Big Boy Bed

At three years and four months old, Graham is FINALLY in a big boy bed. He has a convertible crib that goes from crib, to toddler bed (it's current state), and ultimately a full size bed when he's older. Back in November, yes November(!), we ordered the necessary parts to transform the crib into a bed. Our nearly 6 month wait for a single piece of wood was ridiculous, but since his crib was expensive, we weren't ready to abandon it. Much to Graham's delight, the mailman delivered the needed piece yesterday. All day today, I kept reminding Graham that he would be sleeping in his bed tonight and that his afternoon nap was the last time he'd be sleeping in his crib. We wanted him to be excited so we really talked it up. Well, apparently we talked it up too much because when we opened the box and realized that we're STILL missing pieces, Graham was extremely upset at the idea of sleeping another night in a crib. The missing pieces thankfully aren't structural, rather more decorational. So, tonight, a happy Graham is sleeping in his very own bed that isn't pleasing to my eye. Perhaps in another 6 months the worlds slowest furniture maker will ship the remaining 2 pieces!

Pool Party

Today was the first, of what I expect to be many during the coming months, pool parties for the kids! I use the term "pool party" lightly, but there was a pool, three todders, and a very sunny day, so that's a pool party in my book!

Graham, Amelia and Laney having fun in the ice cold water. Nobody seemed to mind that the pool was smaller than a bathtub...yep, they're easy to please! :)

Amelia's "Graduation"

Today was Amelia's last day of school for the year. She "graduated" from the 1 year old class and although she didn't wear a hat, she proudly carried her blue diploma up and down the stairs! Daddy Jeff and Grandma were Amelia's guests and she was thrilled to have them there. They both had to duck out a little early, and they don't know this yet, but when Amelia realized they were gone, she stood at the classroom door, and looked out the window calling for them! The group of Mom's in Amelia's class are a lot of fun, and I've really enjoyed getting to know them this year. They made today a party, in every sense of the work-pizza and cake galore! It was such a fun way to celebrate how far these kids have come this year.

At the start of the year, Amelia was very timid and hesitant. She clung to my hand for dear life, wouldn't eat her snack because I wouldn't sit at the kiddie table with her, and preferred to sit on my lap in the adult room rather than play with the toys. Today, she marched confidently around the room and was last one to leave the snack table. She has really grown to love her her teacher Ms. Kim and gave her a big hug and kiss (something reserved for a very select few!). Ms. Kim then hugged me and told me repeatedly that she'd love to have me back in class. She only teaches the 1 year old class so for me to have her again, there has to be another baby...I just smiled. Walking over the graduation bridge

Apple juice and pizza celebration lunch

Graduation cake for dessert!

This is a true indicator of how far Amelia has come this year. We all went out to the playground after lunch. Since we had to go through the parking lot Ms. Kim told all the kids that they had to find a grown-up hand to hold. I stuck out my hand towards Amelia and Amelia looked at me and said "No thank-you... Kim!". And with that, she turned around and found her teacher!

Graham's Graduation

Today was the last day of the school year for Graham. His teachers hosted a graduation ceremony and invited friends and family to come watch. Daddy Jeff and Grandma were Graham's special visitors for the day! Graham got to sing songs with his teachers one last time, participate in a toddler style commencement, have a snack, and play at the playground for an entire half hour! Does it get any better than that?!?! I thought I would be emotional at school today, but I actually did pretty well...until his teachers both started crying when they hugged Graham good-bye. Then with more tears they hugged me good-bye and told me how much they adore Graham. The last thing they said to me was "You keep bringing home more babies!" I just smiled at them since you never really know what the future may bring!

Before the big ceremony, at Graham's suggestion, he Maddie played a quick game of pirates.

Jeff snapped this picture and while it may not look like much, Graham and I had just ended a very important conversation. Graham's graduation cap has blue yarn tassels and Graham (still in pirate mode) told me that pirates don't wear hats with "fake hair". It took a bit of coaxing, but he left the hat on when I told him that the boss of all the pirates wears a special hat with "fake blue hair". :)

This picture makes me laugh...the kids are having their snacks and the Daddy's, who so kindly stopped by during work, are just standing around not really knowing what to do!

One last group picture...two little girls decided they had enough of the camera's and decided to opt out

So, now that Graham has officially graduated from the Family Center school, he'll be starting pre-school in the fall. Real school. The kind of school where I drop him off and go home. I think the idea is that I use those few hours of being down to one toddler very efficiently, but secretly, I have a feeling I'll be watching the clock wondering if it's time to go pick him up yet. I am so extremely proud of the little boy Graham is becoming. He's smart, inquisitive, curious, helpful, funny, playful, kind, the list really does go on and on. But, I have to admit that the rate at which he's growing up is bittersweet...it's all happening too fast! Graham's ready for school next year. The bigger question is...Am I???

