Need a Babysitter

Leyton, since you LOVE snakes so much (I mean who could blame you).  Would you like to babysit Jimmy over the summer?!!!?

Hi everyone!

[Mommy wanted to send this super-cheesy picture of me.]  

     Leyton had a good day yesterday at school and a good night last night.  His teachers told daddy that he picked at his lunch and only ate the pineapple off his plate.  I guess he wasn't interested in the chicken fried rice...?  Hmmm, shocker!

     The boys are still sleeping right now, but they should be up anytime. 

Mommy is way behind on the blog...

     So, it pretty much goes without saying that mommy is way behind in keeping up on her blog.  Here is the 5-second update, just so that everyone is keeping up on the latest and greatest with the sweetface :)

     Last week was a busy week.  Work was crazy and home seemed crazy, too.  Mommy worked on Monday night, did some work around the house on Tuesday, and Wednesday evening was spent taking Leyton to visit Loose Park - his favorite park!!!!  We played on the slides and the swings, and we went to the pond to look for turtles, ducks and fish.  (I am happy to say that we saw them all!)  After our outing to the park, we stopped by the neighbors to welcome baby Frances.  She is the new baby of the couple who lives behind us, and Leyton wanted to see baby Frances and take a little something to her.  He loves babies!

     I left for Charlotte, NC on Thursday morning, and left the boys at home alone to fend for themselves.  I think they managed pretty well, but I sure missed them.  Every time I called to hear Leyton talk, he didn't want much to do with the phone.  Finally, I eeked a few words out of him on Saturday morning before my trip back.

     Back on Saturday evening, we decided to lay-low and play some indoor football.  Leyton's newest football move is putting his head to the ground and saying "hut" as he launches the ball between his legs (ninety percent of the time he falls over, though.)

     On Sunday morning, daddy ran in the annual Trolley Race, and Leyton and I met him on the Plaza to pick him up as he finished the race.  He finished the race in great time and was pretty proud.  Leyton and I had fun hanging out at the infamous Plaza fountain and enjoying the race day festivities, too!  The rest of Sunday was spent catching up on housework and trying to relax a bit.

     I am happy to say that we are back on track for a bit of a more normal week.  We miss you all!

Buddy??

What have you been up to Angel?

A weekend full of Grandmas and Papas

    Oh boy oh boy.  Leyton had a full weekend.  "Papa" Selkirk visited yesterday.  We made a quick trip to Miss Frenchie's Antique Show, and shortly after that, Scott and I set out to volunteer with Project Uplift.  Uplift is an organization that I first experienced through Centurions, and I am not sure I have ever been moved so much by a service project.  Essentially, Uplift delivers food (hot meals) and basic everyday items to homeless people throughout Kansas City.  As a volunteer for the project, you are assigned a route, load up into one of three vans, and travel throughout a designated area of the metro to specific spots where homeless people choose to "live."  As the van pulls up and honks a couple of times, the homeless people in the area come out and form a line behind the van to receive a hot meal, warm cocoa, some canned goods, and whatever toiletries they may need (toothbrushes, deodorant, cat and dog food, dry socks, t-shirts and other apparel items, shoes, etc.)  It is an amazing project and one that puts everything in life into perspective.  (One of the volunteers on our van took some photos and will be posting them soon.  I will add them to the blog when they are available.)

     Uplift lasted until around 11 and, after that, Scott and I headed to an 80s theme party for a friend who was turning 40.  I was decked out in an off-the-shoulder hot pink smock and a denim mini with leg warmers and awesome hot pink button earrings.  I even managed to get Scott into costume, and he sported his stuff in black stone-washed jeans and Ghostbusters t-shirt.  It was awesome!

     Meanwhile, back at home, Leyton and "Papa" spent some time at Loose Park watching ducks, fish and turtles, picked up some Foo's frozen custard, and then looked for worms outside in the backyard.  I think he was worn out; Leyton slept in until 6:30 this morning!  But, as soon as he woke, he was ready to go again.  He managed to climb into an old basket that I had picked up from Miss Frenchie's, and he though this was pretty fun (picture above).

     Grandma and Papa Mollus visited this afternoon to watch Leyton while Scott and I went to a dinner party.  Leyton enjoyed the visit.  He read books, colored, made mommy a picture, talked to Wee Wee on the phone, and watched WALL-E.  Tiger had an eventful evening as well - he took to his pillow-top bed and humped it for an hour straight while Grandma and Papa were here.  Amazing!

