• A new year.
• Naps with my little ones.
• Rain, rain, rain… A brief sprinkle of snow too.
• My 24th birthday.
• Spring fever (all these above normal temperatures!)
• Late nights with Ivy.
• A tambourine on Oimelc for Damian.
• And a hot cocoa and movie night to round it all off.

I’d say it’s been a good month!

The temperature rose all the way to 50°F yesterday! In January! In Spokane! And we have had above 40°F weather for well over a week now and forecast for the foreseeable future. My parsley has grown back! My grass is almost to a cutting length in some places! Trees are budding that should not be budding yet! Apparently it has to do with his El Nino year and we should have a mild Winter.

Now my fellow gardeners, if you were faced with this kind of weather in January what would you do? Toss some cold weather crops in your (completely thawed!) raised beds just to see what happens? After all my row cover cloth is rated down to 24°F… Maybe some radishes, carrots or turnips? Or maybe some cold hardy lettuce, spinach or kale? I’m temped, sorely tempted.

If anything this weather has motivated me to pull out my garden folder and begin planning and making up some seed mats. I think I will put a few seeds in the ground too. If they fail, so be it. If not, radishes in February!

Manito Park, Spokane, WA

OMG Mommy, the world is covered in icecream!

Yay icecream!

Om nom nom nom!

What the heck?! This doesn’t taste like icecream!

On last month’s collage post I said that I had a feeling November was going to be both exciting and incredibly hectic, and I was right! As you know our daughter was born this past Sunday and the past few days have been both of those. On October’s collage I made a list of all that happened and that I was grateful for, but I am tired today so I’ll just share the pretty pictures. Enough to say I am in a very warm happy (and a little exhausting) place right now and so very grateful to be living this life.

We had an early cold snap this year (and I mean cold, it normally takes till January to get into the teens!) Even though the central heater is on, I am still a summer baby and get cold. I find sitting on the floor vent normally helps.

If not that then I lay on it so that I can absorb every last drop of heat that seeps out of the vent.

And when all else fails, I just get Mommy to wrap me up like a burrito and it’s all good.

If today be sunny and bright, Winter again will show its might.
If today be cloudy and gray, Winter soon will pass away.

In northern climates, the first days of February look nothing like Spring, but if you look closely you can see the small but sturdy signs of changing seasons begin to appear. Maybe it rains more often then it snows, or the days are noticeably longer, maybe the wind’s bite is a little less harsh, or the sun a little warmer. Whatever the sign is, it hints that Spring is just around the corner.

Oimelc falls on February 1st, approximately half way between Winter Solstice and the Vernal Equinox. It literally means “ewe’s milk”, and refers to the ewes are nursing their newly born lambs, another indication of the coming of Spring. It is sometimes called Imbolc, Brighid, Lupercalia (not celebrated until the 13th) or Candlemas (though this refers to a Catholic holiday.) It is sometimes also celebrated on the full moon nearest to February first, we do this in our family.

As with many of the Pagan sabbats, Oimelc’s history is firmly rooted in Celtic tradition, though it also borrows some Roman and Christian ideas. Lupercalia was an ancient, possibly pre-Roman, festival where all evil spirits were driven out of the city and spirits of health and fertility were invited in. Old hearth fire were extinguished and new ones lit, old candles were also replaced and blessed. Many of Lupercalia’s customs were integrated into Catholicism when the Roman Empire converted, minus the orgies of course.

In Celtic culture, this was a time of weather divination, usually done by observing the hibernation patterns of snakes, many believe that this custom evolved into the secular Groundhog Day. The snake was a creature revered for its sacred wisdom. The snake was one of the many animals associated with the goddess Brighid, to whom this day is also given to, Là Fhéill Bhrìghde. She was such a deeply ingrained symbol to the Celtic tribes, the Christian missionaries chose to make her a saint rather then try to remove her from importance.

Brighid was the keeper of the sacred flame and guardian of home and hearth, though she is said to have had two sisters, Brighid the Physician and Brighid the Smith. Most people see these three women as aspects of the same goddess, one of poetry, healing, and smithcraft.

