Summer Is Ending

July is ending and so is my kids' summer break. In a 2 & 1/2 weeks they will back in school again. It's been a long, very hot and stressful summer. I picked the wrong summer to try and plant a garden. With record breaking temps, it was so hot that all my fruit, veggie, and herb plants died. I also had flowers that I had planted last year that started the summer off well and then they all died as well. Living in the Heartland of the U.S. you get to see just how bad things can get. Most of the local farmers crops are completely destroyed thanks to the hot weather. Now they are saying that prices on meat, eggs, & milk are going to go up. With having four kids and only one income that is really going to effect us when it happens. Food prices are all read outrageous so it's nerve wracking to know they are going to sky rocket even more due to an overly hot summer. We wanted to take the kids to the zoo this summer, but it's just been way too hot to go. We have a yearly pass that we got from the zoo for free and is good up until next spring, so when the weather cools a little we will find the time to go. With summer coming to an end, so is Glenn's job at the jail. They will be done with it in the next few weeks. I'm hoping they keep Glenn working and put him on another job, but we're not sure what's going to happen. It's been nice to have a steady income coming into the house. We have stayed caught up with the bills, I have been able to make more of my products and order more, and we will have the money to buy clothes and bags for the kids for school. I'm sad that Brendan (my youngest) will be starting school this year. He's my baby and I'm not sure if I'm ready to let him go. I know when my kids grow up and move out on their own, I'm going to be a wreck. I'm making Glenn take him on his first day so that I don't have to break down and cry in front of everyone. I know, I'm a big baby and it's only for 3 1/2 hours a day. It's hard letting the youngest go when you are a stay at home mom and have always had one or more kiddos at home. I know he needs to go, not only for him but for me as well. I can use that kid free time to focus more on getting my business started. I've been working hard and I've never been more determined in my life to do something then I have been with starting Twisted Witches. It's going slow right now due to the kids being on summer break and financial reasons. I want to do everything right too, because I want this to be a family business and I want it to last. I don't want it to fizzle out before I even get it up and going. So, that's what has been going on lately. I'm trying to get ready to celebrate Lammas and get the kiddos ready to start school. I'm so ready for the weather to cool and for fall to come.

My 30th Birthday!

My 30th birthday was on Saturday, July 14th, 2012! I got $20 from some of my hubby's family and bought a desktop Serenity water fountain, charcoal tabs, and frankincense resin with it. I also bought a Pagan oil kit. My hubby is going to buy me the 50 Shades of Grey trilogy. I've heard the books are pretty good, so I want to read them. I figure I night as well buy the trilogy to save a few bucks. I had another Twilight cake this year. There isn't much to choose from at Walmart for adults. I had a pretty good birthday. I don't need a ton of expensive presents to make me happy. My kids and hubby singing Happy Birthday to me was the highlight of the day. Also, all my kiddos giving me hugs and kisses and yelling Happy Birthday was pretty great also. Can't wait until next year!

The good and the bad!

A lot has been going on lately so I thought I'd share all, the good and the bad.

Summer Fun

We've been grilling out a lot lately. It's a lot of fun getting everyone together to grill, play Frisbee and horseshoes, and go swimming. My hubby's dad and his girlfriend has a big pool in their backyard. My kiddos love going swimming there. We have a sprinkler that they also love playing in. The big pool, sprinkler, and kids pool have been coming in handy for cooling off, because this summer has been unusually hot. This summer is the first one that I've made kabobs and they are delicious and very addictive. Everyone loves them so I plan on making them a lot more often. We also have a family pass for the Children's Zoo here in Lincoln so we plan on visiting there as soon as the weather isn't so hot. We go a few times every year and with having a family pass that is good for a year, it makes it easier and less expensive to go. My kids love feeding and petting the goats. My favorite animal is the leopard. The kids have been getting bored because it's been too hot to go outside lately and we've been stuck in the house, so I think a trip to the zoo would be good for them as soon as the weather cools a little.

4th of July

We had a good time on the 4th. We all went to Glenn's dad's house to celebrate. They live by Air Park on a hill over looking Lincoln so you get a great view of the fireworks. We got mostly fireworks for the kids like we do every year so they had fun. We did the usual. Grilling food, swimming in the big pool, the guys played horseshoes, and we set of fireworks. I tried to get some good pics of the fireworks, but it's hard to do without the proper lens to do so. The kids were a little cranky and weren't listening very well, but overall it was a great night. It was nice to get out of the house and have a convo with adults instead of little kiddos.

