Minnesota Traditions for St. Patrick's Day Fun!

Growing up Irish in Minnesota made March 17th an official holiday! (Okay...I'm only a quarter Irish but on St. Pat's day, whose counting?) From time to time we attended the big parade in downtown St Paul and once even walked under the “Flaherty” banner. But it was much more fun to watch the festivities from the safety of the curb.

I think my mom tried to feed us a dinner of home cooked corned beef and cabbage once...not a big success in our house. We didn’t dance, but sang the “When Irish Eyes are Smiling” all day (my Prussian grandmother's favorite song)! It was fun to celebrate our heritage.

In honor of St. Patrick’s Day,I wanted to share some fun Minnesota Irish websites. Enjoy!

• Meet St. Patrick


• Irish in Minnesota


• IrishSongs and their lyrics


• Irish Recipes


• St. Paul St. Pat's


• St. Patrick's Day Online Games


• Official Government Website of Ireland

May you have all the happiness

and luck that life can hold—

And at the end of all your rainbows

may you find a pot of gold. Traditional Irish Toast

-->

Copyright 2010 Teri Eckholm

Everyone’s a Bit Irish in Minnesota on St. Patrick’s Day!

Every March 17th there is a ton of fun afoot in the Twin Cities. This upcoming Tuesday will be no different I am certain. I knew there were parades on both sides of the Mississippi on St. Pat’s Day but full associations to celebrate Irish heritage in both Minneapolis and St. Paul? Who knew?

The St. Patrick’s Day Association of Minneapolis has a full array of contests and events to mark this special day. In addition to the evening parade down Nicollet Mall, there is a Ms. Blarney and Wee Leprechan Contest. Yep, the cutest Irish lad or lassie can win a Wii. How’s that for a fun homonym tie-in? They have a serious side to their fun-filled event too…The proceeds from the sales of commemorative 2009 St. Patrick’s Day Minneapolis buttons will be donated to the American Diabetes Association’s Camp Needlepoint.

Not to be outdone, the St. Patrick’s Association in St. Paul has a worst Irish Tenor Contest and annually crowns a Miss Shamrock and cast of Blarney Brothers to accompany the Shamrock princesses to events. This association puts senior citizens at the heart of their events with visits to area nursing homes and senior centers during March. They too, have a parade. The St. Paul parade runs along Fourth Street starting at noon.

Copyright 2009 terieckholm.com