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Showing posts with label Holidays. Show all posts

Saturday, September 25, 2021

Cakes and Cupcakes Special Days and Reviews

There are a multitude of special days (those wacky, weird, humorous and fun days) throughout the year devoted to various kinds of cakes and cupcakes. The Contributors to this Review This Reviews site have also reviewed and shared a number of recipes of their favorites.

A compilation of these yummy dessert recipes and the days that are set aside to recognize them are featured in this article.

What is the Difference Between a Cake and Cupcakes?

There are only two differences ~ the type of pan you use to bake them, and the amount of time they spend in the oven.

*Some terms used for cupcakes – snack cake, mini-cake, Fairy Cake, Patty Cake.

Cake Holidays

Source: Pixabay

List of National Cake Holidays:

National Cake Month - February
National Chocolate Cake Day - January 27
National Carrot Cake Day - February 3
National Poundcake Day - March 4
National Blackforest Cake Day - March 28
National Lemon Chiffon Cake Day - March 29
National Coffee Cake Day - April 7
National Hazelnut Cake Day - June 1
National Applesauce Cake Day - June 6
National German Chocolate Cake Day - June 12
National Strawberry Shortcake Day - June 14
National Spongecake Day - August 23
National Angel Food Cake Day - October 10
National Cake Day - November 26
National Fruitcake Day -December 27
National Sacher Torte Day -December 5

Cupcake Holidays

List of National Cupcake Holidays:

Hostess Cupcake Day – May 10
Chocolate Cupcake Day – October 18
National Vanilla Cupcake Day - November 10
National Cupcake Day – December 15

Source: Pixabay

*NOTE: One of the most famous and popular cupcakes is the Hostess Cupcake. Check out this recipe for homemade Hostess Cupcakes. It is found on the blog Love, Life & Sugar by Lindsay.

Cake & Cupcake Recipes by the ReviewThisReviews Contributors

One of the RTR Contributors – the leader of the pack we all affectionately call “Mouse” - SylvesterMouse Cynthia, is our 'go-to' expert on getting fancy and having fun with cakes and cupcakes. In addition to numerous recipes Mouse has shared here on Review This Reviews, she has also featured several on her own blog sites. See a few below:

Snake Cake by Sylvestermouse

For an extra fun cake, see this (How to Decorate) Snake Cake by Sylvestermouse on her Cooking for the Holidays website.

Halloween Ghost Castle Cake by Sylvestermouse

Halloween Ghost Cake by Sylvestermouse

Plus, her Halloween Ghost Castle Cake on the Sylvestermouse Halloween Haven website.

Spooky Spider Cupcakes by Sylvestermouse

Photo courtesy of Fun Food

Then there is her Spooky Spider Cupcakes

And how about making a fancy cake design using cupcakes in the Sylvestermouse review of the Cupcake Cakes Cookbook?

More Delicious Cake & Cupcake Recipes & Reviews on Review This

Carrot Cake Cupcakes Recipe by Sylvestermouse.
A detailed review of National Vanilla Cupcake Day by Wednesday Elf
Best One-Bowl Chocolate Cake by Barbara Tremblay Cipak
For those whose diet regimen won't allow them to indulge in the above 'sweet treats', Margaret Schindel saves the day with Low Carb Muffins and Cupcakes: Treats to Enjoy on a Keto Diet.
Check out these instructions for easy stenciled cupcakes for Halloween, once again by Sylvestermouse (who loves to bake and decorate cakes and cupcakes).

Summary

So anytime you wish to indulge in a sweet treat in the cake & cupcake family, check out one of the above recipes or have a cake dessert day to celebrate one of the cake/cupcake holidays found all year long.

Happy 'Cake' Eating!

*Cakes and Cupcakes - Special Days and Reviews compiled for your eating pleasure by Wednesday Elf.

For More Holiday Reviews, see

ReviewThisReviews: Holidays

For More Recipe Reviews, see

ReviewThisRecipes.com

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Tuesday, September 21, 2021

Holidays Reviewed on Review This Reviews!

Treasures from the Archives of Review This Reviews!

We all enjoy special events, celebrations, and fun holidays. Seems mankind is always seeking something new to celebrate, or a reason to bring a bit of joy into our daily lives. After all, there needs to be a balance to work and responsibilities.

