Wesołych Świąt! Merry Christmas! Buon Natale!
Boldog Karácsonyt! Feliz Navidad!

And Mardylas came to Edinburgh, this is our first Xmas together :]

Here with Greyfriars Bobby

We All Come From The Goddess

We all come from the Goddess

And to Her we shall return

Like a drop of rain

Flowing to the ocean

I received these two Goddess pendants as a birthday gift.
The one with a black pentagram I feel like wearing now, during long nights with cold winds, during the reign of The Crone.
The one with a pearl lies on the altar for time being. When the right time comes I'll feel it. 

Winter Solstice

The Winter is rollig on and the darkness is enveloping us.

The Earth sleeps, preparing itself for its emergence in Springtime.

The people of the land shiver and cosy in with each other, standing against the biting cold.

The trees stand bare and seemingly lifeless across the land. But all is not dead. Nature stares this adversity on the eye and refuses to die The Winter chill only serves to make us want to dance together, to share body heat, to eat til we're bursting, drink til we're merry and laugh til our faces ache.
Nature lives on, the Holly has sprouted its precious berries, its ostentatious and, some might say lascivious, scarlet hue warming the monochromatic melancholy, reminding us that the Wild Man of the Woods still stalks the land, surveying his Kingdom.

And the Winter King wants us to enjoy the season.

We have reached the shortest day, the longest night. From here on in we lookforward to the coming of the Spring. The emergence of snowdrops and daffodils is just round the corner. Together we shall light the darkness!

Come celebrate the Winter Solstice with your brethren, revel in the turning of the tide.

This year's Winter King gave me a special personal blessing

And he has a birthday the same day as me :]

Flying lesson

Well, what are you waiting for?

Everyone stand by a broomstick.

Stick out your right hand over your broom and say 'Up'!

Afer mounting your broom, kick off from the ground, hard.

Keep your broom steady, rise a few feet, and then come straight back down by leaning forward slightly.

Flying lessons by Madame Hooch, Flying Instructor

Boobs

Mardylas works almost 24/7. This usually causes him headache and too much stress.

I got something, especially for him, to squeeze and fondle his stress away - stress boobs ;]

Believe me, he is much more relaxed now.

Yule Survey

I was tagged by  Jenandollie  in Yule Survey. I think this means I need to answer some questions. That was a good fun :D

 1. Have you started Yule shopping yet?
Oh yes, I usually start it early to avoid madness between shoppers ;]

2. Tell me about one of your special holiday traditions.
Christmas wafer - family members and friends break off a small piece of the wafer and give it to one another along with a blessing. Breaking off and exchanging part of wafer with someone is symbol of forgiveness between two people and is meant to remind participants of the importance of Christmas and family.

3. When do you put up your tree?
First or second weekend in december.

4. Are you a black Friday shopper?
Noooo, shopping drives me nuts in general

5. Do you travel at Yule or stay at home?
I usually travel home to Poland, to stay with my family. However this year I spend Yule in Edinburgh with Mardylas

6. What is your funniest Yule memory?
Few years ago, I convinced my family I'm not able to come home. On Yule eve I knocked  the door. Nobody was expecting me at all. That was a great time :)

7. What is your favourite Yule movie?
The most most favourite is “Love Actually”. I do like also “The Nightmare before Christmas”.

8. Do you do any Yule baking and which is your favourite treat?
I help and my favourite are gingerbread cookies yummy

9. Real or fake tree?
I dream to have a real tree. So far I end up each year with a fake one :/

10. What day does the actual panic set in to get it all done?
Panic??? There's no panic ;]

11. Are you still wrapping presents on Yule eve?
Nope. All presents are wrapped and under the tree. I tell you more - on Yule eve I unwrap presents (polish tradition ;])

12. What is your favorite family fun time at Yule?
Decorating tree, cooking food, watching for the first star on Yule eve, enjoying time with family :)

13. What Yule craft do you like best?
Making Yule decorations.

14. Yule music, Yes or No and if yes what is your favourite peice?
Yes, and this is "All I want for Christmas..."

15. Do you plan to do finish all your shopping?
No way, there is always sth I forget i.e. candles, napkins ;]

Now is my turn for tagging:

Ordinary Witch

Shadowed Paths

Rantings of a Crazed Woman

Balls anyone?

