Giving someone a gift on their special day is an important part of birthday celebrations. But when did this thoughtful tradition start? And more importantly, why?
Out of curiosity, the Official Birthday Blog did a little research and we found this on Articlesbase.com:
When early civilizations began to have more accurate ways of measuring time, they began marking special events like produce harvesting or in this case, birthdays. However, in the days before Christianity, it was believed that evil spirits descended upon people celebrating their birthdays thus making it necessary for the birthday celebrator to be surrounded by merriment to drive away the nasty spirits. During these times, birthday gifts were not yet common and what people often gave were well wishes for the celebrator. Nonetheless, if a guest brought a token, or what we have now come to know as a birthday gift during the festivities, it was considered a good omen for the birthday celebrator.
Of course, in modern times we’re much less concerned about the threat of evil spirits and instead we give presents as symbols of love and generosity. However, people in early civilizations did have one thing right: a birthday present doesn’t have to be big or expensive; often, the littlest tokens of kindness can carry the greatest meaning to the recipient.
If you’re looking for a truly heartfelt birthday present, why not make a donation to the American Cancer Society or to a charity that the birthday boy or girl holds dear? You can make a donation to the American Cancer Society on their behalf or even make a custom birthday page in honor of the birthday boy or girl here: http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR/Events/Birthday-NHO?pg=tgreeting&fr_id=19690
That beautiful quote comes from one of the most famous novelists of all time, Ms. Jane Austen.
Her works, such as Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park, and Emma, have been favorites of mine since I was a young girl. But what was Jane like as a young girl? For that information, I turned to History.com.
English novelist Jane Austen is born on this day in 1775, the seventh of eight children of a clergyman in a country village in Hampshire, England.
Jane was very close to her older sister, Cassandra, who remained her faithful editor and critic throughout her life. The girls had five years of formal schooling, then studied with their father. Jane read voraciously and began writing stories as early as age 12, completing a novella at age 14.
Austen’s quiet, happy world was disrupted when her parents suddenly decided to retire to Bath in 1801. Jane hated the resort town and found herself without the time or peace and quiet required to write. Instead, she amused herself by making close observations of ridiculous society manners. After her father’s death in1805, Jane, her mother, and sister lived with one of her brothers until 1808, when another brother provided them a permanent home at Chawton Cottage, in Hampshire.
Jane concealed her writing from most of her acquaintances, slipping her writing paper under a blotter when someone entered the room. Though she avoided society, she was charming, intelligent, and funny, and had several admirers. She actually accepted the marriage proposal of a well-off friend of her family’s, but the next day withdrew her acceptance, having decided she could only marry for love. She published several more novels before her death, including Pride and Prejudice (1813), Mansfield Park (1814), and Emma (1815). She died at age 42, of what may have been Addison’s disease. Nearly 200 years after her death, she is one of a handful of authors to have found enduring popularity with both academic and popular readers.
Alabama, our nation’s 22nd state, joined the Union 190 years ago today! This beautiful state is often known as the Heart of Dixie and is home to almost 4.6 million residents.
Those of you who have visited Alabama know it’s a beautiful state with a fascinating history. But for all of you out there who have never traveled down to Alabama, we’ve listed some facts about the state to share with you all! To learn more, visit 50states.com.
- Alabama introduced the Mardi Gras to the western world. The celebration is held on Shrove Tuesday, the day before Lent begins.
- Alabama workers built the first rocket to put humans on the moon.
- The world’s first Electric Trolley System was introduced in Montgomery in 1886.
- Alabama is the only state with all major natural resources needed to make iron and steel. It is also the largest supplier of cast-iron and steel pipe products.
- Montgomery is the capital and the birthplace of the Confederate States of America.
- Baseball player Henry Louis (Hank) Aaron was born in Mobile in 1934.
- The word Alabama means tribal town in the Creek Indian language.
- Hitler’s typewriter survived from his mountain retreat and is exhibited at the Hall of History in Bessemer.
- Blount County was created on February 7, 1818 and is older than the state.
- The pecan is the Alabama’s official nut.
We’ve been celebrating birthdays with cake for as long as anyone cares to remember. But in the last few years, the cupcake’s popularity has soared and now it too has become synonymous with birthdays!
Think about it, you can’t walk down the street without passing a cupcake shop these days. So where does the cupcake come from?
All About Cupcakes provides a history of the delicious mini treat!
The cupcake evolved in the United States in the 19th century, and it was revolutionary because of the amount of time it saved in the kitchen. There was a shift from weighing out ingredients when baking to measuring out ingredients. According to the Food Timeline Web, food historians have yet to pinpoint exactly where the name of the cupcake originated. There are two theories: one, the cakes were originally cooked in cups and two, the ingredients used to make the cupcakes were measured out by the cup.
In the beginning, cupcakes were sometimes called “number” cakes, because they were easy to remember by the measurements of ingredients it took to create them: One cup of butter, two cups of sugar, three cups of flour, four eggs, one cup of milk, and one spoonful of soda. Clearly, cupcakes today have expanded to a wide variety of ingredients, measurements, shapes, and decorations – but this was one of the first recipes for making what we know today as cupcakes.
Cupcakes were convenient because they cooked much quicker than larger cakes. When baking was down in hearth ovens, it would take a long time to bake a cake, and the final product would often be burned. Muffin tins, also called gem pans, were popular around the turn of the 20th century, so people started created cupcakes in tins.
For more information on the cupcake and its new place in culinary pop culture, click here.
Whether you’re an art lover or you just like to read Dan Brown books, the name Gian Lorenzo Bernini should ring a bell. This prolific Italian artist was born today in 1598. About.com has a great bio:
A classic “Type-A” personality, Bernini lived a long, passionately creative life. He was a child prodigy who attracted Papal patronage before the age of 20. While in Rome, over the course of the next 60 years, he was Architect of St. Peters (it was he who designed those arms around the “Square”) and is the one person responsible for Rome becoming a “City of Fountains”. While best known for his monumental Baroque (verging on Rococo) sculpture, Bernini was also an architect and a gifted painter.
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This weekend, my 12-year old daughter and her friends are hosting a surprise birthday sleepover for one of their friends whose mother lost her very short battle with lung cancer this past July. Each year, her Mom would have a huge sleepover birthday party for her which all the girls looked forward to. This will be the first birthday she will have without her Mom and it will probably be difficult for her and her Dad and brothers.
