Fun Ways to Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day at Home. While parades and

St. Patrick’s Day started as a religious celebration in the 17th century to commemorate Saint Patrick’s life and Christianity’s arrival to Ireland. On St. Patrick’s Day, which falls during the Christian season of Lent, Irish families would traditionally attend church in the morning and celebrate in the afternoon. Lenten prohibitions against consuming meat were waived, and people would dance, drink and eat a traditional meal of Irish bacon and cabbage.

In the early 18th century, Irish immigrants brought the tradition over to the American colonies. As more Irish came across the Atlantic, the celebration slowly grew and morphed from a religious celebration to a secular one. The first St. Patrick’s Day parade was held in Boston in 1737, and the celebration has only grown larger since that first parade.

While the ongoing pandemic is responsible for the cancellation of parades and other group celebrations, there are ways to celebrate at home that the entire family will enjoy. Whether you cook traditional Irish specialties, research Irish history or get crafty, you can still have lots of Irish-themed fun this March 17!

Cook an authentic Irish recipe. While it’s traditional to eat Corned Beef and Cabbage on St. Patrick’s Day in the United States, it is not an authentic Irish food. Instead of corned beef and cabbage, the traditional St. Patrick’s Day meal eaten in Ireland contains lamb or bacon.

Another authentic Irish food you may want to make with the kids is Soda Bread. No matter what recipe you choose, the best way to enjoy it is sliced warm and spread liberally with butter.

Another baked treat the kids may enjoy is Barmbrack. This fruity tea loaf is traditionally served smothered in butter with a cup of tea in the afternoon. You can find our favorite recipes for corned beef and cabbage, soda bread, and Barnbrack at MontereyBayParent.com.

Eat green foods all day. Instead of going traditional, get creative and serve only green foods for each meal. For breakfast, serve green pancakes washed down with green milk. For lunch, how about an assortment of green vegetables with spinach dip or Ranch dressing dyed green? Dinner can be green pasta. Add a green smoothie for a snack, and your green day will be complete.

Leprechaun pranks. According to Irish legend, these magical elves spend their time mending shoes and making practical jokes and have a hidden pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

They are notorious for causing mischief the night before St. Patrick’s Day. Parents can have some fun of their own by setting up a few leprechaun pranks. Easy pranks include: turning the milk green, leaving green footprints, and turning the toilet water green. You can mix up the children’s shoes or put the toothpaste in the fridge. The kids will have fun discovering where the leprechauns have left signs of their mischief. For every mischievous act, the leprechaun could leave behind a Shamrock sticker to tell the kids who is responsible.

Create a Leprechaun Trap. If your family has enjoyed leprechaun pranks in the past, this year may be the time for a leprechaun trap. The traps are set up the night before St. Patrick’s Day, and children awaken to discover signs that leprechauns have visited the trap. Depending on the ages of your children, your trap can be a simple box or ornate structure. The traps are typically green and gold and feature the stereotypical leprechaun items: gold coins, rainbows, top hats, and four-leaf clover. Once you build your trap, don’t forget to add bait to help lure in the leprechaun. A note to parents: A leprechaun may leave a trail of gold and/or green glitter, so remind the kids to watch for it.

You can find lots of plans for leprechaun traps on Pinterest to get your creative juices going. Be sure to get your traps done ahead of time so you can set them up the night before St. Patrick’s Day.

Shamrock painted rocks and gold nuggets. This easy craft is perfect for a rainy afternoon. For little ones, Mom and Dad can make the rocks and the gold nuggest ahead of time.

You can find complete instructions on MontereyBayParent.com, but honestly, they’re easy enough to make without instructions–paint simple green shamrocks on small rocks, allow to dry, and then spray with a sealer. The gold nuggets are smaller pebbles sprayed with gold paint.

Once you have a bunch, take the kids on a walk to drop them conspicuous spots for neighbors to find. Or, add them to treat baskets (perhaps a loaf of soda bread?) you deliver to family and friends.

Explore Irish culture. Use the week before St. Patrick’s Day to read books about Ireland and research IrishAmericans who have made significant contributions.

Here are some beautifully illustrated books about Ireland perfect for storytime: • This is Ireland by Miroslav Sasek.

First published in 1964, This is

Ireland brings the Emerald Isle to life, where the shamrock grows and a leprechaun stands at the end of every rainbow.

• Tales of Old Ireland by Malachy

Doyle. This collection of seven spellbinding Irish folk tales offers larger-than-life characters, dramatic plot twists and a healthy dose of enchantment. Includes glossary and pronunciation key for Irish terms.

• Fiona’s Luck by Teresa Bateman.

The luck of the Irish has waned after the greedy Leprechaun King has taken all the good fortune in Ireland and locked it away. It is up to one cunning girl, Fiona to come up with a plan to help the people of Ireland.

• Let’s See Ireland! written and illustrated by by Sarah Bowie is a delightful picture book featuring some of the famous sights in Ireland.

Molly, her parents, and her cat Mipsy tour the country, visiting the Dublin

Zoo, Cork City and many others.

