Why Was the 4th of July Made A Holiday?

Independence day is one of our nation’s biggest holiday. Let’s learn a little more about the history of this day by answering the question - Why was the 4th of July made a holiday?

Why Do We Celebrate On The 4th Of July?

The 4th of July has been an important holiday but today, more and more people do not know why we actually celebrate this day. If you are not up to date on your history of the United States, July 4th, 1776 is the day that the colonies decided to declare themselves independent of Britain. By writing a very detailed decree, they decided that they no longer would need to be governed by the Kings of England that had been so very unjust to the colonists in the years before. On July 4th, America was born. We call the 4th of July Independence Day because this day was the day they declared independence from Great Britain.

Today, we celebrate the fact that we are a free nation that is no under the rule of another. But, there is more to the celebration of independence than just the fact that this is the birthday of the United States. In fact, there are many goals and ideas that are represented in this celebration that until this day we fight for and protect around the world.

The Declaration of Independence, the actual decree in which was signed the independence of the United States, stands as a symbol for all of the things that we, as Americans, believe in. What are the symbols that it stands for?

The right to live with the freedoms of religion, without persecution and with the ability to think and do for yourself.

The courage it takes to protect freedom. It took the individuals that signed the Declaration a great deal of courage to do so as they could have been hung for treason. We use this symbol as a means to remind us that courage is often needed in times when our freedoms are threatened.

A symbol that people can live in a country that is governed by its people and that every person in that country is a very important person for its well being.

We celebrate the 4th of July for a number of reasons. We talk about how the United States of America was born and how many have died for that to happen. We celebrate the fact that we, as a nation, want all people to be free. And, we realize that without the courage and bravery of all those that came before us, we would not have the freedoms that we hold so very dear to us.
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Nicola always enjoys celebrating Independence Day. She can help you salute Old Glory in style with 4th of July party tips and news, information and views at independence-day.your-holiday

Why Do We Dress Up For Halloween?

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Have you ever wondered where the idea of dressing up for Halloween, or the idea for Halloween in general came from? After all, it is kind of an odd tradition. Children dress up in costumes, pretending to be someone else and then “threaten” to play a trick on their neighbors, unless they receive some candy.

The tradition of Halloween goes back to an ancient Celtic custom. As far back as the 5th century B.C. Celtic tribes in Ireland believed that the spirits of the dead were allowed to come back to earth once a year on
October 31st. The Celtic New Year began on November 1st and the belief was that, on the night before the border between the world of the living and that of the dead became blurred. The spirits of the dead would then be able to cross over for this one night into the world of the living.

People were afraid of what the spirits may do to them, so they started to
dress up to disguise themselves. They would roam the streets in these
disguises trying to fool the spirits into believing that they weren’t living
beings. Of course the costumes weren’t nearly as elaborate as they are
today, and were usually scary costumes. People would wear rags and smear
ashes on their faces to disguise themselves and keep the spirits of the dead
away.

The tradition of Halloween came to the United States in 1840, with the
arrival of a group of Irish immigrants. From there it slowly evolved into
our modern day version of Halloween, with kids dressing up as Dora the
Explorer T and Power Rangers T, pretending to be their favorite TV
characters.

While the spirit of Halloween and the meaning behind it have changed over
the centuries, it is still a holiday that allows us to pretend to be someone
else, by dressing down in rags and blackening our face to hide it, or by
wearing a fancy costume with a mask, or using face paint to disguise our
appearance.

Additional Resource:

Homemade Halloween Costumes
Would you like to quickly make creative Halloween costumes that you and your children will be proud of — for a fraction of the price of store-bought?

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New Grandma and & Grandpa? We Are Going To be Grandparents

Did you just find out that you are going to be a grandparent? Congratulations! Here are some of the things that may be going through your head right now.
Every parent waits for the day their child gives them the exciting news that a grandchild is on the way. This is a chance to relive their parenting days without the need to parent. They are now free to simply enjoy all the wonderful moments they many have missed or forgotten while raising their family.

Empty nesters go through a dilemma when their children suddenly are gone. Even if the transition has taken many years to complete, suddenly they are alone. It’s time to redefine their life and who they are now. Maybe take up new hobbies they never had time for; reconnect with old friends or even make that big decision to move to a smaller house.

Whatever they are doing and however they are resolving the internal issues, it always comes back to family. Your mind is free to wonder and suddenly you are back in your child’s soccer years; or those hours spent at the ballet studio; or the hours you spent chauffeuring them to all the different activities, or the times you couldn’t make specific events because you had to work..

Then the questions start popping up; did you do enough; were you too busy; did they know how much you loved them back then? And then suddenly, after all the self doubting, living through memories you did not want to relive, you find you are going to become grandparent! Ah…this is why you have had all the memories. It’s time to pass them on to the next generation.

Now is the perfect time to tell your stories to your new grandchild. Search on the Internet, cruise your local book store and invest in a journal that best suits your needs. You’ll find hardbound, quilted, paperback and even software applications you can use on your computer. Some are made especially for recording grandparent memories.

Now all you have to worry about is how much you can fit into the journal before you decide it’s too much. Why not make the decision to create a keepsake journal for each grandchild that arrives so they each have their own grandparent journal? This way, they’ll all know how special they are and how giving you are to have shared your thoughts, feelings and your life stories with them.

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Dine Without Whine
The family friendly menu mailer - Dinner recipes that you and your kids will love send to your inbox everyday. Christine will even create a grocery list for you. Fixing dinner every night couldn’t be easier. Give it a try!

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