Bluebeard

That is what the babysitter will be calling Adam from now on. She emails me at work about two to three times a week. I never know what I will find when I open those emails. Usually it's a cute picture of them at the zoo or the park or on a picnic. Well, I got a surprise yesterday. Adam was using a blue stamp pad and proceeded to smear the ink all over his chin. His expression in just the sweetest. He is looking as if nothing is wrong. Luckily, it all washed off and there was no evidence of "Bluebeard" when he was returned to me that afternoon.

Lucky the Lobster Comes to Visit- Again!

On Thursday, Jackson brought home a very fat bookbag. Upon his opening it, we found Lucky the Lobster. If you remember, Lucky came to visit a while ago back in the fall. Well, he has returned to the Faircloth household. After dinner we decided to take a walk to the park. Of course, we couldn't leave Lucky behind!

Sarah really does love to swing! She was laughing the whole time I was pushing her.

Adam has all of a sudden decided to enjoy swinging. He was not much of a swinger which I could never understand. I guess the peer pressure from Ivy has worked some magic on him.

Lucky got to ride on the swing, too. Sarah isn't too sure of him.

Sliding with Jackson

Jackson insisted on sleeping with him and wanted a picture. He does a good job at pretending to sleep.

Sarah- Seven Months Old

I cannot believe that Sarah is already seven months old! I think we finally got her ear infections cleared up. She is a much happier baby. She wasn't unhappy before but she is extra happy now. She is starting to notice when we leave the room. She's OK as long as someone is there with her. It doesn't matter who- Jackson, Adam, me , or Kevin. She can sit up on her own and go from lying down to sitting up on her own as well. She gets up on all fours to crawl but scoots backwards instead of forward. We are always pulling her out of some corner. She will not stay still! When she really does start crawling she will be everywhere! Watch out world! We are still waiting for the teeth. I keep checking every day.

The babysitter took her, Adam, and Ivy to the park. Sarah loves to swing!

Sarah is on all fours but hasn't figured out how to move forward.

A Camping We Will Go!

Jackson's Cub Scout pack went camping at a campground along the Neuse River near Morehead City. You would think that with the campground being right on the river, they would have nice, clean facilities. We found just the opposite. All I will remember is those push button faucets and cold water. You know- the ones that you push and then water trickles out for um.. about 10 seconds and then cuts off? Yes, the showers were like that too. I did discover if I held the button in, the water would stay on. However, it was very difficult to wash and rinse my hair with one hand. The water at the sinks was freezing but at least the showers were hot. Kevin had to beg for electricity to use with his breathing machine. Our site mates didn't know how much they needed to appreciate that yellow extension cord running across our campsite!

We had two to three tents per campsite which allowed us to get to know the other scout families pretty well. I thought Adam would never go to sleep that first night, and of course, he was up at the crack of dawn the next morning. The older scouts already had breakfast cooked when we got up. They even did the dishes!

During the day on Saturday, we all went to the Coast Guard station and then over to Fort Macon. At the Coast Guard Station, we learned what the Coast Guard does, saw some really cool boats, and some huge buoys ready to be cleaned up and put back out in the waterway again. They let us all board one of their smaller boats to see what it looked like inside. We didn't have to worry about anyone falling over since the Coast Guard was right there! They boys seemed to enjoy crawling all over the cement blocks they use to hold the buoys down in the water the most.

At Fort Macon, we toured the fort for a little while and then sat up at the top of it to view a reenactment of some men shooting a cannon. Jackson only held his ears.. the whole time- but he didn't scream or cry. We are making progress! The boys loved running through all the rooms in the fort.

We all had some free time after that, so we headed over to walk on the beach. It was so windy that the sand was stinging our legs. Needless to say it was a short walk. We left and headed to the aquarium and for a walk along the waterfront in Morehead. After that we went back to the campsite for dinner. Those older scouts were wonderful. Dinner was done when we got there- Spaghetti with bread that was toasted on the fire. Mr. Tyre made some of his famous peach cobbler for dessert. One of the older scouts was even roasting marshmallows for me. They were perfect! I couldn't have done better myself! Overall it was a great camping experience especially since someone else was be responsible for all the food.

