© 2010 Maggie the Kitten

Maggie, one half of the twin toddler terrors, whose sister Baruch was visiting their Aunt Jenna, stood by her mother's side and watched the young woman intently. Shelly sat the apples down on the table and expertly cut them into small wedges. The little girl smiled hungrily and licked her lips in anticipation as she watched her mother pour sweet gooey honey into a small bowl. The petite young mother smiled at her impatient little one and winked at her.

Finally, the wedges were all cut and the bowl was filled with honey. Shelly pulled her near waist long locks back and held them in place with a scrunchie. Considering it took her almost two hours to wash and dry her colorful mane, she had no intentions of giving it a sticky sweet shampoo. With her hair out of honey-harm’s way, she sat down at the chair next to the table. As she pulled her baby up into her lap, the child's wide eyes never left the bowl of sweet honey.

Shelly gently took a few fingers and placed them under Maggie's chin and lifted her face toward her own. "Maggie, do you remember why I told you we have apples dipped in honey on this special day?"

The little girl sighed and scrunched her nose, trying desperately to search her toddler files for the explanation her momma had given her earlier. Of course when you're five, it's a struggle just to recall the alphabet in order, let alone an important religious holiday. Maggie smiled up hopefully at her momma. "I members mommy. It means you gets to have lots and lots of sweets for da whole year. I hope dat means we gets bwownies every day!"

Shelly smiled and kissed her daughter's forehead. "That's not quite what that means Maggie, but you're close. Having apples and honey is a sign of sweetness for the new year. That kind of means love and friendship and lots of good things."

A pair of big green eyes stared hopefully at the young mother. "Mommy does it means we still have bwownies every day?"

Shelly shook her head from side to side and then ruined a little girls dream. "No...we aren't having brownies every day."

Maggie frowned, disappointment evident in her voice. "Oh"

Sighing heavily she slumped and then cuddled against her mommy. Shelly seeing and sensing her little one's sadness, sought to bring a smile to her imp's face once again.

"Maggie", she started, "Do you remember the name for this special holiday? It's a real big name for such a little girl but I bet you can say it for mommy."

The child sat up and a rainbow smile chased the clouds away once again. Proudly she began, "I members it mommy. It's kinda hards for me to say, but I figured a way so dat I always gonna members it. All I gots to do is to tink about goin potty and den I members what da name is."

Shelly was the wide-eyed girl this time. Her experience with toddler tales told her she didn't really want to hear this one, but curiosity overcame common sense and she just had to know. "Alright Maggie, why does going potty remind you of this holiday."

The little girl smiled proudly. "Cause every times I go potty you always say WASH YOUR HANDS'S, and dats kinda what da name of dis holiday sounds like. WASH HANDS'S! And I goes potty's lots so I will always members it."

Actually the name of the holiday is Rosh Hashanah, but "Wash Hands's" was probably the best toddler equivalent Maggie could muster. Shelly wasn't really thrilled that her daughter linked a major Jewish holiday with a trip to the bathroom, but her little one was learning and as a mother, she had to be happy about that, or at least she thought so until Maggie started again.

"Mommy do you tinks I did good membering Wash Hands's?"

The young mother praised her little one. "Yes baby, I think you did very good."

Maggie smiled proudly again. "I glad you tinks so mommy cause I tolded Cathleen about how tinkin of goin potty helped me members da big name and she liked dat lots, so me and her told all da udder kids in da synagogue bouts it. Dey liked it lots and den dey started callin it Potty day cause dats easy to member too. I no telled dem to call it Potty day mommy. Dat just kinda happened cause it maded everybody giggle.

Shelly sighed. She used her mommy magic to keep a smile on her face as her thoughts were far less enthusiastic. "I wonder how long it will be before the phone calls from all the mothers start this time? Well...at least I'll already know what THIS week’s calls will be about."

Maggie was not a bad little girl, but she was definitely ALL little girl. With her spirit and imagination she was truly her mother's daughter, and just like Shelly at that age, if there was any excitement going on, she was probably in the middle of it, if not the cause of it. Shelly had received her fair share of calls from mothers of other toddlers over Maggie’s enthusiasm and color imagination. Most feathers were easily ruffled with kind words and promises of her Chicken soup recipe. Even Shelly was amazed at times on how many words her little one could get out of her mouth, and yet she seemed to have such difficulty in getting most of her food in it. It had to be a toddler thing.

She pondered calling her sister Jenna to give her heads-up on the incoming calls they would both receive over "Potty Day", but decided against it. It was a holiday, and the calls would start soon enough. They always did.

Maggie tugged on her mother's sleeve and the young woman quickly returned to the land of the living. "Mommy you can tells da Rabbi bouts what I figured out, dat way everybody can members dis day easy like I does."

Shelly pulled her well meaning imp close and cuddled her. "Baby, I don't think we really need to tell the Rabbi about this. I'm sure he's already heard."

Maggie didn't notice the pained expression on her mother’s face or the way she rolled her eyes before she continued. "And...I'm sure he'll talk with me or your father about it very soon."

Shelly stopped at that point as she tried to remember whose turn it was to meet with the Rabbi this time. She and Norman usually took turns trying to smooth over whatever damage their little toddler tornado had caused. Considering the nature of this one, it would probably require a joint appearance.

The young mother decided to push this one aside until her husband got home, and move onto more pleasant aspects of the Rosh Hashanah holiday.

