tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-87425109945758601852024-02-07T05:57:21.514-08:00The Wearing of the Green ShoesThe Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.comBlogger63125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-63530679003405939352010-05-06T04:36:00.000-07:002010-05-06T04:59:39.831-07:00Home Sweet HomeWe finally made it home! We must have had luck on our side, because we flew out of Dublin when they reopened the airport at 1pm right on time. Our flight was great--those tvs in the front of your seat are fantastic. Two movies and a couple tv shows later we were in Chicago. It all feels like it was a dream......like you woke up and nothing had changed while you were away. The cats want to be fed, the dog needs to go out, and the kids are asking, "What's for breakfast?" I tried going back to sleep but that wasn't happening. It feels really good to be home. The girls are so happy to see everyone, including all the animals. I wonder how long it will be before the bottoms of my feet start itching. I love to travel but now I love it even more that the girls like it too. They were fantastic on the entire adventure. I want to say a HUGE thank you to a few of you. Without you we just couldn't have made this trip possible--my mom and dad, for watching the house and running little errands for us, to Heather and Aaron for taking on Raisin for those long months and to Lynn and Aaron for babysitting our two kitties. Thank you so much.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihyphenhyphenppzzCNhXiNIMDkqLToTqHIwGxhOqFpvDWvtWN5Htio2lEUcMidMylJUjmJMpmxdAM7c2p1zyr_rezbsvu8IjEG0KeVtwzrs0XnZQaNWZUJz_cnXN5nEsxSYkQ9OkiOWGIhgsyLz31ls/s1600/Going+Home+002.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5468121849034613730" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihyphenhyphenppzzCNhXiNIMDkqLToTqHIwGxhOqFpvDWvtWN5Htio2lEUcMidMylJUjmJMpmxdAM7c2p1zyr_rezbsvu8IjEG0KeVtwzrs0XnZQaNWZUJz_cnXN5nEsxSYkQ9OkiOWGIhgsyLz31ls/s400/Going+Home+002.jpg" /></a> Lucy waiting so patiently at the airport.<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNvu8M7fyDrCKoBv0dN76Jb7zFNhi8_-qO4kDwNFu6WTs1DaoDcbnkmS4kXToZ7WXtJUGxlTTbpYZVdLNZpYbciRbCj6d-XWcyOKl3ipEokzTFcy92b9Ie-XvsJMLBjbOge-I2LEwVCfbX/s1600/Going+Home+005.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5468121531067269362" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNvu8M7fyDrCKoBv0dN76Jb7zFNhi8_-qO4kDwNFu6WTs1DaoDcbnkmS4kXToZ7WXtJUGxlTTbpYZVdLNZpYbciRbCj6d-XWcyOKl3ipEokzTFcy92b9Ie-XvsJMLBjbOge-I2LEwVCfbX/s400/Going+Home+005.jpg" /></a> Finally, she's complete. Lucy and her hens.<br /><br /><div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-14803942375475408652010-05-01T12:49:00.001-07:002010-05-01T13:09:50.755-07:00Kilbeggan RacesWe drove down to Kilbeggan tonight for the first race of the season. You wouldn't know it by the looks of the sky, but it rained all day today. I thought we'd be out in the miserable rain to watch the races, but it stopped about 15 min. before we got there and the sun came out. How lucky is that?