Sibling Visit

We've had lots of visitors during the last few weeks which we always welcome with open arms.  When you have more than one child, an extra adult (or four) goes a long way in improving one's sanity!

All three of my younger siblings and my sister-in-law made the trip out to Massachusetts for a week in late October.  Bert, Rachel, Anna, and Adrienne all got to meet Rory for the first time and be endlessly entertained by Ryan's antics.  All four of them stayed at our house and at first I was a bit worried that it would seem crowded and uncomfortable and while it was definitely a full house, we had a great time.  Ryan would wake up in the morning and come downstairs to a living room full of bodies and say "Hi guys!"  Which I'm sure they totally appreciated at 6:30 AM.  She called her Uncle Bert, "Duncle Bob" and by the end of the week "Duncle Burp."  Anna was referred to as "Amy" the entire week, eventually she said Rachel the day before they left and Adrienne never did get an exact name!  But I tell you, Ryan certainly misses bossing around her adult playmates!

They watched the girls while I went to a dentist appointment, helped me take them both to the pediatrician for shots, played endlessly with Ryan, and helped console Rory during every evenings "witching hour."  They were all such a huge help to me and I tell you what, there is nothing better than watching your siblings love to love on your children.  Ryan and Rory are so blessed to have so many amazing Uncles and Aunties.

We did take a trip into Boston and got to enjoy some brisk but sunny weather.  I stayed with the girls for the day and the rest of them stayed a night in Boston and got to go out on the town as well as travel to Salem the next day.  At least they got to have some fun kid free moments while here in Massachusetts!

They also threw me a little 30th birthday party which was so sweet and thoughtful of them.  They may have thought it was somewhat silly but I appreciated it none the less.  I truly am so blessed.

Hopefully we didn't scare them away with our handful of kids!  Because I certainly would love to have them come visit us again, you know, cause I love free babysitting. :)

Littlest Sister is 21

On Monday, my babyest sister Anna turned 21 years old.  I can't believe the last Fairman child is now 21!  It was a rare weekend where all four of us were in town and so we wanted to do something extra special for Anna.  Rachel had to leave Monday afternoon to head back to Santa Barbara for work and so we decided to celebrate Anna's birthday on Sunday.  However, this posed some problems for us because she wouldn't technically be 21 until midnight and since it was a Sunday, most bars weren't opened much past that. 

But, Bert, Rachel, and I devised a suprise plan.  We had Anna and a few friends meet at my brother's house around 9:00pm with the intention of "hanging out."

Me, Anna, and Rachel

All four of the Fairman siblings

At 9:30pm, the SURPRISE showed up!

Her chariot for the evening!

We decided the best way to take her out for her special eveing since she couldn't buy a drink until midnight was to drive around in a limo for a few hours.  We had so much fun.

Katie and Anna: BFF's since they were like 2!

Bert and Jake: BFF's since they were like 4!

At midnight, we had the driver stop at a bar in Bakersfield so that Anna could order her first drink ever!  There weren't many people there, but the ones that were made her night extra special and helped contribute to her hangover the next morning. :)

The Gang plus Artie...our limo driver

We had SUCH a fun night.  And Anna's 21st birthday ended just the way it should have, with her older brother practically carrying her into the house. :)

Love ya sis!

Spring has arrived and so have the Douglas Men.

Well, it's official.  Spring has arrived. And. It. Is. Beautiful.  Being a Bakersfield, California girl, I am really only used to two different seasons, winter and summer.  We might get a few weeks some years where there is a hint of spring.  But it is nothing like what Josh and I are getting to experience here in Newcastle upon Tyne.  In the last couple of weeks, the sun has shown more than the clouds, the flowers are blooming bright yellows, purples, and reds, the bare naked branches of trees have sprouted leprechaun green leaves, the insects are buzzing from bush to bush, and the birds can be heard chirping their merry little tunes all day long.  I am in love with Spring.  I have always said that summer is my most favorite time of the year, but if I could have Springs like this in Bakersfield, I think I might change my mind.

These trees had NOTHING on them until about two weeks ago.

April hath put a spirit of youth in everything.

-William Shakespeare

Just last week, after coming home from the gym, I decided to take my lunch outside to our tiny front lawn for a picnic and some reading in the sunshine.  Oh happy day!

Josh sneakily took this photo from his "Man Cave" window.

