Tag Archives: Spring

March 2, 2011 · 11:25 pm

Living a Magickal Life…….

Merry Meet friends!  The Sun has come out for 3 days now and signs of Spring are showing up here in Ohio!  There are shoots coming up of daffodils and crocuses, wildflowers are popping up, chipmunks and squirrels are out and about, my crabapple trees are starting to bud and my fish are moving around in the koi pond!  All wonderful signs of the return of the Sun god.  I have been enjoying gorgeous sunrises earlier in the morning and the Moon comes out later at night.  Ostara or the Spring Equinox is less then 3 weeks away…ahhhh..Spring 🙂

I recently read a newletter  from Patti Wigington at About.com that I thought was a great article and I wanted to talk about it here on my blog. She talks about how we come to this path for various reasons and that finding our way of practicing our craft and honoring our Deities should be something we think about and “do” everyday.  There are many of us who may only celebrate at Full Moons or on Sabbats or perform a spell occasionally when the mood strikes us.  They may have read a book or two or three and think that they know everything they need to know.  She calls them “Weekend Wiccans”.

“Living a magical life is something that one does twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. Depending on the needs of your tradition, it may involve something as complex as daily ritual, or as simple as taking a moment to thank your gods each morning when you get out of bed. It means being in tune with the spiritual world around you, and staying in balance physically, emotionally, and spiritually.”

A pagan or witch who really grasps the meaning of living the magickal way of life…finds some way to celebrate everyday.  They take notice of the small things throughout their day to day life that brings joy and magick to them.  Everything they do is with purpose and intention…to honor their deities and Mother Earth  and Her inhabitants,  and to increase their own power in manifesting the life they desire for themselves and their families. I am sure that you know  someone who does this and does it beautifully.  How do they do it?  How do they find the time?  Well, lets talk about that.   This newsletter brings up some suggestions and I have a few of my own.  You see I am one of those witches who strives to find magick in my everyday life.  Some days I am wonderfully successful, some days I’m mediocre, but I DO try, every day, to make my home and my life magickal.

-My very first suggestion is to watch a sunrise or a sunset and moonrise.  Watching this wonderful moment in time..everyday…will remind you of the wonder of the turning of the wheel, of the day that is starting or ending.  I can’t watch a sunset and then the mystical moon without feeling so blessed in my path and to thank the Goddess for it. 

-Know the phases of the Moon..pay attention to when the Moon will be full or new,  or if She is waxing or waning.  Pay attention to how you are feeling during the different phases.  Knowing the phases will ensure that any spells or rituals you perform will be as strong as they can be if done during the right phase of the Moon.  It connects you to the flow of energy, the changing seasons, etc.  The Moon rising and setting is what keeps the wheel of life rolling.

-Read everything you can get your hands on..never stop learning!  I have been reading witchcraft books for 13 years now and there are many, many I still havent’ read or want to re-read.  Everytime I read a book I learn something new..and can apply it to my practice or discard it as not helpful to me.  With the internet at our disposal and our witchy facebook friends, we get alot of differing opinions and ideas thrown out as facts.  Being knowledgeable about your craft will help you to decide what feels right to you.  

-Be a caretaker of this Earth we live on.  You can do magick everyday by being mindful of  your relationship with nature.  Recycle, compost, reuse, watch your energy usage.  Also you can plant trees, vegetables, herbs and flowers.  Collect rainwater.  Be close to Mother Earth, dive into her dirt, sit under a tree, feed and water the birds.  Be aware of the subtle changes in the seasons.  These things alone bring awareness of the magick in our everyday lives.   

-One of my favorite ways to bring magick into my everyday life is to light a candle with intention.  I light a candle everyday with the intention of sending healing to someone I care about.  There are so many ways to be witchy. Make loose incense, burn it in your cauldron and smudge your house with it to clean out the negativity.  I love grinding herbs and resins with my mortar and pestle and make a sweet or spicy incense.  Carry crystals with you for the purpose you are needing that day such as healing or protection or to draw love.   Take a few minutes everyday at your altar to meditate or send a prayer to the Goddess/God.  Have a cup of tea that you have made yourself from your own herbs grown in your garden.  Give an offering to the fae and ask them to aid you in your garden.  All of these things just take up minutes of your day or no time at all. 

-Be empowered.  Be aware of the power you have to manifest your desires yourself.  Be honorable in word and deed.  Use your magick for good and to better your life.  Be helpful, loving, respectful to others and yourself.  Giving love is what we are all here for after all.  Be responsible for you own actions.  If you are unhappy or living a life much less then you should be, take the steps to fix it.  You deserve your best life!

-Find happiness in the small things in life.  A gorgeous sunny day, a moonlit starry sky, a good simple meal of fresh foods, a good book, the smell of woodsmoke or lavender growing in your garden.  Keep your home harmonious, clean, happy.  Live a balanced life.  Be aware of small things with big impact and be grateful for them.  Focus on the positive and let the negative go.  Be happy!

