The Traditions of Lughnasadh, the First Harvest

August 1st is the traditional Gaelic festival of Lughnasadh (aka Lammas). It marks the time of the first harvest of the season. The summer sun is waning as he distributes his life-giving energy into the fruits, vegetables and grain that we are harvesting to last us through the cold, long winter. Traditionally this day was celebrated by baking bread with the first of the harvested grain, partaking in grand feasts (wonder why this day was often referred to as the Witches' Thanksgiving?!) and holding hand-fastings. A simple way we can keep this celtic tradition alive is to bake bread (or corn bread) in the shape of the sun, signifying God, and "sacrificing" or eating it and giving thanks for all he offers. Make sure to leave a small offering on your altar or outdoors, showing thanks for all the blessings nature and the fae have bestowed on us throughout the year.

...As I look out my window today, I see the first of the turning leaves already speckling my yard with yellow and orange. (Living in a very wooded community, I am relieved that we got a leaf blower last year as I can already tell that it will be getting a lot of use pretty soon.) Reflecting on the year thus far, I cannot believe how quickly it has passed. It seems as if the solstice just occured, when indeed it was 6 weeks ago! Sitting outside last night, the oppressive humidity seemed to have let up at least for the time-being and the stillness in the air I felt was like the earth Mother taking a deep breath, and holding it in before releasing, much like how we figuratively have one foot in summer and one foot in autumn. It is quite magnificent to sit and enjoy this resting period as it only lasts a short time, and soon the harvest season will be in full swing, and we will all be wearing hoodies and scarves, and making trips to the local pumpkin patch and planning for Thanksgiving!... For now though, I will take in the offerings of the season, as it is best to live in the moment without dwelling too strongly on the past or future. I urge you all to do the same and have a festive and relaxing first harvest. ~*Blessings of the wee folk to you and your's today*~

Full Thunder Moon blessings! A garden meditation...

This morning I did something I don't normally do. I got up early to watch the sunrise. Simple enough. And it wasn't planned. It actually came from me being a neurotic and paranoid mother of a 4 month old who has just recently began sleeping the through night in her own crib, in her own room... and after checking on her repeatedly and seeing she was in a very deep sleep and knowing I wasn't soon to follow, I decided to just go make a cuppa tea and relax. As the tea steeped... Moroccan mint, soooo delicious... I looked out our back window and thought, "Well Cindy, you're up now, might as well make the most of this. I mean really, how many sunsets do you ever get to witness?" Not many. Usually life is far too hectic with work and sleep schedules and other duties to even think about waking up at 5 a.m. just to do something as "silly" as watching the sun rise. I thought of it as a gift from the Goddess and quickly took heed to go enjoy this time that's been given to me. Had to slip on a hoodie this morning, since it was only about 60 degrees, unseasonably cool but reminded me of those early fall dawns when the crispness starts to take hold of the morning air, transitioning the season to autumn... ahh, it was just lovely. I sipped my warm tea while I strolled through my front gardens, greeting all my plants and beloved gnomes for the day. I saw the last twinkling stars from the night sky above slowly fade as it brightened with each passing minute. The chirping crickets were soon being outvoiced by the waking birds. Everything was a muted version of its bright daytime colors, just the perfect setting for watching the faeries flit by and seeing the richness of the auras of the all plants surrounding me. Sensing this vitality but being reminded that the apex of the year has already came and went, it was if the Universe was gently reminding me to reflect. So I did. I thought about all the things that have come to fruition this year and how I am blessed to have all that I do. I showed the Earth my gratitude during my silent meditation. It also made me think of what things, people, etc. no longer served me that needed to be cast off, much like the ripening fruit, vegetables and herbs that needed harvesting from the Earth. Everything is closely reaching its peak as the wheel of the year slowly but surely turns to the season of harvest. This is when we reap what we sow, literally and figuratively. What relationships have you nurtured and which ones have you cast off? Which aspects of your personality have been brought to light and which ones have been thrown into darkness? Are you nurturing your physical self as well as the spiritual? All of these reflections are necessary to steer us where we need to be, as we all have some weeding to do in our personal lives. Without a strong physical and emotional body, we cannot garner a strong spiritual one. But all of these bodies must come into balance. And that is what the Universe has shown me today, with this garden meditation and it made me feel quite energized and uplifted, so that is why I am passing it to you. As the sun rises through our tall, strong poplars in the backyard, I spend a special moment with my handsome boxer, Brutus.

