FeeFiFoto Blog

Independence Day Is Just The Beginning: Bizarre July Holidays

Make personalized calendars even more personal with the addition of peculiar dates; here are some for July. 

The kids and I design calendars for our family on our web site, FeeFiFoto, and in addition to the usual birthdays and anniversaries, we choose one day each month for a fictitious holiday just to see if anyone is paying attention. January 16 was Talk Like Pirates Day, February 24 was Walk Backwards Day, March 1 was Talk Really Fast Day, August 17 was Snowball Fight Day, and November 2 was Kiss Your Mom Day. We also acknowledged some legitimate holidays and anniversaries, like the Ides of March (March 15), Beethoven's Birthday (December 16) and the anniversary of Paul Revere's Ride (April 18). It was fun and silly.

Don't forget: as of today, June 30, there are 177-odd days left until Christmas.  Why not begin designing holiday calendars now?

1
Canada Day
Creative Ice Cream Flavor Day
Build A Scarecrow Day
Second Half of the Year Day

Duh

2
Visitation Of The Virgin Mary Day
I Forgot Day
Thurgood* Marshall, b. 1908

Really?  I Forgot Day?  Seriously?

3
Stay Out Of The Sun Day
Compliment Your Mirror Day
Disobedience Day
George M. Cohan, b. 1878

 

4
National Country Music Day
Tom Sawyer Fence-Painting Day
Rube Goldberg, b. 1883

You'll need that napkin to wipe the melting ice cream off your face and hands.

5
Workaholics Day
P.T. Barnum, b. 1810

6
National Fried Chicken Day
John Paul Jones, b. 1747

Fried chicken goes well with ice cream.

7
National Strawberry Sundae Day
Chocolate Day

Every day is Chocolate Day, isn't it?

8
Video Games Day

9
National Sugar Cookie Day
Nicola Tesla, b. 1856

Sugar cookies go well with ice cream.  And chocolate.

10
Clerihew Day
Don't Step on a Bee Day

11
National Cheer Up The Lonely Day
E.B. White, b. 1899

12
International Town Criers Day
National Pecan Pie Day

Pecan pie goes well with ice cream.

13
Gruntled Workers Day
Fool's Paradise Day

14
National Nude Day

 
15
Blame Respect Canada Day
National Tapioca Pudding Day
Rembrandt Van Rijn, b. 1606

16
International Juggling Day

17
National Peach Ice Cream Day
Art Linkletter*, b. 1912

18
National Ice Cream Day
National Caviar Day
Red Skelton, b. 1913

19
Flitch Day
National Raspberry Cake Day

20
Ugly Truck Contest Day
Mood Day
National Lollipop Day

21
National Tug-Of-War Tournament Day
Isaac Stern, b. 1920

22
Ratcatcher's Day
Hammock Day
Alexander Calder, b. 1898

23
National Vanilla Ice Cream Day
Hot Dog Day
Harold "Pee Wee" Reese, b. 1918

24
Amelia Earhart Day

I've always wondered who'd be brave enough to use an Amelia Earhart postage stamp.  Wouldn't you worry that your letter would be lost?

25
Threading The Needle Day

26
All Or Nothing Day
Vivian Vance, b. 1912

27
Take Your Pants For A Walk Day (graphic from the BBC)
Walk on Stilts Day

28
National Milk Chocolate Day
Beatrix Potter, b. 1866

29
Cheese Sacrifice Purchase Day
Chili Dog Day

30
National Cheesecake Day
Emily Bronte, b. 1818

Cheesecake goes well with ice cream.

31
Parent's Day

*Spellcheck offered Thursday, and Newsletter

A Poem To Noms - Oops - Moms

...with a tip of the hat to Upchuck Gluck, who planted the seed of the idea for acrostic poetry in Robespierre's subconscious.  See the acrostic?  Below?  See what it spells?

OKAY -- okay!  It says M.O.M.  That stands for "Mom."

sheesh.

A Poem To Moms

M.aking sure that you never forget to give a kiss to everyone at night

O.verly eccentric when it comes to planning parties, bringing friends in and always making sure that you are well fed

M.aking enough food to feed the whole Israeli army with leftovers

Mom, thanks for all that you have been doing for my Bar Mitzvah. The planning, the setup, the invitations and the t-shirts. I wouldn't be able to be having this without you. Love you lots and Happy Mother's Day. Love, Robespierre

_________________________________________

Does the Israeli Army eat leftovers?

