Eye Infection !!!

So I went to pick Skyler up from school on Thursday and found him with both eyes completely glued shut … uck! The doctor called in a prescription for some antibiotics and when we went to get them, there were two. Of course on call could not assist with why we got two antibiotics, so we had to wait to start treatment. Finally, on Friday morning we heard word that the pharmacy messed up with the two antibiotics and to just give him one. Here is a picture of his eyes on Friday morning …

By his face you can tell what kind of day we had … Of course all bad things (like days off from school for Skyler) come the day before I have a huge assignment due for my school!

So, Friday we started treatment and a lot of linen washing. By  Saturday morning (as Dr. Don predicted), his eyes were no longer goopy.

I think that everyone who had contact with Skyler was itching and scratching their eyes for days, suspecting the cooties may have passed to them. Fortunately, no one caught them. High Five for good hand washing skills everyone!!!

P.S. 1 eye drop per eye x 2/day
1 M&M per eye drop
7 days of eye drops
_________________________________________
= 28 M&M's and one VERY happy Baby!

P.P.S. Don't tell the doctor!

Gasparilla 2010

Skyler’s school had a Gasparilla parade this year and it was soooo cute. I snagged some cute pictures of the kids walking in the parade, but I stayed on the outside of the fence so I wouldn’t upset Skyler.

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The real Children’s Parade was awesome this year!  I had class in the morning, but was able to make it back just in time for the parade (I think I had all the fun without the work b/c it was Brendan’s job to make sure the baby had a nap)! Brendan and Skyler met me at my mom’s house (which is just a short walk to Bayshore) just as the parade began. Patty and Brie, Adam and Kayden also met us there. We put the boys in the Phil N Teds and walked to Kara’s house for the celebration. Patty shared some of her special beads from last year with the boys so they were dressed for the occasion! When we got to the parade, Patty and I went looking for food for the boys while Brie, Adam and Brendan scored some extra beads from the pirates. I got Skyler a footlong corndog (this is Skyler’s favorite food) . His eyes got huge when he saw the size of it! He wasn’t sure how to hold it and had to use my head to prop it up. We had so many beads by the end that our necks felt like they were going to fall off!!!!! Skyler even saw his pre-school director in the parade and she gave him a very special necklace!!! All the kids around him were very jealous! (Have I ever mentioned how spoiled our child is?) As you can tell from some of the pictures, it threatened rain all day, but for the most part it stayed dry. Kayden got a little tired and had to head back to Kara’s a little early, but we had promised Lindsay that we would watch her float come by … of course it was the last one! Lindsay’s mom and sister, Lauren and Anne Marie, met us at the parade right before her float when by. Lindsay and John looked great! After the parade we had some snacks at Kara’s and then headed home. What a DAY! I am sure the boys were exhausted, because I know we were!!!!!

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Christmas 2009

This week has presented with lots of challenges, but none the less, we are grateful to be enjoying the season. We can't help but feel the Spirit of Christ, even through all of these challenges :) Hopefully you can laugh with us as we describe the most interesting last three days.

-On the 23rd, Skyler lost his FAVORITE dog blanket in the mall. That night there was lots of crying as we tried to get him to sleep. I searched the house, car, mall and my mother's home for hours until I finally called it quits around 1am.

- On the 24th, Skyler greeted us at his bedroom door .... This was a HUGE surprise as he has never climed out of his crib before!!! Time for a toddler bed we decided .... we tried to put it off for as long as possible, even though our pediatrician has been recommending it for the last year. Apparently his dog blanket was the calming influence (like the good angel on his shoulder), keeping him in line while we weren't there to tell him no!

- After lots of fervent prayer and requests for a Christmas miracle, we started our Christmas Eve morning searching for Skyler's dog blanket for hours ... NO LUCK. We then bought other blankets to try and replace doggie, but no luck. Bren jokes that Skyler appears to be getting along fine, but his mommy is torn up. (a note - can you get PTSD from your son loosing his favorite blanket?) It is so sad to see him ask for and reach for something that you cannot give to him!!!!!

- We then put together the bed rail for the new BIG BOY BED .... what a joke those things are ... the first one we got was so difficult to put together we had to take it back and the second one did not fit. Of course that was the night that all the stores closed at 7pm!!!! That night we put Skyler to bed in an empty room, in his converted crib, without a bed rail. Well that was a mistake! It took at least half an hour for him to fall asleep ... at the door! The little guy kept rolling out of the bed onto the blankets and pillows on the floor. We finally set up the pack n play to keep him somewhat contained, praying that he could not climb out of that too! Fortunately, he stayed in that and fell back asleep after another half an hour! We have now decided to postpone the transition until after the stores re-open on the 26th.