<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8ei064ePMUDMDSbCEPogGj8-MvYrlurrEKNxJzWyIubgFVfF_-4mCRC9uCpUtc8XK0kYnuaqLfWwgzjb2JqNwntqDAx0QPU-gBglC-ChhSoOz7_4qoKvo0qdx0-7CMkS7YNYDY5bGQx6s/s1600/Kilbeggan+Races+011.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5466394366983855906" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8ei064ePMUDMDSbCEPogGj8-MvYrlurrEKNxJzWyIubgFVfF_-4mCRC9uCpUtc8XK0kYnuaqLfWwgzjb2JqNwntqDAx0QPU-gBglC-ChhSoOz7_4qoKvo0qdx0-7CMkS7YNYDY5bGQx6s/s400/Kilbeggan+Races+011.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioqnSSYBgwBmuq6eHqEADUoLDpMbaOoDCf4dMKmMhY6GB20wiif8N-Li2JyQdirHiAq3VUN1rwAkLBG5xVwOzTx2-1d7fygXtoEXUeohmQintWQUXhyphenhyphenhRWI3uecIQ4P19H9b136JszpB7W/s1600/Kilbeggan+Races+014.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5466393972750224706" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioqnSSYBgwBmuq6eHqEADUoLDpMbaOoDCf4dMKmMhY6GB20wiif8N-Li2JyQdirHiAq3VUN1rwAkLBG5xVwOzTx2-1d7fygXtoEXUeohmQintWQUXhyphenhyphenhRWI3uecIQ4P19H9b136JszpB7W/s400/Kilbeggan+Races+014.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiPDTOtaS7N0te92R968FpzDYibzUASnYwvzN0k6WCtINHRu2y8yb99Fd4o2PEnQXeShMs2c9yTUpONciBeKMdfkRk9Y6EftY3h7ClbQvPsxaGAiwt6-2V1d97z4SdlGv-DL05ii57cZYN/s1600/Kilbeggan+Races+043.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5466393470180041890" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiPDTOtaS7N0te92R968FpzDYibzUASnYwvzN0k6WCtINHRu2y8yb99Fd4o2PEnQXeShMs2c9yTUpONciBeKMdfkRk9Y6EftY3h7ClbQvPsxaGAiwt6-2V1d97z4SdlGv-DL05ii57cZYN/s400/Kilbeggan+Races+043.jpg" /></a>Does this picture even need words? </div><div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPtMRfyWeJIlmDSXJJxoV_m6GKeZGupppDQA0GJInijRdUH4kiS1wmutu40MMyv0mdT8o9Lle426QzQ6R_s-Cka0Zx6hidRRDoAe46Fp8BVy3hLTNNx_QxVMxP3L1Vr4Pxm2FJ6O8ErP4m/s1600/Kilbeggan+Races+085.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5466393148619249666" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPtMRfyWeJIlmDSXJJxoV_m6GKeZGupppDQA0GJInijRdUH4kiS1wmutu40MMyv0mdT8o9Lle426QzQ6R_s-Cka0Zx6hidRRDoAe46Fp8BVy3hLTNNx_QxVMxP3L1Vr4Pxm2FJ6O8ErP4m/s400/Kilbeggan+Races+085.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijKN7l3xZ9RjMSzLA0BwrreJVXhMPOJR1d1w24eFzv-paXiKNdW2tDS5Vhba_8T7GyLW48ZVghhZtdCHIJniCUfgWpiY5d0DR1iCKrexE89yxchbcFIZwYyJQjVVcPrg7Gv95H6oi76N4I/s1600/Kilbeggan+Races+050.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5466392903269147922" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijKN7l3xZ9RjMSzLA0BwrreJVXhMPOJR1d1w24eFzv-paXiKNdW2tDS5Vhba_8T7GyLW48ZVghhZtdCHIJniCUfgWpiY5d0DR1iCKrexE89yxchbcFIZwYyJQjVVcPrg7Gv95H6oi76N4I/s400/Kilbeggan+Races+050.jpg" /></a><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5466392605028271010" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyYTRunNH0EhvxP5reO976q2eQwVakIoNzon0mAuBRcUPgcl_xkpweRlV7h5Cc_ICzAWlueDcWTJOyswqEtsH5iog536dEewFB3T1-lM-pYV4nX7GOr5xWUlfwTExSmdQcz6M_10_ZL5RD/s400/Kilbeggan+Races+082.jpg" />Wow. That's all I can say. Wow again. </div><div><br /><div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVTkeS_V-BX8JV99_ddvSHv2wLVm8_43WwBcyhZzyf0Kq6l2Lo3WKavu-0jHX_mIj0joZvQGKdY9bhKViuGNZY1gD9scQ6ip-O4CRx3kXng9nZ0oKVOTfn3bba_c2ICPJZJVty_5_k6zn-/s1600/Kilbeggan+Races+029.