Happy very first birthday to my precious little kittens, who are kittens no more. Nix and Cricket officially enter Cathood today. (Thanks to everyone who fed all our fur children over the weekend, by the way!) They grow up so fast. *sniff* Remember when they were just handfuls of fluff?

I slept over twelve hours last night. In fact, over the past five days I’ve spent an alarming amount of time asleep. Okay, a couple of events down south were extremely energy-draining, which might explain the need to recuperate; but I seem to be careening to insomnia’s opposite extreme in general. (I oughtn’t complain. Paze mentioned last night that a parent is supposed to look not at what a toddler eats in a single meal, but rather at what s/he eats in a week. Perhaps I ought to address sleeping in a similar fashion?)

Neat stuff I picked up south of the border:

– a new thermal mug in stylish black and brushed metal. I’m using it now. My tea will take hours to cool off. Muah-hah-hah.

– a beautiful pale green light wool wrap with Celtic knotwork along the edges. My husband bought it for me while I was gazing at it, all open-mouthed.

– a funky flowy dark red top with three-quarter sleeves, a wide neckline, lacing and embroidery. I love it.

– a jingly anklet. I’ve always wanted one of these. (Yes, this and the previous acquisition point to the bohemian Gypsy streak buried somewhere deep in my soul, which rarely comes to light.)

– my very first MagLight. Whee!

– a stunning, stunning pendant cabochon of green amber in a simple silver setting. This was a mentor-gift from the protege assigned to me over the weekend. We do this to help new people integrate with the group, get to know people other than the ones with whom they travelled down, and to ease the culture-shock they might be feeling as a result of their first private festival. (My Tradition deliberately schedules this private event to get city-bound folk into Nature for at least four days, as well as to touch base with the physical part of the group mind and soul.) I was given this pendant by my protege on the first day of the event and it rendered me speechless. Such an extravagant gift for someone you’ve only just met! But he called it a heart-gift, from his to mine, and a thanks for being part of his new experience. I’m still overwhelmed, but part of the long hard road I’ve been on has addressed learning to accept gifts and compliments in the spirit in which they’re offered. In several ways and for several reasons this gift was appropriate, and I have no right to deny or diminish the love with which it was presented. I’d been feeling rather plain, too, since I’d left all my pendants at home, so I wore it all weekend.

– a clergy certificate. Did I mention that part yesterday? (Okay, okay, I didn’t come home with it, but it’s in the works. I’m proud of it. Let me be proud.)

– assorted candles, etc., as gifts.

After a day of re-adjusting at home, I find that I can’t quite walk a straight line (I appear to be listing to the left), and I still seem to be missing things I reach for. Camping isn’t supposed to relax you this much. I feel as if I’ve passed the point of relaxation and gone right to spaced out. It’s not a bad spaced out, though; it’s more like I’m in a mild dream state, which is infinitely preferable to the strung-out state I was in before we left. (Odd how you don’t realise how tense you were until you’re not any more.)

I should try to bottle this, for future pick-me-up situations.