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April 2012

making may day: ideas to make and celebrate

May Day. A special day. A celebration of spring. Of blooms. Of giving. Of sharing smiles.
Each year, we celebrate May Day by making May baskets and handmade gifts. The children send their thoughtfully made paper May Day gifts to a sweet grandmother half way across the country. Not their grandmother. And, not mine. But, she was like my grandmother when I was a child. She was our country neighbor (so she was still a good size walk away) with a raspberry patch. She let us eat as many as we wanted out of it. And she baked pies. She always had homemade pies. And, we got to have pie when we visited. And, on May Day my sisters and I always made her May Day baskets, setting them in front of her door. Then, gleefully running to hide so she could could find her doorstep surprise and find us. Or, hear our giggles first.
So, we still make her May Day baskets. And, even though her mail truck delivers them after a much longer journey than the walk we took to her home when we were young, I still think she must hear our little giggles and think of us.

many ways of celebrating May Day
✿ A May Day picnic is a our perfect way to celebrate. We share how to put together a picnic in our post: quick picnic—ready in 5 minutes ideas.



✿ Paper May Day crowns are simple to make photos at top of post. I cut a strip of paper and staple to fit each child's head. They can be adorned with simple paper flowers and a cheery May message.
✿ We make May Day baskets for each other. The children make surprises to tuck inside. Then, they leave them on the doorstep, ring our old-fashioned doorbell, and run so I may find their surprises and them—A special hide-and-seek. We make simple May Day baskets—often a rolled cone of spring-colored paper decorated with paper flowers. These are the best baskets to make when mailing because they are beautiful flattened as well.



✿ Plant flowers. A visit to the nursery is always a memorable May Day moment. Let children pick out their own flowers and bring them home to plant them together. We plant ours in large pots on our front porch to make our entry cheerfully welcoming on May Day—and throughout the rest of the summer.