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Valentines, Chinese New Year, and Mardi Gras Newsletter from
ShowYourPizzazz.com
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In this issue:
* Valentines Day
* Chinese New Year
* Mardi
Gras!
* High Hopes
* Decorations
* Children’s Thought of the Month
* Show Your Pizzazz News
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ST. VALENTINES DAY
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Yes, this year is flying! Valentines is right around the corner on
February 14th and it is time to show your loved ones how much they
mean to you. Be creative this year with your gifts or treat them to a
special day they will remember! We have many great ideas that may not
have crossed your mind on the Show Your Pizzazz Valentines Page.
http://www.showyourpizzazz.com/Parties/valentinesday.html
You will also find links to the best online sales and coupons for your
Valentines as well as the history of St. Valentines Day and tons of
FREE coloring pages for your little ones!
Still looking for that special someone or maybe you just broke up with
that not so special someone? That does not mean you have to hide in a
dark room watching TV in your PJs on Valentines Day. Get the girls
together and celebrate the love of your friends. It’s a special
occasion, light the candles, break out the board games and decorations
and have fun. Here is a game that all your girlfriends will love. Sit
around a table with 5 slips of paper and pens for everyone. There are
5 rounds where each lady writes the name of a guy she knows on the
slips of paper. Go around the table explaining the guy you are
including. The first round is an ex-boyfriend. The second round is a
guy she would never want to go out with. The third round is a guy that
she would like to get to know better. The fourth is a famous singer or
band member. The fifth is a famous actor. One name per slip. You have
already had hours of fun talking about all the men in your lives (good
and bad). Now, fold and place all the slips into a Cupid Piñata and
hang the Piñata from a tree or just lay it on the ground. Beat it with
a bat (just like when you were a kid) and as soon as it busts open,
gather up as many slips as you can before the other ladies get them.
Now, share the names you have collected with the rest of the room and
pick one to keep and burn the rest. Visit
http://www.showyourpizzazz.com/Pinatas/pinatasindex.html
for a huge selection of Piñatas.
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CHINESE NEW YEAR
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Chinese New Year is on February 9th, 2005 or year 4702 if you are on
the Chinese Calendar. The Chinese use 12 animal symbols for their
cycle of years and this year is the Year of the Rooster!
According to Chinese legend, the gods decided to hold a contest among
the twelve animals to determine who would lead the cycle of years. The
contest was a race to the opposite bank of the river. The first to
arrive would lead the cycle of years; the second to arrive would
follow the first and so on. The animals agreed and gathered for the
contest. All the animals jumped into the river. The ox was expectantly
in first place or so he thought but when he approached the other side
of the river bank he noticed the rat had hitched a ride on his back.
Just then the rat jumped onto the bank and won the contest. The pig
was of course the last to cross the river and so the cycle of years
ends with him. Rat, Ox, Tiger, Hare, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep,
Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Boar
If you were born between any of the following dates, your Chinese
Zodiac is the Rooster.
Jan.22,1909 to
Feb.09,1910
Feb.08,1921 to Jan.27,1922
Jan.26,1933 to Feb.13,1934
Feb.13,1945 to Feb.01,1946
Jan.31,1957 to Feb.17,1958
Feb.17,1969 to Feb.05,1970
Feb.05,1981 to Jan.24,1982
Jan.23,1993 to Feb.09,1994
ROOSTER: You
are ambitious, creative, colorful and hard working. You are a dreamer
and a true romantic. You are proud of yourself and have every reason
to be. Your expressions of thought in your writings and speeches show
your great attention to detail and extravagant creativity. This,
coupled with your superior financial mind and eccentric ideas, you are
sure to succeed if you can only be patient.
For the rest of us, we have made it easy to find your zodiac sign just
by typing in your birth date at
http://www.showyourpizzazz.com/Parties/chinesenewyear.html
Then scroll down to read about your zodiac.
The Chinese word for luck is Fu and it sounds just like it is spelled.
For New Years, the Chinese hang a sign for Fu upside down on their
door for good luck. If you would like to make a sign, you can find
really easy instructions on
http://www.chinapage.com/word/luck.html . It is also
good luck to send a greeting card to everyone you know on or before
Chinese New Year. Send your FREE online greeting card now at
http://www.showyourpizzazz.com/PostOffice/postoffice.html
We have also added an Online Fortune Cookie to the Chinese New Year
site. Not because it is necessarily accurate but because they are so
darn funny! The English is not quite right but not so bad that you
don’t understand what they are saying. My friend checked hers and it
said:
Lonely? True love your don’t have to look for, at the right time you
will find the door.
Next thing you know, she ran right into the door! I won’t tell you her
name just in case she is embarrassed but I’ll give you a hint. It’s
Heather! Check yours FREE at
http://www.showyourpizzazz.com/Parties/chinesenewyear.html
and let us know if you get a really funny one.
Learn all about Chinese New Year history, food, traditions and more by
visiting
http://www.showyourpizzazz.com/Parties/chinesenewyear.html
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MARDI
GRAS!
