Blessingway
Most of this day was shit, for a variety of reasons, not least of which was another huge argument with Tom. I don't even know what we're arguing about anymore. I think I'm just 8.5 mo. pregnant and he doesn't farging get it.
However, despite all my tears and woe and exhaustion and solitude, except for my children, who alternately bring me joy and exasperation, my blessingway was truly wonderful. I am not very good at allowing myself to be pampered and am uncomfortable about the idea, but this was really a great experience, and a wonderful way to prepare for birth and to bless my new home with good friends and good food and wonderful thoughts.
I had 6 people show up, plus I wanted to include Emma and Soren. 4 friends were invited who couldn't make it, but Jane and Audrey sent beads and letters. They were definitely there in spirit!
The first thing we did was build a birth altar. Soren lent me her sun/moon tapestry, and the girls had made a design of candles on it. I got so many cool things, I'll have to write them down tomorrow and blog about them separately. One thing is that Alyce brought sage to cleanse the house with, and a really cool herbal egg thing to bless the house with afterwards. My favorite gift apparently has two parts, one of which I won't get until the baby is born, but it's a stature of a pregnant woman that I am sooo drawn to.
The highlights were getting beads for a birthing necklace and Krista had everyone bring beads for Emma and Soren for big sister bracelets too, which I thought was very cool. When the beads were presented, they decorated the girls and I with fun jewelry and scarves to make us feel more beautiful! I gave everyone a candle to light during my labor, and we did a matrilineal web weaving so that everyone has a yarn anklet/bracelet to wear until after the baby is born.
Krista gave me a scrapbook and everyone had a chance to write or paste something into it. I cried reading it tonight and will keep it by my bedside. I made a belly cast with Alyce and Krista earlier in the week and everyone helped to decorate it, and everyone contributed to putting a henna tatoo on my belly, complete with paste on jewels. There will be a few pictures to follow.
Jane sent great black and white pics of Tom and I that she took when we visited during Arts Festival that I need to paste into the scrapbook still.
We sang a birthing song and did a Native American ritual of jumping through the doorways downstairs to encourage the baby to make a quick entrance into the world when I go into labor.
We had a great potluck afterwards. The girls got very tired; it was 10:30 by the time everyone left, but they were great the whole time. They were very involved and well behaved and just generally fun to have there. I'm so glad that I included them in it. Oh! Everyone had babies there too - Alyce with May (9 weeks), Patty with Julian (4.5 weeks), Jenny with Francesca and Zela (8 weeks) and Vicky didn't bring Quinn (4.5 mos) but he was there in spirit! All that baby magic has to bode good things!
I feel like the house is so much more a home now after having had all my close friends here and eating together with them and having such a wonderful ritual to celebrate the joy of birthing a new life.
I really should try to get some sleep I guess :).
However, despite all my tears and woe and exhaustion and solitude, except for my children, who alternately bring me joy and exasperation, my blessingway was truly wonderful. I am not very good at allowing myself to be pampered and am uncomfortable about the idea, but this was really a great experience, and a wonderful way to prepare for birth and to bless my new home with good friends and good food and wonderful thoughts.
I had 6 people show up, plus I wanted to include Emma and Soren. 4 friends were invited who couldn't make it, but Jane and Audrey sent beads and letters. They were definitely there in spirit!
The first thing we did was build a birth altar. Soren lent me her sun/moon tapestry, and the girls had made a design of candles on it. I got so many cool things, I'll have to write them down tomorrow and blog about them separately. One thing is that Alyce brought sage to cleanse the house with, and a really cool herbal egg thing to bless the house with afterwards. My favorite gift apparently has two parts, one of which I won't get until the baby is born, but it's a stature of a pregnant woman that I am sooo drawn to.
The highlights were getting beads for a birthing necklace and Krista had everyone bring beads for Emma and Soren for big sister bracelets too, which I thought was very cool. When the beads were presented, they decorated the girls and I with fun jewelry and scarves to make us feel more beautiful! I gave everyone a candle to light during my labor, and we did a matrilineal web weaving so that everyone has a yarn anklet/bracelet to wear until after the baby is born.
Krista gave me a scrapbook and everyone had a chance to write or paste something into it. I cried reading it tonight and will keep it by my bedside. I made a belly cast with Alyce and Krista earlier in the week and everyone helped to decorate it, and everyone contributed to putting a henna tatoo on my belly, complete with paste on jewels. There will be a few pictures to follow.
Jane sent great black and white pics of Tom and I that she took when we visited during Arts Festival that I need to paste into the scrapbook still.
We sang a birthing song and did a Native American ritual of jumping through the doorways downstairs to encourage the baby to make a quick entrance into the world when I go into labor.
We had a great potluck afterwards. The girls got very tired; it was 10:30 by the time everyone left, but they were great the whole time. They were very involved and well behaved and just generally fun to have there. I'm so glad that I included them in it. Oh! Everyone had babies there too - Alyce with May (9 weeks), Patty with Julian (4.5 weeks), Jenny with Francesca and Zela (8 weeks) and Vicky didn't bring Quinn (4.5 mos) but he was there in spirit! All that baby magic has to bode good things!
I feel like the house is so much more a home now after having had all my close friends here and eating together with them and having such a wonderful ritual to celebrate the joy of birthing a new life.
I really should try to get some sleep I guess :).
posted by Unknown @ 11:50 PM
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