A Toddler Song of Thanksgiving

About two and a half weeks ago, Isabelle’s speech and music therapists worked with us to create a Thanksgiving song to the tune of “Hot Cross Buns.”  During that time, I’ve worked with Isabelle to brainstorm a list of things and people she was thankful for this year.  Since thankfulness is a pretty tough concept for a toddler to grasp, we started out by talking about things she loved.  The list ranged from her family to our neighbors’ dogs to her friends to her teacher to Chocolate World.

In an effort to keep the song manageable and reverent for today’s festivities, I whittled the list down to family members, the neighbors’ dogs, and to Chocolate World.  (Especially because the neighbors’ dogs, Tiny, Rudy, and Lexie, as well as Chocolate World, were in her version of the song every time she practiced singing it.) Also, I created a chart with pictures to help guide her through the song.  Here she is, singing her song (with my assistance), earlier this evening:

Finally, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the fact that tonight was also the second night of Chanukah, aka: Thanksgivukkah. We lit the menorah and sang a few Chanukah songs. Other than that, the day belong to Thanksgiving. (Thankfully, there are six more nights of Chanukah left for us to celebrate!)

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The Tutu: An Unexpected Purim Costume

The little ballerina is ready for the Purim Carnival.

You know those girls who attend music class or go to the supermarket in a tutu?  That’s not my daughter.  I’ve never bought her a skirt that even resembled a tutu since I fear turning her into a diva by running around town in a tutu.  In my mind, tutus are for ballerinas.  I have the utmost respect for ballet dancers.  I’ve taken ballet as a child and again in my early 20s so I know it’s challenging!

My friend Lauren, who danced ballet for years, made Isabelle a tutu for her first birthday.  She asked me what color to make it (I said lavender.)  It was for playing dress-up. The tutu sat in Isabelle’s closet for over a year since it was too big for her.  Today it made its debut — for Purim.

Isabelle was going to wear her Halloween costume (ladybug) for Purim. However, in the middle of the night I had a NEW idea for her Purim costume.  It wouldn’t cost a cent (Yea!) and would be a good photo opp.  What would she be?  A ballerina, of course.

When I woke up this morning, I searched for a pair of black tights in the sock/tights drawer of her room.  All I came up with were a pair of black 12-24 month sized tights from the Baby Gap that she wore for Rosh Hashanah in 2011!  Would they fit?  If not, no tutu!  Then, I looked for a black onesie since she doesn’t have a leotard.  I found a black turtleneck onesie in her drawer.  Yea!  But would the tutu fit?

After breakfast, I brought Isabelle upstairs and bribed her with the Maccabeats Purim video while I put the tights on her.  (She hates tights!)  I got them on her without so much as a grimace.  (Yea Maccabeats!)  Surprisingly, they weren’t too small.  I guess they have a lot of spandex in them.  Next came the onesie.  That was a cinch to get on.  Finally, the big test came when I stood her up to put on the tulle tutu.  One leg in, then the next.  I shimmied it up to her waist and it didn’t fall.  It fit!  She would be a ballerina after all!

I pulled her hair back into a slop-knot ponytail, which is the only kind she’ll tolerate.  However, I didn’t want all of the pieces flying around since she does have curly hair, after all.  So I did the unthinkable.  I found my hairspray and began to spray it in her hair.  It was the first time she’s ever come into contact with hairspray.  I shuddered each time I misted it over her toddler hair.  Was I creating a diva or was I just getting my daughter dressed up for a Purim Carnival?  I decided not to beat myself up over the hairspray since it was for a special occasion.  So, I moved on.

There she was, dressed as a ballerina in her purple tutu.  She looked darling as I had her spin around the room.  Much older than the two year old she is.  And while she looked very pretty, I must admit, I was delighted to put her corduroy pants back on her after the Purim carnival was over.  Corduroy pants are everyday play clothes.  At least that’s how we roll.

The Tie Man’s Miracle & Other Fantastic Chanukah Books

This meme was started by Sheila at Book Journey and the kids’ version has been adapted by Jen and Kellee at Teach Mentor Texts.
Over the summer I borrowed The Tie Man’s Miracle: A Chanukah Tale written by Steven Schnur from the library. Let me be honest: I have no idea why I borrowed it. I’ve been racking my brain trying to remember the reason why. I don’t remember if I was doing a search on Amazon for one of Schnur’s acrostic poetry books or if I was thinking about the tragedy of the Holocaust. (Though I do remember both things happening.) However, I know I didn’t pull the book off of the shelf since I had to get it on interlibrary loan from a different Penn State library than the one where my I taught my course.

While the reason I got it is unclear, I think it found my way to me for a reason. You see, I’m on a quest to make Chanukah a meaningful holiday for Isabelle. It’s about so much more than eight nights of presents and eating latkes. It’s a holiday where Jews stood up for the right to practice their religion. Yes, there was a miracle where the candles burned for eight nights, but the premise of the holiday stems from the desire to be Jewish. Therefore, when I come across stories that reflect the real meaning of Chanukah, I pay attention to them since I long to share meaningful books about the holiday with my daughter… not the ones that make it look like Chanukah is all about gifts.

To learn more about The Tie Man’s Miracle: A Chanukah Tale, read the synopsis of the book by clicking here. Here are some other wonderful Chanukah titles that we’ll be reading as a family this week:

• Chanukah Lights by Michael J. Rosen –> For more on this book, check out the blog post I wrote last year at Two Writing Teachers.
• Eight Winter Nights: A Family Hanukkah Book by Laura Krauss Melmed –> This is one of the other books I blogged about at Two Writing Teachers.
• Letter on the Wind: A Chanukah Tale by Sarah Marwil Lamstein
• One Candle by Eve Bunting
• Papa’s Latkes by Michelle Edwards
• Pearl’s Eight Days of Chanukah by Jane Breskin Zalben

Once I get a home library copy of The Tie Man’s Miracle, I will need to find one more great Chanukah picture book so I can have one for each night of the holiday. Do you have any suggestions?

