Leyton's new "official" girlfriend

This photo was sent in an e-mail from Leyton's day school a few minutes ago (it was taken earlier this morning during snack time). Daddy just sent me an e-mail to say that:

• "Addy is going to be jealous. That is two times in a row that he has been caught hangin out with Noemi."

What happens when...

     This is what happens when you leave a two year-old unattended for three minutes:

• He will make "chicken" on the surface of the dining room table (and by "chicken" I mean scrambled eggs smothered in ketchup and smeared all over the surface of the table.  With a fork in hand, Leyton was going after the eggs, chopping at them and rubbing them all over the table.  When asked what he was doing, he said "I am making chicken."  Obviously this child needs a bit more Rachel Ray in his life.)
• And, if the chicken ensemble was not enough - Leyton also managed to tear wallpaper off the wall in the dining room.  I first noticed this when he came up to me in the kitchen and asked me to move so that he could throw paper away in the trash can.  The paper in his hand happened to be a chunk of the dining room wallpaper.  Awesome!

No more snow!

     We do not want any more snow in Kansas City!  We have watched it come down all day long, and all we want to do is play outside.

     Leyton was an early bird again this morning - up before 5, but then we brought him in our bed, and he snoozed with us for about an hour until he whispered in my ear, "Mommy, I want to go downstairs."  So, rise and shine.  We headed downstairs, peeled a hard-boiled egg, and ate some breakfast (BTW, Leyton looked at the hard-boiled egg and said "I don't like."  So, much for that source of protein!)

     At least once or twice a week, Leyton likes to get out his own personal photo album and name off all the people in the book.  One of his favorite photos is from Adam and Tina's wedding....he will go down the line and name everyone off that he sees.  He was fixated on Aunt Tina this morning, in her pretty white wedding dress!

     I did some volunteering this morning at Heart-to-Heart International, which provides medical services and equipment to locations nationally and internationally.  A team of us sorted donations and medical supplies, and it was quite interesting to see the distribution center and the volume of what they ship out.  I learned something new, too:  HtH receives large volumes of athletic apparel donations from the losing teams of championship games.  For instance, the two final teams in the NCAA championship will have apparel printed ahead of time with their championship logo.  So, for the losing team, when they do not win the championship, their "champion apparel" must be shipped overseas.  HtH will have volunteers pack and ship the apparel over to third-world countries and other locations in need of clothing.  Interesting, huh?

     When I finished up with the project, I left the building and entered a snow storm.  It had been sleeting most of the morning, so the drive home was interesting.  With the crazy storm, we decided to stay indoors the rest of the day.  Of course, the Mizzou game was the highlight of the afternoon, even though we ended up falling short.  Leyton was sad to see the Tigers not quite make it to the Final Four; we all were, really.

     Before bed tonight, Leyton performed for mommy and daddy.  With his microphone (aka flashlight) in his hand, he sang Happy Birthday, Rock-a-Bye Baby, and This Little Light of Mine.  He is quite the singer.

My favorite things....

     Leyton's new list of favorites include:

• "Lip Chapstick" (which he dips his finger into and rubs on the side of your cheek)
• Captain Crunch cereal.  He said this morning, "I like it!"
• Dying Easter eggs.  He loves to drop the tablet into the vinegar and watch is sizzle and dissolve and change colors.  What is not to love about that anyway?!?!

     Otherwise, basketball seems to be dominating the weekend.  We cheered the Tigers on last night, and what an awesome game it was!  We can't wait to tune in to them again tomorrow afternoon.

     Oh, and a funny story from work this week.  The University is not located in the brightest of neighborhoods, we know this.  But, an unusually interesting thing happened yesterday.  In the middle of the morning, broad daylight - a woman from off the street walked onto our campus, took off her pants, squatted and took a major poop in the middle of the Smith Hall lawn.  Nice!  You don't find this many other places in KC, and so thought it was at least worth mentioning.

a new (chocolate) toothbrush...

    Mommy brought home a special surprise for Leyton tonight - a toothbrush made of chocolate!  He was not quite sure what to make of this new novelty, but he did manage to eat the entire toothbrush handle in about one minute's time.  Yum.