If April Showers Bring May Flowers, What Do Mayflowers Bring?

Making personalized calendars even more personal with the addition of peculiar dates; here are some for April.

FeeFiFoto has been producing personalized photo calendars as a core part of our business since we were established.  For a long time our designs and features were relatively unchanged, but we added a bunch of new templates, a thousand or so pieces of clip art, and the capacity to arrange photos in collages instead of being limited to a single photo per page.  We've always had a feature that lets you enter your own family birthdays, anniversaries or special events.

Think about how smart and well-informed you'll be appear when you casually flaunt your knowledge of such esoteric dates as National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day, or Jayne Mansfield's birthday.

Here's a list of essential April dates.

1
One Cent Day
International Fun At Work Day
Sergei Rachmaninoff, b. 1873

Children's Book Day
National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day
Buddy Ebsen, b. 1908

Perfect: pack up some PBJs and read some books to children

3
Tweed Day
Don't Go To Work Unless It's Fun Day
Washington Irving, b. 1783

4
Tell-A-Lie Day

5
Deep Dish Pizza Day
Go For Broke Day
Booker T. Washington, b. 1856

6
Sorry Charlie Day
Butch Cassidy, b. 1866

7
No Housework Day
Billie Holliday, b. 1915

8
Draw a Picture of a Bird Day
All Is Ours Day
Sonja Henie, b. 1912
Betty Ford, b. 1918

9
Cherish an Antique Day
Winston Churchill Day
Name Yourself Day 

10 
National Siblings Day
Golfers Day 

11 
International "Louie Louie" Day
Eight-Track Tape Day 

12 
Look Up At The Sky Day

Tiny Tim, b. 1912

13 
Blame Somebody Else Day
Thomas Jefferson, b. 1743

Go ahead -- blame Jefferson if you must.

14 
Be Kind to Lawyers Day
Moment of Laughter Day
National Pecan Day 

15 
Rubber Eraser Day
Leonardo Da Vinci, b. 1452
Henry James, b. 1843

16 
National Stress Awareness Day
Wear your Pajamas to Work Day
National Eggs Benedict Day
Wilbur Wright, b. 1867
Charlie Chaplin, b. 1889

Yeah, it might be a little stressful to be caught at work in your PJs.

17 
Blah Blah Blah Day
National Cheeseball Day 

18 
International Jugglers Day
Paul Revere's Ride, 1775

19 
Garlic Day
Jayne Mansfield, b. 1933

20 
Look Alike Day 

21 
Kindergarten Day 
Charlotte Bronte, b. 1816

22 
National Jelly Bean Day
Earth Day
Vladimir Lenin, b. 1870

Lenin liked jelly beans, didn't he? No, wait -- that was Ronald Reagan.

23 
Talk Like Shakespeare Day
Read Me Day
World Laboratory Animal Day
William Shakespeare, b. 1564

24 
National Pigs In A Blanket Day 

25 
National Zucchini Bread Day
Ella Fitzgerald, b. 1918

26 
Richter Scale Day
National Pretzel Day 

27 
Tell A Story Day 

28 
Great Poetry Reading Day
Kiss-Your-Mate Day 

29 
National Shrimp Scampi Day
Duke Ellington, b. 1899

30 
National Honesty Day

See also: Strange Holidays

Be honest: did you know that April 30th was National Honesty Day before I told you?

Visit FeeFiFoto to create personalized photo calendars with all kinds of unusual holidays.

The Five Stages Of Valentine Candy

When did giving out Valentines in school become such a big deal?

1. Denial: No, you don't need to attach candy to all your classmates' Valentines.  The card is more than enough. 
   
2. Anger: When I was a kid we just gave out those dinky foldover Valentines and that was enough for us.  We didn't need to make a whole federal case out of Valentine's Day.


3. Bargaining: What if I just get you a big lollipop and we'll forget about candy for everyone else? (see original image here)


4. Depression: We're going to be in a Depression if we don't stop spending all our money indulging the entire fourth grade


5. Acceptance: Fine.  Go ahead and buy whatever candy you want.  I'm tired of arguing. (image here)

How long does it take you to give in?

Hallelujah -- Something Completely Different For Christmas

Many many thanks to Omidog! for posting this spectacular piece. I made my day year.

