PantheaCon musings

Lilith by Megaera Callisto Lorenz

So I am back from PantheaCon and am getting settled back into my normal life (albeit with more work involved- I have lots to write from P'Con for PNC Bay Area). Before heading to the 'Con, I perused the schedule this year and decided to cover the kids and family programming, getting several tasks accomplished at once: PNC coverage, spending time with Rowan, and networking and learning from other pagan parents and families.

Friday was all about getting settled in and getting my bearings. I had to do on-site registration for the 'Con, wait in a loooong line to get into my room, then we had a meeting of the Bay Area bureau of the Pagan Newswire collective to decide which stories were going to be covered by whom. My partner and I traded off watching Rowan when we were not attending things with him- and Friday was his night to carouse. So I stayed in.

Saturday morning, I went to John Michael Greer's presentation on the Picatrix, which was fantastic. He recently did a new translation and I am anxious to get a copy (I am a geek like that!). Then I attended a ritual for youth ages 8-12 and interviewed the woman who organized and proposed the event. Then I hung out in my suite for a private event where we did workings that set me abuzz.

We hosted a playdate in the Pagan Playdate suite that afternoon, and there I got to meet more pagan families, and some will be joining us for playdates beyond the 'Con! That was awesome and exciting. We are building the organization, one brick at a time.

Lilith, once more

We hosted a small event in the Casa Vesperus suite and then went to dinner. Because we were out of the hotel, I missed a huge hullaballoo when some Dianic witches refused trans women entrance to their 7 PM ritual. I have to say, I have been upset with the Dianics for some time over this very issue (and will not attend most Dianic rituals for this very reason), and was glad that it became an issue for the community to have its say about.

To exclude certain kinds of women because of their anatomy, biology, or life experience is UNFEMINIST, and I cannot abide this kind of bigotry- especially in the guise of religion. It pains me that some people I genuinely like perpetuate this horrible transphobia and unreligious* behavior. While women have been oppressed, that does not make it okay to oppress others. And that is exactly what is happening here- make no mistake.

My patroness, Lilith, wants me to say publicly that this ritual in question was supposed to be dedicated to Her- yet She is not pleased. Lilith does not approve of this bigoted nonsense. Women- please hear her. Bigotry in Her name will not be tolerated. Organizers playing gender police that night may have some nasty life surprises waiting for them as a result. She has a way of getting her way- by hook or by crook. She has a way of making her Will known, and not always pleasantly. These organizers are obviously not familiar with my Patroness, as She is the patron of sexual and gender variance and freaks of all kinds, among other things. What were they thinking (or were they)? She is not simply the cute feminist icon of "I submit to no man!". This goddess isn't about not doing it missionary-style. No scholarly research was done here evidently- because Lilith would not abide any rite that excludes Her people.

There will be a detailed story about this for Bay Area PNC, I am glad to say- as this issue needs to be out there for the community to read about.

Later that evening, I went to the Oracular Seidh. I am very interested in all kinds of oracular work, and this particular tradition has a great history and lore around this form. I was very affected in the session myself, and some of the tenders felt the need to check in on me a couple times. I was fine, but entering just that trance state myself. Afterwards, even though it was my turn to carouse, I was wiped and went back to the suite to sleep!

Sunday, I was part of a panel introducing the Pagan Newswire Collective. I am hoping there were some in the audience that will become future writers for the Bay Area!

I missed the Family Blot in the next time slot, but heard about it from other attendees (Rowan was melting down and needed a nap) while in the Pagan Playdate suite. We (Rowan and myself) tried to attend the "Fairy Tea Party" for kids after his nap, but it was kind of a disaster for us. The organizers had placed a shiny sequined altar cloth (on the floor! with cookies on it!) in the center of the room, and then did not want any of the kids to touch it right away. Um, what?! That's possibly fine for a 5 or 6 year old, but toddlers? Not so much. Rowan could not wait to grab the shiny and delicious things, much to the organizer's chagrin. He is a wild thing, and it was tough reining him in. He ended up running around the space maniacally and bonked his head so badly he got a goose egg on his forehead. (Before you ask, he is fine). It was not exactly good logistical planning for kids under 2. So we left early. I was able to promote the Pagan Playdate storytime afterwards, so that is where we headed next.

