Savoring the moment

I had the day off work today.  Well, kind of.  I had to go to the dentist to get a filling which is definitely NOT my favorite thing, but I got the rest of the day to spend with my little guy.  Graesen is changing at turbo speed lately.  He suddenly when from needing my attention 24/7 to playing quietly by himself (sometimes).  He was so quiet this afternoon while I made lunch that I had to check on him.  He was in the living room putting his train tracks together on the coffee table.  The fact that he can do this on his own and was entertaining himself made me realize that my baby is morphing into a kid.  That realization led to me deciding to really savor my time with Graesen today.  I watched him play and tried to encourage his creativity.  Yes, there were toys strewn all over my living room, but today that did not matter.  Today we did this:
Train building...Graesen did so good putting part of his track together, but started to get frustrated and cried when he accidentally knocked part of the tracks onto the floor.  I helped him out by showing him that if he moved the track a little he would have room for all the pieces.  I said "I love you," and he responded with "I love you too, Mommy."  I am pretty sure I melted right then and there :)

*I love the way Graesen put this little dump truck on the tracks.  He seemed quite proud of himself for coming up with that idea.

Easter egg hunting-you never can be too prepared for Easter :)

Playing with his baby... I searched all over for a boy doll.  I think that both boys and girls should play with dolls, because their play at this age is often imitation of what they see their parents doing.  Apparently the toy industry does not agree with me, because finding a boyish doll that Graesen could play with took a long time.  It was cute, because Graesen kept taking breaks to try out the bottle and baby blanket for himself.  I think he wanted to let me know that he is still a baby too :)

Played at the park:

Walked the stroller all over the park:

Jumped in mud puddles, because really good moms let their kids do that :):

Muddy shoes :)

All of that followed by an evening of puzzles and little kid Bible reading.  Oh, and Graesen said his own name for the first time today.  It was adorable :)  He has also started to add "Mommy" to the end of all sentences directed at me.  (i.e.  "I want down, Mommy" and "I want more bites, Mommy")  He's a little genius.  I am certain of it :)
I realize this post is rather long, but I wanted to add one more thing before I forget it, because it was hilarious and I want to remember it.  Graesen is obsessed with the toilet lately.  When we are in the bathroom he wants to lift the lid up and down, put some toilet paper in, and flush it.  He even insists on climbing out of the tub during bath time to do so.  When Phoebe was here on Friday Graesen climbed out of the tub and went to the toilet.  I didn't think much of it, because he does it all the time.  I usually let him as long as I am right their to watch him, because I know that he is just learning and trying to figure the whole "potty thing" out.  So, Graesen lifted the lid, scooted forward, and attempted to "go" in the toilet.  Unfortunately, he is too short to go to the bathroom in this way, so their was a wet floor.  He then closed the lid and flushed.  I am thinking that we need to go get a stool and the type of potty seat that goes on the toilet asap.