     Leyton also received a piece of mail today from Grandma and Papa.  It was an envelope with a card and a picture of his "candy corn."  Leyton pulled opened the envelope, looked at the card and then the photos, and a big smile came to his face.  He said "this my candy corn."  He put both pictures on the window sill.  We looked at them all night....

First Parent-Teacher Conference

     Leyton had his first-ever Parent-Teacher conference today at school.  Scott and I went to visit with both of his teachers and to see what our little guys has been up to in the classroom.  It was hilarious.  They pretty much said he was perfect (mommy's interpretation, of course!)  But, in all seriousness, he received rave reviews.  Here are just a few of the comments:

• PRACTICAL LIFE skills:  Leyton works very well in the classroom.  He picks up his work when he is done.  Leyton is learning to put his own coat and hat on by himself.
• SOCIAL LIFE and BEHAVIOR:  Leyton has a good relationship with his peers and teachers.  he listens well and follows directions.
• EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT:  Leyton has adjusted very well to the classroom's daily routine.
• MATH DEVELOPMENT:  Leyton is doing well at circle time.  He is learning all his circle time material in English and Spanish.
• ADDITIONAL COMMENTS:  (from Michaela)  Leyton is such a sweetheart, and he is such a "Big Boy."  And, always ready to learn something new.   (from Michelle) "Wee-man" has come such a long way from when he first started.  he is such a sweetheart, and I love having him in the class.

     So, our conclusion is that he is a perfect sweetheart.  Mommy and daddy were very proud to hear how well he was doing.  

     Oh, and this evening, Leyton jumped on the Bowflex and did some leg reps.  He is a stud!

King of Fits!

     Well, Leyton had his fair share of fits today.  Fit number 1 happened this morning when Elmo set him off, and he had a knock-down-drag-out with his favorite Sesame Street friend.  Like most fits, we don't even remember what it was that pushed him over the edge, but before we knew it, Leyton had thrown Elmo to the floor and was beating him with the Taggie.  He was relentless.

     After all that morning excitement, Leyton had fun playing on daddy's "puter" and spending time outdoors enjoying the Spring weather.  We played kickball in the backyard and watched for "babies and doggies" from the front stoop again.  We even went on a walk looking for babies and doggies, but all we saw were the doggies.  The babies must have been napping.  Leyton kept repeating (from the stroller), "Babies, where are you?"  It was quite cute.

    Of course, after two hours outside, coming back indoors was not an easy transition.  Dum, dum, dum...introducing fit number 43 for the day.  Check out this picture on the couch.  He was lashing his body all around, screaming, falling off the couch, getting back up on it again.  Completely CRAZY!

      We watched the Tigers play this evening in the big NCAA tournament.  Scott nearly had a coronary, but so long as we could cover Leyton's ears for parts of the game, we all managed to survive and be happy about the ending!

      Oh, and Leyton's new favorite trick is making out with tortilla chips.  You give him a tortilla chip, and he licks all of the salt off of both sides and lays the chip down on the floor somewhere.  An interesting hobby, I think. 

...More donuts?!?!?!?!

     So, a trip to the donut shop has officially become a trend around here.  After all, what other exciting things can you do at 5:30 in the morning?  Leyton and mommy scouted out a new donut store this morning, which turned out to be a total dive.  Maybe half the racks had any donuts, and after a quick glance behind the counter, it was apparent that the donuts on display were the "leftovers."  We ordered a glazed for Leyton and a butterscotch long john (for daddy), and the man put them both on a napkin and threw in the microwave behind the counter for 15 seconds.  So, after catching them on fire, he tossed them in a bag and handed them over.  It was quite the experience!  Nonetheless, my boys both enjoyed their donuts this morning.  Watching them eat them may have been the best part of all.  Check out that form - could they be any more alike!!!

     The rest of the day was spent running errands and playing outside.  The weather was gorgeous and maybe the perfect temperature.  Leyton and mommy sat on the steps out front and watched for "baby doggies" - which is code NOT for puppies, but for "I want to see babies in strollers and doggies walk by on the sidewalk."  We never did see any, but we had fun raking the gum balls with daddy and watching him plant grass seed in the backyard.  Tiger even got in on a piece of the action when Scott got out the water hose to spray the grass seed and hosed Tiger off in the process.

