Posts filed under 'Just for Fun'
Nature Quote of the Day
Flowers always make people better, happier, and more helpful; they are sunshine, food and medicine for the soul.
Luther Burbank
Flower
5 Flower care tips:
Clean your vases with bleach-to kill bacteria from previous flowers.
When placing cut flowers in a vase remove all foliage that will be below the water line.
To keep flowers longer, change the water (and floral food) every two to three days and recut the stems.
Remove any dead flowers as they appear-they release ethylene gas which escalates the aging of the other flowers.
Give your flowers a fresh look by spray misting the flowers with fresh water.
Order your fresh flowers from Eden Florist at www.EdenFlorist.com or 954-981-5515.
July 8th, 2009
… Might Not Attract as Much Attention!
June is Rose month and before its over, I thought I’d write about how many roses get their name.
Famous people have been the inspiration for naming beautiful roses for almost as long as the rose has been around. In fact, the naming of rose hybrids in honor of loved ones, ex-presidents such as John F. Kennedy and Abraham Lincoln, First Ladies like Barbara Bush, royalty such as Queen Elizabeth and Princess of Monaco or religious leaders like St. Patrick, Cardinal de Richelieu, and Billy Graham are just a few of the thousands of “celebrities” who’s names were given to roses of all shapes, sizes and varieties.
One might think naming a rose after a famous person is a badge of honor however according to the Rose Hybridizers Association its more about name recognition. The more recognizable the name, the easier the rose is to market
“The rose is the queen of flowers. It’s the most beloved garden plant. What better way to immortalize our stars… says Tom Carruth, the legendary hybridizer and creator of the Julia Child, Betty Boop, and George Burns roses.
GOOD CAN COME OUT OF THE NAMING OF A ROSE as evidenced by the sales of the Diana, Princess of Wales hybrid. In fact 15% of net sales has been donated to her Memorial Fund, as an ongoing effort to support the causes she devoted herself to.
I wonder why kind of rose they will name after Michael Jackson (rest in peace)? My guess is it will be something disarming, bright, showy and a little quirky.
Here are pictures of some famous roses:
Whoopi (for Whoopi Goldberg)
Chris Evert Rose
Dusty Springfield Rose
Freddy Mercury Rose
Other famous roses include:
Anne Boleyn
Betty Boop
Charles De Gaule
Christian Dior
Julia Child,
Leonardo da Vinci,
Michelangelo
Crown Princess Margareta
David Whitfield
DUCHESS OF CORNWALL
Florence Nightingale
Ingrid Bergman
Judy Garland
Picasso
Princess Alexandra
Queen Elizabeth
Queen Mother
Rob Roy
Robert Burns
Sir Walter Raleigh
Tina Turner
Videl Sassoon
Maria Shriver
Agatha Christie
Barbra Streisand
Barbara Bush
Bing Crosby
George Burns
Marilyn Monroe
Rosie O’donnell
Santa Claus l
Barbara Mandrell
Dolly Parton
The McCartney
To see the images of these roses and others visit: http://home-and-garden.webshots.com/album/511637400pyTfiM
JUST FOR FUN: Try your hand at the celebrity roses quiz here:
June 26th, 2009
Eden Florist just finished the latest wordsearch puzzle, Famous Mothers and you are invited to “play.”
Click on the link to download your copy now!
Mother’s Day FAMOUS MOTHERS’ Wordsearch 2009.
You will need a PDF reader to view the document.
There’s still time to order flowers for MOM. Just give Eden Florist in Davie, Florida a call at 800-966-3336 or 954-981-5515. You can also place your order online at www.EdenFlorist.com. But hurry, some styles are already sold out!
May 8th, 2009
April
April is a rainbow month,
Of sudden springtime showers.
Bright with golden daffodils
and lots of pretty flowers.
Just when you thought you’d get away with not having to learn about Easter, along comes Tulips Talk with some fun facts, trivia and Easter History.
For instance, did you know…?
The Easter Bunny
The Easter Bunny is not a modern invention. The symbol originated with the pagan festival of Eastre. The goddess, Eastre, was worshipped by the Anglo-Saxons through her earthly symbol, the rabbit.
