Brainstorms: Thanks

This is a Blue Hubbard Squash, we grew in the garden.

Here is the same Blue Hubbard squash, with rock'n roll fingers.  Thanks, Thomas.

Here is that same Blue Hubbard squash, with a turkey head.  Did I mention this squash will probably be featured prominently in our Thanksgiving dinner?

Here is Mae, calling it a chicken, only she says "chkn".  She is also eating leftover pumpkin stew out of an old hummus container.  I feel like I might be losing you here.  Perhaps, a little background:

See, every year, one of my good friends, also a mom and lover of learning, does a November-long activity with her two beautiful children, leading up to Thanksgiving Day. I am lavishing her and her children with praise, because I want her to know that we are not mocking her wonderful project, with our bizarre recreation of it.  Every November morning, her children offer one thing they are thankful for, to be written on a paper turkey "feather" and added to the back of a turkey figure. This is a little like it, only hers are much cuter, with the turkey facing you, and the feathers made from a variety of pretty paper.

So, I told the kids about it, and they felt we should do it.  Only one thing, we don't eat the celebrated bird on the holiday of dubious origins.  We do eat a lot of stuff we like, however, and will probably slay and prepare our vegetables with a sense of gratitude.  And so, Thomas fashioned a paper and duct tape turkey head, and Hubbard, the Blue Squash of Thankfulness was born.  He sits on our shelf, accumulating daily feathers, bearing the names of things we love.  Today was day one.  Mae is grateful for Pandora, the online radio that fills our house with cumbia music all day (my thing to be grateful for, coincidentally).  George thanks Netflix for Kipper, Henry is thankful there is pastry in the world, and Thomas appreciates a little thing known as Mankind.  I can't wait to see what they say tomorrow.