Shake It

Thanks to my friend Jeff for leading me to this:

December Already? Add Strange Dates To Personalized Calendars Just To See If Anyone's Paying Attention

Make personalized calendars even more personal with the addition of peculiar dates; here are some for December.

FeeFiFoto has been producing personalized photo calendars as a core part of our business since we were established. For the 2007 Christmas season we added a bunch of new templates, a thousand or so pieces of clip art, and the capacity to arrange photos in collages instead of being limited to a single photo per page. We've always had a feature that lets you enter your own family birthdays, anniversaries or special events.

Last year the kids and I designed calendars for our family, and in addition to the usual birthdays and anniversaries, we chose one day each month for a fictitious holiday just to see if anyone was paying attention. January 16 was Talk Like Pirates Day, February 24 was Walk Backwards Day, March 1 was Talk Really Fast Day, August 17 was Snowball Fight Day, and November 2 was Kiss Your Mom Day. We also acknowledged some legitimate holidays and anniversaries, like the Ides of March (March 15), Beethoven's Birthday (December 16) and the anniversary of Paul Revere's Ride (April 18). It was fun and silly.

Here are some silly, and real (supposedly) holidays you can add to photo calendars.

December

1
Eat a Read Apple Day
National Pie Day
Mary Martin, b. 1913

I thought Pi Day was in March.

2
National Fritters Day
Charles Ringling, b. 1863
Georges Seurat, b. 1859

3
National Roof Over Your Head Day

4
Wear Brown Shoes Day
Francisco Franco, b. 1892

It's my understanding that Generalissimo Francisco Franco is still dead.

5
National Sacher Torte Day
George Armstrong Custer, b. 1839

6
Gazpacho Day
National Mitten Tree Day
Ira Gerswhin, b. 1896
Agnes Moorehead, b. 1906

7
Cotton Candy Day
Harry Chapin, b. 1942

8
Take It In The Ear Day
Mary Queen of Scots, b. 1542

9
National Pastry Day
Margaret Hamilton, b. 1902

We seem to have a witch theme in December...

10
Festival for the Souls of Dead Whales

11
National Noodle Ring Day
Fiorello LaGuardia, b. 1882

A bit odd of his parents to name him after an airport, don't you agree?

12
National Ding-A-Ling Day

13
Ice Cream Day
Violins Day

14
National Bouillabaisse Day
Nostradamus, b. 1503

Kind of witchy, no?

15
National Lemon Cupcake Day

16
National Chocolate Covered Anything Day
Ludwig van Beethoven, b. 1770

17
National Maple Syrup Day
Underdog Day

18
National Roast Suckling Pig Day

19
Oatmeal Muffin Day

20
Games Day
Harvey Firestone, b. 1868

21
Look at the Bright Side Day
National Flashlight Day
Hamburger Day
Frank Zappa, b. 1940

22
National Date-Nut Bread Day
Connie Mack, b. 1862

23
Roots Day

24
National Egg Nog Day
Ava Gardner, b. 1922

25
National Pumpkin Pie Day
Sir Isaac Newton, b. 1642
Conrad Hilton, b. 1887
Cab Calloway, b. 1907

26
National Whiners Day

27
National Fruitcake Day
Louis Pasteur, b. 1822

28
Card Playing Day
National Chocolate Day

29
Pepper Pot Day
Charles Goodyear, b. 1800

I prefer Michelins

30
National Bicarbonate of Soda Day
Festival of Enormous Changes at the Last Minute
Rudyard Kipling, b. 1865

31
Unlucky Day
Henri Matisse, b. 1869

Mr. Bean Puts The Turkey On

Do you know Mr. Bean? Have you ever worn a turkey on your head?

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In honor of Black Friday, Cyber Monday and, what the heck, Cyber Week, through December 5 Order Personalized Photo Ornaments from FeeFiFoto before midnight on December 5 and receive 20% off. Apply coupon code ORNAMENTS09 at checkout.

Offer Expires: December 5, 2009

Scaramouche, Scaramouche -- Will You Do The Fandango For Christmas

Congratulations. Now this song will be running through your head until at least December 26th. You're entirely welcome.

