Summer Solstice

Hey everyone! So I know I haven't posted for a few days but I thought it would be good to post something about the pagan holiday Litha or the Summer Solstice or Mid Summer's eve. So Happy Litha to you all and may you and your family be blessed with abundance!

So Litha is usually celebrated on June 21th, and according to the old folklore calender, Summer begins on Beltane (May 1sth) and ends on Lammas (August 1st), with the Summer Solstice midway between the two, it is marked as MID-Summer. The Sun is now at the highest point before beginning its slide into darkness or the decent into winter.

On the Wheel of the Year, Litha lies directly across from Yule (Dec. 21st), the shortest day of the year, that cold and dark day when humanity begins to look wistfully toward warmth, sunlight and growing things. The joyous rituals of Litha celebrate the verdant Earth in high summer, abundance of fertility, and all the riches of Nature in full bloom.

It is tradition that a bonfire is lit at Beltane, Litha and Lammas. People believed that the Litha fires possessed great power, and that prosperity and protection for oneself and one's family could be earned merely by jumping over the Litha bonfire. It was also common for courting couples to join hands and jump over the embers of the Litha fire three times to ensure a long and happy marriage, financial prosperity and many children. Even the charred embers from the Litha bonfire possessed protective powers, such as they were charms against injury and bad weather in harvest time. The embers were also commonly placed around fields of grain and orchards to protect the crops and assure abundant reaping.

The Litha Sabbat is a time to celebrate both work and leisure, it is a time for children and childlike play. It is a time to celebrate the ending of the waxing year and the beginning of the waning year, in preparation for the harvest to come. Litha is time to absorb the Sun's warming rays. It is also another fertility Sabbat, not only for humans, but for crops and animals.

The faeries abound at this time and it is customary to leave offerings, such as food or herbs for them in the evening. This is a particular time when faeries would bestow good luck on humans. An old ritual for children was to place food out in the garden for the faeries who would then sometimes leave crystals as a token of thanks.

Shakespeare took the legends of the fae and lovers traditions and wrote about them in his famous play - A Midsummer Night's Dream when faeries with their magic play the leading characters interacting with humans and mortals.

Here is some great info about Litha!

So now that the lesson is out of the way, what are my family and I doing for Litha? Well I am making bbq chicken, fresh summer veggies and mac n cheese (this one isn't really celebration appropriate but my 9 yr old loves it) I also have a small honoring alter set up and we did a small ritual this morning in the warm sun. It doesn't take a huge extravagant ritual or celebration to honor the God and Goddess, though they are fun. So go light your fires and dance with the faeries! Have a blessed day and Happy Litha to your family from ours!

Mosquito Repellent

     Ok for those of you who copied down my fly repellent recipe and are wondering how to get rid of those pesky mosquitoes well guess what you have a solution.  The lavender seems to keep them away at lest where I am they don't seem to like it. Now there are several other recipes online that you can try. The one I have found that looks both easy and that might work has lavender and citronella essential oils, vanilla extract, lemon juice or essential oil and water.

Mosquito Repellent

You Need:
        -5 drops Lavender Essential Oil
        -5 drops Citronella Essential Oil
        -3-4 tablespoons Homemade or store bought Vanilla Extract
        -4-5 tablespoons Lemon Juice or 5 drops of Lemon Essential Oil
        -Water, Water and Vodka, or Water and Witch Hazel

Tools Needed:
        -A Spray Bottle

Directions:
        - Mix all together in spray bottle and fill the rest up with just water, water and vodka, or water and witch hazel.
        -Spray


    Ok, so now you guys are probably wondering how to make the homemade vanilla extract well I have that here for you too.

Homemade Vanilla Extract

You Need:
         -1 Bottle of Vodka about 750ml
         -14 Vanilla Beans

Tools Needed:
        -Large Measuring Cup

Directions:
        -Open your vodka and pour some out into the measuring cup
        -Cut vanilla beans in half length wise
        -Put into vodka bottle
        -Pour as much of the vodka from measuring cup back into bottle
        -Put cap on bottle and store in cabinet for about 2 months or until the vodka has turned dark and it smells like vanilla

I have had several people ask me where I get all of this information and well I tell them online mostly. I find things here and there in places like www.pintrest.com and www.facebook.com, but today I got these recipes from a site I am starting to love. It's www.survivingthestores.com. On here you can find a lot of useful information. It is worth checking out alone for the coupon codes and freebie sections. So there you guys go. Until next time.

Berry Salad, Fly Reppellant, and WD-40 and other websites

     So this morning I got up and didn't want to move. It is already hot and humid and...it's only 9 in the morning. Now, here in the summer we get flies and they are bad. You can't go outside with a drink or food without getting flies into everything. So...yesterday being the start off the fly season means they are now out and about. I found this nifty trick on one of the many sites that I randomly come across and it says that lavender oil will repel flies. So naturally I had to try it.

