Maggie’s Post-It Note Binder

My daughter is a slob. Let’s get that out of the way up front. She makes messes and moves on — blithely.

Yesterday she sat at the kitchen counter with a stack of index cards, Post-It Notes, tape, a laptop, a variety of colored markers, a clunky three-ring binder, and scissors.

“What are you up to, Mags?” I asked.

She grunted, shrugged, hummed and mumbled in a barely-communicative manner. Something about decorating the cover of her notebook. Whatev.

I found the result of her efforts amidst the detritus this morning: scissors and markers and scattered paper scraps on the floor from all that cutting, cutting, cutting. Here’s the new cover of my fifth-grade daughter’s black binder:

Maggie has always left notes to herself around the house, usually in her bedroom, usually of the inspirational variety. I guess it beats photos of Justin Bieber.

I think she’s going to live an interesting life. To me, there’s a lot of stuff on here that I appreciate. But the most telling is the simplest, that smiley face in the upper right. That’s Maggie’s attitude, always has been. She’s genuinely baffled by people who aren’t happy. And in her mind, there’s nothing she can’t accomplish. Ah, youth and confidence. I hope she stays that way forever.

Crazy about her. To the point where we can live with the mess — without too much yelling.

4 comments

  1. Grandma Lee says:

    Mags,
    Work hard, Play hard, and if it’s not fun don’t do it.
    Grandma Lee

  2. Maria says:

    Please tell Maggie I LOVE her notebook and I will be sharing it with all of my fifth graders tomorrow at Bailey. What a great way to decorate the cover and better yet what amazing ideas to read all the time. My favorite one is: family first!! Thanks for sharing!!

  3. Juliana says:

    Very cool notebook. Totally worth the mess!

  4. Maria says:

    Please tell Maggie she inspired our whole class and thank you! http://teachingin21.blogspot.com/2011/11/follow-your-heart.html

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