Reading

La Nina's lack of interest in reading has always worried me. Mostly, because I'm such a reader. She's always been resistant to reading. We've tried everything from bribes to buying whatever books she wants to family reading time where we all read together. The money didn't interest her, the books I bought gathered dust and she kept trying to make small talk while everyone else read. I've tried fiction, non-fiction, graphics, fantasy, nothing really worked. Ok, the Fairy Dance series books worked...but I have a hard time counting those. She's obsessed with dance.

This summer I started worrying that may be she was having some trouble with reading. The schools hadn't reported anything, her test scores were good, but I just couldn't figure it out her reluctance and it seemed a plausible explanation. I tried reading aloud with her and everything seemed fine. We'd read a chapter in a book, she'd remember the chapter and understand it the next day, but still if I wasn't reading the chapter with her she just wouldn't read the next chapter on her own, no matter what.

When I brought up my concerns to the Dad, he informed me I was "a dork" as a kid and most kids didn't read as obsessively as I did. To which I informed him, most kids don't watch as much TV as he did as a kid So who was really the "dork"? I digress.

When we went to her parent/teacher/student conference this fall, I brought up my concerns to her very surprised teacher. He informed me she was in the enrichment reading group (one of the highest) and was surprised to hear about her reluctance at home. After this conversation, I dropped the whole reading topic. Why was I obsessing if she wasn't struggling? Some people don't like to read as much as others, may be she was one of them. Even though by the time I was in 4th grade I had read the entire Laura Ingalls Wilder series and goodness knows how many Nancy Drew's on my own, people are different.

Then, yesterday I caught her reading a book in her room. I was stunned. Pleasantly, stunned, but stunned none the less. She finished that 250 page book tonight and asked me to take her to the book store tomorrow to get the next in the series. Oh happy day!

I asked her why she picked up a book yesterday, and here's what she told me. It explained the whole reluctance. Remember she's still on her Christmas break from school. At school, she always finishes her work early and when she does that, she's told to read. By the time she gets home from school, she's been reading on and off all day and she's sick of reading. She said she usually takes books from home to read (news to me) and that she's read most of the books in her room. Then she handed me a pile of used books. Probably about 15 that she's read since the start of school this year. Why is the mother is always the last to know?

Needless to say, I will happily take her to the bookstore tomorrow. And God Bless the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. It's not the first book she's read, but it's the one I figured out she actually does like to read.

Sew Simple

If you asked my mom one of her great failings as my mother, she would tell you it was that I never learned to sew. She tried to teach me, but I didn't have the attention span or the interest to apply myself and learn. I remember attempting to make a skirt, sewing the panels on backwards, then chucking the whole thing into the laundry room just in time to head out to soccer practice. I knew I'd never wear that thing anyway.

However, redemption comes in many forms and my mother's redemption came in the form of the Magster. She's the interested, eager and willing student I never was. Her and my Mom have already collaborated successfully on many pillow projects. And the Magster just loves to create all sorts of things with fabric at grandma's house. Animals, pillows, pouches, purses...you name it, Maggie will create it.. as long as she's at her grandmother's house...

So, for Christmas, the Dad and I bought the girls a sewing machine of their own. To keep here. So, Maggie could sew all the time. WoW! What was I thinking. I don't know how to sew. It took me 2 mornings just to get the thing threaded, then the Magster broke a needle and it took me another couple of hours to get the needle changed. So, many hours into this gift and many "How To" videos on YouTube later we have a functional sewing machine. Yet, that doesn't mean I can sew.

As part of the gift, I got a couple of patterns, thinking the Magster and I could tackle learning to sew together. These patterns were titled "Sew Simple". It reads "one easy project" right on the packaging. Those people are liars. Simple involves 18 steps. 11 cut outs. Appliques and something that involves paper backed webbing,. I don't even know what this is. Just reading the directions required several forays on google, trying to figure out what words mean. I couldn't figure out how to cut out the pieces of the fabric without calling my Mom. UGH!

So, while my Mom relishes her moments of "I-told-you-you'd-need-sew", I'm putting together a basket for Maggie to take to her house tomorrow. If it's so darn easy to sew, maybe she can figure it these projects. And while you're at it, Mom, can you take Maggie to the fabric store for whatever that backing stuff is? I'm at a loss.