Fly Repellant

You Need:
      -Lavender Essential Oil
       -A Sponge
       -A Container with a Lid

Directions:
       -Coat the sponge with the oil
       -Put the sponge in the container and close the lid

Usage:
       -Put outside in the area you want to remove the flies at least 24 hours prior to use.
       -Take the lid off of the container when you are outside
       -It will take the flies a little bit to move away but it does work I have been outside all morning with my cup of coffee and I have not had to swat a fly away at all.


Ok now that I have helped you get rid of unwanted flies here is a recipe I use for what I guess you could call Berry Salad.

Berry Salad

You Need:
     -1 container of strawberries
     -1 container of black berries
     -1 container of raspberries
     -1 container of blue berries
     -5 bananas
      -real lemon juice
     -real lime juice
     -1 small package sliced almonds or any other nut (optional)

Tools Needed:
       -1 mixing bowl
       -1 spoon

Directions:
       -Slice the bananas and strawberries
       -Add all the berries and bananas and nuts if you use them to the bowl
       -This is where you choose the amount you add the lemon and lime juice to your liking
        -Mix it all together and serve cold

Ok so now I have your hot day taken care of... you have a way to get rid of flies and food to serve in this heat. Now, it's time to take care of what to do inside if it is just to hot for you outside. There are several websites that are fun. For those of you with kids you probably know about ww.nick.com and www.disney.com online, but there are others. www.ABCMouse.com is great for younger ones. It teaches reading and writing and all the fun stuff they learn in school. It does cost some money though. www.LEGO.com also has fun games for kids. For the older ones there iswww.moshimonsters.com www.wizard101.com and www.pirate101.com which are free to play, but you can buy online content. These three are role playing and pet care games where you are actually a pirate, monster, or wizard and you travel through the world. They are able to chat and interact with other people playing the game so as always keep an eye on your kids and who they are talking to. Now for you adults if you have that spare can of WD-40 or roll of Duct tape laying around these two websites are for you. www.wd40.com and www.duckbrand.com. Plus there is always a million other sites for you to play online games or find craft ideas, www.pintrest.com is my favorite site for ideas. There I have given you ideas on how to take care of a hot day plus help to keep the kids busy for a little while. It's all up to you now. If worse comes to worse you can always go to the pool, but don't forget the sun block.

Home Made Laundry Detergent and Fabric Softener

Hi everyone. I have been asked to post up all the home made recipes that I come across that are good. I have been trying to cut back on my house hold spending and it has been hard. Most of these recipes cost little to make and will make enough to last you a while plus they cost less than the actual products. Most of these recipes you can find online on various sites, but I am making it easier for you to find them all in one spot.  Okay enough talking from me here is the first two recipes.

Laundry Detergent

You Need: 

     -1 box Borax about 4lbs.

     -1 box Super Washing Soda about 3lbs. 

     -1 box Pure Baking Soda about 4lbs.

      -3 bars of Fels-Naptha or Iovry Soap

      -1 container of Oxy-Clean about 1.3lbs-3lbs.

      -1-2 containers of Downy Unstoppables or like product

       -you can add in a box of Powder Clorax 2 Color Safe Bleach if you want to

Tools Needed:

        -Fine hand held grater or knife 

        -3 gallon container with lid

        -Blender or food processer

        -2 bowls

         -spoon

         -1 tablespoon measure

Directions:

          -Grate or chop up all 3 bars of soap into 1 bowl

          -Mix 1/4 of the borax into the grated soap

          - In stages you will need to blend the borax and soap mixture until it has no clumps and pour it into the 2nd bowl

           -Pour all ingredients into 3 gallon container and mix until there are no clumps

           -Store with lid on

Usage:

          -Add 2 tablespoons or a quarter cup to wash like normal

          -In HE washers make sure to use warm or hot settings so the powder dissolves and make sure to run your monthly cleaning cycle

-This recipe cost me about $20 to $25 to make and it is about 504 loads worth of detergent I use a HE washer and it does just fine

Fabric Softener

You Need:

        -2 cups Hair Conditioner (the cheap stuff works just fine)

        -3 cups White Vinegar

        -6 cups Hot Water

Tools Needed:

         - Old Fabric Softener Container

Directions:

          -Mix all ingredents in container

Usage:

           -1/2 lid in wash for regular washer

           -1/4 lid in wash for HE washer

           - You may have to shake bottle before you use

           - You will smell the vinegar until the clothes are dry

There you guys go. You now have a cheap and easy way to save some money. There will be more recipes to come on later dates. Until then, get creative and have fun with it.