He has a gentle, healer's soul and I gave him a bear hug to thank him for being with me today. I am filled with gratitude. I hope you all can find the balance in your lives and heed the call of the Goddess when she asks you to take time for yourself, as well. ~Many fae blessings upon you today and always!~ xxxxxx

Creativity abounds!

Hello all! Hoping all my American buddies had a wonderful fourth of July, our's was rained out but it did feel good to veg out around the house all day, hehe.

In the past week or so I've been crafting handmade hemp jewelry and various other items in my downtime (which is sometimes few and far between with a 4 month old!). It's a skill I picked up back in middle school and have since reactivated as a way to express my creativity and hopefully one day be able to have a small business I can just run from home... I'll share some of the photos of my wares and any insight, advice, criticism would be deeply appreciated!

I've opened up my Etsy shop too http://www.etsy.com/shop/PeaceLoveAndLight?ref=pr_shop, but for now it only has one piece, an anklet, as I am still amassing stock.

Dolphin love keychain

Aquarius keychain

Yin-yang keychain

Working on making anklets, bracelets and rings, too! I actually made a super-cool hemp ring with beads just to see if I could do it and I have been wearing it around all day admiring it. It just feels good and gives me pride to create something of value and beauty!

Speaking of value and beauty, my daughter Olivia had her 4 month check-up today and weighed in at 13 pounds, 7 ounces and is now 24" in length! She's only about a pound away from doubling her birthweight. Her doctor said that she is right on the curve for growth. That girl is growing like a weed, I tell ya! Not to mention she has started flipping herself onto her tummy and is beginning to creep along the floor... before I know it she'll be walking! Then after that, walking across the stage at her graduation... Whoa, ok, not so fast. Need to enjoy this baby stage while it lasts, since she'll only be this small for a short time. ~Have a blessed day my friends and may the wee folk bless you always!~ xxxxx

Your Relationship Tarot

Have you ever wanted to gain insight into your relationship with you partner? Well anyone can and it is as simple as adding up your combined birthdays, for example...

My birthday 11/5/1986
My husband's birthday 7/23/1981
So the equation would be 11+5+1986+7+23+1981=4013

Then you need to break down the sum into an even smaller number, one that is 22 or lower.

Thus 4+1+3=8

This is because there are 22 cards in the Major Arcana of the Tarot and whatever the final sum of the equation is what card will correspond with the relationship you are divining. (The Fool will have to count as #22 instead of 0 in this instance, because obviously the numbers of your birthdays cannot be added to make a sum of zero!) For my husband and I, our card is Strength. Last month I wrote about this card as it was in a spread that I pulled for myself, and it represented the quality I like most about myself. So it is such a "coincidence" (I put that in quotes because I do not believe that things are simply coincidences; I believe all things happen for a reason) that it just happens to be our card as well. This card is associated with the zodiac sign of Leo, which just happens to be my husband's too. It represents the emotional/mental, not necessarily physical, inner strength inside of us, our ability to take control of our life (as the figure in the card is represented by quelling a lion simply by placing her hands around its muzzle) and also being able to forgive the flaws and imperfections of others. WOW! It gives me so much insight into our relationship and reminds me that no matter how hard it gets, and believe me we have had a tough road, we'll always be strong enough to persevere and come out on top.

So go ahead, add up you and your partner's birthdays and see what archetype of the Tarot's Major Arcana represents your relationship! (I'm including this chart below as a quick reference for your convenience! Remember, The Fool equals 22 in this type of spread, so Magician is 1, High Priesess is 2, etc.)

~Blessings of the fae to you always!~ xxxx

Starting Your Own Faery Garden - Part One

Well today is the first day of July, also the new moon in Cancer cycle starts today, and when I walked outside to greet the day, I spotted the first hibiscus bloom of the summer! Bright red and just gorgeous, and it has already started attracting hummingbirds. My two other hibiscus plants are about to burst as well, and when they do I'll post some pictures of them in all their tropical, fiery glory!

The first hibiscus bloom of the season in our garden

Whilst visiting my gardens, I also got a chance to say hello to the dragonfly that has been frequenting them and got a pretty good close-up...

Anywho, let's get on to starting your very own faery garden! All the beauty of the season has inspired me to start my own, so I am going to take you through it step by step and explain how to you can do it in your own garden, no matter what the size. The first step is to pick a spot in your garden specifically dedicated to the fae, or if you're like me you can choose to place it all in a flower pot to keep it all in one tight organized and moveable location...

