We have had rain in the Tennessee Valley since late Saturday night. It rarely stopped all day Sunday and the worst of it came through Monday morning and afternoon.

When it rains hard, it sends our dog, Maple, looking for a safe place that will allow her to find comfort. The problem is, she rarely finds it. The safe place is usually under something, and I think, to her, the smaller the space the better.

She will hide behind the big, gold chair. But once a clap of thunder is heard, she leaves that spot to burrow under the bed. Then that space is no good once the rain gets harder and the wind picks up, so she takes off to disappear beneath Fuller’s crib. She keeps moving, trying to find that safe place. If being under something isn’t good enough, she will try to press her shaking body up to mine or Damon’s, just to know we are there.

Yesterday, Damon helped her find a safe place. It was in very close proximity to Damon and definitely under something.

February 14, 2005

February 15, 2005

February 16, 2005

February 17, 2005

February 18, 2005

February 19, 2005

February 20, 2005

As Fuller grows, I keep contemplating what he will need next. Recently, D and I had a discussion about what we would use after he grows out of his Baby Bjorn. I figured we had two options- a baby backpack or the hip hammock. We received a baby backpack from the oodles of German goodies my mother gave us, so we went to take a closer look at it.

It is a bare bones baby backpack- no back support, no chest support, and it doesn?t strap the child into the pack. But D put it on, just to see what it was like. Then we thought that he should try the pack with Fuller in it, again, just to see. So, Fuller went in, the pack went on D?s back and they went for a walk from the living room to the dining room. It was cute, except that D pointed out that as Fuller sat on his back, there would eventually be pools of drool running down D?s back.

But the one thing we didn?t realize was that as we played with Fuller and the backpack, someone was getting left out- our dog Lively.

Before Fuller, and before the Maple cart, we would sometime take walks and put Lively in a camping backpack. We would stuff a pillow in the compartment and Lively would proudly sit or lay there. She would look around, enjoying her free ride and the view. When we would take the camping backpack out of the closet, she would jump around, knowing that she was soon going for a ride.

So last night, when she wasn?t getting into the new (to her) backpack, she was just jumping around at D?s legs, wondering when it was her turn to take a ride.

Poor Lively. She was just starting to like Fuller too.

I don’t normally comment about the Daily Fuller Fix pictures, unless someone else has already commented and asked a question. But today, I break that silence to tell you that this picture expresses what my heart feels like when I spend time with Fuller- pure joy. Unashamed, unrestricted, boundless joy. I sit and play with him in the mornings and just bask in his babbles and movement, his smiles and laughter.

I love my son.

The doctor’s visit was a good one, especially since Dr. M told me that everything we are doing is right.

Fuller’s official stats are:
16 lbs 17.5 oz
26.5 inches

I have such a big boy and he is only going to get bigger! We got the go ahead to start food, which I was going to do anyway. Dr. M said that it will probably help Fuller start sleeping through the night, which is something that I had read and one of main reasons I had for wanting to start introducing food to him soon. We got his feeding chair last week, so I think you might see some food pictures soon!

One interesting fact about Dr. M that I learned today- he is the father of 9 children. I feel pretty good about having my baby see a doctor who loves kids so much.

Even though it was 8 hours in a car with a not so thrilled infant, it was a great weekend. Damon’s parents got overdosed with Fuller and we got a bit of a rest. Saturday we drove into Montgomery so D and I could see a movie (Finding Neverland) and Fuller got some uninterrupted time with Grandma Linda and Grandpa Albert.

And now it is back to the cycle of Fuller’s life, with a little bit of work thrown in. Today we visit the doctor for his 4 month check up. So, I am off to finish getting ready for the day.