- Christmas Eve also included the building of many toys! No one told us that Santa does not bring the toys already built!!!! A late night for mom and dad :) Here are the finished results :







- Christmas morning - the weather was warm, rainy and extremely HUMID! We woke up, finished the toy building, and went to get Skyler. We did a recreation of the nativity. This was a wonderful activity and too funny to watch Skyler put the shepherd to sleep in the manger!





Then we opened Christmas presents. Grandma and Grandpa Fletcher brought Skyler this amazing train table that started off like this when Skyler saw it -



And ended up like this by the end of the night :



My favorite line was when Brendan told Skyler that when he yanked and pulled on the pieces that it was like an earthquake for the people living in the little town! Skyler did not seem to be moved by that speach and really set the earthquake in motion.

We then went to Grandma and Grandpa Mitchell's home for dinner. What a great influence Aunt and Uncles are ... Lots of candy and even a mud pit party :





Then it was dinner time ... This is how we do dinner at the Fletcher house ... We start off with a good showing of all the food groups (or at least most) -



And then end up with something like a Corn Dog if we are lucky -



Night time for Skyler on the way home from all the fun and relaxing time for Mom and Dad while we wait for his birthday to hit in a few hours !!! What were we thinking with a December baby?

Now we are waiting for the Fletcher family to join us for some more Christmas and Birthday fun all the way from Arizona !!!!

So glad to have friends and family like you .... Enjoy the holidays :)

Gaylord Palms - ICE

We took Skyler to the Gaylord Palms ICE exhibit in Orlando this year. It was AWESOME! For anyone that does not know, it is an exhibit that the Gaylord Palms hotel puts on every year. It is all Ice and very cold! The exhibit is huge (two million pounds of hand carved ice) and kept at 9 degrees. The exhibit starts in November and goes into January. A little cold … but still very neat. We had Skyler bundled in his footed pajamas, sweats, turtleneck, ski bib, ski jacket, snow boots, and the down jacket they provide! Of course, I forgot the mittens at home, but the jacket was sooo big it seemed to work out just fine! Brendan, Patty, Skyler and I took a midnight drive to Orlando so we could be there early for all the fun. Rich and Kat met us in Orlando … but of course we were late! So they waited inside the freezing exhibit so we could make our way through the line. Skyler loved the ice slides and made sure we took him down it several times (I don’t think he was affected by the cold, definitely not as much as we were). I liked the nativity ice sculpture that was on display at the end … there is a picture below. I lost my memory cards (3 of them) with all those pictures and videos I have been meaning to post … but a nice person turned them in before I had even realized they were lost. After playing in the ICE for a few minutes, we enjoyed hot chocolate and listened to Christmas Carols in the lobby of the HUGE hotel! Brendan took off for the Gators game and the rest of us enjoyed lunch in the seafood themed section of the hotel.  What a great day!!! I only snagged a few pictures b/c of course … my battery died while we were in the exhibit.

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Dog Park Day

We love having relaxing days at the Fletcher house. Skyler and Brendan show us how it is done in these picks …

After a relaxing morning at home, we like to go to the dog park and let Jack run! This morning, Patty came with us! We had so much fun chasing Jack around the dog beach and playing in the sand. It was very cold, especially with the breeze from the water. This is one of our favorite little parks to go to, because it has a playground at it too!

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Visit with Aunt Kim and Jason

Aunt Kim and Jason came in town for a quick visit. We hadn’t seen Jason as big and active as he was. He is such a beautiful baby! We decided that a visit to the Lowry Park Zoo would be great fun. The boys had a blast! Skyler enjoyed the water area, but Jason did not. Jason loved the animals, but Skyler did not. Between the two of them, we had a pretty even mix of activities.  We can’t wait to see them again … hopefully a trip to North Carolina will be in the cards soon :) There are lots of great pictures in this album so make sure to check them all out!

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Visit with Uncle James

Uncle James came in town, so we decided  to show him the fun world of MOSI and the Aquarium. We saw some neat fish at the Aquarium (there are lots of pictures in the album so you will have to open it). Skyler loved Uncle James soooo much and warmed up to him rather fast. After Uncle James had to go home, Skyler was still looking for him in his room to play with him! We will have to travel to Tennessee soon for another visit.

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David’s Swearing In

David was sworn in to Florida Bar August 2009. Skyler and Brendan decided to dress alike for the special occasion. Michelle, Patty, Kat, Granmommy, Granddaddy, Skyler, Brendan and me attended the event. Congratulations David!

