| January: A Bounty of Holidays |
By: Michelle Villanueva, Celebrations Columnist
On 12/31/05
Happy 2006! It's finally time to pack away those holiday decorations, but that doesn't mean the celebrating is necessarily over. Each month brings with it a wide variety of holidays, commemorations, and celebrations of many things from the solemn to the strange.
| "As always, don't be afraid to try out something new or different because these will make for fond memories in years to come. " |
With a little creativity, you can use the upcoming holidays to teach your child something valuable about the world, or you could use them as foundations for a party.
January offers a wide variety of holidays. Chinese New Year arrives late January. According to www.chinapage.com the Chinese New Year is "the second new moon after the winter solstice". The Chinese assign each year with a different animal. For example, this year--2006--is the year of the Dog, and the celebration begins on January 29th. Twelve animals represent the Chinese zodiac, each with their own special traits. The Holiday Spot has a wealth of information about what the Year of the Dog will likely bring and the personality traits of a person born during that year.
This page from the University of Victoria (in Canada) lists a few of the more common decorations found in Chinese households during the New Year. Plants and flowers are given special emphasis during the New Year as they symbolize the flow of life and the promise of growth and renewal that comes during the New Year. Keeping oranges and tangerines in a bowl is considered extremely lucky in Chinese culture, and filling a candy tray with treats is a sweet way to start the New Year.
The website lists Chinese New Year superstitions. In the New Year many Chinese people clean their houses very thoroughly, making sure all the bad luck from the past year is thrown out. In my own house, and many other Filipino households, the belief is that whatever one does during New Year's Day will hold true for the rest of the year.
Nothing represents the Chinese New Year more than the appearance of dragons. Unlike their Western counterparts, Chinese dragons are considered extremely lucky and bring good fortune to all who manage to catch a glimpse of them. Fortunately, we have ways of making dragons appear even when they're a little shy! Kid's Domain has a simple craft project that explains how to create a dragon for your child to play with.
January is also the month of other unique holidays and observances. If you're planning on throwing a party in January, why not tie in a holidays theme? Holiday Insights has a large list of celebrations that take place in January. For example, did you know that January is Hot Tea Month, National Oatmeal Month, and National Soup Month? In the depths of winter, I guess the three best "warm-up" foods would have to be celebrated!
I personally like the idea of a National Soup Month, and to commemorate it, you could throw a soup-sampling party. The invitations could be cut out of construction paper and shaped like stew-pots. You could request for guests to bring a Thermos or two filled with their favorite soups to share. Have trays of crackers and pieces of hearty bread (sourdough is a good choice here) to help sop up the soup.
Another suggestion is to have a Stone Soup theme for the party. Read the story aloud to the guests and make sure each guest brings something different to throw into a large stockpot. Also see Family Fun.
Of course, National Soup Month is just one celebration in an entire month of interesting holidays. Imagine the theme parties that could be created from Penguin Awareness Day (January 20), National Popcorn Day (January 19), or Opposite Day (January 25). Trivia Day (January 4) can be filled with all sorts of different games, while National Corn chip Day (January 29) gives you easy ideas for catering. Every month includes these fascinating forays into what people are willing to celebrate. As always, don't be afraid to try out something new or different because these will make for fond memories in years to come.
Now I have to figure out how to best celebrate National Kazoo Day (January 28).
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