Pagan Mamas?? - Page 2

[TapWitch]

Blessings, sisters! And merry Beltane. Here in south Florida it's effectively summer by now; I'll be including a newly-ripened habenero pepper from my little plant in our culinary celebration. I'm a kitchen witch too--Veggiewolf, we sound a lot alike. Dh is pagan-friendly agnostic (every holiday's a fertility fest to him!!) And he loves when I cook for the holidays. We do go to UU "un-church" as well. As I'm Italian on my maternal side and am very drawn to that facet of my history, my practice is kind of a work-in-progress of blending Italian traditions (and food) with honoring this semi-tropical locale I'm not completely at home in (transplanted northerner!) I too love Circle Round and will be using more and more ideas as dd #2 (17 mos.) grows. With dd #1, who is 16, I was finding my path and we didn't develop too many traditions (plus she hates most Italian food--go figure).

Amulet, I would love to go into the forest and build a fairy house!! But, we do have the ocean, and that's my power spot, especially at full moons. BB!

Let's keep sharing our traditions and ideas!

[Kalinka]

Happy Beltane Everyone! I hope you are all having a great day. Dh and I haven't figured out what we're doing yet b/c I have my final post par. check-up with my midwife today. It kind of breaks up our day, darn it. Last night I baked goddess bread and we had a small little feast. The poor babe was really cranky though, so it didn't really feel too magical

On days like this I really wish that we didn't live in the city. I long for the woods in North Eastern Washington where I grew up, I really miss it.

Amulet, I love the fairy house idea, that is really cool.

Anyway, I hope that you all have a nice day.

[khrisday]

Bright Blessings and Happy Beltane to all!

We homeschool, so today is a school holiday of sorts (ie we did arts and crafts instead of the regular stuff) I foulnd a Beltane song online that I taught the kids to sing

goodbye winter
goodbye winter
goodbye winter
we wish you'd leave us now

come back springtime
come back springtime
come back springtime
we wish you'd come today

We also read The Unicorn and the Lake by Marianna Mayer and made May baskets out of paper plates to hang on our friends doors. We will fill them with flowers and cookies and leave them as surprises.

I also found a little ritural that we may do later with the kids-
where you braid 3 blue ribbons together (it's supposed to be done on the Maypole but we may just do it separately and bury itin the garden) and recite this chant:
Tis the month of May
_______ (health, wealth, happiness etc. whatever you want) I wish for today.
Ribbons of blue, help my wish come true.
Braided within, the spell begins.
Bound to and fro, the magick grows.
When the fall untied, this wish is mine.

We will probably end the day with a candellit bath.
AAAHHHHHHhH!

[Isis]

Happy May Day!

My daughter (4) and I danced the Maypole three times today with the kindergarten classes at our local Waldorf school. I have been volunteering there for like 7 yrs teaching the children to dance the Maypole. This year I handed over the job of teaching choreographies for the gradeschool classes to the games teacher, so I was free to frolic with the little ones!

Dd and I ate lunch by a small waterfall- the weather was nice, and then found a book with Maypole in it at the library.

We are going up to Circle Sanctuary (Wisconsin) for the weekend, as a whole family celebration. My 12 yo son is so excited he just vacuumed our van!

Btw Kalinka, I think seeing a midwife is a very appropriate way of celebrating Beltane!

[Hera]

Happy Beltane everyone. I just finished preparing the soil in my new vegetable garden yesterday evening.....I'll have to see what dh is doing later tonight....

[Kalinka]

Isis, I didn't even think about that until we were on our way home. LOL I realized in the car that seeing the midwife today was actually pretty appropriate. :LOL

It sounds like you all are enjoying the day. Have a good night.

[Earthymama]

PLEASE!! a circle round cd??? i need that - i would love to do the songs in the book but i dont read music and all my friends who do read music are christian and tho they are ok with it, i would feel awkward. IS there a cd of the music from the book?
Earthymama

[yoga]

is the unitarian church for pagans? i've been researching wicca since it seems to be the only 'belief system' that agrees with my spiritual feelings and need for ritual. i've been trying to find a local group to meet and talk with, and after seeing the unitarian church mentioned here, my interest got piqued.

sorry for the dull handle i wasn't feeling creative that night

[khrisday]

Unitarian Universalist churches are sort of like the Ethical Society I think. I have never been to one, but I am told that there is no sermon or judgement of any certain belief system, it is open to people of all faiths (I hear a lot of Buddhists and Wiccan attend these types of churches). It sounds liek the structure fo a church without the theology of religion if that makes any sense.