     We took Leyton back outside this evening to look for more worms and play in the water bucket.  He is totally in a "snake" phase right now, and so worms are snakes.  We played with many snakes outside tonight.  He loved it!!!

A Starbucks morning....

     Mommy and Leyton had a Starbucks morning this morning.  We have already ventured out in the rain in search of some good, strong coffee and a breakfast treat.  Leyton took his back-pack with him and a friend that came along inside the bag.  We had a nice hot latte, some milk, and a piece of pumpkin loaf.  Yum!

Green light GO!

     Leyton had a crazy night last night.  Up at midnight, again at 2:30 am - poor little guy.  He came home from school yesterday with a fever, and his temperament has been off all week.  He has been his own little person, pretty demanding, and a little out of control.  He woke up this morning in a bit of a better mood, and no fever!  He went back to school today and had a good day there.  It was another Friday Share Day, and so we went through his baskets of toys this morning in search of the perfect Share Day item.  I asked him if he wanted to take his dump truck, and he scrunched his little sweetface up and said "I don't tink so."  It was cute as can be, and as I listed off other toys in the basket, he would repeat "I don't tink so."  I had to take a picture of the look on his face (above).  Priceless.

     He came home from school today with a new craft, a handmade construction paper stop-light.  It is the best stop-light I have ever seen!

Chapstick or Glue-stick?

     Leyton made a grocery list early today by cutting pieces of a grocery store advertisement out and pasting them with a glue stick to pink paper.  He seemed to be handling the glue stick pretty well until I caught him rubbing the glue on his lips this morning.  Oops - it is a glue stick, Leyton.  Not to be confused with the chapstick.  Kind of funny, I thought.

     I came home after work today to two CRANES!  Leyton had a rough night tonight; and Scott's mood was much the same.  Extremely cranky.  Mommy and daddy were both about to lose it (this doesn't happen very often), and we cannot figure out what exactly was wrong with the little guy.  We took a walk after dinner and walked to the library to return some books, thinking some fresh air and an adventure might make a difference in the mood.  Leyton did okay there and back, but we had another temper tantrum this evening before bed time that about did us all in.  Leyton can get into quite a rage and lately, when he gets worked up, he chokes and pukes.  It is quite the scene really.  Here's hoping for a calmer Thursday....

Leyton likes to MOVE IT!

"I like to MOVE IT, MOVE IT!  I like to MOVE IT!"

     Leyton checked the mail today and found a special surprise from Grandma and Papa....his very own personal copy of  Madagascar 2.  Of course, it went straight into the DVD player, and we danced and rocked out to MOVE IT (like 5 times in a row).  Oh my, it was quite a production, as you can see from the pictures!

     We took a walk tonight after dinner to enjoy the warmer weather.  We looked for babies and doggies, like always, and we managed to run into our friend Carter from across the street.  He is getting so big, and he will be two years old in June.  Leyton seems to like hanging out with him....We can't wait for summer!

Special Boy

I thought I would add a couple of the pics I had also from the birthday dinner.  I had so much fun hanging out with everyone.  I especially loved at the restaurant watching Leyton tell everyone hi in the mirrors which wrapped completely around our table!  He also enjoyed putting on Daddy and Uncle G's shades......

Easter Sunday....Hop, hop, hop

     Leyton had a great Easter weekend.  The biggest news of the weekend was when we learned that Kelly and Shawn welcomed a brand new baby girl on Friday afternoon at 4:24 pm - Kaiya Elizabeth Cooper.  She is a doll!  I posted a photo of her to the blog on the left.  Leyton and I stopped by the hospital on Saturday afternoon to pay Kelly and Shawn a visit and to meet baby Kaiya.  I told Leyton who we were going to visit and showed him pictures of Kaiya before we went.  As we walked through the halls of the hospital on our way to Kelly's room, Leyton kept repeating, "Baby Kaiya, where are you?"  He absolutely loved meeting the newest little Cooper.  He was such a big boy and sat right next to me the entire time in the hospital room; he just stared at baby Kaiya and then would look up at me and smile.  He loves babies!!!!  Kelly looked great, and they looked so happy (and tired!) with their new little angel.  They were being discharged from the hospital today and heading home to get settled in.