Source: morrigusdaughters.spruz.com

We went to dinner again before the big ritual at 9 PM, which was spectacular. I am glad that I started it well fortified! "Call of the Battle Raven: A Morrigan Devotional" blessed us with a visit from the bean sídhe Herself and I am still mulling over her gifts and demands of us. We all made oaths on her sword to keep throughout the year- and I am excited to start on mine (sorry, but it is a secret!). After the ritual, I was pumped up and on the prowl and organized an impromptu cocktail party at the hotel bar. I got a little tipsy and laughed a lot while Rowan was asleep and in the care of a beloved brother in the Craft (Thanks, Shimmer!).

Monday morning, I got up early again and went to "Passing It On: Creating Sustainable Traditions In Pagan Families" where I networked and interviewed the presenter for my PNC article. There were resources swapped and friends made.

The protesters of the Lilith ritual were given a space to hold a forum/roundtable on this day, which I attended and made my voice heard. I was happy to see that virtually all in attendance were against the discrimination, yet also believed in the integrity of women's and men's ritual space (they just believed, as I do, in self identification as the litmus test for entrance).

What pains me is that while most people I know dismiss this as a "second wave feminist problem" (meaning it is generational and when these die-hards finally pass on, so will this issue), that is not the case- at least here in this instance. Come As You Are Coven, aka CAYA (the CAYA Amazons put on this ritual and run many of their non-PantheaCon women's rituals with the same rules- no trans women) is a fairly new organization that attracts people in their twenties and thirties- many of them new to pagandom and witchcraft- and are certainly a generation or two well past the generation of "second wave feminists". They are, in essence, perpetuating this anti-trans bigotry to a new generation of pagans. This makes me both profoundly sad and incredibly angry.

---

As I said at the round table on this issue, If religion does not bring people closer to the earth, to each other and to the gods, it is not actually religion. The roots of the word are "to re-tie" meaning to all those three things. Bigotry disguising itself as religion acts as a force of disconnection- and therefore is not religion at all.

Looking forward to PantheaCon

This weekend is the annual pagan conference PantheaCon that I have attended for the last several years. It is a huge event- last year, close to 2500 people attended, and the hotel is always "sold out" and attendees must book rooms in overflow hotels each year.

Last year, Rowan was the youngest person
at PantheaCon, being only two weeks old.

The conference offers an amazing array of workshops, lectures, entertainment, and rituals in many "pagan" traditions- be they heathen, ceremonial magician, witchcraft, or otherwise. What they do not offer is childcare. Which is a problem, considering how many people are attending these days with their families.

This year, the playgroup I belong to is swapping childcare when possible with one another to help cover some of the times when you want some adult time. This will help balance the needs of Rowan and my needs to have some awesome Witchy goodness on my own. And we are opening the suite for a meet and greet to welcome new members and tell them about our playgroup.

In addition to helping with Pagan Playdate, I am also hosting a hospitality suite for my religious tradition that will have several salons on several topics for its initiates and students. I am also part of the Pagan Newswire Collective, and we will be covering the 'Con as well as doing a meet and greet as well. So, needless to say, I will be busy!

I have decided to cover all the family-friendly and kid-focused events this year for PNC, and this also means that I get to spend some great times with my son while still being present at the 'con and doing my journalistic work. A win-win!

I'll be sure to take pix and report back when my weekend is through! If you follow me on Twitter, you may see more frequent updates over the weekend there.

Pagan Playdate's Mabon!

Rowan plays in grass

So today, Pagan Playdate met at Little Farm (a small working farm in one of the East Bay Regional Parks) where the kids got to feed cows, a pig, geese, chickens, ducks, goats and sheep celery and lettuce that we brought. The kids squealed with delight and dropped the celery into the dirt often, fearing that their hands would get bit (they are a bit city-fied, our kids). Rowan loved watching the cows' big lolling tongues extend and wrap around the celery stalks like a tentacle reaching for prey. It made him giggle.