July's Full Moon-Blessing Moon

July's full moon is also known as the Blessing Moon. I've been devoting a lot more of my time to the Craft so I decided to do a Blessing Moon ritual. I also decided to make more Blessing (Holy) Water too. Just one of the things I like doing now that I'm an Ordained Minister. I need to get more bottles to put the Blessing Water in. My Blessing Moon ritual went great and I enjoyed being outside under the full moon. It was a little windy, so I had to sit in the front of the garage with the door open so I could do my ritual under the full moon, but to shield my candles from blowing out. It was a good night and with my birthday being the 14th, I felt that it was important to do a ritual on this full moon. Now I will spend my time making products to sell and getting ready for Lammas which is August 1st and the same day of the next full moon, also known as the Corn Moon.

New Pagan Tattoos

My brother-in-law recently started doing tattoos. He bought several tattoo guns, ink, lots of needles, and etc. I've been wanting a couple Pagan symbols tattooed on my arms so I payed him to do them for me. He did a great job. A few lines on the pentacle need to be fixed after they heal and the triquetra looks great. I took pics (not good ones) right after they were done. I'll have to take better ones when the tattoos heal. I'm happy that I have them now. I'm hoping to get more tattoos later on. I want something with Glenn and the kid's names. I would also like to get one in remembrance of Glenn's little sister, Charity. She was my best friend and like a little sis to me. I miss her so much. But for now waiting for my Pagan tattoos to heal.

Conrad Grove
Glenn's cousin Conrad passed away at the age of 31. I don't know all the details. My hubby is devastated especially since it was a sudden death just like his little sister's. No one saw it coming and it was a shock to everyone. I wasn't close to Conrad, but the few times I talked to him, he was really nice and respectful to me. We found out about Conrad on July 3rd which would have been Charity's 27th birthday. He had died on July 2nd. It brought back a lot of painful memories from losing Charity. I feel bad for my husband's family. They have now lost 2 family members at young ages less then 8 years apart. I hope they never have to feel that pain again. 2 tragic deaths within one family is horrible. They cremated Conrad and are holding a memorial for him on July 14th, my birthday. He left behind a girlfriend and a son who is still a toddler. My husband is out in Maryland with his father right now visiting family. I hope he is catching up with everyone and they are happy to see him.

 http://www.herald-mail.com/obituaries/hm-conrad-g-grove-31-20120704,0,6684647.story

Kids With Attitudes
I love my kiddos, but they are driving me crazy. They are still very young (8, 7, 5, & 3) so they like to throw temper tantrums. It doesn't help that 2 of my kiddos have ADHD, my toddler is probably the most destructive kiddo I've ever seen, and my 8 year old is a smart ass like me. I don't know whether they are bored, sick of me and Glenn, or both. I think they may be sick of each other too. I don't know. I'm just trying to be the best mom I can be and trying to cope with all the chaos around my house. I seriously think teachers should get payed double then what they do now. I really love my kiddos and want to spend time with them, but I can't wait until school starts again. I think most of the problem is they bored and because we are poor, we don't have the money to dish out to entertain them all the time. I live in the city and our yard isn't fenced in, so it's not like I can just send them outside to play like my mother did with my siblings and I. We live in a much more dangerous world now. Not only does there seem to be more child predators, violence, gun violence, and so on, but CPS seems to want to take people's kids away for anything. Parents don't have the rights they used to have and CPS sees every little thing as neglect now in days. I'm trying to stay patient and I know my kiddos get sick of me bossing them around, but I hope that someday they will look back and realize everything that I do is for their benefit and to protect them.

My Non Garden

This was the first year that I have tried to start my own garden. I had a lot of different fruits, veggies, and herbs planted. Sadly, I only have 2 pumpkin plants left. It's been really hot this summer all across the U.S. 56% of the U.S. is in a drought which tells you how bad it is. Because of the heat and crappy soil in our yard everything we plant dies on us. It sucks and I might try growing them inside next time were I can keep a better eye on them. I don't think it would be too hard and maybe they just might survive next time. I think the heat is was what killed them. There have been many days here lately were I won't let my kids go outside, because it's just way too hot. Hopefully, next summer won't be so bad.  I was really looking forward to harvesting everything, but I'll try again next year.

