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Ah March! The month that rings in Spring, gives us all a reason to be Irish, and celebrates the lives of pigs. Say whaaa? Yes, that’s right. March 1st is National Pig Day, a holiday instituted in 1972 by two sisters to honor the pig for its intellect and greatness. Probably a bad day to eat bacon.

To do my share in honoring the pig I have gathered a list of the greatest porkers in literature. I lift my glass to all of them, but also slightly apologize for giving you more information on pig characters than you probably need to know.

1. Wilbur: Oh, Wilbur. The beloved children’s book Charlotte’s Web introduces Wilbur, a rambunctious pig who befriends the clever spider Charlotte when he learns he’s on the menu for Thanksgiving dinner.

Interestingly, E.B. White wrote Death of a Pig years prior, based on a true event of how he couldn’t save his sick pig. Some believe Charlotte’s Web was a way for White to retroactively save that pig. I think E.B. would have been all smiles on Pig Day.

2. Piglet: I almost turned a blind eye to Piglet because he has received enough attention throughout the years, but then I realized it would give me an opportunity to talk about “Pooh Sticks.”

For the uninitiated, Pooh Sticks is a game created by the Hundred Acre Wood clan whereby each player drops a stick over the side of a bridge to see whose stick first appears on the other side. There is even a World Poohsticks Championship, which takes place annually on the River Thames in Oxfordshire, England. Nerd alert!

3. Gub-Gub: Who, you say, is Gub-Gub? Gub-Gub was one of the first animals that Dr. Doolittle spoke to in the 1932 children’s book Gub-Gub’s Book, An Encyclopedia of Food by Hugh Lofting. The book is told from Gub-Gub’s point of view. Gub-Gub is a great lover of food. He is also the first animal to experience Dr. Doolittle’s onset schizophrenia.

4. Napoleon and Snowball: These two young pigs were born from the mind of George Orwell in Animal Farm, published in 1945.

The Stalin-inspired Napoleon starts off as a regular ol’ piggie but soon becomes dictator of the farm animals. Snowball, on the other hand, is busy trying to stir up other farm animals in a massive riot against humans. I think Snowball masks would have been way cuter than Guy Fawkes’ masks during Occupy. No?

Today is Leap Day. For some of us, it means trading childrens’ tears for candy. For others, its an extra day to read, write, and/or bake.

If you’re the sort that can’t wait to spend the extra free time whipping up some treats for post-Leap Day festivities, you’re in luck. Tomorrow happens to be National Peanut Butter Lover’s Day. So to help you out, we’ve got this delicious recipe from our Peanut Butter & Co. Cookbook.

Read on to learn how to make peanut butter swirl brownies. Yum!

Marsh Madness is still going strong. This week you can look forward to unique recipes from Baked Bree, Barbara Bakes, and Foodie Bride.

Here on Homemade Quirk, we’re dishing out some exclusive recipe cards on Facebook. Head on over to the Quirk Books Facebook page to score some three printable cards with recipes for Ultimate Hot Chocolate, Homemade Marshmallow Creme, and Classic Vanilla Marshmallows.

Enjoy! And remember to keep up with the Marshmallow Madness bracket on Twitter (#MarshMadness) and to follow the campaign over on Serious Eats.

Maple Bacon S’mores by Kitchen Konfidence

Wow. What a week.

Last week contenders in the Marsh Madness West Coast bracket posted their unbelievable recipes, each one just as creative as the last. Our partners Serious Eats have the recap, and you can scope out links to all the entries (plus a bonus!), below.

Kitchen Konfidence: Maple Bacon S’mores

Love Veggies & Yoga: Peanut Butter Cocoa Krispie S’mores

Teenie Cakes: Chai-Spiced Pistachio Marshmallows

Kitchen Parade: Orange-Kissed Marshmallows

And although she wasn’t in the official bracket, Sweets by Sillianah’s custom Blood Orange Marshmallows are just fantastic.

Check back here and on Serious Eats come Monday for another recap, and make sure you’re following the #MarshMadness hashtag on Twitter.

On September 28th, 2011, Quirk author Dr Anthony DeBenedet (The Art of Roughhousing) participated in TEDxDetroit.

In his talk, The Future of Play, he speaks passionately about the importance of rough and tumble playtime, how it builds emotional intelligence, and how it can inspire creativity and imagination.

The video just hit YouTube, and you can scope it out above. Nice job, Anthony! We’re proud of you!

Get ready to party, today is National Margarita Day! We could dish out the tried and true recipe for the standard margarita, but come on. Where’s the fun in that?

So put away those fancy glasses. Cancel your plans to hit the bar. I’ve got a fantastic recipe from Booze Cakes by Krystina Castella & Terry Lee Stone. Read on to learn how to make a Top-Shelf Margarita Cheesecake.

That’s right, you heard me. A margarita cheesecake.