Alden, Orin, Heather, Gavin, Bella

I was pleased that our group grew by one family this week and we had another pagan parent and her kids join us. Welcome, Blaze, Bella, and Willow!

Blaze, Willow, Ladybug

After hanging out for a while, we went to a grassy area to circle up and have a casual ritual with the kids. One of the other mothers and I had decided to plan this together, and had called each other the night before to confirm plans and get on the same page. Since most of the kids are too young to understand Mabon and its meanings, we decided that today's theme was animals (hence starting at the Little Farm).

Meg, Laurel, Avery, Heaven, Aida

Our oldest regular kid, Orin (who is 5) got to cast circle, with the help of his mom. (You may remember Orin from our Lughnasadh ritual- he was such a big kid that he got to hold a lit candle.) He loves taking part in ritual and has great input. When we discussed how we would call in the quarters/elements using corresponding animals (birds for air, fish for water, etc), he cracked me up when he disagreed with an adult's suggestion for fire (a lion). "No, I wouldn't do that.",  he said. Curious and wanting the kids as engaged as possible, I asked, "Well, what would you do?" He replied, "I'd use a fire elemental!" He is a little more advanced in his pagan training than the rest of our kids. So we suggested that each kid got to propose their own, and when it was his turn he could say "salamander" or whatever floated his boat. Rowan and I were in the west, so we invoked fish and made the ASL sign for fish and gave our selves gills and fish faces.

Avery, Aidan, Heaven

Once in circle, we told animal stories. I let everyone know why Flamingo stands on one leg. Blaze told how Turtle pulled up the earth from the sea. And Heaven told us about compassionate Hummingbird. Then we sang "Fur and Feathers" and pre-vocal kids got to use rattles, drums, tamborines, and shakers to join in:

Fur and feathers and scales and skin
Different without but the same within
Many the body but one the soul
By all creatures are the gods made whole!

Then we did a kid version of cakes and wine: cookies and juice!  I am hoping that Heaven and Meg share a couple things in the comments that I cannot remember: The circle devocation and a cakes and wine blessing that were kid appropriate, catchy and charming. Ladies?

How Our Family Works

Regular readers: this blog post is a submission to the Blog Carnival of Feminist Parenting.

I was recently told by more than one person that it was "crazy" the amount of stuff that I take on and projects that I juggle. To someone outside our family, it probably seems that way. How could I have time for my son, as well as an active blog, and several not-for-profit organizations, and be in grad school, and, and, and?

First, I've always been a busy person. A do-er. I've always talked about myself as someone who "makes stuff happen". It's what I do, and I love doing it. Sometimes I get stressed, sure- but honestly, I get bored easily! I need to have projects pulling at my attention (and I don't a TV)! People should only worry about me if I have nothing going on. Then something is seriously wrong, people.

While I have a lot of projects, they have come up in the pursuit of doing what I love. For example, in her last living year, I met and visited Cora Anderson weekly. While many would think that I was purely in the giving situation there and Cora was receiving, that is only part of the reality. She told me many important things, some of which I am still sorting out. She gave me plenty to think about in terms of my relationship to the Craft and the people in it. Frankly, I have learned so much from so many- and for that, I am truly grateful. Out of that, PEARL was born, and I personally care for an elder (one that I am personally connected to) about once a week, and in the process, I set up the infrastructure for others to do the same, if they choose.

Another example: I wanted to have a baby. After Rowan got here, I realized there are too few real-life resources for me and those like me: Pagan parents who are community minded and want their children growing up in a tribal environment with close familial ties reinforced by our religion. Out of that, this blog and Pagan Playdate were born.

To assure those people that think that I take on "too much": I know how to say no and actually do that quite often- to projects that do not fit into the world that I am shaping for myself. I know how to pace myself in the work as well. Most of these projects are something that I, myself, initiated as I was uncovering my Work. When I follow the Flow, the Work is easy and things get done.

