Celebrating our History and Leaders in February

While today (February 22^nd) is officially George Washington’s birthday, we celebrated both his and Abraham Lincoln’s birthday (February 12^th) earlier this week in a combined Federal holiday that we call President’s Day.  Did you get a short work week or hit the President’s Day sales?

The day was started to honor Washington in the last year of his presidency, and the date chosen was his birthday (2/22). In 1971 the holiday was moved to the third Monday in February, as part of the Uniform Monday Holiday Act which was designed to give us more long weekends (now we’re talking!). Though we all call Monday’s holiday “President’s Day” it’s still officially on the books as Washington’s Birthday.  There has been talk in Congress about officially changing the holiday to President’s Day, but it’s never officially happened.

Today it seems that President’s Day isn’t really celebrated, as much as it has become a big sales day for retailers.  We think it national holidays are great opportunities to teach your kids more about our country’s history or create some games that will bring the family together.  All state, federal and local governments are closed on holidays like President’s Day and most kids are out of school.  So it’s the perfect opportunity to create some family fun.  Here are some ideas:

• Have a contest to see if you can name all the presidents (while records reflect 44 presidents, there are only 43 names because Grover Clevland served two non-consecutive terms as president). You can either have everyone write down as many as they can think of, or try to come up with them all as a team.
• Take your kids on a virtual scavenger hunt to see where they can find the names of the presidents in your town. Start with a map; many towns name streets after presidents. Schools are also often named after our presidents. There is one Nevada County named after a president; do you know which one it is?
• If you have younger children, pull some money out of your wallet and talk to them about the presidents they find pictured on the bills and coins.
• Play some presidential trivia. Here’s a sample website to get you started…and here’s another one.
• Celebrate President Obama’s heritage with our Hawaiian Breeze smoothie (Pineapple, Orange & Non-Fat Yogurt).

If you get hungry on your treasure hunt, stop in to our Tropical Smoothie Café for a nutritious break (we can even quiz you on those presidents, if you’d like).

Color Meanings to Color Your World (from Flowers to Smoothies)!

Did you know that there are traditions, spanning hundreds of years, which connect color meanings with flowers? For example, there are literally dozens of different colors of roses, but red is the traditional color to give on Valentine’s Day, and there’s a reason for that:  red signifies beauty, courage, heat, passion and desire. Now you know why you should give your sweetie red roses!

We thought it would be fun to connect these traditional color meanings with the smoothie colors that you love. Here are some ideas that came to mind as we blended up some of your favorites:

• Yellow is the color of friendship, and also of joy and lightheartedness.  So come in with a friend and share our bright yellow Hawaiian Breeze smoothie. You can imagine yourselves together on the beach, happily relaxing in the bright yellow sun!
• Orange represents energy, enthusiasm, confidence and warmth. We hope the warmth of our orange Sunny Day and Sunrise Sunset smoothies will energize your hearts with their healthy tropical fruits.
• As mentioned above, red stands for beauty, courage, passion and desire. Give our Triple Berry Oat or Pomegranate Plunge smoothies a try and share your smoothie passion with your sweetheart.  Those supercharged ingredients could supercharge your romance (wink, wink).
• When you need to relax before the big test or promotional interview, get into a blue frame of mind. In contrast to today’s “blue mood,” color tradition sees blue as an antidote to anxiousness, with its peace, openness and serenity.  Our Blue Lagoon couldn’t have a better description!
• Moving deeper into the color spectrum, purple represents royalty, dignity, accomplishment and pride.  So when you need to celebrate your success on that test or interview, come to Tropical Smoothie Café and celebrate with our Acai Berry Boost.
• While they may not exactly match the smoothie’s color, the headline ingredients in our Kiwi Quencher and Blimey Limey will live up to green’s reputation as the color of health, resilience, good fortune and youth. The bright flavors of kiwi and lime will dance across your tongue and have you dancing out the door!

So next time you need the energy of these amazing fruit colors, contact us or stop in and let us color your world!

Think Red for Valentine’s Day — and Treat Your Heart Well!

Are you seeing red this month?  We hope so – if it comes in the form of a sweet Valentine or a healthy fruit smoothie!  Not so much if ‘seeing red’ means you’re dealing with anger which isn’t good for our stress levels or heart health.  February 14^th is Valentine’s Day which is filled with symbolic “heart” messages, but did you know that February is also National Heart Disease Awareness Month?  Since red is the color of the month, here is some important health benefits on red fruit, courtesy of Nutrition and You. We suggest you find ways to treat yourself (and your sweetheart) to these nutritional powerhouses this month.

• Raspberries are among the fruits highest in anti-oxidants, which “have potential health benefits against cancer, aging, inflammation, and neuro-degenerative diseases.” They also have a surprising amount of fiber for their small size.
• Strawberries (whether dipped in chocolate or not!) contain significant amounts of phyto-chemicals called anthocyanins and ellagic acid, which studies show “may have potential health benefits against cancer, aging, inflammation and neurological diseases.”
• Apples, like raspberries, they contain high amounts of anti-oxidants and fiber. They also contain a number of B vitamins, which support your metabolism, and potassium, which supports healthy blood pressure and heart health by countering some of the effects of too much dietary sodium.
• Tomatoes (yes, technically they are a fruit!) are well known now for lycopene, a specific anti-oxidant that has been found to be especially effective in preventing cancer. According to the Food for Life Cancer Project, “lycopene helps prevent prostate, lung, and stomach cancers. There is also some evidence that cancers of the pancreas, colon and rectum, esophagus, oral cavity, breast, and cervix could be reduced with increased lycopene intake.”
• Watermelon is another red-fleshed fruit which we may overlook especially in the winter months. While its abundant electrolytes and water content make it the perfect thirst-quencher in summer’s heat, watermelon is also an excellent source of Vitamin A, which supports vision and immunity. It also happens to have even more lycopene than raw tomatoes!
• We may not usually think of grapes as being red, but the red varieties contain resveratrol, which is a powerful anti-oxidant that has a protective role against not only heart disease, but also Alzheimer’s disease and viral infections.

Of course, an easy and convenient way to power up your heart is to get your fruit in with a real fruit smoothie from Tropical Smoothie Café.  Yes we have red (try the Rockin’ Raspberry or Strawberry Beach Smoothies) as well as many other tasty fruit choices. Contact us to cater your Valentine Day event or bring your sweetheart by to treat them to heart-healthy food with a tropical twist.