Caring For Others

Hi and Merry Meet,
Today was my day to take dinner and dessert to a coworker in need. As well as give her a much needed social hour or two...

A few weeks ago our main secretary at my second job had a knee replacement. She has already had both of her hips replaced due to severe arthritis (my mom suffers from this, so I have a lot sympathy for her). One of the other teachers set up a schedule for us to pick a day to take dinner to secretary and her husband.

I picked today to go and visit for a while and well as take a meal over to them. She looks great! She's moving around like a champ with her walker. Her smile was bright and she was happy to have some company. She said that she likes looking out the window at a family of birds, but it was nice to talk and have someone reply.

Being that I'm not the best cook in the world I went with something I knew couldn't fail. My cheesy rice bake always comes out good. I got salad and bread and even an apple pie for dessert. No, I'm never going to open a five star restaurant with my cooking but I do what I can!

When I told another friend last night that I was doing this her reply was kind of shocking to me. She asked why would I bother when I'm only part time there and I'm not planning to stay forever? I was really stunned. I thought that's what you do when others are in need. It never occurred to me not to do this as just because some aspects of that job drive me crazy, the people there make it worth while.

The person who said this I thought was someone who would go out of their way for others in need. I guess that only counts if you are friends with her. I would gladly take a meal to any of my coworkers at either job if it means a speedy recovery and less stress on them and their families. I just hope that if I was ever in need that others would do the same for me. What happened to the golden rule???

So, my lovely coworker was in high spirits when I left and I wish her a fast a healthy recovery!
Blessed be,
Autumn

Looking Good!

Hi and Merry Meet,
My cleaning up is doing wonders around here. Stale energy is being swept out and fresh clean energy is moving in!

One thing I have managed to do wad empty out one wire tower storage cubes. I thought I wanted to break it apart and get it out but Husband stopped my madness and talked me into putting it in my witchy room. That was a great suggestion. Now all my books and crystals are in one place! I'm still not sure if I will leave them out when guests are here, but I'll worry about that later.

The photo is of my books happily in one easy to find space!
Blessed be,
Autumn

Fresh Start

Hi and Merry Meet,
As you may know by now I have been on a mission to clean my house. Not just clean it but, clear it of unnecessary clutter.

When I arrived home this afternoon my poor over worked Husband was sound asleep on the couch. He has been working 75+ hours a week for the past three weeks. I really wasn't surprised to find him zonked out. However, that meant I could come upstairs and getting things done. My witchy room and the spare room have gotten out of hand. My witchy room just needs to organized and all the stuff put back in its home. The spare room however needed decluttering!

So far I pulled out clothes that don't fit, don't like or just plain never wear anymore. I rearranged some of met books. I am trying to clean out a wire storage cube that Husband built for me because I have three of them in there and they are filled with stuff!! Time to have that second garage sale.
I am working slowly on my goal of decluttering. It wasn't all collected in a day so it will take me some time to weed it all out.

My gardina candel is burning on my altar to help infuse me with relaxing energies so I don't get too overwhelmed by the mess I've bern making!

Here is the spare room as it looks now. Maybe tomorrow I can get it looking better!
Blessed be,
Autumn

Perfect Day

Hi and Merry Meet,
What a perfect day! My last day at work was this morning. Now I can enjoy summer vacation!

After work I started my vacation off right... I took an hour long nap. It was very refreshing. My dreams were calm and peaceful. My sleep was deep. That is something I've been missing due to all the stress the past few weeks.

I also took my spinning wheel to a show tonight. A alpaca farm needed a spinner so I got the job. They paid me with a fleece from one of their prize winning females. It was great fun!! Now I have a whole fleece to spin and knit with. I am a bit excited about that.

Tomorrow I will spend some time with my mom. After that no plans! It's been a long year!
Blessed be,
Autumn

Modern Spinning

Hi and Merry Meet,
I love all things fiber. Knitting, felting, spinning. If it has fiber involved I want to be part of it. One of my crazy dreams is to be on a fleece to shawl team. Google it to see what level of crazy I aspire to.

This morning I started to spin with alpaca. I have been booked as the spinner for a new alpaca farm. Trouble is I don't have a lot of experience with alpaca. So before work, I broke out my coveted stash and started to try it out. Wow!!! It's like spinning with a cloud! Just gorgeous!

Now I hope I can do it in front of people watching my every move!!! I doubt the farm will be blasting mudic that is good for spinning. Oh well, Fatboy Slim wasn't around back in the day.... that's my life as a modern spinner!
Blessed be,
Autumn

Honoring The Day

Hi and Merry Meet,
Today I made sure to do a few things to honor the gods and recognize the solstice.

I took a long solitary hike through the woods. I absorbed the sights, sounds, and smells. I sat and looked at a river lazily rolling by. I even hugged a tree (ok, I had to or I would have slid down the steep hillside I was traversing).

When I came home, I rushed out to my garden to harvest some light pink roses, chives, sage, and pink rose buds.

Tonight I will leave a dish of milk out as a gift for the fairies around my yard.

I hope you had a wonderful first day of summer too!
Blessed be,
Autumn

Happy Summer Solstice!

