Why would one do that?

Why would a certain little boy suddenly turn from playing with his cars and walk over to the window to lick it- a lot, with legs of drool sliding down the panes?
Why would that same little boy walk past the refrigerator, stop, turn around and violently swipe all the magnets and pictures off of it, then just walk away?
Why would this boy be happily and peacefully be sitting in his stroller and suddenly rip his right shoe off and toss it out of the stroller.  Then his sock?
Why would this little blond terror be looking at a book, almost angelic-like and get up to walk over to the laptop and bang on it like a drum?
Why would one do that?
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?
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Yes! No!

Graham has really mastered the ability to say yes or no in response to questions.  It started out as just a response- "Do you want a cookie?' was answered with a no, when , come on folks, he really meant yes.  But no more.  For the most part, he understands yes and no and uses them correctly.  This makes life much easier when he is upset or wanting something.  To be able to offer him a drink or a toy and know that was what the trouble was is much easier than trying 50 things first. The head nodding and shaking is quite deliberate and emphatic. No mistaking, when he says no, he means no.  And if you don't heed the answer, then you get a tantrum or screaming. 
This can be part of his "best pest" role as well.  When he takes something of the girls and they yell, "give it back, Graham!"  He shakes his head no and runs away cackling and terrorizing the house.  Yes, it can be a good thing and a badthing, or at least a naughty thing.

Carving pumpkins

Lucy wanted a happy, silly face and Harper wanted something "pooky!"  Graham just wanted to pull the insides out and eat raw seeds.  Pumpkin carving in our house came on Halloween morning.  Lucy wa excited to put her hands in teh squishy mess and it was evident that they had done this at her school and she was using her new knowledge of all things pumpkin as she explored her own jack-o-lantern.  Harper was not as enthused.  She wanted to be part of the process but did not want to get messy or put her hands into the pumpkins.  She liked putting the lids on and off, over and over again.  Graham was somewhere in between.  He was tentative, but he did like the mess. Unfortunately, he couldn't keep himself from eating the mess and so had to be reigned in a bit and not allowed full freedom of pumpkin exploration. 

Halloween 2010

Giraffes, tigers and pirates- oh my!  The kids were looking forward to Halloween for weeks, well, the girls were, anyways.  Lucy was dreaming about specific things: boxes of nerds, the "pirate house", carving pumpkins, her friend's Halloween party and seeing Ian and I in costume.  Harper wasn't sure about the specifics, but did love playing a game of trick or treat nearly daily.  She would follow me around the house and knock on doors and I would pretend to see her in different costumes, pulling random "treats" out of my bulging pockets to place in her plastic pumpkin.  Her treats were no more than puzzle pieces, matchbox cars and colored wooden blocks, but she loved the game, nonetheless.  Graham practiced for the big night by working on his roar- a low, menacing growl.
The night did not disappoint.  We started out at a party at a friend of Lucy's- a cocktail party outside, then headed out on the candy trail.  The neighborhood was great with lots of decorations, kids and running from door to door.  We worked that neighborhood until Harper and Graham showed signs of fatigue and then headed to our neck of the woods where Ian and the little guys continued to hand out candy and Lucy and I decided to go for more candy.  Our immediate neighborhood was pretty quiet, we only ran into about 5 kids, but that meant that Lucy was getting handfuls of candy at each door.  "i got nerds!" she exclaimed at one house, where they decided to grant her with another box.  We were treated to green apple martinis, pumpkin donuts and offered hotdogs- we gobbled the donuts up and Lucy is still talking about them!  Lucy's favorite part of the night was when she knocked on a door and no one came.  I could see that they were home so I opened the storm door to knock and when I did, the door opened.  I startled me and Lucy laghed so hard that I thought she was going to fall over.  The thought of me getting spooked on Halloween was the best for her! 
After making the neighbor rounds we headed home, Lucy's plastic pumpkin over flowing from the top, and my pockets full of treats that wouldn't fit.  We were welcomed by Harper who was refusing to take off her giraffe costume and soon a massive puddle of candy filled our front room floor.  Lucy was generous, choosing to give Harper all her M&Ms and giving Ian and myself lots of candy bars, tootsie rolls and sweet tarts.  Sorting and trading ensued until bedtime and no sugar high could have kept them from sleep.  The anticipation and hard work of a large haul were enough to knock them out.