happy burbay!

that's "happy birthday" in harrison-speak.  

i could listen to him say "happy burbay" over and over and over again.  because i have a feeling that he won't be saying it when we celebrate year number three.  

this year we celebrated with a monkey theme.  his invitations said "monkey see, monkey do...harrison is turning two.  so, swing on over and go bananas with us".  the original plan was to meet for a play-date at the park but the weather forced us inside.  everyone came over here to play, then we made "monkey" cupcakes and ate them.  messy, but fun!

after our friends left, meme & papa stayed to eat lunch, cupcakes, and to open presents.

harrison was SPOILED!  he got a sandbox with sand toys, a big wheel, a thomas the train set, a bosch tool/work bench, one of those big balls that you sit and bounce on, a ball pit, and some bubble toys.  the child is not hurting for things to do.

the pictures: 

i had to take this one of harrison's curls.  yes, some might call that a mullet.  i call it precious.  i live for the days when he takes a shower in the morning with daddy because then his hair stays cute all day.  if he takes a bath at night the bed-head is ridiculous.  hilarious, but ridiculous.  he actually got a haircut yesterday, so it will take quite some time to grow it back out to this stage (if ever).

our friend cadence and harrison had a great time running around outside after they decorated and ate their cupcakes.

too cute for words.

our beloved meme & papa...the best grandparents a boy could ask for.

a monkey cupcake.  i made this one.  cadence's cupcake turned out pretty great.  harrison's little monkey had a "smile" in between his two crooked eyes.  it all tasted the same, though!

graham wanted to play with harrison's new train set.  i'm sure one day the boys will have a fantastic time playing together!

happy burbay to you, happy burbay to you...  harrison didn't want to blow out his candles because they are "hot".  daddy and i had to help.

riding his new "motorcycle" off into the sunset.  did i mention that he is spoiled??!

truthfully, though, jer & i are the ones who are spoiled!  we have the most amazing two-year-old a mommy & daddy could hope for!

a pictorial of winter

even though we have been watching the flowers bloom and the birds build nests in our trees, it is still winter around here.  we woke up to a fresh blanket of snow this morning.  i think i've finally figured out that the phrase "april showers bring may flowers" doesn't really apply in denver.  unless, of course, you think of the "showers" as snow showers rather than rain showers.  

in any event, we've had a lot of fun this winter...

harrison woke up one morning and decided this is what he wanted to wear...

baby graham (4.5 months) in jeans and tennis shoes...

our sweet boy is getting sweeter each day.  he loves to smile, laugh, and talk to us...

we got to take the boys to the zoo.  harrison had a blast...

he loved all the animals, but the rhino, elephant, and mongoose were his favorites...

harrison got to go sledding with daddy and papa.  it goes without saying that he LOVED it!  in fact, as we were driving to school this morning (looking at all the snow), harrison said, "swed papa".  (translation: i want to sled with papa).

when daddy works from home harrison likes to play with his headphones...

graham is getting bigger, rolling more, scooting around, getting more hair, and crying less.  he gets to eat fruits and veggies now and LOVES it.  

harrison turned two on april 14th.  due to how close his birthday was to easter, we did not celebrate until this past weekend.  and, boy, did we have fun celebrating!  the birthday pics deserve their own post...

this morning

could a mom ask for anything more?

well, it sure has been a while...

so, i haven't been blogging...  

there are a few reasons...

1) i got a bit tired of writing about my children and, sort of, wanted to "reclaim" my blog for myself.  i decided i needed to write about what i was reflecting on, what i was learning, etc. and, then, i realized that self-analyzation doesn't always make for the best blog posts.  at one point i began a post entitled "i don't like me very much right now"; only to erase the entire thing. sometimes you just don't want all your baggage aired online.  so, i don't know what i'm going to do about all this, but i'll figure it out.

2) baby graham has been a really difficult baby.  i'm not gonna lie, life has been really trying for the past six weeks.  well, really, for the past four months.  i'm quite sure that the transition from one to two would have been hard...but graham's crying has made it almost unbearable.  i haven't wanted to write about it.  i don't want to document it.  when it's over (and i know it will be over one day), i want to forget it.  and, most of all, i want to acknowledge the sweet, happy moments rather than the crabby ones.  as my mother always used to tell me, "if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all".  that has been my mantra for a while now.  and i'm sincerely hoping and praying that i'll get to write LOTS of sweet, happy things soon!

3) we've been busy...and sick...and busy.  : )  life continues on.  every mom knows what that is like.  we've been to the doctor WAY too many times in the past six weeks.  i turned 32 and had a fabulous birthday, thanks to my sweet husband.  we are preparing to celebrate harrison's 2nd birthday, which seems impossible. we took the boys to the zoo over the weekend and it was awesome.  harrison's favorite animal seemed to be the mongoose.  : )  graham enjoyed riding in the stroller.  the weather has been beautiful and we have played outside nearly every day.  these are just a few of the little things that have been "up at the white house".  

so, until next time, america...

oh, happy days

graham is 12 weeks old.  supposedly, this is the age when colic is magically cured.  and i think it is safe to say that graham is much better.  we still have some fussy moments, but they are few and far between.  we are enjoying lots of smiles from our sweet boy these days.  and we are finally getting to do tummy time...and other activities that were previously too stimulating (or at least they seemed to be).  

