Life with Boys

Sometimes living with boys is just one chuckle after another...

Someone likes to play Spiderman in the floral centerpieces around our house. At any given time, Spidey has been web-slinging his way through a vase with tall decorative grasses or bamboo reeds, only to have been left behind to fend for himself when a distracted little boy moved on to play elsewhere.

Someone landed the Millennium Falcon in our shower, parked right between the shampoo and conditioner. We have yet to see any Storm Troopers emerge.

Someone shot the Nerf dart gun at our lovely family portrait hanging over the fireplace. And one of the darts managed to stick squarely on Mom's face. Intentional target? Let's hope not... Ha!

Life with boys ... LOVE IT!

Uniform

When Scott changes out of his work clothes, his usual "uniform" for lounging around the house is a white tee and gray sweatpants. The boys took notice and one day asked to "dress like dad." Easy enough. So now this is the usual uniform for evenings in the Leahy household.

Lounging Leahys

FUNdraising!

Take a hoedown, add in a cookie walk and basket raffle, and round it out with a YEEHAW ... and there you have the spring fundraiser for Luke's school! We packed up the crew and headed down to the school for an evening of fun.

Our neighbor Todd performed a magic show

for the kids. Reid was asked to assist

with part of the show!

They waved a magic wand

and made this paper hat!

Dancing in the Gym

You & Me

Grant is starting to reach out and

grab for things ... like Dad's face!

Father & Son

Mr. Cool & Mr. Cute

Mama & G

All dressed up for work (& play!)

Lego Guys

The boys LOVE to play Legos. Most mornings before school they are camped out on the floor of their room building the next great Lego creation. Reid particularly likes the Lego guys, and we have quite the village! One evening he had them all lined up and displayed on his bed. Cute!

Happy 1 Month!

What a blessed month with our Sweet Baby Grant! In his first month, he's gained over a pound and is weighing in at 9 lbs. 12 oz. (50th percentile). He's also grown an inch to 22.5 inches (90th percentile). He's now sleeping longer stretches at night and is awake for longer periods in the day. He loves to be in the center of the action, not missing a thing. We can't wait to see what next month brings!

Likes & Dislikes

Today marks 4 weeks for Mr. Grant. Over the past month, we have loved every moment of watching his little personality unfold! Here are a few fun highlights of his likes & dislikes:

Grant likes...

• Smiling, which he started on Feb. 17. He woke up from a long nap, full of smiles!
• His pacifier.
• Being swaddled.
• His swing.
• Long walks in the baby bjorn.
• Watching his big brothers' antics.
• Sleeping. After a rough first few nights home from the hospital, we got into a good sleeping routine at night, and that's continued ever since! He usually is just up once in the night to eat (sometimes twice ... but that's not often).
• Riding in the car.
• Snuggling.
• Bathtime.
• Snoring. (He's a LOUD sleeper.)

Grant dislikes...

• Waiting in the car pick-up line at Luke's school. For some reason, he thinks the car needs to be moving AT ALL TIMES and never at a standstill.
• Wet pants in the middle of the night. This has yielded some very loud wails!
• Burping. He's the slowest burper. Eventually, it happens but it takes a long time.

Just One of the Guys...

Time for Tea

On Valentine's morning, we hosted the neighborhood moms for tea time! It was wonderful to catch up -- and slow down for a bit -- over a morning of tea and treats, including heart-shaped lemon cranberry scones with creme fraiche, cucumber avocado sandwiches, lemon bars, fudge, cappuccino walnut toffee, and other yummy goodies! One joy of hosting gatherings like this is pulling out the nice dishes that don't get used nearly enough. Perhaps we'll have to make more occasions for fine china and the silver tea set! Ooh-la-la!

Rub-a-Dub-Dub

Grant's in the tub! We've been giving Grant sponge baths for some time, while we waited for his belly button to heal. This week we were all set to brave new territory into the world of tub-bathing for Baby Grant! While he would often carry on with quite a ruckus through the sponge baths, he was quite calm and content during his first real bath, never letting out a single peep. Happy baby ... happy bathtime!

"Hey, Dad. I kinda like this bigger tub."

Peeking out from the warm hooded towel!

Ready for bed in sock monkey PJs!

A little post-bath playtime!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Arrow

Reid: Mom, I think Grant's hair in the front makes an arrow.

Mom: Huh?

Reid: Right there. It is pointy and makes an arrow.

Mom: Ohhhhh, I understand. Reid, your hair is like that, too, in the front.

Reid: It is?! [Followed by Reid running to the mirror to check it out...]

And so goes the lesson of hairline formation and Widow's Peaks (which maybe we'll start referring to as the "Arrow" from now on...)

On the subject of archery, Grant has also been doing the "archer pose" often. He's really starting to stretch out those arms and legs. Here's our happy little Robin Hood!

Date Night

The big brothers have adjusted very well to having another brother around the house. We've not really seen any jealousy, and they've taken the changes all in stride. For the most part, their lives haven't changed that much since Grant is still little and doesn't interfere with their Lego-building or video-game-playing.

Mama decided to treat the older boys to a Mother/Sons Date Night! Tonight we dressed up and headed downtown for dinner at Sonterra Grill, followed by an evening at the theater. We enjoyed a fun-filled performance of Imagination Celebration's "Jumpin' Jazz: A Swingin' Jungle Tale." This kid-focused musical mash-up incorporated a chamber orchestra, singing, acting, storytelling, audience participation, and even break-dancing (our favorite part!) What a marvelous evening out on the town! Dad and Grant enjoyed their evening relaxing at home, just the two of them.

Mom & Her 2 Handsome Little Dates

Ready for the show to begin!

Afterward, we had the opportunity to mix

and mingle with the cast, including these

jungle creatures! The masks were hand-painted

and made of foam ... such incredible detail!

Brotherly Love

Now that Reid is feeling better and is over his respiratory bug, he's enjoying some sweet moments with his little brother. Today he held Grant and gave him his bottle ... and Reid even snuck in this little kiss for little bro! Melt our hearts!

Brotherly Love

It takes a Secret Agent to feed this baby

(according to Reid's shirt!)

Another Snow Day...

Another day to lounge around!

Cold ... and Finally Snow!

While the rest of the nation had massive snow, we just had cold. Crazy cold. -13 degree cold. Windchill at -42 cold. Instead of cancelling school for snow days, we had two days of school called off for extremely cold temperatures. So Mama and the cubs hibernated at home and waited for the temps to warm a bit.

The boys loungin' at home on a day off school!

A big highlight for Grant this week...

staying awake for longer stretches!

He's now awake for 90 minutes at a time,

and we love seeing his baby blues!

Here's lookin' at you, kid!

This winter has been interesting. Lots of warm temps. Not a lot of snow. Finally, it started to snow yesterday afternoon. And it has kept right on snowing. We have about 6-8 inches of snow ... and still counting. We decided to take advantage of our winter weather (finally) by hitting Toboggan Hill for a sledfest today, followed by warm drinks and treats at Starbucks.

Grant was all bundled in his winter fleece and

napped happily in the car. Mom and Dad traded

off hanging out with Grant in the car, while the

other joined the big boys for sledding.

Ready to take on Toboggan Hill!

There was so much powder that several runs

down the hill resulted in a face full of cold snow!

Mom & Reid warming up in the car!

Boys in ski bibs at Starbucks