Companies, special project groups, focus groups and campaigns have brought some fun to otherwise normal days by naming days, or even months, for fun things or activities.

Did you know there is a National Lollipop Day, or a Hot Tea Month? For those of us who love cookies, there is even a Bake Cookies Day appropriately set a week before Christmas.

Of course, there are days to celebrate our favorite animals. Who wouldn't love International Rabbit Day and National Dolphin Day!

We also celebrate relaxing! So, hang your hammock on National Hammock Day , grab a Paczki or popcorn, a book or headphones, and take the day off. If you prefer, spend your day off enjoying your hobby. After all, there is a National Hobby Month, even though a month is not long enough to celebrate our favorite hobby.

Come to think of it, there should be a Review This Reviews Day! Select the best day for celebrating Review This Reviews, share your ideas in the comments below, and we will take all of the recommendations, choose a specific date, and declare it Review This Reviews Day!

Our contributors enjoy highlighting these days of celebration. We hope to bring a little sunshine to your day and give you a reason to smile and have fun. In addition to the major holidays, we review the fun holidays, explain their origins when known, and encourage our readers to focus on fun and happiness.

Let's find a reason to celebrate!

The board below features 30 of our most recent reviews.

Click through to Pinterest to see all of the Fun Holidays that have been Reviewed by Review This Reviews Contributors!

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Saturday, August 14, 2021

Review of National Kool-Aid Day

National Kool-Aid Day is celebrated every year on the second Friday in August. The day was likely created by Kraft Foods, the owner and marketer of the Kool-Aid brand.

History

Kool-Aid was invented by Edwin Perkins of Nebraska in 1927 in his mother's kitchen. He originally created it as a concentrate called “Fruit Smack”. To save on shipping costs, Perkins removed the water content and marketed it in powder form as “Kool-Aid”. There were six original flavors: cherry, grape, lemon, orange, root beer and raspberry. Over the years, many other flavors were added.

Fun Kool-Aid Facts

In the 1960s, a packet of Kool-Aid cost just 10 cents.
Do you remember the 1960's cartoon Kool-Aid Kids"?
Monkees fans trivia: Davey Jones appeared in the Kool-Aid commercials during the 1960s.
Did You Know? Kool-Aid is the official soft drink of the state of Nebraska.

More Things to do with Kool-Aid

Color Easter Eggs with Kool-Aid as described by Dawn Rae in her Sharpies - a Great Way to Personalize Easter Eggs review.

Make a Brew-Ha-Ha Punch for your Halloween Party with the Kool-Aid recipe in Sylvestermouse's Wicked Brews and Beverages Halloween recipes review.

Make Kool-Aid Play Dough for a fun activity for the kids. Try this easy recipe from the Growing a Jeweled Rose Website

More Kool-Aid Activities to create in this Play Learn Grow blog by Growing a Jeweled Rose, such as Kool-Aid finger paints and sidewalk chalk paint. A fun group of Kool-Aid crafts for kids.

And – best of all – make some Kool-Aid Popsicles. They are a favorite of kids everywhere for a cooling off treat on a hot summer day. Grape was always MY kids' favorite. Silicone Popsicle molds make this treat quick & easy to do.

Summary

Kool-Aid is the favorite sugary soft drink of kids. Always perfect on a hot summer day.

Come celebrate National Kool-Aid Day on the second Friday of August each year – or on any summer day you crave a cool glass of your favorite flavor of Kool-Aid.

National Kool-Aid Day Holiday Review written by

Wednesday Elf

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Tuesday, July 20, 2021

National Lollipop Day Review

National Lollipop Day

July 20 is known as National Lollipop Day – a fun holiday founded by the National Confectioners Association.

What is a Lollipop?

Lollipop Shop - Pixabay

Definition: Lol-li-pop – a flat rounded candy on the end of a stick.

Lollipops are a type of sugar candy – usually hard candy – mounted on a stick. You eat it by sucking or licking. Lollipops are also called a lolly, a sucker, or a sticky-pop, depending on where you live.

Lollipops are available in many flavors and can be found in several shapes, as well as the usual round shape. They range in size from small candies often purchased by the bagful, to giant lollipops made by specialty candy shops.

Banks, barbershops, some stores and vendors at parades often give away this sweet treat to customers.