In honor of Black Friday, Cyber Monday and, what the heck, Cyber Week, through December 5 Order Personalized Photo Ornaments from FeeFiFoto before midnight on December 5 and receive 20% off. Apply coupon code ORNAMENTS09 at checkout.

Offer Expires: December 5, 2009

Is This New Or Have I Been Dozing Off Again?

Navigating BlogHer has just gotten easier.

A few weeks ago I emailed BlogHer to ask for an easy way to locate other BlogHer bloggers, since my scattered brain can't seem to cope with a Chinese-menu-sized list of blogs and whenever I explore I end up choosing sites with cool names that haven't been updated since April because apparently they used up all their creativity on cool names and have nothing left to devote to actual writing and then I get frustrated and disgusted and give up and go back to reading Daisy, Bossy, Cupcake and The Blogess. 

Their response was quick and clear: click to the BlogHer advertising page and select from the list of blogs in the column on the left.  So I tried it and found some impressive sites and I was all Lalalalala* and then I noticed... The Search Widget.

I didn't want to startle it by making any sudden moves so I tiptoed carefully and quietly around it and then I uploaded it here and gadzooks! not only does it provide short and constantly rotating lists of BlogHer bloggers, but one day last week it even featured mine!  That means it works!  And it found me!  And I'm popular!  Or something!

Do you have a pet widget?  Why or why not?

*Spellcheck suggested Balalaika, Lallygagged and Phenylalanine as alternatives for this word.  Really, Spellcheck?  Seriously?

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In honor of Black Friday, Cyber Monday and, what the heck, Cyber Week, through December 5 Order Personalized Photo Ornaments from FeeFiFoto before midnight on December 5 and receive 20% off. Apply coupon code ORNAMENTS09 at checkout.

Offer Expires: December 5, 2009

Too Much Time On Your Hands, Perhaps?

Order Personalized Photo Calendars from FeeFiFoto before midnight on November 15 and receive FREE standard shipping to any single address in the Continental United States.  Apply coupon code CALFREESHIP09 at checkout.

Offer Expires: November 15, 2009

Stay tuned: after this offer expires you can get a discount on Personalized Photo Ornaments!

This Is The Surest Way To Get Coal In Your Stocking -- If Anything

Order Personalized Photo Calendars from FeeFiFoto before midnight on November 15 and receive FREE standard shipping to any single address in the Continental United States.  Apply coupon code CALFREESHIP09 at checkout.

Offer Expires: November 15, 2009

Stay tuned: after this offer expires you can get a discount on Personalized Photo Ornaments!

Christmas Lights: Why Reinvent The Wheel?

Here's to the spirit of Christmas fellowship and cooperation throughout the neighborhood:

Order Personalized Photo Calendars from FeeFiFoto before midnight on November 15 and receive FREE standard shipping to any single address in the Continental United States.  Apply coupon code CALFREESHIP09 at checkout.

Offer Expires: November 15, 2009

Stay tuned: after this offer expires you can get a discount on Personalized Photo Ornaments!

Holiday Stress? Why, Whatever Do You Mean?

Just one more post about avoiding holiday stress.

It seems that with all the conveniences at our disposal (for example -- the disposall, which makes cleaning the kitchen ever so much easier than having to fish every last bit of carrot peel out of the sink strainer so I don't have to call a plumber in the middle of the night) life wouldn't be as frenetic or demanding as in Laura Ingalls Wilder's time.  For example, if I want a turkey for Thanksgiving or Christmas I don't have to polish up the rifle and train a long-haired turkey retriever to find a turkey to shoot, shoot the turkey and then defeather it and butcher it and build a fire to cook it and in the meantime grow enough wheat to grind into flour so I can bake bread to stuff the turkey and while I'm at it fend off hungry varmints gathering at the door because they can smell the roasting turkey and would happily tear down our front door to get at it...

Where was I?

Ah.  The stress of the holiday season.

Every year I flounder through bucketsful of advice on how to make the holiday season easier, much of it redundant or embarrassingly obvious or darn near impossible, but some of it based on good sense.  I found some excellent suggestions at Blisstree, the best of which, in my opinion, I've harvested to repeat here.  The list is made up of 23 items. 

Why 23?  I don't know.  Maybe there's some special symbolism to the number 23 (23 dogmas in the doctrine of the Catholic Church?  23 or so Hebrew letters in the Torah?  Caesar was stabbed 23 times?) 