     Tonight was hungry night for Leyton.  Cheese pizza from Costco, a grilled cheese sandwich, half a burrito from Taco Bell, waffle, edamame, and a bowl full of corn seemed to do the trick.  There is nothing like a mouthful of waffle mixed with bean burrito!  Yum.  Before bed, we read some books, and Leyton sang his favorite tune "This Old Man" as we read through the book.  He is getting pretty good at "nick nack Paddy whack give a dog a bone..." even though he starts the song out with the number 4.  Who knows?!?!?

Go.....TIGERS!

     another note from Leyton:  Today was Friday, and Share Day again at school.  I didn't have any trouble figuring out what I would be taking with me to school today.  I wore my Mizzou hat and took my yellow foam finger so I could scream and shout "Go....Tigers!" to all of my friends.  (My cheering must have paid off since the Tigers brought home a win in the NCAA Tournament.)

     Daddy took me to school this morning, and we stopped at Lamar's Donuts on the way there.  I got to pick out some glazed donut holes, and I ate three of them in the donut shop with daddy before heading to school to see Miss Opal and Miss Debbie.  It was lots of fun, and I really like glazed donuts these days!

     Mommy picked me up early from school, and we went home to see daddy and to watch the rest of the Mizzou game.  After the big win, we made a quick trip to see the kitties at the bookstore and then went to Chipotle for a (quesa)dilla.  I love 'dillas!

     The rest of the night was consumed by basketball (on TV and a full-out game in the living room) and some serious running in circles.  After a bedtime snack (a blueberry waffle with syrup), I went night night and was ready to get some rest before the weekend!

Liam had a mizzou sippy cup...

Uno..Dos..Tres..

     Scott and I discovered an amazing thing yesterday:  Leyton can count to ten in Spanish all by himself.  We were both in the kitchen getting dinner ready, and we heard Leyton in the living room counting one-two-three-four...After he reached ten, we heard:  uno-dos-tres-cuatro-....all the way through ten.  It was amazing!!!  (Aunt Wee called last night and was even able to hear it for herself....)  We have counted in Spanish before, but nothing that we had made a concentrated effort to teach him.  They must be talking some serious Spanish at school lately, but we could not believe our ears when we first heard him count through the numbers.  Hilarious!!! 

     We did some coloring before bed time, and the picture that Leyton drew is above.  After he made this masterpiece, he said "Mommy, look what I make!"  He told me the specks were birds!  Of course, they are :)

Happy St. Paddy's Day (late!)

     Mommy is finally posting the photos from St. Paddy's Day!  Leyton was primed and ready for school on Tuesday with his green shirt and......light-up shamrock beads!  He looked very festive and went to school bursting with energy and yelling "Happy St. Paddy's Day!"  We called about everyone we knew on the way to school on Tuesday morning just to tell them "Happy St. Paddy's Day!"  It was crazy.  He loved his light-up beads, and he was very excited to wear them to school and to show his friends.  He is definitely our little red-headed Irishman :)

     The weather on Tuesday was gorgeous, and so when I made it home from work, I found daddy on a ladder and Leyton running around in the backyard with Tiger.  They were having a blast, and this child loves being outside more than anything else in this world.  (he is such a boy!)  So, we helped daddy pick up the gum balls from the trees as well as the sticks and leaves that had gathered by the garage.  Leyton saw daddy with his yard gloves on and so decided to put a pair of yard gloves on himself and pitch in the effort to pick things up.  He is such a big helper!

     Leyton is talking like crazy now, and in full sentences!!!  It is amazing how quickly it seemed to happen that he just caught on, and the things that he says just cracks you up.  While it used to be "Mommy sit" or "I eat," he now will say, "Mommy come sit over here" or "Mommy come look at this."  He says "I want to eat a biscuit" or "I want to eat something else."  Granted, daddy and I are probably the only ways that can actually understand every syllable, but he is talking up a storm.  Even his teachers at school have commented about his speaking has just taken off and how well he is communicating.  So much fun to hear the little things he has to say....

     A note from Leyton:  - - Oh yeah - - I got a package in the mail yesterday.  It was my old, original TagTag that Grandma Selkirk sent to me after she found it under the chair at her house.  I now have two TagTags that I carry around with me and sleep with.  Life couldn't be much better!

Mail delivery!

