Catch Up on Summer 2011

I can't believe the last time I posted was back in June! Yikes! Thanks to Lauren and Sean at least our family blog is on life support.

We've had a fun and busy summer. Grace had her dance recital in late June and did a great job. There were over 300 people in the audience. Her class danced to Tomorrow, from the musical Annie and It's a Hard Knock Life, also from Annie. Carl's parents were able to come up for the recital which was really nice. We wondered how Marshall would handle a two hour recital but he loved it and clapped and cheered for Grace after every number even though she was only in two dances.

July brought the Kopshina family reunion in WVA. The kids and I got to spend some great time with Mom and Dad, Sheryl, Alex, Dean and Norma and lots of Kopshinas. I even convinced Mom and Dad to drive by their old houses. Aunt Sheryl stayed with me in the Hotel and was a great help with the kids. We did have a small incident where the kids ran a head of us in the hotel and got onto the elevator and when who knows where. We finally caught up to the in the lobby after I sent Sheryl downstairs and I ran upstairs. Yes, we had a stern conversation about getting into elevators without adults.

August sent us home to NY for a visit. Grace spent two weeks with Nana and Papa. It was great to see everyone. Carl and I got to attend the Palmyra temple and baptize and seal his grandparents and his aunt. Lauren came with us and helped us do the work. It was an amazing experience. 

I'm sure most of you know that poor Marshall got attacked by yellow jackets that had built a nest under Mom and Dad's deck. It was terrifying to see all those bees swarming around him. Carl and I ran out and ripped off his shirt. We counted over 20 stings! Needless to say Marshall and Grace have been very leery about going outside and really panic if they see even one bee. Thankfully, Marshall wasn't seriously hurt although I can't tell you how awful it is to watch your child be hurt.

Grace started school Aug, 25th. She was very sad to see the fun and carefree days of summer get tucked away for next year. She's kind of ambivalent about first grade. I think she's OK being at school but given the choice she'd much rather be at the swimming pool, jumping on the trampoline or watching power rangers. 

Marshall misses his big sister. Our big challenge is to try and keep boredom at bay. We have a weekly play group and also a few little friends we try to meet every week. I've been taking him to story time at the library and he really loves that. The other day he invited me to race rolls of tape across the family room floor. He was the masking tape, I was the duct tape. It was actually pretty funny.

Speaking of Marshall, today is his birthday! He's 3. We will be having a small family party for him tomorrow. He's really excited about balloons and cake. I'm going to wrap all his presents in actual birthday paper. It's way more fun than opening up a bag. I can't believe how fast time has gone.  I'll post some birthday party pics later this week.  

Miss you all, Amber

Ballet costume for "Tomorrow"

Tap: It's a hard knock life

Isn't this so classic. Little Brother steals the spotlight.

Swim lessons

This is the first time Carl and I have been to the temple on over a decade.

OK, is this not such a cute picture of cousins?

The Bros

Auntie Sheryl was a favorite with the Walker Kids.

Uncle George and Mom

This was taken the morning after the reunion

all tuckered out...shhhh

foolin around in the pool at  the Giambattistas

Just some of the Cains.

Bonus Zoo Pictures!

We went to the Indianapolis Zoo today and I thought we'd share some of the pictures we took there.

Chew with your mouth closed!

Ok, this one was at the temple

This one too.  He learned the word "temple" immediately. 

He didn't want to touch the sharks, but he liked watching them

Sea Lions don't roar, it is confusing, I know

Too bad the penguins above water are washed out in the picture, this was neat

Adam gravitated to the Meerkats instantly

Ostrich!

He was utterly unafraid of the Giraffe, and fed it the carrot so quickly, I didn't get a picture

He was excited to finally see an elephant

Summer 2011 Ends

Summer is nearly over. Lauren's belly is pretty obvious now and Adam is speaking more clearly. The temperature is cooling down, which is nice even with AC. Lauren's favorite season is fall, and she's looking forward to patronizing our local apple orchards and pumpkin farms.

Adam has started singing simple songs along with us, like Twinkle Twinkle. He can ask for several songs - "Stream" (give said the little stream), "Star Brightly" (I am like a star shining brightly), "Star Twinkle," "Wiseman," "Sunbeam," and several others. His vocabulary is impressive. He asks "what is that" incessantly (sounds like "is-that"), and remembers the words you say. He parrots everything, which means I've had to be careful about what I say around him.

We've taken a few nice trips. We went to Nashville to see some friends recently. We went down to Louisville last weekend. This Friday we're going to the Indianapolis Zoo, and Adam is already looking forward to it. He knows names for most animals and knows what sound they make. On a walk the other day he saw & identified a turtle, a snake, and ducks.

He can climb ladders at the playground, though I'm always right behind. He still loves bike rides and walks to the park. If he doesn't get a few hours outside, he is cranky. He's also really interested in his poop and urine. He's starting to associate the feeling of peeing or pooping with the toilet, and he knows he gets treats if goes in the bathroom in the toilet. So that's a start.

He has developed some less endearing characteristics too. Nursery at church is a nightmare, he screams when we drop him off and he screams until the leaders return him to us. Which is too bad, he used to be great with it. When he doesn't want you near him, he shouts "go." He cries manipulatively, and will stop the fake cry only when told he sounds like he needs nap.

The green car is on its last legs - the rust is eating at the frame. After a while the car will sag, and if we ever get T-boned, the other car will go right through ours. Fixing it is pricey, and given the car's other problems, we're probably in the market for a nice used car. Not a bad run for a 11-12 year old car.

My job search is still ongoing. I've applied to upwards of 85 jobs now. Federal government job listings take an average of 105 days from listing to hiring, which is actually an improvement from 140 over the last decade. And they don't always tell you when you get cut from the pool so I never really know which applications are still live, but I do have a tidy stack of "you are qualified, but not most qualified" emails. Something will come up, I'm sure.

Here are some pictures!

Adam figured this out pretty quickly

He would have touched the sheep if we hadn't stopped him

He likes riding things
Like tractors, and yes that's my bald spot

The apples are fake, but he liked picking them anyway

We went to the ward pool party


This is the bear outside our library

Adam calls ice cream, "eye-peem"