Crayola Crayon Day

Mmmm. Who doesn't love the smell of crayons? I know that it is one of my favorite smells! I guess that is a good think since it is Crayola Crayon Day!

Crayola crayons have been around since 1903. They have made over 100 billion crayons and are a recognized by 99% of American households.

Crayons are the one thing that never gets old. I have a box of crayons that are older than I am! I loved coloring as a kid, and even now as an adult I find myself still coloring with crayons. Crayons were so much easier for me. They didn't leave big marks up and down my arms like markers or pencils. They were also non-toxic - which is wonderful when you have dogs! I remember one of our dogs eating crayons when she was a puppy. She, in turn, had colorful poop for the next few days. My friends dog at some of her 'glow-in-the-dark' crayons and it took their family some time to figure out what was glowing in their backyard!

If you don't have some Crayola Crayons, then today is the day to get them! They are not that expensive and you will get to make beautiful pictures with them!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

Doctors Day

No, this holiday has nothing to do with Doctor Who. It has to do with the medical doctors that help us throughout our life. I know that I am very grateful to have doctors that help me feel better when something is wrong or I feel bad.

My family has always been accident prone. I have gotten stitches in my head and my leg, along with breaking my arm - twice. My brother has gotten stitches in his head, leg, foot, along with breaking his arm as well. My sister bit threw her lip and had to get stitches, not to mention that she has had heart surgery and a spinal fusion in her life thus far. As you can tell, my family is very glad that there are doctors. Sure, they might not always have the best bedside manner, but they know what to do medically. I remember when I broke my arm the second time, they had to re-adjust the bone. So the doctor gave me two pain pills to take and a little glass of water. Being that I only had one hand to work with, I accidentally dropped one of the pills on the ground. The doctor threw what I can only call a hissy fit, and jumped up and down while mumbling. But he made up for that in being able to set my arm very quickly, and the fact that my grandmother has had him as a surgeon for over 5 surgeries.

 I know that I am very thankful for those people who become doctors - because I know that I could never do it. I pass out at the sight of blood! So take a moment today to thank a doctor.

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

Smoke and Mirrors Day

First off, for the safety of my dogs, I could not put smoke in this photo. But I did get the mirror portion!

It is Smoke and Mirrors day. This holiday is all about Illusions, or making something seem to be one thing when it is really another. The best at Illusions are usually magicians.But this holiday isn't all about magicians. It is about people learning that the world isn't always as it seems. People can hide things and become good at putting up "smoke and mirrors". The world is not just made up of black and white. -There is a lot of grey mixed in.

So how does one celebrate this holiday you might ask? Great question! Here are some ideas:

- Learn a magic trick. It could be with playing cards, coins, or spoons.

-Go watch a magician, whether it is in real life or on youtube.

-Teach other kids/people a magic trick.

Have fun!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

Brother and Sister Day

Those who knew my family when I was growing up knew that my brother and I did not get along. We were like normal siblings, we got into arguments and disagreed about 95% of the time.

When our mom would bring home snack food, such as Nutty Bars, they were gone before she could even get them out of the bag. My brother and I grabbed as many as we could and hid them in various locations around the house. Not because we thought our parents were going to eat them, but because if we didn't, then the other sibling would hide them and we wouldn't get any.

We had a lot of instances where my brother would destroy my stuff. I in return, wouldn't break his stuff, but it would get "lost" until it mysteriously appeared again 6 months later in a bathroom drawer. We would also get into a lot of fights and I would have to lock myself in my room and push the dresser up against the door so that my brother couldn't get in. I'm honestly not sure how we survived each other.

Even with all of the stuff we went thru as kids, I still love my brother. We are thankfully MUCH nicer to each other than we ever were as kids. So take the time today to say hi to your siblings and let them know that you are thinking of them!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

World Theatre Day

The Theatre! It has kept people entertained for ages - longer than the television or the radio! Today is a day to celebrate the theatre and all the wonderful plays that have gone up on the stages. Shakesphere has many plays that he made for the theatre - quite a few are still performed today, such as Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Ceaser, and Macbeth. Or the Theatre has newer plays such as Wicked, The Sound of Music, Oklahoma, and the Phantom of the Opera.

