Vegan Lunchbox

Check out Vegan Lunchbox for great snacks and lunches for kids (and grownups). She has links to all her recipes as well. You really couldn't pay me to stop eating cheese, or shrimp for that matter, but this blog is wonderful. We might never have another Teddy Graham.

Last friday at school a mom brought in jello for everyone, cups of jiggley artificially coloured horse hooves that we don't eat at our house. Ella loved it, but her friend was very suspicious. He touched it, shook it, and refused to eat it saying, "I think it has a muscular foot." He thought it was some kind of snail. I love him.

Ellainabubble

Ellainabubble, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

sciencegirl

sciencegirl, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

Ella is at the Zoo with Granny and Grampy.

Grandmarie's Country

We just spent a few days in the country playing. It was good to be outside. E's friend Rory says to her, "Let's play God. I'm God, and you are the person. You are going to die now." Ella says nervously, "Now?". Rory says, "Oh, don't worry. I'm going to take your spirit up to heaven". Ella, even more nervously says, "Now?". This is the girl that thought Jesus was a truck with monkeys on it. Last night I asked her who God was, and she brushed me off quickly, "Oh, you know, he is in the Nutcracker. Eyepatch." Oh, get us over to that Unitarian Church soon.

the tongue

This face make the whole family crack up at least once a day. In his efforts to learn to speak he is trying out all these new positions for his tongue and lips. I think he sticks it out and then doesn't really know how to consciously pull it back in.

bumped

The surgery was rescheduled for next thursday. Sister is still off on her adventure and is at the Washington Zoo today. The heat pump was dead when we got back to town, so our home warranty is getting a workout.

Babybug

When Ella was born she got a subscription to Babybug magazine from her grandparents. It really isn't a magazine, but a little book that comes once a month with stories and rhymes. Now John is reading his Babybugs, and I just sent a friend who is expecting her son this week a subscription. The other night Ella was looking through her books and choosing a few for bedtime. She was talking to herself in front of her bookcase about what she was seeing, and she ran her hand across a group of worn books on the lowest shelf, "Those are my Babybugs". When we read them to John she sits in and "reads" to him.

Berry Goodness

When a four year old tells you their cranberry juice isn't sweet enough what do you do? Climb onto a high horse I guess. I saw a mom get all apologetic and add two packets of Splenda. "She is so picky about her juice." In my mind juice is a treat, and the Splenda is like giving a kid a big spoonful of battery acid.

casual friday, preschool style

casual friday, preschool style, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

We have fashion issues at our house. Ella wants to dress up like the queen at all times, and she wants to change her clothes seventy two times a day. It was weighing on me. There is another little girl at school critiquing Ella's clothes in a most high school sort of way, (the same one who told her she was fat and that the only way to remove it would be to remove her skin, some sort of distorted liposuction), so we are really downplaying clothes for a while. I'm picking what she will wear, and we are keeping it simple for school for a while. I'm trying to give her some vocabulary for responding to the mean girl, namely, "That just isn't even true!" Hopefully said little girl will grow boring. Always intuitive, E says that this little girl has to be bossy at school because at home no one pays attention to her. I love all the kids in Ella's class--except this one.

E actually seems much happier now that clothes are somewhat off her mind. She is happy as long as I promise that I will pick a dress four out of seven days. Four going on twenty five.

Strolling to story hour

She pushed this stroller the one mile to the library and then back again. She had a sippy cup and her snack in the basket. On the way back we stopped at the coffee shop because mama desperately needed a cup of coffee. Here is an oya baka moment for you. When given a choice of snacks she picked the 1/2 tuna sandwich on oatmeal molasses bread with provolone cheese and sprouts, no tomato. She chose this over a cookie, and I am worshipping her.

in case you are looking for henry

in case you are looking for henry, originally uploaded by ellajohn. I found this pointing finger on two graves in Central Cemetery. This cemetery is about a block from our house and an interesting place to walk around with E. The earliest burial date I saw was 1839.

central cemetery

central cemetery, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

john

john, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

helper

helper, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

He sits

John sat on his own for minutes at a time today. I think he was as amazed as Ella and I were.

