However, between now and Easter we do have a little holiday called St Patrick’s Day, you might have heard of it?  I love St Patrick’s Day!  Between the parades, the parties and the celebrations it’s one heck of a fun holiday!  Bring on the Leprechauns, shamrocks and green beer!  St Patrick’s Day is next Thursday, March 17th and whether your Irish or not, head on out and celebrate!  Your corner pubs will probably be serving Irish food, playing Irish music and of course serving green beer!

Don’t forget to dress the part this St Patrick’s Day!   HalloweenExpress.com has everything you need from your luck of the Irish hats to deluxe Leprechaun costumes.  Surprise your friends and show up decked out as a little piece of Irish folklore!

This year we’ve decided to take the kids to Florida with a big group of our friends and their children. Because flying is so expensive, especially with three kids, we’re packing up the minivan and heading south.  Of course my husband had to pick a city in Florida that is just about as far south as you can go on the Gulf side, Ft Myers Beach.  From our house the drive can take as much as 18 hours or as little as 15 depending on who’s driving.  My husband likes to drive straight through with minimal stopping, however I enjoy stopping for actual dinners, not just drive thru’s.  When you have three kids in the car you have to stop and let them stretch their legs and get some of the energy out or else the end up taking all that energy out on each other while we’re driving.  And just like his father before him, my husbands favorite line while driving is, “Don’t make me turn this car around.”  By now the kids are pretty familiar with this line and knowing that he really won’t stop when we’re closer to our destination than home, it doesn’t really have much affect.

This year’s Spring break will put us in Ft Myers the week of St Patrick’s Day.  It works out perfectly because I can still have our annual family party the weekend before we leave.  A couple that is going with us love St. Patrick’s Day and want to throw a party on the beach while we’re there for the kids.  They’ll love it and it will be great letting the kids get in on all the fun. 

HalloweenExpress.com has everything you’ll need to throw the best party.  St. Patrick’s Day costumes, accessories and decorations galore are right at your fingertips! 

Every year my family throws a huge St. Patrick’s Day party the weekend before.  It’s actually a lot of fun planning and preparing everything from the decorations to the food.  My grandma on my mother’s side was as Irish as they come.  Her name was Mary O’Brien and she was an amazing lady with a heart of gold.  She passed away a few years back, so now our annual St. Patrick’s Day party is dedicated to her memory (which makes it even more special). 

Costumes are always a big hit at our party and there’s never a shortage of the Lucky Charms Leprechaun costume!  Even though the leprechaun really isn’t an Irish take on St. Patrick’s Day (it’s more of an American tradition), it’s still fun to see everyone dressed in costume and having fun.   Some other great ideas are green balloons, green tablecloths, green lights and of course the green beer!  What’s St. Patrick’s Day without green beer?

Start a St. Patrick’s Day tradition with your friends and family this year whether it be a party, parade or dinner.  HalloweenExpress.com has everything you’ll need from St. Patrick’s Day costumes and accessories to decorations.  Make this St. Patrick’s Day one to remember!

Unlike adults, children love the snow – the more the better!  More snow means no school and that in itself is a min vacation for them.  My teen-aged nephew, Taylor (being the little entrepreneur he is) probably loves snow more than anyone I know.  Last week he put this big snow plow on the front of his quad-runner with the anticipation of our first big snowfall.  They live right down the street so first thing this morning he drives down, picks up my son Caden and off they went to plow driveways.  Caden is the front walk snow shoveler.  While Taylor is plowing the driveways, he shovels the walk ways.  Then at the end of the day, they split the money they make so it’s a win win for everybody.  As Taylor always says, “Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow…”, but me I’m more the “Snow, snow go away…and don’t ever come back”!  I should probably move to Florida!

However, a great way to warm up your significant other this winter is by wearing a nice little number from HalloweenExpress.com this February 14th.  You’ll have no trouble finding love in a Valentine’s Day Cupid costume! 

And don’t forget Mardi Gras is February 24th followed by Read Across America with Dr. Seuss on March 2nd and last but certainly not least the biggest Irish party of the year, St Patrick’s Day on March 17th! 

Here are a few:

• May your glass be ever full and May the roof over your head be always strong. 
• May you be in heaven half an hour before the devil knows you’re dead.
• Here’s to me, and here’s to you, and here’s to love and laughter.  I’ll be true as long as you, and not one moment after.
• May you live as long as you want and never want as long as you live.
• As you slide down the bannister of life, may the splinters never point in the wrong direction.
• May you live to be a hundred years, with one extra year to repent.
• May the friendships you make, be those which endure; and all of your grey clouds, be small ones for sure.

So this St Patricks Day before you take a drink of that green beer, raise your glass and shout out an Irish toast for all to hear!

• St Patrick - the patron Saint of Ireland who is credited with bringing Christianity to the Island.  He used the shamrock with its three leaf clovers to teach the Irish about the Holy Trinity.
• The Luck of the Irish – if you have good luck one day you can expect bad luck the next
• Kissing the Blarney Stone – a stone set in the wall of the Blarney Castle in the Irish village of Blarney.  Kissing the stone is supposed to bring the kisser the gift of persuasive eloquence.
• Erin Go Bragh – Ireland Forever
• Leprechaun - an Irish fairy, often dressed as a shoemaker.
• Irish Pubs – ale is ordered by pints and quarts.  So in Old England when customers got unruly the bartender used to yell at them to mind their pints and quarts and settle down – hence the saying ”mind your own P’s and Q’s”.

Even though in the United States the tradition continues with people from all walks of life wearing everything and anything green – the custom in Ireland is just the opposite.  On St Patrick’s Day, it is not custom in Ireland to wear green ties, hats or other green clothes.  The preferred display is a sprig of shamrock in their coat lapel. 

However, since it is custom in our neck of the woods to wear as much green as you possibly can, then what are you waiting for?  If you want to be the life of the party this year, check out our entire line of St Patrick’s Day clothing and accessories! 

One of my favorite things to do on St Paddy’s Day is to head down to the local Irish Pub.  Although it always has an Irish flair, for one day you are swept up in the traditions and customs of Ireland.  It’s like you’re transformed to a little piece of Ireland right there in your own home town.  If you’ve never been to an Irish Pub on St Patrick’s Day then you’ve got to give it a try this year.  It’s so much fun!  Good music, good food and of course good drink are all part of Ireland’s rich and friendly pub culture bringing the “craic” of the Irish to their pubs.  A little fyi – “craic” (pronounced crack) is a Gaelic word meaning fun, friendly, good times – which is exactly what you get at an Irish Pub. 

Don’t forget to check out all our St Patrick’s Day costumes and accessories.  What better way to join in the festivities at an Irish Pub then to come “dressed” for the occasion!  So this year on March 17, head on down to your local Irish Pub.  There’s nothing better than listening to the lilt of an Irish brogue while enjoying your pint of Guinness with friends!