Life With Ella

Ella didn’t have school today – there was a professional development day for the teachers.  Good thing I don’t have a job right now.  Ella and I spent the day together.  We ran around town getting stuff for Halloween, running errands, and I had an emergency dentist appointment (one of my crowns came off and now I need an implant).  We ended the day at Ella’s ballet class.  We had a fun day together and accomplished everything.  Tomorrow is our last day of mental and emotional rest before the World Series begins. Ella decided to wear her rainbow tights to go with the new rainbow vans that Sunny got her. One happy kid – breakfast at Happy DOnuts! Skilpping across the room in ballet. Ella picked out this new red leotard/tutu combo at the store today where we got her tap shoes to finish off her Annie costume. Ella still had a lot of energy after our very full day.  Here she is running down Bay Street!

Grandma and papa left this morning.  Sad to see them go but really happy that they will be back soon for Thanksgiving.  We love you guys!  Hard to believe that by the time you come back, Ella will be 5!  We spent the rest of the day just hanging around the house, watching TV, doing laundry, trying to really let it sink in that the Giants are going to the world series!!!  We gave Ella a Word Girl costume that we got for her a while ago.  Ella loved it and wore for about 5 hours today.  We finally left the house to meet Debby and Toby for dinner at Eliza’s.  We need to get some good rest for a very exciting week starting on Wednesday. Grandma, Ella and papa.  Hope things start to feel better papa! Word girl flying off the bench! Ella made this note for Javier Lopez and we put it under his door tonight. Word Girl delivering the note. Showered, clean and out to dinner.

Wow – what a night in more ways that one!  The Giants won the National League pennant tonight.  The Giants will be playing in the world series!  It’s going to be quite a week.  Today we took a walk to the Ferry building and had lunch.  It started raining pretty hard on the way home so we took the train and then Ella went straight to TaeKwonDo.  Grandma and papa came for the end of the class and got to see Ella in action.  They loved it and she loved having them there.  After TaeKwonDo, Ella hung out in the apartment with grandma and papa and Sunny and I went over to Mijita to watch the game.  The game was a little crazy making but it was so much fun to hang out and be with friends and strangers.  We left Mijita in around the 4th inning to meet grandma, papa and Ella to go out to dinner at Nama.  We were all leaving to go out to dinner and Ella and papa were going down the hallway pretending to be animals.  Then they were galloping.  Ella gallops sideways because that’s how she learned to do it in ballet.  Ella was down the hall when papa decided to gallop sideways too.  He’s not such a great sideways galloper and he fell and landed on his wrist- good thing he was galloping sideways because only one wrist was injured in the fall.  He was in a lot of pain and we decided that a trip to the emergency room was in order. Ella and Sunny went to Nama for dinner and grandma and I took papa to the ER.  It turns out that his wrist is broken and he will need surgery in NY when he gets home.  We’re so sorry that this happened papa.  We love you and hope your wrist feels better.  Stick to galloping forward. No more sideways galloping for you!  The best scene tonight was watching the 9th inning in the ER.  We were watching with a woman who’s mother had food poisoning from oysters, a man with a bad cut on his head, two paramedics, one of the male ER nurses, and a man who I think just came in to watch the end of the game but pretended that he had a medical emergency!  What a crazy night.  Go Giants.  Grandma and papa are leaving tomorrow morning.  We love you guys.  It was so great to have you here.  Can’t wait to see you during Thanksgiving. Go Giants!  Ella on her way out the door for our walk to the Ferry Building. Beautiful hug. Ella and papa “flying” over the walls on the Embarcadero. Walking home in the rain. Don’t mess with this beauty! Walking down the hallway like animals…there was the flamingo, the chicken, the penguin…should have never switched to the gallop!