When I was in girl scouts we went to see a play in Toledo. My whole troop sat in a little theater and watched. After the play we got to stay behind and one of the actors did a meet and greet and we played a few "acting games". We played one where we had to keep our face as serious as possible while others were trying to make us laugh. I was horrible at it. We played a few other games too. My friends learned what I had learned a long time ago - I am not a good actor!

So enjoy a play or practice acting!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

Make Up Your Own Holiday Day

It is a day all about making up a holiday! For example, Blossom is celebrating "One of these things are not like the others day". So here are a few random holidays that I made up that you can celebrate today!

- Out of place day

- Draw with Sharpies day

- Technology Illiterate Day

- Burst into Song and Dance Day

- Listen to your Stomach Day

- Fe Fi Fo Fum Day

So what holiday do you want to make up today?

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

Tolkien Reading Day

Not going to lie, I was never really into the Lord of the Rings. I was much more into the Harry Potter series. My brother was into the Lord of the Rings books - which was a big thing to get him to read anything! He not only read the Lord of the Rings, but also the prequel - The Hobbit. He could tell you all about the characters, plot, story line. I've seen the movies, but I still don't understand most of it. Other people must though, or else I doubt it would be as popular as it is!

In middle school I had a friend that loved the Lord of the Rings. She had all of the books and all of the movies. She had me come over one day for a Movie Marathon of all the Lord of the Rings movies. She was so excited. We made popcorn and had a day of it. I still don't remember much about the movies, but I remember that we had fun "watching" them!

So if you have a book by J. R. R. Tolkien, then take the time to read it!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

Craft Day

It is time to get your creative juices flowing and make something fun! It is craft day!

I have always been told that I am a crafty person. I guess it makes sense. I always loved making things in school or in my free time. When I was in Girl Scouts we made a lot of things. One of them being a flower made out of plastic from pop cans, a shish-ka-bob stick, and spray paint. I also know how to quilt, crochet, knit, and make some origami.  So lets think of some crafts that you can do today:

- Paper mache

- Make something for your house (picture, wall hanging, etc)

- Make something for your yard (painted rocks, decoration, bird house)


- Card (Birthday, Easter, Random)

- Anything off of Pinterest

So have fun, and be crafty!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

Toast Day

It's Toast day! The day to heat the outer surface of bread, thus turning it into toast!

There are so many different ways to eat toast. You can eat it plain, with butter or jelly, with breakfast or on a sandwich. I remember having toast as a kid and I absolutely hated the crust. I had to eat it though, or else next time I wasn't allowed to have it. So I would always force myself to eat the crust first, which would save the best part, the middle, for last. I'm not sure why I hated the crust so much, because now I don't mind it. But as a kid I couldn't stand it.

I also remember that I really didn't have toast that often. It is probably because my brother and I had cereal every morning, plus the fact that I always found a way to get jelly on myself. I also was a pro at burning the toast. Let me say that burned toast does not taste good - no matter how much jelly you slather on!

So take the time to turn some bread into toast!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

National Mustache Day

It is hard to tell when National Mustache day is. Looking this holiday up I found out that there are about 4 different days that are considered Mustache Day, depending on which source that you find. So feel free to celebrate Mustache Day today, along with multiple other days in February, May, and November!

I personally do not understand the fascination with mustaches. I walk into stores and there is a mustache. There are fake mustaches, mustaches on keys, t-shirts, and straws. But some people really like them. I had a manager at my work that was obsessed with mustaches (not quite as much as I am with Cookie Monster though!). She had all sorts of stuff that had mustaches.

So how do we celebrate this holiday? Wear a mustache! If you can grow your own mustache, great! If not you can find some cheap ones at the dollar store in the kids section. You can even buy different colored tattoo mustaches.

So have fun - I Mustache!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

National Quilting Day

This is a holiday that I can actually do! I have been quilting since I was in 4th grade. I learned how to quilt from my mom, who learned how to quilt two years before me. I finished my first quilt in 6th grade and have been hooked ever since.