 Get the balls and join us on the Domestic Witch yummiest collection
 Goat Cheese Olive Balls

250 grams of soft goat cheese
1/4 cup of finely chopped kalamata olives
1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes
1 teaspooon of very finely chopped fresh rosemary
1/2 teaspoon of sea salt
1/4 teaspoon of freshly cracked black pepper
2 teaspoons of freshly cracked mixed peppercorns for coating

In a small bowl, mash together the goat cheese, olives, red pepper flakes, rosemary, salt and black pepper. Roll into 1 inch balls. Sprinkle with a bit of the mixed peppercorns, rolling the ball around on the palm of your hand to coat. Chill for 30 minutes. Serve with thin crackers or simply consume as is.
 

Santa did came this year ;]

I like december, mainly due to the amout of presents I get and celebrations.

Let's start then.

In my homeland - Poland, we celebrate Santa Claus Day on the 6th December. On that day Santa comes to visit you with his big sack full of presents or sometimes hide presents under your bed.

I faithfully continue this tradition even though I live in Scotland now ;]

This year I received my present via Owl Post.

I got a letter with love and Rubik cube! :D

The Rubik's Cube is a 3-D mechanical puzzle invented in 1974 by Hungarian sculptor and professor of architecture Ernő Rubik. Originally called the "Magic Cube".

In a classic Rubik's Cube, each of the six faces is covered by 9 stickers, among six solid colours (traditionally white, red, blue, orange, green, and yellow).

A pivot mechanism enables each face to turn independently, thus mixing up the colours. For the puzzle to be solved, each face must be a solid colour.

I already mixed up the colours. Now I will spend centuries to solve it ;D

Scarabaeus & Bastet

Two monhts ago I visited Egypt. I wish I could stay longer there, so many things to discover, so many stories to hear. The story of our journey starts here Egypt Crusade 2009, the rest of the photos you can also find in my Photo Diary :]

During our many wanders I received a gift from a local shop - a small scarabaeus.

Scarab known also as kheper, and as the animal was associated with life and rebirth. Literally the word means "he who is coming into being". Khephir was a self-created god. The scarab lays its eggs in a ball of dung and rolls it to hide in a safe place. From this unlikely substance the Egyptians observed new life emerging, seemingly from the the earth. Hence he was a god of creation.

Early in Egyptian history the beetle also came to represent the soul rising from death.

Similarly, they believed that Khephri, in the form of a gigantic scarab, rolled the sun like a huge ball through the sky, then rolled it through the underworld to the eastern horizon. Each morning Khephri would renew the sun so that it could give life to all the world. As a deity closely associated with resurrection, Khephir was believed to be swallowed by his mother, Nut each evening and passed through her body to be reborn each morning.

And as a cat lover, I admire the Goddess Bastet.

Bastet was the goddess of fire, cats, of the home and pregnant women. The Goddess was represented as a desert cat, or a woman with the head of a cat.

 According to one myth, she was the personification of the soul of Isis. She was also called the "Lady of the East".

Bastet seemed to have two sides to her personality, docile and aggressive. Her docile and gentle side was displayed in her duties as a protector of the home, and pregnant women. Her aggressive and vicious nature was exposed in the accounts of battles in which the pharaoh was said to have slaughtered the enemy as Bastet slaughtered her victims.

Goddess

It arrived today. Silver Goddess pendant.

Isis, Astarte, Diana, Hecate, Demeter, Kali, Inanna

The chant is so calming and powerful

Mince pie

When I first tasted mince pie I was suprised. I thought it supposed to be a pastry with a meat in it ;]

Mince pies are a British festive sweet pastry, traditionally consumed during the Xmas and New Year period.  They are filled with mincemeat – a preserve typically containing apple, dried fruits such as raisins and sultanas, spices, and either suet or vegetable shortening. Well, originally, mincemeat always contained meat.