-Honor Goddess/God everyday in some way.  A morning prayer for a good day, an evening thank you for the things you are blessed with.  Go out and look at the Moon goddess and draw Her in….feel the energy you can receive from Her!  Sit in the Sun and feel the warmth from the Sun god.  Be aware that they are within you..not without!  You can draw strength from them by looking inward.  When you are still…they will talk to you.

-Keep a BOS or journal.  I have journaled for 15 years and writing down my thoughts and feelings and the things that are going on in the world or just my world is very important to me.   It is a record of my life that will be passed down to my children & grandchildren.  It helps to free my mind from all the thoughts floating around in there as well. LOL.  A BOS is a witches most important tool besides themselves.  It is a place to go for information to aid you in your magick, your spells and rituals.  It makes life easier to have that information in one place when you need it. 

-Bring magick to the mundane part of your life.  When you cook, put all your love into it…no matter how simple the meal, your love will make it delicious.  When you bathe or shower, use yummy smelling products that remind you of your garden or your favorite spice.  Picture all the negativity washing away from you..any bad feelings or anger go right down the drain.  Listen to music that soothes your soul or makes you feel positive and happy and energetic.  If you are washing your car,  place protection all around it to keep you safe.  When you clean your house, wash out the stagnant air and bring in fresh air.  Place protection and love all around your home while dusting it.  Picture your home as a place of love and harmony and balance.  You are manifesting a better life for yourself when you do this.

-Give Love to your family and friends everyday.  Never be too busy to take a few moments to let them know you love them.  When you give love, you will receive it back!  This is something you all know..you brilliant witches 🙂

Now I know that some people will be saying that they do NOT have time to do all of this.  After all, you have jobs, kids, furbabies, errands, extended family, appts, etc to take care of.  But many of the things I mentioned above, you are already doing.  Just change the way you look at what you are doing every day.  Don’t look at it as a chore, look at it as a chance to bring magick into your day.  Find a way to find the time for your craft everyday.  If all you do is spend 10 minutes outside…to connect with nature….then you will find that magick and want it so bad that you will find other ways to get it…I promise you.  The more you practice..the better you get at it! Picture in your mind..you ….at your best witchy self and you will achieve it!

My life as a witch just keeps getting better and better and I understand more and more that magick and the divine and nature is all around us.  There for us to enjoy and take in.  I can make of my life what I want it to be.  Even when everything seems to be going wrong, I can find the silver lining on a cloudy day.  So can you…just look for it…MAGICK! 

Blessings and Love, Autumn

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Filed under Discussion, Family, Full Moons, Garden, Goddess, Mother Earth, Nature, Ostara, Spring, Sunrise/Sunset

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February 24, 2011 · 12:07 am

Ostara Recipes…………

Merry Meet friends.  Hope you are having a good week so far.  After warm Spring-like weather, the rains came in! It rained ALL day on Monday…dark and gloomy and wet!  Then it turned cold, the rain  turned to sleet and ice and then  to snow.  Luckily the snow wasnt’ heavy and went away quickly. However,  winter is most definitely back but it is still February after all.  Here in Ohio winter lingers long indeed.  LOL.  So I’m sitting by my fire again tonight, candles lit, incense burning, and I’m crocheting a shawl for a friend and relaxing after a busy day.

Ostara is coming before we know it so my thoughts are turning towards the celebration.  I thought I’d post some recipes here….both for magick and for your dinner table.  First, I have a recipe for an Ostara oil blend and an Ostara loose incense blend.

Ostara Oil

 1 drop Almond

   1 drop Patchouli

   1 drop Elder

     1 drop Lavender

     1 drop Violet

Ostara Loose Incense Recipe

2 parts frankincense

2 parts sandalwood

1 part lemongrass

1 part patchouli

1 part lavender

Both of these magickal scents smell so great..you’ll love them!

Now for your dinner table…if you read my previous post about Ostara correspondences, you’ll see that these recipes are perfect for the day or the week of this beautiful Sabbat.  Eggs of course are a must!  Here is a couple of my own recipes I think you’ll like.  “Deviled Eggs” are always on our holiday table and mine get rave reviews and a “must bring” so here is the recipe..kind of.  I am one of those people who just throw things together until it tastes right..but I’ll get as close as I can.

Autumn’s Ostara Eggs

12 large eggs

1/2 cup Miracle Whip

1 1/2 tablespoons yellow mustard

1/2 tsp sugar

1/4 tsp salt

pepper to taste

Paprika to garnish if you like

*Now this is really just a guess….you may need to add more Miracle Whip or more sugar or salt..you want it kind of creamy and kind of sweet 🙂

 Place eggs in a saucepan with COLD water to cover plus 1 inch. On medium-high heat, bring the eggs to a low boil. Turn off heat and cover.  Let stand for 20 minutes.  Then drain off hot water and immerse in ice cold water to cool.  This cold water method makes perfect boiled eggs.  Also, a little hint.  You want your eggs to be a few days old.  The newer the egg, the harder it is to remove the peel.  