One of my favorite things is going on quilt retreats with my family. My mom side of the family is the quilters. When I was in middle school, about 8 to 10 of us went on a quilting vacation in a little Amish town in Ohio. It was a cute little place that was less then a block away from the main town. Everyone that went brought a different quilt project. If we needed material we would walk into town to a few quilting shops. If we needed help with the pattern we were working on we had plenty of people to help us. What I loved the most though, was spending time with my family while doing something we all enjoyed.

So if you don't know how to quilt, then make sure you use a quilt at some point today!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

Alien Abductions Day

Cue the creepy music - cause it's Alien Abductions Day! Aliens have abducted hundreds, if not thousands of people. . . or so I've been told. So I thought, lets learn more things about aliens and UFO's:

- There is an average of 70,000 reported UFO sightings every year, worldwide.

- 1 in 5 Americans believe in alien abductions

- The first photo of an UFO was taken in 1883 by an astronomer in Mexico.

- UFO's were often seen and photographed during NASA's space missions in the 1960's.

- UFO sightings have been claimed by President Jimmy Carter and also Clyde Tombaough (the man who discovered Pluto).

- No UFO has ever been tracked on radar entering the earths atmosphere.

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

Poultry Day

Unless you are vegan, you probably have enjoyed poultry at some time or another. Whether it is duck, chicken, turkeys, or even eggs, we have enjoyed them in our meals for centuries. Today is all about celebrating the birds that we most often eat.

As most of my friends and family know, I am an extremely picky eater. People tend to think that I am vegetarian because I don't like hamburgers, cheeseburgers, tacos, steak, ribs, along with many other things. One meat that I do like is chicken. It's actually the only meat that I like. Why chicken over anything else? I'm not sure! 

So if you like poultry, go get some! If not, then just appreciate the chicken, duck, and turkey.

Erin

   Reeses & Blossom

Awkward Moments Day

We all have moments of awkwardness. Today is a day to take notice of our awkward moments. So lets brain storm ways to avoid awkward moments.

- Have plenty to talk about

- Stay at home and do nothing.

- Find something in common with the other person

Okay, so there isn't much that we can do to avoid the awkwardness. But relish in the fact that you are not the only one who has the awkward time!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

St. Patricks Day

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

When people hear my name they always seem to assume that I celebrate this holiday. That my family goes and gets drunk and party's through the night. In reality, even though my entire name is Irish, the only thing that we do is wear green (so we don't get pinched). Other than that, we don't drink, and we don't party.

To me this holiday is more about learning about the Irish heritage and what makes it special. There is more to Ireland and it's people than just drinking!

So have a good (and safe) St. Patrick's Day!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

No Selfies Day

Selfies are very popular in this day of age. We get a new haircut - Take a selfie. We are on vacation - Take a selfie. We are roasting marshmallows - Take a selfie. We take selfies for almost every little thing. Today is a day dedicated to not taking selfies. Instead turn the camera to capture other photos! You could get something amazing!

Here are some things you can take photos of:

- Other people (Friends, family)

- Pets

- Nature

- Animals

- Cars

- Buildings

There are so many possiblities! Go out and don't take a photo of yourself today!

Erin
    Reeses & Blossom

Buzzards Day

Buzzards, or the technical term, Vultures, are birds that like to feed on the carcases of dead animals. When I think of Buzzards I tend to think of the desert. So how shocked was I to find that this holiday is actually celebrated in Ohio of all places? To them, the Buzzard doesn't mean death, but rebirth. The people scan the skies with binoculars, waiting for the Buzzards return. In Cleveland Metroparks they even have a person who is an 'Official Buzzard Spotter'. There is also celebrations on what they call Buzzard Sunday.

Now the Buzzard in this picture was never a buzzard to me when I was a kid. It was the Snipe. What is the Snipe you ask? It was a mythical creature that my family liked to use to scare the younger kids when we went camping. I don't remember much of the story, other than my uncle had us all convinced that there was a Snipe out in the woods, and so we had to go Snipe hunting so it wouldn't get us. They had put up this bird in one of the trees, and at night it does look very scary. When we saw it we jumped and yelled that we found the snipe. . . We then realized that it was fake.

