Norah tied her shoes for the first time last Tuesday!

We were given a Lacing Peg Puzzle from a friend whose kids have outgrown it. We kept it with our school materials instead of with Norah's toys, where I'd usually keep a puzzle. Having it with our books helped us remember to practice more consistently. After handwriting or phonics, we'd grab it and Norah would tie a string or two as I coached her.

Within a few days, Norah was playing with the puzzle by choice, during her free time, tying all the strings on her own and bringing it to us for praise. Within a day or two more, I mentioned that she'd have to try it with real shoes while they were actually on her feet. She seemed excited about that.

The very next day, when we were getting ready to go run errands, she came out of her room saying, "Mom! I tied my shoes all by myself!" That's when I took the picture at the top of this post.

Now, the best thing is when she notices that her shoes have come untied, she just bends down and ties them herself, then goes right on playing. I snapped the picture above on July 4th, when she stopped to tie a shoe as she was playing with other kids from town before the fireworks started.

This just makes me smile. It's such a reward to see her use what she's learned, what I've taught her. Now I look forward to seeing her pick up a book by choice and read it to herself. That may actually bring tears to my eyes.