Going Vegetarian!

Hey folks! So we are going vegetarian...okay at least tonight we are. After watching a few documentaries on healthy eating, vegetarianism and veganism, I realized I couldn't go full on vegan or vegetarian and my family would boycott dinner if I didn't feed them meat anymore, but I thought maybe one or two nights a week we could do this. That idea they were okay with.

I am always looking for ways for us to eat more fruits and veggies, especially my 9 year old boy, who thinks dinner should be pizza, tacos, or burgers. We always serve a veggie with dinner and offer fruit as snacks, but he and well all of us still don't get the recommended amount of daily servings. So meals that are vegetarian, that he will love, that are full of flavor, and easy and quick? I am looking and hope to find many as I do I shall post them for you and your families to try. Feel free to share your own twists and recipes. NOTE: Vegetarianism is the the practice of abstaining from the eating of meat, though many still eat dairy product and eggs. Veganism is the practice of abstaining from ALL animal products, including food, clothing made from animals, products tested on animals, ect.

So tonight is by definition a vegetarian meal (almost and I will explain why in a few). Roasted Carrot, Onion, Garlic, Tomato & Basil Soup with Grilled Cheese Dunkers. For dessert from scratch (except the crust) banana creme pie! Yum! So not only is it yummy it is diabetic friendly and low fat friendly. Which are both good in our household because my husband is a type 2 diabetic and I don't have my gallbladder anymore to process fat so low fat for me and low carb for him. It also low cost the whole dinner cost less than 10 dollars to make!!!!!

This recipe turned out so good my husband had two and half bowls! Its definitely a keeper!

Enjoy!

Roasted Carrot, Onion, Garlic, Tomato & Basil Soup

Prep Time:
40 min
Inactive Prep Time:
--
Cook Time:
1 hr 10 min

Level:
Easy

Serves:
4 to 6 servings

Ingredients

2 pounds carrots, washed and cut into chunks
1/2 large Vidalia onion, cut into chunks
4 cloves garlic, unpeeled

2 large tomatos
2 tablespoons olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
5 cups chicken broth (If you want full vegetarian use vegetable broth not chicken broth)
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil (dried will work but fresh is always so much better)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Add the carrots, onions and garlic to a sheet tray, drizzle with the olive oil and season with a big pinch of salt and pepper. Toss everything together so it's nice and coated. Roast until tender and golden brown in spots, about 45 minutes.

Add 4 cups of the chicken broth to a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Pop the garlic out of their skins and add to the sauce pan with the roasted carrots and onions. Simmer everything together for 15 minutes. Add the basil at the very end of cooking. Puree until smooth by adding in batches to a blender or by using an immersion blender. Add the remaining broth, a little at a time, when pureeing to loosen it up a bit.

Grilled Cheese Dunkers

Make a grilled cheese how ever you prefer it. Cut in to strips for dunking.

Banana Creme Pie

Ingredients:
6 ripe soft bananas
1 tub of extra creamy cool whip (you can make your own whip cream if you prefer it may not set as well though)
1/4 cup of sugar (I use about an 1/8 of a cup because of my husband being diabetic)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
A dash of ground nutmeg


1 graham cracker pie crust (you can make your own if you like but store bought works just as well)

Mash up your bananas. Once mostly smooth add in sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. Then mix in cool whip/whipped cream. Mix well and pour into pie crust then put in the fridge for 2 to 4 hours to set.

Homemade Butter

So I love Facebook for so many reasons. It keeps me in touch with friends near and far. I learn things. I get to play games. But ...I get awesome recipes too, like this one.

Homemade Butter

Brilliantly, you can make butter in a food processor. Or a blender. Or a stand mixer. Basically, whatever you have that can beat the heck out of cream will do the job for you, and it doesn't take long at all.

I bought two pints of organic (or regular) heavy whipping cream and poured that on into the food processor. (That is four cups.) The only other ingredient you need is salt to taste.
Go ahead and start processing. After a while, the cream turns into (no surprise here) whipped cream. Keep on going.

A minute or so later, the cream looks almost a bit grainy. But still delicious.

After a minute or so more it starts to get really curdled looking and then finally, this is the exciting part, the buttermilk starts to separate from the butter. Yup, I said it, butter!

Let it go a bit more to be sure the cream has completely separated. Then it is time to strain the buttermilk off of the butter. We put a strainer over a large bowl and dumped it all in there. The buttermilk goes into the bowl (and we saved it for use in future recipes.)

Pick up your mass of butter and knead it a bit to squeeze the rest of the buttermilk out. It is surprising how much is still in there even though it seems rather firm.

