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How to host an ‘Eco-friendly’ St. Patrick’s Day Party

Green doesn’t just have to be the color for your party, make it the theme!! Green living can extend to how you entertain! Making it green is easy on the environment and easy for you to do! Mimicking the tips we’ve already given you for St. Patrick’s Day Party Ideas, we’ve matched some eco-friendly ones. Check out these tips:

Tip 1: Invitations
As I always suggest, send out electronic invitations. Besides giving your party a more casual tone, you also save on paper that is just going to be thrown out later.  Or if you’re party is going to be formal and dictates having an invite, try to use recycled paper invitations.

Tip 2: Decorations
Just for the sheer expense, I always try to recommend fun crafty ideas for holiday decorations. Take a look at our St. Patrick’s Day Party ideas. But it turns out, not only will these save you money; they are also more environmentally friendly! Making your decorations would be a creative and a fun thing for you and your friends or kids to do.  And as much as it hurts, my favorite party staple that I always recommend--balloons--is actually pretty bad for the environment! They often end up in the ocean where they are consumed by sea life, which eventually die from balloons blocking their digestive system. So looks like all my ballooning days are over! 

Tip 3: Food & Drinks
A cute and easy idea to avoid waste is serving finger food. By serving finger food, you alleviate the need to have utensils or plates.  Your guest can just have their little sandwiches, cheese & crackers, cookies, chips on napkins.  And if you want to save on purchasing cups, offer your guests canned or bottled beverages. You can recycle them when they are done!  Wow, this tip allows you to save on a little bit of money as well! Cha-ching!

Tip 4: Entertainment
If you’ve read our blog about St. Patrick’s Day  Party ideas then you know we suggest doing contests, having music or a movie playing in the background.  These ideas don’t require too many materials. But another idea I’d like to add is doing Karaoke! You don’t necessarily have to have a machine (although it helps), but just grab a bunch of your already ‘tipsy’ friends for some movin and groovin and perhaps a little singing!  This should make for a lot of entertainment!! 

While we are making suggestions about how to make your St. Patrick’s Day party more eco-friendly, please remember these tips can certainly be used for your other parties.  If you’re having a Birthday celebration soon, think about using some of these ideas. Not only are you helping the environment but you also may be saving some money in the process!! Bonus!!

Source: Progressivekid.com

St. Patrick’s Day Movie

“The Quiet Man” Movie Review

I’m not sure how many of you have actually seen this classic film of an Irish tale.  But I truly recommend it. Being that I have a father who is a John Wayne fanatic, I have seen numerous movies starring him. ‘The Quiet Man’ is probably one of only two that I am able to sit all the way through!

This movie is of an unusual love story between a man and a woman with their cultures colliding.  John Wayne plays a gentle man from America, Sean Thornton. He has returned to the Irish village where he was born to retreat from a horrible memory of his last fight as a prize fighter where he accidentally killed his opponent. Burdened with his death, he seeks peace and comfort.  After his welcome home he encounters Mary Kate Danaher, played by Maureen O’Hara, in one of the most breathtaking scenes of the movie.  The red-haired colleen is herding a flock of sheep across a meadow. With the lush Irish landscape, Sean is mesmerized by her presence.  Once he realizes she is unmarried, he is determined to pursue her. This is where Sean is forced to learn the education of Irish culture and tradition. “Uh uh, no patty fingers if you please.”  From their first encounter Mary Kate and Sean reveal a passion and desire to be with one another. But the constant conflict between Sean, Mary Kate and her brother, Will, makes for an engaging story. The momentous retrieval of Mary Kate from the train station, where Sean literally drags Mary Kate 5 miles to a field where her brother is working, is compelling. With the cute and quaint town joining in all the festivities of this dispute, including waging who the winner might be, you’ll be laughing at the whirl wind brawl!

I’d recommend ‘The Quiet Man’ to anyone. It’s a heart-felt romantic movie that is such a joy to watch!

Source:  speakeasy.org

How are you doing on Lent?

As everyone knows, Lent is in progress. This is a time when many people choose to give up something in their life for 40 days. The standard is to sacrifice something in your diet, such as chocolate, candy, etc.  Many health conscious individuals give up something diet related, enabling them to adhere to their program. But what some fail to realize is that the true purpose of Lent is for your sacrifice to help you recognize the blessings that are taken for granted most of the time.

According to AmericanCatholic.org, “Lent is about conversion, turning our lives more completely over to Christ and his way of life.  That always involves giving up sin in some form. The goal is not just to abstain from sin for the duration of lent, but to root sin out of our lives forever.”

