Marching forth

I know March is not over yet, but we have taken a whole bowl of pictures lately. Here are some random moments from the last few weeks.

I'm not sure what this face is all about, but it sure cracks me up.



Chilling on the couch, watching Sesame Street for the first time. Gabriella was laughing out loud. Chase was too engrossed to look at me.



Graham wanted a tunnel. Then he wanted a snack. What he didn't want was two younger siblings to join him, but he got the whole package.



Chase spends a lot of time in his underwear lately. We're not sure why he also chose to spend some time in this box.



Aunt Kim got a job in the area and is living with us for awhile. She is one cool aunt, who has not yet tired of letting the kids watch YouTube videos about Lightning McQueen and excavators on her computer. Needless to say, we enjoy having her around.



And finally, last week's potty training coup de grâce. My mother made these couch cushion covers for us. I am very grateful that she did, because they're washable. See exhibit A, between cushions 2 and 3. We still don't know when he did it, but it's another bit of evidence I will one day hold over Chase's head as he is choosing my nursing home.

Graham's Birthday

Graham turned 3 on March 6, and we had a small birthday party for him here with a few of our friends. Adam & Jayme came over, Aunt Kim was here, and my good friend Michelle stopped by on her way through (yay!). Graham enjoyed all the decorations, which all happened to be free, thanks to my Aunt Carol (another yay!).



We had a cake and opened presents, and then he pretty much just bounced around like a laser in a house of mirrors. Yes, I made that analogy up myself. Anyway, he loves Adam & Jayme, so for them to be here JUST FOR HIM was pretty exciting.






Finally, Chase and Gabriella got tired of watching him open presents slowly, so they jumped in to help.



And here is the cake I made. It wasn't as hard as I thought it would be, as long as Graham didn't mind that the colors were way off. Turns out that was the most time-consuming part. Who knew?



The whole day was made infinitely more comfortable by the fact that we had electricity all day. I think we owe Chase a nice birthday party next year.

Updates

Chase recently started potty training. It's going better than we expected, considering the fact that he had an "accident" into the dishwasher during the very first hour.



Gabriella is fascinated with the whole process. I walked past the bathroom one day to see her trying her luck with some fascinating reading material.



Chase is also trying out some new fashion combinations.



Gabriella took a spill onto her face during one of the recent warm days.



Graham has suddenly become terrified of heights. He also insists on picking out his own outfits.



He is learning about the origin of juices. Here was a recent conversation:

Graham: Strawberry juice comes from strawberries.
Me: That's right!
Graham: Pineapple juice comes from pineapples.
Me: Good job! Where does orange juice come from?
Graham: A cup.