Second, (and this point is very important) my family structure allows me the time and energy to do all of these projects, go to school, make a living, and care for my son. "How the hell does that work?" I hear you asking yourself. Simple. I don't have to be exclusively responsible for any one project (except school- that one is all me!) all the time.

I was delighted to learn that I was following the principles of Equally Shared Parenting! I discovered this blog/book a month or so ago and the tune is so familiar! My partner and I share the burden of breadwinning, parenting, housework, and several projects in the Feri community. 

I know lots of parents (mostly women) who do most or all of the parenting alone. They are either single mamas or they have a "one breadwinner, one stay-at-homer" family. Both models are hard and frankly, I don't know how they manage.

I am a huge fan of Hip Mama and after reading the magazine, books, and blogs (all of whom give plenty of voice to single mamas (among other kinds)), I have to say: single mamas have my utmost respect for keeping it together on a daily basis. What you manage to do trumps my efforts any day! Single parents rule. If you are not a single parent but know any - do the world a favor and offer some free babysitting this week to her/him. Seriously. They deserve some free time.

And I feel for the split-duty families, too. The breadwinner often feels as they are missing out on important moments in their kids lives (and they are!) and the stay-at-homer tends to go crazy from a lack of adult contact. It's not really a win-win situation there, either. 

I love our family model; it really works for us. The most that I have gone without support with Rowan is 10 hours, and the same is true for my partner (and baby daddy), Oberyn. I was lucky to find such a like-minded co-parent. We saw eye-to-eye on this issue from the start. Both of us want to share the care for Rowan equally and be there for him as he grows and develops- we have committed to this whole parenting thing fully. We both tend to see parenthood as the most important job we will ever have, and it is a task that we relish.

As corny as it sounds, watching our son grow and develop is amazing and is time better spent than most anything else we could be doing. We often amuse ourselves these days by witnessing his milestones: how he is learning to crawl, bit by bit; each new food he tries and the funny faces he makes when he does; or how he is fast becoming a serious flirt. Naturally, it takes our breath away- it is an amazing thing we are doing and we have created an amazing being. Oberyn is a naturally giving and nurturing person, and takes amazing care of our son. Rowan, in turn, adores his daddy. I am so grateful.

As for equally shared parenting, we have even gone so far as to do a "split shift" at bedtime. First shift sleeps with Rowan until 4 AM (we do co-sleeping with our son). This is the time he normally wakes for a feeding. Then the first shifter changes his diaper and passes him off to the second shifter, who feeds him and takes him for the rest of the night. We actually sleep in separate rooms, as this allows each of us to get far more sleep with a baby in the house than any other way we tried. And sleep is a rare and precious commodity these days.

That is not to say that we don't have our disputes, mainly over housework. While I am not a slob, Oberyn is far more, let's say -meticulous- than I am (That's a much nicer word than "anal", isn't it? Just joking!). He gets fed up with clutter a lot quicker than I do, and so he ends up doing more around the house and that can sometimes lead to resentments. I am sure as he reads this blog he is grinning. I rarely admit to him that he does more chores, and now here I am, telling the whole world! (Often I am writing Witch Mom posts as he does the dishes.)

My partner is one of those rare specimens: a male feminist who likes to keep a neat house! When I asked him how he ended up that way, he wasn't sure. He certainly wasn't brought up to see work around the house as something a man should value or pursue. Personally, I think it had to do with his college studies in queer theory. He was exposed to feminism as well as queer politics in college, and it stuck. It also helps that his generation takes many feminist advances for granted (Oberyn is 11 years younger than me), and that has translated into our home life.

The fact that we both belong to a religion that embraces the Divine Feminine can't hurt, either. In our religion, women are strong and powerful. It's a natural state of being. As above so below- if God Herself can create the universe and everything in it, certainly this mama can post in her blog or organize a new event (while her son is happily played with by daddy).

