I have a million photos I want to edit and share from the weekend and my house is almost a disaster, so I’ll admit when I took Nora to school this morning only to realize that Veteran’s Day=no school, I might have been more than a little disappointed. She only goes two mornings each week, so I really count on those eight hours to get things done.
It turns out, though, the extra morning was a blessing in disguise. We did a ton of coloring and some painting to get a jump start on our home school activity for the week. Then, we sat at the table for journal time and Nora completely surprised me by writing her whole name for the first time!
…and “Mom” and “Dad”! I am so proud of her! In the “school” work we’ve been doing, I’m already noticing a tendency toward perfectionism; Nora often gets frustrated when her letters or pictures don’t look exactly like mine and gives up or refuses try, no matter how much I tell her it’s ok if they look different. For weeks, she has refused to even try to write an R because she said she didn’t know how. Today, completely unprompted, she wrote her whole name, R and all, and I was so excited I had to take pictures. I couldn’t be more excited or proud and then when she went and wrote our names too, I about died. My smart girl.
After time at home, we packed a picnic lunch and headed out to enjoy the warm spell that we’ve been having,Raggedy Andy in tow. We hung out at the playground with her friend Miss M(literally!), generally just enjoying the sunshine and warmth.
I started today thankful for surprise extra time with Nora and for her bravery at attempting something she had been previously psyching herself out about, and ended the day thankful for a rare November sweater weather day. Even if I’m behind on chores and blogging, I wouldn’t trade days like this for anything.
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P.S.
In case you missed it, I posted my thanks on Facebook yesterday because I couldn’t manage a blog post. Yesterday I said I was thankful for the giant pile of malai kofta and accompaniments Chris brought home from the restaurant and the ability to think positively about our current situation.
Michelle Housel
I love these photos, Amber! She is one of the cutest little girls ever! That little “R” is too precious too. I’m loving Odin at this age, but I can’t wait for little milestones like these!!
Donna
Amber, Nora is experiencing emergent writing, specifically the “logographic” phonics learning phase where she learns to recognize whole words that have special significance to her such as her name, store signs, etc. Enjoy home schooling with her–that must be very special for you to share. I always loved exploring all the different parks with my girls–finding a new one seemed like going to a theme park! Whatever may be ahead for you, your Nantucket explorations with Nora are very special.
nantuckettiechic
Haha! I remember my fourth-born at this age asking Why, oh why, did you give me such a long name? Well, Rosemary means rose-of-the-sea: how could I not? She did eventually learn to write it;-)