So what else do you know about these celebrations?

Today (February 2) is Groundhog Day in Canada & the U.S.....and the two primary North American prognosticators,  Punxsutawney Phil and Wiarton Willie both did not see their shadows today...so we should have an early spring within the next 6 weeks!

You all know that Groundhog Day is noted more for the unique nature of the tradition rather than being a real bona-fide holiday to celebrate. The tradition, which began as a Pennsylvania German custom in southeastern and central Pennsylvania in the 18th and 19th centuries, has its origins in ancient European weather lore, wherein a badger or sacred bear is the prognosticator as opposed to a groundhog!

Like Groundhog Day, here are a few more "days" we like to recognize and celebrate annually but are not real occasions or holidays.  I've included an interesting fact or two about each:

Valentine's Day
An annual commemoration held on February 14. 

Traditionally a day on which lovers express their love for each other by presenting flowers, offering confectionery, and sending greeting cards (known as "valentines").

Mother's Day

The modern Mother's Day is celebrated on various days in many parts of the world, most commonly in May as it is in Canada & the U.S. on the 2nd Sunday of that month.

In the United States, Mother's Day remains one of the biggest days for sales of flowers, greeting cards, and the like; it is also the biggest holiday for long-distance telephone calls.

Father's Day

It is celebrated on the third Sunday of June in Canada & the U.S.  

In recent years, retailers have adapted to the holiday by promoting greeting cards and traditionally male-oriented gifts such as electronics and tools.

Schools and other children's programs commonly have activities to make Father's Day gifts.

Halloween

Halloween is an annual celebration observed on October 31, which commonly includes activities such as trick-or-treating, attending costume parties, carving jack-o'-lanterns, bonfires, apple bobbing, visiting haunted attractions, playing pranks, telling scary stories, and watching horror films.

Halloween is not celebrated in all countries and regions of the world; Mass transatlantic immigration in the 19th century popularized Halloween in North America, and celebration in the United States and Canada has had a significant impact on how the event is observed in other nations, particularly its iconic and commercial elements.

Since the 19th century, handwritten valentines have given way to mass-produced greeting cards.