April: Easter, Baseball, & Spring

April is one of my favorite months. Generally speaking, Easter is in April and the baseball season starts. Easter is my favorite season and I love listening to baseball games!!! I like the flowers and being able to start going barefoot. Call me weird, but I clean my room every April and I find that really fun. I get to re-organize and just spruce up my room after winter. It's refreshing!

I'm especially looking forward to Easter service this year. It's still not normal but I never imagined not being in church on Easter and I don't think I'll take it for granted again. I was not able to spend Easter with my cousins and I missed that. I'm looking forward to getting back some normalcy and I think Easter will be even more special this year after what we went through last year.

Besides Easter, there are mini celebrations that have been assigned to each day and I have assembled one or two for your consideration. If you'd like to see all the options, you can go to the National Day Calendar website.

1  - National Sourdough Bread Day. I am still trying to make sourdough but it's so yummy when you get it right. To celebrate you can try to start working on a sourdough starter but if you want to eat some, you'll have to buy it. Oh, and it's also April Fool's Day. Don't be too mean :)
2 - World Autism Awareness Day & Good Friday. I grew up with a cousin and a good friend with autism so this is close to my heart. Families with autistic children face special challenges but also receive special blessings. Ideas could be to learn about what autism is or find local organizations that work with families who are dealing with autism.
3 - National Film Score Day. Does your family have a favorite movie? Put on the soundtrack for some fun background music during dinner! I'll be playing my "movie scores" playlist on Spotify.
4 - EASTER!!! What are your plans and traditions for Easter? We'll be celebrating IN CHURCH and with family.
5 - National Deep Dish Pizza Day. I know Chicago and New York are famous for pizza but many pizza places have deep dish option or you could try to make your own. If it doesn't work, you could always... order pizza :)
6 - This is National Library Week, and the Tuesday of that week is National Library Workers Day. If you don't regularly go to the library, make a trip this week and maybe take something nice to thank your librarians. They've missed seeing people this past year.
7 - National Coffee Cake Day and National Walking Day. We can make and eat a delicious coffee cake and then take a walk to burn off the calories :)
8 - National Zoo Lover's Day. So many ideas!! Obviously you could go to the zoo but you can also read books about the zoo, make a zoo at your house, or look up what zookeepers do!
9 - National Unicorn Day. Probably only your little girls will be into this day so you could make it a fun mother/daughter day! Be sure to include lots of rainbows and sprinkles.
10 - National Siblings Day. We don't always get along with our siblings but at the end of the day, they have our back and we know they love us. Encourage your kids to let their siblings know how much they appreciate them. And let your siblings know too!!
11 - National Pet Day. Not that your pet doesn't get lots of love all year round, but today gives you permission to do a little extra spoiling!!! Pinterest is a great place to look for recipes to make treats for your dog or cat.
12 - National Grilled Cheese Sandwich Day. Lunch is planned for today! Do you make it gourmet with meat, lettuce, pickles, and tomatoes or are you just a cheese person?
13 - National Scrabble Day. Plan a family game night and enjoy a friendly game of Scrabble. Got younger kids? You can teach spelling and vocabulary by playing a game!
14- National Dolphin Day. If you can't tell, I'm always a fan of getting books to learn from and doing research to learn about a topic. It's a fun way to learn. Flipper and Dolphin Tale are great movies to watch if you want to have a family movie night.
15- National Banana Day. While learning how bananas grow might be interesting, it might be more fun to pretend to be a monkey while eating a banana or make banana bread! It's also National High Five Day!
16 - National Wear Your Pajamas To Work. Wait... haven't we been celebrating that everyday for the past year?
17 - National Ellis Island Family History Day. While your family might not have come through Ellis Island, this is the perfect opportunity to talk about your family history and learn about what exactly Ellis Island did for thousands of families.
18 - National Animal Crackers Day. Who said they were just a snack for kids? I still like them.
19 - National Hanging Out Day. I'm up for scheduling a chill day onto my calendar. Chilling with my friends is even better.
20 - National Pineapple Upside Down Cake Day. My brother will definitely want to celebrate this one!
21 - National Kindergarten Day. Celebrate the kindergartners in your life, whether they are your kids or just kids you know. Kids that age will LOVE the specialized attention.
22 - National Take Your Children To Work Day. I did this several times with my dad and it was really fun. Kids love seeing what their parents do. If you work from home, try to incorporate your kids into what you do that day. I'm sure they're curious.
23 - National Picnic Day. One of my dreams is to go on an honest-to-goodness picnic with the blanket and the basket and all. But even if you don't have those things, taking your lunch outside is a perfect way to celebrate. I remember that we used to have picnic dinners in our yard on occasion when we were kids. Those are special memories.
24 - National Pigs In A Blanket Day. I used to love these party treats. I don't know if I still do since it's been years since I had them. They're super easy to make at home with your kids.
25 - National Telephone Day. We take them for granted but I've never been more thankful for them then this past year. There are many people we have to thank for this blessing but Alexander Graham Bell is a great place to start.
26 - National Pretzel Day. Whether you break open a bag or try your hand at making your own soft pretzels, pretzels are a great snack! One of my favorites for sure.
27 - National Tell A Story Day. Kids tell stories all the time but we don't always have the time to listen. Make time today to really hear the stories your kids want to tell you.
28- National Superhero Day. Did we need an excuse to let our kids dress up or watch a superhero movie? No but we have one anyway. Who's your favorite superhero? Mine is Captain America.
29 - National Peace Rose Day. Did you know the U.S. had a national flower? I didn't. I definitely need to look into this day more.
30 - National Bugs Bunny Day. My brothers LOVED Looney Tunes growing up and we still quote Bugs Bunny. If you don't have a way to access any Looney Tunes, your kids will love watching YouTube compilations of his best scenes.

What things stood out to you that you might want to celebrate?