A G-Rated Costume for Trick o’ Treat Night

Our lady bug went Trick o’ Treating for the first time last night. (She took a small bite of a Snickers bar and made a face. Apparently all of those fruits and vegetables taste better than chocolate — to her.)

Several weeks ago, my husband and I were discussing what our daughter should be for Halloween.  We tossed around a bunch of ideas and got excited about her being a doctor.  We wanted to find a white lab coat rather than scrubs since we thought the white coat would be more practical if Trick o’ Treat Night was cold.  (BTW: It’s a Midstate Pennsylvania thing to Trick o’ Treat before Halloween.  Most of the townships in our country Trick o’ Treated last night.  As someone who grew up in the NY Metropolitan Area, I really don’t understand why they feel the need to Trick o’ Treat early.  However, if I want my daughter to participate in the festivities, I have to go with the flow, so-to-speak.)

I searched online for a doctor costume for Isabelle, but came up empty-handed since the costumes were in 2T sizes and up.  (She wears an 18 month size.)  Therefore, I took to the stores.  Imagine my horror when the only doctor costume I could find was in the boys’ section.  (It was also too big!)  Really?  Since when are doctors only male?  When I think about the doctors I have, they’re an even mix of men and women.  What kind of message are girls supposed to receive when the find a doctor costume only gets sold in the boys’ section.

I was unable to find a white lab coat in Isabelle’s size so I gave up on having her dress up as a doctor.  Instead I headed to Carter’s and purchased her a ladybug costume.  It was reasonably priced, warm, cute, and in her size.  However, there was a piece of me that was upset I couldn’t dress her up how we originally intended.

Peggy Orenstein tweeted two interesting links in the past two days.  One was to two licensed Cookie Monster outfits.  If you click on this link, then you’ll see a boys’ Cookie Monster outfit that looks a lot like the furry monster we see on TV.  The girls’ costume is a too-short dress with cookies on it.  It also comes with a Cookie Monster tiara.  Personally, I would never put my daughter in a Cookie Monster dress if she wanted to be Cookie Monster for Halloween.  That’s a complete disconnect.

The second link Peggy Orenstein tweeted was to a slide show of Girls’ Halloween Costumes: Then and Now.  It left me aghast!  I know costumes have evolved through the years, but I didn’t realize how overly sexual little girls’ costumes have become!  It makes me cringe to think this is what I’ll be up against as my little lady bug gets older.

How are we supposed to guide our girls to make age-appropriate choices for Halloween when they’re faced with party shops that make fun costumes for boys and slutty costumes for girls.  (And don’t even get me started on the princess costumes!)  It makes me I am going to have to work hard to make my daughter realize it’s okay to wear the “boys” costumes (or get really creative / learn to sew)!  Why does Halloween, a time that used to just be about dressing up in a simple costume and getting candy, have to be so complicated?

Elul: Preparing for the High Holidays Through Music, Books, and Food

I picked up a whole wheat challah this afternoon.  I prepared a chicken for dinner, which is roasting as I type.  I pulled out the ritual items for tonight’s Shabbat dinner.  As I did these things I remembered that Rosh Chodesh Elul is tomorrow night.

Elul, the month prior to the Jewish High Holidays, begins this weekend.  That means that Rosh Hashanah will soon be upon us.  This year, Isabelle is more aware of her Jewish life.  By aware I mean that she anticipates the grape juice coming towards her in the Kiddush cup, enjoys eating challah, and enjoys watching videos by the Maccabeats.  While it’s hard to cultivate a Jewish existence for a toddler, there are small ways that I will prepare for Yamim Noraim with her this year.

First, we will listen to to Tekiyah, the music of the high holidays from my former synagogue, Congregation B’nai Jeshurun, in Manhattan.  I have the album on my iPhone, which means we can listen to the inspiring melodies of the high holidays on-the-go when we’re in the car.  While it’s far too early for her to learn the words or the meanings to the songs, I want her to hear the melodies of the songs that will be sung (though they’ll sound different in the synagogues we attend now) when we’re in synagogue as a family for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.

Second, we will read books.  I have a bunch of books that contain shorts stories about the high holidays.  I will begin to read those stories aloud to her during Elul.  Also, we just received a book from the PJ Library, Today is the Birthday of the World by Linda Heller and Allison Jay, which I’m really excited to add to our Jewish home library.  This book, which made me tear up the first time I read it, is an affirmation of the notion that every living thing contributes to making the world a more beautiful place.  Today is the Birthday of the World‘s message is that even a small child can help make the world a better place.  This is something I want Isabelle to internalize.  Even at her young age she can help to brighten someone’s day with a smile or a simple “hello.”  Additionally, as we prepare to begin a parent/child “school” program in the middle of Elul, I want to teach her that being kind to her classmates (by sharing toys and by being a gentle friend) is a way that you can honor yourself, other people, and G-d.

Finally, we eat apples and honey on Rosh Hashanah to symbolize our hope for a sweet new year.  Therefore, I will reintroduce these foods to her during Elul.  Apples were a favorite until the bounty of summer kicked into high gear.  Therefore, we replaced our apples and pears, our winter fruit staples, with blueberries, strawberries, and melons.  Therefore, as we go through the month of Elul, we will again taste the sweetness of the apples (and the honey) so she’s ready to dip the apples into the honey on Rosh Hashanah.

How do you prepare for the high holidays with your children?  Please share your customs, ideas, and book titles by leaving a comment.