 Halve the eggs lengthwise. Remove the yolks, place them in a small bowl, and mash them with a fork. Add all ingredients except paprika.  Mix well. Now to make really pretty eggs, I use a frosting bag with a tip to put the yolk mixture into the whites.  Or you can cut a little hole in the corner of a plastic bag and pipe in the mixture that way.  Very pretty and neat.  Sprinkle with paprika if desired.  Makes 24 appetizers.

Another egg recipe I make often is my overnight breakfast casserole.  It is easy and yummy and so nice to not have to work so hard in the morning when you get up.  Just pop it in the oven and enjoy your coffee 🙂

Autumn’s Overnight Breakfast Strata

1 lb ground sausage, browned & drained

6 slices of day old bread, cubed

3 cups shredded cheddar cheese

2 cups milk

6 eggs

½ tsp salt

Pepper to taste.

Place ½ of the bread cubes in a greased 13” x 9” baking dish.  Top with ½ cheese.  Then all the sausage, then the rest of the bread and top with remaining cheese.

Blend the rest of the ingredients well.  Pour over casserole.

Cover and refrigerate overnight.

In the morning, Bake uncovered at 350* for 1 hour or until top is brown and bubbly.

*I serve this with a fresh fruit salad and warm muffins and the Applewood Julep…YUMMY!!

Ok..as I said here…this goes great with an Applewood Julep.  The Applewood Restaurant in Sevierville, TN is a favorite restaurant of ours for down home cookin.  When  you go there, you get a glass of this delcious refreshing juice with apple fritters and apple butter!  Divine!!  You will need to make a double batch of this juice..guarenteed!

Applewood Julep

1 quart unsweetened apple juice

1 cup unsweetened pineapple juice

1 cup orange juice

¼ cup fresh lemon juice

Fresh mint sprigs

Combine ingredients..Serve chilled.  Garnish with mint.  Great over ice as well.

Sweet breads was on the list of foods that correspond to Ostara.  There is nothing more traditional for this time of year then Honey Cakes and Hot Cross Buns.  The Hot Cross Buns are started out in your bread machine..easy peasy and the Honey Cakes are easy and sweet as well!

Hot Cross Buns for Bread Machine

Ingredients

2 eggs plus enough water to equal 1 1/3 cups

½ cup butter

4 cups bread flour

¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 ½ teaspoons salt

2 tablespoons sugar

1 ½ teaspoons bread machine or quick active dry yeast

½ cup raisins

½ cup golden raisins

1 egg

2 tablespoons cold water

White Icing (below)

Measure carefully, placing all ingredients except raisins, the 1 egg, the cold water and the white icing in bread machine in the order recommended by the manufacturer.  Add raisins at the raisin/nut signal.

Select Dough/Manual cycle.  Do not use delay cycles.

Remove dough from pan, using lightly floured hands. Cover and let rest 10 minutes on lightly floured surface.

Grease cookie sheet or 2 round pans, 9 x 1 ½ inches.  Divide dough in half. Divide each half into 8 equal pieces.  Shape each piece into a smooth ball.  Place 2 inches apart on cookie sheet or 1 inch apart in pans.  Snip a cross shape in top of each ball, using scissors.  Cover and let rise in warm place about 40 minutes or until double.

Heat oven to 375*.  Beat egg and cold water slightly; brush on buns.  Bake 18 to 20 minutes or until golden brown.  Remove from cookie sheet to rack.  Cool slightly.  Make a cross on bun with White Icing.

White Icing

1 cup powdered sugar

1 tablespoon milk or water

½ teaspoon vanilla

Mix all ingredients until smooth and spreadable

Honey Cake

1 cup honey

1 cup applesauce

3 eggs

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon clove

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup strong brewed decaffeinated coffee (can be made from instant)

  In a large bowl, mix together the first 3 ingredients.  In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, spices and baking soda.  Add the flour mixture to the wet stuff, alternating with the coffee; beat well.

Pour into a greased 9″x13″ pan (or, alternatively, three 8″ square pans).

 Bake at 325*F for 60-90 minutes* for the large pan, 60 minutes for the three smaller pans

*Just watch for it to be spongy and golden brown.

 Ok…now Ostara is all about Spring and longer days and our thoughts turn to our gardens and fresh fruit and vegetables.  This salad is exactly what you need to serve.  It has all the good stuff!  Use the berries that are in season for the best flavor.

