I’m not sure I can really consider it a birthday, which is why I said anniversary, because our physical birthday is at the end of July and while others claim to have birthdays, Max claims Valentines Day for example, I don’t feel like I was born. I merged. I’m a conglomerate from within a conglomerate a sum of several parts made into a greater whole.

Am I getting too esoteric yet? I wonder what do other alters, personalities or aspects consider it? Is it a birth? an arrival? Do you celebrate?

We’re going out to lunch today but that’s for Father’s Day as hubbie was working yesterday, but I can celebrate too.

Today is another busy day, so I may have to wake him up soon if he doesn’t by himself, as I can’t go pick up groceries and leave him here. We’re doing a mini-party for a couple we know, whose birthdays are next week (they’re within a day of each other), so I have to pick up cake supplies, wonton and sushi supplies, and I’m going to pick some hot dog buns up in case said friend of ours does bring his kids. I’m not sure where that stands after yesterday.

Anyway, I hear the munchkin making noise so I will wrap this up and get things on the move. I want to get to the store and get back before the weekend crowds show up. It’s cutting it a bit to the wire in some respects, but I need the fish to be as fresh as possible for the sushi. You really can’t keep it too long.

Fun was had though. For a little while we played Wii Sports Resort, and then we switched to karaoke. It was mostly Kore, myself and our friend B whose house we were at, which she shares with her long-term boyfriend S, who has been a friend of ourself and hubbie since high school. We had a lot of fun singing random songs and playing back-up dancer for munchkin to lalalala into the microphone. I suppose I should also say that it was Max who was there not myself, so while the rest of the account is in first person, it’s not what I did.

Then after half of the group went home, upon finishing a D&D game they were running, those of us remaining played Rock Band for a while. It’s the first time I’ve played. I was singer for the night because I can’t play guitar as it locks up my hands after a while, and I felt that I wouldn’t have enough coordination and rhythm to manage playing drums, but I might give that a go if we play again. B and I would duet some of the time while the guys played guitar and Kore did the drums, then after a while we switched out and did various iterations. By far my favorite song is “Bring Me to Life” because the range is perfect for me and I could sing my heart out. The most funny song was “Chop Suey” because the lyrics are so totally crazy and the way you have to chitter them really messes you up to sing the actual lyrics at the right pitch, or at least it does us.

I say it would be interesting to see what happens if others of us try to sing. I know at night if we’re singing to the munchkin before he goes to bed he tends to ask certain songs of certain of us. Like Max he’ll ask anything from but he only ever asks Max for “Morning Has Broken” none of the rest of us, and Jay gets the honor of the “Skye Boat Song”, which I find is interesting.

Back to the original point Rock Band was really fun, but not only could we not afford one of our own we wouldn’t have room to put the accessories anywhere. It’s a very cool set-up though, and munchkin was even able to play a little once we put it into ‘no fail’ mode. Though him hammering away at the drums could be a little distracting some times.

I was in the middle of trying to deliver him this time four years ago. We’d just about decided that we were going to give up. All I was doing was straining and straining. The nurses were pointing out that all I was doing was making myself need hemorrhoids treatments but munchkin was stuck and all we were doing was causing both of us distress.

So, we had to do a c-section. It turned out there was no way I could have delivered him, everything was in the right place, there was no placenta previa but he was just way too big. They’d estimated he was 8lbs, 8 and a half at most. He turned out to be 9lb 6oz; but he was crabby and healthy, so that’s good.

He continues to be a very healthy little boy. This past year is the first time he’s really been sick for any length of time. He’s so excited about the possibility of going to school, pre-school anyway, so I hope he gets bumped off the wait list to the proper one, though it is pretty scary to think that he’s old enough to go to school.

I’m sure we’ll sort things out provided we check for suggestions but it’s still a bit daunting. I’m never sure what people will like or won’t like and when there’s a lot of us we often second and third guess ideas until we ‘re narrowed down to maybe a gift certificate? But again those are hard to do internationally.

I’m thankful for babysitting! Because I have to be at work soon and most of my relatives are out of the area, and hubbie is at work; but we’re having our evening meal with my FIL and his SO and they’ve just come and picked up the munchkin to stay with them until we meet them for dinner so that makes things a lot easier, phew! I already missed two shifts last week because I had no babysitter and was still feeling really bad, so I didn’t want to have to miss the “mandatory” every one works a few hours on the holiday so there’s no favoritism day.

Best wishes to all! Don’t overstuff yourselves!

The maypole guarded the entrance and when we walked in we were invited to participate in the Queen’s Quest, which was a version of Clue where we had to go interview members of the cast who were wearing red ribbons and do tasks for them in order to find out who hadn’t attempted to abduct the Queen and what they hadn’t used, and where it hadn’t happened.

The munchkin was a little freaked out about participating in certain events, he didn’t want to hop on one leg and pretend to have the plague, but he did like playing hot potato with the village children, and also had a lot of fun being swung in the man-powered swing set.

They had ladies doing Arabian dancing on horses before the jousting match was scheduled to take place.