     A message from Leyton:  I was actually standing at the front door yesterday when the mailman came by to deliver the mail.  Daddy opened the door, and he handed it right to me!!!  I felt very special.  When I looked through the pile, I got a couple of bills and, best of all, a National Geographic catalog with pictures of penguins in it.  It was so cool.

     I played outside some last night, but I also did a lot of singing.  On Sunday night, (mommy forgot to blog about this!) mommy and daddy heard me singing in the living room and found me sitting on my rocking chair, rocking Elmo to sleep and singing "Rock a Bye Baby."  It was very cute!  Last night, "This Old Man" was the song of the evening.  Before I went night-night, I showed mommy and daddy how I could sing "This Old Man" all by myself.  I am very musical :)

      Miss you all!  Leyton

I MISS YOU ALREADY!  Have a great week at school!  Love you Leyton.

Case of the Mysterious Disappearing TagTag - SOLVED!

     So, after Grandma Selkirk made TagTag #2 to replace the lost and missing TagTag #1, we got a phone call this evening from Grandma Selkirk letting us know that the original TagTag was found.  It was stuck underneath the chair in the living room at Grandma and Papa Selkirk's.  So, now Leyton has two TagTags for next time something crazy like this happens.

A weekend visit to Grandma and Papa's

     We paid a visit to St. Joseph this weekend to visit the Grandmas and Papas and Aunt Wee Wee.  We had so much fun, and Leyton had an absolute blast.  On Saturday, we played hard and hunted for treasures in Grandma and Papa Mollus' backyard.  Leyton ran around the yard chasing Bailey and collecting acorns and rocks in the backyard.  He loves being outside!!!

     We paid a visit to the Tennis and Swim Club to visit Papa Selkirk, and Leyton had his first "tennis lesson."  He really loved the wide open court and throwing and chasing the tennis ball.  He is not quite sure about the racquet part yet, but who needs a racquet to play tennis?!?!

     On Saturday evening, Mommy and Daddy went out to grab a bite to eat and watched MIZZOU win the Big XII Championship....Yea!!!!  We also managed to squeeze in a movie at the AMC - "Watchmen."  I think that must be the first movie we have seen at the theatre in over a year....it was fun to get out for the evening :)  

     Grandma took Leyton to Corby Pond to throw rocks in the water and then to the Tennis Club to eat pizza and Goodcents sandwiches with the Missouri Western girls tennis team.  Grandma said Leyton stayed up until 8:30...what a night owl!  The worst news of the evening was that the Tag-Tag went missing.  Yep, MIA.  Grandma said that Leyton started asking about it last night, and she had torn the house upside down looking for it.  After Scott and I were home from the movie, of course Search #2 was underway.  After looking in every nook and cranny and in every bag we thought it could possibly be in, we called it a night and hoped we might find it in the morning.  The morning came, and still no Tag-Tag :(  Oh, no.  

     We called Grandma and Papa Mollus to see if it may have gotten lost over there, and still no sign.  Where could Tag-Tag be?

     On Sunday (today), we started the day with a trip to Dunkin Donuts.  This was Leyton's first visit to Dunkin Donuts, and we must have looked like a bunch of crazy tourists taking pictures on a big morning out of the house.  Ha!  Leyton picked up a box of 25 munchkins, and he ate three glazed munchkins before we made it out of the Donut store.  He loves his Dunkin Munchkins.

    After donuts and some play time, we paid Jessica and baby Trey a visit.  This was the first time we were going to meet Trey, and Leyton was so excited to see the baby.  He was great with Trey and wanted to touch his head and was super-curious when he watched me feeding Trey a bottle.  Jessica looked great, and Trey was a very handsome young man.  I think he looks like Jess, but I see traces of Tyler in him as well.  What a doll, and how tiny he seemed :)  He was so fun to hold!  Jenny was also back in town and so she and Diane stopped by after Church, so that we could catch up with them as well.  It was a short visit, but it was so great to see everyone.

     We headed out form Jessica, grabbed some lunch for Leyton at Chipotle (a quesadilla!), and headed back to Kansas City.  Still no sign of the Tag-Tag, Grandma Selkirk made him a new Taggie really quick.  Leyton saw the new Tag when he awoke from his nap as we arrived back home in Kansas City.  He looked at it a bit curious and said "new Tag Tag."  He loved it!!!

     We had a great weekend visiting everyone.  Leyton has been talking about Grandmas and Papas and Aunt Wee all night long.  But, he was one tired boy.  He will sleep well tonight!  Miss you all.

