From the Vault: Celebrating February

February comes along just when we need a party the most. The faded sparkle of the holidays is now unavoidably, officially behind us. January was especially punishing this year, as brutal cold and heavy snow battered much of the midwest and northeast while a worrisome drought took over the west. January is the month of digging in. We start anew, settle accounts, make plans. January is a month of work and reward, of putting the old year to rest and getting set up to start the new year. If we can make it through January, February is our reward.

It is not by accident that February gets underway with Groundhog Day. Groundhog Day coincides with Imbolc and Candlemas. All three holidays center around the warming of the Earth HerSelf after winter rest. Mother Earth is not awake yet, but She is stirring. Imbolc celebrates the stirring of the earth by honoring the conception of lambs and calves, of milk starting to flow, of early flowers, of berries sending out shoots. Candlemas celebrates the gathering warmth and light of increasing daytime, which have now become noticeable since they commenced on the winter solstice and arrived on this day that is midway to the Spring Equinox. On Candlemas, we light our homes with sacred candlelight, contemplative and holy. And appropriate, as these holidays merge in Groundhog Day, when the groundhog exits its cozy home to seek light and warmth and to beseech them. When the groundhog returns to its burrow after assessing the world above ground, it is with the certainty that spring is coming. We let the candles burn out of their own accord - safely, but sacred on this transitional day.

It is already a month since New Year's Eve, and high time for a party. After the triple poing whammy of February 2, February leads us through Valentine's Day, President's Day, Fat Tuesday and Carnival. Football fans ready themselves for the Superbowl with team jerseys, ice cold beer, towering stacks of nachos, brats hot off the grill. Olympians of a different species are honored during the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. As we enjoy the antics and achievements of these showstoppers, let us remember the humble, but no less important mutt, especially with donations of time, food, bedding, volunteering or best of all, forever homes, for the best breed of all: shelter dogs.

Movie buffs look forward to the Academy Awards, where home viewing parties sparkle with glam or wallow in vulgarity. Just like Pittsburgh steel or Las Vegas gambling, entertainment is the hometown business of Los Angeles. We who live in Hollywood alternately enjoy and steel ourselves against the intense atmosphere that accompanies Oscars Month. Oscar Fever is everywhere, from the red carpet displays at shopping centers to the red carpet being laid down on Hollywood Boulevard. For years, John and I hosted Academy Awards parties in New York City, but in LA, there is so much activity on Oscar Sunday that, at our urban home just blocks from Hollywood Boulevard, guests wouldn't even be able to get through the barricades or the crowds.

Let us not forget that, as does every month, February also hosts birthdays and anniversaries. Click here for the story and recipe for my favorite birthday cake: spice cake. Anniversaries began with valentines -- recognize your sweetheart with this decadent, sensual dessert of chocolate and strawberries, and click here to learn how to care for your Valentine's Day flowers. And as you enjoy your box of Valentine's Day chocolates, click here to learn about the great confectioner See's Candy, and here for the story of the New York City institution of Li-Lac Chocolates.

Some of the best celebrations are the simplest ones, such as inviting people over for drinks or dinner for no other reason than it is actually possible to leave the house! Invite friends over for a warming winter dinner party - there are plenty of recipes and ideas at Urban Home Blog. Look for tags such as Weeknight Dinner, Sunday Supper, Side Dishes and Desserts. Try a menu of Santa Maria Tri-Tip with Pinquinto Beans, artichoke dip, and California wine; or a steakhouse dinner at home with Steak Diane, potato gratin, and iceberg wedges with blue cheese dressing. Serve clean martinis, Manhattans on the rocks, or home-made Italian sodas. Set out that spice cake for dessert, or to honor spring on the ascendant, use the first of the berries to make a pie. Whatever you celebrate, Urban Home Blog has a library of content to help make your celebrations shine as you honor the settling of winter ash and the budding of spring color.