Flowers From Here and There

I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the world and a desire to enjoy the world.  This makes it hard to plan the day.  
~Elwyn Brooks White

It's leap year!  That gives us one extra day this year.  An extra day of sewing and crafting.  This is exactly what I've been looking for!  But it just feels like any other day.  Will I notice that we had an extra day once the end of the year rolls around?  Probably not.  Will you be using this day in any special way?  I guess we will be celebrating it by going grocery shopping this evening.  Oh boy!  I can hardly wait - lol!

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LITTLE FACT OF THE DAY

Leap Year

2012 is a leap year, with 366 days instead of the usual 365 days.

Why?

It was the ancient Egyptians who first figured out that the solar year and the man-made calendar year didn't always match up.

That's because it actually takes the Earth a little longer than a year to travel around the Sun — 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, and 46 seconds, to be exact.

Therefore, as the hours accumulated over the centuries, an extra day was occasionally added to the calendar, and over time the practice became more or less official.

Leap Day traditions - no man is safe!

As the story goes, the tradition of women romantically pursuing men in leap years began in 5th century Ireland, when St. Bridget complained to St. Patrick about the fair sex having to wait for men to propose. Patrick finally relented and set February 29 aside as the day set aside allowing women the right to ask for a man's hand in marriage.While leap day helped official timekeepers, it also resulted in social customs turned upside down when February 29 became a "no man's land" without legal jurisdiction.

The tradition continued in Scotland, when Queen Margaret declared in 1288 that on February 29 a woman had the right to pop the question to any man she fancied. Menfolk who refused were faced with a fine in the form of a kiss, a silk dress, or a pair of gloves given to the rejected lady fair.

A similar modern American tradition, Sadie Hawkins Day, honors "the homeliest gal in the hills" created by Al Capp in the cartoon strip Li'l Abner. In the famous story line, Sadie and every other woman in town were allowed on that day to pursue and catch the most eligible bachelors in Dogpatch. Although the comic strip placed Sadie Hawkins Day in November, today it has become almost synonymous with February 29.

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FUN FLOWERS

Today is One Flower Wednesday and I made exactly one flower this week.

I am calling this flower "The Day In The Life Of A Sunflower".  Pretty long name for one small flower but that's exactly what I thought of while stitching this flower.  It goes from happiness, to despair, to being, to embarrassment, to being, to making a statement, and back to happiness.  That pretty much covers a days worth of emotions.  

For more hexie flowers out there in blogland, the lovely Karen has provided a linky to make it easy to do some blog hopping.  You can go HERE to check out more flowers.

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FUN SWAP FLOWERS

Earlier this week I received two fun flowers from my February swap partner in the Inchy Hexagon Flower Swap.

Lara made these wonderful hexie flowers for me and they traveled all the way from Perth, Australia.  Lara said "It's the first time I've done fussy cut" - can you believe it?  They are perfect!  She also included a precious crocheted heart.  Thank you so very much, Lara!

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TODAY'S GOAL

I hope to finish quilting the quilt I've been working on.

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GIVEAWAYS

Favequilts is having a giveaway.  You could win a Pat Sloan Starter Kit of Aurifil Thread.  This giveaway ends Tuesday, March 6.


Quiltville's Quips and Snips is having a giveaway.  You could win a copy of On Track!  This giveaway ends Friday, March 2.


McCall's is having a giveaway.  You could win thirty-eight 7" x 18" cuts of fabric of Moda Swirl.  This giveaway ends Tuesday, March 6.


Kool Benz is having a giveaway.  You could win a fat quarter bundle of Fresh Cut by Heather Bailey.  This giveaway ends Saturday, March 3, at midnight EST.


Annie's Ruby Slipperz is having her weekly Mystery Monday giveaway.  You could win 5 fat quarters.  This giveaway ends Saturday, March 3, at midnight MT.


Marcia's Crafty and Sewing Blog is having a short giveaway.  You could win a set of Photo Note Cards.  This giveaway ends tonight, February 29, at midnight.


Vrooman's Quilts is having a giveaway.  You could win one charm pack of Sassy and one charm pack of
Bella Solid.  This giveaway ends Friday, March 2, at midnight.


Lavender Dreams is having a giveaway.  You could win a Mystic Knot bracelet.  This giveaway ends Friday, March 2.


PickleDish is having a giveaway.  You could win American Summer: Seaside-Inspired Rugs & Quilts by Polly Minick.  This giveaway ends "sometime later this week".


Cosmo Cricket Blog is having a giveaway.  You could win a Salt Air layer cake from Fat Quarter Shop.  This giveaway ends ?

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FINAL THOUGHT