They Tie Their Shoes!!!

Today was one of those parenting milestones you don't hear a lot about. It falls into the same category as kids being able to open car doors and buckle themselves in, or making their own breakfast in the morning (a recent development here as well!). But tying shoes... Oh boy. I actually bought Niko a pair of lace-up shoes a couple months ago, thinking that they would give him the motivation he needed to learn to tie them. And he WAS very interested, but he also got frustrated. And I got frustrated. I tried a few different ways of explaining it, all of which seemed to just confuse him more (and me, too, to be honest). I mean, I was a teacher for almost 12 years, but teaching kids to tie shoes was never something I had to do!

Today, though, we went out shopping for school stuff. Yes, in July. And yes, we're pretty much done. I even found the kids awesome soccer cleats for $6/pair! I am officially in love with the local kids consignment store. Seriously. The stuff is used, but you wouldn't know it-- they don't accept anything that's not in like-new condition. And I walked away with probably over $100 worth of stuff for $40. So I call that a win! And look how cute they are, practicing for soccer! :)

After that, we went to another store to pick up a few other things. While we were there, we looked at shoes. I grabbed a pair of velcro sneakers for Niko, since they were the style I liked and were the right size. And I unknowingly started World War 3, because Niko apparently ONLY wants shoes with laces now. So, I told him that I wouldn't get him any shoes today, and that if he learned to tie laces, we'd come back and get the ones he wanted. I even picked up a pair of cheap blue laces to help teach him (I'd seen something on Pinterest that I thought might work).

I guess that was all it took! We got home, I put everything away, and Niko instantly started begging me to teach him. I went out to the garage, cut two equal-sized pieces off of a cardboard box, punch holes in them with scissors, threaded the laces through, and copied down the little poem I'd seen on the internet. And really, the poem didn't help much. What DID help was sitting him in my lap and having him put his hands right over my own. My little kinesthetic learner! It took a few minutes, and then bam! He started doing this! And he just got faster and faster! At that point, Maya was sitting on the couch, trying to tie laces on her own, and was begging me to teach her, too. So I did. It took like a few minutes longer, but then she was doing this!!! (Yes, we made both videos to show Gus, in case you couldn't tell!)

Anyway, I was shocked at how quickly it went! As it's always been with Niko, he WILL NOT learn something until he is completely ready to do it... and then he picks it up like it's nothing. And, as always, Maya is full of surprises. She may not be as vocal or opinionated as her brother, but she is just as smart! I was so proud of both my babies today-- and they were so proud of themselves!

Next up? Telling time, I guess. Why not? We're on a roll! haha!! :)