Why do some months have 30 days and others have 31 days?

I read about the Romans and about the Greeks but the most logical explanation came from this blogspot on the internet. I can relate to this explanation more than any of the others I found.
I truly hope that the person behind this blog understands that I feel they have found an answer that I was searching for.

The greatest explanation I found was a blog by
http://lecturedamore.blogspot.com/2009/05/why-so-some-months-have-30-days-and.html

Why do some months have 30 days and others have 31 days?

The calendar is based on three key astronomical events.
A day, which is the time from one sunrise to the next sunrise — one complete rotation of the Earth.
A year, which is approximately 365.24 days — one complete orbit of Earth around the Sun.
A month, which is approximately 29.53 days — one complete orbit of the Moon around the Earth.
Since these time spans are not easily divided, calendars have always been imperfect. Some were rooted in tradition, while others evolved as humankind gained a greater understanding of science and astronomy. Some calendars, like the Christian calendar (which is the primary calendar in use today) focused on the Earth’s orbit. Others, like the Islamic calendar focused on the Moon’s orbit. Still others, like the Jewish calendar and Chinese calendar, combine both.
Most calendars are based on astronomical events. From our perspective on Earth, the two most important astronomical objects are the Sun and the Moon, which is why their cycles are very important in the construction and understanding of calendars.
Our concept of a year is based on the earth’s motion around the sun. The time from one fixed point, such as a solstice or equinox, to the next is called a tropical year. Its length is currently 365.242190 days, but it varies. Around 1900 its length was 365.242196 days, and around 2100 it will be 365.242184 days.
Our concept of a month is based on the moon’s motion around the earth, although this connection has been broken in the calendar commonly used now. The time from one new moon to the next is called a synodic month, and its length is currently 29.5305889 days, but it varies. Around 1900 its length was 29.5305886 days, and around 2100 it will be 29.5305891 days.
Note that these numbers are averages. The actual length of a particular year may vary by several minutes due to the influence of the gravitational force from other planets. Similarly, the time between two new moons may vary by several hours due to a number of factors, including changes in the gravitational force from the sun, and the moon’s orbital inclination.
It is unfortunate that the length of the tropical year is not a multiple of the length of the synodic month. This means that with 12 months per year, the relationship between our month and the moon cannot be maintained.
However, 19 tropical years is 234.997 synodic months, which is very close to an integer. So every 19 years the phases of the moon fall on the same dates (if it were not for the skewness introduced by leap years). Nineteen years is called a Metonic cycle (after Meton, an astronomer from Athens in the 5th century B.C.E.).
So, to summarize: There are three important numbers to note:
A tropical year is 365.24219 days.
A synodic month is 29.53059 days.
19 tropical years is close to an integral number of synodic months.
The Christina calendar, or Gregorian calendar, is based on the motion of the earth around the sun, while the months have no connection with the motion of the moon.

How did Mother’s Day begin?

There are many legends of ancient Greek and Roman celebrations for a mother goddess and spring holidays in Celtic England for St. Brigid honoring the first milk of ewes. (That caught my eye, my specialty being the breast.) However, the US holiday seems to have been born from the ideas of two women — Julia Ward Howe (author of the "Battle Hymn of the Republic"), who tried to create a Mother’s Day for Peace in 1873, and Anna Jarvis, who celebrated the first Mother’s Day at her local church on May 10, 1907, the day of her mother’s death.
Ms. Jarvis wanted to honor her mother’s efforts in creating Mother’s Work Days for improved sanitation and Mother’s Friendship Days for reconciliation after the Civil War. After much debate, Congress established an official Mother’s Day in 1914 and Woodrow Wilson proclaimed the day to honor women’s role in the family (not what the original women actually intended it to be). In fact Ms. Jarvis, who was not a mother herself, is said to have written angrily about the commercialism of the holiday back then, saying that buying a card is a poor excuse for the letter you are too lazy to write. She remained at odds with the floral industry until her death.
Which brings me to the present. What is the purpose of Mother’s Day in 2009? Beyond trying to find the perfect card and gift, it is a day to simply honor motherhood. But wouldn’t it be nice if every day we had some sort of little ritual to honor mothering? Or better yet, for each of us to find some way to remember the importance of first being a good mother to our self?


http://www.womentowomen.com/womenshealth/mothersday.aspx

How far is it to the Sky?
I searched a site that we use alot at the school called Enchanted Learning. The web address for the this information is:

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/astronomy/planets/earth/Atmosphere.shtml

