MM: Emotional Sabbatical and High School Visitation

There were nothing new in regards to Treegold & Beegold this past week nor to the Etsy Shop. It was chaos for me both physically and mentally.

High School Visitation Hours Done

I spent Monday thru Thursday finishing my observation hours at the nearby High School. It was crazy there because school ends in 2 weeks. Though some of the teachers didn’t think I would learn much in regards to instructional strategies I did learn a lot about handling and guiding the students when they had already checked out for the summer.

I even gave my first lesson in a Geometry class. Boy was I nervous when I first stepped up there but after a few minutes I was just fine. The lesson was a very simple and short one. Also the teacher was very helpful in giving me suggestions without running the show for me.

Show Off Time: Housewarming Sign with Love

One bit of huge news around our house is on May 1st my mother and step-dad sold their house in the Orlando area and bought a house here in Tampa only 6 miles away.

My mother and I haven’t lived this close to each other since I moved out at 18. I was super excited about it and so were the kids.

My mother’s birthday happens to be April 29th so I really wanted to make her both a nice birthday present and a housewarming gift.

This is what I came up with

This is how I made it

The base is a pine board 24 in x 36 in that I got from Lowes. (The original length of the board was 6 ft but I cut it in half).

I sanded it and painted it with semi-gloss white paint we had in the house.

I used my Silhouette Cameo to cut out the vinyl letters and leaf motif border. All of it I designed in the Silhouette Studio software. The leaf motif borders I purchased from the Silhouette store. They were quite reasonably priced.

The hand print hearts were the toughest part. The paint is red semi-gloss paint. Each heart consists of one of the kids hands. Lil ‘R is on the left and Wee Rose on the right.

Crafty Bees: Making Cookies with Frigga is up

Tuesday is back again and this week over at The Pagan Village we’re doing a no bake cookie recipe with Frigga.

Lil ‘R had a blast making these and eating them!

Make sure to stop by Here and check it out. Share if it around and leave a comment to let us know what you think of how Crafty Bees is going.

Technorati Tags: The Pagan Village,Crafty Bees,Recipes,No Bake,Cookies

MM: Back to School, More Pagan Family Decals and A New Pagan Patch

Today has already been a long day for me it seems. I was up pre-dawn to start doing my observation hours at a local High School to finish up the requirements for my Teacher Certification. I’ll be doing that for the rest of the week but hopefully that won’t interrupt our regularly scheduled posts.

The Viking Pagan Family Series is now Complete

Last week I completed the last members of the Viking Pagan Family stickers with the conclusion of child boy Vikings and the teen boy Vikings. Make sure to check out all the stickers in the Etsy Shop. You can mix and match figures from any collection in the Make Your Own Family listings also. Like this one of pick your own 5 member family.

Triple Crescent Moon Patch New to the Shop

Also new to the shop is this patch I’m really loving. It’s a triple crescent moon by some seen as a way to represent the Goddess and the three phases of a woman’s life; the maiden, the mother and the crone. It was done with metallic silver thread on black which really makes it pop!

Jera–Year or Harvest

Jera is a Rune that for some reason I have always been drawn too. For the longest time I was seriously considering getting a tattoo of a bind rune of which it was a main part.

The literal meaning behind Jera is pretty straight forward.  It is actually the root in which we get the word year from in English. It’s original connotation was not for an entire calendar year though but meant more the Harvest or a Season.

Many know it best for how it appears in the Elder Futhark but of all the runes it had the greatest transformation of any through time.

For myself (Entirely UPG here) I’ve always connected Jera not with the harvest but with the cyclical sense of time. I’ve always envisioned the symbol as spinning around a central axis.

Does anyone else ever see it this way? Or what associations do you relate to it?

With that thought I’ve always found in comforting and as a place of strength. It’s a knowing that things will continue and that just maybe I can direct that power within myself to always move in a positive life direction.

This post is a part of The Pagan Blog Project for this weeks letter of J. Make sure to stop by and check out all the other great posts.

Technorati Tags: runes,heathen,pagan blog project 2012,pagan blog project,pagan,jera

Crafty Bees time: the Goddess Flora and Flowers

Tuesday again and if you want to see the newest post from Crafty Bees  you need to go on over to The Pagan Village and check it out Here.

I’m having a great time with these simple crafts and my kids are loving the results too! I hope everyone is checking it out.

This week is all about the Goddess Flora and Flowers.

Make sure to go over to The Pagan Village and see what it’s about.

Technorati Tags: The Pagan Village,crafts,Beltaine,spring,pagan

 

Monday Madness: New Pagan Family Decals & Big Test Update!

 

The week after returning back from the Florida Pagan Gathering was anything but calm around here!

I still haven’t gotten all the laundry done yet if that tells you anything.

I’ve still been trying to add onto the decals available to complete your pagan family.

Valkyrie Girl Children, Teens and Babies

Monday Madness: New Pagan Family Decals & Big Test Update!

 

The week after returning back from the Florida Pagan Gathering was anything but calm around here!

I still haven’t gotten all the laundry done yet if that tells you anything.

I’ve still been trying to add onto the decals available to complete your pagan family.

Valkyrie Girl Children, Teens and Babies

Florida Pagan Gathering Beltaine 2012

Another Florida Pagan Gathering has come and gone. I was both sad and relieved to leave.

This festival definitely created a mixed bag of emotions for me

First to describe why. I’m a glutton for punishment and have a love to serve the community. I don’t just attend festival. I’m in a middle management staff position for the event. Along with a wonderful woman we manage about 16 or so people through the full event in the onsite office and some associated areas.

It would be difficult for me to attend and not work. Since the munchkins began coming along holding my position has been much tougher to juggle.

What makes it more difficult but still rewarding is my Husband’s involvement in the men’s group named: Father Sky Lodge.

At times festival seemed to turn into a juggling match of pass the children between our respective duties

Wee Rose was teething the entire event and by Friday Lil ‘R had decided all he wanted to do was go home or play in the dirt 24/7. I indulged him in the later many many times.

We had some tough nights with them sleeping but overall they slept better than I was expecting.

What makes it all rewarding is seeing old friends and meeting new ones

Crafty Bees Crowns Kings & Queens Today

Yep it’s Tuesday again and if you want to see the newest post from Crafty Bees  you need to go on over to The Pagan Village and check it out Here.

We had a blast last week premiering our 3 Goddesses Paper Dolls.

The Hint is this week we are crowning Kings & Queens.

Make sure to go over to The Pagan Village and see what it’s about.

Technorati Tags: The Pagan Village,crafts,Beltaine,spring,pagan

Inventiveness

I debated about doing this weeks post on Industriousness because it’s one of the Nine Noble Virtues and I’ve covered several of them already.
I mean it isn’t a bad word.
I have great respect for industriousness.
I wanted to go with something that is a bit more close to my heart though, Inventiveness.
Inventiveness is form of creativity. It isn’t being creative just to be creative though. Inventiveness has to desire to bring out something new out of nothing that is entirely unique and done in an entirely unique fashion.
Sometimes it’s is creating an item that answers the needs of people, like the Sham Wow. Other times it is finding a new method to make something that already exists.

How does Inventiveness apply to Spirituality though?

Is it finding a personal path that there is no other?

Today is Launch Day for Crafty Bees

If you want to find me today you need to check out my new weekly column I’ve started doing over at The Pagan Village.

It’s entitled Crafty Bees and its only going to be about Young Children’s Crafts with a Pagan twist.

So head on over to The Pagan Village and check out todays post.

Hint: It involves paper, scissors and 3 Goddesses

Technorati Tags: The Pagan Village,crafts,kids,goddesses