In any case I've picked my favorites, those that don't seem too obvious or great in theory but nearly impossible to execute:

• Lower expectations. Have a realistic view of what is really important. Your kids want your time. They are not going to remember the Martha Stewart decorations – unless you involve them in the making of the decorations.

Hey, I'm the Queen of Lowered Expectations, as well as the Duchess of NO, the Princess of We'll See, and the Countess of I'm Counting to Three Via Halves, Quarters, Eighths and Sixteenths.  This works for me.

• Ask yourself, “If I only had half the time, what would I do?” This will help you prioritize.

I need to ask myself this question every day.  It seems like such a no brainer but I seem to apply it best only when I'm under extreme pressure, like those days when the smoothie has just spilled on table and the floor and the dog is lapping up the smoothie and we have to leave for school five minutes ago; on such a day the dog gets thrown in her pen, smoothie removal is rescheduled, and retrieving the newspaper from the driveway has to wait for later.

• Shop online or from catalogs.

This seems to be a really good time to plug my web site, FeeFiFoto, for easy and meaningful holiday giving.  We can put your photos on almost anything (personalized calendars, photo mugs, tee shirts, personalized microfiber handbags, canvas totes, Christmas ornaments with your favorite photos, keepsake boxes -- you name it.)  Just about anything except for billboards (too big) and tattoos (eww -- too creepy).

• Read... stories to your children. This allows you to sit down, relax and connect.

I still do this sometimes with Cupcake.  She likes me to read Dr. Seuss to her and I try not to indicate how much I love it because then she might not let me do it any more.

• Remember how you felt on December 26 or January 2 last go ’round. What did you say you’d never do again? What did your kids enjoy most? How would you like to feel this year after the holidays? How can you achieve this?

This one seems so obvious but I guess enduring the holiday season is similar to going through labor, in that you seem to forget the worst parts.  Write a note and put it where you'll see it next fall -- if you hated doing it last year, don't even attempt it this year.

• One last de-stresser: the holidays will pass and you’ll survive. You always do.

Sigh.  Really?  You promise?

What are your holiday stress triggers?

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Order Personalized Photo Calendars from FeeFiFoto before midnight on November 15 and receive FREE standard shipping to any single address in the Continental United States.  Apply coupon code CALFREESHIP09 at checkout.

Offer Expires: November 15, 2009

Stay tuned: after this offer expires you can get a discount on Personalized Photo Ornaments!

Time To Shop: Get A Head Start On Holiday Gift Shopping, And Get Free Shipping

FREE Shipping on Calendars Now Through November 15

Order Personalized Photo Calendars from FeeFiFoto before midnight on November 15 and receive FREE standard shipping to any single address in the Continental United States.  Apply coupon code CALFREESHIP09 at checkout.

Offer Expires: November 15, 2009

Stay tuned: after this offer expires you can get a discount on Personalized Photo Ornaments!

What's your Favorite November Holiday? No Fair Choosing Thanksgiving

Order personalized photo calendars from FeeFiFoto as outstanding Christmas gifts, but make your calendars even more personal with the addition of peculiar dates.

November seems to be a month to celebrate scads of creative innovators, including James Naismith, Madame Curie, Margaret Mitchell, Marie Antoinette, Aaron Copland, Georgia O'Keeffe and Voltaire.  See if anyone notices if you add some of these kooky dates to your 2009 personalized photo calendars.

November

1
Plan Your Epitaph Day
National Authors Day
My Birthday!

Hi. Have You Heard The One About How I Run A Web Site?

Returning to the core purpose of this blog, which is promoting FeeFiFoto, although writing about kids, dogs and mishaps is way more funner.

So.  I've been running FeeFiFoto for just about three years.  We can put your favorite photos on all kinds of stuff that makes great gifts for friends, family, teachers.  I personally have a mousepad, mug, photo book and ceramic tile with photos of Cupcake on them; a photo book, travel mug and deck of cards with pictures of Robey, and several handbags with photos of Miss Puppy.

Why am I bringing this up now when I haven't written about FeeFiFoto Personalized Photo Gifts in quite a while?  Well, in case you haven't noticed, the Christmas Hanukkah Chanukah Hah-Noo-Kuh Holiday gift giving season is upon us, like it or not.  And with the economy still lumbering along, this year we're all being much more circumspect about how to spend our money on gift giving.  This year it makes sense to put your money into gifts for friends and family that will have some lasting meaning for them.  What could be better than putting the baby's photo or the dog's or cat's on a personalized photo calendar, or mug, or handbag, or tote bag?

