Once in a Blue Moon

Dear Lilliputian ,

In about a week on July 31st ,  in the sky will rise , what is called a Blue Moon . Will it be blue . . . probably not .  But , when people mention a Blue Moon they are usually talking about the saying " It happened once in a Blue Moon " . When some one says " It happens once in a Blue Moon . " . . . they mean it doesn't happen very often . . . for instance . . . I rarely ever see an Owl . . . so I could say , " I see an Owl once in a Blue Moon " . What is a Blue Moon ? Well , when you are a young child you may not realize that the Moon appears to be growing smaller or growing larger all month long . It can be just a sliver of a Moon , or a half Moon , and of course the full Moon like in the photo above . Usually we get to see a full Moon only once a month . But every now and again we see a full Moon in the beginning of the month and another full moon at the end of the same month . This second Moon is what is called a Blue Moon . About three years ago , 2012 ,  there was a month that had two full Moons . Now on the 31st of this month there will be a Blue Moon . And after this one we will not see another one until the year 2018 , three years from now . Lets say you are six years old . . . that means that when you were three years old there was a Blue Moon , and after this one in July there won't be another one until you are nine years old . 

So you can see they don't happen very often and this is why I think they are special .

There is something very special about a night with a full moon . It is quiet , and mysterious , and a little magical .

When my children were young there was a Blue Moon in the Winter . To celebrate the Blue Moon we gathered up our sleds and some friends and headed to the top of Church Hill where we could watch the Blue Moon rise up over a mountain near by while sitting on our sleds .  As soon as the   Moon's face was up in the sky we all went sledding in the light of the Blue Moon . 

One of the reasons we did this was because now we can say that " We went sledding once in a Blue Moon ".  I am writing to you about this because a Blue Moon is going to happen this Summer when there is no school and I thought that maybe you and your parents or grandparents can plan something special . . . Watch the Moon rise by the ocean and dance around as it comes up at  8:04 pm . Maybe blow bubbles as the moon rises because they are the same shape as the Moon . If you know where there is a nice view of where the Moon rises . . . maybe bring some chairs and some bottles of Lemonade and sing some of your favorite songs as loud as you can and sip the Lemonade as you watch the Moon rise . Summer is such a fun time of year why not plan something special for the Blue Moon rising and then you can say " I did ___________ once in a Blue Moon  " .

Two very beautiful children's picture books are Wait til the Moon is Full by Margaret Wise Brown , which I mentioned in the last letter , and Owl Moon by Jane Yolen .

Maybe you could read these books as the Blue Moon rises . Oh yes . . . don't forget the bug spray .

Until next time ,

Wildbee

Did you know there is an ice cream called Blue Moon Ice Cream . . .