Special Days In January
I hope you glean a lot of ideas from all that is occurring
during January. Here are a few thoughts about some of the days.
Use straws in everything you drink on January 2.
Play Trivial Pursuit on January 4.
Cuddle up with your favorite someone, a good book or movie on January 6.
Celebrate the arrival of the Three Magi on January 6. Dress up like royalty and bring little gifts to someone.
Take a nice, warm bubble bath January 8. You deserve it.
Be sure to work harder on January 12.
Make some different kinds of popcorn on January 19 and watch a movie. (We have recipes in the recipe section.)
Have a cheese tasting party on January 20.
Make Blonde Brownie’s on January 21. Bring some to the office or give them to neighbors.
Make or buy some pies to give away or enjoy on the 22nd.
Be sure to find ways to compliment, not flatter, people on the 24th.
Have an Australia Day party or just make an Australian meal for the family on the 26th.
Have a chocolate cake tasting party on the 27tth or make a chocolate cake to give. (Recipes in the recipe section)
Do a puzzle with friends or family on January 29.
MONTH LONG OBSERVANCES
Eye Care Month
Hot Tea Month
National Blood Donor Month
National Hobby Month
National Soup Month
National Staying Healthy Month
National Thank You Month
Oatmeal Month
DAILY OBSERVANCES
January 1 – New Year’s Day
Paul Revere’s Birthday in 1735
Betsy Ross’ Birthday in 1752
Ellis Island opened in 1892
January 2 – Drinking Straw Patented in 1888
January 4 – Trivia Day
Isaac Newton's Birthday
January 5 – National Bird Day
January 6 – National Cuddle Up Day
Epiphany
Bean Day
January 8 – Bubble Bath Day
Elvis’s
Birthday in 1935
January 11 – Milk Day: Milk delivered in bottles for the first time in 1878
January 12 – Work Harder Day
January 13 – Poetry Break Day
January 14 – National Dress Up Your Pet Day
January 15 – National Hat Day
January 16 – Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day, born in 1929
January 17 – Benjamin Franklin’s Birthday
January 18 – Thesaurus
Day
Winnie the
Pooh Day
January 19 – Popcorn Day
January 20 – Cheese Day
January 21 – National Hugging Day
Hat Day
January 22 – National Blonde Brownie Day
January 23 – National Handwriting Day
National Pie
Day
Chinese New Year – the Year of the Dragon
January 24 – Compliment Day
Eskimo Pie
patented in 1922
Gold
discovered in California in 1828
January 25 – Opposite Day
January 26 – Australia Day
Spouse’s Day
January 27 – Chocolate Cake Day
National
Holocaust Memorial Day in UK
January 28 – Ernie’s Birthday (Sesame Street Character)
National Fun at
Work Day
January 29 – National Puzzle Day
National Corn Chip Day
January 30 – Franklin D. Roosevelt’s birthday in 1882
January 31 – Backwards Day
Jackie Robinson’s Birthday born in 1919
Inspire Your Heart with Art Day
Taken from www.holidayinsights.com
www.familycrafts.about.com
Epiphany
The Epiphany commemorates
the arrival of the three kings
presenting their gifts to the baby Jesus. They saw him as a king and
gave him
kingly gifts. Perhaps you could enact it with your children. Dress them
up and
do a presentation for others or just for you.
Another thought is to bring three gifts to
someone you did
not give to or that you do not know. They do not have to be expensive,
but put
a little thought into it.
Ask people to dress in 50’s attire. You could have an Elvis and Priscilla look-a-like contest. Be sure to put it on the invitation.
Decorations
Have pictures of Elvis, guitars, old album covers, records, jukebox, and themes from his old movies, like “Blue Hawaii”.
Food
Include any of Elvis’ favorite foods on the menu….pork chops, meatloaf, steak, fresh vegetables, creamed potatoes, cheeseburgers, milkshakes, and fried peanut butter and banana sandwiches
Games
For prizes give an Elvis DVD or CD.
Play name that Elvis tune. Have the group listen to a line or two of an Elvis song and name the song.
Play an Elvis trivia game. (see below)
Have a 50’s dance contest.
Have prizes for an Elvis or Priscilla look-a-like contest.
Favors
Make a CD of popular Elvis music.
Make candy or cookies in the shape of a guitar and put them in clear cellophane bags.