Hi and Merry Meet,
Happy Summer Solstice! I hope you and your have a wonderful day today!

I am going to go outside today as long as the rain holds off because today is our school's outside fair! Lots of fun games for the kids and of course ice cream at the end. I just hope our weather holds out so the kids can have a great day outside.... ok, I want to be outside all day too!

After work today, I am going hiking/caching to enjoy nature and reflect on the start of summer. Tonight Husband and I are going to grill for dinner and then I will set up my altar for a ritual.

Have a very Happy Summer Solstice!
Blessed be,
Autumn

Reunion

Hi and Merry Meet,
This weekend was my college 10 year reunion. I admit to be nervous about seeing some of my former classmates. However, the one I was most excited to see was my best friend!

When we started college she and I lived next door to each other. Since day one we've been great friends. When I met her she was Pagan and I was Christian. Now, she is Muslim and I'm Pagan. We have been tnrough a lot together. We stood up at each others weddings. We've made weekend plans for us and our husbands. Now she is going to Spain to walk the Camino de Santiago and I'm still trying to see if I can go.

One of my favorite things is her knowledge of herbs. I've been staying at her house all weekend and I've already learned a ton! She has given me a huge bag of dried raspberry leaves to mix with mint tea to ease cramps. I've been trying to absorb all things herbs while I'm here so I can further my limited knowledge.

Last night we both learned that 70 year old women party harder than rock stars! We tried to keep up with them, but when they invited us to their after party, we had to decline. I hope we are rocking that hard when we hit our 70s!!
Blessed be,
Autumn

Cool Giveaway Opportunity!

Hi and Merry Meet,
Most days when I find a giveaway I only go for ones that really spark my interests. This morning while I was reading though the blogs that I like I came across this giveaway at the Laughing Vixen Lounge.. This girl has some cool jewelry and all you have to do to win some is look at her stuff and post to win! How easy is that!!! Her blog giveaway can be found here. Her Etsy store can be found here. I like this girl's style so, I had to share. I love her Eiffel Tower necklace. It would be the perfect gift for my coworker! Anyway, check it out and enjoy!
Blessed be,
Autumn

Coming Up Roses

Hi and Merry Meet,
One of the things I wanted to work harder on this year was using more herbs in my practice.

I've got a few books on the subject, but I haven't put in too much effort recently. Tonight as part of my full moon esbat I gathered roses to dry the petals. I only gathered my red roses since they are blooming in abundance right now.

I took three blooms altogether from two different bushes. Last year I pruned them back something fearsome. This year they are rewarding me with a bounty of blooms. The smell is amazing.

After asking the plant's blessing and cutting them free I made a gift of egg shells to the plants. I read someplace that roses love egg shells so I saved the shells from my dinner preparations.

The picture  is my altar filled with drying rose petals. My goddess stature is watching over them.

Once they are dry, I plan to put them in a glass jar and label them with the date. It is a small step to workung more with herbs, but it is still a step. I have a lot of learning to do with herbs, but I want to start with things in my garden and things I already use. Once I can do that, then I might be ready to branch out. I want to take it slow and learn to use what I have around me and available to me.
Blessed be,
Autumn

Maybe Next Time

Hi and Merry Meet,
I was so excited for tomorrow night. I had signed up for a spell writing class at a shop close to here.

I thought this would help me write better spells and get a different take on spell writing. However, the shop called me today to say that since only two people had signed up it would be canceled. They will try again next month.

I hope more people sign up so they could have it. I'd like to see what new ideas they have for me! Sometimes being a solitary is hard.... taking classes helps me meet other witches around here and give me new ideas to incoporate into my practices.
Blessed be,
Autumn

Positive Body Image

Hi and Merry Meet,
One thing I think our society struggles with is postive body image.

This is a tough subject. Our media tells us one thing but our bodies tell us different. Many women ignore the curves that make us feminine and beautiful for a gaunt sickly thin look. This bothers me.

I have curves, mostly hips, but they are curves. I am not a size 0, I'm a 10. I eat real food and I workout to stay healthy. I have struggled with this for a while. One thing I've had to learn is my body is beautiful the way it is. Eleven years ago I moved home from Japan as a size 2. I was sickly and eating one small meal a day. I was not happy this way. I has wanted to fit in and so I droped my weight so I was tiny. My husband was so sad to see me like that. I learned to eat again and cook. While I still don't enjoy cooking I do enjoy our dinners together. My form is much nicer now then it was then. Now I have a heathly look to me. Why in the eyes of media does this not make me beautiful? I think I look pretty good in my skin. Why are healthy women not celebrated more? Not the crazy workout freaks, but everyday women. Busy moms, business ladies, women who provide for their families, young, old and all the ones in between.

I would love to see a reality show that celebrates women the way we are, not some fantasy that is impossible to live up to. Marilyn Monroe was a 12 and she looked amazing! What changed? When did the idea of beauty here change? Why is it so out of control? From what make up I should put on, to what cream is best to fight ageing. It makes me sad that we as a whole are not looked at as a whole person, just parts that the media can then market different products to. The images for men are just as damming I think. Positive body images are hard to come by when everywhere you look someone is telling you how to look better.

