And, oh, what a truly wonderful summer it's been! Can't you tell by my lack of blog posts?? The only painful part will be trying to recall 3 months of events and adding in the associated photos. But, hey, there's an idea...maybe I'll let the pictures tell the story of our summer and keep the words to a minimum.
One of Alexander's last days of Kindergarten...crazy hat day..he was the Space Shuttle Atlantis on it's last voyage. Fitting, eh?
And the acutal last day....wee bit excited for summer vacation!!
Lucas' end of school show...
Paul had a birthday...
We went to the beach close to 20 separate times...compared to ONCE last summer. Be glad I'm only posting 2 pictures :)
Decorating bikes (and strollers) and participating in our neighborhood 4th of July parade...that weekend we went to 3 different parades and fireworks events. We had some tired kids!
Our annual trip to Storyland...
With a side trip for Thomas' Day Out...
I took the boys camping in Vermont with friends...
Alexander playing in his first year of Little League (he was on the Detroit Tigers)...
Alexander turned 6 with a party at our local bowling alley!
We went on an amazing whale watch out of Gloucester and saw tons of humpback and minke whales!
Alexander learned to ride a two-wheeler! (Although he's now nervous about falling and hasn't been that interested lately :( )
Lots of time at local playgrounds...
And the start of a new preschool for Lucas and FIRST GRADE for Alexander! Both had an awesome first week...
Through it all the boys have continued to grow (much to my efforts to the contrary) and flourish. Lucas is a wild, crazy, yet sweet and cuddly toddler who speaks at a 3+ level and wants to do anything and everything "all by myself" and is quite vocal when he can't quite manage it. Mr. Independence though can't quite make it through the end of the day without saying "mama" at least 2,438 times. His favorite things to say these days are questions...specifically "Are you happy?" (especially when anyone in our house seems anything but) and "Can I play with you?". There is also the "no, it's not" in response to almost anything and in the past few days the "why's" have started. It's amazing watching him transform into more and more of his personality. As of September 1st, Lucas has now been in our family longer than he lived in the orphanage...the amount of time that "they" say is usually needed for proper attachment. I think we're all set there and have been for some time. As to his physical growth, I'll let this photo from day 1 in Moscow compare to one a couple weeks ago say it all...
Alexander is tolerating Lucas quite well for a 6-year old, and they play so much more together than they used to, but I think Alexander is still waiting for the day when Lucas isn't Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde and can really play with him on somewhat the same level. Alexander is also much more mature in many other ways, and aside from the occasional tantrums and pouts, is definitely a "boy" and I rarely see the little guy we once knew. I love watching him sleep as only then do I see glimpses of "my baby" in this BIG boy who now stands over 4 feet tall.
I guess I could say I will try and be more frequent with posting...but if we have half as great of a Fall, you might not hear from me until after the holidays!
Cheers,
Laura
A couple trips to Drumlin Farm...
A fun day at Funtown (amusement park) / Splashtown (water park) in Maine with Kalima...
And the start of a new preschool for Lucas and FIRST GRADE for Alexander! Both had an awesome first week...
Through it all the boys have continued to grow (much to my efforts to the contrary) and flourish. Lucas is a wild, crazy, yet sweet and cuddly toddler who speaks at a 3+ level and wants to do anything and everything "all by myself" and is quite vocal when he can't quite manage it. Mr. Independence though can't quite make it through the end of the day without saying "mama" at least 2,438 times. His favorite things to say these days are questions...specifically "Are you happy?" (especially when anyone in our house seems anything but) and "Can I play with you?". There is also the "no, it's not" in response to almost anything and in the past few days the "why's" have started. It's amazing watching him transform into more and more of his personality. As of September 1st, Lucas has now been in our family longer than he lived in the orphanage...the amount of time that "they" say is usually needed for proper attachment. I think we're all set there and have been for some time. As to his physical growth, I'll let this photo from day 1 in Moscow compare to one a couple weeks ago say it all...
I guess I could say I will try and be more frequent with posting...but if we have half as great of a Fall, you might not hear from me until after the holidays!
Cheers,
Laura
