Where the Boys Are: A special day and a baby quilt

Today was the very big day - Owen's first day of kindergarten! Even though I'm homeschooling him, we tried to make it a big event last night. Keith and I gathered him up before bedtime, and told him how very proud we are of him for starting school, how it will be hard work but very fun and rewarding, how he must work with me and learn all he can, and we prayed with him. We bought him a gift for starting school (the Battleship game), and I told him to get some sleep because we'd be up bright and early in the morning for kindergarten!

And so this morning I got up early to prepare myself (including showering and dressing, which frankly, I don't do in the mornings on days we are staying home, but I've decided to be prepared to teach every day by wearing actual day clothes). Then he woke up around 8:30 AM, and I asked him to dress and eat by 9 AM (another new routine, as he normally stays in his underwear all day!). We started promptly at 9 with Bible class, then on to journaling and phonics and reading, then spelling words. All of this took a solid 3 hours, including a couple of 10-minute breaks. We finished up right around noon and had lunch, then we did our reading time, where I read to him out of a chapter book for about 15 to 20 minutes. Before I knew it, naptime was here, and we still have some math pages to do. I'm sure we'll get faster and better as we get the routine down. He did have moments of frustration when he started to get bored, or when he didn't think he could do something, and I certainly had moments of frustration as well, but he did a really super job over all. I am excited about tomorrow's lesson, which includes art and a trip to the library, so it will probably be more exciting for him. What a big day, and a big step for him!

On another note entirely, I finished this baby quilt this weekend for a friend at church who is due in just a few short weeks with her first little girl.

It is machine pieced and bound, measuring approximately 30" x 50", and the back is pieced. The colors are lovely, I think, and it matched Eva's room so nicely that I almost hated to part with it.

I also made a matching "taggie" type blanket toy, which is matching quilter's cotton on one side and a soft flannel on the other. It's a neat toy, and I definitely have to make one for our own little imminent arrival.

Finally, a picture of the absolute healthiest person in our house, my little vegetable eater. I don't know how she developed a love for vegetables, maybe all that Russian salad she started out on, but this is one of her favorite lunches: cucumbers and tomatoes from the garden, with some baby carrots thrown in. Add a little sprinkle of salt and some grapes, and she is smiles all around! (Of course she is still in her nightgown at lunchtime; told you we don't usually get dressed!)