The Sunshine State

We made it to Florida and back home. Whew. I was nervous about flying with Luke. I scheduled the flights so he could sleep during part of it and it worked out. On the way down, he slept for all but the first and last 20 minutes of the flight. Of course the older gentleman next to us was not pleased when he saw he was next to a toddler. I recall his exact words to be, "Lucky me." Real nice dude. Keep that to yourself next time. He did however say in Fort Lauderdale that Luke was the best kid he has ever seen on a plane before. Probably cause he slept the whole time! The way home went even better. He fell asleep for the first hour and a half and then ate and read books for the rest of the time. I think Luke is telling me that he wants to fly when we go on vacation instead of driving. And he's right.

We found a RV park in Key Largo that we stayed at for the week and had a great time. Luke loved exploring outside - we realized that this was his first time walking outside since last summer he just sat and pulled out grass and this winter we would just carry him because of the ice and snow. He especially liked walking on the crushed coral rock that was around the motor home. It was bumpy on his feet, but very sharp! (Note the two cuts on his forehead, the rocks won that fall.)

Sorry for the abundance of photos, it's only about a quarter of them. :) I'll make them smaller so it is easier to load.

Walking around the motor home, endlessly. 

Off of the restaurant where we ate after the first day. 

The sunset from the restaurant. 

Story time with Dad. Luke was happy I brought toys from home to entertain him.

Three generations walking the one and only beach we found in Key Largo at the John Pennecamp State Park. I didn't know that but the keys have very few beaches because they don't have any waves to create the beaches and anytime you find a beach, it is manmade and they bring in the sand from the mainland. Interesting huh.

Daddy and Luke.

Grandpa Fischer carrying Luke on our hike through the park.

Jadyn, Jeanette, Luke, Jim and Jamie on our hike.

Luke LOVES being up high on people's shoulders!

Another gorgeous sunset from our spot at the motor home park. Not too shabby huh!

On our fishing trip. I only managed to get queazy for half the trip. I'm blaming that on being pregnant.

Jamie, me, and Jadyn on the boat. It was just a little windy.

Yet another beautiful sunset. (That is a sailboat, not a dolphin, Mom.)

Learning to hit rocks together with Daddy.

Playing around.

Daddy and Luke in Key West after Luke just woke up. He stayed awake (and was cranky) the whole trip to Key West and fell asleep right as we entered the town. Needless to say it was a short nap but he did awesome all day walking around the town.

Key West by one of the ports.

I don't recall what building this was but the giant statue of the two dancers in the front was pretty fun.

We found a toy store in Key West for Luke to run around and play in. I could have spent hours in there myself!

Playing with the puppets. I swear he isn't trying to pull the monkey's pants off but it does look like that!

Eating lunch in Key West.

Want to buy Kenny Chessney's house? It's only $4.5 million or so. Apparently he put it on the market just weeks after he bought it. What a waste, I'll take it!

Tired Luke is supposed to be napping on our trolley tour of Key West. 

One of the many beautiful homes in Key West.

Mile marker 0 on Highway 1. 

Still not sleeping...and that beach is also manmade.

Some beautiful flowers on our tour we saw.

Ernest Hemingway's house. We opted for the drive-by instead of waiting in line for the tour. I was pleased with that decision.

At the port in Key West.

One of my favorite parts of Florida, the palm trees.

Inside was the cool toy store, along with other stores as well. Let's not forget to mention the random bird exhibit they had upstairs with 4 full-size Macaws. 

Jadyn and Jamie on their way back in from parasailing. Dang it sucks being pregnant and unable to do fun things like that!

Walking with Grandpa Fischer

Luke having a meltdown during our "nice" family photo.

Swimming at the state park again in Key Largo.

The child that would not make eye contact with me. He was too busy exploring everything else than to care about a camera. 

To go back in the water or to not go back in the water. 

He met a little girl his same age, but lost interest after 30 seconds. Go figure.

My baby.

My baby that's a ham.

He loved playing on this small wooden plank. Of course it was in front a tiny shed with an angel painted on it. It was definitely out of place, but he liked it!

Playing around.

Mr. Giggles

Our view of the sunset from our spot.

Attempting to go swimming at dusk. Nice try buddy.

We hope you enjoyed the pictures! We had a great time on vacation and are now ready for summer in MN! 

Much love!

The O'Fischer's

Life.

Since it has been a month since my last post, there is plenty to catch up on.

