graham's words

graham has been surprising with lots of new words!

"mommy" was the first, which pleases me to no end. then "eat", "daddy", "bye bye", "meme", "hi", "pop" (for bubbles), and "papa". yesterday he added "thank you".

he also makes nearly every animal noise including a very cute "peep, peep, peep" for baby chicks!

it's very fun to enter into this stage with him. i'm looking forward to watching him learn many more exciting new things!

oh, the things they pick up from us!

this morning, while we were putting together puzzles, harrison said, "very good job, mommy. i'm so proud of you."

clearly, i am raising him well.

a few weeks ago, while frustrated with me, harrison said, "STOP freaking out!"

clearly, daddy could be doing better in the parenting department.

: )

i love you, mommy

last week the boys and i were outside as much as the weather allowed. we had some gorgeous sunny days in the high 60's. and then the snow came. and then the snow melted. and then the snow came again.

and so it is with march weather in denver.

truthfully, i actually kind of like it. when it's gone as quickly as it comes, you have to enjoy it while it's here.

all that to say we went for lots of walks last week. one, in particular, will forever be etched in my memory. i was pushing graham in the stroller - something he is quickly beginning to resent as he'd much rather be running around like big brother. harrison was riding his bike (aka big wheel). we were strolling along when harrison, out of the blue, said, "i love you, mommy."

i had purposefully never taught him to say that. nor had i ever told him, or forced him, to reply back when i say "i love you". i knew that one day that phrase would have so much more meaning if i just let him come to it naturally. and i was so right.

what a sweet moment! i let the weight of it soak in, even got a bit teary-eyed. and then harrison steered his big wheel right into the street.

and so it is with precious moments.

you have to capture them while they're here because they so easily melt away.

eating for two

this little piggy went to market...

this little piggy stayed home...

this little piggy ate roast beef (and everything else he could get his hands on)...

this little piggy had none...

and the mommy piggy cried "wee, wee, wee...woe is me, me, me".

"eating for two" has taken on new meaning in the white house.

the interesting thing about having boys so close in age is that their growth patterns are so apparent. wasn't it just yesterday that harrison was frantically signing "more please" and stuffing food into his mouth as if he didn't know when his next meal would come? these days ketchup is his favorite food and he thinks eating a couple teaspoons of it with a fork constitutes a meal. hey, at least he's mannerly enough to use a fork! i should count my blessings.

conversely, graham has turned into a squirrel who packs away the nutrients and stores it for winter. i'm really beginning to notice that he's put on an extra layer of insulation! he eats circles around his brother and frequently asks for more after having been excused from the table. graham is doing exactly what harrison did at that age...eating for two!

it seems that one-year-olds instinctively know that the busy, too-focused-to-stop-and-eat, can't-sit-still-for-a-meal, lean, two-year-old years are ahead. it's "survival of the fittest" at it's very best! or maybe it's just graham who instinctively knows that he must happily eat his food in order to keep his mother from becoming deeply depressed. after all, the thought of two little boys living on the ketchup-only diet is quite disheartening.

who knows, though, i may not be able to avoid the depression...or i may just have to get over it...because i keep having this reoccurring idea that as the growth patterns continue the ketchup-only diet will, sadly, be better know as "eating for four".

just a moment in the life of graham

a week ago graham was playing with my sunglasses. he fell down and, of course, broke them. since then they have become his new favorite toy. i've tried many times to catch him on camera wearing the glasses and each time he refuses to let me get a picture. and, really, i mean he refuses. refuses! the little stinker.

so, finally, yesterday i got a few and, to me, they capture his precious little stinker of a personality.

first off, please notice graham is sitting in a dining room chair, which he can climb in to and out of all by himself. despite a couple falls, he refuses (and i mean refuses!) to keep out of those chairs. secondly, please notice all the grubby finger prints on my dining room chairs. i swear i clean them three times a day and still the finger prints magically return.

here's my sweet graham-er boy with his fun new sunglasses! it's hard to tell but there is a tiny smirk of a smile creeping onto his face. it's as if he was thinking, "i'll hold still long enough to let her have just this one...but she can't make me look at the camera".

and then he slowly, gently closed his eyes. and sat there. yes, he sat there with his eyes closed. really, he sat there! with his eyes closed!

eventually he opened his eyes but still refused to look at me.

oh, he's looking at the camera! quick, get the shot!

but, alas, he was too quick for me...and he knew it!

then he just became goofy, which is his usual state of being.

as soon as i put down the camera he started laughing! see, i told you he's a little stinker!

but he sure does make my days so much fun!!

taco twos-day

dinner at the white house is always an experience - one that usually consists of graham giggling and squealing at the sight of food, graham grabbing handfuls of food and stuffing his mouth so full that he has a hard time chewing, graham standing up in his highchair (no matter how tightly i strap him in), mommy running back and forth to serve up more food, and lots of paper towels and wet wipes to clean up the mess.

last week i made tacos (pretty much a weekly staple). flour tortilla, avocado, taco meat, black beans, and shredded cheddar cheese. graham ate not one, but two. and when i went to the kitchen to grab something (anything!) to clean him up, i turned around to find this:

oh yes he did pick up his plate and lick it!!

i have a feeling that before long we'll be calling it "taco threes-day".

i promise you i didn't rub a balloon on his head.

we've all had bad hair days...

graham's hair days aren't as bad as they are funny. he still has not had his first hair cut. i keep hoping he'll develop some curls like harrison did, but it seems as though his hair is going to be thin and straight. and with those two opposing cowlicks?? well, every day is an adventure!