Little Boy Lost – a Personal Lollipop Story

When our youngest son was four years old, we went to visit the grandparents in a small Kansas town. Grandpa was a doctor and kept a large glass jar filled with lollipops in his office. Naturally we stopped by his office one day and our son, Greg, got to choose a Lollipop from the jar. The office was located one block over and two blocks up from grandpa's house.

The next morning, we were in the kitchen with Grandma, having coffee. Greg was outside on the front porch with his older brother & sister and cousin. Several workmen were laying a new sidewalk right in front and the children were all watching. We figured 3 older children could watch one 4-year-old, but we didn't figure on the adventurous little boy our youngest was. We learned later that Greg had gotten bored with watching the workman and decided, all on his own, to go over to Grandpa's office to get another lollipop. But ….. instead of walking one block over and 2 blocks up, he went 2 blocks over and started walking trying to find the doctor's office.

About 30 minutes later the other children came inside and we (naturally) asked “Where's Greg?”. They had no idea – never having seen him leave and figuring he'd gone inside the house. Now we've got panicked parents, an aunt and grandma all going in different directions looking for Greg and calling his name. About the time we figured we should call the police for help, we spotted a police car coming around the corner with a small boy standing up in the back seat. We flagged them down and re-claimed our child. Turned out they had found him standing on a corner on a downtown street – over a mile from where he started. He'd gotten lost and was crying and a kind lady had found him and called the police.

We never even had to punish him. He'd scared himself so much, we figured that was punishment enough! And he never even got his LOLLIPOP! :)

Lollipops in Pop Culture

Image Source: Pixabay

In the TV series Kojak (1973-1979), Telli Savalis played a lollipop-loving detective known as Lieutenant Theo Kojak.

In The Wizard of Oz (1939), Dorothy is welcomed to the Land of Oz by The Lollipop Guild armed with a giant spiral sucker.

In 1934 – In the movie Bright Eyes, Shirley Temple sang the song “On the Good Ship Lollipop”

Summary

So - on July 20 - or any day - enjoy this candy-on-a-stick!

Lollipop Day - July 20

Wednesday, June 23, 2021

There are Big Celebrations Coming our Way - Show Your National Pride!

Whether you live in Canada or the USA, July is a month for Celebrating!

Celebration Products Reviewed!

July 1st is Canada Day followed very closely by July 4th Independence Day in the USA!

Those are two big holidays that just happen to fall in a great place this year. Thursday July 1st and Sunday July 4th make it quite possible if you live close to the border, to enjoy each other and our holidays together.

After all the close downs, it will be nice to be able to travel even if its just down the road a ways. I'm looking forward to that as a possibility!

Now whether or not that happens, don't let the holiday pass without getting some enjoyment from it all.

I love putting out my flag a week to two weeks before our holiday and then I leave it in place for the whole month. Many Americans have their flags waving all year round, so it's a great time to make sure your flag is in tip top condition! There is nothing sadder to me than seeing a tattered and tired flag. There is no excuse! Take a good look at it now and if it needs replacing then do the right thing and replace it! Everyone will appreciate seeing a new flag flying.

What I love even more than seeing a flag flying in the breeze during these holidays, is people getting their community spirit up by the wearing of "flag" inspired clothing! Yes I love seeing the tee shirts and shorts, bathing suits and fitness gear all decked out in colors that represent your favorite place on earth! After all this is the place you call home.

Cents of Style does a great job with T-shirts that reflect that patriotic notion. And they do it in a great size range too!

T-shirts are a summer standard and everyone knows you can never have too many! Are you getting the whole family together? Can you just imagine the photo opportunities with everyone decked out in their finest deeply patriotic T's?

My bet is that everyone will be taking a picture of the whole bunch of you enjoying yourselves to the fullest. Isn't that what these holidays are all about?

Now I'm sure that there will be food involved in all this celebration with family and friends, but did you know it's real easy to make something spectacular for everyone without breaking the proverbial bank?

Food and Family go together like a hand in a glove. So be prepared ahead of time by getting some ice cream sandwiches (you know the ones with the chocolate cookies on the outside and vanilla ice cream in between). Dip the outside edges of the ice cream with red and blue sprinkles to give them that holiday feeling. Or dip pretzels sticks or ties into white chocolate and sprinkle them with red and blue to give them that Holiday feel! Easy to do and can be done days ahead of time too.

