Saturday, May 31, 2014

Ireland: Part Two

We stayed at Churchfield Bed and Breakfast. Maeve was a wonderful host. Being new to Ireland weather, we got caught in two rainstorms and she kindly dried our clothes. Her breakfast was amazing! She even let us borrow a converter.

Doolin was a nice small town to get orientated in.
Upon arriving we had lunch and tea at McGann's while waiting to check into our room.

While trying to head out to see the Cliffs of Moher, we saw dozens of cyclist and their sponsor cars zoom by. They were part of the race the Ras which had racers go all around Ireland. It was very cool to see.

The Cliffs of Moher were the site in Ireland I was most looking forward to seeing. They were beautiful! When we first arrived, it was cold and cloudy. Slowly the sun peaked through the clouds; how amazing! I'd never seen anything like the Cliffs. While there, I saw boat tours, a hang-glider, and a helicopter. All quite brave if you ask me. We walked about seven miles to get the best views. Just as we were leaving it started raining. These were my favorite pictures of the day.

There were lots of tourists there the same time we were. There was a group of well-to-do guys in their 50s, one of them said after taking pictures while literally sitting on the edge of the Cliffs, "Now I know what Ansel Adams felt like." It made me laugh, in no way could he ever be close to as adventurous as Ansel Adams. Later, another guy said, "hey, should we take a selfie?" :)

We had a wonderful dinner at O'Connor's Pub: roast beef, mashed potatoes, a parsnip and carrot puree, and peas. My dad got the sea bass. They also had terrific traditional Irish music that night. I loved it! I also, somehow got kissed on the cheek by an old Irishman. Here, I also tried Guiness for the first time. It's a little too hoppy for me. What a great first night! They played this song, The Belle of Belfest City. Good stuff and quite catchy..

Thursday, May 29, 2014

Ireland: Part One

Oh, how I waited forever for this trip! The challenge in getting there was that we were flying stand by. The benefit was that the flights were free, but the stand by part was stressful.

So, after missing two flights to Newark and running through the airport like a maniac, we were on our way. I slept most of the flight, like I normally do. We arrived at a small airport in Shannon, Ireland. There I received the secon stamp on my passport. Unfortunately, my bag didn't make the trip. Instead, it took a trip to London. My dad and I set our bags down side-by-side, but his made it and mine didn't. They thought mine would arrive on the 5 or 9pm flight. If it came on the 5pm, they would drive it out to me. I was strangely relaxed about the whole thing. They gave me a bag of toiletries to get me by until I got my bag. On a side note, let me just say that a shoe shine kit doesn't make much sense in there.

From there we picked up the rental car and headed to Doolin. We stopped in Ennistymon to get cash and happened upon this pretty spot.

It was over an hour drive. There were tons of roundabouts and the roads were killer narrow. Everything was so green and pretty. We got a GPS which was one of the best ideas ever. Our first town was Doolin and we loved it!

Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Recipes # 16 & 17: Limeade Punch and an Avocado Egg Toast Breakfast

Several weeks ago, I hosted my parent's 25th wedding anniversary party. I made Limeade Punch found on Pinterest. Ingredients: limeade concentrate, 2 liter of sprite, frozen raspberries, and ice. It's such a simple yet yummy recipe. I had people asking for the recipe.

I found this recipe on Pinterest and now love it! It's super easy to make and it's so good. You cook an egg sunny side up, toast some bread, and cut up some slices of avocado and just like that you've got a nice, healthy breakfast. Try it, you'll like it!

Monday, May 5, 2014

IRELAND!

Oh friends, it has been a rough semester! Between health stuff, my struggle in my econ class (praying for mercy from God that I pass), work being busy, and getting my heart broken it's been a semester I'd almost like to forget. There have been high points: my surprise 30th birthday, my parent's 25 anniversary party, and a friendship that's gotten closer just when I needed a friend. :)

I'm a planner, but things have been so crazy that I haven't planned for Ireland as much as I'd like. I think, it'll turn out just fine and I'm excited to take a road trip throughout Ireland. I'm ready to immerse myself in the culture and see things I've dreamed of seeing in person. I plan to journal and take at least 1,100 pictures (like I did in Italy). So, until June, this will be one of my last posts. I promise to post so much about my trip that you all get sick of it. ;)

So, here's to fresh air, checking another location off my bucket list, and being grateful for each moment of living this dream; it's definitely a gift!

Let me know if you have any questions about Ireland or tips of things I should see.

Ireland in T-Minus 13 days!

Friday, May 2, 2014

Tips to Throwing a Successful Party

Anyone who knows my mom knows she's a top-notch host. People love coming to her house and not just because of the amazing food. As I've thought about it more there are some key parts to a good party.
1. Preparation is key. By doing as much food prep work as possible before the event, the host can actually enjoy and interact with their guests. Also, do all major cleaning a couple of days before, so you're not so rushed.
2. Understand not everything will go perfectly. Smile and go with the flow. People have a good time when the host is relaxed.
3. Tell people you're happy they came, make them feel welcome.
4. Make sure to introduce people who haven't met each other. I always like to share something about the person I'm introducing that the other person will find interesting or have something in common with. Example, "Sarah, this is Bill, he's also from Houston." Everyone enjoys meeting someone new.
5. Don't have items out that you'd be devastated if they broke.
6. Think about people with food allergies when planning the menu. It doesn't have to be hard, just have at least one thing everyone can eat.
7. If people want to help clean up, let them. Many hands make the work light. :)
8. Keep it simple; your house doesn't have to look like it came out of Martha Stewart's magazine and your food doesn't have to be jaw-dropping. Pick a couple simple, but good recipes.

Any other tips I'm forgetting?