Wishing you had a wacky holiday to celebrate during July? You’re in luck. July 10th is Don’t Step on a Bee Day. While it sounds a bit crazy and was originally goofy (Do you really have to be warned not to purposely step on a bee when you are barefoot?) Don’t Step on a Bee Day has become a very serious holiday. With the number of bees dropping rapidly due to Colony Collapse Disorder, we all need to be aware of our little buzzing friends and we should do all we can to preserve the honey bees we still have.
Buzz …read more

According to the “Old Farmer’s Almanac,” the Dog Days of Summer in the Northern Hemisphere begin July 3 and last 40 days, until August 11. This hottest time of the year gets its name from “Sirius,” the Dog Star, which appeared at sunrise during this period in ancient times.
(photo © istockphoto)

The month of July finds summer in full swing. It’s the month of the US Independence Day, Canada Day, and Bastille Day. We’ll also be talking about National Ice Cream Day, Parents Day, and lots of other holidays, including these below:
July 1 – Canada DayJuly 4 – US Independence DayJuly 10 – Bahamas DayJuly 14 – Bastille DayJuly 16 – National Ice Cream Day July 23 – St. Brigit’s DayJuly 24 – Simon Bolivar Day in EcuadorJuly 27 – Parents DayJuly 31 – Friendship Day
Did we forget to mention your favorite holiday? Leave a message below and let us …read more

July is National Hot Dog Month. In anticipation, here are a few hot dog facts:
1. On a single day–July 4th–Americans will consume an estimated 150 million hot dogs!
2. By the end of summer grilling season, Americans will have eaten more than 7 billion hot dogs.
3. Last year, New Yorkers purchased twice as many hot dogs — an estimated $103 million worth–as the third region on the list,
Baltimore/Washington. Philadelphia was fourth, Boston sixth and
Harrisburg/Scranton ninth.
4. During “Hot Dog Season,” Memorial Day to Labor Day, Americans typically
consume 7 billion hot dogs — that boils down to 818 …read more

Every midwest mom has a different variation of this patriotic dessert. I like the one pictured, using chocolate cake and white icing. The constant in all of the recipes is that a flag is created on the top of the cake using blueberries for the stars and strawberries for the stripes. For some other Flag Cake ideas, see:

Breyer’s Ice Cream Flag Cake
Flag Cake with whipped cream from Cooks.com
The Barefoot Contessa’s Flag Cake from the Food Network
Flag Cake with Jello and marshmellows from Glenda’s Attic Blog
(photo © Newscom)

As Independence Day draws near, here’s a look at one of the country’s most popular celebrations–the annual 4th of July concert by the Boston Pops. Here they are playing Sousa’s “Stars and Stripes Forever.”