A feminist model of parenting is personally benefiting me, yes. It allows me to pursue my interests and passions as well as have a successful family life. But I firmly believe that this is also the best for Rowan, my son, as well. He gets two fully engaged parents who love on him all the time. He gets two models of well-adjusted, balanced, thriving adults to model himself upon. He will never hear the guilt-inducing refrain that so many have about how their parents martyred themselves on the altar of parenthood to raise him, because it is not necessary or even true.

My son was planned and wanted every step of the way- from his conception to every little detail of his upbringing. My partner and I negotiate at each juncture and no assumptions are made about who is going to do what based on gender- it is based on ability, time available, and other practical matters. To me, this is what feminist parenting is all about.

Pagan Playdate's Lughnasadh!

So we had our wonderful children's Lughnasadh and I thought that I would share what we did, since several readers asked how to plan a sabbat with kids in mind. Some things I planned on worked, others didn't, some I planned on we abandoned in the moment for a better situationalist option. We had kids there ranging in age from four months old to 5 years old, for a total of 6 kids. The ones that could not walk or sit up well on their own were held by their parents or sat in special baby chairs at times. This was our first sabbat together, and I learned a lot in the moment to make the next one better.

As High Priestess, I arrived early to prep the space. I set up a working altar with some safe tools (I normally use my  very sharp athame, but also have a blunt one made of jet, which was used today). Then we put a small elemental (earth, air, fire, water) representation in each direction (a bowl of water for the west, a bowl of dirt for the north, a blob of play-doh (how's that for kid-friendly improvisation when you cannot find an incense burner?) holding a stick of smoking incense for the east, and a lit candle for the south. Charmingly, one of the kids placed a bowl of goldfish crackers in the west as well.

Getting mama love beforehand

I had created an outline in advance of what I wanted to do with the kids, and had also made a double batch of bread dough that morning, so that it had risen properly before they kids arrived and we needed to use it. I brought along prepped "add ins" for the breads- cinnamon/sugar and plumped raisins for the kids, chopped onions and cheddar cheese chunks for an adult loaf.

When everyone arrived, we went over the ritual outline to get everyone on the same page: We then assigned/asked kids to represent each quarter so that they could shout out the name of the element that they represented when it came time to cast circle. We had the oldest child be fire with the help of a parent, since that was the more dangerous element and the smaller children got to be water and earth and air, with the help of their parents or me (in the north).

Getting the kids to pay attention during the orientation was kind of like herding cats - some had just arrived, others had been there for 30 minutes already and were running around like the wild things that they are. I tried to get them to focus by asking direct questions to them, starting with their name: "Alden, would you like to be the north?" etc.

Orin,  as the element of fire.

As the HP (me!) cast circle, we involved the kids. As we called each direction, I would point at the child(ren) in a quarter and they would call out their element. I pointed my athame in the north and pointed to the north and the kids and adults in that quarter would shout, "Earth!" and I would nod and say "Yes! By the earth that is her vital body!"- then I would continue casting the circle including each of the four quarters- pointing at each element child to let them have their part. Then I did above, below and center myself (which is Feri thing, not all traditions (including those represented) do that). I then asked the kids to help me form and push the magic circle out beyond us, to encompass the entire house and yard- as we were going to be doing things in several rooms and the back yard that day. "Okay, everyone- now use your breath to blow the circle outward- like a giant balloon so that it is not just in this room, but also the kitchen and the backyard!" The kids were really into that, and the adults helped.

Circle casting

After we had cast circle, we heard a story about the wheel of the year, and where we were on that wheel (Lughnasadh). We talked about how we had made goals for ourselves at Samhain last year (which for my non-witch readers is witches new year- many people know it as the secular holiday of Halloween) and asked if people had made their goals come true this year- it is now the first harvest, and goals should start to see some fruition. The adults had plenty to say at this part of the ritual, the kids? Not so much. "Um, I had a goal of getting more toys?" asked one hopefully. So I played along. "And did you meet your goals? Did you get more toys?" "Oh, yes." he replied earnestly. Cute!

