“NATIONAL TRICK OR TREAT DAY”

National Trick or Treat Day on the last Saturday in October extends one of the country’s favorite holidays – Halloween!

Dressing up as the scariest or most fascinating character we know draws us to the holiday. People of all ages put hours of effort into creating elaborate costumes for one big night. Wouldn’t it be nice to get dress up and pretend just a little bit more? Of course, it would!

This celebration offers the ideal opportunity to host spooky parties, neighborhood trick or treating or local festivals. And everyone gets to wear their scariest, most elaborate, delightful costumes, too! What a fun way to get together with friends and family to carve pumpkins and enjoy the fall weather while extending the life of your creative ideas.

HOW TO OBSERVE #TrickOrTreatDay

Get the whole family dressed up and go trick or treating! Organize a trunk or treat activity with your office, church, or volunteer group. Host costume party. No matter how you celebrate, extend the life of your costume for the season and make sure more people see your creative ideas. Be sure to take pictures and share them using #TrickOrTreatDay on social media.

NATIONAL TRICK OR TREAT DAY HISTORY

National Trick or treat day logoTheHalloween & Costume Association(HCA) founded National Trick or Treat Day in 2019 to extend the Halloween season. In 2018 they launched a national petition to change the date Americans celebrated Halloween. Nearly 70,000 people signed their change.org petition, and more than 200 major media outlets covered their story. After interacting with the public and listening to feedback, they initiated an extension to Halloween instead. Additionally, the HCA created an Official Halloween Toolkit with ideas to help communities all across to help implement parades, events and costumes.

The Registrar at National Day Calendar® proclaimed this spooky celebration to be observed the last Saturday in October, annually


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“NATIONAL KNOCK KNOCK JOKE DAY”

NATIONAL KNOCK KNOCK JOKE DAY – October 31

Laugh out loud on National Knock Knock Joke Day! October 31st encourages telling a few funny knock knock jokes while going door to door. And the day is for jokesters of all ages, too.

A little history of the Knock Knock Joke:
1929:  The game of Buff – A child with a stick thumps it on the ground using the following dialogue:
Knock Knock
Who’s There:
Buff
What says, Buff:

Buff says Buff to all his men, and I say Buff to you again.

1934:  The standard knock-knock joke format was used in a newspaper humor column:
Knock Knock
Q. Who’s there?
A. Rufus
Q. Rufus Who?
A. Rufus the most important part of your house.

1936:  Likely the beginning of popularity for knock-knock jokes.

Knock-knock jokes became a regular part of the Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-in Show in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

At a very young age, children often learn to tell knock-knock jokes as one of their first types of jokes. They also like making up knock-knock jokes to tell their family and friends. What’s your favorite knock-knock joke?

HOW TO OBSERVE #KnockKnockJokeDay

Take turns telling knock-knock jokes with your kids. Make up new ones or tell some old classics. Trade them back and forth and let the giggles ensue. Laughter is some of the best medicine you can share.

Have a knock-knock joke-writing contest. Take videos and share them. Visitfatherly.comto find some funny ones for kids.

We even have a guide to help you tell jokes,5 Types of Funny Jokes to Tell Your Kids.

Tell your best knock-knock jokes and use #KnockKnockJokeDay to post on social media.

Educators, visit the National Day Calendar® Classroom for projects, puzzles, and more designed to Celebrate Every Day® with your students!

NATIONAL KNOCK KNOCK JOKE DAY HISTORY

National Day Calendar® continues researching the origin of this fun day. 


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“HALLOWEEN”

Halloween – October 31

On October 31st, Halloween brings out the ghouls and goblins, creatures, and strange folk. They come creeping about the neighborhood seeking favors over trickery.

People of all ages look forward to Halloween traditions. While dressing up and baking, we carve up glowing pumpkins. Children breathing life into storybook characters, practicing their trick or treat. In twos and threes, they traipse through the neighborhood, collecting their bounty in pillow sacks. A ghost, a pirate, a robot or Dorothy, and Toto. No matter their age, they come to the door. They knock or ring. Here and there, a screech or a boo!

The crisp air and autumn colors set the mood. Seasonings fill our senses with a taste of autumn. We set forth on an adventure and finish with a warm apple cider around a flickering fire.

