The following is a conversation that I had with Oliver as I was helping get him ready for bed tonight.

<I’ve just brought in the top to the pajama bottoms he picked out.>

O: Oh, Mama! You found the match! How did you find that?

M: It was in your pajama bin at the bottom!

O: I LOVE those pajamas. They look like a Christmas tree. Hey, Mama. Why did you take down the Christmas tree?

M: It was dead, and all the needles were falling off. Plus it’s not Christmas anymore!

O: When will it be Christmas? Tomorrow?

M: No, it’s a loooong way away.

O: On Thursday?

M: No, it’s many months away. Let’s count: April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December. That’s 9 months. That’s a long time.

O: So next Saturday?

M: No, months have about 30 days in them, so that’s 270 days away! That’s a lot!

O: Like this many? <holds up both hands>

M: No, that’s only ten. See, we’re only in spring, which is a season and another way we mark time. Spring is when all the plants come alive. Then it will be summer, which is another season, when it’s warm, and we can go swimming outside. And then it’s fall, when the leaves fall off the trees and we get to pick all the food we grew in our garden over the summer.

O: <squeals> I LOVE OUR GARDEN! Can we have an ONION TREE?!?

M: Wow, an onion tree?

O: <excitedly> YES! It will grow and grow and then we’ll get to pick the onions that are hanging!!

M: That would be really great. But onions don’t grow on trees. They grow in the ground!

O: <surprised face> Oh!! Then we will just grow them in the ground, and then hang them in the trees, and then we will pick them from the trees!

M: Alright! That sounds like a plan.

O: Can we also plant a sausage tree?

M: Well, sausages don’t grow. 

O: How about a hot dog tree?

M: Also not a plant.

O: Ok, then we will grow a bunny cookie tree that will have bunny cookies hanging from the branches, but it will just be pretend.

M: That sounds good, honey.

<30 minutes later as I’m saying goodnight after tucking him in>

O: So will we plant our garden tomorrow afternoon?

M: Not quite, love. In a few weeks.

O: In the afternoon?

M: We can do it in the afternoon.

O: I love you, Mama.

M: I love you, too, Bug.