Bountiful Garden Salad with Raspberry Vinagarette

6 cups spinach, torn                                                       

1 lb romaine lettuce, torn                                            

1 stalk celery, chopped                                                 

1 tomato, chopped                                                        

½ cucumber chopped                                                   

1 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

½ orange, peeled and sectioned

¾ cup blackberries, raspberries and/or blueberries

¼ cup strawberries, hulled and sliced

¼ cup chopped walnuts or pecans, toasted

Garnish: croutons

Place all of the ingredients except croutons into a large salad bowl and toss to mix.  Drizzle with Raspberry Dressing; garnish with croutons. Serves 6-8

Raspberry Dressing

¾ cup to 1 cup raspberries, crushed

1 cup oil

¼ cup raspberry vinegar

1 TB sugar

2 TB lemon juice

Salt & pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients except salt and pepper; whish well.  Add salt and pepper to taste

I’m going to stop there for now.  I have a friend who is passing on a lamb recipe and I have a delcious parmesan whitefish recipe I want to share, and a great strawberry cake recipe!  You will then have all you need to have give your family and friends a lovely Spring meal on Ostara.  Have your family over for a delicious brunch while you color eggs and have an egg hunt with the kids.  It’ll hardly be any work at all as you can make the juice and the breakfast casserole the day before.  To really celebrate the day, after breakfast, go for a walk on a nature trail.  Collect stones and look for flowers starting to bloom and see what birds you can identify and see if the trees are budding yet?  After the family is gone, enjoy a glass of wine and pull out your seed and garden catalogs and magazines.  Dream of being outdoors feeling the warmth of the Sun, the blue skies, the taste of fresh veggies and herbs from your garden.  Ostara is the promise of Spring…so Enjoy!

Love and Blessings, Autumn

*Sources- Applewood restaurant, Gooseberry Patch cookbooks, and my own recipe box.  None of the pictures are mine..one thing I’ve learned from having a blog…take pictures of my food, beverages etc!!  For future blogs 🙂

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Filed under Family, Garden, Holiday, Loose incense recipe, Oil Blend Recipe, Ostara, Recipe from my Kitchen, Spring

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February 16, 2011 · 5:22 pm

Countdown to Ostara……..

Merry Meet everyone!  I hope you all had a LOVE-ly Valentine’s Day.  Mine was very nice..hubby spoiled me and I spoiled everybody else!  I am having Spring fever big time for some reason.  I normally love Winter..as I’ve written here before…but something about this year has put me in the mood for Spring earlier then I usually am.  It might be that we are having some balmy weather right now for Ohio.  We have hit 50* today and 60* then next two days.  It rained this morning a bit, melting all that dirty snow, and the Sun just came out.  I actually just put my rosemary tree and my new gerbera daisy plant outside to enjoy the sun a bit….it’s warm enough to do so.  I also am seeing all the seed packages and pots and garden tools coming out at the local garden centers and I have already been looking to see what I want to plant this year.  So Spring is coming..hold on to that thought!

Along with Spring, comes the next Sabbat on the Wheel of the Year….Ostara.  Ostara is also the Spring Equinox…when Night and Day are again balanced  and the Earth swells with new life.  In ancient times, people celebrated the arrival of spring, and the Goddess Eostar, or Eostre, whose symbols were the egg and the hare, both representations of the Great Mother. “Ostara is a festival of fertility and resurrection, the union of sun and soil, a time of planting, mothering, and tending to young children and animals.  At the Spring Equinox, the God and the Goddess are now equals, and they dance together across the Earth.  Wherever they step, flowers appear and bloom beneath their feet, and sorrow turns to delight as the world is reborn.” *

This is the time of re-birth.  Animals are bearing their young, shoots are growing up from the ground, grass is greening, trees are sprouting leaves and our hearts feel lighter with more daylight and warm breezes and the smell of the rich earth as  Mother Earth wakes up.  Ostara is a wonderful time of year and celebrations are light and centered around the outdoors.  The Correspondences of Ostara are:

*Element/Gender-Air/Male

*Threshold-Dawn

*Symbolism-Greening, sprouting, balance of light and dark, The God comes of age, union of the Lord and Lady, fertility, birthing, beginning,

*Symbols/Tools/Decorations-Colored eggs, baskets, rabbits, lamb, shamrock, butterfly, cocoons, sprouting plants, violets, lily, spring flowers, new clothes.

*Herbs-Daffodil, jonquils, woodruff, violet, iris, narcissus, peony, acorns, tansy, cinquefoil, crocus,  dogwood, irish moss, ginger, honeysuckle, jasmine, rose, strawberry.

*Incense/Oils-Jamine, rose, strawberry, african violet, sage lavender, ginger, magnolia, broom.

*Colors-Gold, light green, grass green, robin’s egg blue, lemon yellow, pale pink, anything pastel.