4th of July Pretzels by craftcreatecook.com

Linked Photo & Directions on craftcreatecook.com

Can you tell that I'm looking forward to this special time? I enjoy the holidays, especially after the last couple of years when many festivities needed to be curtailed. It's time to stretch out our wings and fly with the flags that are waving their hellos to the world. Won't you come and join in the fun?

To all my friends Canadian and American who are celebrating these wonderful holidays, May I wish you all the best from the bottom of my heart and my hopes that our tomorrows will always be brighter!

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Saturday, June 5, 2021

Reviewing Yo-Yo Day

National Yo-Yo Day is celebrated each year on June 6.

History of the Yo-Yo

Image Source: PIxabay

The yo-yo came to the United States with Pedro Flores, a young immigrant from the Philippines. Pedro remembered playing with a toy called a bandalore and it inspired him to create the toy he called the Flores Yo-yo. “Yo-yo" means “come-come” in the Philippine language.

Flores manufactured his Yo-yo between 1928 and 1932 in Santa Barbara, California. He realized that people had to be shown how to use the yo-yo before they would buy it. He hired a team of yo-yo masters to demonstrate all the tricks you can do with it.

When Donald F. Duncan, Sr., a Chicago businessman, inventor and toy manufacturer, spotted this toy while on a business trip to California, he realized its potential as a popular new toy. Duncan eventually purchased Flores' company and the 'Yo-Yo trademark. Subsequently, this wooden toy became known as the Duncan Yo-Yo.

Original Wooden Yo-Yo to Today's Plastic Yo-Yo
Both Styles Still Available here on Amazon

Duncan was the country's leading yo-yo producer until after the trademark expired in 1965, when competing plastic yo-yos began outselling the old-fashioned wooden Duncan Yo-Yo.

Today you can still get the wooden style yo-yo, along with a wide variety of plastic Yo-yos in many colors and styles.

National Yo-Yo Day

This fun holiday began in 1990 when it was founded by Daniel Volk. June 6th is the date of Donald F. Duncan's birth in 1892.

Daniel Volk once worked for the Duncan Toy Company as a yo-yo demonstrator. He toured the country from 1976 to 1978. At one point he met two brothers (The Smothers Brothers) who had a music and comedy act and taught them how to Yo-Yo. This led to the creation by Tommy Smothers of the Yo-Yo Man, a mostly non-speaking character who was a comedic performer of tricks using a yo-yo. The term "Yo-Yo Man" is registered in his name.

Later, the Smothers Brothers produced the Yo-Yo Man Instructional Video featuring the two comedians along with Mr. Volk. In conjunction with National Yo-Yo Day, the Hummingbird Toy Company produced the first of several Smothers Brothers brand yo-yos.

Summary

As you can see, from it's humble beginnings as a simple toy from the Philippines, the Yo-Yo became a very popular American toy. So, on June 6th, it is only fitting to celebrate the Yo-yo's history by picking up a new yo-yo and testing your yo-yoing skills by trying as many tricks as possible. Do you know how to do the pinwheel or walk the dog?

National Yo-Yo Day is reviewed by

~Wednesday Elf

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Saturday, May 22, 2021

Reviewing World Turtle Day

History and Origin of World Turtle Day:

World Turtle Day was created in 2000. It was founded by Susan Tellem and Marshall Thompson. Today it is an annual event sponsored by the American Tortoise Rescue organization.

Date When Celebrated: This holiday event is always celebrated on May 23

World Turtle Day was created for two reasons:

To celebrate and enjoy both turtles and tortoises.
Bring awareness to the disappearing habitat of turtles and to educate people on how to protect them.

Facts about Turtles and Tortoises.

Turtles and tortoises have a long life span. Many species live 35 to 50 years and some have been known to live a lot longer.
Some species are carnivores, while others are herbivores.
According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, 129 of 300 species of turtles and tortoises are on the endangered species list.

What's the Difference Between a Turtle and a Tortoise?

Source: Pixabay

Both turtles and tortoises are reptiles, dating back over 200 million years.

The major difference stems from the fact that a tortoise lives on land and a turtle lives in the water for most of the time. Now I'm sure you realize that "Turtle" you bought at the pet store and the one you saw in the park or even your back yard, was actually a Tortoise. But even knowing the difference, it's okay if you want to refer to all species as simply “Turtles”.