     Grandma, Papa, Wee Wee, and Uncle G visited on Saturday afternoon and took us all out to eat for a birthday dinner at Cheesecake Factory.  Grandma and Papa brought Leyton some Easter goodies and hid some eggs in the front yard for him to hunt.  Leyton had fun searching around for them and screaming "chocolate" after he opened each of them up and found the treats inside.  We played a quick game of tee-ball in the front yard before heading to the restaurant to grab an early dinner.  A couple hours later, we all rolled home with our bellies full of dessert and whipped cream!  

     Last night before bed, Leyton set out a bowl of fresh carrots for the Easter Bunny to snack on, and we read the Easter book that Papa Selkirk had made for us with pictures of Jeremy, Ethan and Ryan and a picture of Papa kissing the Easter bunny.  Leyton went night-night.  This morning, after Leyton woke up and we headed downstairs, he found an empty bowl of carrot scraps next to a basket full of Easter treasures - toys, books, candy, and other little trinkets.

     We went to 7:30 a.m. Mass at the Church in our neighborhood, and Leyton did very well during the Mass.  About three-quarters of the way through the service, Leyton looked up and me and said "I poo-poo-ed."  Oh, and we all smelled it, too!

     We scurried out of Church once Mass was over, headed back home, and later got back out of the house to run a few errands.  We made a quick trip to the grocery store, where Leyton got choked up and threw up a small package of gummy bears that he had devoured not much earlier when we were at home.  It was a lovely mess.

     The rest of the day we spent hanging around the house, making puppy chow, and reading our new books.  We even watched some snake videos on YouTube.  Leyton loves watching snakes right now for some reason....At one point, when we were watching Madagascar on TV, Leyton was trying to rewind up and ended up turning the channel.  He shouted "Gosh darn it."  Our first wake-up call that he is repeating everything we say.....Yikes!  

Things that start with the letter "T"

Ting Tings and Tee-Ball and super-Taggie

      In true Sesame Street style, Leyton enjoyed some "T"s today.  So, for those of you who don't know by now, Leyton's song of the month is the Ting Tings That's Not My Name.  Talk about some crazy dancing, this song brings out the very best and has been a car favorite by day and a living room dance-off favorite by night.  Oh my.  We have yet to get this on video, but that will be the next best thing.

      So, Leyton's school was closed today for Good Friday, and daddy stayed home with him to party.  I had an early morning and was out on the streets of downtown this morning at 6 am selling newspapers for Kansas City today.  It was cold, rainy, and we were soaked by the puddles splashed on us by the cars.  Three and half hours of standing out in the rain selling newspapers was about enough for me.  A very long morning.

     Daddy and Leyton had fun today and did "boy things" (that is what I was told anyway.)  Dad said they played in the morning, went and grabbed some Chick-Fil-A for lunch, and then played outside for most of the afternoon.  They played tee-ball, played catch, and planted grass seed.  It sounded like fun, and I was sorry to miss the party.  When I got home after work, Leyton showed me the tee-ball skills he had mastered.  He is the quite the little slugger; Papa Mollus will be so proud.  Leyton can't wait to show you!

     Oh, and probably the biggest craziness around here is the baby rabbits nest that Tiger somehow discovered.  "Papa" brought Tiger back home yesterday and stayed to watch Leyton while Scott and I went out and grabbed a late dinner at La Bodega.  After we made it home from dinner, Tiger went outside, came back in, and brought with him a dead baby bunny.  It was gross and really sad.  When Scott and Leyton were being backyard-igans this afternoon, they discovered the bunnies' nest and also the remains of a couple of other bunnies that Tiger had managed to turn up.  I have a feeling that we won't see bunnies back really soon..... :(

     p.s. - when I asked daddy what Leyton was doing in the top photo (posted above), he said he was being Superman with Taggies on his head.  Alright, buddy!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SISSY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Calling the girlfriend...

     Leyton picked up his cell phone tonight, held it up to his ear, and said "Hi Thea."  Ooh, la la.  He is sweet on a new woman at school.  Thea is the lady of the week :)  Go Thea!

Leyton's Easter goodies

     Leyton helped mommy put together Easter treat bags for all of his friends at school tonight.  He was quite the little helper, and we managed to pull apart Easter grass to stuff in the treat snacks, fill plastic eggs with M&Ms, and throw in a package of bunny crackers.  