*Crystals/Stones-Red jasper, rose quartz, moonstone, amethyst, aquamarine, bloodstone

*Customs/Activities-Planting seeds or starting a Magickal herb garden, taking a long walk in  nature, coloring eggs, bird watching, egg hunts,  starting new projects, wearing green or pastels

*Foods-Leafy green vegetables, pumpkin, sunflower and pine nuts, dairy,  fish, hot crossed buns, sweet breads, hard boiled eggs, honey cakes, seasonal fruits.

*Gods-Green Man, Youthful Gods, Warrior Gods, Dagda, Cernunnos,  Pan, Adonis

*Goddesses-Eostre, Ostara, Maiden, Isis, Astarte, Ishtar, Minerva, Youthful Goddesses,  Faerie Queen, Lady of the Lake, the Green Goddess

*Spellworking/Rituals-Spellcrafting, invention, new growth, new projects, seed blessing, herb  garden, herb blessings

An ancient Ostara custom was to dye eggs red, the color of life-force and regenerations. Make “oracle eggs.”  Draw magickal symbols on hard-boiled eggs with paraffin or white crayon.  These can include astrological signs, runes, and symbological signs such as the pentacle, or a moon or a sun.  Fun to do with a grandchild 🙂  You can  celebrate Ostara with fresh spring flowers, bouquets of freesia, daffodils, lilac, and tulips, and herbs such as clover, lemongrass, and mint.  Collect rainwater  and steep it  overnight in the light of a full Moon.  Use it for your holy water or water your houseplants with it.  Play favorite childhood games.  Blow bubbles, play hopscotch and jacks, and jump rope.  Bring out your inner child and let her play.   Bless the seeds for your garden, and envision health, happiness, and prosperity growing for you in the warmth of the Sun.

I will be posting Ostara recipes, rituals, pics of my altar etc in the coming days.  A book  I highly recommend you read is written by Edain McCoy…its a plethora of information about Ostara..I really enjoyed it.

So my friends, Spring and Ostara are coming.  Soon the days will be longer, the rains will come, and Mother Earth will wake up and start spreading growth and warmth all around us.  We have almost made it thru another Winter!  Think about shopping for some new lighter clothes, get out your seed catalogs, go buy a bouquet of tulips, take a walk, gaze at the Moon…Watch Spring unfold before your eyes.  That is what I’ll be doing…right along with you!

I come, I come! ye have called me long, I come o’er the mountain with light and song: Ye may trace my step o’er the wakening earth, By the winds which tell of the violet’s birth, By the primrose-stars in the shadowy grass, By the green leaves, opening as I pass.
Mrs. Felicia D. Hemans

Blessings and Love, Autumn

*References…..Simple Wicca by Michelle Morgan and my own BOS.  All pics on this post are from the internet.

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Filed under Books I'm reading, Garden, Goddess, Herbs, Mother Earth, Nature, Ostara, Quote, Spring

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February 7, 2011 · 9:50 pm

A Book review and signs of Spring……….

Merry Meet friends.  It has been quite  a week ..weather wise around here.  On Imbolc Eve, we got a huge ice storm…lots of heavy ice, slippery roads, trees cracking and breaking from the weight of the ice, and power outages.  Yes, we had a power outage..the lights went out about 11:30pm that night.  We lit candles, brought in a kerosene ceramic heater to warm the lower floor rooms and hoped for the best.  By the next morning..power outage looked like it was going to last for awhile.  We ended up heading over to my daughters for the day and stayed warm and had a lovely visit with my daughters and granddaughter.  Lights came back on at about 5pm and life got back to normal.  It was Imbolc…my ritual ended up being very simple as I was so tired from lack of sleep LOL…but I threw open the doors and invited in Brighid and it was a Blessed Imbolc after all.  I hope yours was too!

A couple of months ago..a facebook friend of mine..Tracy Jeffery..from Australia…posted a link that caught my eye.  I went to look at it, and discovered that she had written a children’s pagan book…called “Kite Magic….A Tribute to the Element Air”.  I looked at it, thought that I would order it for my granddaughter and then, you know, I kind of forgot about it.  A couple of weeks ago, she posted a comment here on my blog and mentioned the book and that she would love for me to review it here.  So I promptly contacted her, ordered the book and I received it, read it and loved it.  So Tracy, thank you for your delightful book and I can’t wait til the other element books are written.