Recycling Old Furniture

I have an older dresser that had a couple of broken drawers and an end table with drawers so I decided to use it for extra storage space in my office. They both had scuffs and other imperfections so I decided that I should paint them took look nicer and that way they match also. I went to Walmart and found a really nice green paint called Field of Greens. For the past several nights I've been painting the dresser and finally have it done. I'm going to let it sit and dry over the next few days before moving it to my office. The newly painted old dresser and soon to be painted end table with drawers will provide extra storage space for my herbs, tinctures, wound wash, blessing water, candles, bath salts, and etc. As for the dresser drawers, I plan on making signs out of the wood pieces and selling them. I'm going to get a few more colors of paint for that and I found a woman on ebay who lives in Kearney, Ne and she has some stencils that I like. So, those are my plans. I wanted to recycle everything instead of throwing the stuff out. My office isn't very big and I need the storage space too. I will post pics when I'm done with everything. I plan on changing my curtians and lamp shade also. Right now they are both a burgundy color, so going to try and find something close to the green I'm painting the furniture.

To Attract Money

With the economy and lack of jobs a lot of people are hurting for money. I decided that it's a good time to put together a blog post on spells and other magical ways to attract money. I hope that this helps my Pagan friends and that money comes their way.

*Money Spell Bottle*

5 pennies
5 dimes
5 quarters
5 kernels of dried corn
5 kernels of dried wheat (or 5 tsp. of wheat flour)
5 cinnamon sticks
5 cloves
5 whole allspice
5 pecans

Place each item into a thin, tall bottle, such as a spice bottle. Cap it tightly. Shake the bottle with your projective hand for five minutes while chanting these or similar words:

Herbs and silver
Copper and grain;
Work to increase
My money gain.

Place the money spell bottle on a table somewhere in your house. Leave your purse, pocketbook, wallet and/or checkbook near the bottle when at home. Allow money to come into your life.

*Money Mojo Bag*

This very basic money-attraction bag works on the theory that like attracts like -- to put it simply, money attracts more money. Feel free to change the wording of the spell to suit your own needs if necessary. You will need the following items:

•A silver candle and a gold candle
•A small cloth pouch with a drawstring
•A handful of play money (like Monopoly) of different denominations
•A taglock for yourself (hair, nail clippings, etc)
•Ginger (for power and success)
•Nutmeg (for prosperity)

Prepare your workspace as you normally do - if you wish to cast a circle, go ahead. Light the two silver candles on either side of your space, so that you are working between them. As you light them say:

"Gold and silver, silver and gold, make money come and dollars unfold."

Place your play money and the taglock into the bag. As you do this, think about yourself and the money being together. You might even rub the taglock and the money against each other as you place them in the mojo bag. Say:

"Cast from necessity, not from greed, all I'm asking is for what I need."

Place the ginger and the nutmeg in the bag, and focus on success and prosperity coming your way. Hold the bag in your hands and say:

"Tens and twenties, fives and ones, as I will, it shall be done."

Now, take a moment to think about what you will do with the money that comes your way. Will you use it to get out debt? Pay a bill? Have a little bit of extra grocery money? Allow the candles to burn out on their own. Place the bag in a safe place where it will be undisturbed, and out of sight.


*Basic Money Spell*

This very basic money spell is an easy one -- although it was originally created years ago with kids in mind, I've found that adults have some degree of success with it as well. Like the Money Mojo Bag, this works on the theory that like attracts like -- money attracts more money. Feel free to change the wording to better suit your needs if you wish to do so. You will need the following:

•A square of green paper
•Nine pennies
•An envelope

Do this spell outside, under a tree. Take the piece of paper and write on it how much money you would like to have come your way -- although you can put any amount there, be realistic and reasonable. Fold the paper three times, and then place it in the envelope. Add the pennies. Say:

"Nine cents to make prosperity flow. Nine pennies to multiply, nine pennies to grow."

Seal the envelope, and draw a dollar sign on the outside. Bury the envelope under the tree (be careful not to get too close to the roots!), and cover up the hole. Ask the tree to keep watch over your pennies. Money should start coming your way soon.


*Money Incense Recipe #1*

1 part Nutmeg
1 part Pepperwort
1 pinch Saffron

*Money Incense Recipe #2*

2 parts Pine needles or resin
1 part Cinnamon
1 part Galangal
a few drops Patchouly oil

*Fast Money Oil*

7 drops Patchouly
5 drops Cedarwood
4 drops Vetivert
2 drops Ginger

*Money Bath*

3 parts Patchouly
2 parts Basil
1 part Cinnamon
1 part Cedar

Put herbs in sachet and let your bath water run over them. Let the sachet float in your bath water as you bath.

*Money Brew*

3 parts Sassafras
2 parts Cedar
1 part Allspice
1 part Clove
1 part Dill
1 part Vetivert
1 part Calamus

Half fill a green glass bottle with fresh water. Add about a handful or so of the mixed herbs. Cap tightly and leave in full sunlight all day. At dusk, sniff the water. If scent is strong, strain and add to baths, wash hands, anoint money charms, and etc. If it isn't strong enough, chill overnight and return to the sun the following day.