Front stoop with a blank slate faery garden pot, just waiting to be filled!

The second step is to cleanse the area, smuding works good for this purpose or hosing it down with water works too. Bless the soil and imbue it with you intention of attracting benevolent faefolk to your garden to grace you with their lovely presence and keep watch over it.

The third step is to rumage around your house, garden, sheds, yard sales, antique shops, just anywhere you can find diminutive objects that you can decorate your faery garden with. Anything that strikes you will do as long as it makes you think of the fae. My daughter is one of my biggest inspirations, and she is always "helping" me outside while I work in the gardens...

Olivia Fae, just under 4 months old

In my following blog posts, I will go through the rest of the steps with you all as I create my garden, including what kind of plants to attract the fae to your garden. Stay tuned! ~Fae blessings~ xxx

Gardening = Grounding

Over the course of the last few days, whilst I've been away, I have been practicing one of my favorite ways of grounding. And this is through gardening. My grandma has always had a green thumb, and she passes her wealth of knowledge of the green world to me bit by bit with every visit she makes to my home. Lately it has been about every 2 weeks, since the birth of my daughter, so she can see how quickly she grows! We mulched and added some new plants to my gardens...

The faery ring

Some of my precious guardians, keeping watch over my late-aunt Sandra's hydrangea bush

... and she showed me how to propagate some of our green friends too. My first experiment with this is a cutting from my corkscrew willow.

The grandmother corkscrew willow that provided the cutting

I feel my root chakra opening; I have had issues with it being too closed in the past and this is something I am trying to remedy, although it's a work in progress. I am a type 5 enneagram (more info on that here: http://www.enneagraminstitute.com/typefive.asp) and it is very important for people of this personality type to open their root chakra, as we tend to very easily become overwhelmed. The root chakra is related to our unconscious, Mother Earth, our sense of smell and our primitive, or "reptilian" brain. It is associated with all means of survival, including security, money, home and sexuality; it helps us stay connected with the here and now. Very recently I have felt disconnected from many things, having the "brain fog" that many new mothers complain of. Digging in the earth, smelling her soil and introducing new plants into my gardens has helped return my vigor and make me feel more stable, or grounded. I still have a lot of work to do, and will be calling on the benevolent elemental beings that reside here to help turn to tide, as right now it seems to always be "feast or famine". Money matters are my biggest problem and I do believe grounding and clearing my root chakra more often will assist in setting these matters right again.

Well mommy duty calls, so I shall head off now... expect a new post very soon regarding starting your very own faery garden! ~Sprinkling pixie dust and blessings!!~~ xxxxxxx

Healing with Water

Yesterday was "Heal the Water" day on Facebook, a day set aside for healers, lightworkers and anyone who felt so inclined, to send gratitude to our Earth's water supply and bless it for all it provides us. Water is the ultimate healer, purifying, cleansing and so very powerful...

So it felt right for me to do this. I expressed my grief and remorse for the way mankind has treated our water and the sad state it is in in many places. I sent the water healing and expressed to it my humble gratitude. But then I got thinking, this shouldn't be something we just do once a year. "Heal the Water" day should be every day! Everyday we should show water our ultimate gratitude, even if it just through a simple ritual or prayer for its healing.

A good way to do this is to take time once a day, I usually choose morning time while I'm making a cuppa tea with my breakfast, to just place your power (writing) hand over the glass, mug or teapot that contains the water and make a clockwise spiral 3 times envisioning golden light emanating from your palm into the water. Whilst doing this you can just simply bless and thank the water for sustaining life and offering its power to nourish you today. Another practice I do, again usually while fixing a cuppa, is stirring the water with my finger (or spoon if I happen to be adding honey!) 13 times in a clockwise motion. (On a sidenote: The number thirteen holds a positive association for me, as there are 13 moons in a calendar year and it gives a sense of completion, fulfillment as well as being in touch with the feminine psyche. If another number grabs your attention instead, use it!) This blesses the drink and gives it a warm, powerful "glow" to its aura and makes me feel good and confident that what I'm about to imbibe will serve my greatest need nutritionally and spiritually.

All of this is achieved through the power of intention and the confidence that what you are doing is indeed working and making a difference. And it truly does!!! ~Fae blessings my friends~ xxxxx

Having a busy next two days...

... but I promise I will make some time to check in here! Thankfully I only work part-time after coming back from my maternity leave, any more than that and I think I'd be going insane. There is always too much to do and never enough time when you're a mom. Also, I wish once you had your baby, you automatically grew at least 2 new arms. Kinda like Ganesh...

