Grandma Vickkks posting

Since grandma Vickkk is having a hard time posting comments, here is the latest from her:
So fun to hear how Ella is communicating.
She uses her own blue eyes to communicate too. When I kept her last
Friday, we were having scrambled eggs. I would look away and then back
quickly to her eyes. She thought this was hilarious..she would do the
same--look away and then quick make eye contact--and laugh and laugh.We
must have done this a dozen times and each time was funnier than the
one before. This is a subtle form of peep-eye (Southern version of
peek-a-boo) and this one truly uses the eyes. Grandma Vickkk

Mama's eyesa blck!

So I was trying to teach Ella about eye colors the other day. "Ella, what color are your eyes?" "bluuu." "Yes, that's right. What color are mamas eyes?" "blckkk." "No, mama's eyes are brown. What color are mama's eyes?" "Blckkk!" Oh well, I guess that's the way it goes. Ella also thinks that the broom is a "brussshhhh!!" and wants to help out with the sweeping whenever she can. We are going to try and find a smaller baby-sized broom so she can get started early on chores.

Dirt Cake

So last night we are enjoying an evening on the deck -- classic summer fare: hamburgers, corn, watermelon, and a half-eaten coffee health bar crunch piece of cheesecake form the cheesecake factory. And, of course, Ella is all over the "CAKE!!" which she has decided to call "dirt cake" becuase she thinks the oreo crust looks like dirt. Despite this being dirt to her, she readily ate most all of it. Jared is worried that when he goes out of town today that Ella and I will just eat crackers and cake for dinner every night... and, so what if we do :).

Travelling Ellaberry

Ella is s traveling wonder. In the past month, she has visited St. Louis and checked out the penguins at the St. Louis zoo, travelled to North Carolina and sepnt time beachin' it at the Seaside Club, and then this psat weekend to.... Moorhead, MN! Jared took Ella up there to see her grandparents. I stayed back to finish my dissertation, but it sounds like I missed some cute sayings. Apparently when Jared was talking to her about seeing grandma ArNetta, Ella would say "ruru?" (after grandma Ruth). And then she would say "viCK" in response to other inquires about grandmas. Jared's theory was that "ruru" meant grandmas she doesn't see very often and "viCK" meant grandmas she sees more regularly.
Ella's vocabulary is quite expansive. Here are some recollections: nose, back, cheek (she wants to put the Burt Bees cream on her CHEEK!), bounce, blue (every color is blue) and of course, BABY! Ella has also learned about the concept of her "safe space" (leave it to us shrinks), which comes in handy whenever I am vacuuming.