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What is the Sweetest Day?The Sweetest Day was originated in Cleveland in 1922, by Herbert Birch Kingston. Herbert was a philanthropist and candy company employee that created this holiday to bring happiness to those he felt were forgotten. He distributed candy and small gifts to the orphaned and underprivileged in his area. Over time the Sweetest Day evolved from a holiday that brings happiness to the unfortunate to a day where we celebrate the people that have touched our lives. Friends, family, and those who have helped us throughout the year should be Gift Ideas for the Sweetest DayThe Sweetest Day is celebrated with small, personal gifts. Traditionally it has been celebrated by cooking breakfast for a loved one, gifting candy and sweets, and with personalized gifts. Unsure of how to celebrate this special day with your friends and family? Here are a few gift ideas that are sure to touch the heart of those you love: • A personalized frame with a captured memory Make time for your loved ones on the Sweetest Day, but don’t forget about the spirit of the holiday. Reach out to someone in need on October 16, and find a way to help them feel like they haven’t been forgotten Check out one of our customers and favorite charities Cheerful Givers.org, Dog Tags for Kids Be a Sweety and remember that Sweetest Day is October 16th 2010 so order early to ensure timely delivery. Personalized Sweetest Day Gifts at TAGDesigns.comFeel free to chat with us if we’re online or leave us a messagee |
We saw our first hummingbird of the season at our feeder this week!
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Or any household items such as Aprons, Oven Mitts etc. You can even ask us to make a car tag or bike plate with a hummingbird image. Feel free to submit your own hummingbird photos or request one of ours! |
Well, its finally springtime here in North East Florida! The temperature has been in the 70′s for about a week now. but our springtime came very late this year. Usually, we see spring or the signs of spring by the first or second week of February.
Prior to moving to Florida, we had never seen a real hummingbird before. We were so excited to spy our first glimpse and that excitement re-lives itself each year. We have 2 feeders in back and one suctioned to the the office window. We wait patiently each February (right around Valentine’s day) to see our first visitor. For those of you living in the northern states, February may seem like a strange time to be thinking about hummingbirds, but residents of Florida and the Gulf States know that these tiny intercontinental travelers first start reappearing then. That didn’t happen this year. Not until this past Wednesday, almost a month and a half late. We were so thankful when we caught a glimpse of our ruby-throated friends and wanted to share our excitement with you. Even though they’re late this year, we’re happy to have our hummingbird friends visit anytime. Here we have some interesting information about the hummingbird’s migration from author Steve Peek… After wintering in Mexico and Central America they are going to be hungry by the time they reach our shores – very hungry!, especially those who have just completed the 20 hour, 450 mile non-stop trip across the Gulf of Mexico. They go on an eating binge before they make the flight, increasing their body weight from 25 and 40 percent. Normally they eat between 3 and 5 times an hour, just to maintain their weight and stay alive. By the time they arrive here they will have used up that surplus of stored energy and be more than ready to eat again. The first to arrive will be those who spend the summer in the southern states where the flowers they depend on for survival are already in bloom. During the next few months they will keep coming, not in waves, but one at a time. Hummingbirds do not migrate in flocks. They are solitary flyers. If you look up at the right time and have excellent vision, you will see them flying low, at about treetop level, stopping frequently to feed. The last to arrive will be those who spend the summer in the northernmost states and Canada. By May they will have returned to all their summer homes throughout North America, usually returning to the same gardens and feeders they left in the fall, when their autumn migration began. Hummingbirds who survive their first precarious year have a life span of between 3 and 4 years, so you can expect to see your old friends returning year after year. The expansion of civilization into urban areas has reduced the hummingbirds feeding grounds, so it is important for those of us who have a garden area, or space to hang a hummingbird feeder, to hang a feeder and plant the right flowers in anticipation of their return. Bees and hummingbirds take nectar from the same flowers. They return the favor by pollinating the flowers. The flowers referred by hummingbirds have a sugar content of about 25%. They do not feed from those with a sugar content of 10 to 15%. Most of the flowers that hummingbirds pollinate are red, bright pink and orange in color. For this reason, the best hummingbird feeders are bright red. When choosing a feeder, remember these points: A "bee-proof" feeder with a red base is preferable to all others. If your feeder is not bee-proof you may attract more bees than hummingbirds. Your feeder should have a perch. Hummingbirds will feed while flying, but offering a perch saves them valuable energy. Your feeder should have ant moat to prevent contamination of the nectar. When making nectar for your feeder, use only white, granulated sugar. Do not use prepackaged hummingbird food, brown sugar, turbinado sugar or any "special" sugar, or honey. The following is a list of "hummingbird friendly" flowers, vines and shrubs: Perennials: Annuals: Bulbs, corms and tubers: Vines: Shrubs and trees: Many of the plants listed above are hearty "old favorites" among gardeners. They will add a note of old fashioned timelessness to your garden that will be as pleasing to you as it will be to the hummingbirds. Plant your garden early so they will be in bloom when the hummingbirds return. Clean and inspect your feeders. Clean them with a mild soap solution and rinse them 3 times before re-hanging them. If they need replacing, buy well made, bee-proof feeders that will last for years, not just one season. OK, you are now ready for the return of the hummingbirds. There is nothing to do now but wait… and enjoy. About the Author Steve Peek is an ardent nature lover and a tinkerer. This combination has resulted in a unique hummingbird feeder design ensuring that bees do not ruin your hummingbird watching experience. Learn more about hummingbirds and our hummingbird feeder at our website. http://www.thehummingbirdstore.com/ Personalized Hummingbird Gifts |
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Will you get a Kiss or a Pinch this Saint Patrick’s Day? |
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We’re approaching one of the stranger holidays of the year. It’s a holiday that gives us the excuse to pinch our friends, consume an abnormal amount of food coloring, and tell people to kiss us because of our heritage. We raid our wardrobes or shop for whatever green we can get our hands on, decorate ourselves and our belongings with four-leaf clovers and gift our friends and family with an array of products featuring Irish symbols of Luck, celebration and well being. Yes, it’s St. Patrick’s Day. | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Stories about the man behind the celebration have become a little clouded by exaggeration over the years, so who was St. Patrick, really? Well forget what you’ve heard about raising the dead and banishing snakes, because here’s the real story.
It turns out St. Patrick was originally from Britain. When he was sixteen, Irish raiders captured and kept him captive for six years, working alone as a shepherd. During this time, he became a devoted Christian and finally escaped to Britain after a dream in which God told him it was time to leave Ireland. He studied to become a priest for fifteen years before returning to Ireland to convert the Irish and minister to the Christians already living there. His approach to conversion was incorporating the symbols the Irish already used, for instance a sun, with regular Christian symbols, such as a cross, creating today’s Celtic Cross. OK, that’s Interesting you say, but why green? And why do we pinch our friends? Whose idea was it to kiss the Irish? This may not come as a surprise, but only one of those things originated in Ireland. The rest are all American. To “wear green” initially meant to wear a shamrock, the Irish symbol St. Patrick used to describe the Holy Trinity, on your clothes. In keeping with the trine… The Shamrock represents the Celtic tradition meaning- “trust in your soul,” “belief in your heart” and “faith in your mind. Pinching came about around the emergence of St. Patrick’s Day in America, when it was thought that wearing green would make you invisible to the Leprechauns. If they saw you, they would pinch you. But why would a Leprechaun pinch you, aren’t they those cute little Lucky Charm Guys? Leprechauns – were actually spirited and tricky little fellows who were employed by Irish Fairies to make their shoes. The Fairies paid the Leprechauns with Gold Coins which they saved in a metal pot. (Thus the pot of Gold at the end of the rainbow). So in order to warn our friends to watch out for the Leprechauns, we pinch them ourselves if they’re not wearing green. “kiss me, I’m Irish” has no real beginning, (other than a slogan on bowling caps) But is said to reference the Blarney Stone. Kissing the Blarney stone brings you good luck so if you can’t kiss the stone the next best chance of getting good luck is “kissing an Irish person.” So…. Kissing an Irish might bring you some luck, but if not, it’s a good excuse for a little extra affection! So this March, wear your green with pride whether it’s in celebration of your own roots or just joining in the celebration! And….May your blessings out number the shamrocks that grow and may trouble avoid you wherever you go! Happy St. Patty’s Day! This St Patrick’s Day be sure to decorate in Green for Luck and the avoidance of that pinch!
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LYNCH’S IRISH PUB: 514 First St. N.
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