Ella went to school this morning and then I picked her up at around 11:00 with grandma and papa.  Ella was so happy and excited.  We went to the Academy of Science, had some lunch and then explored!  It was the first time that we were there when it wasn’t really crowded.  We went to see the penguins, checked out the dinosaurs, went to the aquarium downstairs, went to the rain forest, hung out with some butterflies and then we left.  We went over to the DeYoung to see the special exhibit but there was too much time between when we were there and when the next available time was.  We walked around the main exhibits for a while and then went home.  Ella watched most of the Sound of Music with grandma and papa and then we all went out to dinner with Abigal and Ray.  After dinner, Ella finished watching the Sound of Music, grandma fell asleep and papa finished it with Ella.  Ella fell asleep at 10:30 tonight.  I hope she sleeps in.  I should be sleeping too!  It was a really great full day.  Ella is so curious about everything and it was beautiful to watch her run around the Academy and soak up all the information.  It’s great having grandma and papa here. Ella on the way to school this morning.  I didn’t take the Giants rubber bands out – I left them for Alicia to do.  I didn’t want Ella screaming at me this morning! Papa, Ella and grandma leaving CDS.  Ella has a beautiful new hair style and a very happy spring in her step.  She’s going to spend the whole day with grandma and papa. Ella was loving the penguins (papa’s power animal). Checking out some fish. Looking at an eel with his mouth open.  Looks like papa was pretending to be an eel! Ella spent a long time at this exhibit touching starfish, urchins and other sea life. Walking into the rain forest. Hanging upstairs watching the butterflies and the poison frogs. Ella with her new “friend” Peter.  She got this toy at the girt shop.  I had the same thing when I was a little kid. Too much fun with grandma and papa! Ella’s dinner at Scoma’s which she LOVED!

The first practical joke is that the Giants lost to the Phillies tonight.  That was not a funny joke.  Hopefully we can get em on Saturday in Philly.  Ella told her class that she was going to the game tonight.  We did not take Ella.  Alicia did give her a very special Giants hairdo.  Ella wanted to leave it in tonight to make sure that the Giants won.  Well, I don’t think it was the hair style’s fault that the Giants lost tonight – it was the Giant’s fault.  My parents flew in tonight.  When Ella woke up this morning, she said, “Are grandma and papa coming tonight?”  I told her that they were.  Then she said, “I have been waiting for this day!”  It should be such a fun weekend.  We got home at around 8:30 and then my parents came here at like 9:00.  Ella had a joke that she wanted to play.  We have a remote control fart machine so she wanted to get into bed to pretend that she was sleeping and then when my parents came into her room to kiss her goodnight, she was going to make the machine go off.  My dad was the first to go up and kiss her and all of a sudden I heard a fart sound and my dad cracking up.  Ella loved it.  She was laughing so hard too.  Then my mom went upstairs and Ella did the same thing.  My mom fell out laughing.  It was so much fun to see the 3 of them cracking up.  Now it’s time to go to sleep.  Ella is going to go to school in the morning and then we’re going to pick her up and either go to the Academy of Science or somewhere else.  Goodnight. Another Alicia masterpiece.  Maybe I’ll go to  beauty school so I can learn to be so creative. Ella playing with her old Zhu Zhu pets. Here we are at the game when the score was good and life felt easy.

I am going to keep my comments short – I took my ambien already and want to make sense.  I stared the day up with Ella’s pre school class.  The Leaping Lizards took their first field trip to a pumpkin patch.  The kids went through a hay maze, picked out pumpkins and went on a hay ride.  It was a really successful trip and the kids had a blast.  Later on in the afternoon we got together with Alicia, Ginny (a third grade CDS teacher), & Mary (our friend who works at CDS) and we all got ready to go to the ballgame.  THe game was fantastic and the Giants won-right down to the last out in the 9th inning.  This baseball season has been so exciting.  Here are the pics. Ella and Brickelle this morning having their moring hug. Here are a few great shots from the Pumpkin Patch trip.  These kids are so cute! Here we are at the ballgame. And the Giants win! Oy vey – I can’t believe the Giants did it!  Hopefully we will clinch tomorrow.  Good night.

