My New Ride

We drove back down to Cork last Friday afternoon to pick up my new-to-me car.  I love it!!  It's amazing how much easier it is to navigate these narrow Irish roads when you're not driving what feels like a boat. 

 The car is an Opel Astra.  I wasn't familiar with it before moving here, but we were recently informed that they did use to be sold in the states.

Every time we Skype with someone and they ask about the car, Scarlett blurts out "It's sparkles!"  What she means to say is that the car is silver, but I think it's so cute that we've just started referring to the car as Sparkles now.  I already have thoughts of trying to convince my husband to bring Sparkles back to Bloomington with us.  ;)

Lunch For Two

Scarlett and I spent last Friday running around all morning getting different errands done.  Since it was lunchtime when we finished and Scarlett had done such a great job while we were out, I decided to treat us both to lunch at KFC.

Here's my ice-cold MEDIUM Pepsi:

And Scarlett's kids' meal, complete with a yogurt and bottled water:

I think the U.S. could learn a thing or 2 from Ireland.

When Nate found out that a men's haircut cost 20 euro, he quickly decided to take matters into his own hands.  Or rather, put matters in my hands.  After buying our own set of clippers and experimenting on Nate, I set in on Grayson.

 

He was a more than willing victim and was pretty happy with the results.  He's already informed me that he wants me to give him a mohawk next time.  We'll see what happens.  ;)

Remember when I said Scarlett seems to have grown up in the blink of an eye?  Check her out before school last week...

\

We got Gray signed up for soccer last week and he had his first practice this past Saturday.  Since we still don't have any of our belongings from back home, we had to buy Gray new cleats and soccer "gear."  He was beyond excited and couldn't wait to get it all on and pose for a picture.

We absolutely LOVED his coaches and how they run the practices.  Grayson had a great time, especially when he saw that his friend, Fionn, was on the same "team." 

This kids hustled and paid such close attention to what his coaches had to say.  I can't wait to see him play more in the coming weeks and see the skills he already has develop into so much more.

Bieber Fever in Ireland

We finally made it to the big mall in Dooradoyle on Sunday.  Our main reason for going was to get mom a new cell phone, or "mobile" as they call them here.  But we got a little side-tracked when the kids looked over and saw a cut-out of their favorite guy:

We drove down to Cork City last Friday afternoon to look at a car.  It's about an hour and 45 minute ride.  Scarlett passed out right after we picked Gray up from school, and when she woke up the kids were content to hide under their blankets and play their Leapsters.

The kids were great while we looked at the car and Nate took it for a test drive.  The ride home, however, was a different story.  Scarlett did well enough and was fairly happy listening to the Movers and singing.

Grayson, on the other hand, went into complete meltdown mode.  He's always extremely tired by the time Friday rolls around and being in the car for so long wasn't helping.  We basically started ignoring him, and when things in the back got quiet, I looked back and saw this:

Yes, not only had he stripped his shirt off because it "was so hot," he had also fallen asleep with a tissue hanging out of his nose.  Could. Not. Stop. Laughing.  ;)

The rest of the drive home was actually pleasant and Nate and I were actually able to have some adult conversation and enjoy the scenery.  You know, until it started raining.

 

Big

I'm not sure when it happened,

but I swear when I blinked

 Scarlett went from being a toddler

to being a full-fledged little girl.

Totally takes my breath away.

Mommy's Little Helper

For the first time since Scarlett has been born, she has me completely to herself 5 days a week.  It's been an adjustment for both of us, but we're slowly becoming accustomed to our slower, quieter days.  For the first time, I'm able slow down and let Scarlett help me with different chores throughout the day.  Back home I was always so busy, had so many people to look after, and so many things that needed to get done, that Scarlett's "helping" often became more of a hindrance and source of frustration for both of us.  Now, with a slower pace of life, I can let her help to her hearts content while I sit back and take pictures instead.

The view from here....

Random Pics

Not much new has been going on here the past several days, and since I'm short on time right now, I thought I would give you some random pics to tide you over until I can form a more coherent thought.  Enjoy!

Some perspective on the size of these nasty spiders.

Hmm....

Nate and Ed at our local pub, The Stroller

Waiting for Grayson after school.

Scarlett and "Lizzie."  This dog keeps showing up at our house and even made it inside one day before I knew what was going on.  This makes Scarlett VERY happy.

The "I'm going back to America!" suitcase.

Napping after a tough weekend in Dublin

I'm going to be completely honest and tell you all that I'm missing home today.  Not sure what it is on this day in particular, but I can't stop thinking about our home, our friends, and our families.  September is one my favorite months in the states.  The whole "back to school" thing, the new fall clothes, bringing out our autumn decorations.  Planning trips to the apple orchard and, before long, the pumpkin patch.
I was looking forward to watching Grayson play fall baseball this year, and seeing Scarlett get ready for her very first dance class.  Thinking about not doing those things this year makes my heart ache a little right now. 

I'm going to let myself have my moment while the kids are at school today.  I'm going to let myself be sad about missing home without feeling bad about it and I may even shed a tear or two.  But then I'm going to dry my eyes, take a deep breath and remind myself that I am living a dream right now, that our little family of 4 is so blessed to be where we are today.  I'm going to start making new plans for this September and the coming fall and I'm going to try my hardest to enjoy every single minute of our life in Ireland.

A day In The Life

This morning, after dropping Grayson off at school, Scarlett and I amused ourselves by watching videos of friends and family back home.  Before we knew it, an hour had gone by.  We closed up the computer, grabbed Scarlett's lunch box, and headed to a mom/toddler group for the 1st time.  Way out of my comfort zone.  We enjoyed ourselves for a little over an hour before heading to Scarlett's school.  She didn't want to go, and it would have been really easy for me to just take her home, but I pushed through it because I know it will be good for the both of us in the long run.

