Samhradh

Summer. Well we have a big summer planned! This Wednesday I have auditions for the LDS musical Savior of the World, so if I get a part I will be going to rehearsals up until December (it’s going to be really nice to get back on the stage again). This Thursday to Saturday is Young Women camp, which will be a chaotic blast. This Sunday is Kimberly’s big 4th of July celebration (which I am REALLY looking forward to). She is making BBQ, corn dogs, root beer, devilled eggs, and all things American. She even got some sparklers and small fireworks! I’m making some potato salad, peanut butter pie, and I’m singing the Star - Spangled Banner. It’s really going to be great! Then on July 10th is our big girl’s night out to see Eclipse and eat out at the new Captain America’s restaurant in Blanchardstown. Hugh’s Aunt Paula is visiting from Australia so I think we will be having a short trip to Sligo sometime in the next few weeks . . . and I always love an excuse to go to Sligo. Every Monday I have organized different activities for play groups with other moms in our church, today was a teddy bear picnic, next week is McDonalds play place and so on and so forth (the last day is going to be a great big bouncy castle party). At the end of July and beginning of August Jade is going to Brenda Redmond’s stage school summer camp which will be from 10-2 every day for 2 weeks (she’s going to be dancing and singing the whole time). Sometime in July or August Jenn and Rex are coming to Ireland to visit so we will be going to do all sorts of fun things then. And believe it or not Lily is going to be 1 year old on August 24th! So we are we’ll have a little party for her. Then of course we will have beach trips, zoo trips, BBQ’s, and all other sort of fun summer activities thrown in here and there. When I get my gym membership at the National Aquatic Centre, Jade and I will have a blast doing all the fun water activities there (she gets to go free until she’s 4!). Last summer we didn’t have a car and were stuck inside all the time so this year I am really excited to see a bit more of Ireland and have fun doing summer activities. It helps that we have been having gorgeous weather! I can’t believe that Jade just finished her first year of Montessori . . . next year she will be full time! It’s going to be her last year too, and then she will start “big girl” school! Where has the time gone? Hugh got his results back for Kings Inns and he got second class honours so he did really well his first year. I’m still finding it hard to believe that we have already lived here for a year! I wish so much I could go to Florida and see my family, but we are saving for it for next year. As for now we are going to see a bit more of Ireland and possible even the UK (I would really like to go over to England for a day or so). Slán!

Mo Coinín Beag

My little bunny. So for the last 2 nights Jade was in her first ever Starkids performance of Chicken Little. She was AMAZING! She was in the dance chorus as a bunny. I am just beaming with pride for my little girl. When she came on stage I started tearing up so much that I could barely see her, and then when her show was over I kept tearing up just thinking about her being on stage (lol, I'm such a sap). She had no fear at all on stage, and when she forgot the moves she just made up her own. She was the best bunny ever! Here are some pics and a short video clip (we weren't suppose to take video but we got a few snippets here and there anyway. We bought a full video of the performance that will be arriving in 6 weeks). I hope you enjoy them. Slán! xoxo

Jade getting her stage make-up on

Pink Cheeks

All ready!

She was partners with her best friend Hayley!

Lining up with her friends for the show

On stage

Clapping during the finale

My little star!

Exhausted after the show.

And now for your entertainment, Jade in Chicken Little!

Siúracha is Fearr

Best Sisters! I have two of the best girls in the world (I may be a bit biased though). I love how much these two girls love each other. I swear Lily’s face lights up every time Jade walks into the room, and Lily giggles at all the silly things Jade does. Jade is always concerned for Lily’s well-being ; like if I take Jade to the car first she freaks out because she thinks I’m forgetting Lily, or when Lily is crying Jade lets me know and then goes and sings to Lily to make her feel better. I have this feeling that those two are going to be very close in the future, and it is pretty obvious right now that Jade is going to always be there for Lily and Lily is always going to look up to Jade. And the fact that they will always have each other is a huge comfort to me. So many people made me feel like Jade was getting jilted because I was having another baby . . . but I don't think Jade sees it that way at all. If anything, Lily has added richness and joy to all of our lives. Jade loves her sister so much that sometimes I get emotional just watching them together. I feel so lucky to have these two special spirits in my life and I just love watching them blossom into amazing little people . . . and eventually amazing young women. But you don’t have to just take my word for it . . . you can see it yourself. Below is Jade and Lily playing together. Slán!