the first time graham was on his tummy, he pushed him self back over.  and he has been rolling ever since.  strong boy!

oh, i forgot to tell ya'll...at his 8 week check up, he weighed in at 12.03 pounds.  dalene had the closest guess!  and, incidentally, harrison actually weighed 12.53 pounds at 8 weeks....BUT, he was 2.5 inches taller than graham.  so i guess that's why graham just seemed so much bigger.  

here's the little munchkin watching big brother play outside...

and posing for a photo so mama can always remember those precious striped pants...

and smiling...  he's a keeper!

a letter to harrison

sweet boy, 

i've been meaning to sit down and write you a letter for a while now.  time flies too quickly and life gets in the way too easily.  sigh.  but i suppose it is better to be spending time with you instead of writing about you?  well, in any case, here it goes.

you are just shy of 22 months old and i absolutely cannot believe that your two-year birthday is approaching.  you are growing up so fast!  the best thing about this stage is that every day i am surprised by you...a new word, some kind of new activity, a realization that you know WAY more than i think you do.

first off, we don't have one single ounce of concern about your speech.  son, you have so many words in your vocabulary - it's incredible!  right now my favorite word that you say is "garage". i have got to get some video of you talking about the garage.  you could not be cuter.

you like to tell me when you have a "poo poo" or "wet" diaper.  and you want a "clean" diaper right away.  we got you a potty chair, which you like to sit on, but you still haven't really put the two together.  mama is going to start researching the details of potty training.

you've had a big boy bed in your room for about six weeks now.  you love to sit in it and read books with mama.  you love to sit in it and look out the window (especially when you can watch the "mailman" deliver the mail).  you love to pretend to sleep in it.  but if mama tries to leave you in it for a nap, you start to cry.  you still love your crib!  lots of boys at your age are climbing out of their cribs.  you like to climb in.  : ) 

the other day you wanted me to lift you up onto the kitchen counter so you could watch/help me cook dinner.  i obliged, but told you not to touch anything.  you were quick to pick up the coffee pot and pretend to pour coffee.  being that the coffee pot is made of glass, i was even quicker to take it out of your little hands and place you back on the floor.  you looked up at me and said, "obey" (a word you had never spoken before...but one you had heard quite often).  at that moment i could not have been more proud of you.  and you were rewarded by getting to sit on the counter again.  and you did, indeed, obey.  

another day last week we were playing on daddy's computer - on crayola's website.  you got bored and started playing in daddy's desk drawers.  the next thing i knew you were climbing up the stairs and saying what i thought was "play".  i wasn't sure what you were referring to, but you reappeared with a "pen" (which was behind a safety-latched cupboard, by the way).  you had found daddy's check book in the drawer and wanted a pen to write a check.  such a smart boy.

during the day when daddy is gone you always ask where he is.  when i tell you he is at work you always say "home".  : )  it melts your daddy's heart to know that you miss him when he's gone.  

you are a very neat and tidy boy...always putting things where they belong.  you love to pretend to "vacuum" (which sounds like ma-moom) and "mop".  during one of the really warm days a couple weeks ago we had just come inside and were sitting on the floor, taking off your shoes.  you pointed to the bottom of your shoe and said "dirt".  i agreed, "yes, that is dirt".  to which you replied, "towel".  you crack me up!

you are becoming much more accustomed to your brother...and you are the best helper in the whole wide world!  during all his bad bouts of crying, you did such a good job.  i could tell it bothered you, but, for the most part, you played quietly while i tended to "baby".  when graham would start to make noises you were quick to tell me "crying".  and, then, you were quick to say "stop".  ha!  thank God, our sweet little graham has not been crying as much and we are having a lot more fun playing with him now!

you have renamed your grammy.  she is now lovingly called "meme"...a word that is much easier for you to say.  and i know she loves to hear you say it.  you love to go up to meme and papa's house because she makes really good cookies!

you are thriving at school...you love to go to the park...if you see a dog, you are on cloud nine...you love to take showers with daddy...you know that they have free cookies at the store (thanks to your daddy) and you must ride in those germ-infested grocery carts that have a car for you to sit in...you think it's so funny when graham has a "poo poo" diaper...you are sitting in a booster seat now, instead of your high chair...you love to dip things in ketchup and bbq sauce (thank God for organic ketchup)...you would rather be outside...you love to color with markers and you do a very good job of only coloring on paper (so far)...you can turn the most mundane things into an adventure!

your daddy and i think you are the sweetest, smartest, funniest, cutest, most precious human being on this earth!  (and, sometimes, the orneriest).  your smile brings joy to our hearts.  

i know i couldn't

harrison recently received his first kiss from a little girl on the playground.  she was a complete stranger.  we found out later that her name was aiya and she was just two months older than harrison. 

my goodness what a difference two months makes on the "worldliness" scale!

she ran up to harrison, said, "hi, little boy", and gave him a good peck on the lips.  she, then, proceeded to gently touch his eyelashes.  

harrison just stood there and took it.  i wondered what in the world was going through his sweet head.  probably something like, "oh man, this is what i have to look forward to". 

or maybe that's what i was thinking. 

in any case, tell me, could you resist that precious face?