We wandered around a bit more taking in the sights and looking for more red ribbon people. There were a lot of vendors and even a few card readers which makes me wonder about doing that next year if we’re able.

We were walking back by one of the fields after avoiding people learning how to sword fight and saw that there was a falconer doing a show and watched. One of the birds landed right above where we were standing.

After the show we listened to her talking about how she raised the birds and fed them quail and squirrel so they didn’t get a taste for domesticated animals such as chickens or rabbits.

Mum bought the munchkin a sword and shield and he challenged some other boys to a duel and was such a ferocious onslaught that they yielded. As we were walking out he challenged a man about my age to a duel because he saw that he had a sword but he yielded too because his sword was a replica in bubble wrap.

We also talked to some people from SCA who invited Mum and I to attend their meets in the neighboring town. It’s tempting especially when they said they have mead making classes from time to time.

They had a lot of really nifty things set up, decorations all over, mood pieces, areas set up like wilderness camp and hillbilly camp, humidifier filters and smoke machines, people in costume wandering around interacting with the guests. There was one girl meandering around asking if anyone had seen her baby, another with her wrists cut and a bloody dress kept seemingly aimlessly walking around and would stop every once in a while to ask in a dreamy voice if other people “heard him” too and knew of his “wonder” and “would come to him”. There was also a hatchet man, and a doctor with H1N1 vaccines and several others. I won’t speak about the walk itself too much because there’s another showing of it tonight, but it was a worthy cause and a great experience.

We stayed for the midnight showing of George Romero’s “Night of the Living Dead” which was apparently being simulcast on AMC which is neat. It was a restored 16mm copy which had been found in a widow’s garage after her husband passed and had been painstakingly restored by Movie Joint. In certain spots they claimed you could see boom mikes but I wasn’t paying enough attention. I was pretty tired.

It was a very nice evening though. I enjoyed it a lot, and I’m very glad that hubbie talked me into going. We’ve enjoyed everything we’ve been to at the Enzian so far.

Much of Friday was taken up with wedding preparations. Nephew, hubbie, munchkin and I escaped for a little while just before lunch to go to one of the restaurants in town “The Dimmick Inn” as we’d been told that they had a buffalo calamari that was really, really good. Which was absolutely true.

We arrived back in time for rehearsal, but as with most weddings things didn’t go quite according to plan. However, the wedding was able to go off a little later than intended, but was still a lot of fun. We had to swear before those assembled that we knew the bride and groom were free of other promises and ill-intent, and after the vows we got to beat them with pine boughs as a fertility blessing.

Then the bride and groom walked out through a sword arch that we, that is to say, the “witnesses” or bridesmaids and grooms men were making.

The munchkin played a part too. Towards the end of the ceremony he had the duty to bring the rings up, and he performed that very well. I was so nervous that he would run off with the rings, but he sat with hubbie’s aunt until the appropriate time and then ran the rings straight to his Dad. Everyone thought he was adorable, which I have to say biased as I am, that he was. He was dressed as a viking!

I can’t wait to see “official” pictures, because I know the photographer took several of him goofing around before the ceremony. He kept putting rocks in his helmet and pouring them over his head.

After the ceremony we went to the feasting hall where we had good food, lots of mead, and wonderful entertainment. An acting troupe put on “Tales from the Edda” depicting Loki and Odin having a heated argument about who had the right to bless the happy couple on their wedding day, it was hilarious, especially Thor in a dress being married to an ogre, and an awesome band called Norse Wind played during the second half of the reception. My husband was quite taken with the fact that the female lead also played a didgeridoo.

Towards the end of the night the munchkin was getting tired, so I took him back up to the cabin. He passed out fairly quickly but I had a hard time getting to sleep.

The next day was a lot more relaxed and slow for us. We woke up late and missed breakfast, so went into town to a local diner, and ate there. On the way back I realized that we were leaving the next day so it would be my last opportunity to get shots of the lake and weir on the road up to the camp so I pulled over to the side of the road and hopped out. Hubbie was a little perplexed but he and the munchkin soon followed, and we took a few more shots. I’m still in awe that my cell phone can take decent photos. I just wish it had a flash. I miss my digital camera!

When we got back to the camp all of us flaked out and fell asleep in the cabin for a while, which meant we missed the viking games. That was disappointing.

That night after dinner, hubbie looked after the munchkin who had caught a bug somewhere along the line and was running a fever. He said it was only fair I had a night out by myself given the first night he had gone with nephew and played poker. So, SIL, BIL and I went to the auction and then to the Odin blot. That was a really wonderful experience. I felt so connected to everyone and everything, and such power when the priest blessed me with Odin’s spear. I wrote out a list of things I was sacrificing and giving up and pledged myself. I was so energized when I got back, which was a little counter productive because we had to leave at 3 a.m. to drive back to Newark and get our plane, but I managed to sleep, and also slept a little on the plane.

We made good time back to the airport and had no problems with the rental car place this time, and didn’t get eaten by the train either.

We’re hoping to be able to go to ECT again next year; but it’s one of those things we’ll have to play by ear.