Crafty Turtles

TMNT

TMNT - Donatello-Raphael-Leonardo-Michelangelo

Favorite cartoon turtles in Amigurumi Crochet inspired by the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

These crocheted turtle dolls are hand-crocheted in a sage green acrylic yarn. Each turtle has a different color headband - Red for Raphael, Orange for Michelangelo, Purple for Donatello and Blue for Leonardo. The turtle's belly is in yellow yarn. The turtle shell on the back is done in dark forest green. There is a brown belt around each turtle. The eyes are black craft safety eyes.

The turtles are stuffed with a new soft polyester fiberfill. They each measure 6 inches tall and 4 inches across the arms and body.

Tiny Turtles Plush Animals

Tiny Toy Turtles

These tiny turtles measures 5 inches from head to tail and about 3 inches from the tip of the head to the little turtle feet. Tiny turtles are handmade in the Amigurumi style of crochet using acrylic yarn and filled with soft polyfil.

Tiny Turtles make a darling baby gift or a fun plush toy for any age child.

Terrance the Tortoise

Terrance the Tortoise

Meet Terrance, a plush stuffed toy tortoise. Terrance is an Amigurumi toy turtle handmade in crochet. You can call him by his nickname, Terry.

Terrance the tortoise is crocheted in yellow, tan and sage green acrylic yarn and filled with soft new polyfil. He measures approximately 10 inches long and 11 inches wide including his legs (about 5 inches across his body with 3 inch legs each side).

Toy tortoise has a tan body with a sage green shell. His head, legs and tail are done in yellow. His eyes are embroidered. He's soft and cuddly and fun for any age child.

All the crafty turtles above are available now or will be back soon in the Etsy shop of Coastal Crochet Crafts. If you want a turtle sooner, just drop a note in the Etsy Shop and Pat will create a custom order for you. :)

Famous Turtles

The most famous turtles are:

The four Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - Michelangelo, Raphael, Leonardo and Donatello
Squirt and Crush from Finding Nemo

Sunday, April 4, 2021

Happy Easter from the Contributors of ReviewThisReviews

The Writers of ReviewThisReviews Wish You a Happy, Healthy, and Safe Easter Holiday

We would like to thank our readers for their time, following, and support.

It's been a tough few years, and we hold onto hope for you, yours, and ours, that we soon get past these challenging times.

Have fun, rejoice, take a break, and enjoy the Peter Rabbit cartoon featured below :)

If you're viewing via mobile, the cartoon link to YouTube is here.

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Saturday, April 3, 2021

Mothers Day Cards from the Dog

Let's review some Mother's Day cards for a dogmom. As a dogmum myself I have to say that I have never received a Mother's Day card from the dog, but apparently it is something that is increasing in popularity.

I guess it's quite understandable that the dog would send Mothers Day cards as we lavish a lot of attention on our fur babies. A number of people I know have a family of furbabies instead of human children whether by choice or not - why shouldn't they be celebrated?

I came across the idea of Mother's Day cards while looking at Zazzle's selection of Mother's Day cards. If you purchase your Mother's Day cards online through a print on demand site such as Zazzle you will get a great quality card that usually has an option for you to personalize it. There is often a larger selection of cards and you can find a number of original designs. You are also helping a small designer to contribute to their family's income - trust me they do a happy dance every time they make a sale!

There were so many designs to choose from that it was really hard to decide on just a couple of feature so if you don't like the ones below check out the rest here - Selection of Mother's Day Cards from the Dog.

I love this Mother's Day card as it's a very simple design that can be beautifully personalized by adding a photo of your own dog/dogs and even changing the text:

Best Dog Mom | Coral | Photo Mother's Day Card

Another card that can be totally personalized (and a picture of the dog with their mom would be perfect) is this next one. This is one that I personally prefer over the other as I love the I Woof You sentiment!

mother's day pet dog mom photo cute heart holiday card
by mymerakishop

These are only two of the thousands of cards that are available, so feel free to click on the link above these cards if neither of them grab you.

The great thing about Zazzle (besides their amazing card quality and printing quality) is the comprehensive range available so you could even search for labrador Mother's Day cards, pug Mother's Day cards etc.

What do you think of the idea of receiving a Mother's Day card from the dog? I love it and may just have to leave this article open on the computer for my husband to see!

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Wednesday, March 17, 2021

March 17th St. Patrick's Day Some Facts and Fiction You May Not Know!