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5466392375740938946" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVTkeS_V-BX8JV99_ddvSHv2wLVm8_43WwBcyhZzyf0Kq6l2Lo3WKavu-0jHX_mIj0joZvQGKdY9bhKViuGNZY1gD9scQ6ip-O4CRx3kXng9nZ0oKVOTfn3bba_c2ICPJZJVty_5_k6zn-/s400/Kilbeggan+Races+029.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpM-Sv74NsvDpMNZW2AeaqSE9Kdc9IsTTYJfm7ty0EFgJAPd4wtEyadiz5ws57SXLRkxBz8hHm-KPVgqd4rlCUhrMqLsAkKvGM8UDo9O7RCrLjmbZPjerlKd3Sb1sy1pgT5MsQJAOK_7vQ/s1600/Kilbeggan+Races+026.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5466392042348777042" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpM-Sv74NsvDpMNZW2AeaqSE9Kdc9IsTTYJfm7ty0EFgJAPd4wtEyadiz5ws57SXLRkxBz8hHm-KPVgqd4rlCUhrMqLsAkKvGM8UDo9O7RCrLjmbZPjerlKd3Sb1sy1pgT5MsQJAOK_7vQ/s400/Kilbeggan+Races+026.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtzrsJnBW_yV4dmRVjph18-s2_n32JOUamwi311FGs6mJnKKy4lRYHjPMC4_9ujLHR9RSF7FLCe3jE8PtCtYbCToH_uy5WP9d_x_laBPQ_id0OK61jVkigY5z3d8fKret23qPk_ZD8cCu8/s1600/Kilbeggan+Races+086.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5466391451178750450" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtzrsJnBW_yV4dmRVjph18-s2_n32JOUamwi311FGs6mJnKKy4lRYHjPMC4_9ujLHR9RSF7FLCe3jE8PtCtYbCToH_uy5WP9d_x_laBPQ_id0OK61jVkigY5z3d8fKret23qPk_ZD8cCu8/s400/Kilbeggan+Races+086.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-69116981415915185332010-04-30T12:48:00.001-07:002010-04-30T13:24:36.340-07:00Riding Lesson XIII<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4bWcbQovXQg5fYe2vs-2d37J0e0_oACulqOMmkYWT8nM9civcQjy1dy10sSsNpIQQrUV48KvoBYVQSGu8XL9YbeG6qoelHjOGNbDF9Skh_8S5DeAUPyjnWySRONJRX3RVhMvsWqGbNKH7/s1600/Riding+Lesson+XIV+(19).jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5466023115496152178" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4bWcbQovXQg5fYe2vs-2d37J0e0_oACulqOMmkYWT8nM9civcQjy1dy10sSsNpIQQrUV48KvoBYVQSGu8XL9YbeG6qoelHjOGNbDF9Skh_8S5DeAUPyjnWySRONJRX3RVhMvsWqGbNKH7/s400/Riding+Lesson+XIV+(19).jpg" /></a> Sofie in the lead on Pele. She's gotten a lot more confident out in front. She's so darn cute on that horse!<br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipwUQMMbN8SkhdHZlyw22GbdUdUEJ8jcijL0OURN3g46aoNNpr7U3gC7Q3vCma9v4HWFFSELaQd7V0SVN1KQau52OBoSN52jEoMtIvvZYgwlY246K9swtLVGQ-U3j9iPcS_igD8nTsFhLy/s1600/Riding+Lesson+XIV.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5466022342107084226" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipwUQMMbN8SkhdHZlyw22GbdUdUEJ8jcijL0OURN3g46aoNNpr7U3gC7Q3vCma9v4HWFFSELaQd7V0SVN1KQau52OBoSN52jEoMtIvvZYgwlY246K9swtLVGQ-U3j9iPcS_igD8nTsFhLy/s400/Riding+Lesson+XIV.