HOW TO OBSERVE #Halloween

Typical festive Halloween activities include trick-or-treating (or the related “guising”). While many attend costume parties, bob for apples, and light bonfires, others look forward to counting trick or treaters. Houses are decorated with sprays of fall leaves, scarecrows, and pumpkins carved into jack-o-lanterns. Attractions include visiting a haunted house, playing pranks, telling scary stories and watching horror films.

However, trick or treating has also changed. In the United States, some organizations around the country offer trick or treat events for children to come dressed up and collect candy in a safe environment.They may also offer Halloween parties for children to attend, too.

In many parts of the world, the Christian religious observances of All Hallows’ Eve, including attending church services and lighting candles on the graves of the dead, remains popular. Although, in other locations, these solemn customs are less pronounced in favor of a more commercialized and secularized celebration.

Because many Western Christian denominations encourage, although no longer require, abstinence from meat on All Hallows’ Eve, the tradition of eating certain vegetarian foods for this vigil day developed, including the consumption of apples, colcannon, cider, potato pancakes, and soul cakes.

For the safest Halloween trick or treating tips, be sure to check out the Centers for Disease Control guidelines. Get your spook on and use #Halloween to post on social media.

Oh and folks, there are spooktacular deals to be found on October 31st, too! Be sure to check out the Celebration Deals page to find all the goodies!

HALLOWEEN HISTORY

The observance dates back to an ancient pagan harvest festival marking the end of summer and beckoning the beginning of winter. Seasons overlapped during Samhain (pronounced sah-win), and revelers believed the worlds of the living and the dead crossed. To interact with the spirits, the living would wear costumes and light, bright bonfires to help protect them.

Similar celebrations honoring the dead took place in Roman traditions, which were gradually blended and soon replaced the Celtic ceremonies.  However, All Martyrs Day established by Pope Boniface IV in 609 A.D. was eventually moved by Pope Gregory III to November 1. Later, it became known as All Saint’s Day. The eve of this celebration became known as All Hallows Eve or Halloween.

Through the Colonial era in America, Halloween celebrations were considered taboo due to religious beliefs. By the Victorian era, though, Haloween traditions featured fall festivals, parties, and foods involving communities and neighborhoods.


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“Sister Alvira’s Birthday is on Halloween”

“Happy Birthday to Sister Alvira”

Do you know anyone that has a BIRTHDAY on Halloween?

Sister Mary Alvira is the NUN sitting on the left of this photo… enjoying an ice cream cone on the  “Anniversary” Sunday  Celebration taking place at the German St. Vincent’s Orphan Home.  That would be at 7401 Florissant Road, Normandy, Missouri 63121 – in the Saint Louis County  – North – not to hard to find.

The Nun sitting in the center is Sister M. Celestine and she worked on the “Girl’s-side”  the Dining Room and on the right side  of this Photo is Sister M. Luitroud and her work assignment was in the Laundry.

When I  saw this photo in the Newspaper, I just had to cut it out – since you never did get to see the NUNS eating  in public, as their uniforms, before this one you  now see,  did include a large white bow that ties up close and under the chin – and to eat in public, really would  be taking a chance on food getting onto the uniform and that just would not look good.

Now that I think about it, that just might be  why this new version of their uniform was made.  The Nuns were usually all so nice and thin and perhaps they did not  get any  extra  – in between meals and or snacks?

Well, when you are my FRIEND, like Sister Alvira,   and  I KNOW YOUR  BIRTHDAY –  it will always be a day that is implanted,  into my brain – a day I will never forget!

So, I have this little card with a nice verse on it – something,  that I guess we should always  give a thought or two about – because we are here on Earth for a short time – and then, one day we will all be together for all Eternity!

Reading the above message  over a couple of times, does make you think about being with your loved ones,  here on Earth and then that day,  that your  NAME is called, when we  are to start to leave here – and even though some  of our family and friends have gone on ahead  – we all – one day shall  all be together.

If only most of us would think about  that time, a time  of getting to meet our family and friends again – maybe we would remember –  that our memories are always with us – and it sure would be good to carry a large bag of  terrifically superb memories –  than an old empty sack – that only makes us sad!

