Showing posts with label Holidays. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Holidays. Show all posts

Mar 5, 2019

🎭 Mardi Gras






"Cher, it's Mardi Gras. Every night's the weekend."




Midnight Bayou 




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By The original uploader was Wikid77 at English Wikipedia. - 
Transferred from en.wikipedia to Commons., CC BY-SA 3.0, 
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=2043235





What is it, and how do people celebrate every year




Break out your beads, Mardi Gras is upon us.
Mardi Gras is French for "Fat Tuesday," also called Shrove Tuesday. It is the day before Ash Wednesday, which marks the start of Christian Lent season leading up to Easter.





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There was a madness about Mardi Gras. The music, the masks, the mayhem all crashing together into a desperate sort of celebration 
managed to create a tone that was both gleefully innocent and rawly sexual. 
He doubted the majority of the tourists who flocked here for the event understood or cared 
about the purpose of it. 
That rush to gorge on pleasures before the forty days of fasting. 

Midnight Bayou




Feb 14, 2016

Happy Valentine's



 Cal sent a dozen Pink Roses to his Mother.
She liked the traditional flower for Valentine’s Day, and he knew his father always went for the red. 

If he hadn’t known, Amy Yost in the flower shop would have reminded him, as she did every blessed year.



 “Your dad ordered a dozen red last week, for delivery today, potted geranium to his grandma,and he sent the Valentine’s Day Sweetheart Special to your sisters.”



 “That suck-up,” Cal said, knowing it would make Amy gasp and giggle. “How about a dozen yellow for my gran. In a vase, Amy. I don’t want her to have to fool with them.”



 “Aw, that’s sweet. I’ve got Essie’s address on file, you just fill out the card.”



 He picked one out of the slot, gave it a minute’s thought before writing:Hearts are red, these roses are yellow. Happy Valentine’s Day from your best fellow.



 Corny, sure, he decided, but Gran would love it.


Blood Brothers



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Romance That Doesn't Break the Bank: How to Save on Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day is just around the corner, and Cupid has his bow pointed right at you— or rather, right at your wallet.
According to a recent study by the National Retail Federation, 54.8 percent of consumers are expected to celebrate the lovers' holiday, and spend a total of $19.7 billion.
Here are some tips on getting the biggest bang for your V-day buck. 

NBC

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“You sent me flowers on Valentine’s Day.”



 “I hear my mother calling,” Layla announced. “Coming, Mom!” She made a fast exit.



 “You sent me tulips that look like blooming candy canes on Valentine’s Day.”



 “They looked like fun.”



 “That’s what you wrote on the card. ‘These look like fun.’ Wow.” She scooped a hand through her hair. “I have to say that I’m a sensible woman, who knows very well Valentine’s Day is a commercially generated holiday designed to sell greeting cards, flowers, and candy.”



 “Yeah, well.” He slid his hands into his pockets. “Works.”



 “And I’m not the type of woman who goes all mushy and gooey over flowers, or sees them as an apology for an argument, a prelude to sex, or any of the other oft-perceived uses.”



 “I just saw them, thought you’d get a kick out of them. Period. I’ve got to get to work.”



 “But,” she continued and moved toward him, “strangely, I find none of that applies in the least in this particular case. They are fun.” She rose up on her toes, kissed his cheek. “And they’re beautiful.” Then his other cheek. “And thoughtful.” Now his lips. “Thank you.”



 “You’re welcome.”

Blood Brothers

Nov 28, 2013

Happy Thanksgiving

"So what's to eat?" 
Too much, Spence decided as the family gathered around the table late that afternoon.
The huge turkey in the center of the hand-crocheted tablecloth was only the beginning. Faithful to her adopted country's holiday, Nadia had prepared a meal that was an American tradition from the chestnut dressing to the pumpkin pies. 
Wide-eyed, Freddie gawked, staring at platter after platter. The room was full of noise as everyone talked over and around everyone else. The china was mismatched. Old Sasha lay sprawled under the table near her feet, hoping for a few unobtrusive handouts.
She was sitting on a wobbly chair and the New York Yellow Pages.

As far as she was concerned, it was the best day of her life.

Nadia, her cheeks rosy with the pleasure of having her family together, slipped a hand into Yuri's as he lifted his glass. 
"Enough," he said, and effectively silenced the table.
"You can argue later about who let white mice loose in science lab. Now we toast. We are thankful for this food that Nadia and my girls have fixed for us. And more thankful for the friends and family who are here together to enjoy it. We give thanks, as we did on our first Thanksgiving in our country, that we are free."
"To freedom," Mikhail said as he lifted his glass.
"To freedom," Yuri agreed. His eyes misted and he looked around the table. 
"And to family."


Taming Natasha





May 3, 2013

cinco de mayo

"… Oh. Cinco de Mayo. It's nearly the fifth of May.  Big family deal—you remember, you've come before."
"Biggest blast-out party of the year."


Bed of Roses



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Source: bhg.com via Teresa on Pinterest




If you are throwing a party or curious of what to eat on Cinco de Mayo, Better Homes and Gardens has an amazing Pinterest Board dedicated exclusively to this.




Source: bhg.com via Teresa on Pinterest







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The Mexican and American Flags flew their proud colors as Emma’s Mexican mother and Yankee father combined cultures to celebrate Cinco de Mayo.
Every year the expansive grounds offered games, from lawn bowling and badminton to moon bounces and waterslides. Friends, relatives, and neighbors played and competed while others crowded at picnic tables, diving into platters of pork and chicken, warm tortillas, bowls of red beans or chilis, guacamole or salsa hot enough to scorch the throat.
There were gallons of lemonade, Negra Modelo, Corona, tequila, and frosty margaritas to put out the fire.
Whenever he’d managed to drop by on the fifth of May, Jack had always been amazed at the number of people the Grants managed to feed. And the choices of fajitas and burgers, black beans and rice or potato salad. Flan or apple pie.

He supposed the food was just a symbol of how completely Phillip and Lucia blended.

Bed of Roses


May 27, 2012

Memorial Day

The banners were flying for the annual Memorial Day parade and picnic. He
could see several people busily scrubbing or painting their porches in
preparation for the event.
It was an event he enjoyed, even with its logistical and traffic headaches.
He liked the continuity of it, the predictability. The way people would
plant themselves with their folding chairs and coolers along the curb, hours
before parade time, to ensure that they would have a good view of the
marching bands and twirling batons.

The Heart of Devin MacKade


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Fire up the grill and kick off summer with juicy burgers and festive flag-themed decor.



Burgers

(Perhaps no one dish represents grilling season better than the hamburger)



American flag



Crafts

(Patriotic Red, White, and Blue)




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