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Tarpon Springs and Greek Goddesses

We took Rich and Skyler on their first trip to the Tarpon Springs Sponge Docks. The three Mitchell girls, AKA Greek Goddesses, showed them all the hot spots to get treats and sponges. We also enjoyed a nice meal at Mykonos, our fav restaurant down there. There was some fabulous fudge and lots of yummy Greek desserts. We were even kind enough to bring some back for Granmommy, Granddaddy and Uncle D! Thanks To Rich for the trip suggestion.

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Utah Vacation 2009

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We went to Utah this year for our Ski Vacation. Our friends Sara and Jared were so kind to put us up in their home. We had lots of fun! We got to go to the Salt Lake Temple, go skiing, go to the aquarium, and even enjoy Jared’s B-Day party. Sara and Jared had lots of fun playing with Skyler, a good preparation for their little bundle of joy that was on the way.  Skyler was just over a year and was in desperate need of his first hair cut. We called in the reserves, Aunt Tiffany, who met us at the airport before we departed to give him a quick cut!

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Christmas Portraits 2008

Here are the pictures that were taken at Christmas. My belief is better later then never …. I guess! Skyler was a miniature Santa. Since he was able to walk around Halloween, he was in full run by Christmas. Every where he went, he ran to it … the joys of toddler hood! This made for an extra special photo shoot. He always takes such great pictures, that it is hard to decide which ones to get! I hope you enjoy the sample from the shoot below.

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Skyler Walking!!

The day has come ... Sklyer has started to walk!!!
It stated after a trip to Jacksonville the day after Halloween. We visited some old friends of mine from college (Erica and Jim) who have a 1 year old. I always love going to people's homes who have children around Skyler's age b/c I get to see what toys he likes that we do not have yet. Well he loved the push walker. I had thought about getting one a little while ago, but decided against it with the thought that it would be outdated after a few weeks. Boy was I wrong ... He LOVED it. He was pushing it around their house and doing a good job with being balanced. Of course mom ran out to get one the day we got back to Tampa :)

Within a few days of pushing himself along, he has started to walk unassisted. On Sunday we went over to Brie and Adam's home and he took about 8 steps unassisted ... of course we forgot the camera for that one! Then yesterday we were at my parents home and he took 12 steps ... I caught some of that on video, but our computer is broken so I can't upload until it gets back from HP.

Now, he is pushing up to a standing position and taking steps randomly throughout our house. I know you guys suggest he is a good picture taker, but videos are another story. Trying to get him to walk on camera is a challenge, but I now have tons of footage of him crawling:) Just thought I would update you on Skyler's new development and as soon as I get the computer back I will upload the video for you!!!

Halloween and Amelia Island 2008

Halloween was crazy this year. Before Halloween we had a crazy pumpkin carving contest with Adam, Patty, Kat, Michelle and David. Adam and Patty won the contest with a crazy looking skeleton pumpkin. We also enjoyed some spooky food and music. Skyler was dressed to impress in his Gator gear and of course we carved a Gator pumpkin (I say we, but Brendan really did all the carving).

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The trunk or treat was the same night as Halloween. Brendan had to be at the church to run the chili cook off, while I got the little vampire ready for some candy collecting action. Grandpa Fletcher came in town from San Francisco to catch the Skyler’s first Halloween. We went Trick or Treating through Granmommy’s neighborhood and then went and home for a late bedtime. After that Grandpa Fletcher watched Skyler so Brendan and I could go out to a Halloween Party. 

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The next morning we headed to Jacksonville for the UF v. GA game. Skyler and I visited O’neil and the crew, Susie and Erica (my old college roommate who has a son Skyler’s age). We had a great time and of course the Gators WON! Instead of heading home so late, Brendan and I decided to make a little vacation out of it and stayed a few days at Amelia Island. It was soooo cold outside we did not get to enjoy the beach. Most of our pictures are limited to the chase the ball game we did in the room. 

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World Series

What a lucky kid … I had never been to the World Series before, but Skyler, less then a year old, got to go to the World Series (it helped that you don’t have to pay for a child under 2). Since the Rays made it to the World Series, and Skyler and Daddy had been going to all the games, it would have been tough to miss it! We went with Patty and Adam and got some really GREAT seats. Skyler was kind of a Rays Icon during those days, and always made it on the Jumbo-Tron. My dad even got a text from one of his old associates saying that he saw Skyler on the Jumbo-Tron. The key was to ensure his ray-hawk was perfect. People kept stopping us at the game and asking if they could get a picture with the “Rays Baby.”  It would have been the perfect night if they had won, but unfortunately luck was not with us for this series! We had a great night and Skyler even ended up with a Rays World Series bat which is proudly displayed in his room.  We tried to introduce Skyler to Raymond (the mascot), but he did not want anything to do with him and cried in my shoulder. To this day, he still does not like creatures in costume like that! He got to go to the Rays touch tank during the game and someone even gave him a baseball that he enjoyed eating.

