Wished I had a Camera

Graham and I just finished up such a fun evening play date and I found myself mentioning several times that I wished I had my camera with me so I could have captured some of the cute moments. 
Graham hardly ever sees friends in the evening because he naps so late that by the time he wakes up, all that is left is dinner and bedtime. 
Nick was out of town on a business trip so I called my friend Cherise (whose husband is also out of town for business) to see if she and Kenzie wanted to come over for dinner.  When Graham woke up from his nap, I told him the good news that Kenzie was coming over.  When Cherise and Kenzie arrived, Graham jumped up and down with excitement. 
During dinner, the kids ate and drank really well because they wanted to copy each other so they just kept on requesting more of what the other one had on their plate. 
Cherise is sporting a large baby bump with her daughter due in 6 weeks, so after dinner, Graham grabbed Cherise’s shirt, pulled it up and said “peek a boo.”  Graham loved the game and after several rounds with Cherise, he wanted to do peek a boo with Kenzie and started pulling up her shirt (I guess I need to explain to Graham that he can’t get away with pulling up ladies’ shirts for much longer). 
The kids found their way into Graham’s room and played on his bed, taking turns on the top vs. trundle bed, snuggling in and pretending to sleep.  Cherise and I thought it was so cute and got a glimpse at what they will look like when they are old enough to have sleepovers together. 
We ended the evening with bath time.  At first, Graham and Kenzie were doing their own thing, but I asked them to take advantage of their joint bath and play together, so on cue they had an impromptu screaming contest, then drew on each other with bath crayons, then used the bath drums to pour water on each other, and finally giggled at each other in their animal towels. 
Graham and Kenzie gave each other lots of hugs and kisses before waving bye bye. 
Ah, if only I had some pictures!  Well, I guess we will just have to do another evening play date again soon.  After a quick goodnight call to Daddy (in which Graham proudly told Daddy he had fun with Kenzie AND Cherise) Graham went right to bed. 
Other Cute Antics and Noteworthy Tidbits:

• We went back for round two at the zoo today.  The big additions in today’s visit were a ride on the train, several slides down the grass hill (I’ve mentioned in previous blog posts that the grass hill with cardboard is Santa Barbara’s version of sledding), and a viewing of a feeding session with the penguins.  Graham was bursting with excitement for the train ride and opted for ten minutes of waiting in line (and jumping almost nonstop) instead of playing until it was time to board the train, but the highlight was his special visit with the conductor at the end of the ride.  The entire way home he talked about shaking hands with the conductor!  I think the zoo is going to have to become a regular part of our week (2 years, 3 months, 5 days old):

• Baby #2 updates: I’m 21 weeks pregnant so over half way!  I had my first (but unfortunately, probably not my last) leg cramp and I can now feel the baby moving on a regular basis.  Nick keeps trying but I think we have another couple of weeks before he will be able to feel the baby move.  
• We had our last Growing Times II class with teacher Michelle.  Graham will be continuing next semester with his Friday teacher Annie but Michelle will no longer be teaching the class.  Graham usually busies himself with other things while the teacher leads the class in songs or dance so I was pleased to see during the last class that he was more engaged in the instructor led activities.  He played with other kids during the indoor free play time, pushed and pulled the wagon with his buddies, and enjoyed a new big boy slide during outdoor play time (2 years, 3 months, 3 days old):

• Graham is fully capable of opening all the baby proofed doors in the house now (although I have some more complex door locks ordered and on the way).  Today, I tried to get in a shower during the end of Graham’s nap, but from the shower I heard Graham’s bedroom door slam and then my little dude showed up at my shower door with his sleepsack on and stuffed animals in tow.  He proudly told me that he had a good nap, had woken up, and had opened his door instead of calling for Mommy.  Sheesh.   
• Cute phrases to report: He started calling himself Mr. Grahamzers (which is a nickname my mom has for him).  Graham says “it’s time” whenever he is ready for almost any event to take place.  When Graham wants to do something that he has been denied, he will say “and then maybe” and state the activity.  For example, if he wants to play but it is time for a nap, we might say, “no, it is time to change your diaper and then sleep,” and Graham will say “and then maybe play in park.”  Graham came in contact with a number of dogs this week.  He loves to look at dogs but he doesn’t like them to get too close.  He has started saying “no, don’t bite me doggie” (in a friendly yet firm but not at all scared tone) if a dog comes near him.  Today, when Daddy left for work, Graham said “see ya Daddy.”  Nick and I believe that Graham has reached the point with his vocabulary where he can get across exactly what he wants at any given time and Nick always comments on how satisfying that must be for Graham after 2 years of struggling to communicate.  Today, during breakfast (still in his pajamas) Graham said “I want to go outside and play in my footed pajamas.”