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Birthstones By Month
Jewelry makes a great gift for Birthdays, Anniversaries, Christmas,
Valentine's Day or any event. Now you must give them a paper greeting, too! Here are the birthstones by the Month to help
you select the right and proper gift for that special someone:
January - Garnet
- Constancy
February - Amethyst
- Sincerity
March - Aquamarine or Bloodstone - Courage
April - Diamond or White Sapphire - Innocence
May - Emerald Love -
Success
June - Pearl, Moonstone or Alexandrite - Health and Longevity
July - Ruby - Contentment
August - Peridot or Sardonyx - Married Happiness
September - Sapphire
- Clear Thinking
October - Opal, Tourmaline or Pink Sapphire - Hope
November - Topaz or Citrine - Fidelity
December - Turquoise or Zircon - Prosperity
Flower Of The Month
If you want to give someone you care about
flowers with a comical paper Birthday Card You can select the flower of the month so you won't purchase the wrong flowers.
January: Carnation or Snowdrop
February: Violet or Primrose
March: Daffodils or Jonquils
April: Daisys or Sweet Peas
May: Lily of the Valley or Hawthorns
June: Roses or Honeysuckle
July: Larkspurs or Water Lily's
August: Gladiolas or Poppy's
September: Asters or Morning Glory's
October: Calendulas or Cosmos
November: Chrysanthemums
December: Narcissus or Holly's
Notable Birthdays Can Include
When the most significant digit changes, for example one's 1st, 10th, 20th, 50th, or 100th birthdays.
In most legal systems, one becomes a legal adult on a particular birthday, and at different ages gain different rights
and responsibilities -- voting, certain drug use (e.g. alcohol, tobacco), eligibility for military draft, etc.
Most cultures have one or more coming of age birthdays:
Jewish boys have a bar mitzvah on their 13th birthday. In Reform and Conservative Judaism, Jewish girls observe a bat mitzvah
on their 12th or 13th birthday.
In Latin America the quinceañera celebration traditionally marks a girl's 15th birthday.
Many girls in the USA have "sweet sixteen" birthday parties.
In countries with significant drinking ages, it is often typical to become intoxicated with one's friends as soon as legal;
some bars facilitate this through drink specials or the like. In countries where age restrictions on alcohol are loosely enforced,
this phenomenon may be less common.
The birthdays of historically significant people, like Jesus, Muhammad, or Martin Luther King, Jr., are often turned into
holidays.
Official/Alternative Birthdays
Some notables, particularly monarchs such as Queen
Elizabeth of England have "official birthdays" which do not match their actual birthday, but on which celebrations are held.
In cases where an historical figure's actual birthday is unknown, e.g. Jesus, it is common for a particular date to be substituted.
Children who are born on the 29th of February, which only falls on Leap years, often celebrate their birthday annually
on the 28th, or the 1st of March.
In Roman Catholic countries such as France , it is common also to have a 'name day'/'Saint's day'. This is celebrated in
much the same way as a birthday, but is held on the official day of the saint that the person is named after.
History Of Celebration Of Birthdays In The West
It is thought that the large scale
celebration of birthdays in Europe was due to Mithraism in the Roman Empire , and that prior to this it was not so common.
Mithraism had a large influence throughout the empire, due to being taken up by many Roman soldiers, until it was supplanted
by Christianity. Even today, the celebration of birthdays is not universal in the West, for example, the Jehovah's Witnesses
do not celebrate birthdays, considering them to be a pagan festival, along with Christmas and Easter
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