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Hurry! Get Your Beads, Decorations, and
Costumes. Visit
http://www.showyourpizzazz.com/Parties/mardigras.html
for great deals and ideas.
2005 Mardi Gras Dates:
Carnival Begins January 6th 2005
Fat Tuesday February 24th 2005
Shoebox
float - This is a fun activity for any
youth group, church, or school classroom. Learn the REAL history of
Mardi Gras and make it fun with your very own Mardi Gras parade. Not
the “girls gone crazy” stuff you see on TV but the royal courts and
traditions that are sometimes outshined by the hype. Let each child
design and create a shoe box float for a miniature parade. Start with
any shape or size shoe box with the opening facing up. Decorate with
beads, flowers, lace, paint, buttons, crowns, construction paper or
anything you can think of. Cut out kings and queens from poster board
to “ride” inside the box float. Place the lid of the shoebox on what
will be the rear of the float so that it serves as a backdrop or prop
for the contents of the float. Secure the lid well with tape or glue
and you may want to cut off the bottom of the lid (part on the floor)
so that the base of the float is smooth. Tie a string through a small
hole punched in the front of the float so the child can pull his or
her float around the room behind his classmates.
King Cake -
A Mardi Gras King Cake is baked on January sixth to start the Carnival
Season. The cake is round in shape to represent the circular route
taken by the Wise Men so King Herod could not follow them to Christ. A
tiny plastic baby is placed inside each Mardi Gras King Cake as a
symbol of this Holy Day. Read the rest of this article online at
http://www.showyourpizzazz.com/Parties/mardigras.html
Mardi Gras Mask Piñata –
What could be more fun than busting a Mardi Gras Piñata filled with
beads, doubloons, and other Mardi Gras goodies. Order your Mardi Gras
Piñata online at
http://www.showyourpizzazz.com/Pinatas/pinatasholiday.html
Our Pick –
Last Mardi Gras, some of the Show Your Pizzazz team celebrated Fat
Tuesday at the festival in San Diego. Recently, I came across our
photo online and decided to add it to our Mardi Gras Page. Now you can
put a face with a name!
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HIGH HOPES
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In case your New Year did not start out exactly the way you had hoped;
pick your chin up and remember, you’ve got to have high hopes! Just
try to read this without smiling. :)
Next time you're found with your chin on the ground
There's a lot to be learned so look around
Just what makes that little ole ant
Think he'll move that rubber tree plant?
Anyone knows an ant can't
Move a rubber tree plant
But he's got hi-i-igh hopes, he's got hi-i-igh hopes
He's got high apple pi-i-ie-in-the-sk-y-y hopes
So, any time you're gettin' low,
'stead of lettin' go, just remember that ant
Oops, there goes another rubber tree- Oops, there goes another rubber
tree-Oops, there goes another rubber tree plant!
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DECORATIONS
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Visit our online party supply store at
http://showyourpizzazz.makesparties.com
for all your holiday party supplies including Valentines, Chinese New
Year, Mardi Gras, and more.
Decorate Yourself! Visit
www.ShowYourPizzazz.com
and click on Costumes under Party Necessities for all your Mardi Gras
costumes including Mardi Gras Queen, Jester, French Showgirls and
more.
If you are having your own holiday party, how about hosting it as
Court King and Queen? There are so many choices to make your
celebration unique.
Don’t forget to visit the Valentines page for great gift ideas.
http://www.showyourpizzazz.com/Parties/valentinesday.html
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CHILDREN’S THOUGHT OF THE MONTH
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Dear God,
Please put another holiday between Christmas and Easter. There is
nothing good in there now.
Amanda
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SHOW YOUR PIZZAZZ NEWS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
We are 1! Yes, we finally made it to the Show Your Pizzazz 1st
Birthday. Sad thing is that we were all so busy that we didn’t even
have a party. Hmmm. We will have to correct that. Well Thank you ALL
for your support and well wishes during this past year. You have made
our first year a huge success! I hope you have enjoyed it as much as
we have. BUT WAIT. It just gets better this year. We are still working
on our taxes for ’04 but after that, it is nothing but fun in 2005! We
have some amazing ideas to keep you entertained and partying all year
long.
Our first priority (well after taxes) this year is to work on the
website a bit. I know there are a few broken links and some of the
pages could use a little touching up. We want the site to be fun and
new every time you visit.
We also want to make the site more personal. So, we want to hear from
you. Send us your ideas and thoughts or pictures. So we can share them
with all of our friends.
We want to hear from you! What do you like about the site and
newsletter? What do you want to hear more about? What could you do
without? Have a favorite recipe you would like to share? Or how about
a unique party idea or party picture?
Send us an e-mail at
TonyaRenay@ShowYourPizzazz.com
Tonya Sease
(858) 382-5825
TonyaRenay@ShowYourPizzazz.com
www.ShowYourPizzazz.com
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