So I switched gears. We talked about how the wheat and how the god gets cut down this time of year, which is why we were making bread gods. I got the kids excited: "Everybody gets to play with the dough and make their own bread god! And when they are done- we get to EAT THEM!" With the kids sufficiently excited, we headed to the kitchen.

I handed out blobs of dough to the kids- some in high chairs, still others at kid sized tables. They started making their creations, some with the help of a parent. We added raisins and cinnamon sugar to the kids breads and put them in the oven just as the adult loaf (with onions and cheddar) was coming out of the oven. Can I just say, the place smelled wonderful?!

I also need to tell you that the bread god shown on the right is also a robot. Just so you know. Cuz that's important. Oddly enough, he also has a goldfish cracker in the center. I don't know why that was important, but it was.

We then headed outside into the sunshine to play games. Lugh was exceptional at games. I had planned to play hug tag and do relay races, but the kids had so much pent up energy that they immediately made up their own games as soon as we were outside.  I told the adults that if the action lagged, we could step in with structured activities. But it didn't seem necessary, and we never got to play those games I had planned. Oh well! Another day! The lesson here for the adults? Never underestimate the power of children to invent their own fun.

While the kids ran around and played, the adults communed and had some fun feasting on the bread, leftover raisins, and banana bread. Eventually, we spread a blanket on the grass and exchanged songs that we sing to our kids. We were all wound down at that point, so I forwent the idea of the kids crazily running in a circle chanting a simple chant to raise a cone of power. At that point, I asked our two oldest kids to help me devoke and bring down the circle. I asked them to see the circle on the periphery of the yard, and on the count of three, we were gonna "pop the balloon we made". They were great at it, and the circle came down!

I captured some other photos that I would like to share:

Avery, messy with plum

Gavin!

The Kunning family

Rowan explores the grass

Things that I would do differently for next sabbat:
1. Storytime needs to be more engaging. We lost focus at some of these times, when they were supposed to act as a bridge to the next activity. We are thinking about using puppets next time.

2.  We should start teaching our kids songs and dances now, so that we can engage them to join in easily. While four of our regular kids are pre-verbal, two can dance and clap to a remembered song at this point. I think having common touchpoints in the ritual may anchor and ground the ritual, making it easier for kids to follow.

3. We have some logistics to work out about timing and such. We all arrived very staggered, making the start time later than intended, thereby making the day longer than intended for some of the kids. This made several of the kids lose their naptimes (which at least in my case, led to a meltdown at the end of the day). This demonstrates that planning (good, bad or a lack of it) has a very real-world effect on our kids!

We all talked toward the end of the ritual about how we can get more organized as a group- calendars, a ning group, and much more. It's quite exciting to see us coming together for the kids.

Links Every Pagan Parent Should Have

As a new parent, I really appreciated getting tips from other more experienced parents about resources, items, and ideas.

As a pagan parent, There are precious few resources out there for us. There are more online and in books than in real life, to be sure. I have compiled a list of links (current as of today's post date) and a couple to help you create a real-world community of pagan parents offline as well!
 So I keep looking for places to gather with other pagan parents, resources that fit into a pagan philosophy of child rearing (whether or not it was targeted to us), and compiling them.

Magazines:

Broomstix Online Magazine: an online magazine for pagan kids with activities and articles, kind of like Highlights.
New Moon Magazine for Girls: Not pagan per se, but it may as well be! An empowering, ad free place for girls to express themselves, read other girls' perspectives, and reach towards their goddess-selves.
Pagan Moonbeams Online Magazine: a magazine for pagan families.
The Blessed Bee: Sadly, only one issue was printed, but it is available online.
The Pooka Pages Magazine: An online magazine for pagan kids

Websites and Online Resources:

