Winter Fun

After the big birthday party we haven't had too much going. This winter Ben and Elise took a Music Together class on Saturday mornings. Otherwise we've been in our usual routine and just waiting for spring to arrive. We've also been working on a new project - Ben's new bedroom. Pictures of that coming soon! Until then, here are a few pictures of recent happenings in the Fritsche household.

Dancing with scarves at Music Together.

Ben and Elise selecting the perfect instrument.

Listening to Miss Reeve sing a lullaby. This is usually the part of the class where Ben breaks into tears. For some reason the lullaby and good-bye songs really had an effect on him. On this particular day he managed his emotions a little better.

Chris Stormer and Josh Habegger came to town for business and paid us a visit. Chris even read a Thomas book to Ben and they became fast friends.

Jackson came for the Academy Awards and Amy came to play trains. Oops, I got that mixed up - it was the other way around.

On March 1st Charlotte got around 6" of snow, which was quite a surprise! It didn't last very long, but it was really pretty coming down. We continued with our grilling plans even though the conditions weren't the best. Jeff braved the snow for us.

The next morning Ben did some "sledding" on our makeshift sled - a plastic Crate & Barrel bag.

Reading some books with Grandpa.

Two Years Old Cont...

Here are a few pictures of Ben over the past two years - his first week, at age one and age two. We went for his 2-year appointment this week and he weighed in at 30 lbs, 6 oz (75th percentile) and is 36 1/2" long (95th percentile).

Two Years Old!!

The Fritsche household was full of activity and excitement this weekend preparing for Ben's second birthday on February 1st. Ben's Fritsche grandparents came to visit, as well as his Aunt Anne. On Saturday afternoon we hosted 12 or so of Ben's friends for a birthday party at My Gym. Then on Sunday we celebrated with family and friends at home and watched the Super Bowl. In the midst of everything we all worked hard to assemble Ben's birthday present, a train table. Babbie & Grandpa worked late into the evening to make sure it was ready for his birthday on Sunday.
Aunt Anne had a special t-shirt made for Ben. One of his nicknames is "Dudey Man."

Here we all are at the birthday party at My Gym.

Watching Anne do some cartwheels with Babbie.

Now practicing his own version of a cartwheel.

Getting ready for a group activity - there's Elise in the background!

Participating in one of the many special birthday adventures.

Getting ready to go through the tunnel on the parachute!

1...2...3...

That was pretty fun!

Anne helped Ben on the hot dog swing.

Ben & Bennett taking a ride on the zip line.

Special birthday boy ride around the gym.

Time for cupcakes.

Mommy finally stepped out from behind the camera for a family shot.

Playing with his new train table. He spent all day and most of the evening playing with it, even foregoing a nap.

Let's blow out the candle.

Here comes Elise to help.

Doing their best Ben Roethlisberger impersonations (he always wears his hat backwards since he's hella cool). Despite this, we were NOT rooting for the Steelers! Oh, by the way, I would never use the phrase "hella cool" but Ben R. frequently does (or at least did in college according to Daddy who briefly hung out with him at a bar way back when).

Inauguration Day + Snow Day

Ben had his first snow day today. All of the schools in Charlotte were closed because of the .6" of snow we have, and therefore his morning preschool was also closed. We decided to venture out into the snow and we stayed out for five minutes, if that. I think he enjoyed walking around in the snow, but as soon as his hands touched it and he got cold he was ready to come in. That's partly my fault for not buying the poor boy any gloves this winter! The last time it snowed in Charlotte was February 1, 2007 - the day Ben was born. Thank goodness the inauguration is on t.v. all day, otherwise we'd be inundated with the local weather people!

This is Ben saying "oh noooo" after putting his hands in the snow.

Farewell to b.b.

Unfortunately 2009 was not a good year for b.b. We discovered this week that she was experiencing kidney failure and that there was nothing we could do to save her. We got her prognosis yesterday and on the same day had to make the tough decision to put her to sleep. Needless to say it was a horrible day for us and for b.b. She obviously was not feeling well and was deteriorating rapidly so I know it was the right decision, but we sure do miss her.

I feel like we've known b.b. since the very beginning of her life - literally. Her mother was a street cat that hung out at our first apartment out of college and Jeff and I saw b.b. being conceived when we were coming home from work one day. Julie Kuhnhein (Hewett at the time) took Mama cat in and cared for her during her pregnancy and then cared for b.b. and her brother/sister. b.b. came to live with Jeff and me in our new apartment in October of 2000 when she was 6 weeks old. We always joked that nature won out in the nature vs. nurture debate because no matter how kind we were to her, she had a defensive, protective nature that caused her to attack visitors to our house - namely Michael Wilson. My mom said (affectionately, of course) that she was almost more like an attack dog than a cat. However, she was nothing but sweet and wonderful to Jeff, me and Ben (well, Ben 98% of the time).

I thought I'd post some pictures of beebs from the past few years. I wish I could post some of her earlier pictures (before Ben came along we took tons of pics of her!), but alas we do not have a scanner.

b.b. helped us test out all of our baby gear before Ben arrived.

Once he did arrive they enjoyed napping together. Notice that b.b. got the more comfortable of the blankets.

Once Ben started rolling over b.b. grew concerned that he might continue to make improvements in the motion department.

Celebrating Ben's first birthday.

b.b. wasn't the greatest at playing hide-and-seek.

Ben and "baba" as he called her.

This is how Ben gave b.b. hugs. He would make a high-pitched "aaaaah" sound along with the hug.

Ben and beebs on Halloween.

b.b. showing some of her true colors when Ben overstepped his boundaries with her.

Here's the last picture I took of b.b. on January 15th. Soaking in her last bit of sunshine.

Happy 2009!

Happy new year to everyone! We celebrated new year's eve with the Wilson clan. To see pictures of Ben and Elise celebrating, go to www.elisewilson.blogspot.com.

Otherwise January has been fairly unventful thus far. We are getting back into our routine of school, play group and Friday classes at My Gym. Plus, Ben is counting down the days until his second birthday. For those of you who don't know, Ben is going to become a big brother in June and we'll find out if he's having a little brother or sister on January 27th.

Today we went to My Gym for a special Elmo Open House they were having. I don't know who they think they were fooling, but the red furry costumed creature didn't look very much like Elmo. And he didn't speak. He was a fake mute Elmo. Regardless, the children were very entertained by his appearance. I think Ben was a little disappointed. From this point on, I'll refer to him as Ellmo in case anyone from Sesame Street happens to read this blog!

Ellmo's big entrance. Some kids flocked to Elmo (see below) while others started to flee.

Elise was a huge fan!

Here's Ellmo giving a wave to Ben and Elise.

Nini finally talked Ben into giving Ellmo a fist bump.

Here's Elise planting a kiss on Ellmo's heart-shaped tongue.

Ben smothering Elise with love.