Happy Buzzards Day!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

Potato Chip Day

The Potato chip has a special meaning to my family. Yes, it is tasty and made out of potatoes, but that's not why it is special to us. It is special because the potato chip was sort of like a family business to us.

My grandpa, along with two of my Uncles, were Better Made Potato Chip drivers for years. My grandpa retired long before I was born, but I remember my other Uncle still had his truck route when I was little. I remember seeing him in his yellow truck. My mom would tell me stories of when she was younger and would go on the chip route with her dad. She would point out places that they had stopped on their route and tell me random facts about the store or the neighborhood. I remember whenever we passed by a yellow Better Made truck we always had to check and see if it was either of my Uncles; 90% of the time it was.

So take today to enjoy your favorite potato chip!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

K-9 Veterans Day

Dogs do so much more than what most of us think. So no wonder they are used in law enforcement and in "battle". Their nose can find things that humans can't and they are much faster than us too. Today is the day to appreciate and honor our K-9 Veterans who have helped serve our country and also our local neighborhoods.

When I was growing up I had a friend who lived two doors down. We would play outside a lot, whether it was climbing trees, making up a game, or finding sticks that made the best 'swish' noise when you waved them. One of our favorite things to do was to throw a Kong around to their 6 labs. Yes, I did say 6. Although we are only suppose to have 5 dogs where we lived, her father had permission to have more. That is because he would take dogs that were trained to sniff for drugs and continue their training. I had a blast watching him practice with the dogs. He would hide multiple things and the dog had to find a specific one and then lay down when they found it. The dogs found it every time!

So take the time to remember those dogs who help us make our country a safer place!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

Girl Scouts Birthday

Today is the day that the Girl Scouts of America was founded in 1912 by Juliette Gordon Low. It started with only 18 girls in Georgia, and has now grown to every state in the US plus other countries!

I was in Girl Scouts for 12 years. I started off as a Brownie in first grade and then went up through Junior, Senior, and Cadette. I first joined as a kid to have fun. When I had to switch schools in 4th grade I stayed so that I could still see my old friends. As it got older I stayed for the college tuition and when Girl Scouts said that it no longer had funds to give to it's members I stayed because it would look good on a college application. . . That's what I said anyways. In reality, I had a blast. Sure, myself and friends would wine and moan when we had to go camping, but when we got their we would have a ton of fun! There are so many things that I did and learned with girl scouts that I wouldn't have been able to experience otherwise. My troop can tell you stories of scuba diving, camping during a tornedo, throwing cases of Girl Scout cookies to each other down the school steps, hissing at a racoon to get it away from the garbage, playing spoons (with markers) until 3:00 in the morning, getting locked in a mall over night, bringing balloons to people at the nursing home, along with so much more!

We had a strange troop, not going to lie. Usually by the time you are in high school, a troop only consists of one or two people. We had 7 in our troop, from 5 different schools. ALL seven of us got our Gold Award (highest honor you can earn in Girl Scouts). Less than 1% of the kids who join Girl Scouts will ever get their Gold Award - and all 7 of us got it! We were a great troop and I am so glad that I got the opportunity to be in it!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

Worship of Tools Day

Tools! People have been using tools for century's! We have different tools for different projects. We have hammers, screwdrivers, wrenches, nails, bolts, saws, nail gun, pliers, and so much more!

I am half and half when it comes to using tools. I know what quite a few of them are, but don't know the technical name for them. For example, instead of calling a screwdriver a flat head or a phillips I call it the plus and minus. Or I have called a wrench "the twisty thing". People seem to find it more interesting to try and figure out what tool I am talking about rather than what I am going to use it for! I am actually very surprised that I have yet (knock on wood) hurt myself using a hammer or any other tool.

So be safe with your tools today and thank them for helping us make and build great things!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

International Day of Awesomeness

Cause everybody's AWESOME! Thanks to my little cousin, every time I hear the word 'awesome' I think of the 'Everybody's Awesome' song from the lego movie. Now I haven't actually seen the movie, or heard the actual song, but he sings this song every time I see him!

