Cornucopia of Thanksgiving

The Cornucopia or Horn of Plenty, that wicker, cone-shaped basket filled with fruits and vegetables is a symbol of this holiday season when we take time to sit and count our blessings. On one of my daughter’s television programs the Cornucopia is described as a horn-shaped basket that we fill with all the things that we are thankful for. In keeping with that preschool theme of thankfulness, here is what I hope fills my horn of plenty:

A is for apples and orchards and adventures in fall as we gather a harvest, rake leaves and play ball.

B is for banana pudding prepared by that engineer of mine, precisely and perfectly, every banana in line.

C is for carols we sing at this season, the songs that remind us of its real reason.

Improvisation

“Nooo. We have to play by the rules…” Daddy gently explains a new board game to his 3-year-old daughter who is recovering from her birthday party sugar crash.

Mom smiles to herself as she sits knitting, waiting for the upcoming meltdown, which to her pleasant surprise, doesn’t happen.

“Tell you what. Let’s just put the monkeys on the bed and make them jump off.” Daddy says.

So they toss the rulebook aside, spring load the bed, count the monkeys as they place them in the slots and “weeee” let them fly.

Sometimes you have to toss the rulebook aside and improvise, especially when you are dealing with a toddler who firmly believes that cake is a vehicle for delivering icing and that carrots and icing constitute a well balanced and nutritious lunch.

Giving Thanks for Oranges

I felt honor-bound to eat every one of those oranges—to savor each one as long as possible. They were a gift from my mother, mail-ordered for my 41st birthday, and they would be the last gift that I ever received from her.

The oranges arrived while my husband, daughter and I were visiting my family after Mom’s death. It took a couple of days after our return before I was able to open the cardboard crate with its painted ribbon “a gift for you” and the card: “Love, Mom”.

I ate the first of those “premium” oranges immediately. A couple of them were beginning to show signs of their trip from some distant tropical clime to Wisconsin, where they had sat on my kitchen table for a week— a few soft spots on the otherwise firm fruit. But, I determined then that I would eat every one of those oranges, those last gifts from my Mom.

The Satisfaction of Achievement

I couldn’t contain my smile when I weaved the end of the yarn through the loops at the top of the piece I had just knitted and pulled it tight. Much to my surprise…it looked like a hat! The unknitting, rescue of dropped stitches and feeling that I was an absolute klutz all melted away as the formless cotton yarn formed itself into a hat. Thanks to the patient coaching of my knitting partners Isobel and Kelly, Floppy Dog now will now have warm ears all winter, and I have a new hobby.

What You Can Learn from a Toddler’s Vocabulary List

So, my daughter’s preschool had parent-teacher conferences the other night, and the subject of discussion about our daughter with her teachers was her upcoming move to the 3-year-old classroom. In many ways it’s an exciting event that needs to happen; in others I dread it because my daughter has so enjoyed her year in the two’s classroom.

Her teacher had a list of recommended milestones in speech and language development. The two-and-a-half to three-year-old should have a vocabulary of approximately 500 intelligible words that she uses routinely.

My daughter’s teacher pointed out that milestone to my husband and me. “Now, of course, I’ll need to see that list of words.” She teased.

“Including the Swedish and Chinese?” my husband asked. (We give as good as we get.)