And now that that is out of the way...
I also LOVED Ireland. LOVED. Chris and I had the most amazing time and yes, I will say it, we had a BLAST being on our own sans baby for a week. I am sorry, but it is true. Here's the thing about being parents, you have a million wonderful moments that make your heart want to explode for the very happiness of them, but you also have a lot of times where you think, "My God...life used to be so simple..." (primarily when you are halfway through a six hour car ride and your infant has HAD IT and is screaming bloody murder in the backseat while you belt out, for the millionth time, a happy-happy-HAPPY rendition of Itsy Bitsy Spider). And so, having a week where we could just drive, talk, explore and relax without having to take care of baby...kind of sweet. We missed her, of course. Calling home was tough...I could hear her little voice in the background and it was hard not to get choked up and wish she was there where I could cuddle her and kiss her little cheeks. There were also a couple times when we saw mammas and their babies out and about and my heart did a little squeeze-ache-release dance, but for the most part, Chris and I honestly had a really good time catching back up with one another. after six months of spending an awful lot of our time focused on one tiny little person and not on ourselves/eachother.
And now we're home and seeing Kayla's little face light up when we walked through the door...priceless. Smelling her and holding her and kissing her and marveling at how much she's grown in just one week...wonderful. Vacation time with your spouse - amazing. Coming home to baby - priceless.
And so, Ireland...
Things you should know about Ireland:
1. Ireland has the magical weather formula for non-stop rainbows. I saw more rainbows in that one week than I had probably seen in the past ten years of my life combined. We saw single rainbows, double rainbows, rainbows that stretched across the entire sky. Rainbows, rainbows, rainbows...and more rainbows. Magic.
2. Benches. I have fallen in love with Irish benches. This sounds ridiculous (or mildly concerning, if you're Chris and mistake my saying "benches" for me saying I love a different "B-ches" word...). Everytime we would turn a corner, round a bend, climb a hill or otherwise suddenly come upon a beautiful site though, I would say "Oh my God this is gorgeous" and there, in front of us, would appear a bench, *POOF*, just as if some Irish leprechaun had heard me and agreed, "Aye, tis a beautiful site" and magicked up a place from whence to enjoy it. Brilliant. And I'm not just talking benches at tourist sites, I'm talking benches in the middle of pastures, in the middle of bogs, in the middle of nowhere. Love.
3. Color. Ireland may be called the Emerald Isle, but it has so many colors other than green. It is covered in red ferns and golden flowers and blue lakes and deep brown mud. It is a rainbow in and of itself. You cannot believe your eyes. It is truly one of the most beautiful countries I've ever been too. And being there in the fall...bonus. The leaves were changing and standing beneath their canopies was like looking up through a stained glass ceiling. It is one big tapestry of color, brighter than seems believable and more beautiful than seems fair.
4. Pubs. Ireland has pubs, lots and lots of pubs. Even in a town with one stop sign, there are roughly 10 pubs. In a place where the people are outnumbered by the sheep, the sheep are outnumbered only by the pubs and truly, you can't go a mile without running into a Tommy O'Flaherty's, Aunty Lena's, Michael O'Collins, or Shannon Dooley's. And that's an important point too. All the pubs...named after their owners. Oh sure, there are a couple Black Swans, but overall, the vast majority have their ownership expressed in their names. And on Sunday, when the rest of Ireland shuts down to go to Mass, you know what doesn't shut down? The pubs. That's right. Apparently, the Lord may not approve of you buying shoes on Sunday, but he's alright with you downing a few pints in his name. Score one for Irish Catholics.
5. People. The people in Ireland are so genuine and so open. They come across as really being of the earth: salt of the earth, down to earth...They welcome you in, even when you're the random American walking into their definitely all locals pub. They will talk your ear off, even if you are only picking up every fifth word. In attempting to buy a necklace, I wound up spending 30 minutes locked into hilarious conversation with a local metal worker. He talked and talked and talked and laughed and laughed and laughed and I just laughed right along with him, even though I couldn't understand a THING he was saying other than maybe that he has a sister who now teaches Hawaiian massage in Sydney, Australia...maybe??
No, I don't have pictures of Irish people. Come on...that would just have been wrong. "You are so friendly...can I document that for posterity?" Please, people.
But yes, Ireland...Ireland is amazing and if you haven't been, you should really go. You should go and you should take at least a week and you should stay on the west coast and you should go from B&B to B&B and you should hike and drive and eat to your heart's content. Well, maybe not eat...the Irish are big into fried meats and cheese. Fried sausage for breakfast, potatoes and steak for lunch, fried cheese and potatoes for dinner...so maybe keep the eating to a minimum. After all, while our memories make our lives, we don't want your memory of Ireland to take your life via clogged arteries. Not a sermon, just a thought.
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