Mo Rudaí ansa leat

My favourite things. When moving to another country it is very easy to get homesick and romanticize where you come from. I find that quite often I get depressed and miss the United States so much that it is hard to function. This usually leads to me blaming Ireland for all the negative aspects of my life. But in actuality I really do like Ireland and I have decided to make a top 10 list of all my favourite things about Ireland:


10 - Garlic Cheese Chips. They are to die for! I just love the garlic sauce over here, especially when it smoothers my chips and is topped with gooey cheese. Very fattening . . . but irresistible! YUM!


9 - Bread & Butter. Sliced bread over here taste like fresh bread and the butter is just amazing . . . I don't even know how to describe it.


8 - Chocolate after dinner. In Ireland it is customary to have tea/coffee and chocolates after dessert. While we don't drink tea/coffee we do have hot chocolate or herbal tea and chocolates (only when there is company though). It is a nice way to sit back after a meal, relax, and chat.


7 - Lovely & Gorgeous. In Ireland things aren't just "nice" or "fine" they are "lovely" or "gorgeous." For example, "That cake was just gorgeous," or "the spa was lovely." I think it sounds more pleasant.


6 - Summer Days. While winters are long, dark, and miserable in Ireland, summers here have sunlight from 7 am until 10:30 pm. It's very nice to have all that extra light and makes it easier to accomplish more things in a day.


5 - Spas. There are spas everywhere and they are all the craze. Women regularly go and have a spa day. In fact, it is odd if you have never been. And because they are so popular they are always having special offers and discount prices.


4 - Pennys. Pennys is a very fun, very cheap clothing and accessories store. I love it! I can spend hours in there just looking around and can leave with a bag of items that only totalled to be 20 or 30 Euros . . . and everything is really cute and fashionable. Plus, kid’s clothes are CHEAP!


3 - Social Welfare. What can I say? Without it our family would have been living on the streets and had no food. Jade would not be in Montessori and Christmas would not have existed. I am very thankful for it.


2 - Ancient History. Everywhere you look there’s remnants of the past . . . and Ireland has a long one. Ancient ruins are just sitting in people's backyards. When you are here you can just feel the history here and it is beautiful.


And the number one thing I like about Ireland is . . .


1 - Indian Food! It is fantastic and I am very addicted. There are Indian places everywhere and Indian take-out is the best! I could eat it every night and be satisfied. :)


So there you have it, the top ten things I like about Ireland (I know . . . most of it is food, but good food is very important to me). Now I want to add that I left people off this list so I could focus on other aspects of Ireland, but probably my true number one favourite thing is my girl friends. I don't think I could have survived this long without them. They keep me sane and I love them!


So Ireland, you may not be everything I had hoped for (LOL, which in all reality was a smaller version of the USA), but you redeem yourself in many other ways. Slán!

Dia duit ó Éirinn

Hello from Ireland! This week marks an exciting turn of events for us in the Murphy household . . . Hugh is starting a new job with IBM! We have been in Ireland since June of last year and have struggled monetarily the whole time. Due to the economy and the fact that Hugh is a law student at Kings Inns, he has found it very difficult to get a job (he has had millions of interviews though). So this week is a turning point from living off government welfare to being self reliant. As for the rest of the family, Jade will be in a production of Chicken Little in late May (and she is very excited about it), and Lily (who is 8 months old now) is getting her first tooth--which is hell for me--and will be crawling any day now. I am excited to join a gym once Hugh gets his first pay check so I can have some productive "me" time. The weather in Ireland has been beautiful the last couple of weeks so I have hope for a beautiful summer. Once Hugh is done with classes we hope to take a trip to somewhere close by . . . maybe Scotland? Things are definitely looking up! Slán!