Selby and Snakes and Lizards -- Oh My!

We went to the annual JCC Family Festival yesterday and had a ball and stayed, as usual, until the very end. We saw our friends Eric and Ari, Nancy and Emmett, Rich and Alexandra/William and a few other old BMH friends. We did face painting, animal petting, rocket firing, jumpy castle jumping, train riding and bagel and cream cheese eating (three mini ones!). But the most amazing thing was the snake and iguana petting. Selby was a bit too comfortable petting and squeezing and teasing the gigantic boa constrictor. And then when it came to the giant lizards, she kept cradling them as if they were here dolls. I had to put my foot down when she started kissing the the blue-tongue that was darting in and out of the lizard. Not only was she holding them like a baby (as her dad instructed her to do earlier in the day) but she was giving all the other kids instructions and lessons on holding it, as if she worked for the animal handler. It would've been hilarious if it weren't so disgusting.

Father Daughter Dance: The Money Shots

Shall We Dance?

Last night was the annual DMIS Father Daughter Dance. I admit I was a little jealous. How fun to get dressed up and go dancing with Selby and all the other DMIS moms? I did get some good photos. Unfortunately, the ones below are not them. The good ones are on Tom's camera, which means there's a good chance no one will ever see them again. These are from my iPhone, and they'll do the trick for now.

Unrelated to the Father/Daughter Dance ... Selby brought up the subject of death (as she would say: for real). It went something like this:

Selby: I'm little so I'm not going to die for a VERY long time.
Me: This is true.
Selby: Ammy is old. She's going to die before me.
Me: Yes, Ammy is older than you but I don't think she's going to die for a long time.
Selby: Good.

And then one last Selby nugget. After dinner the other night: "Mommy, I like dessert." Me: "No shit." Kidding, I didn't really say that. But I thought it.

Mama's Day

Before I describe our great mother's day, I have to brag about Selby grasping a concept about age. We were in the car talking about Emerson's birthday...

Selby: He's going to be 5 or 6, right?
Me: He'll be 5
Selby: So he's older than me, right? Because I'm going to be 4 1/2?
Me: Yes
Selby: So, when you had a baby in your belly, Emerson was already born, right?
Me: That's right! You are so smart!

It's a simple concept, but pretty cool that she put it together, right?

Mother's day was great, as expected. Brunch at the Kirk's, prepared by David, to order. Flowers from Tom and a bunch of gifts and cards from Selby. She sort of piled them in front of me in the middle of breakfast and then told me I couldn't open them until everyone was finished eating. Breakfast was followed by swimming with family and then a hike and dinner with Amy. I've said it before but I'll say it again...I really think Mother's Day needs to be more of a week.

Here's princess Selby from the Steele Street School Fair this weekend.

New York, New York

We just returned from a great trip to New York. My mom had Selby to herself for three full days while I attended a journalism conference and did NYC things, like go to the Museum of Modern Art, "do" coffee, and meet friends for dinner. Selby was a natural city girl, riding in cabs, buses and subways and walking the streets of New York. In the subway, she only wanted to hold the pole, and not sit, for some reason -- and then wave and smile to Grandma who was sitting down. She LOVED spending time with her cousins. We were lucky enough to be in town for Sophie's third birthday. She also got to play with Izzie, Jaime and Alexa. Unfortunately, we missed Eric and the other brood of cousins but we're looking forward to seeing them over the summer. Waiting for photos from Grandma since my camera didn't work, but here's a subway and bus stop shot. She's like the happiest public transportation rider ever.