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU3JzNVw_kk0heLPFZ1yoRicIsD910sAiBKGdfiFbOfbmkzEKcEJQvovG1yPjev3P0F0AkBgYIAyjrNOK7h98YZKbmbO1-PNLI6QckuYWke0Y324pVF3lDyAUVrDyHd7fSHUqrYJc_e7PA/s1600/Riding+Lesson+XIV+(2).jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5466022123962057586" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU3JzNVw_kk0heLPFZ1yoRicIsD910sAiBKGdfiFbOfbmkzEKcEJQvovG1yPjev3P0F0AkBgYIAyjrNOK7h98YZKbmbO1-PNLI6QckuYWke0Y324pVF3lDyAUVrDyHd7fSHUqrYJc_e7PA/s400/Riding+Lesson+XIV+(2).jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0EUUvIIRn7K4jKf7ienhog3NMlcc8Ml3j0k9-VEYf5BJNy0irjQDz2nI6F7v8jdQaxQHpj3yEOE2ZjViYBigGyX7gxUYkLHVzJ7M7hVUjRd51HJOKGi2aawpk5FyZ1mcq2lwoEDD3snc6/s1600/Riding+Lesson+XIV+(3).jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5466021854279685938" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0EUUvIIRn7K4jKf7ienhog3NMlcc8Ml3j0k9-VEYf5BJNy0irjQDz2nI6F7v8jdQaxQHpj3yEOE2ZjViYBigGyX7gxUYkLHVzJ7M7hVUjRd51HJOKGi2aawpk5FyZ1mcq2lwoEDD3snc6/s400/Riding+Lesson+XIV+(3).jpg" /></a> They had to canter with one hand on their hat. To just let you all know, Sofie used to be pretty scared to canter. I think I remember some screaming?.... and now to watch her canter with one hand on her head is just amazing.<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA7LPDS0Di20LrWvokpjeba64fM17Xqz1f9Il83mKW4nz-dz8yJDH7cGDMkxE4JNPItuaoh1iEtim3Lel3PHlgH33cIZ1Ga03xN8O3vkSu2ILkFq6z_aWFaYkaMEYMHxSqMIFr-VHnvgph/s1600/Riding+Lesson+XIV+(4).jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5466021522305160786" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA7LPDS0Di20LrWvokpjeba64fM17Xqz1f9Il83mKW4nz-dz8yJDH7cGDMkxE4JNPItuaoh1iEtim3Lel3PHlgH33cIZ1Ga03xN8O3vkSu2ILkFq6z_aWFaYkaMEYMHxSqMIFr-VHnvgph/s400/Riding+Lesson+XIV+(4).jpg" /></a> Could she be any happier?? This is what makes Lucy happy. She had such a fun lesson. She kept dropping her stirrups and riding without them. She even cantered with out them! The girls both had an amazing lesson--they jumped the highest this afternoon too. They've learned so much these last few months at lessons. The weather was gorgeous, lessons were great..... and then we had to say goodbye. Such a bittersweet goodbye too because today was their last lesson! We are heading home next week. Riding lessons really gave the girls something to look forward to every week and they worked hard during that hour too. I'd hear about the sore legs on Friday! Big thanks to Claire and Lily for having the girls and making us feel so welcome! </div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> </div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOllIucjVyKUviWMr95MuI9MQUFITEp-WAZFY8SZVLb8k7pZHaUC2fgY2oN38w36Lz1VsaJnlqK8d55-Bq74QdvvJEwkfI4oGcfi9RyJmJFTCX42mOtAk3F2dPqpsQ1OinrfDiACbV-6RR/s1600/Riding+Lesson+XIV+(21).jpg"></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-8988689630459767492010-04-25T10:16:00.000-07:002010-04-25T11:32:15.613-07:00Irish National StudWith two horse <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-error">lovers in</span> the family, we couldn't avoid the Irish National Stud farm! We drove down to <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-error">Kildare</span> this afternoon and took the tour of the farm. Before we did that, we walked through the world famous Japanese garden. The garden tells the story of life--birth through death.