The Flergers!

It has been a rollercoaster! As I sat down to think back on this last year I feel as though most of it was a blur. That is due mostly in part to grad school--while I was getting smarter the brain was feeling dumber. :(

In case you missed it (or in case I did!) here is a quick run-down of this past years events.

January

• I started my second year of grad school and my second semester as a 1st year librarian.
• Jesse turned 35 years old! (OMG!)
• As part of Jesse's birthday gift, we gave the office a facelift--new paint, new shelving and new office furniture! 

• I went to TCEA in Austin--my first professional conference.

•  The livingroom and hallway got a makeover--we pulled out the ugly, old, badly stained carpet that had been in our house since before we purchased it and replaced it with vinyl laminate wood flooring. It looks so pretty and fresh now! 
• I participated in the Firefly Run with some of my co-workers. It was my first 5K. 

• We didn't do holiday pictures last year, so instead we participated in a photo shoot at my friend Delia's house and got some awesome pics of us doing what we do best (being silly!) 
• Lucas was diagnosed with a speech delay.

• Our baby boy turned 3 on May 7th! His Honey and Papa came for his birthday and we were so happy to have them here! 
• The craft room got a facelift--reorganization, a new book shelf and curtains and its a new paradise instead of a crap hole!

• Jesse and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary. We took a Carnival cruise to Cozumel for the occasion. Honey and Papa came back to stay with Lucas while we were away, and as an anniversary present/early birthday present they painted the entryway, livingroom and hallway (all of this orchestrated by the best friend a girl could ask for, Christina Hoofnagle!) 
• Lucas started speech and occupational therapy at Our Children's House at Baylor--he'll continue once a week appointments until it is no longer needed. 
• Dad  built me a raised bed and I grew tomato plants, jalapeno peppers and attempted to grow some other stuff but failed miserably (it was just too hot!) 

• I turned the big 3-5 (eek!)
• Lucas started potty training on July 4th (Independence from Diapers Day!) 

•  Lucas and I took a trip to New Mexico to help my parents move and get settled at their new home in Glencoe, NM. 
• I began my 2nd year as a librarian and started my last semester of grad school, and Jesse began his 10th year as a teacher!
• Lucas started at a new school! 

• My practicum for grad school began this month, and I had to begin writing my final exam portfolio. 

• I got a new barbeque grill! 
• We went to an awesome Halloween party and saw our friend Dain play in his new band. Lucas went to his first Halloween carnival at school. 

• I had a great time at my first-ever Pinterest Party with some awesome crafty ladies! 
• I finished my final exam so I had a little extra time and chose to clean out our garage. It was a 2 day ordeal but we got all kinds of stuff tossed out and made a lot more space!
• I got a new car! We now are a two-Prius family! 

• Grandma Berger passed away and I came home to Albuquerque to be with my family for the services. 
• I graduated Summa Cum Laude with a Masters in Library Science!!! 
• My son took his first Santa picture since 2009--this was a major celebration because he's been terrified the last 2 years! 
• We had a White Christmas! 

I just realized that it was February the last time I blogged. Oh well. Life goes on. So will I. :)

Since then...

See, I started Grad School in late January and things hadn't quite picked up by the beginning of February but then snowballed shortly after. And I DO MEAN SNOWBALLED! We got 5 days of school off because of the ice and snow that occurred here in the DFW area. I could have ice-skated on the street in front of our house. It was crazy! We couldn't go anywhere for several days (but Jesse did brave the roads after the snow fell because we were in desperate need of milk.) It was a nice snow-a-palooza for the Fletcher family--Lucas even had fun tromping around in the snow and sliding on the ice.

The weather let up and became slightly nicer by March. Lucas got his first shiner when a book he was reading in bed konked him right under his left eyeball. We stopped using his high chair in March because his long legs had outgrown it so he moved to a booster and now sits at the table with us. We had a great Saint Paddy's Day at the North Texas Irish Festival  and Lucas even ate some corned beef and cabbage! Sidewalk chalk was a new adventure and Lucas discovered just how much fun it is to color all over the back patio!

In April we learned just how much of a water baby we have when Lucas went head-first into a pond at his friend's 2nd birthday party. The only fatality was Jesse's beloved Droid which went touch-screen face first into the pond when Jesse had to rescue his boy. After a change out of his mossy diaper and clothes, Lucas was ready to go again (many thanks to our friends who loaned him some dry clothes!) Easter was a rainy day so aside from going through our baskets we didn't do much. Lucas had the worst diaper rash he's ever had that weekend and was sort of an unhappy critter so it was just as well that we didn't get to run around too much. April also brought some new furniture to the Fletcher House! After we got our tax-return we looked into changing our "college dorm room" theme by purchasing a new couch, loveseat and chair from Rooms to Go.

Yippee, we made it to May! The biggest and most exciting event of the month is that my baby boy turned TWO YEARS OLD on May 7th! I'm still in shock but I guess I'll just have to get over it. My parents were here for his birthday AND Mother's Day which was a huge treat. He had a lot of fun hanging out with his Honey and Papa while they were here. I was thrilled to get to spend Mother's Day with my own Mom, who is the most fabulous person I know.

We find out officially how tall Lucas is and how much he weighs next month for his 2 year checkup (we couldn't get it scheduled for this month--too much going on.) We think he weighs approximately 35 pounds. He wears a 3T and a size 7 toddler shoe. He is one beast of a boy! He'll be taking swimming lessons this summer (a gift from his grandparents) and has plans to travel to New Mexico to spend time with his grandparents and his Uncle Paul's family too!

Meanwhile, Jesse and I are doing great. His 8th grade gifted class is trying to evolutionize education and have created a fantastic video to spread the word: Education Evolution. I just SURVIVED my first semester of Grad School and I am so glad to have a few weeks reprieve! I will start summer school June 6th and I'm looking forward to my young adult literature class (like I need a better excuse to read books!) Right now we're just trying to survive the end of the school year, which ends June 9th, so keep us in your prayers and I'll probably see ya'll again this summer!

Jesse's birthday was January 28th, but because it was in the middle of the week we had decided to have his party on a weekend. However, the original weekend we'd planned followed the ice storms, and it was generally just a crazy week so we ended up rescheduling for this past Saturday. We had a game night complete with Rock Band, Dance Dance Revolution and Foosball (out in the garage), as well as various board and card games. One of the games that we play on the X-Box 360 is an atomic tank game that has these nukes you can use to blow up a bunch of things at once, so Jesse chose the radioactive symbol for his cake theme this year. It was a nice get-together, and even though we told people not to bring gifts, Jesse still ended up with some good stuff (thank you Andy for the $50 gift card and Christina for the Best Buy card!) Happy Belated Birthday, Baby!

Jesse got a great surprise for his birthday--a free day off from work! An ice storm came in last week and for 2 days we were off school, and since Wednesday was one of the days (and also Jesse's birthday) he got a cool present by not having to work on his birthday! I took some pics of the icicles on our crepe myrtle and some of Jesse messing around on the ice in the alley as well. It was a nice day and a cool thing to happen to my hubby.