My Pilgrim Girl

 Guess who lost her second front tooth in a Rice Krispy Treat?  There was a lot of blood.  Bloody Rice Krispy Treats.  Mmmmmmm.  The tooth was hanging by a thread and Ruby got it out.  Being the compassionate mom that I am, I said, "Oh honey, you're bleeding!  Does it hurt?  Let me go get the camera!"  Now Xanthe can sing "All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth!"  While Ruby was mothering Xanthe, I was googling "sheet music for All I Want for Christmas..."  Just kidding.  But it's perfect timing!  I wonder if Xanthe can sing.  Her older sisters have been so busy training her to live all their dreams, they have neglected to develop her singing talent.  We'll have to get started on that.

One thing Xanthe CAN do is plan.  I signed up to help at her Thanksgiving Feast, and she has been drilling me on my responsibilities for a week.  The teacher sent home a detailed paper listing the steps and responsibilities of Feast helpers.  More than once, Xanthe has dug out the paper, held it close to her face and tried to go over what, exactly, the paper said.  We can color in at least two turkeys for all the reading she has done just trying to decipher the Feast assignment sheet!

I called my mom the night before the feast to see if she could watch Tolly and Tiz.  She said, "Oh, sure.  Xanthe already asked me if I could babysit for this a week ago.  8:30 to 10:30, right?"  Xanthe wanted to make sure I could fulfill all my responsibilities without distraction!  When the feast got closer, we were having multiple conversations a day about whether we were going to walk to school or drive to school.  This morning, Xanthe was up and dressed with several hours to spare.  When I took Golda and Ruby to school, she started to shriek, "But the Feast!  The Feast!"  Remarkably, we got there in plenty of time and Xanthe had not keeled over in exhaustion from all the hype.  In fact, she looked absolutely darling!

The children were told they could dress as either a Native American or a Pilgrim.  Xanthe chose to dress as a "Village Girl" from the 2010 ballet recital.  I mean...a Pilgrim.  (Interestingly, we also have an "Indian" costume, but she didn't want to wear that one, I guess.  Brown is nobody's favorite color.)  The majority of the other kids were dressed as 21st Century Suburban Kids on a Regular Tuesday Morning.  So Xanthe stood out like she does just by being her sparkly, beautiful self.  I was proud of her at the Feast.  She didn't seem stressed about the food and she was able to be relatively relaxed and enjoy her food.  What a relief!  Every day, Xanthe is getting more capable, less anxiety-ridden and more fun.  She is getting old enough to do new things, and it's great!  She went to the Nutcracker for the first time this year.  Scott said she was preoccupied with how many Starbursts she was allowed to have at intermission, but she said she loved the ballet.  Things are definitely more enjoyable for Xanthe when food is not involved, and when she doesn't have to be in a confined space.

I love my little pilgrim girl.  She has come to this life of hers just like our country's original pilgrims, as a sojourner going where her ancestors never dreamed of.  And she inherits a new family history that goes back almost to Plymouth Rock.  What an American Dream this girl is.