Full Moon Giveaway: March

Welcome to a new monthly feature. Yes I know it's already two months into the new year. I still wish to give and to make the bloggy world just a little cooler by sharing.  This month's giveaway features two different kinds of giveways and which you choose will be up to you.

Tthe first prize is an altar focused giveaway featurring this wonderful little star shaped glass.

The second giveaway is for my book bibliophiles. For all of you who have signed up for one of the many book reading challenges including Melissa's over at the Eclectic Bookshelf or Magaly's over at Pagan Culture or Julie's over at the Domestic Pagan.

I will gift the winner with 10 in credit to your choice of bookstores: Barnes and boble, amazon, the book depository or any ebook website. This will be a 10 dollar gift card to these website of your choice, or a 10 visa gift card for you to spend, Yep you read right 10 free dollars. I can send it via post, paypal or even just the amazon gift code.

These prizes are open to international winners as well.

The rules

• must be a follower 
• blog.tweet or facebook share about the giveaway It will give you another chance to get your name entered. 
• comment  with the link to anything you do, 
• as well as which of the two prizes your interested in. after entering please 

The giveaway is open from Full moon on March 8th until March 23rd. Packages will be mailed out March 26th. Names being drawn via random.org and listed the next day, March 24th.

Sign up below & good luck, & please leave a comment with your prize choice as each prize will have it's own drawing.

KWW: What makes a Kitchen Witch

Recently I read an article that stated that you weren't a kitchen witch if you only cooked in the kitchen. I lol'd and then really thought about it. She was right. Just cooking isn't being a kitchen witch, and she was wrong, cooking with intention is about being a good kitchen witch.

Being a kitchen witch isn't about high magic, it's about taking the simple ingredients and making something magical out of it. It's a way to bring health, vitality, love and most of all, community within your family or home. Cooking can be therapy for some, a place to feel at home for others and a way to feel as if you count to others.

For me cooking is all of the above, watching family or friends enjoy a meal I created is one of the joys of being in the kitchen. Using fresh or local herbs, added to a plain base and creating a fantastic meal is a great way to feeling as if I'm doing something serious for my family.

I think that's one of the reasons I was feeling so disconnected. I love creating meals for a big family, I'm used to cooking for six, and now I'm down to cooking for two. It's weird, great for my family that we are moving and expanding, yet sad that we are expanding to different parts of the state and even different parts of the country. So no more sunday big dinners.  I'm now having to relearn my craft of cooking and scaling it down.

So what does make a kitchen witch? Is it what she mentions in the article? Is it a mix of being a domestic witch, high magic, and cooking? What is a kitchen witch to you?

Book Review: Zoe’s Gift

Book Title: Fallon Mates: Zoe’s Gift
Author Jory Strong
Publisher: Ellorascave
Pages: 174
Cost: $6.99
How I got it: Purchased

Synopsis: One look at the human female who is his match and the mating fever of the Vesti ignites in Miciah, making it impossible for him to deny what he wants. To go to Earth and claim her, he must choose an Amato co-mate. For him there is only one choice, the bisexual Iden. It’ll mean breaking the cultural taboos of the Vesti, but for Zoë, he and Iden will become lovers.

Miciah intends to keep his sexual relationship with Iden a secret as they take Zoë together. Iden has other ideas. What neither of them can know is they’ve starred in Zoë’s dreams for a week, so when they show up in her reality, she welcomes the chance to explore their fantasies—and her own.

My Review:

Having only read one other of the series I was so intrigued by the concept that I went searching for & found this one.  I love the place they met (sounds a lot like Burning Man if you ask me); to Zoe’s gifts, the tension between her two matches & their own story within the story. 

I loved how she created a whole world, a back story, and history without bogging down the book. The love that developed between the trio is amazing, they build a relationship which is heightened by the mating fever that they are exposed to.  

Zoe is special, she is a psychic of rare talent and this helps her, when she moves to the new planet with her lovers.  The gods that created their world also created or sent some of their people to Earth, so the story links up well. I loved this story although I personally wouldn't have kept that kind of information from my mates that she did, we all have our own ways of dealing I guess.  

