December is a busy month — with holiday decorating, food prep and celebrations taking over the schedule. So go ahead and give yourself the gift of a lighter load of chores around the house. Here’s a suggested to-do list that will get you ready for family festivities and the potential for harsh winter weather but… Read more »
Glittering Christmas decorations look festive to you. To your dog or cat, they look like a playground. Your pet can get hurt in a romp with the Christmas tree or holiday decorations. But it’s possible to keep the season bright for both you and your fur babies. Here are some ideas for maintaining pet safety… Read more »
The legend of Santa Claus originated with Saint Nicholas in the 4th century. Nicholas was perhaps best known for having secretly supplied a poor man with three purses of gold coins to pay for his three daughters’ weddings. In one version of the story, he dropped the purses down the chimney and one purse landed… Read more »
Candles in a Menorah are lit each night of the eight days of Hanukkah to signify the miracle of one day’s worth of consecrated oil lasting for eight after the desecration of the ancient Jewish temple. Thus, Hanukkah is also known as the Festival of Lights. Building neighborhood bonds. The holiday season offers the opportunity… Read more »
The first recorded Thanksgiving in 1621 had wild turkey and other fowl, along with abundant fish and venison. The event was attended by the surviving 50 members of the original group that arrived on the Mayflower and 90 Native Americans. Prior to the drafting and adoption of the U.S. Constitution in 1789, the Continental Congress… Read more »
Armistice Day commemorated the end of World War I. An armistice was declared at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month of the year 1918. In 1938, Congress made it a federal holiday. In 1947, the name was changed to Veterans Day to honor all who have served. Veterans Day is… Read more »
America was predominantly an agrarian society in the 18th century. By November the harvest was done, but winter storms had not commenced, so farmers could participate in elections. Later the day was set for the first Tuesday following the first Monday of November because it didn’t interfere with Sunday church or Wednesday market days, with… Read more »
Nations located along the equator see little benefit to Daylight Saving Time since the difference in the number of daylight versus dark hours varies little. For the rest of us, it’s good to remember to “spring forward, and fall back.” You’ll lose an hour of sleep in the spring and gain an hour in the… Read more »
Stingy Jack was a mythical Irish figure who was said to roam the countryside with a lantern made from a burning coal in a hollowed-out turnip. The Halloween tradition of a lighted Jack O’ Lantern evolved from that story. Keeping Halloween Safe As the sun sets on October 31, children and their parents roam neighborhood… Read more »
Since 1775, some of the New England states have marked the third Monday in April as Patriots’ Day in honor of the Battle of Lexington and Concord that marked the beginning of the American War of Independence from Great Britain. The new holiday began immediately following the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, when President… Read more »
The National Education Association, the union for teachers and school administrators, is the largest union with more than three million members. In 1894 President Grover Cleveland signed the law making the first Monday of September the federally recognized holiday known as Labor Day. End of summer, beginning of fall. Although seasonally still part of summer,… Read more »
This father and son team has competed in thousands of marathons and triathlons. Born in 1962, son Rick has cerebral palsy, and his dad pushes him in a special wheelchair, carries him on a special bicycle and pulls him in a small boat as he swims. They have competed in more than 1,100 events including… Read more »
No consensus exists on when and where Memorial Day in America began, but the custom of decorating the graves of America’s Civil War dead became so widespread by 1868 that May 30 became known as Decoration Day. In 1967, it became officially known as Memorial Day. In 1968, Congress moved the day from May 30… Read more »
Mother’s Day began in 1908 when West Virginia’s Anna Jarvis memorialized her mother, who had cared for wounded soldiers on both sides of the American Civil War. In 1914, President Woodrow Wilson declared Mother’s Day to be a national holiday on the second Sunday of May. Today in the United States, $24 billion is spent… Read more »
The first Easter Egg Roll was held on the White House grounds in 1878 by President Rutherford B. Hayes. Festively colored Easter eggs were originally meant to symbolize the birth of new life. Easter bunnies in the U.S. were introduced by German immigrants settling in Pennsylvania during the 18th Century. Easter is the second biggest… Read more »
St. Patrick is often depicted with a cross in one hand and a three-leaf clover in the other. He was a Fifth Century missionary and bishop credited with introducing Christianity to Ireland. St. Patrick used a three-leaf clover to explain the Christian doctrine of the Holy Trinity to the Irish people. Today, St. Patrick’s Day,… Read more »
Cherry pie is the unofficial dessert of Washington’s Birthday, drawing from the legend of young Washington chopping down a cherry tree. Presidents’ Day has had various designations. Originally it celebrated George Washington’s birthday on February 22. In the 20th Century, Abraham Lincoln’s birthday on February 12 was also noted, as well as paying respect to… Read more »
Valentine’s Day also ranks second only to Christmas for greeting card sales, but Mother’s Day sells more flowers than Valentine’s Day. Valentine’s Day, as we know it, has its romantic roots in a poem about “Valentines” by 14th Century English writer Geoffrey Chaucer, best known for “Canterbury Tales.” During that period, the concept of “courtly… Read more »
Dr. King led the non-violent civil rights movement for racial equality beginning in 1955 until his assassination in 1968. He led several peaceful protests including the Montgomery, Alabama, bus boycotts, the Selma-to-Montgomery marches and probably his most remembered, the March on Washington, D.C. in 1963, where he gave his famous “I Have a Dream” speech…. Read more »
It’s time to decorate for Christmas but do you really want to struggle with that twisted and tangled mess of incandescent lights? Or is it time to invest in the newer LED types for your Christmas tree? LEDs vs. incandescents. We all grew up with strings of incandescent Christmas lights, but they are quickly being… Read more »