In Scottish legend is the said that one the eve of Oimelc, the Cailleach (Old Woman Winter) takes a journey to a sacred well on a magical island. As dawn breaks, she drinks from it and is transformed into Bride (another spelling of Brighid), the beautiful maiden who’s white wand turns the bare earth green again. Again, many people see the Cailleach and Bride and Brighid as one and the same, often referring to her as a triple goddess, at once maiden, mother and crone.

All these celebrations have led to very diverse Oimelc celebration among modern Pagans. This is a time many will reevaluate personal relationships and habits to decide what needs to be discarded in their lives. Renewal of old pledges or commitments to new ones are done at this time as well. This emotional purging is often accompanied by physical purging, either by beginning Spring cleaning or decluttering altars and other spiritual supplies. Many Pagans make or purchase their candles for the year around this time and consecrate them on Oimelc.

On a personal level, I rarely do much on Oimelc. It has taken me a long time to be able to connect with this sabbat though it is easier now that I have children, it has always felt like more of a home and hearth day to me then anything else. As I have become acclimated to life in the Inland Northwest I have started to see the unique beauty in this time of year too, rather then only seeing a series of cloudy long dark days.

To me, Oimelc represents a hidden transformation. I feel the coming of Spring in my heart more then see it in the land. The increasing daylight lightens my mood and renews my energy so that I can work on projects that have probably taken a back burner during the drearier days Winter. I begin planning my garden on Oimelc and meditate on what I would like to see grow in my life and in my community. If we listen closely we can hear the land whispering of the changing seasons. The Vernal Equinox is only seven weeks away and Oimelc celebrates the anticipation of Spring.

Oimelc: in our home

(Collecting reeds with our friend Sal to make Brighid’s Crosses.)

Activities:

• Bell ringing purification procession
• Burning Winter Solstice greens
• Candle making and consecrating
• Ritual: initiations, dedications
• Spring cleaning
• Visiting a spring or well
• Writing or read poetry

Crafts:

• Bread Making
• Brighid’s Wheel
• Candle Making
• Knitting and Weaving

Decorations:

• Candles
• Cauldron
• Colors: red, white
• Hibernating animals
• Seasonal plants and foods
• Suns
• Woolen items

Oimelc: feast

We went over to some friends this year for Imbolc, so I just made bread and dip to share. Otherwise I would have made red (tomato) and white raviolis with cheese filling, and granitas from fruit I froze last summer. Maybe next year!

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BREAD: focaccia
This year I added 1/4 cup chopped dried tomatoes that I packed in oil this summer. I also infused some of the oil with basil and oregano and used that as well.

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BREAD DIP: Sun-dried Tomato and Basil

• 8 sun-dried tomatoes
• 1 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 tsp dried basil (2 tbsp fresh if you have it)
• 1/2 tsp cayenne

Put everything into a blender and pulse till smooth. Let sit for 6 hours or overnight.

I hope you all have a most blessed and joyful Oimelc, Winter is drawing to a close and the wheel turns to the warmth of Spring.

Taken while gathering reeds on Oimelc for Brighid’s crosses.

These are the socks my friends Ileen and Caswallon gave me for my birthday. I really love thick comfy colorful socks. I have never seen a pair in my favorite colors, but Ileen found them! (She also gave me green nubbly socks for Solstice.) This past Friday my friends surprised me with a few birthday things. Andrea made me a chocolate cake with orange frosting, it was soooo good – and had star candles! Peter and her also gave me orange yarn (shot of it in my photoblog) and homemade orange soda and rootbeer. Do you know how you know you are always welcome at a friend’s home? When they have a basket in their living room stocked with toys for your child. Shannon is so awesome! All my friends are made of pure love.

So my birthday definitely lifted my spirits, now comes the fight to keep them up. Shannon gave me a vitamin D supplement I have been trying out. I can’t tell if it is making a difference yet, I think so though. It has been foggy for two days (with a quick hour of BEAUTIFUL sunshine yesterday – I grabbed a quick photo of it steaming across our altar.) The news says that the stagnant air (and therefore fog) will be here at least till the middle of next week, bleh! This happens every January and gets me really down, but I haven’t felt as moody since beginning the supplement. I haven’t slept as well though, not sure if that is related.