Agree or no??

Well, I have some big plans for the blog like perhaps a weekly crystal profile and a monthly animal totem, to follow us as we proceed through the seasons. Would love feedback!
~Blessings of pixie and faery dust on you all!~

A Year Ago Today...

This was me on June 22nd of last year, the day before I realized my life (and my body!) were going to change for good!

June 23, 2011 marks one year to the day that I found out I was going to become a mommy! It is so hard to imagine what life was like before my precious little Olivia joined our family. I remember walking into Target on a hot, sunny and sticky day in June around noon to buy a pregnancy test. It'll probably be negative I thought, but it's best to check. Only, I couldn't wait til I got home to take it. The anticipation began to consume me and the reality that it could be positive was all I could think of. So I bought the test, a 3 pack of First Response and took it in their restroom and proceeded... And you can imagine my surprise when the 2 pink lines started to appear almost immediately indicating I was with child. I ran out to the car to show my husband and I had the feeling of a million butterflies in my stomach. I don't think my jaw left the ground all day. It was so magical and wonderful. I can never forget that day, but to think it's already been a year? It feels like I've done a time warp. This is what so many have warned me about becoming a parent; from here on out time will fly so fast, it'll almost make your head spin. So much has occured in the past 12 months and it all started with this day one year ago. Thanks be to the Universe for allowing things to happen just as they should, and my little blessing greets me everyday to remind me of this. And to always be thankful. ~Love and light blessings to you all~ xxxxx

Sun Salutations

One of my favorite ways to relieve stress is yoga. Yoga is also beneficial in creating a meditative state for me, where my breath and body are linked and I am completely "in the moment," present in the here and now. During the summer solstice is a very popular time to perform sun salutations to soak up the energy from the sun to carry with you through the rest of the year, for now until the winter solstice the sun's energy wanes and the days slowly become shorter and shorter...

But for now, the sun reigns high in the sky and below I will share with you a sun salute/meditation and mantra to perform outside, in nature, barefoot, completely connected to our Mother Earth.

I started facing South in Mountain pose, but whatever direction calls you is the best direction for you to start in. You will perform one sun salute facing all 4 directions, to call the energies of all the elements. With arms raised into the sky, bring your hands to namaste at your chest/heart chakra and say "I thank you for today." Circle arms out and upward arching your back ever so slightly, then swoop down and say "I thank the Mother Earth..." while laying your hands upon her and then bring your hands upward moving into Chair pose. With arms upward and hands cradling the sun say "...and I thank the Father Sun for all the blessings that have come my way." Then ease upward and out of Chair pose into Mountain pose again, bringing hands back into namaste at your chest. Repeat "I thank you for today" and send your gratitude out from your heart into the universe. Repeat for the other 3 directions, moving in a clockwise manner.

After performing this, I felt full of energy and love. It was invigorating! I recommend it to all who are able to perform it. And if for some reason you cannot, just repeat the mantra with your regular meditations, it is a great way to send your gratitude for all you have been blessed with and by sending it out, it will surely return to you! ~Fae blessings!~

Happy Solstice, fellow bloggers and followers!!

As with all days of power in the wheel of year, the summer solstice, Midsummer or Litha as it is known in different circles, is a typical time when all acts of magic are performed and the veil between this world and that of the fae is thin. Upon my time in nature these past few days to celebrate, I had a yearning to do a tarot reading for myself as it has been quite a while since the last... and my chaotic life lately warrented a bit of digging through my unconscious to help me decide which way to turn. The card I drew in the spread that was to describe "What I like most about myself" was Strength, VIII. As you may know this card shows an elegant woman robed in white with the infinity symbol above her head, symbolizing the infinite power of the universe at her fingertips, and she is bending forward, ever so gently yet assertively clasping her hands around the muzzle of a lion. "WOW" is all I could think. Then the goosebumps appeared on my arms. I felt an immediate surge of empowerment and energy, like pure sunlight coursing through my veins! Finally the nudge I needed to push me over the edge of the precipice I have been on... I needed to find a good way to get out all the swirling thoughts in my head, especially since the birth of my daughter just over 3 short months ago. What better way to funnel these thoughts, feelings and inspirations from the divine then by starting a blog? Well here it is, I am so glad I did this and I hope to meet many new people from my soul family here, to share all our stories. Until next time... may the wee folk bless you and your's!