• The Irelandopedia Quiz Book by

Shauna Burke is just as the title suggests, it’s a book filled with facts and trivia about Ireland. The book is best suited for children ages 10 & up.

We open the eyes and hearts of children to the wonder and discovery of learning.

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If your kids are slime fans, mix up a batch of Shamrock Slime for green-themed fun. Ingredients: • Green glitter glue or white school glue • Food coloring (if using white glue) • Water – 1 cup + 1 tsp. • Borax – 1 tsp. Instructions: 1. In a large bowl, mix together the bottle of glue + 1 tsp. of water. 2. Dissolve 1 tsp. of Borax into 1 cup of water. 3. Stir the Borax mixture into the glue mixture. The glue mixture will immediately begin to get thick and clumpy. Continue to stir for about 20-30 seconds. 4. As soon as the glue mixture has thickened and formed one large mass, drain off the excess liquid. 5. Knead the slime – it’ll be sticky at first, but it will firm up as you work it. 6. When the slime is ready, it will be soft and smooth.

Sergen: A message to Robert Down Elementary classmates Krystal, Greg, and Hendrix : Mom and toddler as barber

Beau: cleaning up used masks Kaitlyn: first day of Kindergarten Victoria: born ready for 2020

Arthur: playing in the rain all masked up Lana Susana: born in Sept. Vaitea: For her family, the pandemic means staying in a bubble

Next month, we’re celebrating spring. Email your favorite photo of your kids or family that illustrates something wonderful about spring! Submit it with the first names of those in the photo to: abreznay@montereybayparent.com.

Nate: Dressed for sport theme day.

Cedric, Asher, and Matthias: working from home

Taylor: Virtual holiday singalong Zoe: Masked up for gymnastics

Angelina : Getting fresh air while also staying safe.

Women’s History Month is held each March to reflect on the contributions of women to United States history. What you may not know is that Women’s History Month grew out of a week-long celebration of women’s contributions to culture, history and society organized by the school district of Sonoma, California, in 1978. The local Women’s History Week activities met with enthusiastic response, and dozens of schools planned special programs for Women’s History Week. A parade was even held in downtown Santa Rosa.

In 1980, President Jimmy Carter issued the first presidential proclamation declaring the week of March 8 as National Women’s History Week. The U.S. Congress followed suit the next year, passing a resolution establishing a national celebration.

Six years later Congress expanded the event to the entire month of March. A special Presidential Proclamation is issued every year which honors the extraordinary achievements of American women.

Women’s History Month is observed in the US, UK and Australia in March, and in October in Canada.

Here are seven ways you can celebrate Women’s History Month with your kids.

1. Read your children a book or three. Here is a list of book recommendations for children that show girls as creative, confident leaders. • Rosie Revere Engineer

By Andrea Beaty • The Girl Who Never Made Mistakes by Mark Pett & Gary Rubinstein • Rad American Women A-Z: Rebels,

Trailblazers, and Visionaries Who

Shaped Our History...And Our

Future! by Kate Schatz • Brave Girl: Clara and the Shirtwaist

Makers’ Strike of 1909 by Michelle Markel

2. Make a “Women Power” playlist and listen to it often during March. Here are a few songs to get you started: • Girl on Fire by Alicia Keys • Rise Up by Andra Day • Video by India Arie • Firework by Katy Perry • Brave by Sara Barielles • Fight Song by Rachel Platten

3. Donate your time, talent or money to an organization that supports girls. Here are a few suggestions: • Girls Who Code • The Malala Fund • Girls for a Change • Equality Now • Global Fund for Women • Girls Write Now • Girls On The Run • She Should Run Google any of the listed organizations to get additional information on how you can support the group.

4. Attend a virtual museum exhibition. The National Women’s History Museum offers a variety of free online exhibitions. Featured exhibitions include: • Breaking In: Women In Stem • Timeline: Women’s Suffrage • Inventive Women • Parading for Progress • Standing Up for Change Log onto www.womenshistory.org/ womens-history/online-exhibits to view the exhibits.

5. Get a subscription to Kazoo Magazine for your daughters. Kazoo is a quarterly magazine for girls ages 5 to 12 that helps them learn how to celebrate themselves. It’s topics include art, nature, science, tinkering and tech, cooking, travel, sports, emotions, writing, citizenship and critical thinking. Subscriptions are $39.99 per year. Get more information at: kazoomagazine.com.

6. Thank an influential woman. Nothing beats a good old written thank you note. Pick out an influential woman in your life and write them a heartfelt note thanking them for their inspiration. You don’t need to mail the letter and it could be to a historical figure. This is a great exercise for both kids and parents.

7. Get coloring. Download a few coloring sheets from the Classroom Doodles website and give your kids a short history lesson while they color the pages. You’ll find Rosa Parks, Dorothea Dix, Harriet Tubman and more. While they are coloring read a few exceprts from Remember the Ladies: 100 Great American Women by Cheryl Harness.

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