Graham likes to look at birds. He is learning to identify them by sight, but we recently got a book from the library that plays their songs. Now he can sing "conk-a-ree" with a red-winged blackbird and "who cooks for you?" with the barred owl. This is all well and good (even encouraged!) until it starts interfering with my sleep.
Yesterday morning at 6:45am, we heard Graham's pounding footsteps. A frenzied clutching and opening of the doorknob. More pounding footsteps. Then a frantically loud whisper, strong enough to blow the shingles off the roof:
"I hear a birdie singing in my ear, and I don't know what it is!"
Later, as he walked through the garage to get in the van for church, he stepped outside long enough to yell, "Bob White? Bob White!" I'm sure the people next door think we have a new neighbor named Robert.
Chase, on the other hand, finds quieter ways to express himself. We put the boys down last night and when I went to check on them, Chase was standing up, staring at the wall. When I looked more closely, I saw that he was actually using his hands to make shadow puppets.
Monday, April 4, 2011
Monday, March 21, 2011
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.
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.
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.
Saturday, March 5, 2011
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.
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.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Grahamisms
Graham is still making us laugh with the random things he says.
The other day, he remarked, "I have hair on my arm!"
We have been reading The Three Little Pigs, and now when Chase bothers him, he tries to blow him away.
He looked down my throat with a flashlight and said, "Oh, a tunnel!".
He refuses to go up a dark stairway, saying "Maybe I get scared. Maybe I see a caterpillar."
When being tucked in, Graham likes us to "close his covers". This means making sure his sheet covers his fuzzy blanket.
Graham's mealtime prayer: "Dear Jesus, get in my food. Amen."
To look at birds, he requests his pair of "noculators" that he got for Christmas.
He still thinks a large amount of something is a "whole bowl". For instance, you could have a whole bowl of candy, a whole bowl of tractors, a whole bowl of rain, or a whole bowl of dancing.
The other day, he remarked, "I have hair on my arm!"
We have been reading The Three Little Pigs, and now when Chase bothers him, he tries to blow him away.
He looked down my throat with a flashlight and said, "Oh, a tunnel!".
He refuses to go up a dark stairway, saying "Maybe I get scared. Maybe I see a caterpillar."
When being tucked in, Graham likes us to "close his covers". This means making sure his sheet covers his fuzzy blanket.
Graham's mealtime prayer: "Dear Jesus, get in my food. Amen."
To look at birds, he requests his pair of "noculators" that he got for Christmas.
He still thinks a large amount of something is a "whole bowl". For instance, you could have a whole bowl of candy, a whole bowl of tractors, a whole bowl of rain, or a whole bowl of dancing.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
And she's off!
After showing no interest for the past 14 months, Gabriella decided to start walking this weekend. She gets distracted halfway through, but you get the idea.
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Chase turns 2
Chase's second birthday was last Wednesday, February 2nd. It's hard to believe he's 2 already! In lieu of a party this year, we took him to a power show with lots of construction equipment and tractors. Unfortunately, he woke up early that morning and was cranky the whole time. I tried to get some pictures, but it was like photographing a wounded tiger.
Graham enjoyed sitting on the equipment, and Gabriella was fine once she got a huge tootsie roll to gnaw on.
We had a small party for him on his birthday. He was lucky to get a party that day--the power had been off since 9:30pm the night before, and we woke up to a freezing cold house. We spent that morning at the neighbor's house while Will ran back and forth trying to keep the basement from flooding and the pipes from freezing. It made the fact that the snowman cake was so ugly seem pretty insignificant. We were just happy not to be using the birthday candles as a source of heat.
Friday the 4th marked the second anniversary of when Chase came to live with us. We love having him as part of our family, and there is nothing in the world like the sound of his laugh.
Graham enjoyed sitting on the equipment, and Gabriella was fine once she got a huge tootsie roll to gnaw on.
We had a small party for him on his birthday. He was lucky to get a party that day--the power had been off since 9:30pm the night before, and we woke up to a freezing cold house. We spent that morning at the neighbor's house while Will ran back and forth trying to keep the basement from flooding and the pipes from freezing. It made the fact that the snowman cake was so ugly seem pretty insignificant. We were just happy not to be using the birthday candles as a source of heat.
Friday the 4th marked the second anniversary of when Chase came to live with us. We love having him as part of our family, and there is nothing in the world like the sound of his laugh.
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