<br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif7Q2crH4qQMewmgAItORVcOfdM_yDjuK-iHYo41rHTWyWYfF7T-TBl_BBfq-J5uQF3fzCZ096TNuB5pkxOPPYnAjRAEHptUTOovFgEhipzeAh2TpYM0ighMy3xFF86GEp2NIfUMTPeSgI/s1600/National+Stud+Farm+and+Japanese+Gardens+008.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464128269273381154" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif7Q2crH4qQMewmgAItORVcOfdM_yDjuK-iHYo41rHTWyWYfF7T-TBl_BBfq-J5uQF3fzCZ096TNuB5pkxOPPYnAjRAEHptUTOovFgEhipzeAh2TpYM0ighMy3xFF86GEp2NIfUMTPeSgI/s400/National+Stud+Farm+and+Japanese+Gardens+008.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMqmjDumiWxNeS0sF6uEra2buAvYWByEfebzv-P4Q0ox0Vb8jh59F6DQa3aZXUHznUZIMxcu0IHE1feDhw5o0w9r6cTExTSLGNxDdLNbW7Q9MYjWotiqpHYWnPfwKlVqkk_jihBHORD-B-/s1600/National+Stud+Farm+and+Japanese+Gardens+004.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464127880706019746" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMqmjDumiWxNeS0sF6uEra2buAvYWByEfebzv-P4Q0ox0Vb8jh59F6DQa3aZXUHznUZIMxcu0IHE1feDhw5o0w9r6cTExTSLGNxDdLNbW7Q9MYjWotiqpHYWnPfwKlVqkk_jihBHORD-B-/s400/National+Stud+Farm+and+Japanese+Gardens+004.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdbQb_YsE4_iwocBGo96ufT780tTlUqxxuL8GwcfAIqfd1N7KCblOEpeZ_6Arh2kzdTEGe9nwjaNm07E_dFx5WPezCXnrVIRw-XHT1OUY339i0GeMobuQgRvUU3SGz9ODjzD-vXlcTMVrO/s1600/National+Stud+Farm+and+Japanese+Gardens+005.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464127630900604274" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdbQb_YsE4_iwocBGo96ufT780tTlUqxxuL8GwcfAIqfd1N7KCblOEpeZ_6Arh2kzdTEGe9nwjaNm07E_dFx5WPezCXnrVIRw-XHT1OUY339i0GeMobuQgRvUU3SGz9ODjzD-vXlcTMVrO/s400/National+Stud+Farm+and+Japanese+Gardens+005.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuMYcPojxN1Lt0movhQrBZCSzEfu1_S4BinkNmz53utGuCBYg9qMQjOlyMKUl5gdeRFS36JoyLRxgAMhyugKFzNrnR3XRFzHT_CPlgXOTRdD4bhviPoP70OQLWmh6kKNdpYNN2WmaAG9qp/s1600/National+Stud+Farm+and+Japanese+Gardens+010.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464127393346618834" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuMYcPojxN1Lt0movhQrBZCSzEfu1_S4BinkNmz53utGuCBYg9qMQjOlyMKUl5gdeRFS36JoyLRxgAMhyugKFzNrnR3XRFzHT_CPlgXOTRdD4bhviPoP70OQLWmh6kKNdpYNN2WmaAG9qp/s400/National+Stud+Farm+and+Japanese+Gardens+010.jpg" /></a> After we walked through all the aspects of life--birth, ignorance, gathering intellect, love, success and failures in marriage, old age, and finally death--we made our way over to the Sun Chariot Yard for the timed tour. We saw the stables where the mares birth foals, the forge where the horse shoes are made, the saddlery, and the round barn where the stallion is brought in to meet his mare. There are eight stallions at the farm. The most valuable one has a stud fee of €45,000. He's also insured for €60 million. All the <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_2" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">Thoroughbred</span> horses here are bred just for flat racing. We finished up the tour and got to walk around and see all the stallions, the mares, and foals! April is a great time to visit the farm because it's foal season!