Things to Celebrate in December by Poppy Flynn

Things to Celebrate in December

by Poppy Flynn

Every day of month has some kind of official celebration and usually more than one! It might be big, it might be small…it might be wacky or downright bizarre! There are over 1500 National Days throughout the year, here’s just one observance of the many for each day in December 2020. December 1st - Christmas Lights Day We’ve come a long way since the risky practice of balancing candles on the tree. It’s time to dig out those decs.

December 2nd National Mutt Day Celebrated twice a year to celebrate the humble cross breed.

December 3rd - Roof over your head day A day to appreciate what we have and to recognise that not everybody is so lucky.

December 4th - World Wildlife Conservation Day Supporting the Endangered Species Act, spreading awareness and striving to put an end to wildlife crime including poaching, which is putting Elephants, Rhinos, Tigers, Sea turtles and Gorillas at risk of extinction. December 5th - International Ninja Day Recognising the intrigue and appeal of the ninja. They first appeared in about the year 600 in the service of samurai warriors.

December 6th - Microwave Oven Day Honouring the appliance that changed the way we cook.

December 7th - Cotton Candy Day Dating back to the 1400’s and originally called Spun Sugar, it used to be a labour intensive process which made it expensive and only enjoyed by those who could afford it. Made from Flossine sugar which gave it some of its other names like Candy Floss, Fairy Floss. Except in France where it’s known as Barbe à papa which translates to Daddy’s beard.

December 8th Day

Time travel has captured the imaginations of scientist, authors, and TV/movie makers for years. With offerings like The Time Machine by HG Wells, Dr Who and Back to the Future is it any surprise that there’s a day dedicated to it?

December 9th - Weary Willie Day What’s this you may ask. I did! Today is a day to recognise the art of ‘clowning’ and is named after a clown character made famous by Emmett Kelly, who was born on this day in 1898.

December 10th - Human Rights Day With the formation of the United Nations, Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR).was one of its first significant achievements.

December 11th - National App Day It’s a decade since the ‘App’ was declared the word of the year. Ten years on, can you imagine life without them?

December 12th - International Day of Neutrality Promoting the importance of peaceful, friendly, and mutually beneficial relations between countries.

December 13th - National Cocoa Day Cocoa, Hot Chocolate or Drinking chocolate. Whatever you call it, the chilly mid-December days are the perfect time to enjoy it. December 14th - Monkey Day Monkeys, also known as simians, live all over the world and there are over 260 species. However, many species of monkeys are endangered.

December 15th - International Tea Day Despite the popularity of Coffee, Tea is still the most widely consumed beverage in the world after water. Make yourself a brew.

December 16th Day Chocolate-covered Anything

If you cover whatever you liked in chocolate, what would it be? Today is the day to experiment.

December 17th - Maple Syrup Day Pancakes, flapjacks, or French toast. None of them would be the same without Maple Syrup.

December 18th - International Migrants Day Not only underlining the protection of a migrants’ human rights, today also recognises the contributions they often make to their adopted country.

December 19th - National Hard Candy Day Usually made from 100% sugar with added flavouring and colour, the first hard candies, such as lemon drops and peppermints, were actually taken as medical remedies December 20th - Sangria Day Did you know that Sangria is really just a fancy name for fruit punch? It’s made with wine, fresh fruit and fruit juices and sometimes includes herbs, spices, spirits, or a bit of fizz.

December 21st - Yule Celebrating the lead up to the Winter solstice, the twelve days of Yule, originates from the Celtic calendar, the Wheel of the Year. Yule celebrations include decorating evergreen trees, hanging holly and mistletoe, and gift-giving. As you can probably tell, many of today’s Christmas conventions are borrowed from Yule traditions of old.

December 22nd - National Short Person Day It’s true that good things come in small packages and if you’re one of those who is ‘vertically challenged’, today is the day to celebrate it. December 23rd - Festivus In 1997, the popular television comedy, Seinfeld, brought us Festivus when sitcom character, Frank Costanza, invented it as a comeback to the commercialism of Christmas with the slogan “A Festivus for the rest of us.” December 24th - Eggnog Day Celebrated on Christmas Eve, Eggnog - basically a milk punch - is a popular Christmas drink throughout Europe and America. December 25th - A’phabet Day or No L Day Bringing puns and the play on words to Christmas Day, to go with the awful jokes inside Christmas Crackers. Love them or hate them, today is a day for the punsters among us. December 26th - National Whiner’s Day As the year comes to an end, Whiner’s Day allows you the opportunity to complain about just about anything. And with the way 2020 has unfolded, I figure there might be a lot of complaints. However, the essential part of the day to remember a couple of important things: a) No griping about what you didn’t get for Christmas.

b) Appreciate all the things you do have.

December 29th - Tick Tock Day A day for getting crafty with your kids. December 28th - National Card Playing Day Today is a day for inviting your friends over and indulging in a good, old fashioned game. Let’s home we’ll have the opportunity to do that this year.

No this has nothing to do with the app. In fact this day is to remind us to address any unfinished business that needs completing before the

December 27th - Make Cut-out Snowflakes Day end of the year.

December 30th - Bacon Day Someone once said, ‘Everything is better with bacon’ and I, for one, would have to agree. No longer just a breakfast dish, enjoy a meal with bacon today.

December 31st - Universal Hour of Peace

Observed around the world from 11.30 p.m. on December 31st to 12.30 a.m. on January 1st the Universal Hour of Peace aims to take a step toward a war-free world.

Happy New Year to you all.

Poppy Flynn was born in Buckinghamshire, UK and moved to Wales at eight years old with parents who wanted to live the 'self-sufficiency' lifestyle. Today she still lives in rural Wales and is married with six children. Poppy's love of reading and writing stemmed from her parents' encouragement and the fact that they didn't have a television in the house. "When you're surrounded by fields, cows and sheep, no neighbors, no TV and the closest tiny village is four miles away, there's a certain limit to your options, but with books your adventures and your horizons are endless." Discover more about Poppy on Mom's Favorite Reads website: