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.