<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwkQ5YKpNCMgiCoSK7-BHyExZwxkGj4qPZ8JX5YuKegoKTnLQk9mz9vsO5dTVwr8PWB2-8i9ZwEG_2334JySvN6nrf4wbJtKh4IY0S2om2Amw74nGeltGLWscD2MBosithgqtMVOcmKFg3/s1600/National+Stud+Farm+and+Japanese+Gardens+013.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464127141737362706" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwkQ5YKpNCMgiCoSK7-BHyExZwxkGj4qPZ8JX5YuKegoKTnLQk9mz9vsO5dTVwr8PWB2-8i9ZwEG_2334JySvN6nrf4wbJtKh4IY0S2om2Amw74nGeltGLWscD2MBosithgqtMVOcmKFg3/s400/National+Stud+Farm+and+Japanese+Gardens+013.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil53vPf6_6HN2yfywpQaQmgPNkmH2ZZHiwoi_3gPGBBl_hPAgJQQXUD5QzOgy_tXncbrsDeO6neipt5iQYj8YF6qZ5LA5fasBgUfPvcomRzar5xcy50V6dhlQozneyRysxGYiblhNCPXFe/s1600/National+Stud+Farm+and+Japanese+Gardens+015.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464126844821344658" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil53vPf6_6HN2yfywpQaQmgPNkmH2ZZHiwoi_3gPGBBl_hPAgJQQXUD5QzOgy_tXncbrsDeO6neipt5iQYj8YF6qZ5LA5fasBgUfPvcomRzar5xcy50V6dhlQozneyRysxGYiblhNCPXFe/s400/National+Stud+Farm+and+Japanese+Gardens+015.jpg" /></a><br /><div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh0TeC1yM-F-6JzU_oPDEzlio32Mc3RIeu7vL72lAkaWaWb-RMxprm02aaTd_lkPvp1ArAlKNrvgX04Dp0ZzQq8sLRWZ9ooiqw_gblUWyP2_r4GZ389fAphO13tDK113Aa58sE_KyTdAAb/s1600/National+Stud+Farm+and+Japanese+Gardens+039.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464126042424891378" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh0TeC1yM-F-6JzU_oPDEzlio32Mc3RIeu7vL72lAkaWaWb-RMxprm02aaTd_lkPvp1ArAlKNrvgX04Dp0ZzQq8sLRWZ9ooiqw_gblUWyP2_r4GZ389fAphO13tDK113Aa58sE_KyTdAAb/s400/National+Stud+Farm+and+Japanese+Gardens+039.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSzDNpf_hM_QVlx89da9QSWWjlIbZr_TSMcmarX5VXUWwSz8UU2iOPznBRg66loSZPt4ps77xjZh8ZzFrzeI3KS_oP7lkAGo6KLDxK2XPfvoe1YZslWatJdS5nEd5NjbM3RvymjrJwZX7d/s1600/National+Stud+Farm+and+Japanese+Gardens+028.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464125814598849634" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSzDNpf_hM_QVlx89da9QSWWjlIbZr_TSMcmarX5VXUWwSz8UU2iOPznBRg66loSZPt4ps77xjZh8ZzFrzeI3KS_oP7lkAGo6KLDxK2XPfvoe1YZslWatJdS5nEd5NjbM3RvymjrJwZX7d/s400/National+Stud+Farm+and+Japanese+Gardens+028.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikGq97lVUobI_LtjFD_HoBKltm5ZEs4DDdfVbhmsI8Wn-DBtMa1QEgldqxs7tcm5QtbaxJtxytVS9BBM8mU6cCoTF7v3CSgst0-Ft-feNe9KaqDuTpOzJV2v9KxoTslj69TzZ4pkjIMIfI/s1600/National+Stud+Farm+and+Japanese+Gardens+049.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464125597643983042" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikGq97lVUobI_LtjFD_HoBKltm5ZEs4DDdfVbhmsI8Wn-DBtMa1QEgldqxs7tcm5QtbaxJtxytVS9BBM8mU6cCoTF7v3CSgst0-Ft-feNe9KaqDuTpOzJV2v9KxoTslj69TzZ4pkjIMIfI/s400/National+Stud+Farm+and+Japanese+Gardens+049.