My Aunt Ruth talked about comfort foods on her blog today, an important topic for me. On one hand, if I eat cookies, my mood improves, but on the other hand, as soon as that sugar wears off, I feel even worse then before. So I try to avoid it right now. For the most part, I eat comfort foods when I am bored, so I am trying to avoid that too. When I am stressed I tend to skip meals because I feel queasy, but the moment I run out of things to do, out comes the cookie sheet. (I don’t keep junkfood around so I have to make my own.) Recognizing that trigger is important for me, I actually have a sticky note inside my recipe folder that says “Are you hungry or BORED?” I still make junkfood of course, I just won’t let myself binge on it when I am bored. Maybe that is why I have taken up knitting, it is a defense mechanism for the munchies! Eating a decent breakfast every morning helps too.

My one other change to fight the Winter blues is that I have also seriously started indoor exercise last week, which I read can help alleviate seasonal depression. I thought it would be so hard so I set a goal to do it three times a week. I start with tai chi and then do some simply exercises (crunches, push ups etc) and stretching, and some dancing. I found that my spirits are so lifted afterwards that I have not had a problem keeping it up. In fact I find myself doing tai chi every morning now.

Anyhow Damian is waking so it is potty time. He is in underwear about 80% of the time (not as night or later in the evening) for a couple days. We have had a couple accidents but it is going much better then I expected! If we need to go back to diapers that is okay, this is more of a trial then anything else. I’m so proud of him though.

Last night I had a dream that Raveness (I read her blog over on livejournal) was giving me a tattoo in Greg’s (my father-in-law) office, he has a CPA business. For some reason Greg’s landlord had rented out half of the building to a tattoo parlor. There was a glass wall down the middle. Though Raveness was present through most of the dream, I don’t think we talk about anything substantial. We were talking though.

The tattoo was bizarre to say the least. The central design of the tattoo was encircled by one of my sun designs but it seemed to be shifting around, as if the rays were real. Raveness was just finishing the centeral design when I came into the dream. It was a snake in the form of a waxing crescent moon. It’s tail was the top point of the crescent, the body coiled back and forth to make up the main middle section and the head was the bottom point. It was holding a lantern in its mouth. The tattoo was on my back, behind my manipura chakra (solar plexus.) I mention this chakra because I remember thinking specifically about that in the dream. The snake was a part of that chakra, that thought made more sense in the dream.

At one point I got distracted and when I looked back at the mirror the “moon” was full. The snake was coiled in a circle, head in the middle, it’s eyes made of stars. The eyes were more more then eyes though, they seemed to be holes in me and the stars were inside me, shining through. At the same time, the eyes seemed to be looking at me too. Not sure where the lantern was at this point, maybe outside the sun disk…

Though the dream was black and white, the tattoo seemed to shine like tarnished silver, but it hinted at gold tones too, the same hues as Mexican gold. The whole tattoo seemed to have a life of its own, but it was definitely drawn on my skin.

Michael came by to pick me up. We were living with my mother, or she was living with us, I think the latter. I was trying to figure out how to hide it from her because I was concerned the moving tattoo would freak her out. I also didn’t think she would approve and didn’t want to make any waves. Then in the middle of those thoughts, the roof suddenly collapsed, snow came pouring in (we have had over 60 roof collapsed from snow load around Spokane in the past week, so this isn’t as random as it seems, as it has been on my mind recently.) My brother was standing at the edge of the hole in the roof for some reason and saw my tattoo.

We all got outside safely and he came down from the roof and teasing me that he was going to tell mom. At that point I didn’t really care anymore though. Marko (my boyfriend before I was with Michael) was in the crowd outside, which I noticed only fleetingly then, but seems to be hanging on my mind now that I am awake. My thoughts were drifting at this point between being really pleased with my tattoo and being worried about Greg’s work. Everything felt so surreal.

At some point during these thoughts I woke up.

