Happy St. Patrick's Day

I hope you all enjoy your St. Patricks Day! 

 I remember wearing green in junior High and High School, but we really didn't celebrate this holiday at home.  I think my mother was too busy with 4 kids to bother with any extra holidays.  I was pretty stoked to find out as a high school student that indeed on my Mom's side of the family there was some Irish!

Along with a whole lot of other stuff.  (I am very much northern European.) The Dickinsons, especially, have been in the country a LONG time (Emily Dickinson, John Dickinson (constitution author) ), where the Germans on my Dad's side were recent immigrants by comparison.  Anyway, I enjoyed finding out about this, especially when I went to college!  I think that is all we need to say on that subject!

Anyway, I love thinking about St. Patrick's Day, because of the memories I have with my boys.  In grade school, their awesome kindergarten teacher (Kathy Rose)  did this thing called a leprechaun trap.  Probably every kindergarten teacher on the face of the earth does this, along with the Leprechaun hunt, the teensy little footsteps, the stealing of the day's treats, and the like.... but the Leprechaun traps took hold at our house. And we all know it is because it involved money and their father fed into this whole scenario- big time!!!  It eventually started sometime in February and continued until mom couldn't take walking through the livingroom and tripping over the traps anymore.  The whole idea is to try and lure the leprechaun (I know you all probably know all this, but just read!!) into the trap with a coin and then have him get trapped inside.  Yeah, like that worked, but the leprechaun was good at leaving money in his place.  And so the little boys in the house had a great time accumulating coins in this way, and on the actual St. Patrick's Day, they got dollars!!

There were all sorts of elaborate and simple traps constructed and the tired leprechauns, many times in a panic - when they heard the stomping, um, er, the pitter patter of little feet upstairs, of children waking up - quickly pitched a handful of change into the trap and knocked it over.....  whew!!  It was all quite hilarious, and I know the boys remember this well.  There were boxes and pails and legos and sticks and string and all sorts of crazy things involved in these traps.  I sure wish I would have taken a photo of this, but I believe those were the days where film was on it's way out (and I was a bit preoccupied with kids and subbing and beginning my teaching career to be bothered taking a lot of photos on non-essential holidays!)  and I was too purist yet to  obtain a digital camera.  (oh the snobbery)  

Anyway, I love the day if for nothing else than revisiting a time when my kiddos were little and there wasn't a lot of expectation other than putting up with their creativity and throwing some money under a box! 

 I am lucky to have such good boys!  :)

Anyway, Happy Saint Patrick's Day.  I hope you have a good day!

Find your joy in whatever you do to celebrate it- big or little or inbetween.