Proud to be Pagan KIDS!
Mystic Moon Coven's Wiccan/Pagan Parenting pages
A Pagan Kid's Grove (includes coloring pages)- Warning! Annoying embedded sound
The Pooka Pages
Gingerbread Grandma's Cauldron
The Pagan and Wiccan Parenting Page
Teen Witch: Not in any way affiliated with Silver Ravenwolf, I promise.
Witchvox Articles by pagan teens
Witchvox Articles on Pagan Parenting
Covenant of the Goddess Teen Articles
Attachment Parenting International While not a pagan philosophy per se, most pagans I know practice attachment parenting, whether they realize it or not. Having support on positive discipline especially can be very helpful and comforting.
Pagan Babies (and Kids and Parents!) I have created a group on the pagan social networking site, The Cauldron Network (TCN). To join, you have to belong to The Cauldron message boards first. Join the message board, then join TCN, then join the group. A multiple step process, but it will be so worth it!
Grandma, Tell Me A Story is a great storytelling website designed for homeschoolers and kids who love stories and fairy tales. They are pagan friendly, too!

Resource Articles:
Religious Tolerance page on Teens and Wicca (Legal Family, and Safety Issues)
Rights of Wiccan and Pagan Teens in Schools
You Have a Pagan Student at Your School (A Guide for Educators)
Your Rights as Pagan Parent
Pagan Parenting Podcast: Developing Spiritual Parenting Skills


I hear you saying to yourself, "OK, great. There are umpteen million online resources for pagan parents, and a few choice books. What about finding other pagan parents in my area? How do I do that? Huh, Witch Mom?"

WitchVox Parenting Real-Life Links are far more disappointing. A search on WitchVox for groups with the term "parent" returned a mere 10 listings for pagan parenting groups WORLDWIDE. Surely, we can do better than this! We do not need to do this job alone! Build your tribe, people! When you build it, list it here! Which brings me to:

Meetup.com This website allows a simple way for people to organize themselves. Many pagan adults use it for social gatherings to meet other pagans in their areas already. You too can start a pagan playgroup, a parent support group for witches, or a heathen baby gathering!

Spiral Scouts is an organization that does scouting activities for kids of all genders. It is pagan centric, but not exclusively so- all children age 3 and up are welcome to join. The caveat? We need 2 pagan adults (one female identified, one male) to apply to create a Hearth (family unit) or circle (troop extending beyond their own family). If there is not a circle in your area, they will help you create one.

And JUST STARTED, folks: Pagan Playdate! A resource for pagan parents of all stripes to create playgroups in their areas, and a strong group of folks (including Witch Mom herself!) in the Bay Area of California offering outings, a co-op childcare at PantheaCon, and more!

Pagan Playdate!

I have been involved in the beginning stages of a pagan playgroup with local folks here for a few months now. Our group gets together every Wednesday to get our kids together and to give us pagan parents a place to commune.

Sometimes, we just meet a member's home- toys are shared, snacks are eaten, and songs are sung. Other times, we go to free museum days or play cafes or events. We also try and invite one another to kid friendly events that happen at other times during the week.

Although Rowan is just now excited to be with other kids (although he is still a little small to actively play with anyone yet), I started going months ago. Why? To find a community of like-minded parents for support and tribe-building, of course! The playgroup is as much for me as it is for Rowan, and hence, we have a win-win on our hands!

Besides having fun, I have other aspirations for my/Rowan's participation as well:

• I hope to group school Rowan and I hope to meet like-minded pagan parents who wish to do the same. I like the idea of homeschooling, but I worry that I will do a less than adequate job of teaching my son if I am the sole person responsible for curriculum. After all, we all have our weak points, and mine happens to be math. Having a group of parents contributing to the education of our children makes sense and will mean a better education, to my mind. I also want Rowan to have the main advantage of a school environment- that is, exposure to other kids and the ability to learn social skills. So while homeschooling is appealing, group schooling is even more so. So I hope to meet parents that want this for their kids, too.
• I want to start a spiral scouts chapter for my area.
• I want to start a co-op child care group so that we can go on dates, go to adult rituals, and other things without breaking the bank.

 Anyone out there part of a pagan playgroup? A spiral scouts hearth or circle? A co-op childcare group? A group schooler or part of a co-op school? Tell me about it!