Animals and Elmo

This morning we met our friends Kelly and Maddie at the Minnesota Zoo. From now on, we're heading to the zoo on a mid-week, cold and drizzly morning, because we basically had the place to ourselves! After fighting swarms of strollers there all summer, the wide open space was a welcomed change today. And, because we went so early, many of the animals were very active and entertaining! Thankfully, much of the zoo is indoors and the buildings are connected so we didn't have to spend too much time navigating through the puddles of water.

Two happy, well-fed, kids after lunch

This was the scene at our house this evening...

It's so much fun for me to see the nurturing side to Graham, and I like to think that he's practicing for his baby sister! He spends much of his day crashing his 'dumpa dumpa' trucks into each other, complete with loud sound effects. But, when things quiet down, he can often be found making sure that his 'animals' are well cared for. I even caught him trying to put a real diaper on a very patient Annie today... It is my hope that I'm able to continue raising a well-rounded little boy. Trucks, animals, dolls, trains, and I can't forget Elmo-he really can have it all!

What is he doing???

I often find myself wondering what is going through Graham's little mind and tonight was one of those occasions. Jeff was working late this evening and didn't get home until Graham was just about ready for bed. This made for a long day for me and I was feeling pretty worn out, and maybe even a little loopy, by the time evening rolled around.

Recently, Graham has made several attempts to lift his Diaper Genie but has always been unable to do so. In his defense, it does get pretty heavy when it's full of diapers. So, when Graham wandered into his room and I could hear him pushing the Diaper Genie around on the wood floor, I didn't think anything of it, since he can't lift it, right? WRONG! Here came Graham, grunting and huffing and puffing, and obviously working very hard to get his 'toy' out of his room. Because I was so tired, I just decided to just sit back and see what it was exactly that Graham wanted to do with his heavy hunk of plastic.

Dragging it into the hallway...

Lifting it (insert a loud Grunt!)...

Moving it into the kitchen....um, why?

Finally satisfied with the diaper genie's new placement.

Graham must have had a plan all along because he headed straight for the kitchen, never stopping once. When the Diaper Genie was lined up 'just so' in front of the sliding door, Graham moved on to his next activity. I really do wonder what he was thinking! And no, the diaper genie did not stay in the kitchen. Much to Graham's dismay, I did return it to the proper spot next to the changing table.

An overdue update

To all of Graham's fans, yes, we're still alive, we've just been so extremely busy!!! The past few days have been a whirlwind for our family and I just haven't had the time to upload pictures. But, better late than never, right? From here on out, I will make a true effort, to stay on top of the blog!

For Graham, the highlight of our busy weekend, was a trip to a farm. We attended a baby shower for Graham's Auntie Lynn this weekend, and the shower took place at her childhood home which happens to be a working farm. The house was full of children so Graham had fun making new friends but I'm certain his favorite part of the day was exploring the barns with his Uncle Peter. Even today, when I ask Graham about visiting the cows, he talks about the 'zoo'. No, the cows don't live at the zoo, but currently according to Graham, any place with animals other than dogs or cats, is a zoo.

Playing with the very cool tractor toys at the baby shower

Graham looks so little to me in this picture...and the cows so big!

If you listen carefully at the beginning of this clip, you can hear Graham 'mooing' at the cows. I also think it's funny how interested he is in the kitten that runs in front of him.



The following clip has nothing to do with cows or baby showers. But, it does make me laugh. Regardless of your political views, it is entertaining to me, to hear such a small child and answer the following question correctly.

'Dress for Mess'

Apparently the motto for Graham's classroom this year is 'Dress for Mess' and apparently, I never go the message. Gone are the days of Graham wearing his cutest clothes to school. As you can see below, painting on the easel was one of the activities set up today. Graham LOVED it! In fact, he loved the blue paint so much that he decided to share it with his shirt, the floor, and anything else with the reach of the paintbrush. As I steered my paint covered child to the sink in attempts to clean him up, one of the teachers started laughing at me and reminded me to 'Dress for Mess'. And no, I don't have any pictures of Graham's mess. When I saw what he was up to, I decided it was time for me to put the camera down...

Welcome Back, 'Pony'!

Millie spends a lot of time at our house. In fact, I think she believes this is actually her home! Since my parents are out of town, and Millie hasn't quite figured out how to fend for herself, she arrived again today. Recently, Graham has started treating Millie like a pony. He likes to ride on her complete with his own galloping sound effects. At times, poor Millie just can't catch a break though. She wandered into the bedroom probably for a few minutes away from her 'jockey' but it only took a few minutes for Graham to find her. As you can see, Graham was happy to be reunited with his 'pony'!

Meatball Boy

A trip to Ikea to meet up with Amy and Alex was on our agenda today. We really weren't there that long, but man, was I tired when I left! Two active toddlers who wanted to play with the toys rather than be strapped into strollers, two Mommies who actually wanted to shop, and one cafeteria style lunch for four was interesting to say the least! Graham must have really worked up an appetite playing, because his lunch was HUGE! He inhaled an obscene number of Swedish meatballs, an entire bowl of mashed potatoes, apple slices, and milk. And all this was after an unusually large breakfast!

Playing with the trains

Graham really liked this tent....I have a strong suspicion that Santa is bringing one for Christmas, but don't tell him!

Meatball time!

Technology is not my friend today...

Let me just start by saying that technology can be so frustrating!!! Half of my weekend pictures were taken on a second camera using a second memory card and for some reason my computer refuses to read that second memory card! So, although that's probably more than anyone really cares to know, it's too bad, since I'm missing half of my cute pictures!

On Saturday we had dinner with Alex and her parents at Punch, our favorite local pizza place. It's funny how early we started our dinner process in order to ensure the availability of two highchairs and the optimum table for those two high chairs and four parents. As you can see, both kids are getting so big so fast!
And then on Sunday I decided to play with my fancy new camera but my computer refuses to read that memory card, so I won't even go into details about our day since I have no images to back it up! :(

I know that Halloween is over, but I couldn't resist including just one more photo of our monkey boy. The following picture was taken by Jeff's cousin Mark, our resident family photographer. I think this might just be the cutest monkey ever!