The Germans brought the symbol of the Easter rabbit to America . It was widely ignored by other Christians until shortly after the Civil War. In fact, Easter itself was not widely celebrated in America until after that time.
The Easter Egg
As with the Easter Bunny and the holiday itself, the Easter Egg predates the Christian holiday of Easter. The exchange of eggs in the springtime is a custom that was centuries old when Easter was first celebrated by Christians.
From the earliest times, the egg was a symbol of rebirth in most cultures. Eggs were often wrapped in gold leaf or, if you were a peasant, colored brightly by boiling them with the leaves or petals of certain flowers.
Today, children hunt colored eggs and place them in Easter baskets along with the modern version of real Easter eggs — those made of plastic or chocolate candy.
Easter Monday egg rolling, originally a European custom, has become a tradition on the lawn of the White House in Washington, D.C. Many of these eggs have been signed by famous people, including the athletes, astronauts, musicians, and celebrities from film, television, and theatre who visit the White House during the year.(Source: The Holiday Spot.com)
Other Easter Symbols ~
The full moon determines the date of Easter. The holiday is usually celebrated on the first Sunday after the first full moon.
The white lily, the symbol of the resurrection, is the special Easter flower. Other popular flowers of Easter include Asiatic lilies, alstromeria, daffodils, tulips, heather, wax flower, larkspur and sweet william.
During the Octave of Easter in early Christian times, the newly baptized wore white garments, white being the liturgical color of Easter and signifying light, purity, and joy.
Easter baskets evolved from the Catholic custom of bringing Easter dinner, such as ham, cheese and bread, to mass, to the priest so he could bless the ingredients. Easter Baskets later became a popular tradition with children as the Easter Bunny left them baskets filled with jellybean, chocolate eggs, stuffed chicks and other Easter goodies.
(source Suite101.com)
Read the History of Easter http://www.edenflorist.com/article_info.php?tPath=2&articles_id=29
To order your Easter holiday centerpiece and baskets, visit Eden Florist today or call 800-966-3336!
April 8th, 2009
Today is Cherry Blossom Day ~ On March 27, 1912, 1st Lady Taft and Viscountess Chinda, wife of the Japanese ambassador planted a cherry tree on the bank of the Tidal Basin. This started a hundred plus year tradition in Washington D.C. known as the Cherry Blossom Festival.
Over the next 7 years more than 3,000 trees were planted which had been grafted from trees on the bank of the Arakawa River in Adachi Ward (Tokyo). Cherry Treas are one of the most prominent symbols of the U.S. capital today. In fact, visitors from around the globe travel to Washington, D.C. every spring to see the Cherry trees in bloom
Cherry blossoms can be used in teas such as Sachura Tea (made by pouring hot water over a salted cherry blossom, or in teabags containing dried flowers), deserts such as Sachura Mochi (filled with anko, or sweetened red bean paste) and as flavorings for other foods.
Cherry blossoms are a popular adornment for floral decor and used by florists everywhere.
March 27th, 2009
One of my good friends Teresa Morrow of Key Business Partners shared this with me last year.
Scramble and Share
Rearrange (scrabble) the following 10 words that evoke the holiday (or use ones that have meaning for you). eg Thanks could be hksnat, Giving could be gnviig and so forth.
thanks
turkey
giving
family
celebration
communicating
holiday
apple pieYou present the scrambled words (individually) to everyone on a chalkboard or printed and handed out to everyone one at a time. Ask them to raise their hands to say if they know the word. If they do know the word and they guess it correctly, then they get to share a special memory to them that describes that word. Don’t worry if you don’t to make it to all 10, if the conversation gets so great after 4, then let it be.
Just a few more days to order your holiday centerpiece at Eden Florist.
November 26th, 2008
Scrolls of Thanks
Create and print out a scroll for each member of your family, and tie each one with a piece of ribbon. Set your family scrolls in a place everyone will see between now and Thanksgiving, so that each family member is reminded, day by day, of this small love responsibility.
Tell them something like this:
“Inside each of these scrolls is a very short story. Each story is about one thing someone in our family gave to you which made you happy. The only rule is: it can’t be a thing. It has to be something someone in the family did for you.”