Adam driving the boat at the Coast Guard Station.

Now it is Jackson's turn to drive and Adam gets to be the passenger.

We tried to get Adam to stand on the other side of the sign but he refused wanting to stand on the curb. Surprised? We weren't!

Standing outside one of the rooms at Fort Macon.

Sitting on top of fort Macon. Yes, that is the ocean in the background.

Jackson and Adam sitting on a small cannon- not the one they used in the reenactment.

We all posed on the wall at the top of the fort. Adam did not want to sit with his daddy.

You may be wondering where Sarah was in all this. Gramma and Granddad kept her for the weekend. She got to go on her first boat ride. Aunt Emily and Uncle Joe came to visit her. This was the first time we had left her, and I wasn't expecting to miss her as much did.

Spring Break Fun!

After all that snow in February there were no more teacher workdays, so Spring Break was welcomed with open arms. After our delicious Easter lunch, Gramma and Granddad took the boys with them to the lake for a few days. It was very weird having just one kid. Our house had never been so quiet. It was almost eerie but not quite! I enjoyed my quiet days. I did feel that I needed to hold Sarah as much as possible as this was probably the only one-on-one time she may ever get with me, so I didn't get as much as I wanted done around the house.
When the boys came back home, I wanted to go to the zoo one day, but the pollen was so bad that you couldn't even stand outside for five minutes without turning green. So, we opted for a day at the Greensboro Children's Museum. Kevin took the day off and got to play, too!

The three boys in the big red chair.

Adam taking a police car for a spin.

They had a TV News Station set up with an anchor's desk, a weather spot, and this cooking section. Kids can pretend to put on their own show. Adam played in the kitchen for a long time. I'm not sure what he is making.

I think this was everyone's favorite spot- including Kevin. The three of them (or maybe it was just Kevin) built this "house" at the construction site. Adam and Jackson loved climbing in and out of it.

The babysitter takes them to this museum a lot, and Adam knew exactly what to do in the grocery store. He was so funny pushing his cart around and picking up groceries. He was going to have a lot of oatmeal that week. I think he picked up about five boxes of it.

Jackson "bought" a lot of juice and some plants. I guess he wasn't planning on eating a lot that week!

Sarah got to play, too. They had a special play area just for the little ones.

Adam and Jackson are now ready for Nascar!

Egg Hunts Galore!

Our church usually has an Easter Egg hunt for the children after the annual Palm Sunday lunch. They canceled it this year due to the weather and moved it to after the service on Easter Sunday. After the egg hunt we headed to Aunt Jamie and Uncle Roger's house for Sunday lunch. There, they enjoyed looking for eggs in their backyard. Adam wasn't quite sure what to do at church, but by the time the eggs were hidden a second time at Jamie and Roger's, he knew exactly what to do.

I had to coax him to pick up the eggs and then put them in his basket. Several times he picked up the egg, looked at it, and then put it back on the ground.

Jackson needed no help what so ever!

Sarah just got to watch. She'll get to hunt the eggs next year.

Emptying the eggs and checking the loot.

Adam finds an egg in Aunt Jamie's yard.

Someone hid the eggs pretty well. Jackson had trouble finding some of them.

Still looking for eggs...

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter! The boys were very excited about the Easter Bunny coming this year. They just couldn't wait to get downstairs to their baskets. They each got a book, some sidewalk chalk, and a little candy. Sarah seemed more interested in what the boys got than what was in her own basket. She got some sippy cups, some new toys, and a book.

Adam and Jackson did not like posing for this picture. They wanted to get into those baskets.

I'll take that, Jackson!

What's in that egg, Adam? Yum! Some jelly beans!

I didn't get any of these. I'll just take Adam's. He won't mind.

One of Sarah's many expressions. She has tons lately!

Books are my new favorite thing!