*Money Soap*

3 parts Patchouly
2 parts Peppermint
1 part Basil
1 part Pine
1 part Cinnamon

Add oils to a melted soap base of your choice. Dye green with bath product dye. Pour in molds and let cool. Wash your hands daily with the soap to attract money.

*Money Candles*

2 pounds of Soy wax
green candle dye
tabbed wicks
glass jars of your choice
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
Patchouly essential oil

Use a glue gun to hot glue your tabbed wicks to the bottom of your jars. Secure top of wick to a popsicle stick to help keep wick centered during and after pouring wax. Set aside. Using a double boiler, melt your wax completely. Remove from heat and add your green candle dye and 10-20 drops of Patchouly oil (depending on how strong you want the scent), stir in well. Then add your ground herbs to the wax and mix well. Carefully pour your wax into your jars and let cool. When cool, trim your wick down to 1/4 inch. Burn candle or candle for a few hours a day to bring money your way. Do not burn candle for more then 3-4 hours at a time and never leave candle unattended. Keep away from animals, children, and flammable objects.

Litha Fire Ritual

It's Summer Solstice (Litha) time again. The longest day of the year. It's when the sun is most powerful and after today the days will be shorter and nights longer. The following is a Fire Ritual that can be done on Litha.

1. If you want to cast a circle before the ritual do so. This ritual is best done outside, but if that isn't possible you can still do it inside.

2.Begin the ritual by preparing the wood for the fire, without lighting it. If you are doing the ritual inside, use a table top brazier or fire safe pot.

3. Say either to yourself or out loud:
"Today, to celebrate Midsummer, I honor the Earth itself. I'm surrounded by all trees. There is a clear sky above me and cool dirt beneath me, and I am connected to all three. I light this fire as the Ancients did so long ago."

At this point start your fire.

Say:
"The wheel of the year has turned once more. The light has grown for six long months until today.

4. Say:
"Today is Litha, called Alban Heruin by my ancestors. A time for celebration. Tomorrow the light will begin to fade as the wheel of the year turns ever on and on.

5. Turn to the East, and say:
"From the East comes the wind, cool and clear. It brings new seeds to the garden, bees to the pollen, and birds to the trees."

6. Turn to the South, and say:
"The sun rises high in the summer sky and lights our way even into the night. Today the sun casts three rays. The light of fire upon the land, sea, and the heavens."

7. Turn to the West, and say:
"From the West, the mist rolls in bringing rain and fog. The life-giving water, without which we would cease to be."

8. Turn to the North, and say:
"Beneath my feet is the Earth, soils dark and fertile. The womb in which all life begins and will later die, then return anew."

Build up the fire even more, so that you have a good strong blaze going.

9. If you wish to make an offering to the Gods and Goddesses, now is the time to do so. This is optional.

Say:
"Alban Heruin is a time of re dedication to the gods. The triple goddess watches over me. She is known by many names. She is Morrighan, Brighid, and Cerridwen. She is the washer at the ford. She is the guardian of the hearth. She is the one who stirs the cauldron of inspiration."

"I give honor to you, o mighty ones, by all your names known and unknown. Bless me with your wisdom and give life and abundance to me, as the sun gives life and abundance to the Earth."

10. Say:
"I make this offering to you to show my allegiance, to show my honor, and to show my dedication to you."

Cast your offering into the fire.

11. Conclude the ritual by saying:
"Today, at Litha, I celebrate the life and love of the gods/goddesses and of the Earth and sun."

Take a few minutes to reflect upon what you have offered, and what the gifts of the gods/goddesses mean to you. When you are ready, if you have cast a circle, dismantle it or dismiss the quarters at this time. Allow your fire to burn out on it's own.

Father's Day 2012

Glenn had a good Father's Day. He got up early and went fishing with a friend. He and that same friend watched the kids while they played in the pool and sprinkler. After the kids got tired of playing in the water, they changed clothes, and all went to the park. When everyone came home, some of Glenn's friends and family showed up. The guys of course had to play horseshoes as usual. Glenn's dad took over the grill and cooked the food. He always seems to get the meat done just right. He's a grill master. I made kabobs for the first time. They were super yummy and everyone loved them. Glenn didn't get much for Father's Day, but he bought some fishing stuff that he needed. I think he enjoyed the time with everyone more.

                                                Glenn & Hailey
                                                           

                                          My yummy kabobs.