That’s it. Stress that there’s no writing involved– only speaking, at Thanksgiving Dinner, at the appropriate moment. Tell them there’s no rush at all. And that the story is fine even if it’s very short. It just has to be true. Then, at Thanksgiving, each family member symbolically unwraps his or her story, and tells it, in the warm, quiet palace of love. (Source: FamilyEducation.com)
Order your flowers for Thanksgiving from Eden Florist.
November 25th, 2008
Throughout history mankind has celebrated the bountiful harvest withTthanksgiving ceremonies.
Before the establishment of formal religions many ancient farmers believed that their crops contained spirits which caused the crops to grow and die. Many believed that these spirits would be released when the crops were harvested and they had to be destroyed or they would take revenge on the farmers who harvested them. Some of the harvest festivals celebrated the defeat of these spirits.
Harvest festivals and thanksgiving celebrations were held by the ancient Greeks, the Romans, the Hebrews, the Chinese, and the Egyptians.
The Greeks
The ancient Greeks worshipped many gods and goddesses. Their goddess of corn (actually all grains) was Demeter who was honored at the festival of Thesmosphoria held each autumn.
On the first day of the festival married women (possibility connecting childbearing and the raising of crops) would build leafy shelters and furnish them with couches made with plants. On the second day they fasted. On the third day a feast was held and offerings to the goddess Demeter were made – gifts of seed corn, cakes, fruit, and pigs. It was hoped that Demeter’s gratitude would grant them a good harvest.
The Romans
The Romans also celebrated a harvest festival called Cerelia, which honored Ceres their goddess of corn (from which the word cereal comes). The festival was held each year on October 4th and offerings of the first fruits of the harvest and pigs were offered to Ceres. Their celebration included music, parades, games and sports and a thanksgiving feast.
The Chinese
The ancient Chinese celebrated their harvest festival, Chung Ch’ui, with the full moon that fell on the 15th day of the 8th month. This day was considered the birthday of the moon and special “moon cakes”, round and yellow like the moon, would be baked. Each cake was stamped with the picture of a rabbit – as it was a rabbit, not a man, which the Chinese saw on the face of the moon.
The families ate a thanksgiving meal and feasted on roasted pig, harvested fruits and the “moon cakes”. It was believed that during the 3 day festival flowers would fall from the moon and those who saw them would be rewarded with good fortune.
According to legend Chung Ch’ui also gave thanks for another special occasion. China had been conquered by enemy armies who took control of the Chinese homes and food. The Chinese found themselves homeless and with no food. Many staved. In order to free themselves they decided to attack the invaders.
The women baked special moon cakes which were distributed to every family. In each cake was a secret message which contained the time for the attack. When the time came the invaders were surprised and easily defeated. Every year moon cakes are eaten in memory of this victory.
The Hebrews
Jewish families also celebrate a harvest festival called Sukkoth. Taking place each autumn, Sukkoth has been celebrated for over 3000 years.
Sukkoth is know by 2 names – Hag ha Succot – the Feast of the Tabernacles and Hag ha Asif – the Feast of Ingathering. Sukkoth begins on the 15th day of the Hebrew month of Tishri, 5 days after Yom Kippur, the most solemn day of the Jewish year.
Sukkoth is named for the huts (succots) that Moses and the Israelites lived in as they wandered the desert for 40 years before they reached the Promised Land. These huts were made of branches and were easy to assemble, take apart, and carry as the Israelites wandered through the desert.
When celebrating Sukkoth, which lasts for 8 days, the Jewish people build small huts of branches which recall the tabernacles of their ancestors. These huts are constructed as temporary shelters, as the branches are not driven into the ground and the roof is covered with foliage which is spaced to let the light in. Inside the huts are hung fruits and vegetables, including apples, grapes, corn, and pomegranates. On the first 2 nights of Sukkoth the families eat their meals in the huts under the evening sky.
The Egyptians
The ancient Egyptians celebrated their harvest festival in honor of Min, their god of vegetation and fertility. The festival was held in the springtime, the Egyptian’s harvest season.