Now I am just as guilty as the other health conscious individuals because I gave up chocolate this year for Lent. While I could make the argument that chocolate is considered a sin to my diet, I have no plan to give up chocolate for life.  So I am not really taking the true meaning into my lifestyle.  But that hasn’t always been the case for me; one year I gave up swearing and had a jar to collect money from myself should I ‘slip’ up. That period of time has impacted my vocabulary ever since.

So whether you gave up sugary treats, smoking, swearing or whatever-my question to you is…how are you doing? Have you been able to maintain some resistance towards the something you gave up? In my opinion, if you follow through on a goal you set for yourself (no matter what that goal may be, e.g. giving up chocolate for 40 days) then you have made an improvement in your life and maybe one day you’ll be ready to take on something bigger!

I hope everyone is doing well with their goals! Good Luck!

Source: AmericanCatholic.org

The Claddagh Ring

I’ve always been fascinated by claddagh rings. I’ve seen them all over jewelry stores and a friend of mine from high school had one. So I decided to do a little research and let everyone, who didn’t already know, what it’s true meaning is!

This traditional Irish ring is a symbol of love, friendship and loyalty.  It originated in the Irish fishing village of Claddagh, located just outside the walls of Galway. The designs of the ring give you its meaning: the heart symbolizes love, the hands represent friendship and the crown signifies loyalty.

Depending on how the claddagh ring is worn on the hand usually tells the wearer’s romantic availability, or lack thereof.  When worn on the right hand with the heart facing out, the person is still searching for love.  When worn on the right hand with the heart facing in, he or she is in a relationship or ‘someone has captured their heart’.  When the claddagh ring is worn on the left hand ring finger, facing outward, it indicates the wearer is engaged, and when the ring is worn on the left hand, facing in, it generally means the person is married.   

The claddagh ring is recognized worldwide and many people of Irish and non-Irish descent wear it. It is used as both a cultural symbol and as an engagement/wedding ring.   What I found amazing was that there are many legends of how this ring came about, including gifts from the heavens for doing charity work and unforgettable love.  However it came to be, this ring is truly valuable to the Irish culture and indeed signifies the cherished qualities of love: heart, friendship and loyalty.

Source: thecharmingtouch.com

Irish Blessing

ForRent.com would like to bestow a wish on all our friends with the following Irish Blessing this Saint Patrick’s Day!

Always remember to forget
The things that made you sad.
But never forget to remember
The things that made you glad.

Always remember to forget
The friends that proved untrue.
But never forget to remember
Those that have stuck by you.

May your neighbors respect you,
Trouble neglect you,
The angels protect you,
And heaven accept you.

May you always have work for your hands to do.
May your pockets hold always a coin or two.
May the sun shine bright on your windowpane.
May the rainbow be certain to follow each rain.
May the hand of a friend always be near you.
And may God fill your heart with gladness to cheer you.

May the Irish hills caress you.
May her lakes and rivers bless you.
May the luck of the Irish enfold you.
May the blessings of Saint Patrick behold you.

Source: corsinet.com & ireland-information.com

5 Tips for Easter Decorations

Are you looking to add a little spring to your apartment? Bringing the outside in is a perfect way to welcome the glorious weather and of course, Easter! So to help add festive decor to your home, here are 5 tips:

Flowers
The essence of spring is that plants/flowers start to bloom.  Having the outside brought inside would have to include them, don’t you think? Typical buds for this time of year would be tulips and daffodils. So whether it’s a potted plant or a vase full of beautifully arranged flowers, definitely include them in your homes decor.  They’ll instantly add a little bit of brightness to your space!

Baskets/Eggs
The essential Easter gift for all ages is a basket full of goodies! So use them when decorating your home this Easter.  You can have baskets in various sizes and colors, filled with eggs or chocolates. Use ribbon to spruce them up and give them a more festive look. And if you get ones that are universal, they can have multiple uses throughout the rest of the year!

Peter Rabbit
Yes having the symbol of Easter-rabbits-in your home would be a perfect way to decorate for the holiday and spring. You can have sculptures, statues, stuffed animals, pillows, etc. A rabbit would go perfectly with the basket and eggs mentioned earlier!

Centerpieces
I’m not sure what your family’s traditions are for this holiday, but my family always sits down for a nice meal.  We take time to enjoy each other’s company and have a wonderful dinner. And the center of every meal, besides obviously the food, would be the centerpiece. Having a nicely decorated centerpiece would be a great conversation starter or just “icing on the cake” for your well-prepared meal. Obviously reusing the above tips would be useful here; rabbits, flowers, baskets, eggs, ribbons, etc. would all be appropriate for your dinner table.