THE EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE The Earth's atmosphere is a thin layer of gases that surrounds the Earth. It composed of 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, 0.9% argon, 0.03% carbon dioxide, and trace amounts of other gases. This thin gaseous layer insulates the Earth from extreme temperatures; it keeps heat inside the atmosphere and it also blocks the Earth from much of the Sun's incoming ultraviolet radiation.The Earth's atmosphere is about 300 miles (480 km) thick, but most of the atmosphere (about 80%) is within 10 miles (16 km) of the surface of the Earth. There is no exact place where the atmosphere ends; it just gets thinner and thinner, until it merges with outer space.Air Pressure:At sea level, the air pressure is about 14.7 pounds per square inch. As your altitude increases (for example, if you climb a mountain), the air pressure decreases. At an altitude of 10,000 feet, the air pressure is 10 pound per square inch (and there is less oxygen to breathe).The Layers of the Atmosphere:Thermosphere: The thermosphere is a thermal classification of the atmosphere. In the thermosphere, temperature increases with altitude. The thermosphere includes the exosphere and part of the ionosphere.•Exosphere: The exosphere is the outermost layer of the Earth's atmosphere. The exosphere goes from about 400 miles (640 km) high to about 800 miles (1,280 km). The lower boundary of the exosphere is called the critical level of escape, where atmospheric pressure is very low (the gas atoms are very widely spaced) and the temperature is very low.•Ionosphere: The ionosphere starts at about 43-50 miles (70-80 km) high and continues for hundreds of miles (about 400 miles = 640 km). It contains many ions and free electrons (plasma). The ions are created when sunlight hits atoms and tears off some electrons. Auroras occur in the ionosphere.•Mesosphere: The mesosphere is characterized by temperatures that quickly decrease as height increases. The mesosphere extends from between 31 and 50 miles (17 to 80 kilometers) above the earth's surface.•Stratosphere: The stratosphere is characterized by a slight temperature increase with altitude and the absence of clouds. The stratosphere extends between 11 and 31 miles (17 to 50 kilometers) above the earth's surface. The earth's ozone layer is located in the stratosphere. Ozone, a form of oxygen, is crucial to our survival; this layer absorbs a lot of ultraviolet solar energy. Only the highest clouds (cirrus, cirrostratus, and cirrocumulus) are in the lower stratosphere.•Tropopause: The tropopause is the boundary zone (or transition layer) between the troposphere and the stratosphere. The tropopause is characterized by little or no change in temperature altitude increases.•Troposphere: The troposphere is the lowest region in the Earth's (or any planet's) atmosphere. On the Earth, it goes from ground (or water) level up to about 11 miles (17 kilometers) high. The weather and clouds occur in the troposphere. In the troposphere, the temperature generally decreases as altitude increases.Formation of the Atmosphere:The Earth's atmosphere was formed by planetary degassing, a process in which gases like carbon dioxide, water vapor, sulphur dioxide and nitrogen were released from the interior of the Earth from volcanoes and other processes. Life forms on Earth have modified the composition of the atmosphere since their evolution.

Simply the sky begins where the ground ends.


(Sorry for posting this late but...I think I must have gotten confused and overlooked it.)

How do tulips know when to bloom?

If a child asks the following question, how would you answer it?“How do tulips know when to bloom?”
I am speaking as the Tulip. I explain to the student what it takes to make me, the Tulip, bloom. I think that younger students might relate to this information better if told in a fun way.Hi, I am a Tulip. I know its time to bloom when the conditions are just right. I begin as a true bulb, horticulturally that means that inside me is a flower, already formed. So, I can almost guarantee to bloom beautiful if I have the proper temperature, soil, sun, water and care. See nature has done the hard work. I need well-drained soil. I prefer being planted in the full sun. Plant me in late September to mid-October. Mulch needs to be place on top of the area so I don’t die in the cold Winter. I need to be planted 6-10 inches deep. The deeper I am planted the hardier I will be. Plant me triple the depth of my bulb size. Deeper I am planted, the later I will bloom. Even though nature has done the hardest work, I like being fertilized when I am planted. I really like it when the fertilizer is scratched into the surface of the soil. Other good fertilizers for me are Bachman's Garden Food 10-20-10 and Sustane, an organic product. Osmocote is a favorite of many also because it time releases and allows me to use it slowly. I enjoy soaking up the Spring sun. I bloom very nicely if these conditions done. I love it when it rains but not to much, because I will drown.The above information was obtained from the website: http://www.bachmans.com/tipsheets/bulbs_hardy/successWithTulips.cfm

Blogging

Wow! I am not sure what happened to the original blog spot but it would let me add to it like I am suppose to. I don't know what I did wrong but let's try again.

This is my first Blog. I am with the understanding that this is a webpage that can be viewed by everyone. I am unsure about other things. I know that my friends and coworkers talk of blogging or reading blogs. Blogs are opinions?!? Facts? both? I guess they are what you want them to be. A personal expression. :)