The festival of Min featured a parade in which the Pharaoh took part. After the parade a great feast was held. Music, dancing, and sports were also part of the celebration.
When the Egyptian farmers harvested their corn, they wept and pretended to be grief-stricken. This was to deceive the spirit which they believed lived in the corn. They feared the spirit would become angry when the farmers cut down the corn where it lived.
(source:beamto.com)
November 22nd, 2008
I found this great crossword puzzle at Info Please.
Check it out at http://www.infoplease.com/xwords/thanksgiving.html
And while you’re online, be sure to visit EdenFlorist.com and order your Thanksgiving centerpiece today.l
November 20th, 2008
Mayflower Myths
The reason that we have so many myths associated with Thanksgiving is that it is an invented tradition. It doesn’t originate in any one event. It is based on the New England puritan Thanksgiving, which is a religious Thanksgiving, and the traditional harvest celebrations of England and New England and maybe other ideas like commemorating the pilgrims. All of these have been gathered together and transformed into something different from the original parts.
Myth:
The first Thanksgiving was in 1621 and the pilgrims celebrated it every year thereafter.
Fact:
The first feast wasn’t repeated, so it wasn’t the beginning of a tradition. In fact, the colonists didn’t even call the day Thanksgiving. To them, a thanksgiving was a religious holiday in which they would go to church and thank God for a specific event, such as the winning of a battle. On such a religious day, the types of recreational activities that the pilgrims and Wampanoag Indians participated in during the 1621 harvest feast–dancing, singing secular songs, playing games–wouldn’t have been allowed. The feast was a secular celebration, so it never would have been considered a thanksgiving in the pilgrims minds.
Myth:
The original Thanksgiving feast took place on the fourth Thursday of November.
Fact:
The original feast in 1621 occurred sometime between September 21 and November 11. Unlike our modern holiday, it was three days long. The event was based on English harvest festivals, which traditionally occurred around the 29th of September. After that first harvest was completed by the Plymouth colonists, Gov. William Bradford proclaimed a day of thanksgiving and prayer, shared by all the colonists and neighboring Indians. In 1623 a day of fasting and prayer during a period of drought was changed to one of thanksgiving because the rain came during the prayers. Gradually the custom prevailed in New England of annually celebrating thanksgiving after the harvest.
During the American Revolution a yearly day of national thanksgiving was suggested by the Continental Congress. In 1817 New York State adopted Thanksgiving Day as an annual custom, and by the middle of the 19th century many other states had done the same. In 1863 President Abraham Lincoln appointed a day of thanksgiving as the last Thursday in November, which he may have correlated it with the November 21, 1621, anchoring of the Mayflower at Cape Cod. Since then, each president has issued a Thanksgiving Day Proclamation. President Franklin D. Roosevelt set the date for Thanksgiving to the fourth Thursday of November in 1939 (approved by Congress in 1941).
Myth:
The pilgrims wore only black and white clothing. They had buckles on their hats, garments, and shoes.
Fact:
Buckles did not come into fashion until later in the seventeenth century and black and white were commonly worn only on Sunday and formal occasions. Women typically dressed in red, earthy green, brown, blue, violet, and gray, while men wore clothing in white, beige, black, earthy green, and brown.
Myth:
The pilgrims brought furniture with them on the Mayflower.
Fact:
The only furniture that the pilgrims brought on the Mayflower was chests and boxes. They constructed wooden furniture once they settled in Plymouth.
Myth:
The Mayflower was headed for Virginia, but due to a navigational mistake it ended up in Cape Cod Massachusetts.
Fact:
The Pilgrims were in fact planning to settle in Virginia, but not the modern-day state of Virginia. They were part of the Virginia Company, which had the rights to most of the eastern seaboard of the U.S. The pilgrims had intended to go to the Hudson River region in New York State, which would have been considered “Northern Virginia,” but they landed in Cape Cod instead. Treacherous seas prevented them from venturing further south.
(adapted from the History Channel)
Only a few days left to order flowers for your Thanksgiving table. Be sure to send flowers to your family and the host of your family dinner . Call Eden Florist at 954-981-5515 or order online at EdenFlorist.com
November 18th, 2008
Next Posts
Previous Posts