And now, I'm sitting in my quiet house, alone.  No husband, no kids, just the quiet hum of the refrigerator.  I'm eating a bowl of cereal for lunch, and enjoying the luxury of not having to make a meal for anyone else right now.  I've already gone through a pile of paper work, done the dishes, and cleaned the half bath.  I'm looking forward to curling up with a cup of tea and my Kindle for a little while.

At 2:45, I will leave our house to pick up Grayson and Scarlett from their separate schools.  We will come home, change out of uniforms, have a snack, and start the homework battle.  Hopefully the rain will stop long enough for me to send the 2 of them out to run for awhile.  They've been cooped up for the past 2 days and it's really starting to show.  Around 5:30 I'll start figuring out what to make for dinner, and then call the kids to the table numerous times before they will actually appear.  We'll eat, maybe play a game or color, get showers, and start the whole bedtime routine that will take twice as long with Nate away on business.  They'll each call me back to their rooms at least once.  And after the dishes are done and the clothes picked up, I can look forward to the quiet once again.  Just me, my cup of tea, and my Kindle.

Sunday, September 4th

Saturday, September 3rd ~ The Dublin Zoo

We drove up to Dublin on Saturday and took the kids to the zoo.  Not exactly the sight-seeing that I'd like to be doing, but I know we'll get to everything else eventually.  We had a great time and the kids had a lot of fun.  They have already been making plans about going back and which animals they plan to see first.  Here are a few highlights:

 And the best for last:

Thursday, September 1st ~ Birthdays and Tooth Fairies

Thursday brought sunny skies and bright smiles from both of the kids.  Gray was actually excited about going to school today and I was able to get the "First Day of School" picture I missed out on yesterday.

When we picked Gray up from school this afternoon, he was grinning in a really strange way.  It took me e minute to realize it was because he was trying to show me that his tooth had fallen out.  He was so proud to finally lose his first tooth and couldn't wait to put it under his pillow.  Unfortunately, he completely freaked out at bedtime because he didn't want the Tooth Fairy to take his tooth from him.  We told him we would write the Tooth Fairy a note asking her to leave it, and after assuring him that she would still leave a surprise under his pillow, he seemed to fall asleep fairly content.

Thursday was also Scarlett's 3rd birthday.  Because we had already celebrated her birthday a couple of weeks before we left Bloomington, we didn't really have much planned for her.  I still feel bad about it, but I know that she didn't care.  She and I spent the morning painting and coloring, and then we spent the evening watching her new movie, Tangled.  She loved the matching outfit that I had bought for her and her baby, too, and couldn't wait to model them.

Wednesday, August 30th ~ 1st Day of School

This morning was rough.  Easily the most difficult day any of us has had here thus far.  To say that Grayson was not at all excited about starting school today would be a complete understatement.  I had managed to get him out of his room and downstairs finally, only to have him run back up to his room and start packing all of his clothes in a suitcase proclaiming that he was "going back to America!"  I literally man-handled him into his uniform and carried him kicking and screaming out to the car.  Once we arrived at the school he managed to walk on his own, but he still wasn't happy about it.  I stood next to his seat in the classroom with a lump in my throat, ready to pick him up and run back home.  It was the closest I had come to demanding we home-school him until we get back to Bloomington.  Having him look up at me with fear and anger in his eyes tore my heart out.  He was trying to be so brave and barely holding it together.  As much as I wanted to protect my baby, I knew he was going to have to handle this one on his own.  Nate and I both walked out of the classroom and out of the school with tears in our eyes.  I walked around all day with a pit in my stomach, and looked at the clock countless times until we could pick him up.  Never in a million years did I expect to see such a happy boy at the end of the day:

HE LOVED IT!!!  And, he wants to stay in Ireland!  ;)  To celebrate, we took the kids to Pizza Hut and then surprised Gray with a new Tom and Jerry movie.  I'd say the kid made out pretty well for having such a crummy start to his day.

Friday, August 26th - Sunday, August 28th

The kids and I woke up to this on our living room wall on Friday morning:

Apparently, they grow their spiders quite large in Ireland.  The kids quickly jumped on the couch while yelling at me to "get it!"  I wanted absolutely nothing to do with this thing, but, trying to put a brave face on, went to the kitchen for a tubberware container to trap it.  After doing the capture and release thing, the kids and I settled down a bit to start our day.  We went for another walk around our neighborhood and discovered a path that winds around the back of the neighborhood.  The sun was actually shining and I even managed to remove my jacket by the time we headed back.

We had our very first visitor this day, as well.  It just happened that our friend Ed, one of Nate's college buddies and fraternity brothers, had already planned a trip to Ireland with his dad before we were even sure we would be moving.  When we realized tht we woyuld be arriving just several days before, we quickly made arrangements for them to come and stay with us.  Ed hung out with the kids and I while Nate finished up work that afternoon, but he and Nate quickly made better use of their time once Nate was home.

Ed arrived less than a week after we had moved, and I couldn't believe how good it felt to have a familiar face and voice around.  It was nice to be able to sit back and talk and not worry about whether or not what I was saying was being said correctly, to be able to talk about some of the things we had encountered over our first few days and laugh about it with an old friend rather than worrying about offending a new one by recounting the same tale.  I think we were both slightly saddened when it was time for Ed to leave, but we hope there will be plenty more visitors to follow.