the ELLA echo

thing #44: harmonicas

ella:  "mama, how come the only instrument in jail is a harmonica?"

me:  "because it's small, it isn't too loud, and lots of people can learn to play the harmonica pretty quickly."

ella:  "how come most people try to get out of jail?"

me:  "because it's no fun.  you don't have your family, you don't have a tv or phone or computer, you don't have books, you only have a bed and a place to go potty."

ella:  "AND a harmonica."  

thing #43: ella's schedule

it is time to revive this project.  :)

this is the schedule ella dictated this morning, there are some gaps in her day but at least she is trying to organize her time.  

ella's list

6:00am-8:00am sleep

9:00am-9:30am eat breakfast

10:00am-10:30am play with orange cat 

[note:  we don't have an orange cat]

11:00am-11:30am eat tuna

12:30pm-1:00pm play with calico cat  

[we do have one of these]

1:30pm-2:00pm eat after playing so much

2:30pm-3:00pm play with spotted cat  

[she is spotted, sort of]

3:30pm-4:00pm sleep alot

5:00pm-6:00pm eat dinner

7:00pm sleep all night

8:00pm-9:00pm dream

5:00am-5:30am play nighttime hunting

thing #42: wit and wisdom

about a comb that her cousin sophie gave her:

"mama, sophie let me choose the red one or the blue one.  i choosed the red one.  but now i decided that i need to call this color pink."

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about sugar cubes:

"first you put some sugar, then you put some water, then you pour them in the ice cube tray and freeze them, and that's how you get sugar cubes."

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about the seven dwarfs:

"dopey must be adopted.  he doesn't have a beard."

 

 

thing #41: ring toss dinner

i wish i had dated this--it is a recipe that ella dictated to me sometime last year, i think in the spring.

ring toss dinner

• lemonade
• watermelon
• broccoli
• bread
• corn

stir it all up.  don't deget ("forget") the corn.  add a big piece of baking powder.  this makes it hard.  then squeeze it out and add some chocolate milk.  drink the chocolate milk for your mouth.

thing #40: 4 year check up

40 lbs., 41.5" inches tall, 90/60 blood pressure, 20/10 vision

picture perfect in every way.

we met ella's new doctor, dr. huss.  she replaced our beloved dr. greeley who has moved with her family to houston.  we liked dr. huss right away and i think she will be beloved too.

after our visit with the doctor, the nurse came to give ella her 4-year-old booster shots and surprised us by also doing a finger prick to test for iron and lead levels.  this would have been fine except that she took about 2 tablespoons, ONE DROP AT A TIME, which took forever and involved squeezing ella's little finger over and over for almost 5 minutes.  this HURT.  i know it was in the service of good health care but really, that should have been done in a separate appointment--the blood sucking plus three shots was just too much for one day.  ella was brave but after all that she was wiped out and so was i.  on the upside, she got four crayon band-aids and some great war stories to share at playing school today.

thing #39: who what when where and why

who
grandsisters:  girl cousins
uncles:  includes aunts--basically any of my siblings
brothers and sisters:  whoever she designates for the day
each chother:  each other (the words both have "ch")
current imaginary playmates are:  grophie, boobah, moodle, tootie, and glass

what
!   extramation point
'   commaphe (CAH-muh-fee)
?  question point
up letter:  upper case
down letter:  lower case

when
last day:  any day before today
next day:  any day after today
and brand new as of this morning:  lasterday:  yesterday

where
playing school:  preschool
working school:  blair
detend school:  pretend school, wherever she designates, usually the living room

why
"oh, dada said yes."
"oh, grophie wanted some."
"oh, this one is for you, mama."

thing #38: the view from the back seat

ella has bee using my camera to take pictures--LOTS of pictures.  i love getting to see the world from her perspective.

thing #37: doodle pad self portrait

thing #36: games

ella has started making up games and giving them names:

whowacky (HOO-wack-ee):  ella, rudi, and i sit on the floor with our legs apart and feet touching, making a circle.  we each have a ball, none of them match.  when ella says "whowacky" we all start saying whowacky and start passing the balls around randomly, basically trying to keep from having any ball in our posession.  the winner is whoever is playing.

maplie (MAY-pull-eye):  this is a sandbox game.  i am the maplie boy, she is the maplie girl.  i smooth out the sand, then she stands on the smooth sand and starts wiggling until she falls down ("i maplied").  the script is:

ella:  hi maplie boy, i'm the maplie girl.

me:  hi maplie girl, would you like to maplie?

ella:  sure, i'm ready for go!

the winner is always supposedly ella but it is really always me, because i get to watch her laugh with joy.

she has other games but i haven't been able to learn them all yet because she plays them with her new friends grophie, glass, boobah, tootie, and moodle.  i'm told they are green, yellow, pink, blue, and red, and they have great eating habits.

thing #35: signs of the times

the following is a public service message from the Extremely Literal Learning Association, or E.L.L.A.

"don't drive curvy":

"no letters on the road":

"no smokerettes":

also, please note that all arrows apply specifically to the movement of squirrels.