“Have to leave a good message to all,  and to Sister Alvira – that we are thinking of you,  as we did long ago,  when we were all here on EARTH and we were  all the best of FRIENDS – and someday soon –  we just never know when,  that happy day will be –  that  we will all be celebrating our being together – making  so many more new  and the HAPPIEST  of Memories in Heaven!”    D.V.


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“Memories of Sister Alvira”

“Memories from my Autograph Books of Sister Alvira”

Sure was glad that I had these old “Autograph Books” when I was in the Orphanage and had the nerve to ask for “Autographs”  of the people there – some of the NUNS – as some,  I didn’t really get to know – as they were mostly on the “Boys’ Side”  and then some just did not have that kind of personality – for a small girl to try to ask them for something, such as an “autograph”  because some were not too friendly to me.

My problem was that  – when I was first there,  and on one of the first “VISITING SUNDAYS” my Mother had ask me –  “what  was it like and what did I do.”  No one should ask me a   question like that – because,  I will tell them – and what I had told my MOTHER –  was something that they did not like for me to tell – as my Mother reported  everything to “City Hall” downtown , Saint Louis – and when they got in touch with the Orphan Home –  – I was watched as if I was a “SPY” – one who tells all – and everyone will hear about it – especially me! I was almost afraid to ask anyone anything – as they all thought I would snitch  and everyone would be in trouble!

So glad that I was not too afraid to ask for “Autographs” and until I started doing this “fourgrandmas.com” blog – was glad to find these old books and copy everything that was written in them – so that now the whole wide world can know who and what was written – and either laugh or just turn the page to something better.

Check out what I had posted for “Sister Alvira and Sister Emeline” as it is “Sister  Alvira’s” Birthday tomorrow.

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Autograph Memories pg. 7

Sister Emeline (12-26-49)  and (01-16-50) this second  date is from my  second book of autographs.  This is truly a friend  for a lifetime, and I am very glad to have been  her friend!  I always felt like a part of her family, since Sister  told me so much of her life before becoming a Nun.

Sister Alvira (02-04-49) – my 5th and 6th grade Teacher!  Also, she was the youngest  girl of her  family and also became a Nun. Sister Reynold,   Sister  Loyolis  (06-10-50) –   Sister Emeline  and Sister Alvira  all good Nuns –  I sure am glad to have been a part  of their family, while on our journey  in life!  Sister Alvira, a friend for life and  someone I kept in touch with forever!  “Lucky ME” –  to have had  wonderful life-long friends!

Betty Weisenberger wrote  in my book with a   P.S. message – “Remember when we had charge of the –  Rat Hole!”  That was one job very few wanted.  But, one must keep in mind that when  “Friday” came around – you always went to the Normandy Theatre  –  you were never in the general circulation to get into  “Trouble.” Trying to remember our numbers, Betty had a sister   Edna – I was #91  and   they were #92 and #93 – maybe someone will let me know?

Mary Kreitner  (02-13-49) was the rich aunt of  Jeanne Saettele’s family and cousin to our family. She was about the same age and did the same Catholic Society type things that my Aunt Irene Riley did. Here is what Mary Kreitner wrote in my book –  “When you grow old and can not see  –  put on your spectacles and think of me!” Guess what?  I am old  and need my spectacles   – to see  and thinking of you!

P.S. Thanks for reading and I just hope that you enjoy reading about all the things that happened – maybe before most of you were even born!


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“Did you ever find a GOOD LUCK FAIRY”

“Caught the “GOOD LUCK” HALLOWEEN FAIRY…”

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When You… are out on HALLOWEEN night… and YOU are going …door to door… be sure to check  and see if YOU can find…the “GOOD LUCK” – HALLOWEEN FAIRY … because, if so… it will be  very LUCKY for …YOU!

Only those …special people …going out into the dark… will have the “LUCK” to get their HALLOWEEN bags filled with all kinds of good goodies…

… and remember to not be too afraid to ask for the extra special “GOODIES” that  we all know… will also bring good “LUCK” to YOU…just for the asking!!!

“HAPPY HALLOWEEN” … to one and all!


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