First of all though, my long-time friend, Kate, lost her husband, Ben, this weekend is a very unfortunate accident. They had been married just a short year-and-a-half when they decided they wanted to travel just the two of them together for a year. They were planning on going to Southeast Asia for a month and then New Zealand for a year to do volunteer work and then find as Kate said it, "real jobs". They both quit their jobs in CO, ended their lease on their apartment and were packing up to start the adventure of their lives when tragedy struck. Ben passed away suddenly in a bad accident and Kate's world was turned upside down. I cannot begin to imagine what pain, sorrow, sadness and loneliness she is feeling. Losing your husband, best friend, and frankly, someone you chose to spend an entire year with all alone, in a split second, all at a very young age, is heartbreaking.

I don't want to focus on the sadness on this, I would rather like to tell you how amazingly strong of a woman Kate has proven herself to be during such a terrible time. The accident took place in CO so I have not seen Kate but my cousin, Micki, was with her at the time and has been by her side since it happened. I am hearing unbelievable pieces of stories on how Kate is so grateful she was able to love Ben, shared many happy experiences together and etc... I am pretty sure I would not be able to be that strong at this point, and instead, I would focus on the sadness, being alone, going through life without Jamie, and things we will miss out on together. I look to Kate for inspiration on how to live life even when it gives you a truck load of lemons that are rotting. Kate was my best friend in elementary school and I can only hope I can be there for her if she needs anything at any point.

There is a memorial fund set up in Ben's honor and a CaringBridge if you would like to take a look at their story some more. Please keep Kate and their families in your prayers during this difficult time.
The Dodt Spot Blog

Elton John wasn't so far off in the "The Lion King" with the circle of life. While others are grieving the loss of their family members, we are fortunate enough to be celebrating a new life that will be joining our family at the end of summer. Yes, Luke is going to be a big brother, I am going to be a mom of TWO, Jamie gets to teach another kid how to log roll and Jack and Dino get another child to chase them and pull their ears! I am about 15 weeks and due on August 27th. So you can plan on finding me this summer eating ice cream, sipping lemonade, and laying by a pool (I'll be the whale by the pool)...I think I should start looking for a nanny for Luke then huh. Okay, the nanny part is a little far-fetched, but the other stuff is very accurate. We are really excited for another baby and can't wait to find out if a boy or girl is brewin' in my tummy in the beginning of April!

Luke has been running and climbing everywhere. He is a very active kid (what kid isn't at 14 months??) who loves to play with books, puzzles (dumping the pieces off of the board), trucks, and his tool box where you put a shape through a hole and it makes a funny noise. We are working on getting the right shape in the right hole at this point, but he still loves it. We are going to our ECFE (Early Childhood Family Education) classes every week still and it is going great. A new set of 10 month old twins joined the class yesterday so that will bring some new life to it. Luke doesn't really play with the other kids too much there but it is fun to see him play with new toys and figure them out. Most of their toys are education-driven so we can see how he figures things out.

We are going to Florida next week for a vacation and I am REALLY excited for the warm weather and a getaway. Jamie has to drop off a log and pick up a new trailer for work in Georgia so he is driving down on Tuesday and I am flying with Luke (AHHHHHHHHHHH) on Thursday to Fort Lauderdale and then we are driving to the Keys. Jamie's parents and sister, Jadyn, are driving down also in their motorhome so we will all be spending the week together which will be a great time! I am not exactly looking forward to a three-and-a-half hour flight with a 14 month old whose attention span is about 27 seconds, but I guess it is better than driving for two full days with a 14 month old. I bought some new books, a DVD and some snacks that are all new to him so hopefully they will entertain him...for 15 minutes or so. I am partly preparing myself for the worst so then it really won't end of being that bad, but on the other hand, it really could be that bad. I'll keep you posted.

My friend, Michelle (sorry I cut off her head), her daughter, Taylor, Luke and I went to the MN Zoo on Monday. Unfortunately this was the only photo I took of them...where I let Luke run free, down the hallway being remodeled where there were no doors or places to escape.

Luke and I visited my cousin, Kelene and her two adorable boys on Monday night. Here is baby, but not so little anymore, Tommy. Those eyes are just beautiful!

Jack is looking onto Luke eating his toys. He should be used to it by now.

Clearly working on that damn molar with his leaky mouth.

Playing at home. I love seeing him play correctly with toys. :)

I had to throw this one up too. Here he was running up to me with the camera and I guess the flash was a little too bright for him.

He FINALLY learned to stack blocks! We have been knocking them down for months, but stacking is new, and he really likes it. Of course he knocks them down still.

Reading away...

He loves this drawer at my parent's house. My mom has removed all sharp objects, but left items that he loves to carry around with him.

More reading.

Rearranging furniture. This little red chair was given to my mom by her uncle on her first birthday. Let's hope Luke treats it well and with care. It's old ya know! ;) JK Mom

He loves his Grandpa O'Brien!

All giggles.

Grandma's turn. He's checking out who's under there!

So cute!

That is all for now. Please cherish your loved ones, celebrate life, and say "I love you". Until next time...