The advantages of literacy

I'm starting to notice the benefits of Ella being able to read. For example, I suddenly realised she is now reading the whole title of recorded tv shows on our PVR hard-drive instead of just looking at the first letter and guessing. Or asking me to read it for her.

And it's quite handy that I can now write notes to her, as I discovered this morning.

We got to school early today only for me to discover that there was no food of any description in Ella's schoolbag. I put the blame fair and square on her as it is her responsibility to pack her bag. And I was not impressed about having to now lose time by dropping off her lunch order and recess on the way to work and the potential nightmare of having to find a carpark at the school around 9am. So when Ella asked me if I could also get 20c from her money stash so she could buy the jelly that I had agreed she could get, I refused. My argument to her was that I did not want to waste yet more time by having to get the money from her room though my real reason was that I thought she should feel the consequences of forgetting to check her bag before we left.

But as I grabbed her food from the dining table, I mellowed and went to get 20c of her bedside drawers. I didn't want to distract her by giving it to her directly in class, so I decided to sticky-tape it to a bit of cardboard and stick it it in her bag of popcorn. And as an afterthought I wrote on the card - in my neatest printed writing: "Best mum?".

  

New technology

They started on our kitchen renos yesterday. As we had no power for a while, I was having a rest under my warm doonah while Ella entertained one of the tradies who was having a break. She walked back and forth to show him an array of balloons and toys. Then I heard following monologue from the kitchen:

Ella - And you probably wouldn't have done this at your school when you went to school, but we have a special song. It's 'Count us in' and the song is on the internet. And an internet is err... an internet is err...
Me - Ella, I'm sure he knows what the internet is, sweetie.

I should've not said anything to find out how she was going to explain 'an internet' to an 'old person'.

  

Culinary holiday

They're starting on the replacement of my kitchen next week so it has to be completely emptied.

Ella - Can we eat in the tower restaurant this weekend?
Me - No we can't because I have to pack up the kitchen.
Ella - Is it going on a holiday?
Me - No, I think it'll be going to the tip.
Ella - Oh no! Don't say that. Imagine that the tip is actually a holiday place for kitchens?
Me - A kitchen resort, that's great!
Ella - And it's called the Kitchen Holiday Tip House.
Me - Lucky kitchen!

Dramatic

Ella seemed a bit unwell today but wanted to go to school. So I tried to spur her on to get all her stuff together. She walked back into the bedroom after a fruitless expedition to find her shoes:

Ella - [quivering lip, close to tears] Mum! Why didn't you answer my question?
Me - Because I didn't hear you at all.
Ella - [starts crying quite dramatically] And now [sob] I can't [sob] remember what [sob] the question was [sob, sob, sob].

She cried even harder when I burst out laughing.

I decided to keep her home from school until she's feeling less fragile.

Duh moment #423

I left the dog with her coat on this morning but when I came home from work the coat was nowhere to be seen.

Me - Luna, what happened to your coat?
Ella - Maybe a thief took it.
Me - What kind of person goes around stealing coats of dogs?
Ella - A thief who has a dog.

Duh.

Aww moment 345

I was reading an email from my niece in Belgium.

Me - Kaatje asks how you're going?
Ella - Good.
Me - Is that all you want to say to her?
Ella - "Ik hou van jou."
Me - Do you want to write it yourself? You can write it in English.
Ella - Why can I write it in English?
Me - Because Kaatje understands English now. She's learning it at school.
Ella - Does she know 'I love you'?
Me - I think she does.
Ella - Because school told her that the first day she went there, because it's so important to know that word.

 

Predictable

Watching Masterchef together:

Gary - "And the winner of the mystery box challenge this week is..."
Ella and me - Ads.
[I skip through the ad break]
Gary - "And the winner of the mystery box challenge this week is..."
Ella and me - Alvin.
Gary - "Alvin!"
Me - This show is getting a bit predictable, isn't it?
Ella - Yeah.