[khrisday]

Circle Round CD

http://www.circleround.com/music.html

[Noey]

Hi all! Yes there is a place for Pagans in the UU fellowships. Many have CUUPS group and they gather and celebrate the moons and holidays etc. I am a member of a UU fellowship because yes you can be anything there from humanist to Buudhist to atheist to pagan. Me myself I love the earth religions..Wicca, Pagan but also like some Buddhist things too and then have a kind of Universal love sense too.

[TapWitch]

I'll put in another good word for UU church. For one thing, it's a great place to have a family celebration when not all the family is pagan (weddings, baby dedications etc). We had both such festivities including things like blessings with the elements and our parents don't freak out because at least it's a church!

[catnip]

Well, I'm a reclaiming tradition witch too, but I'm not a parent... yet. But I'm doing all the research I can while my husband finishes school and we get our financial situation ready for kids.

The Circle Round CD is well worth the money. I've enjoyed it immensely. It doesn' have all of the songs from the book, but it has several, and they are great. Lots of fun.

[GypsyLee]

Pagan to the core

[yoga]

Well, I've checked out the UU website and the one for my local church, too, and I'm going this Sunday, but I have one more question to ask you gals that like it...

They say that they base their core on the teachings of Judaism and Christianity, and I'm wondering if any of you have noticed that they speak on those religions alot in the sermons. I know every church or fellowship is different, but I thought I'd ask ppl who have been there but don't necessarily subscribe to those 2 religious beliefs. TIA

[AutumnMoonfire]

Sermons at fellowships gemerally reflect the core membership. the fellowship I take my DD to is a little more eclectic in sermon topic but very dry and academic upstairs. The Sunday school is so far tame, they went outside and picked up garbage on earthday and they did yoga another sunday.

[amandajf]

I guess I'm a pagan too!! I am a metaphysician and my husband practices the traditional Lakota beliefs <he is cherokee tho>. We raise the children pagan too... we discourage "God" talk... because we believe we are Spirit.. or god entity. They know they don't have to pray.. they just callupon Spirit and they know they can do anything.. they enjoy it... although my mom freaked when she found out I believe Jesus did die on the cross but i don't believe that he is our Saviour... i believe that since the Bible leaves off when he is a teen until he is in his thirties that he traveled and studied metaphysics.. how else can a man stop his heart for three days and walk again, right? lol... it hit her hard especially after paying for me to go to Independent Baptist Private school for 9.5 years! lol

[Mommy StormRaven]

Hi Pagan Mama's!

Well I beleive that I was born a Pagan and figured ot what that was when I was about 12 - that was a long time ago now but I have never looked back despite having a minister for a father. We go to a UU church on occasion with a CUUPS chapter there.

DH and I have been married since Yule of 1999 and have one DD who is 16 months and expect our second around yule this year (even if the date does say christmas (please Goddess not another Capricorn!).

I would also recommend the Book Pagan PArenting - the author escapes me now (probably becuase its not yet 6 am and DH felt it necessary to wake me up for no good reason this morning and now I cannot get back to sleep) but anyhow, good to see you all and have a blessed day!

[Isis]

Hi there.

I also attended a UU church with my son (10 at the time) and left the baby at home with dad, who had zero interest in attending a church of any kind (he had yet to figure out he was Pagan!)

We went for a year, and I enjoyed myself in a quiet kind of way. There is no CUUPS chapter there and as far as I could tell, I was the only Pagan amongst a whole bunch of well-to-do professionals and quirky oldsters. I knew like basically not a soul- but I had the most amazing visions and visitations (completely unrelated to the sermon!) while meditating there in the pews. The music was uppity, but excellent. It was my alone place- and I enjoyed it for that.

My son really liked Sunday school. There was an undercurrent of interest in the Native way there, so Max got to find out the truth about Columbus day! And learned about MLKing, which he had not been exposed to yet.

This winter I attended a WomanSpirit conference in the midwest- and found that most amazing. It seems there is a huge feminine push in general UU congregations to identify as witches, that I was unaware of. Interesting. Lots of Goddessy stuff. Drumming and dancing. I'm going up to the summer WomanSpirit in Michigan with my daughter. I get to teach another bellydance class there.

isis

[Arduinna]

Another Pagan Mommy here.

We are a pagan family, don't go to UU only because we have no CUUPs chapter and I haven't been able to get over the "church" word. I'm a hippy ap mommy that really practices a earth centered spirituality (not wiccan). I prefer my spirituality and connection occur outside in nature and not in a building. I would check out a cuups chapter if we had one though.

We are parents to a 12 yr old dd that has always been homeschooled. We are modified unschoolers. Modified because we do some formal math like flash cards and such. We would love to have more children but haven't be blessed by the Goddess with them yet. I'm hoping soon since I am going to be 40 in 2 years.

Anyway, lovely to meet you all.