Hiding out

Dennis and I tossed a few ideas back and forth, today, as to what we should do with ourselves.  Dennis thought he might like to go for a long run, and so I thought I might him at some playground or other. But the kids were completely sated from yesterday's trip, so instead we spent a quiet day at home.

Our Cinder-Ella

That's not to say the kids weren't busy: Ella woke me up with her big plans, asking, at 7:30, if it was okay if she ran up to the train station to buy some candy.  Breakfast of champions.  I had her hold off until 8:00, and when she came back she was all excited: they had a brand new kind of licorice in the pick-a-mix box! It was delicious! What could she do to earn more money? Immediately?

Oh, so much, Ella.  I put her on clutter control, and when she made fast work of that, I gave her an old toothbrush and a rag and set her to work cleaning the bathroom sinks.  Can I tell you how delighted it makes me to have a kid who's old enough to clean the bathrooms?

Ella's hideout

However, I was amused to find that it all trickles down: I may have Ella to do my dirty work, but, when I asked Ella to clean up after her snack, Joey came toddling into the kitchen with Ella's pile of dirty dishes in his hands and a small piece of candy in his mouth.

I had the kids outside for a while in the morning, playing in the sand box, but they started getting a little grouchy at lunchtime: Ella was much happier in her room with her pizza and her candy and her books, and eventually she drifted out onto her patio, where she made a new secret hideout. Hide out she did, for about three hours.


And Joey napped for about three and a half.

So Alex took advantage of the situation, bringing me game after puzzle after book. Eventually he started getting wiggly, so I borrowed Ella's scooter and we explored the neighborhood a little, riding down to the next train stop.  Let it be said: I'm not especially graceful on a scooter.  But we had fun.  He showed me all his best places for finding lost earrings and other shiny things, and we discovered a water-sprinkler playground quite close to here that I'm sure we'll be glad to revisit in a month or two.

Clearly, every good hideout must have an umbrella.  You
know, for stealth.

When we got back, tired Alex finally noticed Ella's hideout and decided to make one of his own.  I asked him what he would do in there. Well, Ella was reading, so that was his plan, too. "I'm just going to get a pile of books and look at them."

Long about then, nochElla and Paul wandered over with a couple of bags of water balloons.  I watched Ella disappear behind the building in her bathing suit, with Alex trailing after, and that was that.  Joey kept me company, though, and earned himself another whole chocolate egg for toilet training.

When he used the potty again, soon after, I told him, "Oh, good job, Joey.  How about a little piece of chocolate now?"  He looked at me, aghast: "No! Chocolate Egg!" He's no dummy.  But I didn't have any more eggs...so, how about a different little chocolate.

He spoke slowly, and used small words, so I would be sure to understand: "No mommy. No little chocolate. Big chocolate."

While all this was going on, Dennis was working on a program that I'd commissioned for Ella.  I'd wished I had something that she could customize for the vocabulary lists she's always being given in school, and so he put this together for her.

Well, I thought it was just wonderful, but Ella was less than thrilled. She did admit that, if she had to study German, it was better than any other option.  Although she thought it would be better if Daddy could have added a little dragon or a mouse or something: "All good programs have a little cartoon friend to encourage you."

See what you can do about that, Dennis.  You know, in all your spare time.