Love, Laughter and a Good Cry

Love: Our friends, Forrest and Polly, got married this past weekend. It's always nice to see your friends find love and being in their presence makes you remember your own special day and how you felt. I never understood how Forrest was able to stay single so long because he's such a a catch, but seeing him with Polly this weekend, I finally get it. He held out for the absolutely right person, and hearing the words he said to her at rehearsal party made me cry. It was so sweet! Forrest and Polly, THANK YOU!

Laughter: There are some people you can have fun with in a paper bag (to quote Dottie). You guys know who you are, and I am still smiling as a result of my time with you guys this past weekend. The parties were fabulous and the hotel was swanky, but seeing old friends and having a million laughs together, that was the best part of all.

A Good Cry: I have had the book Marley and Me for about 2 years now, but it has sat on the shelf because I was afraid to read it. I was recently asked when was the last time I cried, and I honestly couldn't remember. Now, I am not a girly girl, but I do have ovaries, so this fact bothered me a little. Crying can be healthy and cathartic. So last week I picked the book up and read the preface. The author, John Grogan, is a very good writer, and I was hooked pretty quickly. I read most of it on the way to Nashville, and then on the way back home as I was reading in the Atlanta airport, Marley started to age and slow down. I put it down immediately, I knew what was coming, and I knew I couldn't read it in public. So yesterday, while Fletcher napped, I got the box of tissues and settled in for the tragic finale. I sobbed like a baby, but the story was wonderful, and today I feel a little...lighter somehow.

Daily Activities

I can't say that being a stay at home mom is easy. There are a lot of hours in the day, and being a teacher I am determined to fill them with educational activities. Afterall, Fletcher probably isn't going to be a superstar athlete, but smart and good looking will take you pretty far in life. So we have started a new game called "Where is..?", which can be played both inside and out and constantly changes. The main objective is for him to identify some object when I ask him where it is. We play this throughout the day, and he is getting quite good at it. He's up to about 60-70 words that he knows and can point or touch the object. Here are a few from outside.

Where is the bird bath? This one is fun after it rains!

Where is the tree? We are working on the difference between pine, palm and magnolia.

Where is the hose? He likes to try and drink from it too.

Where is the fence?

Where is the grass?

Chores

I love watching Jon and Kate plus 8 (in my spare time hahah), and they are a constant source of inspiration about how to help Fletcher become a good person. They started having their kids contribute to the family early by doing easy chores, which I immediately became a little jealous of because they have eight pairs of hands, but then I thought about laundry and potty training and that feeling vanished. Anyway, Fletcher has chosen his first chore all by himself. I was surprised one day when I saw Beau eating a milk bone that I hadn't given him. They only get them twice a day with meals, so I went to the pantry and saw Fletcher about to hand one to Reese too! I realized I hadn't closed the door all the way, and he had opened it. Beau surely saw this as an opportunity and coerced Fletcher into giving him a bone. This happened a few times, so I decided to make this task Fletcher's first chore. He gives the dogs their bones after meals now, so that is one less thing on my plate. Now if I can teach him to fold laundry, we'll be in business!