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October Portraits 2008

We took Skyler for updated pictures today, just two days shy of his 10 month birthday. He was soooo cute and everyone loved him!!! Even the other people that were getting their children's photos taken were staring at Skyler. We had his picture taken with his fall vest, Halloween costume, Gator's outfit, and dress outfit.

Here is a slideshow with some of the pictures that were taken :

Halloween Preparation

So we pulled out Skyler's Halloween stuff in July as a form of Preparation for the big holiday ... I like to get excited :) The disappointment came when we tried Skyler's costume on him and found that it was tight!!! 6-12m outfits are not all created equal!! Anyways, it lets me shop for a new one, so no complaints :) Enjoy an early costume picture ...

Ball Pit

Due to Skyler's clear obsession with the balls at Gymboree, we decided to get him a ball pit. He really is spoiled! We got him a baby frog pool and filled it with balls. He loves it soooo much. He thinks it is hilarious when Aunt Patty gets in and starts throwing balls around. He goes over to her and trys to kick her out.

Here are some pictures and videos of him with his new ball pit. There is one picture of him in the frog pit making a frog face ... it is soooo cute :)

Gymboree

If you were wondering what we have been up to on our Saturdays and some weekday afternoons, the pictures will tell it all. We got Skyler a Gymboree membership and started classes in September. Since I am at work and Brendan has stated that he will not take Skyler to classes on his own, we do a Saturday afternoon class. Usually it is Skyler, Brendan and Me at the classes. We have a lot of fun playing with all the neat toys and watching Skyler learn new things. Brendan didn't think much of it at first, but there are two other regular buddies that come to class with their dads, so he is a lot more willing to come. He has even thought about not going to the home Gator games to stay for Skyler's class (thought would be the key word there).

Skyler's favorite thing about Gymboree are the BALLS!!! When we first started that was the only thing that he wanted to play with. We had to bribe him to go through the tunnels and climb the ramps by putting them at the other end. But, after a few weeks, he goes through them without any incentive! Skyler also likes the bubbles and will go after the tiniest bubble and pop it with his fingertip.

Gymboree favorites - Balls, Bubbles, Gymbo Kisses, Freeze Dancing, Airshapes, Parachute Time and Bouncing on the Tube.

Yesterday we went to Gymboree for open gym with his best friend Kayden. Both of the boys enjoyed themselves and I got some cute shots of both of them. There was a really cute moment when Skyler crawled over to Kayden in a pit of balls and decided that he wanted in. He knows no fear, and usually just throws his body around. Well I got the one, two, three, action shot of him crawling/falling into the pit. Just so you don't think that I am a bad mom, he was laughing the whole time! Plus, Aunt Brie saved him once he fell in.

Here are some videos of Kayden and Skyler at Gymboree -

This one is of Skyler and Kayden playing in the ball pit. As you can see, Kayden is still top dog, but Skyler is starting to hold his own -



This one is of Skyler getting excited b/c he sees the bubbles across the room -



This one is of Skyler actually popping the bubbles -

Bitter Lemons

So we have been trying to introduce Skyler to table food recently ... after the Doc advised at the 9 month check up that the reason Skyler is spitting his jarred food back at us is b/c he wants real food. Let me tell you, this doctor is worth all the money we pay him, b/c apparently we don't have the brains to deduce things ourselves. Regardless, Skyler has refused most of the table foods that we give to him. So our baby who once had some rolls on him, is dwindling away to nothing.

Foods he refuses - diced fruit, diced carrots, peas, most baby food

Food he loves - Yogurt, ground beef, OATMEAL a Plenty, Rice Cereal, cheese, crackers, magic stars, cookies

So when we went out with Patty and Adam to a restaurant, we were shocked to find that the thing Skyler wanted most was LEMONS. He would chew and suck on them and then make the cute bitter face. He kept pulling Patty's hand back to him and doing it all over again. So we can now add Lemon to his like list. Thought you would enjoy the video and pictures. (BTW - you would have thought that by now I would have figured it out that I cannot turn the camera, but no - sorry!)

New Blogs

Here's to you Mitzi .... I know it has been some time since my last blog! We have been pretty busy recently, and believe it or not, my picture taking has slacked a little. On top of that it is a pain in the butt to upload pictures onto this computer. But, for thos of you like Mitzi, who check the site frequently, holding on to hope that you might catch a picture of Skyler crawling ... or better yet biting with his new teeth, I will be trying to blog some recent events in the next few days. Love to all :)

P.S. Look through the past few months too, b/c I will be posting his first crawling, first trip to Chuck E Cheese, etc.