked us through the guidelines. We walked for some time and came to our first line. It was a practice line and I was nervous, but ready. When I flew through the air, I leaned back and relaxed. I felt so free flying through the forest.

The scenery was beautiful and I loved every second of it.Nothing could beat seeing the Andaman Sea or a waterfall on your side while flying through the forest. I spotted a whole family of dusky leaf monkeys leaping through the trees. A few of them had babies and they all played with each other. I found this to be a super cute scene. We also saw tons of butterflies flitting around the trees. My favorite animal of the day, though, was the hawk we saw. We saw it two times. Once when we were walking on one of the rope bridges and before we abseiled(went down).

I definitely recommend Umgawa to any family looking for adventures, wildlife(pictures), and tons of fun.

DIY Christmas Jars

This year, I made some really cool christmas craft projects. One of my favorites was the christmas jars.

Items needed:

  • some old jars (I used mason jars, but you can use any type you want)
  • epsom salt
  • ribbon (use colors that will pop out)
  • medium sized silver balls
  • fake greenery
  • mod podge (or clear glue)
  • hot glue (only use with adult supervision)

Instructions:

  1. Coat part of the exterior of the jar with the mod podge.
  2. Sprinkle the epsom salt on the mod podge.
  3. Repeat until you cover the whole jar.
  4. Do this to how many ever you want to do and set to dry.
  5. Once dry, measure and cut the ribbon you’ll need to wrap around the top of your jar.
  6. Using the hot glue, glue the ribbon around the top and let dry.
  7. Take two or more sprigs of the fake greenery and glue in the center of the ribbon.
  8. Glue one or two silver balls on the greenery with hot glue.
  9. Let dry.

Once they’re dry, you can use them as anything from a pen holder to a candy jar! The epsom salt looks just like snow and the greenery with the silver balls looks really nice. These jars are amazing and really cute too!

Please try this and leave a comment about how it went!

My Hobby: Dancing

I plaster a smile on my face and step onto the stage. My hobby is dancing. I learn bharatanatyam and western dance.


I grimace at how messy the step turned out to be. Your steps have to be precise while dancing.  I scooped down and my leg followed. I groaned and start the frustrating process again. I scooped down and thrust my leg forward.”Phew! I finally got the step right!” I cheered and felt victory because I had to do two things at the same time. I was so happy when I achieved the step. On the next step I faced a similar problem.I started my jeté and sailed magnificently through the air. On my landing though, I crumpled to the floor. “ You can do this,” I whispered to myself. After a lot of practice, I finally got the step.

I practice the jump over and over again until it gets engraved into my brain. Dancing is a lot about repeated and dedicated practice. You need to remember all the steps. I started dancing a beat too early. Then I started a beat too late.Frustrated,  I threw my hands in the air. I was so annoyed at how my timing was off. I finally realized what time to do it and I was so relieved. Once I had the last step down. I knew I was ready for the competition. Before the competition, I practiced the dance multiple times so I wouldn’t forget it. “ I can’t forget the steps,” I told myself. On stage, I never forgot a step.

I run off the stage happy that the dance is over. Dancing is a type of hard work, because you need to have precise steps and you need to remember the steps.Even though it’s frustrating, I still enjoy dancing. I’ve always been lucky to have great teachers who guide me throughout the world of dance. Sunanda Aunty and Ms. Rojas have been the best teachers anyone could ask for.I hope my passion for dance keeps growing over the years. Let’s dance!

Mint Girl Cooks: Pumpkin Cinnamon Bread

It’s that time of year again! Pumpkin spice and everything nice! Every year, I make my signature dish: Pumpkin Cinnamon Bread.

I quickly scanned the recipe.”This doesn’t seem too difficult,” I told my mom who was waiting patiently for my response.”Well then,” she said as she smiled, “We can start making the pumpkin cinnamon bread.”

I always get nervous during baking, because baking is science. The measurements have to be accurate to get the perfect deliciouso treat. I always worry that I measured too much or too little of an ingredient.

The batter was almost complete. I knew I should’ve been happy but I was actually nervous because I had no idea if I had measured everything correctly.  Regardless, I quickly mixed the dry and wet ingredients, poured it into a loaf pan, and put it in the oven. I tried to convince myself it would be good although it was hard.

Nervously I set the timer. Would it work? When I heard the oven beeping I dashed to the oven and eagerly open its door. Once my mom came, she stuck a toothpick  in the middle then called “It’s ready!”

With trembling hands I took the pan out of the oven. Slowly, I cut myself a piece. When my tastebuds got the first tiny bite of bread they started to dance around in delight. That’s when I knew I had accomplished the recipe. I knew it was one of my greatest recipes and then I would make it again.

Every year, I try to find a recipe to make during the fall.I always find myself coming back to Pumpkin Cinnamon Bread. What are your favorite fall recipes?