Kite Magic is about a little girl named Alana, 4 years old, who receives a rainbow kite for her birthday.  Her Nanna takes her to the beach to fly her kite. (Now I am called Nana by my precious Lily so I loved that right off ! )  Nanna wears a shawl and a sunflower hat (which I love!).  But despite Alana’s best efforts, she can not get the kite to fly….there isn’t enough wind.  She is taunted by 3 boys because of it.  Alana becomes sad and discouraged..her rainbow kite just wont’ fly.  Now her Nanna..a wise crone…tells Alana that she can make it windy by calling on air.  Alana does just that..with her Nanna’s help ( a beautiful charm here too).  Their magick blends together and spirals upward and Air answers in a delightful way.  The descriptive words of the magick wrought were delightful to me and I think any child would be entranced as well.  Those boys who taunt her…well they get a bit of Karma as well in a very funny way!  I thought this book was charming..filled with magick and vivid images.  I also loved the illustrations by Danielle Rawnsley-Galistan..bright colors and attention getting for a child.  I can’t wait until the next books come out.  I highly recommend the book..pagan books for children are pretty hard to come by.  For this book visit www.paganchild.com.au

I have been looking for signs of Spring..to no avail around here.  We have had one of the snowiest winters I can remember.  Not so much in huge amounts, but in constant amounts..keeping the ground white all winter long.  Today, more snow.  But recently, I have had visitors to our koi pond in our yard and just had to snap a few pictures.  Signs of Spring?  I still think so…but they are around here all winter long now…but seeing them makes me smile.

Lovely birds don’t you agree..I love the grumpy look on the one looking right at me! LOL

Then this morning..more visitors…7 deer walked across our yard…it was so magickal.  I feel such an affinity with them.  I see them as so magickal and majestic…my heart soars when I can be that close to them!  Here’s a  picture  I caught before they went up in the woods.

Sorry for the misty pics but well, it was a misty morning! 🙂  I have heard many of my facebook friends talking about signs of Spring around their homes..so I know that Spring is coming soon.  To feel the Sun warming the Earth, to see shoots peeking up thru the brown earth, morning bird song, the smell of the grass greening….I can’t wait for those days.  I know you all look forward to those days as well.  Spring is Hope Eternal!

Blessings of Love and Light, Autumn

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Filed under Books I'm reading, Granddaughter, Imbolc, Mother Earth, Photography, Spring

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January 15, 2011 · 10:31 pm

Imbolc Recipes……

Good Evening friends!  Hope you are all having a great weekend so far.  I am having a good one despite the fact that my husband is pretty ill with pneumonia!  Not fun at all for him and I’m hoping that all of us around him are able to keep from getting it too.  We are taking good care of him both medically and magickally so he will hopefully get over it sooner rather than later.

I was sitting by the fire this evening and decided to pull out my recipe box and start looking for recipes for Imbolc.  As I posted in an earlier writing, the foods for Imbolc are seeds like pumpkin, sunflower, poppy, flax, sesame. Also raisins, dairy foods, spicy foods, pork, lamb, spiced wines, breads, cakes, muffins, pancakes, scones etc.  I tried to find recipes that combined some of these foods and was quite successful!  I thought I would share them with you so here we go……

This is top of my list that I’ll be making!

Lemon Poppy Seed Cake with Lemon Glaze

Yield 2 – 8×4 inch loaf pans

 Ingredients

1 (18.25 ounce) package lemon cake mix

4 eggs

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 (3 ounce) package instant lemon pudding mix

1 cup water

1/4 cup poppy seeds

Directions

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour 2 – 8×4 inch loaf pans.

-In a large bowl, mix together the cake mix, eggs, oil, pudding mix, water, and poppy seeds. Spread batter into two greased 8×4 inch loaf pans.

-Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean.

Lemon Glaze

4 TB sugar

4 Tsp Lemon juice

Just mix sugar and juice well and pour over cake after allowing cake to cool for 10 minutes.

This recipe is classic for using milk…pudding.  Remember that Imbolc is the festival of the lactating sheep.  It is derived from the Gaelic word “oimelc” which means “ewes milk”.   So a recipe using milk is most appropriate for this Sabbat.  Now I don’t know about your but my pudding must be chocolate! Yummy!  This is a great recipe!

Chocolate Cream Pudding

 Ingredients

1 cup white sugar

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 cups milk

2 (1 ounce) squares unsweetened chocolate, chopped

2 egg yolks

2 tablespoons butter

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions

1.In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine sugar, cornstarch and salt. Stir in milk and chocolate. Cook, stirring constantly, until chocolate melts and mixture thickens. Remove from heat and stir in egg yolks. Return to heat and cook 2 minutes more. Remove from heat and stir in butter and vanilla. Chill before serving.

Now, I was looking at the list and there are two things I love on the list…scones and raisins!  So here is a recipe for just that!

Walnut Raisin Scones

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons white sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon grated lemon zest

1/2 cup butter, cubed

3/4 cup chopped walnuts

1/2 cup raisins

3/4 cup buttermilk

2 tablespoons buttermilk

2 tablespoons white sugar

2 tablespoons chopped walnuts

Directions

-In a large bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and lemon peel.

-With a pastry blender or 2 knives, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal. Mix in all but 2 tablespoons of the nuts and the raisins. Mix in buttermilk with fork.

-Gather the dough into a ball and knead for about 2 minutes on lightly floured board.