I liked that as their relationship grew they embraced all parts of the relationship and even took on a cultural taboo and made it easier for others to face their fears.  

I'm hoping to read the rest of the series, but I believe this was the last one she wrote, before she had to take a break (don't quote me but I might remember this as something she had on her website) due to her mother passing. You can catch up her on her website here, or even on her page of Ellorascave , or on Goodreads.

Well enjoy this new read. It's out of this world (of course I had to come on..)

In My Mailbox (5)

In my mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Krist at the Story Siren, as a way to highlight books that have made their way to you, either by post, email, from the library of from the bookstore.  This is a way to showoff your books even if you never get a chance to read them or review them.

This week the only books I received came from the library, most were books I requested or had held for me.  Including the following

 New York in Dallas by Jd Robb

The Undomestic Goddess by Sophie Kinsella

Triangles by Ellen hopkins

Dark Predator by Chrisitne Feehan

The best of Me Nicholas Sparks

The lucky one Nicholas Sparks *which is coming out as a movie really soon, they have the new tie-in covers in the stores now*

Evangelina by Mary Janice Davidson & Anthony Alongi

Rise of the poison moon by Mary Janice Davidson & Anthony Alongi

I got as an ebook " Herbs for the Witch's Cupboard" by Jennifer Seitzer as a gift for being a student in her e-classes.

Even though I didn't get many through the post, I am still working on some fo the books from the  last few IMM posts.  I'm also excited this week, as I know soon I'll be getting more books because I have joined NetGalley, Blogging for Books, & Booksneeze. I will adding my reviews to Goodreads as well, so if you have a Goodreads account and wish to be friends let me know, or just look me up, It's Aisha Oaktree there too.

Happy Reading My loves, why not share the link to your IMM post and I will fly on over and check you out?!
Be Blessed

KWW: Creating a new Kitchen Altar Part 1...On Thursday...

I have lived in my new home for a few months now, and I am just now really starting to get around to decorating and putting my personal stamp on the place. I mean all the furniture is out, most of the pictures and little pieces that make a home personal are out; but for years I planned how my place was going to look once I got one, and this right now isn't it.

When I lived at home I liked putting a personal stamp on my parents house, adding the witchy stuff in with the mundane and knowing there was something of me there, now I have a blank slate and I'm kinda floundering on what to make of it.

In my kitchen I have a beautiful shelf with four rungs that I am currently not making full use of.  I am going to make that the focus of my kitchen altar and I want to bring y'all along on the journey. Here it is as it is now, I have books, & recipes in the first shelf because they don't fit where the fridge door needs to swing open. the next shelf is just a mix match of things, the third shelf has my herbs and the last shelf more mismatched stuff.

Since today was errand day, I decided I wanted to help clean up the kitchen and make it more of a place to be especially for a kitchen witch. One of the tall cupboards had only one shelf, so I went to Home Depot and purchased a sheet of birch wood, I had it cut to size for me (I brought the shelf from the other cupboard for correct measure). I ended up with two small shelves and spare wood for other projects which I will share later.

Once I got home I jumped on resorting my kitchen cupboards, as this would help clean off the bigger white shelves and declutter somewhat the counters in the kitchen. I forgot to take a before picture, so here is the after of the shelves (I made sure to sand the ends that I would be touching frequently as I don't want splinters every time I reach for something.

Now some of the items from the white shelf are in here, and now here is a view of some of the other shelves. This open air shelf now has all the spices on it.

I got the spice shelf from Walmart (yes I know but the target is 30 mins away, by time I get there and back I have created more emissions than shopping at the local store). Now the topshelves are a little less cluttered.

As are the bottom shelves, they are still full, but I'm working on it.

I still have much to do, I need to make use of this space as well, and I haven't even shown you he cleaning cupboard (little cupboard of horrors if you ask me)

I hope you enjoyed seeing some of the apartment, and I look forward to sharing with you the improvements to the kitchen, the making of my new altar, and just plain having a blast in the kitchen. Any comments, questions or suggestions? The floor is yours.

Be Blessed and Happy New Month