Michael and Jaspenelle

Flying solo

Michael went back to work today so I have been flying solo with Damian since 8:30 this morning. So far we ate breakfast (both of us), napped for 2 hours, changed a cloth diaper, breastfed, changed another diaper (almost resorting to a disposable due to flailing baby), gave some comfort boob, and then he fell asleep on my chest. If I had a third arm I would take a photo in the funny balancing pose I have the laptop in so I can type this both hands…

I am going to have to extract myself from this pose shortly to make myself some more food. It hasn’t been too difficult so far but afternoon is approaching, his most active time. Maybe I will take him for a little walk in one of the wraps.

A few days ago, Michael, Damian and I drove out to Mother’s Haven where we got a breastfeeding pillow (made by Luna Lullaby, it is amazing) as well as a Maya Wrap. I love Mother’s Haven, I don’t think I will be buying any mother/baby stuff anywhere else if I can find it there. The owner is an amazing woman and the quality of her products are outstanding.

We got the Maya Wrap for Michael because it is very easy to put on and get use to. Damian loves it, we went for a walk around the Farmer’s Market with him after we bought it.

I have a Moby Wrap which is a bit tricker but better to secure Damian while I do housework. We are both getting use to it and how tight or loose it has to be. Still haven’t tried breastfeeding in either one.

Michael and I have been handfasted for one year today. We decided this morning that Damian is the best gift ever.

And the best gift ever needs a diaper change now.

Normalizing

Things are normalizing here in Spokane. My dad was the last out of town guest to leave, he flew out yesterday morning. This is also Michael’s last Saturday that he has to work, before going back to weekends off (we was doing splits before.) Tomorrow or Monday I will be getting back to my candles. The apartment needs a serious cleaning too.

The article came out today, Michael mirrored it here, so you all can read it. In the physical paper we are front page in the Today section of the paper (for any locals that is section E) and our photo takes up half that page!

Speaking of photos, they are still trickling in, Michael and I also want to go to a studio (JC Penny’s or something) and get photos taken of just the two of us. Some of the ones from Saturday are up here. I will be adding to and captioning this folder as I get new stuff.

Blessed

In response to Autumn Zephyr’s comment:

You’d think you and Micheal were ion some state of newly handfasted bliss or something. Where are your pictures? How did the handfasting go?

My family, who I have not seen in four years doesn’t all leave till Friday, so I have been spending some time with them (ie: Michael and I getting spoiled rotten) and by the time we get home, we have hardly had time to look at the computer. Some highlights though before we go out again today.

The ceremony was gorgeous! Lots of tears, at the moment no pictures since everyone else used there camera and we have to get the photos from them. Michael set up an upload site up for everyone to stick them on. We also have eight films to develop, be just haven’t found the time yet.

If you have pictures of the ceremony, upload them here preferably unaltered.

If there was any hitch in the entire thing, no one told me wedding cake icing was rock hard impossible to cut. The first cut is only a ceremonial - hence it took about five minutes to get the first slice… Illustrating the tough times marriage has to get through perhaps? It was still funny though, and the cake was gorgeous.

Sunday, we really did nothing except get a friend off to the airport and then lay around, pretend to clean up etc. Monday got our other friend loaded on the Greyhound and back to Seattle and went out with my family, had lunch, played pool for the afternoon. Michael got to know my family. Tuesday we went out to Lake Coeur d’Alene, did the lake ferry tour, lunch, shopped (I got a UV reactive shirt, it turns from white to colour in the sun - how cool is that?!) We had dinner at Catacombs in Spokane. Today my mom, grandma and cousin Becka are leaving, we need to leave in 30minutes to take Becka to the airport. It is Michael last day off before going back to work, and we are going to spend it with my dad (maybe my brother and his friend, Lauren, will come over too.) My father and brother leave on Friday, everything should kind of normalize after that.

We have gotten a lot of gifts and packages, an handmade pine altar, a beautiful dragonfly tea set from my Aunt Ruth with some teas, a handpainted pentacle altar tile, a woven beeswax candle, cards, money, towels, handmade quilted pillows, a NOAA radio, a gold rose anklet, moonstone and opal circlets, an opal ring, about four pounds of fresh middle Eastern henna (I wonder what customs thought of that…), today we just received a gorgeous handcrafted Tibetan singing bowl from Eve, it sounds gorgeous. I am sure I am missing a couple things, but I will get photographs of everything up on a site within the next couple weeks and link everyone to it. Oo and my friend Jessi (a henna artist as well) did my bridal henna on my hands for the ceremony, it is beautiful!

The reporter called us this morning and read us the article she wrote about us, it brought me to tears, it is so gorgeous. It will be in this Saturday’s paper I believe. Michael and I are kind of in the state of newly wed bliss again it seems.

Forgive the typos, no time to proofread, got to go pick up Becka.