And I didn't really like it.

But from past few days I felt like eating mince pie  o_O

As the desire grew, my salivary glands were producing more and more saliva, making my hunger center very distracted.

As a result I bought for the first time, just for me, mince pies ;]

Recipe how to make mincemeat and more facts about mince pies you find on Jen's Ramblings of a Newbie Pagan

Goddess

These ones I got from my witch sister Maelen

If you like her work and would like to get some of it, find Maelen on Ordinary Witch

Chestnut Heat

Chestnut is a great and sturdy wood with an excellent sense of justice and diplomacy. It is a very interested wood, seeking knowledge through experience and high intellectual thought (which lends to its other properties). Very grounding, it can help with clarity of the mind and the flow of energy. Also good for soothing love and easing disputes or troubles in relationships.

Chestnut Love Fix

Allegedly hand-feeding someone chestnuts stimulates them to love you.

Sunny November

Last weekend I was in Poland. The air was chilly. As usual me and Mardylas went wandering around and taking photos, accompanied by november sunshine. We found beautiful orange leaves carpet in the park ;)

T-shirt & cat

This is the picture on my newest t-shirt, which Mardylas got especially for me ;] However I'm not a blonde ;P The pic makes me laugh each time I look at this mischievous cute face.

And this nice, happy cat arrived to me from Cheshire, England. He doesn't have a name yet, so any ideas are welcome ;)

Runes

Stir your luck and you can get them on Domestic Witch giveaway, very nice set of rose quartz runes with a booklet how to use them.

(photo courtesy of Domestic Witch)

I bet you would love Mother Moon's Message giveaway, handcrafted willow moon runes with personalized wooden box.

(photo courtesy of Mother Moon's Message)

Samhuinn seen by me

I spent most of this week post-processing photographs from Samhuinn.
Almost done, now is time for upload :]
If you enjoy the photos visit my Frozen Moments

Green Man

Horned God

Cailleach

Valravyn

Red Men

Happy Samhuinn!

My PhotoPoint Team took some great photos on Samhuinn 2009.
Here are some of them  Samhuinn in pictures  and there is still more to come :)

And this is photo of me and Danny (other photographer) taken by Chrisdonia on the night of Samhuinn.

And just me :] (photo taken by Danny)

Samhuinn

Samhuinn tells us the ancient story of a battle between light and dark, summer and winter.

The Green Man is starting to decay as the seasons draw colder, his darkness is arising, and will manifest as the Horned God, King of The Winter.
Two Kings and their forces of magical creatures will do battle with fire, ritual and drums for the hand of the Cailleach, The All Powerful Goddess.

Join us in our spectacular staging of this eternal story, where light battles dark, summer battles winter and the future of the world is at stake.

If you're in Edinburgh on 31st Oct, come and join us to celebrate Samhuinn. The start is at the castle (9pm), down the Royal Mile to St.Giles cathedral where the battle of the kings take place. And is for free ;]

Little pumpkins

are hanging from my ears this week :)

30 -> 3+0=3

Number Three is a sociable, friendly, and outgoing vibration, kind, positive, and optimistic.
Three's enjoy life and have a good sense of humor. Ruled by Jupiter.
Keywords: jovial, friendly, positive, adventurous, self-expressive.
If expressed negatively: extravagant, scattered, superficial.

As lovers: Number Threes are fun, energetic, and willing to experiment. These lovers need space and contact with others in order to feel content. If they feel confined, they will be unhappy and restless. Allowed the freedom to socialize and scatter their energies, they are exciting and happy lovers.

Since last december I was under the influence of No.3. How was it? So far so good, still one& half month to go ;)
Due to the change of code I got this from my Mum:

Pumpkinnnnn

Inspired by Domestic Witch I started to practice pumpkin carving :]
And this how my pumpkin ended in the year 2008

I got a message today

Ok Mardi, I shall remember  ;]

I found love tonight

just at my feet, while wandering at Victoria Terrace in Edi Old Town.

