Today Timothy, Mark and I played math games. We pulled out the flash cards, dominoes, matching games, geoshapes, dice, and of course,

the buttons.

Whenever I pull out my collection of buttons, I smile because they were given to me by my mother-in-law during my first month teaching Paige at home.

My mother-in-law sorted buttons of all shapes and colors and put them in little containers with color-coordinated lids; some lids were hand-painted to match the buttons inside. “They will be helpful in Math,” she said. She bundled everything up in a package and mailed them to me.

That package meant so much to me because it said without words, “I support you in your decision.”

Since that time, we have had many generous donations to our school from family and friends. But these buttons were the first.

And 9 year later, the buttons and that quiet support are still treasured.