Memorial Day Weekend

Wet-n-Wild

Wild Man Westphal…

...in the Water.

Fletcher had a water-filled Memorial Day weekend. He got to experience all sorts of new adventures dealing with water. Fletcher has always been bathed in a bathtub only with enough water enough to get him wet, so he has never had significant portions of his body submerged in the water. Well, that was about to change…

The first episode was a lazy Saturday morning when Mommy decided to relax in a fizzy-bath using a Lush (one of our favorite stores) bath-bomb. Once Mommy was all settled in with her candles burning, the Jacuzzi jets blowing, the music playing, and the wine flowing – she was “interrupted” by Wild Man Westphal as he burst through the bathroom door (OK, it was Daddy) and jumped in the tub. At first, Fletcher was not sure what to make of all the water; it was warm, smelled good, and relaxing – so he peed.

He seemed to acclimate pretty quickly and in no time he was splashing around, laughing, and having a good time with Mommy – just like Daddy. Once Fletcher was all wet, we got to try out a few different hairstyles on him – which he did not seem to appreciate. He got lots of soap and bubbles on his head – and was all cleaned up. He then got dried off and fell asleep. Later that day, Aunt Jeana, Uncle John, and Cousin Elijah came by for a visit and a BBQ.

John and Chris went out for a walk with the boys and the Moms went out shopping (for shoes of course). On the walk, Fletcher fell asleep before we got to the end of the driveway – but Elijah managed to take off both shoes, spill his milk all over the stroller, and lose his hat (also by the end of the driveway). It was a nice and pleasant walk, the weather was perfect, and two proud dads talked about the future of their sons.

Once back home, hot dogs were put on the grill and the boys jumped into the pool. The water was a bit cooler than the bathtub (even after cranking the heater to 90 degrees). But, we had a lot of fun. Fletcher has an inflatable fire truck that he seemed to enjoy. Since he is so damn nosey, he got to look around at all the happenings and activity surrounding him. He was especially drawn to the waterfall from the spa area in the pool.

Also, we were able to do an extensive amount of “Rocket Ship Man” in the pool since it took no effort to support Fletcher because he floats like a cork. We did a lot of rounds and Fletcher kicked and splashed all the way. He even managed to swallow a whole bunch of water and then proceeded to cough it back up. Enough swimming - the hot-dogs were ready!!!

The next day, our good friends Scott, Mike, and Ginny met up with us for some good, traditional, Memorial Day Mexican Food. That’s right, we went to the local Mexican restaurant and proceeded to consume large quantities of beer and margaritas. Mr. Fletcher was at home with Frances but we soon returned to do some more swimming. This time the spa was about 105 degrees – and we settled in to relax.

After a little while, water balloons were raining down from the sky – we were under attack. Our neighbors were having their own little outing and went on the offence and cast the first stone. So, we properly returned fire with an arsenal of bottle rockets and roman candles. Every so often a water balloon would land in the pool and not break – these precious items were quickly retrieved and catapulted back across the Cedar Tree screening – but off-course because it is hard to throw a water balloon in the air 50 feet with wet hands after drinking 6 beers. The night finally ended when both sides’ supplies were exhausted. It was a good thing we didn’t run out of beer.

On Monday, the official Memorial Day, we did some more swimming. Fletcher really enjoys the water – when he is not swallowing it. After one swim, Fletcher got up on a table and started to do a poll-dance. He seemed to be dancing to the music playing outside. Good thing no one had any dollar bills.

Just About 6 Months

The handsome men in Mommy's life.:-)
















Look who can hold his own bottle. His big paws cover most of the 6oz bottle.
















The bib says it all 'It all about me!'














Fun, fun, fun at Cousin Elijah's 1st birthday party!








Fletcher had his 6 month doctor’s appointment last Friday and after getting his “stats,” his pediatrician just said, “he’s off the charts.” She’s given up on putting him in any type of category or percentile and will just stay he’s not on any chart for his length and weight at this age, but his growth is consistent for him based on Mommy and Daddy’s sizes. He is now nearly 30 inches long and weighs 23 ½lbs and is fitting quit comfortably into 18 month clothing. He’s going to be a tall boy like Mommy and Daddy. His doctor said Fletcher is developmentally on track and is a very strong little boy (that was after it took her about 3 minutes to get her flowing hair out of the grips of BOTH of Fletcher’s hands).

We also welcomed Daddy back after being in London for almost a week. Daddy forewent sitting in the front seat with Mommy again and enjoyed the ride from the airport with his “new love” Fletcher while talking to me “through” the rearview mirror. Fletcher was all smiles and seemed to really know the whole family was back together.

Fletcher went to his very first birthday party. The party was for his cousin Elijah who just turned 1 year old. Fletcher didn’t know what to make of all the excitement, but he definitely enjoyed seeing his cousins, aunts, uncle and all the new people he met.

His two new teeth are coming in nicely and he likes to try them out on just about anything BUT any type of teething toy. He is learning more and more about those big hands of his and how they can work to his benefit – he grabs, scratches, claws anything and everything in sight. Although he hasn’t perfected this quite yet, he can also hold his own bottle. His aim at getting the bottle or binky in his mouth isn’t all that great right now, but we are definitely getting there.