In the past three weeks we have had nearly 60 inches of snow, that makes this the snowiest December on record for Spokane. Up until now it had all been dry snow but yesterday we had over five inches of heavy wet snow, we might have 5 more tonight. Three roofs around town collapsed today. Our roof was creaking on and off too, a little disconcerting, but I think it was just the wind since it has not made some much as a peep today. I called management about it though, not that they are going to do anything, I have been calling them daily about my busted dishwasher and still nothing. In February we are probably going to start to look for a house since our lease is up at the end of March I think. Hopefully all this snow will have given way to Spring by then.

I just realized that it is only 10 more days till my 23rd birthday (January 9th.) I don’t usually think about my birthday that much but for some reason it seems particularly exciting this year. Not that I have anything special planned. Maybe I will make myself a cake.

I have been under the weather for a few days, hopefully that will go away before my day. My back pain went away as mysteriously as it showed up, leaving behind general aches, pains and a scratchy throat. Can’t wait to feel better so I can get back to learning to bellydance. I still have to get out to the store to buy knitting needles so I can start working through my dvd about that. Learning to bellydance and knit are on my dreamboard for projects to accomplish this year.

Damian has been doing well, he decided he wanted solid food instead of one of his nursings today. My little guy is growing up! I have had two or three people ask me when I am going to wean him lately, or suggesting that I do so, which I don’t really get. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends breastfeeding for at least one year and as long as mutually desired by mother and child beyond that and the World Health Organization recommends breastfeeding for at least two years. I think they have more weight in my decision then someone’s uninformed opinion. So no, I am not going to be weaning Damian any time some.

I bought Michael a songbook called Songs for Earthlings and it arrived yesterday. I am really pleased with it. It is 390 pages of Pagan songs and chants for all occasions, including sheet music. There is a section on music theory in it so I am trying to learn to read music with it. I got Michael a keyboard a couple years ago so now he has some stuff to actually play with it. If you are into Pagan music, I really recommend it, it is the only one like it out there I think.

Anyhow I’m going to go sit with Michael while he plays Deep and Fallow.

Brightly burns our fire tonight.
Magic dances with candlelight.

Hold my hand and join in song.
Raise the Sun King bright and strong!

Dark is giving way to light.
Brightly burns the fire tonight.

Winter Solstice is the shortest day and longest night of the year. It falls around December 21st of each year. It is a festival day in many cultures often calling for bright lights and fires, freshly cut evergreens, feasting with loved ones and singing and dancing. These festivities serve to rekindle the human spirit in the heart of winter.

In many modern Pagan traditions, Winter Solstice, is a celebration of the rebirth of the sun. Many still hold vigils awaiting the dawn, heralding the sun as the God reborn from the sacred womb of the Goddess. In other traditions a great battle is waged between the Oak King and Holly King where the Oak King triumphs returning to the world to longer warmer days.

It is a near certainty that Winter Solstice was of significant importance to ancient people, especially Proto-Celtic tribes. The evidence of this is obvious in the layouts of the stone monuments of New Grange in Ireland and Stonehenge in Britain. Each of these sites was carefully built to line up with the solstice sunrise. It can be suggested that the marking of midwinter was important for ancient communities because the people needed an approximate idea of how long their stored provisions had to last.

The most common alternate name for Winter Solstice is Yule a term originating from ancient Norse and Germanic tribes. It began as a celebration marking a 60 day time beginning at the lunar midwinter, but by the late Viking Age, it had become a great solstitial midwinter festival that amalgamated the traditions of various midwinter celebrations across Europe. On the the eve of Yule a huge log was lit in honor Thor, god of thunder, and feasting would continue until it burned out, which could be up to twelve days! A portion of the log was saved to be used in the lighting of the next year’s log.

Winter Solstice, as with many sabbats, has been incorporated into other religious celebrations. Most notably, it shares it’s place in the wheel of the year with the Christian religious observance of Christmas, which celebrates the birth of Jesus. Many of the traditions common throughout the Christian season correlate to ancient Pagan traditions. There is nothing wrong with this mixing of traditions of course, if anything it reflects how interrelated belief systems can be. Many of the most prevalent traditions celebrated by modern western culture today are echoes of ancient practices.