So Today is St. Patrick's Day and I hope you are sporting the wearing of something Green! A Holiday Review.

So what do we know about St. Patrick and what is just added fun for all of us?

Truth be told St. Patrick was a 5th Century missionary from England, sent to bring the message of the Gospels to Ireland. St. Patrick's Day is celebrated today because it was the day he died in circa 492 (no one is sure about the year).

Stained Glass Window of St. Patrick from Junction City Ohio , found on Widipedia

Patrick's start in Ireland was not a pleasant one, he was captured by Irish pirates and brought to Ireland as a slave. He was about 16 years old at the time and not a particularly devout follower of the Christ. His time as a slave in Ireland would lead him to find his faith as a Christian and from that point onwards he was quick to declare that Christianity and belief in God was the way to live.

Historians are not sure of too much regarding Patrick, as much of the written works that speak of him no longer exist. The earliest writings seems to be a letter to Pope Boniface IV around the year 613.

So how do we have all these "symbols" that are used extensively to celebrate St. Patrick's Day today?

Patrick is credited with teaching the Irish about the Holy Trinity using the shamrock as a way to explain the ideology/theology of 3 unique persons in 1 God. The pagan people in Ireland had many triple deities, so using the shamrock aided him in his evangelization efforts.

Patrick is also given the credit for ridding Ireland of it's snakes. If you look at historical texts you will find that another Irish saint should have that credit(and even that is questionable). It was only in the 13th century that credit seems to have shifted to St. Patrick. In fact there evidence that Ireland never had snakes, so there was nothing for him to banish.

There is also the tale of his walking stick. No doubt as he travelled, he used a staff or walking stick to aid his footsteps. As he was moving from place to place in Ireland, he came to a place now known as Aspatria. Legend has it that he stuck his walking stick into the ground and it took so long to teach the people here, that his stick had taken root by the time he was ready to move on.

What is certain is that there isn't a whole lot of St. Patrick's Story that can be held as truth, but the 300 churches and hundreds of thousands that were baptized by him helped make Ireland a Christian nation.

Today we are not so religious about St. Patrick's Day, rather we love to hang onto the "fun" side of Irish culture and traditions. Because St. Patrick was given credit for using the Shamrock for teaching purposes, and its green, both of these became stalwarts of the Irish identity beyond the borders of Ireland proper. One of Ireland's claims to fame is that it is the land of a thousand different shades of green! If you have ever seen an picture of Ireland from the air, you will know that is true.

But let's have some fun now....Why do we wear green on St. Patrick's Day?

Well, this hails back to the belief in Leprechauns, which is said to come from some of the Druid folklore (pre St. Patrick). These Leprechauns were: little people, with magical powers that could serve both good and evil. The Celtic folktales, told of their trickery that would keep their much fabled treasures safe. It is also said that the wearing of the green is directly related to these little creatures in that they are not able to see the color green. Therefore you were safe from their trickery if you wore the green!

Photo credit Spencer Platt/Getty New York St. Patrick's Day Parade 2015

Everyone seems to be wearing green with sayings like "Kiss me I'm Irish!" In past years, when there isn't a pandemic to keep us away, there were parades and music marking St. Patrick's Day. The first St. Patrick's Day parade according to History.com was held in New York City in 1895. (There is a debate that there may have been a St. Patrick's Day Parade held in St. Augustine, Florida earlier than 1895) No doubt many Irish immigrants (who came during the potato famine in Ireland 1845) were the inspiration for this reveling of cultural identity in their new home. It was a balm to them to celebrate their heritage even though time were tough and not everyone welcomed the Irish.

While we think of corned beef and cabbage as being a typical Irish Dinner, the truth is that in Ireland they will have Ham and Cabbage. When the Irish came to America, many were very poor so they substituted Corned beef for the Ham (it was cheaper). Today, this is a staple meal to serve for St. Patrick's Day Dinner.

As with many things in North America, we have made St. Patrick's Day our own. We can see people enjoying green beer or drinking the traditional Guinness while enjoying Irish step dancers and marching bands.

Chicago even dyes their river green in honor of St. Patrick's Day. Now that is a clever trick worthy of any leprechauns in the city.

St. Patrick's Day has become a day not just for the Irish, but for anyone who loves a good time, a great party and a reason to celebrate. You don't have to be Irish to enjoy all the sights and sounds of a wonderful day that just happens to come on March 17th.