Alfheim (Day of Openness)

Day four on Prednisone. It has been raining steady all night long. Luckily we didn’t have thunder or lightning. We started out with the arrival of our daughter and the girls (and boy! – it is going to be so hard to get used to that!). We had mini waffles with blueberries and whipped cream for breakfast. We ate as we watched the final shuttle launch on television. It was a shame there was so much cloud cover. Normally we can see the launches but it was too cloudy.

After that we went to the Homosassa Butterfly Gardens. It was really enjoyable. We watched a movie in the theatre room and learned about the life cycle of a Monarch butterfly. The guide too us around the room and showed us the different types of butterfly eggs and larva. He showed us a caterpillar he described as looking like bird poop. And if that wasn’t enough, if the caterpillar felt threatened it would poke red antenna out its head and it secretes a stinky smell. Afterwards each child was given a butterfly in a glassine envelope to release in the conservatory. The conservatory was full of plants and a small pond with a footbridge. Despite the rainy weather there were many butterflies flying around. Only the oldest released hers on her own. I got the honors of releasing the other two.

That should have been enough excitement for the day, but there was so much more. The oldest granddaughter was going to spend the night so we went to the store to get a craft project. She picked paint your own bobble heads. It is a ritual when they spend the night to roast marshmallows over the fire pit and to have a bubble bath. She couldn’t wait any longer so she had a bath at 6:30. The label said to squeeze one teaspoon of bubbles under the running water. Silly me didn’t think one teaspoon would be enough so I doubled it. When we turned the jets on in the tub the bubbles rose to the edge of the tub and we quickly turned them off. These were the best bubbles ever. They were no tear and she was making hats and animal shapes out of them. They stuck together really well and looked more like foam.

Once out of the tub and into the shower to rinse the bubbles off, we had Won Ton soup and sweet and sour chicken (her choice) then headed out to the fire pit before the rain started up again. We bought large marshmallows at the store. I didn’t even know they made them that big (they also had cocoa, caramel vanilla swirls, and a package of red, white and blue star marshmallows). Considering we were all too full to eat them, we decided to save them for after the painting project. We each painted our bobble head (I had a princess, Jerry had a dog and the oldest had a cat). The cat is still a work in progress and I am sure she will paint more in the morning. This is mine and Jerry’s painted projects.

With the painting over and 11pm approaching we decided to watch a movie. Since she has been asking me if faeries are real, I thought the movie A Fairy Tale, A True Story would fit the bill nicely. It was over at 12:35! She loved it and when it was over went happily to sleep. It was a great day.

Today my rune was Isa (ice) and this could still be relating to my health. It was nice though to finally be able to leave the house. The rain cooled everything down and I was able to breathe outside. Today was the day of Alfheim, is the world of light elves and beauty. I think today was a wonderful way to spend it.