Santa is an example of a mix of new and old. Many parallels can be seen between Santa and the Germanic god Odin. There are legends that tell of Odin leading a hunting party through the sky on the solstice. He rode upon an eight-legged horse named Sleipnir who could leap great distances, which can be compared to Santa’s reindeer flying through the night. On the eve of the solstice, children would place their boots by the chimney filled with offerings for Sliepnir (carrots, straw or sugar.) In thanks Odin would leave them candy and small gifts.

The tradition of leaving out boots on Yule survived the Christianization of Germanic culture and Odin’s deeds might have become mixed with the legend of Saint Nicholas. Over time These men became Santa and those boots by the chimney became the stockings hanging from the mantle. I have heard that the Goddess Freya rose through the sky in a chariot pulled by stags and gave gifts for the 12 days after the solstice, but I have not been able to find too much information about this. If it is true though, it explains the sleigh with reindeer!

Since a large part of my spiritual practice involves honoring the ancestors I like to take a few moments on the solstice to remember what it must have been like for them. Winter was the season of death, a time for the earth to rest, renewing itself for the birth of Spring. Being in tune with the rhythms of the land, our ancestors would have known that despite the darkness, soon the light would return to the earth, bringing with it life. I can see why the Winter Solstice was so important. It welcomed back the much needed Sun.

To me, Winter Solstice heralds the returning sun as an eternal spirit and light brining. The returning sun reminds us to love our life passionately and to to reawakening our goals that may have been dampened by the long nights. It is a reminder that we too can be light bringers.

Winter Solstice calls us to come together on this longest night and bring with us light in the form of love, peace and joy. This is a light that we can share with each other and send out into the world. The choices that we make every day, as humans, as multi-faceted beings of this universe, should come from open minds and hearts. With this kind of devotion to the betterment of ourselves and each other, I believe we can accomplish anything.

Winter Solstice: in our home

(This is from a page in my BoS where I list family activities, crafts, home and altar decorations and other miscellaneous ideas.)

Activities:

• Cookie Plates for Friends
• Dawn Vigil Ritual
• Decorating Tree
• Gift Exchange
• Holiday Light Drive

Crafts:

• Bread Making
• Cookies
• Gingerbread Houses
• Natural Ornaments
• Paper Snowflakes (flat and 3D)
• Pomanders
• Popcorn garlands

Decorations:

• Bells
• Evergreen
• Lights
• Mistletoe
• Seasonal flowers and foods
• Stockings
• Suns
• Winter Solstice Candles
• Yule Tree

Winter Solstice: the feast

We have a larger gathering at our home every year. Sometimes we have a group ritual, sometimes not, but we always have much fun and laughter. I always make a pot roast, but this year I also made the Layered Vegetarian Casserole that I make at Autumn Equinox for our vegetarian friends. I always try to focus on making my meals as local as possible, as to best honor Old Wild Mama Earth. Sometimes I make more side dishes, sometimes our guests bring them to add to the table. (My friend Andrea helped me with quite a lot of tips, as well as a gravy lesson in this kitchen with year. Thank you!) This year’s meal prayer is a bit of a combination of several wonderful ones I have come across recently.

Tonight is the night of the Solstice,
the longest night of the year.
The Wheel turns and the days will brighten
Bringing renewed life to the Earth.

May hands will work for peace and justice,
May hands will work to heal the land.

For the food that stays our hunger,
For the rest that brings us ease,
For friends and memories that linger,
We give our thanks for these.

BREAD: Snowflake Pretzels

–

DRINKS

• Egg Nog: I buy this.
• Mulled Cider: To make this, I pour a gallon or two of cider in a big enamel pot on the morning of our gathering. I sprinkle in a healthy amount of spices (I use a mix of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves) and set the pot on the stove, cover it and and turn the stove on low and just leave it. It makes the house smell sooooo nice all day. You can also add cranberry juice to change things up a bit or make it in the crockpot.
• Wine: We buy ours locally in Greenbluff, we can also get hard cider this time of year. This year we got a white wine infused with cranberry and spices.

