When I visited Mabel Watson Payne this afternoon she and her mother and father showed me this seasonal tableau of wind-up dinosaurs and wind-up Santas, a mechanical snowman (powered by sunlight) and several thematic Pez dispensers. Much of this represents booty from Christmas stockings.
Mabel has been playing daily with the graduated set of plastic mixing bowls that came for Christmas. She has a tiny whisk and a tiny wooden spoon and likes to use them both at the same time. Just visible in this picture (and better to be admired in the pictures below) is one of the pair of new shoes, in proud wear for the first time today.
The contents of my wallet are examined on every visit. Today my daughter was persuaded to collaborate in this mysteriously enjoyable ritual.
Just since I last saw Mabel on Christmas five days ago a language explosion has occurred and she has begun to speak frequent words out loud, apparently determined to get this accomplishment registered (along with so many others) before the end of the calendar year. Below is a partial list of words I can distinctly remember hearing pronounced during Friday's visit:
all done
baboon
baby
bear
book
bottle
bottom
bowl
box
bubble
bye bye
cheers
cheese
daddy
deer
hat
hi
Mabel
mama
me
owl
up
wreath
baboon
baby
bear
book
bottle
bottom
bowl
box
bubble
bye bye
cheers
cheese
daddy
deer
hat
hi
Mabel
mama
me
owl
up
wreath