So how do you be awesome on this day of awesomeness? Just be yourself! We are ALL awesome in our own way. That is the great thing about being human - none of us are the same! Just imagine, if we were all the same we would be a very boring world. We would all dress the same, eat the same, think the same. . . . Thank goodness for being different!

So go out, and do awesome things on this day of awesomeness!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

Fill Our Staplers Day

Today is a day all about filling our staplers. This holiday was created to help solve the problem of being at work and going to use the stapler to find that there are no more staples. Then you have to hunt around looking for staples and it in return adds extra stress to your day. So today is all about filling your staplers to lessen the chance of your stapler not having staples (make sense?!).

So lets learn something about the stapler:

-  The first stapler machine was invented during the 1700s for King Louis XV of France and each of the staples used in the first stapler machine was handcrafted and inscribed with the royal court’s insignia.

-  The Webster’s dictionary of 1913 didn’t have the word stapler or staples in it.

-  In the beginning the stapler was such an unknown feature in the office that companies would buy only one. Often 500 people had to  share just one stapler among themselves.

-  The world’s most expensive stapler was the 1919 Remington. It sold for $760 on e-Bay.

So go fill your staplers!

Erin 

   Reeses & Blossom

Genealogy Day

Ever wonder who your ancestors where? Well today is the day to find out! Have fun looking up your history and you might even learn something about yourself!

My Aunt is a retired teacher, and she is very big into genealogy. She has names of over 1000 people on her computer of people related to us. She has found out that we are both Irish and German.We are also related to Thomas Rogers who came over from Britain on the Mayflower (in which she was super excited about!). She also found out that her husband is her 19th cousin 10 times removed (or something like that. . . ) I don't know nearly as much about my dads side, other than we are both Irish and German on that side as well. And there is a street in Texas that was named after one of our relatives.

It is not necessarily an easy task finding out about your history, but it sure is interesting!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

Sock Monkey Day

First off I have to say that no dogs, or monkeys, were hurt in making this photo!

It is Sock Monkey day! The day about a monkey that is made out of socks! My mom owns a Sock Monkey that she has had since before I was born. It has made an appearance in this photo.

Lets learn some stuff about Sock Monkeys:

- Socks Monkeys were created over 100 years ago.

- The creator of Sock Monkeys are unknown.

- Most vintage Sock Monkeys that are still around today are no older than the 1950's. Most are actually from the 1970's.

- Sock Monkeys were originally made  out of brown socks with red heels. They are still made out of those today, although more are being made out of different colored socks or mis-matched socks.

Happy Sock Monkey Day!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

World Day of Prayer

Today is a day of prayer. This holiday was created so that women from different cultures could connect through prayer, and realize that prayer and the actions that we do are one in the same.

People can pray in so many different ways. One can pray with their hands crossed, head bowed, on their knees, silently, out loud, in song, with other people, by themselves, etc. There are endless possibility's! Every year since 1999 I have went to Choir Camp. It is a church based camp for campers going into 4th grade through the year they graduate high school. I went for 10 years as a camper, and this July will be my 5th year as a counselor. One year, every person at the camp got a prayer shawl. It was a shawl that we wore when we were praying. I didn't think much of it when I got it, but as the week progressed, I would see people using them. One girl in my cabin wore hers, and went and sat by the trees by the cabin. She said there for over 20 minutes, just looking over the lake. Other people would put them on and start singing "As I went down to the river to pray". It was such an awesome experience!


Take a moment to say a prayer today. It could be silent, out loud, or in song. Whatever you would like!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

World Book Day

There is a book for practically anything you can think of! There are books about how to put things togeather, childrens books, fiction, health, photography, dogs, amongst many other books! So lets take the time today to celebrate books!

Ever since I was a kid, I enjoyed reading. My favorite part during school wasn't recess, but silent reading time. I remember in 5th grade that I got pulled out of class during silent reading time because I had to take speech lessons (I couldn't pronounce my 'r' words very well). Every time that we (Myself and one other kid from my class) would go to speech we would get colorful sticker that looked like a gumball. We would then put it on a piece of paper that looked like a gumball machine. When we filled up the entire piece of paper, we would get a handy, dandy . . . . MECHANICAL PENCIL!. . . . I was so angry. I had to miss silent reading time for over 3 months for a mechanical pencil?!? Why couldn't they have taken me out during math, or better yet, recess!?

