Sew Cute!

Last summer I read the "Ramona" books by Beverly Clearly to Alayna and Isaac at bedtime.  In one book a sewing day is described, and since then Alayna has wanted to learn to sew.  I've put her off and put her off, until yesterday.  Alayna was gifted a cute Hello Kitty sewing machine from a doting relative, and I didn't see how I could say 'no' any longer.  I was close to her age when my mother began to teach me.  I remember lesson number 1:  lined paper.  Let the thread-less needle puncture the paper as the pupil tries to keep as straight on the line as possible.  Soon we advanced to using actual thread on the paper, following a lesson on threading the machine.  I think the first article I sewed was a drawstring bag, so maybe I'll let her make one of those or bean bags or something.  She got very frustrated when the bobbin thread jammed--I told her over and over that that happens to everybody--and I hope I was a pleasant enough teacher she'll want to continue lessons with me.

Serendipitous perk to giving 7-year-old daughter sewing lessons:  since I was restricted to the confines of the laundry room for her tutelage, I got the much-neglected room tidied up quite splendidly!