One customer purchased 30 tiles with a photo of her mother on a show horse as favors for her mother's 80th birthday party.  Another customer put her parents' wedding photo on a porcelain plate in honor of their anniversary.  A third customer put a picture of her son on mousepads as Bar Mitzvah party favors.

When FeeFiFoto first started, under the profoundly boring name of Photogiftplace.com before I bought the site and transformed it into the aesthetic and retail powerhouse it now is, their main business consisted of producing personalized photo calendars; eventually they and we branched out into offering all sorts of items to be personalized with photographs.  Nevertheless, even the calendars lent themselves to imaginative gift giving; one customer produced an annual calendar with a year's worth of photos of his niece as she grew up.

It's not always photographs that end up on these personalized gifts, either.  One year we gave teacher appreciation gifts decorated with a graphic pertaining to teamwork.  Last year I designed two tapestries with photo collages of third graders' art work to be sold at our school's fund raising auction; I seem to recall they went for $1.5 million apiece, but I could be a little off here.

For the next three weeks or so, until November 15, whenever that is, you can get free ground shipping (domestic only) on personalized photo calendars from FeeFiFoto.  Just enter coupon code CALFREESHIP09 at checkout.  And keep checking back because once the calendar promotion expires I'm going to be offering a discount on personalized Christmas ornaments.

See also:

Creating a memento of a family vacation

It's always appropriate to say thank you to a teacher

Yes I have Kids, but I'd rather carry a purse with my dog's picture

Strange And Bizarre October Holidays

Order personalized photo calendars from FeeFiFoto as outstanding Christmas gifts, but make your calendars even more personal with the addition of peculiar dates.

October's much more than Halloween.  In fact, we might refer to October as National Comedian Month; we have two Stooges and two Marx Brothers.  Let's tabulate them, shall we?

Oh, and by the way -- you may recall that I published a similar post once a long, long time ago -- but this is new and improved, with great dates like Cranky Co-Workers Day

1
World Vegetarian Day
Magic Circles Day
International Day of Older Persons
Vladimir Horowitz, v. 1903

2
National Diversity Day
World Smile Day
Name Your Car Day

In a fit of creativity while reading Paradise Lost in college, I named my first car "Beelzebub"

Bud Abbott, b. 1895
Groucho Marx, b. 1890

Two for one

Really, Dad, We Love You. Honest.: Dads Seem To Take Second Place To Moms

Happy Father's Day. We're still away but I'm reprinting this post that appeared a few weeks BEFORe Father's Day last year. Why don't football players ever shout "Hi Dad!" into the camera?

Search "Mothers Day Gift" in Technorati and, as of today, two weeks AFTER Mother's Day 2008, you'll find the phrase in nearly 20,000 blog posts with any level of authority.

Search "Fathers Day Gift" and, as of today, three weeks BEFORE Father's Day 2008, you'll find the phrase in just short of 10,000 blog posts.

**As an interesting side note, if you check these same terms in Technorati this year, the number of posts is about half of the total of a year ago.

No Time Mom lists all of three contests or giveaways for Father's Day.

Passover Starts Tonight

Image courtesy of Diana's Desserts

Happy Passover to all my Jewish friends, and to all the Gentiles out there who think matzah is yummy and delicious -- just be grateful you don't have to eat it for a solid week.

For anyone who doesn't know, Passover is a Jewish holiday that comes in the spring, commemorating our escape from slavery in Egypt.  Jewish families gather to retell the story of the Exodus so that we and our descendants will always remember.  Different aspects of the story are represented by different foods we display on the table and eat.  The youngest child present takes part in the service by asking four questions about the meaning of the holiday, and the rest of the pre- and post-meal service comprises the retelling of the story and an explanation of the various foods and traditions.

During Passover we refrain from eating anything leavened, including pasta, crackers, cookies, pancakes, cereals, and bread, of course.  Instead, we eat matzah, which is a flat, unleavened cracker representing the dough that the Jews didn't have time to let rise as they prepared to flee.  There are strict rules for manufacturing matzah, such as the requirement that the manufacturing process, from start to finish, take less than 18 minutes.