Books are something that help us "escape" to a new world. They are like television - but much better!

So grab a book, and enjoy!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

Gamer Day

Today is Gamer Day. . . . NOT! It is actually Grammar Day, but I couldn't read my own handwriting and thought it was Gamer day. So now it is Gamer day! (Seems like a more fun holiday!).

I can't say that I am like a few people that I know that is obsessed with video games, but I do enjoy to play them from time to time. I got my first game boy when I was in kindergarten. I got a game boy pocket and two games to go with it (Super Mario and Donkey Kong). I remember getting so angry at the games because I wasn't any good at them. As I got older, I enjoyed the game that was super popular in 4th grade - Pokemon! I had so many different Pokemon games - Red, Blue, Yellow, Silver, Gold, Crystal, and even the trading card game (which wasn't very good). I still have all of them, but unfortunately most of them either won't work, or don't save any more. I remember when my gameboy pocket broke and we went to get me another gameboy. We were shocked that the gameboy pocket had went from under $20 to $40 for the gameboy color. Looking back now that is pretty cheap compared to most of the game systems that you can buy now.

So enjoy this holiday that I accidently made up!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

International Ear Care Day

Our ears are important. Ears help us to hear sounds and music. Today is the day to make sure that we are taking care of them.

I have never been successful when it comes to my ears. I have been getting ear infections since I was a kid. When I was 3 my parents had to take me to urgent care because of one of my ear infections. Every year when I was younger I would get ear infections at least twice, with the occasional swimmers ear (in which once, I hadn't even went swimming before I got it!).  Now that I'm older I still get them, just not nearly as much. I've figured out that most of my infections are because of my sinuses. So when I feel them coming on I sleep upright on a couch for a few days. I can never sleep very well, but at least my ears aren't throbbing for a week straight!

Hopefully you are not prone to ear infections like me, but wether or not you are, make sure to take care of them today!

Erin
    Reeses & Blossom

Blossoms Birthday

It's Blossoms birthday! Who care's that it isn't an "official" holiday? We all celebrate our own birthday, so why not celebrate a dogs?

I got Blossom when she was 10 weeks old. My mom and I traveled to the land of lots of corn (Ohio) to get her. She was to be my birthday present and also a new friend for Reeses. I was so excited. I had been looking for a dog for a little bit. I had went from shelter to shelter looking for a new friend, but had not had any luck. When we located Blossom she was owned by an older couple who's Sheltie had an unexpected litter of puppies with their neighbors Sheltie. Blossom's mom had two puppies. We never met Blossom's sibling because they were giving it to their granddaughter. I remember them giving us a bag of food to start us out. They had picked out the red pieces of food because it turned her poop red. . . So our first stop after picking her up was stopping at Petsmart and switching her to better food and signing up for Puppy Training Classes.

Blossom is now 5 years old! So Happy Birthday Blossom!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom

Namesake Day

Every wonder about your name? What it means? Who has had it before? If you were names after someone? Well today is the day to explore your name and find out!

When I got Reeses from the shelter years ago, he was a 6 month old, energetic puppy. He was a little nervous with new things (umbrellas, bridges, cellphones), but he learned fast and was a sweet and loveable boy. The only downside was his name; Amos. Amos was the name that the shelter gave to him. I couldn't stand it. My mom wanted to name him Chrysler because of being found in Detroit. He didn't look like a Chrysler to me. I ended up choosing Reeses because of his coloring. He looked like a Reeses peanut cup. Plus there are so many more nick names for Reeses than Amos or Chrysler. He has been called Reeses, Reese, Reeses Pieces, etc.

My name on the other hand tells you that I'm Irish (Erin). Actually my whole name is Irish. Going back and doing genealogy we have found that I am Irish and German on both sides of the family.

So have fun today and look up your name. You will probably learn something that you didn't know!

Erin
   Reeses & Blossom