     Also, I am posting my pictures from the Rock Band party last Thursday night.  We had an Ambassador appreciation event at Screenland Theatres, and we went all in rock n' roll style.  From the Rock Band competition to the concert give-aways and crazy concert t-shirts and even the Flight of the Conchords on loop in the theatre - it was quite the party.  To top it all off, we celebrated Marvin Gaye's 70th Birthday and paid tribute to the legend.  It was a very fun evening!  I couldn't resist sharing a photo of the cake :)

Kansas City to Chicago (and back!)

     Scott and I had a great weekend in Chicago!!!  It was so good to visit with Adam and Tina.  We hopped about to a couple different areas for shopping and dinner on Friday night; and, on Saturday, Scott and Adam were brave enough to travel along with me on my shopping spree.  They were troopers, and after about 2 hours in Anthropologie (literally), I think they had about had it.  Although, they did have some fun joking around with the other males who were waiting on their ladies in the shoe store.  (Oh, and speaking of the shoe store, a funny thing happened, when I started talking with the cashier, she recognized me from Central tennis...Hillary Linneway (sp?).  She graduated in '99.  Wendy - do you remember her?  She said she remembered me from the Tennis Club and the Central team, and then her jaw nearly dropped when I told her I was married to a Selkirk and that Scott and Adam were out on the corner waiting for me...

     After a full day of shopping, we met up with Tina after her volleyball tournament.  Saturday night we spent watching the NCAA games at Mystic Celt pub, just down the street from Adam and Tina's place.  Maybe one of the funniest highlights to the weekend was just listening to the Selkirk boys talk about how many ice cream sandwich cookies they thought they could eat at one time, a comparison of cities by the # of square miles they stretch (yes, we really did talk about this for 30 minutes), and which cities rank the highest for the # of trailer park people they have .  It was a weekend full of great conversations!  We left just in time to dodge the icy weather that was starting to hit Chicago.  Thanks, Adam and Tina, for hosting us; can't wait to do it again!

     Of course, as soon as we made it to the airport, the only thing we could think about was Leyton.  We were so excited to see him!  He was waiting for us at the top of the stairs at Grandma and Papa's when we arrived at their house.  Leyton had made me a happy birthday sign and had been busy all morning decorating cupcakes with Grandma and Aunt WeeWee.  He was so proud of the cupcakes, and mommy could not have asked for a better gift than a cupcake made by my little man.  It was awesome - lots of sprinkles.

     We headed back to Kansas City this afternoon.  Leyton played peek-a-boo in the back seat (photos above), and mommy did the arm yank to the truck driver next to us so that we could hear him toot his horn.  Leyton liked that!

     I am pooped now after a busy weekend.  I'll bet Grandma and Papa will also sleep good tonight after a series of 5 am mornings :)  Thanks for watching Leyton and having so much fun with him! 

Fun at Grandma and Grandpa's

Well, Leyton has had a big time in St. Joe while Mommy and Daddy are in Chicago.  Friday night, Uncle Grant and I went over to Grandma and Grandpa's house and played a little bit of "football" in the living room.  Then we ventured outside for a little chasing of B and rolling around on the big purple ball.  We swung at a few pitches too.  Then we went inside and ate a little Olive Garden.  Leyton had already eaten some corn and noodles with sauce, but didn't want to be left out of the Olive Garden fun.  So, he munched on some croutons with parmesan cheese and about three chocolate mints :)  Then we watched a little bit of Madagascar 2 where we "move it, move it!"  But then it was time for bed.  We were TIRED!