And what perfect timing for Spring to arrive right when we are going to have more visitors!  Scott and Andrew arrived at Newcastle International Airport on Thursday evening and we were so glad to see them.  The most challenging part about living here (minus the whole medical school thing) is having our family so far away from us.  Luckily, we have had quite a few family members visit in the past 8 months.

Scott headed up to St. Andrew's golf course in Scotland yesterday (and he got to golf!) and so Josh and I took Andrew to Jesmond Dene for some football throwing.  Jesmond Dene is gorgeous all the time, but right now, when the breeze picks up and the sun is out, you see the little flower petals from the trees falling, and it is breathtaking.

Josh and his little bro Andrew.

Today, Mother Nature again provided us with another beautiful day and some fabulous sunshine.  I even went running for the first time outside post knee surgery!  Three miles baby!  Scott and Andrew traveled to the coast for the afternoon and when they got back, the four of us headed back to Jesmond Dene for more football.

Andrew, Scott, and Joshua

We are so happy to have them here and you can all look forward to more blog posts about their time spent here.  They are staying until Saturday. 

I know Spring can't last forever, so I am going to soak up as much of it as I can while it does last.  Especially since I have no idea when I will ever live in another place where I truly get to experience it. 

So Long, Farewell, Aufwiedersehn, Goodnight

The time had to come when all the siblings would leave Newcastle. And I know, I'm quite a bit behind as they left a week ago today.  But I had to finish up my blog posts about our adventures in the UK.  They went off to Dublin, Ireland after being in London while I took the train back to Newcastle by myself.   I would have loved to have gone to Dublin with them, but I had literally just been the weekend before they arrived and felt that it was unnecessary to go there again, my money could be better spent on new and different adventures. The sibs spent two nights in Dublin and arrived back in Newcastle on Thursday morning.

They had a couple of days to spend some time in Newcastle before they flew back to LA, so I took them to my most favorite place in Newcastle that I've blogged about quite a few times, Jesmond Dene.  We strolled through the park, near the river, and enjoyed yet another sunny day in Newcastle.  It was great.

Bert, Rach, and Anna at Jesmond Dene

At the old well.

On their last night in Newcastle, we went to our favorite restaurant here in Newcastle, Francescas which is right down the street from our flat.  Kris, Tarrah, Julie, and Kevin all joined us for the evening and we had a lot of fun eating, drinking, and enjoying each others company. 

The Four Fairman Siblings

The four medical school students.

Me and the Hubs

The Whole Gang

Our buddy at the bar.

It was so much fun to have all my siblings here in the UK.  I don't think that many people get to do what we did.  Four siblings, all basically over the age of twenty, with different schedules, jobs, schools, marriage, it's amazing that we got to travel in Europe together.  I love them all so very much and I am so thankful to have the best siblings in the world.  Bert, Rachel, and Anna, I love you to death and I am so glad you guys came to visit Josh and I.  These are adventures and memories that we will talk and laugh about over holiday dinners with the family for the rest of our life.

- Remember the time when we were in Newcastle on St. Patrick's Day and we met "Mark," or "Allen," or "Ellen," or whatever his name was.
- Remember the time when we went on Edinburgh's haunted vault tour and we thought we might all pass out from the scariness of it all.
- Remember the time when we went to the whiskey factory in Edinburgh and we all took shots on the video camera and we made those hilarious faces in front of serious whiskey drinkers.
- Remember the time when we met James Buchanan on the train ride home from Scotland and he offered the girls chocolate and Bert took it and then he couldn't believe Bert's name was "Bert."
- Remember the time when we were on the train to London and we played "F*** the Dealer" without alcohol and we said the loser had to get x amount of noogies, wedgies, and credit cards as their punishment.
- Remember the time when we were walking through St. James Park and Rachel said "I can't control my bowel movements and desires." :)
- Remember the time when the server at The Shakespeare Bar in London brought Anna a "Merry Berry" aka cranberry juice after she ordered a "Bloody Mary."
- Remember the time when we walked the entire length of Hyde Park only to find a playground and all of our feet were hurting and I didn't even want to walk 3 feet to the park gate let alone to the Knotting Hill gate.
- Remember the time when all three of you came to Newcastle to visit me, and we had so much FUN together.


Let's always remember the time spent here.  Because it really was amazing.