-Roll or pat out 3/4 inch thick. With a chef’s knife cut into 3 inch triangles. Place, spaced 1inch apart, on a greased baking sheet. Brush tops with remaining 1 tablespoon buttermilk; sprinkle with the remaining sugar and the nuts.

-Bake in center of 425 degree F (220 degrees C) oven about 15 minutes or until nicely browned. Serve warm with butter or jam.

Both the Lemon Bread and these delicious scones would work great for a Cakes and Ale ritual at your altar.  Speaking of ale, a spiced wine is perfect for Imbolc and this is a yummy recipe..make this and serve to your family and friends and have it at your altar as well!

Spiced Wine

 1 cup water

1 cup brown sugar

2 cups pineapple juice

1 cup orange juice

6 whole cloves

3 whole allspice berries

2 cinnamon stick

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 cups red wine

2 oranges

8 cinnamon sticks, garnish

Directions

-In a large non-aluminum saucepan, combine water, brown sugar, pineapple juice, and orange juice. Season with cloves, allspice, 2 cinnamon sticks and salt. Cut the rind of 2 oranges into strips and stir into the mixture. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and let simmer for 15 minutes.

-Pour in the wine. Heat to just boiling and remove from heat. Serve hot with a cinnamon stick for garnish.

Sitting here by the fire tonight, I’m wishing I had some of this to savor right now! 🙂

Pork is appropriate for this Winter sabbat as well.  This recipe is delicious and sooo easy..you’ll love it!

Simply Delicious Pork

1 1/2 lbs boneless pork loin, cut into 6 pieces (trimmed)

4 medium yellow delcious apples, sliced

3 TB brown sugar

1 Tsp cinnamon

1/2 Tsp salt

Place pork in slow cooker.  Cover with apples. 

Combine brown sugar, cinnamon and salt in small bowl.  Sprinkle over apples.  Cover and cook on low 6-8 hours.

Thats it.  Easy Peasy.  You can shred it and put it on sandwiches or slice it and serve it with mashed potatoes and green beans or other veggies that you like.  You can also double this to feed more then 3-4 people. 

Another great recipe which would go great with the pork is this fresh salad…uses sesame seeds,  so again, you would be incorporating one of the foods that pertain to Imbolc.  I LOVE this salad!

Bok Choy Salad

In a large salad bowl, place….

1 Large head of romaine lettuce, chopped

1 Large bok choy, ends cut off and chopped

2 pkgs crumbled ramen noodles (noodles only)

Brown in a saute pan:

1/2 cup sunflower seeds

1/2 cup sliced almonds

2 TB butter

Pour over salad.  Top with 2 cans drained mandarin oranges.

Dressing:

1/2 cup sunflower oil

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1 TB soy sauce.

Mix well and toss into salad right before serving!

All of these recipes are simple and will make your Imbolc celebration even better!  So after you have done your house cleaning and cleansing, throw some of these recipes in the oven or in the slow cooker and enjoy the good smells coming from your kitchen as you are enjoying your great smelling, great feeling home!  Then have some spiced wine and put your feet up for a bit after all your hard work!  Take a look around at what you have accomplished and know that you are just about ready for Spring!

Blessings and Love, Autumn

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April 20, 2010 · 4:30 pm

Spring is here…..

Here in Ohio we have just had such a beautiful couple of weeks..the weather has warmed, the sun has been shining and plants and trees are blooming.  I have purple phlox all bloomed out and gorgeous, my dogwood and crabapple trees are covered in white flowers, my lilac bush is bloomed and smelling wonderful, and even plants like coralbells, sedum and hosta are blooming!

There are yellow finches, cardinals, blue jays and other small birds on the feeders.  The chipmunks and squirrels are everywhere…I just love this time of year.  Of course, my allergies are acting up too which is not a good thing but thanks to allergy meds I’m hanging in there.  I planted small pots indoors of herbs and veggies and some of them are doing well and some haven’t done a thing!  I’ll transplant the healthy ones to outdoor pots around Beltane..the ones that aren’t growing I’ll replace with plants from the garden center.  We are hoping to build a garden shed/storage shed soon too.  We had to take out some dead trees this year and trying to decide what we are going to do with the empty space they left behind.  I hate losing trees but I’m hoping to plant flowering bushes or ornamental trees in their place.  I’m anxious to get my flowers planted too but here in Ohio its best to wait until around Mother’s Day to do it..we can get frost pretty late in the year..for instance, it was only 32 degrees night before last!

Beltane is coming up fast..I’ve got to buy a white tablecloth for my altar then I’ll top it with a grass green scarf to represent the color of spring and things blooming.  I’ll decorate it then for Beltane which I’ll discuss in the next post after I’ve done it!  We are hoping to celebrate with a fire in the woods, planting my herbs outside, offering a gift to the faeries, and fixing a feast!