Reporter Update

We met with the reporter, Virginia de Leon, (the one who wants to do the story about the handfasting for the local paper) yesterday afternoon and had a really wonderful open talk. I feel that she will use all her power to write a positive article or else not publish it. So she is coming to the handfasting with a photographer.

Virginia also asked permission to ask a few people some questions, I said that was ok as long as she asked permission before taking pictures and respected anyone who declined.

SOOOO excited, 4 days till the handfasting, I’m getting use to the bridal stress stuff!

Homestretch

5 days, 3 hours, 20 minutes till the handfasting (yikes!)

Stress, panic, argggg!

Actually not really…

I feel pretty relaxed right now It is all going to turn out beautifully. Even if every detail is not perfect, that is ok. I need to finish memorizing my vows and sewing my skirt. I am going to clean the apartment top to bottom today, except the bathroom, that is Michael’s job. Tomorrow Kim and I are going to pick up food for the Stott family reunion (also this week!) and the handfasting.

This past Thursday was my last day at Ampco, which I am very glad about. I really didn’t like that job. I have this whole week to focus only on the handfasting without worrying about anything else. I probably won’t be posting to much this week, lots of people will be arriving throughout the week and I won’t have too much time to blog (much less time to think…)

Now to start the cleaning…

Our handfasting in the paper?

I got home today and I had a message on the answering machine, from Virginia de Leon, a reporter from the Spokesman - I like her stuff, she does a lot of stories about diversity. She wants to come to Michael and my handfasting with a photographer and do a story on it!

I’m in shock.

We are meeting with her next week (I want to meet her first before I go through with this) but initial answer is a resounding yes. I hope I can do the local Pagan community proud.

I still need time for it to sink in though, I have till Tuesday’s meeting to mull it all over.

A Trip Down Nightmare Lane

Finally they have started, the nightmares. Michael and I are being handfasted in 14 days and I had my first nightmare about it last night.

Nothing was going right, no one knew their lines and then Lilly couldn’t be there so we got the only replacement we could find (that annoying boss from office space.) My parents walked out in the middle of the ritual, people talked through the rest, I lost my skirt, the food was living and people couldn’t catch it.