Wreaths
Finally, while we’re bringing the outdoors in, it might still be nice to have a little decoration on the outside of your home. Putting a nice wreath on your front door would let your neighbors or passersby know that you’re excited about the holiday and spring time! Your wreath can be something simple and handmade, or it can be store bought! Either way, you already know what ideas to stick to!   For ideas on creating your own wreath this Easter, check out our blog Cheap and Easy ways to Add Holiday Spirit to Your Apartment blog.

Most of these tips are pretty easy to do during this time of year. And a lot are reusable for each year, which will make them inexpensive too! I hope you found these helpful. Let us know if you have anymore ideas! We’d love to hear them!!   

St. Patrick’s Party Ideas

So this year you want to host a fun green filled St. Patrick’s Day party, huh? Well, follow these tips and you’re sure to not disappoint!

Tip 1: Invitations
As always, we start our hosting parties with letting the guest list know who, what, where, when, etc. These invitations can be hand crafted, store bought or emailed! Chose whichever suits the party you’re throwing or guests attending. Regardless of the medium chosen, have the St. Patrick’s Day theme clear with lots of green, shamrocks, leprechauns, etc. Think of clever phrases or jokes to get a rise out of the receiver, such as: ‘Knock Knock, who’s there, Irish, Irish who?, Irish you a Happy St. Patrick’s Day!’ Ha ha ha!!

Tip 2: Decorations
Think green and silly when it comes to decorations for your party!  Shamrocks and leprechauns are a must on the walls and windows. Take a look at our St. Patrick’s Day Crafts blog for ideas on how to create some of your decorations or go with store bought ones.  I always advise using balloons as I think they scream party! But additional decorations would be needed on the buffet table such as green table cloth, napkins, cups, confetti, centerpieces, etc.  Also make attire a decorative element by having everyone wear green and leprechaun hats!

Tip 3: Food & Drinks
Keep the green theme going with your food too! You can have green cookies, green M&M’s, chips with guacamole, fruit that’s green, green beverages, etc. Let your imagination run wild! And if you can’t think of enough foods that are green, you can always use food coloring!  The obvious drink choice for a St. Patrick’s Day party is beer. Traditional Irish beers, such as Guinness or Murphy’s Irish Red Ale, would be served.  If your party does have alcohol please be responsible for all your guests. Have someone as the designated driver for those that drink or offer guests to stay the night.

Tip 4: Entertainment
A must in every party is to have entertainment for your guests. You can have contests such as a limerick contest, St. Patrick’s Day games or just music or videos playing in background for noise. A suggestion would be having the music/movie coordinate with the theme, i.e. St. Patrick’s Day party having Irish music or one of the Top 10 St. Patrick’s Day Movies playing on your T.V.  Either way, you’ve got to have something fun and interactive so your guests won’t be bored!

With these four tips your St. Patrick’s Day party should be a blast! Your guests will have a smashing time and you’ll be regarded as the best host! Enjoy!

Source: ehow.com

St. Patrick’s Day Crafts

Children and Adults will enjoy doing the crafts this holiday. It’s a good way to add holiday spirit with fun activities that’ll instantly give your home a festive look! Just put your creative minds together and take a stab at one of these crafty ideas:

Pot of Gold Party Favor:
For this simple activity all you need is a few household items to create it. You can use a paper plate, a toilet paper or paper towel roll (or yogurt cup), glue and paint.  Cut the toilet paper or paper towel roll in half and paint it black. Then take the arc of the paper plate and cut it (make sure the arc can fit into the hole in the painted toilet paper/paper towel roll). Then paint it the colors of the rainbow. After both the rainbow and black pot dry, glue them together! You can make them for all your guests or just for little decor all over the apartment.

Shamrocks and Flower Wreaths:
The materials for this wreath are really up to you. You can use the traditional shamrock theme or go for flowers which will be reusable for your doorway all of spring. Regardless, you’ll need about a small to medium sized plain wreath. Ribbon color/design is your choice, obviously depending on the style you want. If you’re going for a shamrock themed wreath, then you’ll need a green or white ribbon preferably with shamrocks on it. Thickness would depend on the actual wreath you have. For little decorations you can get shamrock confetti, green silk leaves/clovers, green pipe cleaners and maybe even a few white satin roses to add some color. Arrange the materials in an order you like and glue all into place!  You’ll have a decor element for years to come!