Making hearts!

     So, what did the sweetface do tonight?  Let's see....today was share day at school (as it is on every Friday), and Leyton took his backpack to share (and show-off!) with his friends.  We think he had a pretty good day, although there was no evidence of a report card this afternoon to really tell us how his day was.  

     Daddy took Leyton to McDonald's on their way home from school.  He ate two McNuggets and some french fries.  Later this evening after dinner, we made hearts out of special molding clay.  Oh what fun that was.  Leyton had a great time stamping the shapes out and then tearing them up into little pieces.  It was quite a time!  Photo above :)

     After making heart, Leyton and mommy ran an errand to Target to pick up a few odds and ends.  Leyton enjoyed reading a Mickey Mouse Easter book while riding around in the shopping cart.  He behaved very well at Target, which is not always the case.

     He stayed up light tonight like a party animal and didn't go down to bed until after 8.  Wild man, I know.  We are off to St. Joe tomorrow morning to see the Grandmas and Papas and Wee-wee and Uncle G.  We can hardly wait :)  See everyone soon....

Butt Paste on my face?!?!

     Hi Grandmas and Papas & Aunt Wee wee and Uncle G!  Mommy wanted me to tell you that I am now obsessed with lotion.  I like to put it all over my face, and I pretty much think that everything in a bottle that pumps or squeezes is lotion that I should rub on my hands and face.  While we were getting ready for dinner tonight, I managed to get a hold of the hand soap on the sink and squirt it all over my hands.  I proudly announced that "I like low-sin."  

     When mommy changed his poopy diaper tonight, too, he managed to grab at the butt paste, open it and try to squeeze some out to put that kind of "low-sin" on his face.  Oh my!  This child.

    A few temper tantrums tonight, but all in all, he is a sweetie.  I asked him how his day was at school, and he replied that "Kaela was there."  I asked if he had a good day, and he said "um hum."

     We put him to bed tonight, and he gave mommy three kisses and two hugs before bedtime.  What a big boy!  (The top photo is Leyton eating pizza sticks this evening before dinner!)

The best little girl dresses ever!

     I came across the best-ever little girl dresses this afternoon while visiting Urban Mining Homewares.  They were dresses sewn from new baby onesies with embellishments addeded (ruffles, different patterned fabrics) and the best touch of all was a vintage handkerchief sewn to the skirt of the dress at the waist line.  They were adorable and a great way to incorporate a vintage keepsake into a little girl's fashion wardrobe.  Ah, if only we had a girl!?!?!

     Leyton just finished snacking on his fourth mini-German Chocolate cupcake of the day.  He is tearing them up like crazy!  Mommy is still trying to recover - she has officially lost her voice and has not been able to talk since last night.  Here's to hoping the voice comes back soon....communicating with a two-year old is not so easy when you can make noise and speak :)

Kelly's Baby Shower!

     Brooke and I threw a baby shower for Kelly yesterday.  We had a great time and a good turnout.  The cake was probably the hit of the day - it was in the shape of a pregnant belly and boobs (it was quite a nice rack, which we saved and ended up sending home for Shawn to eat!)  Kelly got some great baby must-haves from her registry, and a ton of wonderful girlie fashions with ribbons, bows, ruffles, and lace.  All of us in the room with boys were VERY JEALOUS!  Kelly looked great, and she is really started to look very pregnant :)  She has about 5 weeks left, with a due date on my birthday....so, of course, I am pulling for a Apr. 9th birthday!

     We played this crazy game that I made up, sort of like Family Feud with a twist.  We called it Baby Battles, and all questions revolved around baby themes.  The top scorers from the written elimination round made it on to the championships, where they had to demonstrate their skills with the "fastest finger," which happened to be a plastic toy finger that when you pulled at each end - it made a farting noise.  Kelly and Neoma (Shawn's mom made it to the final round, and Neoma took home the grand prize -- the two plastic farting fingers and two Starbucks gift cards.  She was thrilled, I am sure.)

     We had quite a spread of food and desserts at the party, and the alcoholic Sangria seemed to be a big hit, too.  A great time, and I think Kelly enjoyed it!

Hi Leyton! I am having a good time hanging out with Jackson, but I miss you. Love, Tiger