Maelen's Magic Earrings

I personally have no skills to make jewellery & other crafts, but my Sister Maelen was blessed with this gift :]

So, let me present some of her hand-made earrings.

Red Queen

Black Tears

Mermaid

Egyptian Bracelet

Egyptian gift from Mardi. Two years ago he was visiting Taba, Egypt. This year he took me to Hurghada. We had a wonderful time swimming in the Red Sea, visiting Luxor, Valley of the Kings, Cairo and many more great places.

Photos will be released soon in My Photo Diary ;]

Lamp-post

A major landmark in Narnia...I mean it's in Edinburgh marking the entrance ;]

Turquoise

If cold December gave you birth

The month of snow and ice and mirth

Place on your hand a turquoise blue

Success will bless whate'er you do.

Mystical powers

Prosperity, success, happiness and good fortune; open communication, protection against all diseases, regeneration, and strengthening.

Turquoise has been thought to warn the wearer of danger or illness by changing color. In the 13th century,turquoise was thought to protect the wearer from falling, especially from horses.

Turquoise is also believed to bring happiness and good fortune to all. It's said that turquoise attracts healing spirits, making it a premier healing stone.
Believed to be a protective stone, turquoise is worn to guard against violence and accidents. Turquoise is also a valuable amulet for travelers.

Healing powers Throat, lungs, asthma, teeth, depression, infections.

Birthstone Facts

• The Turquoise is the birthstone of the month of December
• It is also the Wedding anniversary gemstone for the 5th and 11th year of marriage
• Zodiac Sign: Sagittarius
• Sagittarius dates: November 22 - December 21
• Sagittarius - The Ninth Sign of the Zodiac: The sign of the Archer
• Ruling Planet of Sagittarius: Jupiter
• Alternate Birthstones of Sagittarius: Topaz, Beryl, Blue Topaz, Blue Zircon, Rubies, Lapis Lazuli and Citrine

 What is Turquoise?

• The word Turquoise is derived from the Greek word "Turkois" meaning "Turkish" because it was first brought from Turkey.
• It is a blue to gray green mineral consisting of hydrated copper and aluminum phosphate [CuAl6(PO4)4(OH)8*4H2O]. It is the only gemstone belonging to the phosphates family. It is a hydrous phosphate of aluminum with a small percentage of copper which gives it the blue coloring. When associated with iron the color tends to be greenish.
• Turquoise is formed over millions of years by a chemical reaction that occurs when water leaks through rocks which contain specific minerals such as copper and aluminum. The percentages of the minerals in the rock dictate the gemstone’s shade.
• Like diamonds, gemstones are graded by color, cut, clarity and carat weight.

 I was born in december so it's my birthstone and I very often wear above set of necklace and bracelet. Just missing the earings ;]

Little Witches

Little Witches for Little Witch, special gift from Mardi.

Forget-Me-Not

This is the symbol of undying love and eternal friendship.

In a German legend, God named all the plants when a tiny unnamed one cried out, "Foget me not, O Lord!" God replied, "That shall be your name."

In another legend, the little flower cried  out, "Forget me not!" as Adam and Eve left the Garden of Eden.

The Christ Child was sitting on Mary's lap one day and said that he wished that future generations could see her eyes. He touched her eyes and then waved his hand over the ground and blue forget-me-nots appeared, hence the name forget-me-not. In Italian they're called "occhi della Madonna" (Mary's eyes).

In the 15th century Germany, it was supposed that the wearers of the flower would not be forgotten by their lovers. Legend says that in medieval times, a knigh and his lady were walking along the side of the river. He piked a posy of flowers, but because of the weight of his armour he fell into the river. As he was drowning he threw the posy to his loved one and shouted "Forget-me-not!"

This is a flower connected with romance and tragic fate.

It was often worn by ladies as a sign of faithfulness and enduring love.

*Forget-Me-Not Spell*

Slip forget-me-not into someone's pockets so that you will remain on their mind.