ELVIS TRIVIA GAME
QUESTIONS
1. What general did Elvis have high regard for?
2. What was Elvis’ after shave of choice?
3. What did Elvis have a statue collection of?
4. What was one of Elvis’ favorite books to read?
5. What were Elvis’ two favorite sports?
6. What is Elvis’ top movie?
7. What was Elvis’ first number one hit?
8. Where was Elvis born?
9. What branch of the service did Elvis join in 1958?
10. What is the name of Elvis’ only child?
11. What was Elvis’ wife’s name?
12. Who were Elvis’ favorite actors?
13. What movie was Ann Margaret Elvis’ co-star?
14. Elvis received two Grammy Awards for Gospel Music for what song?
15. What was Elvis’ favorite class in high school?
16. What was the first ever musical video of all time?
17. How much did Elvis weigh when he died?
18. How man movies did Elvis make?
19. What was Elvis’ last top 20 hit?
20. What positive character quality was Elvis known for?
ANSWERS
1. General Mac Arthur
2. Brut
3. Venus de Milo & Joan of Arc
4. The Bible
5. Football and Racquetball
6. Jailhouse Rock
7. ‘Heartbreak Hotel”
8. Tupelo, Mississippi
9. The Army
10. Lisa Marie
11. Priscilla
12. Marlon Brando and James Dean
13. Viva Las Vegas
14. “How Great Thou Art”
15. Woodshop
16. ‘Jailhouse Rock”
17. 260 pounds
18. 31 movies
19. “Burning Love”
20. being generous
CELEBRATE MARTIN LUTHER KING DAY ON JANUARY 18
Have soul food. Get a video of his famous speech ‘I Have a Dream” and watch it.
Sing Old gospel songs.
Ask guests to dress in summer clothes.
BBQ if possible. Serve summertime food.
Play indoor renditions of summer games. If balls are needed, use Nerf or other lightweight balls.
Put blankets on the floor for eating, like you’re at a picnic.
Decorate with lawn chairs, macaroni shells, make suns out of yellow construction paper or poster board.
CELEBRATE AUSTRALIA DAY ON JANUARY 26
Decorations
Australian flag, boomerangs, surfboards, kangaroos, koala bears, crocodiles, dingos, great white sharks, bottle nose dolphins, cuckatoo, parrots, platypus, Tasmanian devil and other wildlife. Some plant life would include eucalyptus, orchids and bird of paradise.
Food
Lamingtons, pavlova, Anzac biscuits, damper, soldier’s cake, macadamia nuts, lamb chops, potato salad Autralian style, yabbie (prawn) fettuccine to name a few. Don’t forget the Australian Barbie or BBQ as we call it in America.
Food
Serve hot chocolate with plenty of marshmallows.
Make chili and soup with warm cornbread and whole grain bread.
Make S'mores
Decorations
Make fake snow with cotton balls, create paper snowflakes.
Have a fire going.
Games
Have a snowman making contest using cotton balls or Styrofoam balls. Also give the contestants options of other materials to decorate the snowmen with like….raisins, small buttons, construction paper, nuts, straw, toothpicks and anything else you can think of. You’ll need glue, too. Have judges determine the best looking snowman and have a prize.
Divide into teams and have them make snowball mounds with cottonballs or Styrofoam balls. Take turns using spoons to carry the balls to the place they should make their pile. The first team to have everyone place a ball on the mound wins.
Make a live snowman. Divide into as many teams as you like. Have 3-5 people on a team. Give each team a roll of toilet paper, a hat, gloves, scarf, pipe, carrot and broom. They should wrap one person with the toilet paper. When the entire roll is used they can place the other items on their human “Frosty”. The team who finishes first wins.
Centerpiece Ideas
• Decorate with winter gloves, scarves, hats, and even boots (clean them first).
Arrange them on the table. You could stuff them with tissue to have more shape.
• White candles and votives will set a peaceful mood.
• Floating candles in a bowl of clear or colored water.
• Boots with flowers in them.
• Candles on top of mirrors
• Baby’s breath and ferns strewn on the table
• Baskets with nuts, nutcrackers, small whole fruit
• Shorts vases or bowls with cut up winter fruit and water
• Baskets with bread and muffins and a decorative ribbon
WINNIE THE POOH PARTY
Invitations
Send out invitations with Winnie the Pooh and other Pooh characters on it.
Decorations
Winnie the Pooh pictures and stuffed animals. Include all the Pooh Characters – Eeyore, Tigger, Piglet, Roo, Kanga, Rabbit, Christopher, Owl,& Gopher.
Also decorate by making trees, beehives, bees, flowers and things associated with 100 Aker Wood.
Paint a vase to look like a honey jar and put candies in it. Using the hunny pot.
Games
•Play a game of dropping popsicle sticks into the honey jar. Give each person 5-10 sticks. The one who puts the most in wins.
•Play Pin The Tail on Eeyore.
•Divide into two teams. Line up players. Player 1 from each team bounces like Tigger to a designated spot and bounces back to the next person in line. Play continues until all team members have had a turn. Team to finish first wins.
Food
Have plenty of honey on hand. Honey graham crackers, Honey and peanut butter sandwiches, vegetable platter from Rabbit’s garden, honey chicken wings, baklava...