Valentine’s Day (February 14) is a time of love, friendship, giving, and caring. Americans use Valentine’s Day as an opportunity to tell friends and family how much they care. Children usually exchange cards at school.
Are you looking for Valentine’s day activity and craft ideas?
Look no further… Au Pair in America has a Pinterest pinboard devoted to Valentine’s Day:
Photo: Clever Cupcakes (Flickr)
With Memorial Day almost here, I wanted to remind everyone about program rules on holidays and vacations.
Holidays
Vacation
Important: An au pair MUST have her DS2019 signed PRIOR to her departure from the US. More information about this can be found by selecting the Resources tab on the top of this page and looking under “Travel Links for Au Pairs.”
We have host families from a wide variety of backgrounds and faiths. Some celebrate Christmas, some Chanukkah, some Kwanzaa and some celebrate more than one of those or none of the above. That is something that makes America special, we can all be different, but still one united together.
I wanted to give a brief overview of Chanukkah and some of the customs you might observe. Something important to note is that Chanukkah is not the Jewish equivalent of Christmas. From a religious standpoint, it is a relatively minor holiday. So, the amount of emphasis put on Chanukkah and how it is celebrated will vary from one family to the next.
You may see Chanukkah spelled in a variety of ways: Chanuka, Hanukkah, Hanukka and more. Part of the reason for this confusion may be due to the fact there is no exact English translation of the Hebrew word for Chanukkah.
If your host family celebrates Chanukkah and you don’t, I would encourage you to take part and experience the customs of another religion. This can be a great opportunity for culture sharing. The same is true, if you are a host family and your au pair celebrates a different holiday than you.
Here is a simple explanation from Judaism 101:
Chanukkah is the festival of lights, commemorating the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem after a successful revolt against the Seleucid Greeks. As part of the rededication, the victorious Jews needed to light the Temple’s menorah (candelabrum), but they had only enough oil to last one day and it would take eight days to prepare more oil. Miraculously, the one-day supply of oil lasted for eight days. The miracle of the oil is commemorated with this eight-day candle lighting holiday.
Chanukkah begins between Thanksgiving and Christmas. About half of the time, it overlaps with Christmas, but there are many years when Chanukkah ends long before Christmas. In 2002, for example, Chanukkah began on Thanksgiving and ended in the first week of December, but that is unusual.
Almost all Jews light candles with their families for at least some nights of the holiday, so people like to be at home during this holiday. Although almost nobody takes off from work or school for this holiday, many may not want to work nights or travel during the holiday so they can light candles with the family, and accommodations should be made for this.
Here are some links for more info and children’s activities:
Washington, DC is a spectacular place to celebrate July 4th! The National Mall is the center of all of the Independence Day Celebrations in DC. There are events all day, beginning with a parade along Constitution Avenue and ending with a fireworks display over the Washington Monument.
Sara, a host mom in our cluster has shared some links with information to help au pairs plan for the upcoming holiday.
Great list of local activities:
http://dc.about.com/od/specialevents/a/4thofJuly.htm
Getting to the National Mall & security info:
http://dc.about.com/od/4thofjuly/a/GettingtoMall.htm
The Capitol Fourth concert has a dress rehearsal on July 3, that while secure and crowded, is easier to attend than the concert on the 4th, as with July 4th, the gates open at 3:00:
http://thedistrict.com/sightseeing/events/a-capitol-fourth-4th-of-july/
A blog post that may be of interest:
http://blogs.rollcall.com/after-dark/washingtons-independence-day-patriotismpalooza/
It is easy to get distracted at this time of year and when you are distracted you are at a greater risk for holiday crime. Here are some tips that are always a good idea, but especially important to remember at this time of year.
Today is Random Acts of Kindness Day.
So, perform a few random acts of kindness- hold the door for a stranger, let someone go ahead of you in line at the grocery store, pay the road toll for the car behind you, give a compliment… the ideas are endless.
See if you can “pay it forward” and make today a great day!
A fun holiday activity to do with kids is making gingerbread houses. You can buy kits with prebaked gingerbread and all the supplies or you can make your own using graham crackers. Graham crackers are sold in the cookie/cracker aisle at the store. The advantage to assembling your own supplies is that you can mix in some healthy decorations as opposed to all candy in the kits. You can also let kids unleash their creativity. There is no rule about how the houses must look, so they can build whatever they like.
Here are the supplies to gather to make your own mini houses:
Set up a work space on the table for each child with their supplies
Another super easy and fun option is to make an igloo.