Shamrock Mobile:
With three different hues/shades of green construction paper, scissors, trace of a shamrock, glue and yarn you can create this lovely idea! Perfect for decorating your home for St. Patrick’s Day parties!  Cut out various shamrocks in the different color card stock. Save the leftover paper (with the shamrock cut out) and cut around the rim (leaving a couple centimeters). See picture. Then punch a hole at the top of each of the pieces and assemble together using ribbon, yarn or string. Viola! You’ve got yourself a handmade mobile!

And finally, this next idea is most appropriate if you have children.  Making a Hand print Rainbow is best using multiple colors of green. (You are forewarned that this is a messy craft!) Use a large piece of poster board and have your child’s hand dipped in paint. Each child can be a different shade of green (or you can vary outside the traditional colors for St. Patrick’s Day and use the colors of the rainbow). Use a blow dryer to dry the paint in between colors so the colors won’t blend together and look messy! Have each child (member of the family) sign his/her name too! To keep this memento, have it laminated for future holidays!

Hope you enjoy all the crafty ideas. If you have any of your own, please feel free to add them!!

Source: amazingmoms.com, kinderart.com, 123greetings.com

St. Patrick’s Day Celebrations

In the United States there are many festivities to celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day. It goes back to the first celebration in Boston, Massachusetts in 1737 where the first Saint Patrick’s Day Parade took place on March 17th.

 

From the major cities like Boston or New York to your home town. Here is a brief list of some major festivals, parades and events happening in the U.S. Feel free to add your city’s celebrations to our list!

 

Savannah, Georgia

Savannah’s Saint Patrick’s Day parade usually takes place on March 17th, regardless if it’s during the work week. However for 2008, the parade will take place on Friday, March 14th to honor Holy week in the Catholic faith.  The parade route changes each year but usually travels through Savannah’s Historic Park District and Bay Street. In additional to the parade, Savannah’s Waterfront Association has an annual celebration on Historic River Street which mimics Mardi Gras on Bourbon Street.

 

New York City, New York

According to Wikipedia, the New York parade has become the largest St. Patrick’s Day parade in the world with more than 150,000 marchers and close to 2 million spectators on the street! The parade marches up 5th Avenue in Manhattan and ends by the U.S. 69th Infantry Regiment.

 

Seattle, Washington

A unique fact I did not know is that Seattle and Galway, Ireland are sister cities given that Seattle has many Irish residents! The annual Irish Week Festival is enormous and includes activities such as Irish step dancing, food, historical and modern exhibitions and Gaelic lessons. It starts on March 14th and goes through the 17th.

 

Chicago, Illinois

The dyeing of the Chicago River has been a tradition for over 40 years. While many cities have tried to mimic it, none can get as true of a St. Patrick’s color as Chicago’s river can. This year the dyeing is to take place on March 15th. Chicago also has a St. Patrick’s Day parade that takes place on the same day.

 

San Francisco, California

On March 15th, San Francisco will have the 156th anniversary of its Saint Patrick’s Day parade. At the end of the race there will be a family festival with games, music and various other ‘green’ activities!

 

 

If you enjoy celebrating St. Patrick’s Day, there are many options to choose from! Regardless of where you are, cheers to you having a great time!

 

 

Source: Wikipedia.com

History of Easter

I know many people view Easter as a child’s holiday and don’t see much of a point besides giving Easter baskets with candy in them. Although Easter has become commercialized, the actually holiday & its celebrations have some historical accuracies to it!

 

Easter was originally a pagan festival. It was celebrated by the ancient Saxons to commemorate their goddess of offspring and of springtime, Eastre. However, when Christian missionaries met the tribes of the north they were determined to convert them to Christianity. One of the ways they decided to spread their religious beliefs on the pagans was by allowing them to continue their feasts but in a Christian manner. Just so happens that the festival of Eastre is at the same time of year as the Resurrection of Christ, therefore the two holidays were joined and eventually changed to Easter.

 

The symbols of modern day Easter are the bunny and eggs. The actual Easter bunny originated with the pagan festival of Eastre. The goddess, Eastre, was worshipped by the Anglo-Saxons through her earthly symbol, the rabbit. And the Easter egg comes from the earliest times when the egg was a symbol of rebirth. Hence it’s association with the Resurrection of Christ.

 

Easter, like many other holidays, has become increasingly commercialized, it has significant meaning and should be celebrated. If you have kids, make sure they realize the importance of this holiday, besides the yummy treats the Easter bunny brings!!

 

 

 

Source: wilstar.com