Saturday morning, I went over to Grandma and Grandpa's at about 9 a.m.  Letyon had been up since 5.  Grandma heard him talking "Grandma, Grandma, wake up."  So, Grandma went and got him and took him to bed with her and Grandpa.  He rested for about 25 more minutes but then told Grandma to get up!  And so the day began...When I got there Leyton was washing dishes in his kitchen.  He was also watching cartoons and we sang "Itsy, Bitsy Spider."  He enjoyed "spraying" me with the water.  Grandma said he ate a banana and bickits for breakfast. We played for a while, munched on some chips and changed Peter Ronnie's poopie diaper about 12 times before we headed out on the town.  Peter Ronnie had to come with us!  First we went to Old Navy where Leyton wanted to ride in the cart with Peter Ronnie.  Grandma and I tried to hold some clothes up to him but Leyton was more interested in the sunglasses.  Grandma bought him some new summer outfits and we were off to Kohls...aka the Toy Store!  Leyton wanted to be a big boy and walk, but I told him he had to hold my hand as we walked to the car. Inside Kohls, Leyton again wanted to ride in the cart.  Peter Ronnie stayed in the car this time. We first looked at some clothes, again, Leyton wasn't too interested in the toys.  Afterall, Grandma and Wee Wee told him we were going to the toy store.  So, we hurried to the back of the store where the "toy store" was.  Well, two short aisles of toys anyway.  Grandma bought Leyton some new toys and books.  Grandma went and paid while Leyton and I looked at the "pretties."  We got back in the car, ate some Cheetos and Fruit Loops while Grandma drove us to Petco to see the snakes and gerbils.  Once we walked through the doors at Petco, Leyton was off and running to the mice cage.  We watched the mice run on their wheels.  We then took a peek at the guinea pigs who were sleeping.  Leyton waved and said "Hi, guinea pigs."  Then he showed me the boa constrictors.  But by far, his favorite were the frogs.  Oh, he stared at the frogs swimming in their water bowl.  We looked at the fish (he wasn't too interested in the fish) until we came to the King Beta fish which was swimming in the little cup (pic above).  Leyton got the cup and shook the pour King Beta senseless:)  So, Grandma and Wee Wee put the floating fish back on the shelf.  We then headed toward the parakeets but Leyton wanted to say bye-bye to the frogs.  So, we went back to the frogs and snakes to say bye-bye.  I really wanted to take a picture of Leyton looking at all the canaries and parakeets when the store employee hollered at me that no flash photography was allowed in the store.  Really, I just wanted a picture of sweetface!  So, we were done with Petco.  Next we went to get some nuggets and french fries from Wendy's.  On the way home though, Leyton's eyes grew heavy and he fell asleep....But not for long.  We got inside, Leyton ate two whole nuggets and quite a few fries but was not wanting to sit for long.  So, into the living room we went to watch some more of Madagascar 2.  Well, actually not "more" of the movie, the same part over and over.  He told me to rewind several times to the part where the animals dance to the song, "I like to move it, move it."  Leyton stood on the chair and danced with the lion, hippo, zebra, and giraffe.  When Grandma and Grandpa said nap time, Leyton wanted 10 more minutes.  So, he got a drink of milk and was ready for nap time.  I left while Leyton was napping but will head back to Grandma and Grandpa's tomorrow to hang out before he goes home.  Grandma and Grandpa took him to Geneo's Pizza Place tonight.  I love my Doods.  He is such a sweet angel and so much fun! 

A big Wednesday morning!

     Leyton had a big morning this A.M.  The biggest deal was that he changed out of his jammies and into his school clothes almost entirely by himself.  (He has been wanting to show his independence and "I can do it" attitude quite a bit lately.)  Seriously, the funniest part was him changing his own diaper (not entirely self-sufficient yet, but getting there).  He pulled the diaper off, asked for a wipe, cleaned himself up, laid out a diaper on the floor, straddled it and sat down to put the new one on.  Potty training is just around the corner, I think!  After the diaper was changed, he wiggled on his hot-to-trot blue jeans and t-shirt.  I was very proud of him doing so well all by himself.  And, so was he!

     Mommy decided to have a "Leyton morning" and spend the first half of the day with my little guy.  We got serious with the play-doh before venturing out of the house, and after that - we took a trip to a new place in the neighborhood called THE SWEET GUY.  It is a small little gelato/artisan chocolate/breakfast/lunch place that we hadn't visited yet, and so this morning seemed like the perfect time.  Leyton picked out a strawberry-banana muffin, and we sat down to eat some breakfast.  One not-so-big bite later, he shot out of his chair and said bye-bye to the staff.  It was quite cute.

     We made a quick trip to the library after that to explore and look for some new books and DVDs to watch.  You would think that any child would be in love with all of the books and videos, etc., but NO, not Leyton.  Instead, he shot straight to the computer terminal, sat down, and started typing like he knew what he was doing.  He wanted nothing to do with listening to mommy read books in the little people chairs.  He jumped out of his computer chair, walked up to me and asked me for a "card" (to slide through the card swiper at the computer terminal - all I could find was a torn off piece of the Stride gum box from my purse to give to him).  So, Leyton went back to the computer and slid the Stride package through the card swiper, typed on the keyboard and moved the mouse around a few times.  I asked what he was doing, and he said "I go work."  It was hilarious.  So much for the books!