Here are the supplies you will need:
Mini Marshmallow Igloo
Simply let the child cover the outside of the cup with white frosting and place marshmallows on the frosting.
Here is a list from About.com of local places with beautiful Christmas light displays:
ZooLights at the National Zoo
Rock Creek Park. Washington, DC. November 23-December 9, Friday, Saturday and Sunday only. Open nightly December 14–January 1 (except Dec. 24, 25 and 31). The National Zoo presents a seasonal display of thousands of sparkling animated lights, winter-themed crafts, ice sculpting demonstrations, choral groups, and storytellers. See Photos of ZooLights
Festival of Lights at the Mormon Temple
9900 Stoneybrook Dr., Kensington, Maryland. (301) 587-0144. November 30, 2012 – January 1, 2013. Dusk to 10 p.m. nightly. Nativity scene is open each evening from 6 to 9 p.m. Live musical performances begin at 7 and 8 p.m. See Photos of the Mormon Temple Festival of Lights
Winter Festival of Lights at Watkins Regional Park
301 Watkins Park Drive, Upper Marlboro, Maryland. Friday, November 23, 2012 through Tuesday, January 1, 2013. HOURS: 5-9:30 p.m. daily. $5 per car; $10 for multi-visit passes for cars and vans (good for three visits). The festival is FREE on December 25. You may bring canned food items to donate to local food banks for the holidays. Winter Festival of Lights is Prince George’s County, Maryland’s spectacular drive-through Christmas light display featuring more than a million twinkling lights. See Photos of Winter Festival of Lights at Watkins Regional Park
Symphony of Lights in Columbia
Symphony Woods, Merriweather Post Pavilion, Columbia, Maryland. (410) 740-7840. November 19, 2012 – January 6, 2013. Hours: Open 7 days a week from 6-10 p.m., including holidays except CLOSED December 31st for the Midnight at 7 event. $20 per car. Symphony of Lights is a spectacular drive-through display of more than 75 animated and stationary holiday lights. All proceeds from the Symphony of Lights benefit the services of Howard County General Hospital. See Photos of the Columbia Symphony of Lights
Lights on the Bay at Sandy Point State Park
Route 50, Annapolis, Maryland. (410) 481-3161. November 19, 2012 through January 1, 2013, 5-10 p.m., 5-10 p.m. An annual scenic drive through holiday lights show sponsored by the Anne Arundel Medical Center. Drive along the shore of the Chesapeake Bay and see more than 60 animated and stationary displays illuminating the roadway. $14 per car. See Photos of Lights on the Bay
What is Diwali?
Diwali, is one of the biggest Indian festivals and also a major occassion in Nepal. The festival has great religious significance for Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and the Nepalese. In India, Diwali is now considered to be more of a national festival, and is enjoyed by most Indians regardless of faith. It is commonly celebrated by decorating homes with lamps and candles, bursting of firecrackers and sparklers, eating sweets and other mouthwatering dishes, praying to Gods and Goddesses, observing religious rituals, wearing new dresses and sending wishes and gifts to one another.
When is Diwali?
Though the number of days of the celebration of the festival differ with different communities, the actual days of observance of Diwali are common and fall on exactly the same set of days across India and Nepal. It is observed generally in the months of October or November. It is celebrated for five consecutive days at the end of Hindu month of Ashvin. Diwali is on November 13th, 2012.
What does Diwali mean?
The word “Divali/Diwali” is a variation of the Sanskrit word “Deepavali” which means “a continuous line of lamps” (The word ‘Deep’ means “light”, and ‘avali’ means “a continuous line”). Thus, Diwali is the time to celebrate with lights. Hindus and Sikhs alike regard it as a celebration of life and use the occasion to strengthen family and social relationships. As one of the most important Hindu festivals, Diwali, marks the beginning of a new year in some Hindu calendars. For Hindus, the festival is not only the time to celebrate but also the time to worship.
Why is Diwali called the “Festival of Lights”?
This is probably because of the manner in which it is observed. The festival is traditionally celebrated with activities like bursting crackers, lighting rows of candles and diyas (earthen lamps) around individual homes, holding dazzling fireworks display and igniting colorful sparklers.
Today Diwali is celebrated across the world as the “Festival of Light,” where the lights or lamps signify victory of good over the evil within every human being .
Happy Diwali!
Take some time today to make a surprise for Grandparents Day. This is not a widely celebrated holiday, so grandparents will appreciate being remembered and would particularly enjoy a homemade gift or card.
