Ireland: Part II

I love sleep. Really, really, love sleep. But, waking up in Ireland was nice. The windows were open so you could hear the waves, it was cold in the room but the bed was warm (there was a warmer in the mattress), and my two little guys slept "late" ;-) Really...with a view like this from the bed, who wouldn't WANT to wake up??
We spent our Monday in Ireland seeing the Cliffs of Moher. We (my little family of 4) woke up late that day (11ish), so a short trip was in order. Owen loved getting a closer look at the cows on the way up to see the cliffs!

The Cliffs of Moher...gorgeous.

Dona wore Liam in the backpack. I love this photo of her taking a photo!

At the end of our walk, we got to watch this farmer back into the field to pick up some cows that were off to market (we presume). I think this was the best part of the day for Owen Michael!

On our way back to Kilkee, we drove out to the Burren region. The boys enjoyed having a chance to stretch their legs and throw some rocks. So, I didn't end up going to see much of the landscape. But, isn't this a cool picture of Gerard and his mum? They are watching the boys play.

Tuesday was Dingle Day!! Oh, the drive to Dingle. Dingle is in County Kerry, and I do believe that Ireland doesn't seem to get much prettier than County Kerry! We took a car ferry across the Shannon. Lanie was really great at driving on the left side of the road/right side of the car by Tuesday!

Aunt Julie on the windy, windy ferry!

Hi Maureen!

Liam enjoyed stretching his sea legs and walking around the boat during our 30 minute ride!

Owen got caught up in the picture-taking just as his mom, aunts, and Lanie ;-) He took a lot of ferry pictures ;-) I will post his Top 20 from the entire trip on the blog in a couple of days. Some are pretty good!

On the other side of the Shannon, in a town called Ballybunion, we found this AWESOME park!!!

I wish they had parks as neat as this one in Dallas. It was soft-surface, colorful equipment, and fenced in, with a view of the ocean. Perfect!

Then, we got to Dingle! I love this picture of Liam outside a pub in Dingle.

After strolling around Dingle for a bit, we went to see the oldest Christian church in Ireland. This is Owen with his tractor at the entrance.

While waiting to go see the church, I asked Owen to pose with Liam. He did....he just didn't look at me, too. I was bummed; but, the picture is still really cute. And, it captures him doing what he was doing (photographing the rocks and his feet) while the little guy is being uber cooperative about picture-taking.

Owen is walking with his shadow to see the church....

..as this crazy group is driving through the fields to see the same.
Here it is. The oldest Christian Church in Ireland. It's about 1,500 year old. Wow.

Scenery in County Kerry.

Wednesday was low-key day. The boys enjoyed the garden, with Chippie and their dad. Dona, Julie, Maureen, and I went shopping in Kilrush. And, Lanie found a business center and did some work. The front garden proved lots of fun!

Gerard and his GodMother, Maureen.

The boys really liked this gate for some reason. They kept going over and standing by it. It was the best opportunity I got the entire trip for photos of them together!

Sweet Liam is getting so big, now!

Flowers from the neighbor's garden....

Flowers in Kilrush....

We ate dinner in on Wednesday. Lanie was cutting strawberries for the dessert and quickly had two, short, boyfriends at her beck and call. The love strawberries!

Julie dubbed this our "Irish Thanksgiving." I was a feast for sure!

After dinner, the boys and I took a walk to try and catch the sunset by the cliffs we'd seen on Loop Head drive. I didn't make it to the "spot" in time; but, we did stop and watch the sunset from a trail closer to home.

This picture doesn't do it justice...the sunset was gorgeous!

Ireland: Part III is forthcoming! Plus, pictures that Owen took in Ireland and photos from the boy's first day of preschool. I am so glad to have my computer back and running!