"Maggie...can you tells me anything else you remembers about Rosh Hashanah?"

The pixie proudly perked, "Mommy you saided dat peoples been eatin abbles and honey to celebate dis day for a whole long time."

Shelly nodded and smiled. "That's right princess. This tradition goes back thousands of years."

The small child eyes grew wide. "Mommy do you tinks I should asks Gwamma if dey dided dat when she was a liddle girl likes me? I bets dats towsands of years too."

Shelly giggled and shook her head. "I'm pretty sure they were having apples and honey even when Grandma was a little girl, but you can ask her the next time we visit."

Maggie smiled happily thinking about her next visit to Grandma's house, as Shelly asked her if she could remember anything else special about Rosh Hashanah.

The little one scrunched her freckled nose again and then smiled. "I likes da part where we gets to feed da fishy's."

Shelly stared blankly at the child. Maggie seeing the puzzled look on her mother's face, sought to solve her quandary. "Don't you members mommy? We wented to da creek, and gots to goes out in da wader, and den we saided our pwayers and we thowed bwead in da wader for da fishy's to eat."

Shelly giggled slightly but then put her words to a more serious tone. "Maggie...you are talking about the Tashlich. We’re not tossing bread out to feed the fish. The bread is our sins, and when we toss the bread in the water it's a sign of casting off one's sins."

The little girl fidgeted in her mommy's lap and then gave Shelly a worried glance. "Mommy I hopes da fishy's will be alright cause I seened one of dem eatin my sins."

Shelly rolled her eyes, chuckled and pulled her little innocent close. "Don't worry Maggie...the Boss takes care of fishes, toddlers and other small animals. Those fishes will be just fine."

The cuddle Kitten burrowed in close to her mother and hugged her tightly. Shelly rocked her for a moment before asking her is she remembered anything else she had learned. The auburn haired imp smiled and started again. "Me and Cathleen liked makin dem horns so we could blows in da new years. Dat was lots of fun. I just wishes dey maded more noise."

Children often use felt to make rams' horns, which are traditionally blown like trumpets to mark Rosh Hashanah. Shelly was glad they were felt horns. She had heard first hand the noise three toddlers could make with a drum, a horn and a symbol. The thought of thirty munchkins loose with real horns was enough to make her shudder.

Maggie eyes and thoughts turned once again to the freshly cut apples and sweet honey sitting just outside her reach. "Mommy I tinks maybe I likes da honey and da abbles parts best of all! Mommy can I have some abble and honey now? Peas Mommy."

Shelly took the opportunity to correct her toddler's poor English. "May I have some apples and honey Barcuhah...MAY I have some."

The little girl smiled again. "Sure mommy...you can have some too! I no minds sharin cause dey is lots more abbles in da fidgerator. Don't you members? You boughted dem at da store yesterday."

Shelly started to correct the correction and then thought better of it. She decided discretion was the better part of valor and just left that one alone, although she did say a silent prayer for her daughter's future first grade teacher and the grammar games to come.

Maggie looked up at her mother and sighed sadly, "Mommy I no members nuttin else bouts Wash Hands's. I guess I maybe…kinda gotted some tings wrong a liddle. I sorry if I messed up."

The young mother pulled her little one close and hugged her tightly. "No baby, you didn't mess up. You did fine. For now...I think you know as much as you need to. In time, your father and I will teach you the rest. Okay?"

The sunshine returned to the little girls face as she nodded and returned, "Otay mommy!" Along with the sunshine came the honey hunger. Figuring she separated her child from the sweet treat long enough, Shelly took a small apple wedge and dipped in the honey. Holding her hand beneath it to catch the stray drops, she led the golden apple toward Maggie's mouth and the child quickly crunched a bite with her baby teeth. A small trickle of apple juice mixed with honey trickled down the little one's chin. The young woman smiled, and then took her finger and wiped the stray sweet away, popping the now sticky finger into her own mouth and smiling. Maggie giggled happily as both girls savored the treat.

Shelly then dipped the wedge again and pushed the rest of it into her mouth. A stray trickle of apple/honey mix escaped the mother's lips this time and Maggie was quick to notice it. Smiling brightly, she reached up, wiped her momma's chin and popped her prize into her own mouth as Shelly had done just seconds before.

The two girls looked at each other and then both broke into a fit of giggles. Apple dipping, honey dripping and a good amount of giggles went on for almost twenty minutes and several good sized apples.

Maggie basking in the glow of the honey and the special shared moment with her mother, gazed up into Shelly's hazel eyes. "Mommy...is dere gonna be anudder new years weal soon, maybe likes morrow?"

Shelly chuckled, "I don't think quite that soon Maggie, but I'll let you know when the next one is real close, okay?"

The small child answered, "Otay", and then staring longingly at the bottle of honey still on the table. "Mommy do you tinks da Boss will lets us have some honey and apples even if it aint's a new year. I kinda likes dem lots."

Shelly cuddled her baby again and answered softly. "I think we can do that. I'm sure the Boss will always be glad to see a little more sweetness in the world."

Maggie smiled happily at her mother, and then laid her head on the young woman's chest. Shelly stroked her daughter’s soft curls and watched as first one then the other big green eye slowly closed. By the smile on the little one's freckled face, she was no doubt savoring a belly full of honey and apple and day dreaming about more.

The young mother closed her own eyes as she savored the feeling of holding her child close for a very special moment on a very special day.

Huggles