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MAIN DISH: Pot Roast

• 5lb chuck roast (this fed about 9 people with a little leftover)
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• Italian Seasoning (I make my own mix.)
• 1 tsp. salt
• 2 tsp pepper (I love pepper.)
• 1 cup apple cider
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tbsp cornstarch

Heat a cast iron skilled on medium high. Mix together oil, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Rub all over chuck roast. Sear the roast on all sides. Put in 5-6 quart crockpot. (You could put potatoes, carrots or onions under it if you like, I prefer to roast them seperately.) Pour cider and Worcestershire sauce in.

Cover crockpot and cook on low for 8-10 hours or high for 5 to 6 hours, until beef is tender. (My current crockpot seems to get warmer and cook faster then my last one, so give yourself some extra time.)

To make gravy: Put some of the broth from the crockpot to a small saucepan over medium heat. In another small bowl whisk together cornstarch with a little broth to get out the lumps. Add to saucepan and whisk until mixture begins to thicken. (I think I remembered how to do that properly…)

Serves 8-10.

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SIDE DISH: Maple Yams
(Yams are not local, they are the tuber of a tropical vine. Did you know they can grow 7 feet long?! But, well, I adore yams…)

• 5 sweet potatoes (I used yams, not local, but I adore yams…)
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 2 or 3 tbsp butter

Preheat oven to 400F.

Poke some holes in the yams and place them in a shallow roast pan (or lipped cookie sheet.) Roast them until they are very soft (and hour or two.) Yams tend to get really stick when they cook, so line your pan with aluminium foil, it makes cleanup way easier.

When your yams are cool enough to handle you can just peel the skins off with your hands. Put in a dish with butter and maple syrup. Mash together (with a potato masher, or fork, or hands, or mixer, or whatever makes you happy.)

Serves 8-10.

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DESSERT: Pumpkin Roll
You can totally do this with homemade pumpkin puree.

It is winter.
It is night.

We await the sun.
We await the light.

In this darkness.
In this night.

We await the warmth.
We await the light.

And the Sun, he rises.

I could post about the weekend, or my usual sabbat write up, or link to my podcast but, my write up needs some final touches, as does the podcast… As for posting about my weekend, it was wonderful but I am tuckered out! So I will write more tomorrow, but I wanted to say

…but the baseboard heater is delightful!

I am looking for any excuse to turn on any heat generating appliance today. The oven, the stove, a hot sink of dishes, my laptop. Windigo is of the same mind and sleeping on top of Michael’s old monitor, which nearly puts the baseboard heaters to shame. I don’t like using extra power (or rather I don’t like paying for it) but today it is excusable to turn up the heat a little. It is a balmy 65F inside.

And 6F outside! With wind, so make that -10F.

We are to expect it to be at or below zero by Tuesday with windchills of -25F. When it is that cold does it matter if we are taking Fahrenheit or Celsius? I think Damian and I will be skipping our morning walk for a few days. When I took the trash out yesterday the wind was so cold it made my chest hurt.

Look at this:


You see the condensation? Well it is a sheet of ice INSIDE the window. All the windows and the patio door are frozen shut. Even the front door took some pulling to open. A windchill warning is in effect until Wednesday. Better keep Damian away from the patio door (also caked with ice) he will probably stick his tongue out and freeze to it!

Can you tell I am not use to this? Don’t get me wrong, it gets cold here but only this cold every 4 or 5 years (last time was the Winter before I moved here.) Maybe I should just put the chest freezer outside for a few days, save on power! When it is this cold the falling snow looks like white sand.

I know, whine, moan, complain… I am not really that upset. My pantry is getting a little sparse and weather like this seems to nudge me into wanting to stock up the pantry. (We are going to Costco this afternoon.) I do love the look of snow and ice outside (snow drift advisory in effect too) just not on the inside of my windows.

Mother Nature is such a powerful force. It has been 12 years since ice storm, maybe this winter will bring another. Hopefully not. Either way I am glad I don’t work as a parking attendant anymore. Can you say BRRRR!

Anyhow, speaking of the Costco, I need to finish my list.