Here’s hoping you all are having a beautiful Spring too…remember, You can make it so..just go outside and embrace the Earth waking up around you!  Thursday is Earth day so do something good for you Mother Earth..at least take a walk and maybe pick up some trash while you’re walking or drop some wildflower seeds along the way, or plant a tree or two!  Say a prayer to the Goddess and God for the Earth and her gifts.

Blessed Be, Autumn

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March 13, 2010 · 10:37 am

A rainy morning…..

After a week of beautiful sunny weather and warm temperatures..even hit 64 one day….this morning though cooler, mid 40’s, and raining, it feels like Mother Earth is waking up and spring is on the way!  The rain has washed away that last piles of dirty snow and washed the muddy roads, parking lots and driveways.  There is a green glow this morning, tulips are pushing up, the crabapple trees are budding, the grass looks greener etc.  Our bird feeder is experiencing lower volumes meaning they are finding food elsewhere now.  Our goldfish in our pond are awake and swimming.  All good signs of Spring!  While I know we may still have some cold weather and another snow is always possible, all these signs along with Daylight Savings Time today gives my soul a lift that Winter is over.

March 20 is Ostara, the first official day of Spring.  The day and night are equal and then the sun gets stronger and the day gets longer.  I’ve loved the sun coming up early in the morning but will enjoy even more the evening staying lighter longer.  For Ostara, we will be coloring eggs.  The house is decorated as much as I usually do.  I have a kitchen altar, a wreath on the front door, and my Sacred altar are all decorated for Ostara with eggs, bunnies, lambs, and the appropriate crystals etc.  Isn’t it funny how the symbols for Ostara are the same for Easter?  You know of course that’s because the early Christians set it up that way to give the Pagans something from their celebration of Ostara.  Our family will celebrate Easter also..because of our extended family and their beliefs.  My little grandaughter will have her egg hunt probably on Ostara and Easter as all the family wants to participate in that!  It will be adorable!  Can’t wait.

Pagans believe that in Spring, The Goddess and the God become lovers and equals and the Goddess will become pregnant.  This brings forth the abundance of Spring, flowers, trees blooming, birth of baby animals, longer days and food from the earth.  It is a joyous time after the long Winter.  So long walks are in order, being outside and watching and listening to the earth coming alive.  Feel the warm breezes on your face, dance in the rain, plan or plant your garden and herbs, raise your arms in praise to the Goddess and God for the wheel of the year turning once more.  It is a Blessing!

Also a wonderful thing happened this week!  My unbelievably awesome Book of Shadows from Witches Moon finally got here!  I waited 7 months but it was well worth the wait!  I got the Practical Magic book..it has two sections and flips over to open the other side..one section has 300 pages of aged parchment, the other has 200.  The leather is red/brown and very aged and old looking, the inside cover lining  is maroon/black/brown marbled and it has 5 long copper ribbons.  It smells heavenly, like lavendar and rose.  It is the ultimate Book of Shadows and I can’t wait to get my pages I’ve been working on for months, in the book.  I’m thrilled with it!

Bright Blessings,

Autumn

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February 28, 2010 · 1:54 pm

Goodbye to February…..

As much as I love the winter months, nesting in, the beauty of the snow, the time to reflect and relax a bit, I have to admit that I am more than ready for Spring this year.  We have had an exeptionally snowy and cold winter this year and I am just plain tired of it.  I’m seeing robins in my pond and they are a welcome sight!  I am dreaming of potting my herbs and planting flowers, not needing to wear a coat, opening windows to air out my house, and getting out to take some walks again.  Ahhh…that will be glorious indeed!  I love watching our acres of trees and grass and plants coming alive, turning green..that will be a wonderful day!

Ostara, or the Spring Equinox is coming up on the 20th.  I need to get busy and get my altar set up, decorate for it, and start some spring cleaning…I love that too believe it or not!  I love cleaning out closets, drawers, decluttering, simplifying, and getting in there and getting my hands dirty!  My house looks and smells great after the spring cleaning!  I’m lucky enough to have some help with that in my sister and daughter (hopefully! LOL).  I am also anticipating my grandaughters first egg hunt and egg dying…she is 15 months old now and should enjoy it!!  I can’t wait to see her in her pastel dress with her egg basket!  Because of our extended family (who don’t know about our being Wiccan)  we will celebrate on Easter with them..but for us Ostara is the big day.  Little Lily will get to have both Ostara and Easter!  Lucky girl.

Today is the last day of the Olympics, and I have enjoyed the last two weeks thoroughly!  I’m so proud of the American athletes..what a great job they did.  The most medals for the first time ever in the winter olympics.  Seeing the beauty of Vancouver has also been wonderful!  I would love to go there some day.  I especially loved the speed skating, snowboarding, skiing and figure skating!  While I like the summer olympics, the winter olympics are by far my favorite.

So here’s to spring, Ostara, spring cleaning and the Mother Earth getting ready to wake up and blossom in her Spring beauty!

Blessed Be, Autumn

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