Of course the nightmare is completely transparent and easy to understand and while waking it is really funny! Seriously though it was terrifying while I was asleep, hehe. The office space guy? Noooooo.

~~~

Hmmm: I have been researching the history of the pentacle lately for one of my websites and ran across this page which appears to be on some kind of odd fundy Christian debt help site. The information on this page (about the Knights Templar) is pretty decent until you get to the end where it seems to be saying I have to get out of debt so I don’t fund the secret the Knights Templar/Freemasonry/the Illuminati organization trying to rule the world.

For some reason it makes me think of Pinky and The Brain…

Crunch Time

18 days till the handfasting, Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! Crunch time.

I think most of my stress is just jitters, the whole, “what if I trip over my skirt” thought pattern. And I know I am bringing this up on my blog quite often but hey, it’s a big day.

A thunderstorm is rolling in here at the moment, unusual for the mornings here, hopefully it will help recharge me. I am actually not that stressed really - I feel pretty well prepared, just a little drained.

• The ceremony is completely written, everyone has only to learn their parts.
• We can’t pick up food until a couple days before so not worrying about that yet, I will pick up table coverings that day too.
• I have Michael’s robes almost completely done (just to sew on the trimming which I will do today or tomorrow.)
• Still have to make my skirt, but I have my corset and blouse.
• I have finished most of the candles done for the reception (made of deliciously beautiful palm wax.) I have to made the unity candle still.
• I still need to pick up a guestbook.
• I need to print out the program, maybe I will just print out one and have it on the entrance table. 52 confirmed guest at the moment.
• There are a few other little things but I can tidy those up in a day.

I put in my two weeks notice at work a couple days ago, finally. So I will be off a little before the handfasting, I feel I still have some time. I want to get my new business card design done before my last day since most of my customers want one. Which means Michael needs to finish my website by then. I have to finish a couple things before he can go forward though. After the handfasting and all my family leaves, I will probably end up picking up another job, something I like more then my current one - maybe at a bakery.

Arg it is hard to concentrate on typing, everyone time my arm rubs against my shirt it hurts. I must have recently cut myself and not noticed, because I have this little scar-like mark on the inside of my arm I have never noticed before, it kinda hurts when it rubs against my shirt. Meh, must locate bandaid before it drives me nuts! Onward…

Outside of the handfasting, I have two prepaid votive and pillar orders to fill which take priority. As it is, I took a “me day” recently, and got most of my wand done. Applewood is my favorite wood of all time.

And here comes the rain, so if you will excuse me I am going to go sit on my balcony and watch it come. Feel those negative ions!

Workplace Musings: Handfasting Jitters

I wrote this post (and took this picture) yesterday. Yes, it is another less-then-cerebral ramble… Enjoy! Don’t miss Feline Friday, it is in the post before this one.

Is it already Thursday again? Yikes! Already confined to the parking booth for another 13 hour day. I did this 13 hour thing yesterday too since my co-worker needed it off for medical stuff. Many prayers going out to her family. I hope all is well. I admit:* I don’t mind the extra hours and helping out but I also have a lot of stuff to get done so it is a little stressful.

(* I love this side note confession thing that PeppyLady does in her blog.)

I am putting in my two weeks at the garage on June first, for a lot of reasons I will not get to much into. After the handfasting I will find another job. I’m hoping to land one at one of the local bakeries. Some time in the next couple weeks I am going to try to get over to the health building and get my food handlers card. It never hurts to have one in advance to mark on the resume.

This Saturday we are having another handfasting meeting/rehearsal. Sal won’t be able to come but I know he knows his stuff. I need to find a moment to call Danielle (a ritual bearer for the ceremony.) I was going to call her last night but I thought it was too late by the time I got home. I will call her tonight, which will still be late but I hope she forgives. I don’t like calling people after 20:00. I need to get in touch with Jessi too (another ritual bearer. ) 52 days, arg!

I’m jittery, not about Michael (we have already been married -by civil union- for two years) but about everything else that comes with planning a large party.

I’ll be working my butt of tomorrow, sewing Michael’s handfasting robes. I need to remember to ask him a question about the collar tonight. [Friday Note: I forgot to ask him.] I started on them the other day but I was in such a foul mood I made myself stopped, so that I didn’t screw up (I also ran into the aforementioned question.) The fabric for it is lovely but I have I think it may attract lint so I will need to remember to bring the brush to the handfasting location. Our felines can sense which box I am keeping the fabric in. They want to shed on it so badly. No matter what the colour wheel says, their orange fur does not compliment the navy blue fabric.

I finished decorating the besom, pictures may be forthcoming. In June, I will be going with Kim to Costco to pick up all the food stuff, so that worry can be set aside. I still need to do sew my skirt but I have the fabric now. I gained a few pounds over the winter but my corset still fits and since I started biking to work I have lost two inches off my waist. (Three more to go!) We’ll see how that goes. I measure my waist rather then my weight, mostly because I do not own a scale.

Not that I am overly obsessed with my weight. I avoid fad diets like the plague. I remember my mother’s diets, the results never last. It you build the foundation of eating right in the first place, I don’t see the need for them. Balancing that diet with exercise can be tough, especially in the Winter, but if you keep it up it pays off long term. (I admit: I did not keep up on my exercise this Winter, the lack of sun de-motivates me.)

It is cloudy today and I am really feeling it, my PMS is probably not helping. I usually can overcome my hormones with logic but at this moment, if PMS was another person, I would be smashing her against a wall and screaming at the top of my lungs while crying and laughing at the same time. Ya, hormones!

I have to figure out how to turn the piece of lace I bought into a veil (Kim?). I also need to order some palm wax so that I can make the votives for the reception tables. I need to check the price for a case of votive cups too. I have some journey candles to finish too but it keeps getting pushed out of the way by handfasting stuff. I have a feeling that quite a few things will be put on hold until after the big day.

In spite of the approaching crunch time, I am a little bit glad I am at work all day today. It gives me time to review my game plan (and daydream about my long term projects.) I can also catch up on my reading and embroidery (I have been working on my mala bead bag today.)

Lunch Time.

Never got back to typing after lunch.

Handfasting Update

We are having another handfasting meeting today, this time it is up at Lilly’s so I can show everyone the spiral dance (weather permitting) and we can run through the ceremony fully for the first time.

T-69 days.
Yikes!

I am keeping up pretty well with preparations, but there is still stuff to do:

• Make version two of Michael’s robes. (Mock up is done though and fits great.)
• Make my skirt. My corset was made for me already and my shirt was bought. Now just the skirt, I need to buy the silk.
• Make Michael and my unity candle, the tapers are done.
• Decorate the besom. Ivory, garnet and navy blue ribbon and flowers must be found.
• Food. Grandma is making the cake (love, love, love my Grandma!) Otherwise it is going to be picnic style - hamburgers, salad, ice tea. I need to ask Kim if I can go to Costco with her sometime to buy hamburgers, I also need a freeze to store them in.
• I need to email my dad about the circlets.
• I need to get plates and cutlery too. I need to ask Kim where she got the table coverings for Ginanne’s wedding.
• I need to send out reminder emails to the people coming, especially long distance, so I know when they are coming and how long they are staying and where they are getting a room. I need to get a good approximation of who is coming so because of planning food.

I think that is it for now. Right now I need to clean the kitchen, make breakfast, go over the ceremony with Michael and then go out to Lilly’s.