Here is Graham on his very first day of school at the Family Center. He had been home just over a month at this point. He couldn't walk yet and for a snack, he sat at the table with his bottle of formula!

Here is Graham posing with his absolutely wonderful teachers on his last day of school at the Family Center! Can someone please tell me where my baby has gone?

Tent Time!

The illness is nearly gone in our house and the sun and warm temperatures have once again returned, so life is good! We spent the entire day outside playing today. At the request of the kids, I even set up their tents (actually a tee pee and an igloo) outside and I fully expected that to occupy them. After 5 minutes, they wanted nothing to do with their mountain of outdoor toys or individual dwellings, they spent HOURS digging in black dirt. We have some projects going on in our backyard leaving a lot of exposed dirt for the the time being and they were drawn to it. Graham spent his day "digging for dinosaur bones" and Amelia spent her day happily taking orders from him. She's just happy to be included in his games! :) Hopefully, our backyard work wraps up soon because the amount of dirt that covered these two by bedtime was honestly comical. In my opinion though, dirty kids are a sign that a really good time was had outside!

Happy Girl!

Neighbors-Graham was insistent that a tee pee and an igloo don't "live next door to each other" but I reminded him that in our backyard, we can do what ever we want!

Grandma stopped by after a golf lesson to visit Amelia in her toddler sized tee pee :)

Stuck at Home

We're on day #2 of being cooped up at home due to illness. The weather has been cold and rainy literally every day this week so I'm not sure what else we'd really be doing, but watching "Curious George Goes to Space" for the 5th time isn't quite what I had in mind for our mid-week activities. Watching tv isn't something that happens every day for these two, but I struggle to find other options for a sick toddler. Graham has a bad cold, sore throat, is feverish off and on, and is generally just miserable. So far, Amelia seems ok, but since Graham is lounging on the couch in his pj's under a blanket watching movies, she believes she's entitled to the same treatment. I got cozy on the couch with the kids and pulled out a magazine to page through. Graham took it from my hands and begged that I actually watch Curious George with him. Once I can handle, but 5 episodes of that monkey is a bit much for this Mama! But hey, if the kids are happy, I'm happy!

Construction Worker Amelia

Graham is usually pretty good about sharing his toys with Amelia, but he still needs to work on sharing his "costumes". His pilot, safari, scuba diver, super hero, construction worker, doctor, and chef outfits tend to be off limits to the littlest Olson. This morning, the hard hat and goggles were left unattended and Amelia took full advantage of the opportunity. Amelia looked around and slowly walked up to the items. It was almost comical to watch-like she was an animal sneaking up on her prey. She was able to successfully try the items on and let me snap a quick picture before scuba diver Graham appeared and announced he was done swimming with the big sharks and it was time to finish building a house. Although Amelia's time as a construction worker was short lived, she seemed to enjoy herself...not as much as playing with her babies though. She's been feeding and putting them to sleep over and over again for the past hour! :)

The Very Hungry Caterpillar

In our house, one of our favorite stories is 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar'. The kids request it so often, that Graham, and actually probably Amelia, have it memorized. This evening, Graham told Amelia he wanted to read it to her. So, we helped them up into what Graham refers to as his cozy rocking chair, and from there, the story began.

The video clip is so long, that blogspot wouldn't allow me to upload it directly to the blog. So, I uploaded all one minute and 43 seconds of Graham leading story time onto One True Media and have included the link. I'm guessing that other than the grandparents, most probably won't want to listen to the entire retelling of the story, but for anyone who does want to hear a story, Graham's version, in his cute little three year old voice, is pretty precious. Enjoy :)

http://www.onetruemedia.com/shared?p=ae48b120b48838623b2b7f&skin_id=601&utm_source=otm&utm_medium=text_url

It runs in the family...

Cookie Dough. In my world, a more satisfying indulgence doesn't exist. I guess it shouldn't surprise me that both of my kids feel the same way. Baking cookies together often turns into a game of how quickly can they get their little fingers into the bowl and how fast can I pull it away. I always make sure they get at least a little though because, really, isn't that the best part???

It seems to me, that a love of cookie dough runs in the family...isn't that right, Auntie Catherine? :)

Peek-a-boo!

After all this time, peek-a-boo is still one of Amelia's favorite games. She usually wakes up from her nap before Graham, so the two of us have some time alone. Most of the time, she'll find a blanket and throw it over her head and start calling for me. The routine is the same. I'll call out and ask if she's in the kitchen and the squirming mound under the blanket will giggle. Then I'll suggest that Amelia might be in her crib and again, the mound will erupt in laughter. Finally, after calling out a few more possible places that Amelia might be "hiding" she presents herself with an enthusiastic "Ta-DA"!!! Amelia never plays this game when Graham is around and I'm pretty sure it's because Graham gives away her hiding place every single time. After all, he's a big 3 year old, much too grown up and mature for silly games like hiding under a blanket! :)