He got the go ahead from his pediatrician to proceed with his surgery at UVA next thursday morning.

Not flying

We are having an at home day. It is raining, and I'm thinking about what could be made into soup. Hopefully Ella can decompress from whatever has been going on with her lately (She is playing trains and singing to herself right now, so I have hope). We are going to paint, make a poster of all her rules, and have some table manners "classes".

Baby had a fever in the night following his shots yesterday. I gave him tylenol, and he seems fine this morning, eating, nursing, and grinning like a banshee. OMG, I just want to sleep through the night.

Volitant

That was the word of the day at the coffee shop today.

So, at four and a half Ella is just about unbearable much of the time. She is at her absolute worst with me. She is talking in this inane baby talk like another little girl at preschool, the same one she had a time out with at school recently for talking about clothes instead of listening to the story. After years of giving her choices and letting her be a big girl, I'm taking back the power. I am choosing her clothes, and the time outs are getting longer. I think she is spoiled. When she is good she is a dear, and when she is bad she is absolutely horrid. Today she put a whole banana in her mouth. She needs naps, exercise, no treats, no TV, and no one telling her how cute she is for quite a while.

bungee baby

bungee baby, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

tree

tree, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

dinner

table

table, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

ben tat

ben tat, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

7 month birthday

7 month birthday, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

a fine old ghost

a fine old ghost, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

This was in southern Maryland.

owl

owl, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

After years of looking I finally saw an owl. We were stopped at the Chancellorsville battlefield outside of Fredricksburg to nurse the baby, and he was sitting in the largest tree in the field at dusk. He few across the field and had a huge wingspan.

ben on the road

ben on the road, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

john and ella

john and ella, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

museum tripping

museum tripping, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

I started sitting alone today

I started sitting alone today, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

I am seven months old today

dancing in the lobby..living at the Omni

dancing in the lobby..living at the Omni, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

dynamic duo

dynamic duo, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

got the tat

got the tat, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

What is with the tough girl lip and the pose?

ready to travel

ready to travel, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

john john

john john, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

Eloise Redux

Overheard while Ella was sitting on the toilet....she is singing at the top of her lungs, "I'm living at the Omni, Dancing in the lobby. I'm living at the Omni, Dancing in the lobby. "

Greetings from the eleventh floor

We are looking out across downtown Philly contemplating where to go for dinner. We are slightly constrained by the littles in that they don't really work in romantic candlelit restaurants, and they don't know the word "linger". We are thinking Japanese.

Ella already has two Ben Franklin tatoos and is in the spirit. We are staying right in the heart of the historic district, I'm looking forward to checking out the art museum tomorrow, perhaps while John and Ella are on their ballet date.

Driving with Benjamin

We are headed north towards Philadelphia for the weekend. E and J are going to a performance of the Pennsylvania Ballet on saturday.... one depicting the inventions of Benjamin Franklin and anther of the Firebird, a Russian Folk Tale. Back sunday.

Sixty Thousand

I hate to lose on Ebay. I did not win the girls red Dansko clogs for Ella by fifty one cents, and it has me mad. I tried to explain the whole process of the auction to Ella and her answer...."You should have bet sixty thousand. " I am cheap yet drowning in desires. What would the Buddha say?

shorts day

shorts day, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

sister's got me

sister's got me, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

saturday morning at the library

saturday morning at the library, originally uploaded by ellajohn.

Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss

For two nights in a row little J has slept eight hours at a stretch. Now, I haven't. I listen to them breathing on the baby monitor and wait for them to wake up.

I took them to story hour at the Smalltown local library for the first time. Best part about the library--we can walk there, and they have lots of children's programs. Mrs. Judy is an almost elderly librarian from Greensboro, North Carolina, and when she says "on" she really says "own". As in Hop Own Pop. It is lovely.

It was on oya baka debacle in that Ella knows all the words to both "Put Me in the Zoo" and "Fox in Socks", so the other kids didn't even have a shot. She was right there with Judy ready to recite the story in case she faltered for a second. No other kid got to answer a single question, and I may be shunned. Ella loved it.