Fletcher’s got pretty good temperament – mostly happy and smiles which is fun to see these days with those two darn teeth. He also has a pretty strong will which he “tries out” on us new parents with a few yells and some back arching when he doesn’t want to be put into his car seat or his stroller. Mommy and Daddy’s wills are stronger and we just tell him that we KNOW nothings wrong, i.e., this particular tactic isn’t working and that the car seat and stroller are but a few of the many, many, many, MANY things he’ll be doing that he doesn’t want to…

Mommy celebrated her birthday on Sunday. Last year on her birthday, she was out of her first trimester of her pregnancy and could FINALLY let the world know we were expecting Fletcher. Boy, a lot has changed in one year! My continued good health, Fletcher and Chris are the best gifts – I couldn’t ask for too much more!

Mother's Day

Uncle John with Cousin Elijah and Daddy and Fletcher.

The new mothers and their little guys -- Fletcher 5 1/2 months and Elijah almost 1 year old (on May 23rd)

Guess Who's Got New Teeth!

Shhhhhhh.... Daddy and Fletcher lounging and reading a good book.











Fletcher used to gaze into Mommy's eyes when she'd hold him. Not anymore, she's only a means to an end -- to check out new sights, but it is a perfect opportunity for her to kiss those cheeks.
















Jabba jaws...












The first official measure of Fletcher -- he's the shortest of of them all -- for now, at least...

















Fletcher and Daddy relaxing after our 6-mile walk in Needwood Park.







Fletcher’s got two new teeth. Well, nubs…

You know we longed for the day when Fletcher would discover he has hands. Well now “these hands” are grabbing everything in sight and we know this is just the beginning. The other day the hands left Mommy bent over in a chair at the kitchen table trying to figure out how to loosen Fletcher’s death grip on a handful of Mommy’s hair. She cleverly dangled a toy that was close by to draw Fletcher’s attention away and he loosened his grip. We figure the teeth will be causing similar “problems” later.

Mommy celebrated her very first Mother’s Day. I wasn’t expecting anything big, but Fletcher managed to get me a Starbucks gift certificate. I’m wondering if he’s trying to prepare me for something – hope not. I’m happy we were blessed with Fletcher and to add the new role “mother” to my life.

Give me some Sugga!

Come on now and feed me...:-)

Hello...

Fletcher plays with his foot while having his morning BM.

Daddy talking about our future at new house and Fletcher ignores him and takes the opportunity to play with his feet some more.

A…B…C…D…E…F…G

H…I...J…K…L…M…N…O…P

Q…R...S

T...U...V

W...X

Y...and Z

Three (1, 2, and 3) big milestones this week – 1,1,1,1,1,1) Fletcher is finally sleeping through the night – which basically means we stuff him full of cereal and formula around 8:00 (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8) to ensure his belly is full so he does not wake up; 1,1,1,1, 2,2,2,2) he can roll over, one (1, 1, 1, 1) way for now, although it is a basic lesson in physics that a large head not at equilibrium tends to leverage the body to turn in the direction of gravity (e.g., roll over); and 1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3) he started grabbing at his feet, which we believe are just another set of little hands. We are happy about these very important milestones, just like the first time he took a poop. As proud parents we coo over him and point and say: “look a big stinky”

We thought he’d never be able to grab his feet from lying flat on his back because of his rather round, pendulous, and rotund belly, but we were wrong. Magically, one morning when changing his diaper – BAMM (emphasize like cook Emeril Lagasse) there they were, the feet grasp in his hands. Mommy’s not benefiting from Fletcher’s sleeping through the night quite yet. She still thinks it is too good to be true so she continues to listen for him throughout the night. We refer to Mommy as old eagle ears – which really does not make sense, because it more correctly used in the context of “eagle eyes” but we try to adapt and “do our ting”

Fletcher has transitioned well to his fruits and vegetables. He’s been exposed to quite a repertoire of them including – peas, green beans, squash, bananas, applesauce, sweet potatoes, and carrots. He has even managed to get some in his mouth. Daddy is not as aggressive with his feeding tactics which is why Fletcher tends to get food all over his face, up his nose, and in his hair. Mommy is a no-nonsense, get the food on the plastic spoon, and push it into his mouth, kind-of-gal. Reminds me of our first date….

We are learning that Fletcher is too observant (A.K.A. nosey - for his own good). If there is any type of noise or commotion (for Fletcher it could be anything from someone talking softly to banging on a kitchen pot), he has to see what is going on which often prevents him from eating and sleeping. So, we are still learning how to deal with this when we go out since Fletcher pretty much won’t eat or sleep when he’s out and there are new people or things to see. Of course, taking him on his nightly stroll or Hummer ride, he seems to fall asleep very quickly.

Creatures of habit – it is important to us to know when Fletcher has his bowel movements. We prefer to start the day with them so that they don’t surprise us later. We think he does too –especially after reading the Washington Post and a few cups of coffee. Well, for two weeks straight now, if Fletcher hasn’t had a BM when we get him from his crib in the morning, all Mommy has to do is put him in the side-chair in the bedroom and like “magic” and a big ol’ stinky package of green stuff appears out of nowhere – just like pulling a rabbit out of a hat – you get the picture. You know, Chris NEVER liked that chair, and now I’m starting to wonder why Fletcher thinks it is a good place to take a dump