Celebrate curves and enjoy the natural beauty you have been blessed with. Be a positive image for someone esle. You never know who is looking at you as a role model.
Blessed be,
Autumn

Beautiful Bounty

Hi and Merry Meet,
All my hard work of gathering old items to cleaned out paid off. We were blessed with good weather and eager customers! I paired down from eight boxes of stuff to four. My house feel lighter and happier. Tomorrow I will do a cleansing ritural to help make the house feel loved and cleaned!

My mom and I even found a few moments to work in my gardens. She helped me weed and rake out old leaves. I worked some more after dinner to start trimming back some unruly plants. I need to work with my climbing rose some more since she thinks she is supposed to grow straight out into the yard instead of up.

The picture is of my peony in full.bloom. It is a beautiful bounty indeed.
Blessed be,
Autumn

Cleaning Out

Hi and Merry Meet,
In my quest to clean out unwanted stuff and stale energies I am having a garage sale tomorrow!

I have been weeding out for a while now. Ebay has helped me clear out a lot of smaller items. Tomorrow all the big stuff that I couldn't ship with ebay will be up for grabs in my front yard. I also have a ton of smaller items that are no longer needed here. My mom was so excited by my cleaning spree that she is coming to sell her stuff too!

Just moving the eight boxes that I had crammed into my dinning room to my garage seemed to make the house lighter. After the sale I will open all windows to let in a fresh breeze to keep new clean energy flowing. There is too much stale energy in my home and the more I can clear out the better the house and I feel. It is time to let go of the clutter. My fear is that if I don’t start now someday I might end up in tjat show" horaders". My house is not even close to what those folks have and I hope to never get that way. My problem is I'm lazy to clean.

I love a clean house! However, since I've been married I found out how much work really goes into keeping a house at a five star level. I wish I was more of a neat freak, I really do. I'm really good at cleaning when I have guest or company. My mom taught me the importance of appearances... too bad I missed the gene to like cleaning. My mom's house is alway neat and tidy.... and no clutter.

Funny thing is, my husband is the same way as I am. Guess we should guests over more often!
Blessed be,
Autumn

Pendulums and Practice

Hi and Merry Meet,
Last night I was laying in bed reading Starhawk's Spiral Dance. I have been reading it at night for a while, so it takes me forever to finish books that I only read a page or two of at a time.

Anyway, last night I came across a practice for pendulums. This was very exciting for me. I have three pendulums, but I haven't really used them and was unsure about how to go about it. Needless to say, I lept out of bed and raced upstairs to get one of them so I could start working on building my skills/ relationship with one. I grabbed my newest one that I bought at a rock and gem show.

I spent some time meditating with it in my hands before I did the practices. I wanted to be as relaxed as I could to help me be open. I felt really good about the practice and I want to keep working on it. To help build a strong connection to my tarot decks, the first night I get them after I clean them, I sleep with them under my pillow. I thought I should try it with this pendulum as well.

Tonight before I go to bed I will sit and work with my pendulum a bit more. Knowing more than one divination skill would be good! I'm really comfortable with tarot at this point, but other skills are lacking. I'd like to someday to work not only with my pendulums but maybe I'd be able to scry too! 
Blessed be,
Autumn

How Does Your Garden Grow?

Hi and Merry Meet,
Today I was out back in the garden photographing some of our jewelry for our etsy store when I noticed my yelllow iris has bloomed!!! Then to my delight I found that my mini purple irises are also in bloom!

Irises are my favorite. In my garden I have 5 different kinds. I love the shape of the flowers and the colors. The photo below is my new yellow one. I just got her last fall. It was so exciting to see it bloom after it's first winter in my garden.

Now with summer approching I plan to spend more time out there this year. Last year my garden fell by the wayside as my jobs were more demanding of my time. This year the whole summer is open to me and some good old quality time in the garden.
Blessed be,
Autumn

Family Life Thoughts

Hi and Merry Meet,
My husband I are going to celebrate our 8th wedding anniversary this summer. Recently it seems people keep asking us about having kids or assume that now we are going to start having them since we have been married for longer than most Hollywood couples.

My friends who have recently had babies can not understand how I could go another day without children. My husband's cousin just had one and now we are getting it from that direction too. Being he is an only child is not helping.

To me, the desission to have children is one that has to be made by the couple alone. I refuse to be pressured into this. Just becasue family wants grandkids or great-grandkids is not a good reason. To be honest, I don't know if I want them or not. So for now since I can't pick the safe thing is not to have them. As my mom told me once "you can't give them back".

We enjoy our life the way it is. We have fun together and enjoy each other's company. I love that we can be spontaneous and change our plans because we feel like it. Maybe, I'm selfish and want all my husband's attention for myself.

If our life is fine and happy the way it is, why push us to add a new crazy dynamic to it? Just because we're married doesn't mean we have to have kids. Bunnies are work enough for me and they can't talk back or demand things and say I'm ruining their lives!

To all the moms out there, I admire you! I have no idea how you do it and I applaud your energy!!
Blessed be,
Autumn