What an incredibly exciting day.  We were all excited to go to the game.  Ella went to school from 8:30 – 11:00 and she was very excited too.  So excited that she was a little rude to some of the kids and was speaking in a snotty way.  Ms. Alicia took care of this all while at the same time realizing how excited Ella was to leave school and go to a playoff game.  Ella brought the Leaping Lizards Love the Giants sign and she proudly waved it during the game.  The Giants won the game and it was amazing.  Ella did a great job.  She made it all the way to the 5th inning before using the iTouch.  I think that’s pretty good.  After the game Stella and Juliet came over for a while and then we ate dinner, Ella took a shower and then we helped her get to sleep.  Tomorrow is the first field trip for Ella’s class.  We are going to a Pumpkin Patch.  Ella is very excited about this too.  Hope she’s not a jerk tomorrow. Ella playing with cinnamon smelling playdough this morning at school. Holding up the Leaping Lizard sign that Alicia and the kids made. New angler fish that Ella and I drew for this series.  As long as the angler fish stays, the team will win. A beautiful day at the ballpark. Rob Nen, JT Snow and Barry Bonds coming to throw out the first pitch.  It was exciting to have Barry back on the field.Ella waving her sign representing the Leaping Lizards. I think this is a great family shot.  We were all so happy.Ella and my iTouch. Sunny, Becca and Carl.  Three happy people. Sunny and Delia who joined us this afternoon. Ella wearing her rally rag at the end of the game. Ella and mommy at the end of a great game.

We had an early wake up from the girls…Brickelle woke up at 6:00 but rested for about another hour and 1/2 and then once Ella woke up, they were chatting away.  Brickelle stayed until around 11:00.  Ella and Brickelle had a fantastic time and it was a really successful first sleepover.  Right as Brickelle was leaving, Stella, Juliet and KJ came over.  Ella hated to see Brickelle go but LOVED seeing the Kim/Arena kids come!  They hung out for a few hours which was fun and great as usual and then we had to take off because Ella had a birthday party to go to in Marin.  It was a princess birthday party and Ella had a lot of fun until the end when she was so exhausted and ready to go.  After the party, we came back into the city, came home, Ella put on her Giants hoodie and we headed over to Mijita to have dinner and watch the game.  The Giants lost tonight but that’s ok.  Right now we are even in the series.  We are taking Ella to the game on Tuesday.  What a full and beautiful weekend. Brickelle and Ella just finishing up breakfast this morning. One of the many outfit combinations that the girls had on.  THey were dancing to the Nutcracker (video will be posted tomorrow – I’m too tired now). Stella, Ella and Juliet – the 3 musketeers. The princess birthday party this afternoon. One happy little princess. QUick change and we’re ready to cheer on the Giants. Let’s go Giants! Sunny and John at Mijita.nnJohn is getting ready for a crazy week at the restaurants. Ella and Hannah and Max who joined us at Mijita.

Ella is really growing up.  She’s becoming more and more curious, fun, emotional, and for the most part, a pleasure to be around.  I say for the most part because she has developed this annoying habit where when she doesn’t get her way she says, “You’re the worstest mama (or mommy) in the world”.  On one hand, she’s trying to express her feelings, but on the other hand, what she is saying has nothing to do with feelings.  We are trying to help her find emotion words like, “I am angry” or “I feel sad” or anything but the worstest.   Anyway, that’s pretty much the most annoying thing at the moment.  It’s just part of getting control and stuff.  Now the beautiful stuff, Ella loves life, loves school, loves hanging out with other kids, loves hanging out with us.  She is so enthusiastic about everything and she is becoming her own beautiful person. Ella yesterday when I gave her a high bun. On the way to school this moring. On the way to the soccer practice with a beautiful Ms. Alicia hairdo. Chillin’ at practice. Action shot. Playing in the park after practice. Beautiful leap.