Over the weekend, we attended a blueberry festival at the farm where we pick pumpkins, apples, and blueberries annually. While there were plenty of berries to pick, one of the best parts of the festival happened away from the blueberry bushes. It happened amongst the craft vendors.
Isabelle insisted on browsing the craft vendors’ wares. I felt myself get frustrated since Isabelle, like many kids her age, usually wants to blow her money on junk. She’s been saving her money and had $24 to spend. And that made me fearful she was going to buy $24 worth of junk! (Yes, I do have the final say. Like I said no to her buying stuffed animals. However, I can’t say no to everything!)
The second vendor’s tent she walked into was selling polymer clay-covered notebooks. They weren’t cheap: $12 for small ones and $24 for large ones. Isabelle insisted she wanted one. Even though it was a notebook, I felt my heart sink a little bit. Was this going to be an overpriced scribbling pad?
“Let’s come back after we pick raspberries and blackberries.”
Isabelle held me to that promise. Even though she visited other vendors’ tents, she bought a small notebook since “that will mean I’ll still have $12 left.” (Imagine how pleased I was with that declaration!)
Lo and behold, Isabelle has written in her new writer’s notebook the past two days. In fact, she’s pretty excited about writing in it. She’s decided to keep it in the car so she has something to do while we’re driving places. Of course, that makes looking up unfamiliar words and decent penmanship challenging, but I think she’s off to a great start. Take a look:
Perhaps I should’ve looked inside the notebook to make sure it would be appropriate (in terms of line size) for a rising second grader. But then again, she wants to write, so perhaps I should continue to have a hands-off approach on this one!
Raising Literate Humans 
Let her write! This slice gave me chills – she chose the notebook and is writing because she wants to write what’s on her mind – these are beautiful habits for a writer to play with! I love how she’s capturing the highlights of her days, dating them and all! I’d love to know more about playing at the pool, Isabelle! Thanks for sharing!
I’d love to know more about that too! (My husband took her. I was home with a napping Ari.)
The power of a new notebook… and one she purchased on her own! What a moment! My daughter, Wren, keeps. Notebook and pencil box in the car. I’ll have to peek in to see what she’s been up to.
I hope you are amazed when you open Wren’s notebook. I’m pretty sure you will be.
I LOVE a new notebook. A fresh bunch of pages. What a sweet purchase that shows her love of writing. 🙂
I hope so! She’s been electing to do more writing-related things since school let out. Music to this mama’s ears.
This is absolutely amazing. She made such a thoughtful purchase and is using the notebook authentically. This slice is like a little happy dance.
I was doing a happy dance. Glad you could feel it!
What a wonderful story of a first writing notebook. Your modeling (finicial and literary) is paying off.
I’ve been covering the tax on her purchases. Wait till I teach her about that in another year or so. That’s going to blow her mind!
How exciting! Your slice made me smile. It’s amazing how she purchased her first writer’s notebook all on her own! She’s definitely on the right track!!!
It made my literacy consultant heart VERY happy… which is why I’m trying to be as hands-off as possible. I’m biting my tongue about everything from the squished print to the oddly-placed dates. I will NOT squash her spirit!
This is worth celebrating! I love that she picked it out herself. I’m so envious of these four words: “We went to Wegman’s.” I fell in love with Wegman’s when my daughter lived in Ithaca. There’s nothing like it in the Northwest!
Oh, Wegmans! I don’t know how we’d survive here without it.
I love this!! My 7 year old also wants to spend her own money on things. She bought herself a handmade stuffy at the Farmer’s Market this week and it is horrendous! It’s called a VooDoo doll, but she thinks it’s a monster. She was so proud of herself for using her own money and making the purchase herself. It’s hard to let them “waste” money, but it’s such a valuable experience. I’m hoping there will be some buyer’s remorse so we don’t end up with a family of these creepy dolls!
Hahaha! Oh, Clare! I, too, hope she outgrows this creepy doll phase. (See, I already labeled it a phase, so it’ll be short-lived.)
What a special moment for you both to remember- a first writer’s notebook of Isabelle’s choosing! I love how she stuck to what she wanted and even figured out how much money she would have left. She is clearly living like a writer- yay! I’d say just let her write!
You know how long I’ve waited for something like this to happen. Now I’m going to be totally hands-off. That being said, she did ask me to see my collection of writer’s notebooks (since I told her she didn’t need White Out when she made a mistake) this weekend.
She seems to be doing just fine with whatever lines are there. What a heartwarming thought , a beautiful writers notebook for a writer.
Bravo for Isabelle! And kudos to you, Stacy, for planting the seeds for her budding writing. I love the whimsical bird on the cover, too!
What a wonderful slice. So much joy for both of you! Her writing is charming.