Saturday's Fun Family Time Tip #3: There's Always an Occasion

There is always an occasion to celebrate! Seeking out those silly little holidays and celebrating them is one of the best ways I have found to come up with new and creative ways for us to spend time as a family.  Last week, we celebrated Barbie's 63 birthday! The week before that we celebrated Dr. Seuss' birthday with green eggs and ham!  Today: It's St. Patrick's Day!
It is easy as corned beef and cabbage to celebrate St. Patrick's Day.
1) This year, I got a couple of St. Patrick's Day book from the local library. We read one last night, and I explained about Irish culture and the myths of the leprechauns.
2) After they went to bed, I left a little gift outside their doors. This was no ordinary gift - I had totally forgotten to plan ahead and had to search the house high and low for something! (Tip: Planning ahead makes things easier!)
3) On St. Patrick's Day, wear green! Warn them that they will get pinched if they don't and (*gasp*) give them permission to gently pinch anyone not wearing green today!
4) Stew up some corned beef and cabbage! I found a great recipe that I am going to use at allrecipes.com. I remember my mom making this meal every year on St. Patty's Day! It is a great tradition!
5) If you are a craftier person than I, this would be a great day to whip out those creative buds and let them blossom!
6) If you are Irish, use this day to talk about your family heritage. One branch of my family came over from Ireland when our country was brand new!

It is easy to find ways to celebrate all the little occasions. It makes family time a little more interesting and exciting too!  If you need more ideas, there are websites out there that list all of those little known holidays (some may even make them up!). I like to go to this website: http://www.apples4theteacher.com/holidays/
Don't ever worry about feeling silly - it's the silly things that make the memories!