Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Happy 3rd Birthday, Grayson!


Grayson turned 3 on the 25th! I can't believe he's 3 already! It doesn't seem like that long ago he was Thatcher's size! :)
The best present -- Daddy came home from his long business trip in China! Gray was so excited to see him! (So was I!)
We had a little pizza party with our family (Gray doesn't like big crowds) -- it was a blast!

I made Gray a train cake -- he loves trains -- and he was begging to eat it all day.


It's not professional or anything, but it was cute and fun.  It's good enough for a 3 year old, right?!

As soon as I told him it was time for birthday cake, he dove right in at those marshmallows :)  And the licorice. And the M&M's.  And the Kit Kats.  He actually didn't eat any of the actual cake that day (he had some the next day for breakfast. I'm an awesome mom)

Laughing with Nana and Pop

Ha! I love this picture! This is the only pic I got with these guys, so it's going on the blog! Gray with his Gram, Uncle Jordan, and Aunt Jessica (Grandpa already left, but he was there too)

Playing with the awesome Nerf gun Jordan and Jess gave him

Thatcher with his two Aunties!  My sister Sarah and my sister-in-law Jessica

My boys with their Nana and Pop. (Gray was very excited about his new Lighting McQueen from the Porters)

Story time with Aunt Sarah! That's one crowded lap with 2 toddlers and baby-to-be, too!  -- new books from Gram and Grandpa

Cute baby T showing he can hold his head up -- he thinks he's a big boy.

We put up this banner every year for birthdays -- this year was the first time Gray wanted to play with it -- he called it a "birthday cloud", and loved playing with the candles.

Uncle JD gave Gray this awesome big Rex from Toy Story. Gray loves him! He "roars" when you squeeze him -- but it sounds more like a duck. It makes me laugh.

Gray's present from Mom and Dad was a Tag Junior and a Thomas book to go with it. G just touches the "book robot" (he calls it) to the pictures or words on the pages and the Tag reads to him or sings songs or does some kind of activity. It's pretty nifty! Gray loves books, so this is a great toy for him.
Grayson is 30 lbs. and 38 inches tall -- a tall skinny guy like his daddy :)

Grayson is quite the energetic little guy. He is always, ALWAYS moving -- running mostly. He is so fun!

He is very smart -- he knows his ABC's, basic shapes, and can count to 16 on his own (20 with help). He can even do some basic addition. He loves to name animals that go along with the letters, too ("A is for Alligator! B is for Bear! C is for Cow!" etc -- he has multiple animals for every letter).  He is very close to being able to spell his name on his own.

He also knows the names of quite a few dinosaurs (his favorites are Triceratops, Cretoxyrhina, and Tyrannosaurus Rex) and can correct you if you call one by the wrong name. He is all boy, and loves dinos, cars, trains, and animals.

He likes to sing the ABC song (which he inexplicably always ends with "Next time won't you sing with me....and a duck." ??? ) and also loves Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star and Jesus Wants Me For a Sunbeam. He frequently substitutes these songs for whatever you're singing at the moment (it's pretty funny to hear the ABC song while you're singing the hymn in church).

Gray is still a very picky eater, and mostly just eats pizza, chicken nuggets, fries, peanut butter sandwiches, waffles, and french toast.  He IS starting to branch out a bit, though, and will mostly at least try one bite of something. He of course loves sweets like muffins (especially poppy seed -- or "polka dot muffins" as he calls them), chocolate, ice cream, cookies, and candy. And salty snacks like Nacho Doritos, popcorn, and pretzel sticks. We're working on getting in more veggies and fruits (mostly I have to sneak them into other foods he likes). Thank goodness for Instant Breakfast (we call it chocolate milk) -- otherwise he probably wouldn't get many nutrients.

We're working on potty training (ugggh), but so far we're not having too much luck. But that adventure deserves it's own post. We're hoping to have him trained by the time he starts preschool in the fall.

Gray has an amazing memory, and can recite lines from movies after watching them once or twice. Even if he hasn't seen it for months.He also remembers things after asking just once.

He's getting quite the independent streak, and doesn't like help -- but he's getting quite good at zipping up his own jacket and fastening the velcro on his shoes.

Gray loves his new baby brother, and is very sweet with him. When Thatcher cries, Gray yells "I'm coming, Baby Fatcher!" and runs to see what he can do for him.  The other day, when it took me a minute before I got to T, I walked in to see Gray placing his beloved Ellie elephant on T's chest and saying "Here, Fatcher.  You hold Ellie, all better."  That's a huge deal -- Ellie is his lovey, and the one toy he will NOT share. It was quite tender.

Another tender moment was when he received his first father's blessing from his daddy at FHE the Monday after his birthday. We talked about the priesthood and what blessings are. Steve gave me a blessing first to show him how it was done, and then we asked him if he wanted one. He said "Want one!" and climbed right up on to the chair, folded his arms, and sat quietly for the entire blessing.  It was a miracle! The boy never EVER sits still! When it was over, Gray gave Steve a kiss and said "Thank you, Daddy."  It was a beautiful blessing, and a memory to cherish forever.

Gray is definitely his own little person, and we LOVE having him in our family. We love you, Little Mister!!

2 comments:

Ty and Ber said...

Happy Birthday Grayson! Glad that Steve was able to get home from his business trip that day!
Sounds like Gray had a great birthday.

Katie said...

What a fun birthday!!! Can't believe he is 3!! I swear I JUST saw you at Costco trying to induce labor with him after you were freed from bedrest :) haha!! He is such a cute little guy. And that cake is amazing by the way!!
I laughed so hard when I read all the things Grayson eats. It was like reading all the things Rockwell eats. Every morning Rockwell eats an Eggo Waffle and chocolate milk (instant breakfast). Seriously..what's with these boys?? But I agree, thank goodness for instant breakfast. Sometimes that's all he'll "eat" for dinner.