She has inexplicably tidy handwriting - inexplicably has handwriting at all; inexplicably can spell fifteen words in twenty instead of zero - which she uses, rather a lot. She makes a list of things that are food and magnetizes it to the fridge for reference, adding to it when she locates more things that are food, and when she is trying to tackle complex books she takes notes on who all the characters are so she doesn't have to page backward to remind herself, and she discovers journaling, even though she doesn't have that many events to record.
One day, the event she has to record is: Chris says to morrow she wil go to the DMV and shud not have us ther becas it may take six ours. We wil be baybe sat. If I hav ben baybe sat be for I do not remembre it.
She is curious about the imminent babysitter, and is up bright and early on the day when same may be expected.
The babysitter arrives after breakfast. She rings the doorbell, and Lizbeth lets her in.
Katie had romaine for breakfast. She peers curiously at the babysitter, the last half-leaf in her hand; she isn't sure yet if she wants to finish it or not.
"Virginia! Hi," says Chris. "Thanks so much. Katie, meet Virginia. Virginia, this is Katie."
"Hi, 'ginya," abbreviates Katie. Her accent is fading, some, but it still trips her up occasionally.
"All right," says the recently renamed Gina, "who wants to watch me do my math homework?"
"Okay!" says Katie, who doesn't know whether math homework makes a good spectator sport but is willing to try it on Lizbeth's say-so.
Virginia laughs. She goes to sit on the couch, and lets Lizbeth sit on one side and Katie on the other while she opens her textbook and starts doing algebra.
Katie watches for about ten minutes, waiting for this to become interesting, then says, "I'm bored."
"Yes, well, not everyone is a tiny mathematician," says Gina. "What do you want to do, Katie?"