Celebrated on July 30th, National Cheesecake Day is a holiday dedicated to that sweet custard tart enjoyed by millions of people across North America. It is traditionally an American holiday, but over the past few years, many people across Europe have discovered this day and have used it as an excuse to enjoy this delectable treat.

While no one really knows the origin of this holiday or when exactly it was started, the history of cheesecake is well documented. The first cheesecake can be traced back to the ancient Greeks; a people who not only enjoyed it as a dessert but also used it in religious ceremonies. While this dessert resembled cheesecake in texture, its ingredients differed somewhat from what is used in modern versions.

This cheesecake was made using interspersed layers of dough filled with honey and cheese and was then flavored with bay leaves before being baked. The finished product was then covered in an additional layer of honey. Many scholars believe that this cheesecake was created for special occasions such as the Olympics. Eventually, this recipe made its way into Roman culture after they adapted it for their own tastes.

Most scholars attribute the modern cheesecake to the English. They further perfected the original Greek recipe – which they obtained from the Romans – and adapted it to a form that would be more familiar to modern cheesecake enthusiasts. Immigrants would then bring the recipe to the United States, where it became the cultural sensation it is today.

Most people celebrate National Cheesecake Day by either buying a cheesecake for themselves or by attending cheesecake parties that are sometimes thrown. On this day, it is also customary for businesses that sell cheesecakes to either give away free slices or to sell cheesecakes at a reduced price.

National Cheesecake Day is a great way for a person to acquaint themselves with a dessert that is not only one of the tastiest treats on the planet but also one that is steeped in thousands of years of history.

Next onto our swap:

Post THREE (3) pictures and/or gifs to each of your THREE (3) partner's profiles with the theme "National Cheesecake Day" or "Cheesecake". The pictures that you choose may be the SAME OR DIFFERENT between all of your partners. Please choose pictures that you think THEY will enjoy!

If you get 3 pictures from your partner on "National Cheesecake Day" or "Cheesecake" you have to rate them a 5. The heart on the rating is for if you like what they sent.

To leave a photo on someone's profile use this code ! [ ] ( Put image address here ) With NO spaces & paste the picture's link between the curved parentheses.

Practice on your own profile first to be sure it looks good because you can easily delete there.

Pick images that are size 300 wide or smaller to be sure they fit. I go to Google images to get my pictures.

Hover over images to see their size because there will be some larger sizes there too. If you really like something click on it and go to the words SEARCH BY IMAGE and click on that. THEN go to the word SMALL and see if there is one 300 size. There are other tricks in the group thread; AN EASY way to get a small PIC from a BIG one;-)

You can find moving pictures at http://giphy.com/

Please write the TITLE OF THE SWAP ON YOUR PROFILE DECO MESSAGE too! This makes it easier for partners that are in a lot of these swaps to rate it.

Requirements:

1. A well filled out profile. I will check the night before partners get assigned.

2. You need to login at least two days prior to sign-in date.

3. Your dashboard must be up to date.

Be sure to rate your partners.

Any questions, feel free to contact me.

I want to thank @anrtist for allowing me to borrow SOME of her wording.