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow…

While Damian was taking his morning nap I took the opportunity to take a bag of trash out and WHOOPS! I slipped on some ice and landed right on my butt, hard. Hello bruised buttocks! (I looked up buttocks on google (for spelling) the second result was Buttock augmentation. Disturbing!) And you just can’t put and ice pack on your rear… of course I landed on some ice, but that just isn’t the same. Can you break your tail bone? Is it actually a bone?

You know every time I have fallen like that I think “Wow, I am so going to be feeling that again when I’m 50!” (Apologizes to any age sensitive 50+ year olds.) I wonder if all my injuries from my youth really will come back to haunt me. I feel some of them already, especially when the weather changes. The knee I hurt skiing, the arm I broke playing hockey… my beau at the time ran over it you know? I don’t think Michael has ever broken a bone… My dad has always been really into sports, I wonder if his old injuries act up now?

Michael is back at work today, he has been on vacation for the past week. Damian seems to miss him, he keeps looking around like he lost something. Of course we lost some sleep, it is hard getting back into the groove of things.

Part of me says I should skip my morning walk today, but another part of me says it will make me feel better, like walking out a cramp. I don’t think anything is as healing as being outside. I love the smell of cold mornings at the park. I thinking I need winter boots, or maybe I should just get some chains for my regular shoes. Not walking is out of the question. A huge part of staying healthy is being in shape. Still, I think I will be changing a bit more of my routine to the indoors.

What causes seasonal depression? I start feeling it this time of year. I miss the sun (though I have a light that is suppose to imitate it – my plants aren’t impressed though.) Is it a lack of vitamin D? How important is it anyways?

Anyhow Damian is waking up and I have lots to do so I will end this here. I hope everyone has a nice (and slip-free) day.

It has been snowing all afternoon, so Damian got to wear the bunting mom and grandma got him. It is a little big but he still loves it.

My neighbor took this photo for us. He pointed out how Damian matches my winter coat now. While we were outside Damian spent most of his time looking up and holding his tongue out, it was very cute. He thinks this snow thing is pretty cool.

It has been a very quiet morning. One where the overcast skies hide the sunrise. Damian fell asleep on my lap so I sat watching the silhouettes of the trees emerge from the darkness and the sky turn from black to pale gray. Snow has drifted down occasionally, almost like Winter is too lazy this morning to make a show of it. The cats are in their Winter burrowing mood, they disapprove of the cold. So does my rubber tree, it is sitting on our altar with my aloe. They are wondering where the sun went.

In February I will be sick of Winter but at the moment I am enjoying the change of season. I have be listening to the all Christmas music radio station today, I’ll admit it, I really love carols. Now that Damian is awake I’ve been sorting through Yule decorations, How is it that the lights always get tangled no matter how carefully I pack them? Damian is desperately trying to… help… me untangle them. This crawling thing is giving baby and mommy lots of exercise. My mother and grandma sent some little gifts for Damian, they are under the tree, even thought I know there are books in them, I still want to poke at them like a little kid. Must Resist.

My blender died the other day, it was a cheap one so I am honestly surprised it lasted as long as it did (four years) but all the soups and smoothies and flaxseed and fruit puree and spice mixes have finally taken their toll. It started spinning slower the other day and finally seized up and started smelling like burning rubber. As far as amusing sentiments go, I miss my blender, I used it almost every other day. No pumpkin smoothie for me today. A new one will have to wait, no way I am hitting the store today.

Speaking of food… We had a really wonderful Thanksgiving dinner with at Andrea and Pete’s yesterday. We played Scrabble, which might not seem overly exciting, but then you don’t know Andrea’s family, it was a blast. Michael and I came in last but we still feel insanely proud, I think that was one of the best games we ever had point-wise.

When Michael gets home today, he will be on vacation for a week. We don’t plan on doing much, but the time off will be nice. Last time he had a couple weeks off, it was when Damian was born. This week will probably be a little less hectic then that.

The blogosphere has been saturated with politics as of late (my own musings included) so I think it is time to redirect with some kind of update. Nothing too overwhelmingly interesting has been going on though, so brace for rambliness.

I think the seedpod to the left is some kind of thistle, but I am not sure. I keep seeing their fluffy husks in ditches around here lately. I have a better picture of them from a few weeks ago in my photoblog if anyone wants to try to identify them. They remind me that Winter is indeed here, I think we will even have to turn on our heaters tonight…

I’ve started working on my next podcast, so far I have received pretty good reviews on my first one, through email and comments. I appreciate all your input.

