Hinamatsuri (Doll's Festival)

March 3rd is Hinamatsuri in Japan which means it is girls day. Sydney went to school extra for this day and I am sure had some kind of celebration but she really didn't tell me too much about it. She did come home with a special treat that they have for this day that looks like colored rice krispy's but not as sweet. On this day families pray for happiness and prosperity for the girls of the family. To recap, the custom mainly involves displaying dolls, which represent the emperor and empress during the Heian period, in your home. This tradition is said to ward off evil spirits. It evolved from the ancient Japanese tradition of placing straw hina dolls into water and watching them float away, symbolizing bad spirits being washed away. Dolls are usually displayed starting in mid-February up until the actual holiday, March 3rd, at which point it is important to promptly put them away lest your girls marry late in life. (stolen from Diane's Blog) One of our neighbor's brought over a little gift for Sydney and we also have some dolls from Miss Kathy that we will be able to display next year.