Fletcher's New School

To say that we are thrilled with Fletcher's new school would be an understatement! He is very content and things are going very smoothly for us all.

Examples of what makes the Children's Schoolhouse so cool and the right place for Fletcher this year:
There are 4 students in his class. How's that for a ratio?!
The teacher is amazing!
So far the boys (all 4 are boys) have made homemade play dough in the kitchen (measuring, stirring, cooking, kneading, etc.), constructed a wall from wood, sand, and water (real construction), made a trench and constructed a bridge over the trench (engineering!), and planted a vegetable garden.
The learning is very cooperative and already the boys have formed a special bond.

It's all hands-on, practical learning based on the students interests! It is exactly the right thing for Fletcher for this year!

We are blessed to have found this school!

Camera Bag

I added an application on my iPhone called Camera Bag that takes the original photo and transforms it into other formats. Helga is my favorite so far.

Busy Days

Yes, we're still here. Just been very busy lately. Fletcher starts a new school tomorrow and I am working part-time. Fletcher's school is a co-op so we've already put in a lot of time in the past few weeks. I will be working at St. Alban's as a preschool teacher for the 3's. School starts tomorrow but I have also already put in a lot of hours. Of course, Ed's 7-on at work fell in the same week. He and I feel like we've just been trading off and passing each other in the doorway. Things should calm down some once we establish a routine.

In addition to a new school, Fletcher has started swim lessons at Huntersville Family Fitness and Aquatics center and will be taking drama on Monday afternoons.

I will be a Parent Volunteer at Fletcher's school on Wednesdays so I will get to spend at least one day a week with Fletcher at school. His class is 4 boys, that's it! They have a new teacher who has some great ideas for projects to do with the kids that really take it from start to finish. I think this year will be a wonderful expereince for Fletcher. Just pray that we can find something just as great for next year!

Cousins

Here are a few photos from our last day in NJ. Fletcher was very sad to leave and cried when saying 'goodbye' to his cousins. Can't wait to see you guys in November!

We had some 'real deli food' on our way out of town and it was so yummy! Perhaps the best sandwich in the world: fresh prosciutto, fresh mozzarella, fresh ricotta, and sun-dried tomatoes on a crusty roll!

Seaside Heights, NJ

We headed "down shore" on Tuesday and had a great time playing in the sand, jumping waves, walking along the boardwalk, riding the sky lift, and eating some boardwalk grub. The shore is so unlike the NC beaches, but is great in it's own kitschy way.

Visiting Great Gram

We had a great visit with Great Gram on Sunday. We enjoyed lunch, a visit to the quilting room where GG spends a lot of her time, and a wonderful visit in her room. The kids asked lots of questions about photos and GG enjoyed telling the kids about them. Fletcher really loves his Great Gram and sticks really close when they are together.

American Museum of Natural History

We've had a great time here in NJ! On Monday we went into NYC with Aunt Cathy and Emily and Caitlin to visit the AMNH. We took the train and the subway to reach our destination. Love some public transportation! The museum was great! We saw dinosaur fossils, the exhibit of American Peoples, Ocean Life, and of course, the Gift Shop. We could have easily spent 1 0r 2 more days because there was so much we did not see. Grampa rode the train home from work with us.

Grandfather Mountain

Last week Fletcher and I went to spend some time with Mom and Aaron and we all headed to Grandfather Mountain. We had a fun day!

Updated Fitness Blog

I'm trying to post to my Fitness Blog at least once a week so keep checking in!

'Mommy's Song'

This morning Fletcher composed a song for me:

"Mama, back in old western times
You did not exist
But I think you're the best mom ever.
And I love you so much, Mommy.

Mama, back when dinosaurs lived
You did not exist
But I think you're the best mom ever.
And I love you so much, Mommy."

How wonderful is that! He accompanied himself with guitar and wanted to me to write down the musical notes as well but I do not know how to write/read music. Fletcher proceeded to tell me how to write music. How does he know these things?

I have the sweetest boy ever!

Lake Norman

Fletcher and I needed to get out of the house after a rough afternoon and so we picked up some food and headed to the lake. We sat on a bench by the water and ate dinner while enjoying the lake breezes and watching boats and kayaks paddle by. We then headed to the 'beach' where Fletcher created sand sculptures and made 2 new friends, Malia and Christian. (Fletcher was covered with dirt and was soaked by the time we left and rode home in his underwear.) It was a lot of fun, beautiful, and just the right way to end the day.

Fletcher at Age 5

Fletcher had his five-year well check yesterday and is a healthy boy! He weighs 46 1/2 pounds and is 44 1/2 inches which puts him in the 75-90 percentile for his age. His vision was 20/20 and they checked his hearing which was fine.

Fletcher loves science especially electricity, doing experiments and creating inventions. He likes nature and enjoys being in the woods and tromping in the creek.

He loves books and has a passion for non-fiction books about science. The library and the bookstore are among our favorite places.

Fletcher is very loving and, in his own words, is "a big fan of babies" and also loves animals.

Fletcher is a smart guy with a large vocabulary who is always coming up with new ideas and always has something to say or a thought to share.

We are so proud of our son and the person he is becoming.

Check Out my Fitness Blog

I updated my Fitness Blog today, so check it out!

July 4 at the National Whitewater Center

After trying to come up with a plan for the 4th, we decided to head to the US National Whitewater Center for active family fun and fireworks. The whitewater center is only about 20 minutes from our home but this was our first visit. It is pretty amazing! There is lots to do but we settled on Eco Caching: we rented a GPS and navigated our way through the wooded trails to find cache boxes where we stamped our adventure passport. There is a learning curve for using the GPS but by the end of our adventure Ed was getting the hang of it. We found 4 of the 23 caches hidden. We will definitely be returning to complete our adventure! We loved it and may have found a new family hobby!

The Harrington's joined us for fireworks in the evening. The kids had fun playing together. The fireworks were really cool, but didn't last long enough for us.

Hope you all had a great holiday!