Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Teaching a Child to Iron

Genevieve was very excited when I told her the time had come for her to learn to iron.  She is 6-and-a-half, in case you wondered.


The adjustable ironing board made this easy.  I ironed one hanky and then handed the napkins over to her.  Watching my daughter handle a very hot iron was not easy, but she did great!  I stayed nearby and my main directions (with no forethought) were "wiggle and push! wiggle! push down hard!"


A few times I had to remind her to set the iron on its heel instead of burning an iron-print on the ironing-board cover.



But that evening, when I could tell our guests that Genevieve had ironed their napkins, everyone beamed with pride.  It is truly exciting to see a child maturing.

11 comments:

Polly said...

wonderful! good for you for teaching this important life skill. your Gen is a sweet and lovely looking little girl. Love that skirt!!

beth said...

Oh what a SWEETIE! Great job Genevieve!!! Woo Hoo!!! YOur mom's ironing board is so pretty. Reminds me I need to recover MINE!!!

Mary Ann said...

Good job, Genevieve! We learned to iron hankies at around age 6!

Jennifer Jo said...

She's positively glowing.

Rebecca said...

Atta girl!

BLD in MT said...

Awesome!

Christian - Modobject@Home said...

Precious! Children love it when we trust them enough to execute an adult task.

Sew Blessed Maw [Judy] said...

How fantastic Mom.. you took the time to teach and spend time with your daughter.. How fun and rewarding..
The hankies was a perfect learning item.. And what fun to tell everyone ..look Geneveie ironed our napkins..
Great job Genevie.
My grandaughters are 11 and 13.. Their mom taught them to iron very early too. They now iron their own school clothes, and helps their mom out alot..

Rhonda said...

this exactly how I remember first ironing as a little girl - doing hankies and pillow cases.

Sarah Barry said...

It makes me downright giddy to think someone in my house will be capable of ironing besides me. (Of course my husband can iron, but I can't say I've ever seen him do it.)

Is age 3 too early to start?!

Ha.

Tracey said...

I definitely need to work on this homemaking skill with my daughters! Thanks for the encouragement.