Now that you've squeezed the excess liquid out, you can mix in the salt, if you like. We kept half of ours unsalted, and then added about 1/4 tsp of kosher salt to the rest. We probably got about two or two and a half cups of butter out of the four cups of cream. Cover it and store it for up to two weeks.


Note: I have yet to make this but I will let you know how it turns out as soon as I do.

ENJOY!

Southwestern Burritos

So folks here is a recipe that will get your kids to eat their spinach, corn and black beans! And...its low fat, diabetic friendly and fairly low calorie!

Southwestern Burritos

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for brushing
• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts – diced or more if you wish to make more burritos
• 1 medium-large onion, minced
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 bag frozen corn
• 1/2 (14.5)oz can black beans, rinsed & drained or more if you like
• 2.5 cups fresh baby spinach or 1 bag frozen spinach
• 2 jalapenos, seeded & minced
• 1 tablespoon cumin
• 1 ½ tablespoon chili powder
• 2 cups shredded pepper jack cheese
• salt & pepper to taste
• 10 burrito sized flour tortillas

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

In a large skillet, heat the olive oil on medium. Add in the chicken, season with salt & pepper to taste, & saute for 5 minutes. Stir in the diced onions & cook until the chicken is cooked through. Stir in the spices, jalapeno, black beans, corn, & spinach and cook until the spinach has wilted. Remove from the heat, and stir in the pepper jack cheese.

Spoon about 1/4 cup (or more if you like just leave enough room to fold up the tortillas) of filling into the center of each tortilla, and roll up like a burrito(one large side down first then the edges then the other large side. Brush each side with a good coating of olive oil, and place in a baking dish. Bake for 20-25 minutes, flipping halfway through, until crispy. (Note: if your rack is lower in the oven the bottoms will brown and crisp nicely just watch for sticking and if it is closer to the top of the oven the tops will brown and crisp.) Serve warm with Chili Ranch Dip (recipe below.)

Serving size: 1 Burrito

330 Calories per burrito

24 g Fat

45 Carbs

Chili Ranch Dip 

1 pint sour cream (regular or low fat)

1 packet of hidden valley ranch seasoning and dip mix

1/3 of a tablespoon chili powder

Salt and pepper to taste

Mix well and serve with the burritos. 

(This dip goes great with just about everything!) 

ENJOY!

Welcome!

The first post...

What is the blog about...

Well reading the blog name one would think being pagan and being a farmer....well that's sort of it but not really. There is a lot more to it than that. It's my personal ramblings, neat ideas I find and want to share with the world, my thoughts on paganism and raising a pagan family, my thoughts on my little farm, and a little preview into my life and world. Yep that about sums it up.

What is paganism...

Hmm...well according to Google...pagan means one who is a country dweller or rustic. That is the old definition and in this case that is partly true about me. I was born and raised in the country on a ranch. The other definition is paganism is a broad term the covers many branches of a polytheistic religion, such as Wicca, and witchcraft.

I am a practitioner of Wicca and witchcraft. But since I fall under and eclectic witch I just call myself pagan. I will explain.

What paganism is NOT... 

 Paganism, Wicca and Witchcraft are NOT:

• We do not worship the Christian devil or Satan...we don't even believe in him.
• We do not fly on brooms or all have black cats (some do have black cats as pets)
• We do not sacrifice animals, pets, or children (we don't eat them either the kids/pets that is, we still eat meat at least in my house we do.)

Well this sums it up in this picture...

 Moving on...

So that pretty much sums up paganism. Though I will post more in the future about the topic. I always encourage people who are curious about paganism/wicca/witchcraft to do their own research. Some great places to start:

• Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner by Scott Cunningham
• Wicca: The Complete Craft by DJ Conway

Those are two of my personal favorites though I have read many.

About me, my life and my little farm...

 I am Brittany, wife, mother of two great kids and two great dogs. I am a healer by nature and by trade. I am a Reiki Master and a Licensed Massage Therapist. I am a stay at home mom and I have devoted this current time of my life to giving my children the best life me and my husband can provide for them. We live on a little farm that is not used to its full potential unfortunately, mainly because I do not have the time to do it and take care of a 5 month old, but there is still much I do. We have a moderate size garden that we have started...that is if the deer don't eat it all first. We live a rather simple life but it works for us. I will write more about all of this later in posts of their own.

 Neat things... 

So there are so many things I find either from other blogs, facebook, pintrest, tumblr, ect that I find so interesting and think it would be neat to share them with others. So every now and then I will post some neat things that I just find neat, or that I want to try or that I have incorporated in my life so maybe they can work for you too. Who knows what we will discover through sharing?

 So I think I have rambled enough....have a great day and blessed be!