Today Damian turns 5 months old today and is crawling! He gets better and better at it each day, yesterday he got all the way to the catfood and turned the bowl over… time to move that! He is a lot happier now that he is more mobile. My bumblebee is growing up so fast!

When I was a teenager I really loved the SeaQuest books and Netflix just put the tv series up on press play (didn’t even know it existed!) It has been playing in the background for the better part of two days. Star Trek in the ocean!

This Friday the UU church in Spokane is holding the Samhain Witches Ball, we will be going. I am very much looking forward to it! I have to admit, I like the chance to dress up.

Anyhow I have to make some bread, clean, finish patching my jeans (have you ever had a favorite pair of jeans that slowly became more patches than jean?) and try to keep up with my son!

Just a simple glass stone, blessed by me with strength and healing, I have them in all my houseplant pots. Just maybe they will give my plants a little extra juju to get through another Winter. (Especially this Indian rubber tree, he is not fond of the cold.)

(These are some of the people who came to our gathering. Including children, we had about 25 people attend, which was a really fantastic turnout, especially with all the snow we had yesterday!)

Temple Free Spirit hosted its first every gathering last night. We celebrate the Winter Solstice! The gathering was held at Shannon and Robb’s home on Spokane’s South Hill and a total success! We held a small ritual, had a potluck and had lots of fun! As with all Temple events, we also had a food drive and received several large bags of food for Second Harvest.

(You can go to the the Temple gallery to see a few more photos.)

The Winter Solstice Gathering was a wonderful chance to get together, build community spirit and celebrate the Earth. Thank you to everyone who helped with preparations and attended.

I just wanted to wish everyone a blessed Winter Solstice. I am completely rejoicing with the thought of the returning sun. Longer days, yes!

Also Merry Christmas, Kwanzaa, Yule, Hanakhah, slightly belated Saturnalia and everything else I am missing! I hope you all find the brightest joy in this season of so many holidays!

Michael and I have Chiefs tickets for tonight, against Tri Cities! Let the mayhem begin.

“Free Spirits – Open Minds” so far as gotten great reviews. I was a little nervous about it at first but Michael did a really professional job laying it out and Temple Free Spirit members submitted wonderful articles! I am already looking forward to our Imbolc issue.

My current nervousness lies in next Saturday when we will be having the first Temple Free Spirit event, a Winter Solstice gathering. It will be in one of our member’s home. Shannon has a large empty full basement with a kitchen and bathroom which will work perfectly. Right now almost everything is planned down to the T, except some last minute work on the ritual. My friend Dee gathered lots of information on various Solstice traditions, and we met up this week to review them. Today I am working on knitting our favorite ideas together.

Community is so important, I can never seem to stress this enough. I could not having planned the gathering to this extent on my own. All the brainstorming and planning and little details have come together wonderfully thanks to all of us working together. The people in my community are all blessings.

Anyhow, I better get back to work. I can hardly call it work though since it is so enjoyable!

Have you heard Into the Night by Santana and Chad Kroeger? Sexy Rwar!

Anyhow, soup…

Golden Squash Soup
servings 4

Ingredients:

• 1 large butternut squash, peeled and diced
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp fresh ginger, minced
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp curry powder
• 2 3/4 cups vegetable or chicken broth
• 6 oz can coconut milk
• 2 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Peel and cut up squash in a 1/2″ dice.
2. Heat 2 tbs broth in a medium soup pot and saute the onions until tender. Add garlic and ginger and saute for another minute. Stir in turmeric and curry powder. Mix well.
3. Pour in remaining broth and add the squash. Turn heat to high and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer for about 10 minutes (or until the squash is tender.)
4. Pour the soup mixture into a blender and add coconut milk. Blend until smooth. Return mixture to the soup pot and add cilantro, salt and pepper. Reheat and serve hot.

Should the skeleton stay by the door through the Winter season?
Would it be too morbid to leave him up but put a Santa hat on him?