We are just about one month away from the 2011 annual Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween party hosted at Disney’s Magic Kingdom and this year the family has decided to forgo dressing as zombies as the Witchlets plan to have their faces painted like their favorite animal. I feel this is safer, requires less clothing if it’s hot outside and it is actually less money.

I enjoyed dressing as a zombie last year but this year is a bit different. I’d like to find a few sexy Halloween costumes to surprise Zyon this year. Obviously, it’s Disney so it cannot be too extreme but I’d like to find something a bit gothic and dark. The dark imagery of Disney is one of the things I really like about visiting the parks and last year, I saw many people dressed up to suit the time of year. Zombies are cool and we got many comments but they are not Disney gothic.

I really hope I can find something that I like before we have to leave for Florida. Maybe I’ll get two costumes! I know Zyon would like something a little sexier than what I can wear to the park… well maybe a lot sexier!

For Beltane, CJ and I took the kids to Spoutwood farm for a festival. This year, we did not encounter any protestors but we went on the first day of the festive during the week and not on the weekend. As I’ve blogged about before, the previous year we encountered several protesters that actually came up and grabbed our children.

This year it seemed like they had better crowd control as they had makeshift stanchions set up to guide festivalgoers to the entry gate. This seemed to increase safety and made it easier to navigate through the fields and gardens during the short walk from the parking locations to the gates.

CJ and I want to make our rounds at many festivals this year to get the kids excited about all of the festivities that surround our holidays. I can only hope that other festivals have everything under control like Spoutwood did this year.

I think this is the next phase I want to progress to; learning more about herbs. My mother in law studies natural medicine and is actually taking classes online. I looked into this as well. I found WaldenU.edu and so I took a closer look at Walden University's online degree programs and so far it has my interest piqued. Of course, I will definitely need to learn about Walden and all those other important aspects that go along with an online college.

Was wondering if any of you can recommend books or websites to get me started--just to become more familiar with the medicinal uses for herbs. I know lots of magickal aspects ;)

I cannot believe school starts for the Witchlets in about 2 weeks! Olivia will be in 3rd grade and so computer use will most likely be an issue. We have (or should I say HAD) a nice iMac but Gods knows what the heck the Witchlets did to it -- the hard drive is dunzo!

Sooo, I m on the lookout for a desktop computers sale that will get me a really good deal on a computer for the Witchlets to use.

I certainly don't want to spend a lot of money; they seem to be hard on equipment!

Only one month and 12 days until we are back in Walt Disney World! We will be staying at Bay Lake Tower, our Home resort, for 5 nights and then off to the Grand Floridian Resort & Spa for 4 nights! Since we are leaving the day after my birthday, I am thinking of celebrating my birthday in WDW :)

Dante's birthday is September 19th and he wants to have his birthday in Disney too. WDW allows for you to celebrate anything you would like, no matter if the date of the event falls during your trip or not. Last year I was able to avoid having birthday parties (I am not a party thrower) and the Witchlets made birthday invitations to give to Mickey and Minnie since we celebrated each of their birthdays in Disney.

GAH!!!!!!  So NOW I understand why my life has turned upside down this month! Miscommunication with friends and lost someone very close to my heart (not to death, although he is dead to me, but I digress)

"As a rule, the planets are more emphatic during their retrograde phases, marking periods of seemingly inevitable or fated events that relate to their spheres of influence. By fated events I mean those that circumstances thrust upon us, rather than matters we have consciously decided to implement or resolve. In particular, unresolved issues from the past tend to rear their heads and demand to be dealt with. Retro phases present us with a series of events over which we seem to have little or no conscious control."

I suppose the demise of that relationship was inevitable and this Mercury retrograde finally made it all happen. *sigh*

"At 03:50 UT (Universal Time) Wednesday, August 3rd, 2011, Mercury the wise communicator—and universal trickster—turns retrograde at 1°12' Virgo in the sign of the Virgin, sending communications, travel, appointments, mail and the www into a general snarlup! The retro period begins some days before the actual turning point (as Mercury slows) and lasts for three weeks or so, until August 26, 2011, when the Winged Messenger reaches his direct station. At this time he halts and begins his return to direct motion through the zodiac."

Things are supposed to straighten out around September 9th but until then--well, hold on to your hats!
Oh, and Blessed Full Moon today as well :)

Every time I would go to my aunt and uncle's house while I was a little girl, I would also look at the kitchen and think about how great it was! It was always my favorite part of the house, by far, and now that I have the kitchen palette, I can try and recreate my dream version of it in my own home. Of course, there are things that I remember about that kitchen that sticks out in my mind, like the huge island that she had and the pots and pans that they had hanging up everywhere. Something about that just made it seem like something out of what I imagined a restaurant would be like.

Well, I've done so much research on it, so I know what's out there to use of the remodeling and decided on the website HomePROimprovement.com. They had a selection of stuff and had just what I wanted.
Plus, being able to do this on a budget means that I can stretch it and make it go that much farther for the remodeling.

Blessed Lughnasadh! It is already August 1st - the summer is coming to a close and Lughnasadh signifies this as the Wheel of the Year begins to shift from growing time to harvest time. Lughnasadh is the first of 3 harvests.

The subtle changes of the waning sun that occurred at Summer Solstice becomes more evident as the balance of day and night seem to shift more dramatically. In the past, fertility magic at Lughnasadh guaranteed the continued ripening of crops and bountiful harvest season. Festivities typically centered on the assurance of a plentiful harvest season and the celebration of the beginning of the harvest cycle.

Of curse, the Christian religion adopted this theme and called it 'Lammas, ' meaning 'loaf-mass ' - a time when newly baked loaves of bread are placed on the altar. An alternative date around August 5 (Old Lammas), when the sun reaches 15 degrees Leo, is sometimes employed by Covens to take the festival back.

To celebrate, I think I will make my Lughnasadh Incense - it smells soo good :)