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-73258637462322955422010-04-23T13:47:00.001-07:002010-04-23T13:57:03.690-07:00Riding Lesson XII<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJIsm7lpQfYrQSbijwstGjO-qirh0pDPLJHAlrKWAAZwrTB3kBfaaJSHut4RqsJp0sZtRsQIwag5WR8ZhgFUrI-h0lUn5DhsUy_BLIchSZy9t9or9TzG67q7QF6zOoGHYQ4TTRSd9RjV_O/s1600/Birr+Castle+Again+058.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463438751687552306" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJIsm7lpQfYrQSbijwstGjO-qirh0pDPLJHAlrKWAAZwrTB3kBfaaJSHut4RqsJp0sZtRsQIwag5WR8ZhgFUrI-h0lUn5DhsUy_BLIchSZy9t9or9TzG67q7QF6zOoGHYQ4TTRSd9RjV_O/s400/Birr+Castle+Again+058.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvlMdVbYZcTQdAyGo5sPaY382L4rYtuNzuEyFvyQVQZFY5vGBMnbAF0WRKa9JfwKAdTs76iOeMW9nJCeQDvmtxirCTAT9K79UX4m85-rfALEQRvUEEJTHDo9s-F4SPYbOVa59J9x7_emlB/s1600/Birr+Castle+Again+057.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463438521851523010" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvlMdVbYZcTQdAyGo5sPaY382L4rYtuNzuEyFvyQVQZFY5vGBMnbAF0WRKa9JfwKAdTs76iOeMW9nJCeQDvmtxirCTAT9K79UX4m85-rfALEQRvUEEJTHDo9s-F4SPYbOVa59J9x7_emlB/s400/Birr+Castle+Again+057.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJSmFpirMn8xBVp9i_TWVPZ-7u_d9HLtOAiDe02aYVDZaLEvnpu1qPYP9YrTvJrAW0vBsLM9NcZ3BZaxXtjbn8_f4VtfP9t61cvfsD1hVMoPUBqp4RG-xmW1BsXRyaLTMJWl65yj8s6QDM/s1600/Riding+Lesson+XII.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463437992170230866" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJSmFpirMn8xBVp9i_TWVPZ-7u_d9HLtOAiDe02aYVDZaLEvnpu1qPYP9YrTvJrAW0vBsLM9NcZ3BZaxXtjbn8_f4VtfP9t61cvfsD1hVMoPUBqp4RG-xmW1BsXRyaLTMJWl65yj8s6QDM/s400/Riding+Lesson+XII.jpg" /></a> Nope, there's nothing wrong with that picture It's dust. I didn't get too many pictures. They'd all ride by and I'd have to turn my back to keep from inhaling two pounds of dust. At least it wasn't pouring rain! Dry is good.<br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-70246466654512291042010-04-23T13:20:00.001-07:002010-04-23T13:46:04.108-07:00Spring is Here!The weather here is gorgeous! The girls and I went out to Birr Castle with a picnic this afternoon. The gardens are beautiful in the winter but in the spring? Wow. The flowers were blooming, the grass is green, and we even saw a few butterflies. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil7_We2tKPSMFj66f4TjPCrK4EZRuUjoBXTsvxnC-QEsJodUWdfKUjy1tnzQh8DY0bh9Qx1t3HRChknT9q7QtwbLI2MSkEfZoP2eRiGT4DviS-fkf3Kp5NiRSPAmpBbisM-b_2BrWyfchL/s1600/Birr+Castle+Again+035.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463433506074856690" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil7_We2tKPSMFj66f4TjPCrK4EZRuUjoBXTsvxnC-QEsJodUWdfKUjy1tnzQh8DY0bh9Qx1t3HRChknT9q7QtwbLI2MSkEfZoP2eRiGT4DviS-fkf3Kp5NiRSPAmpBbisM-b_2BrWyfchL/s400/Birr+Castle+Again+035.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNd6S7Fh3o55SKdCnUcg6XC3Ey_-_kh4MCggYBI3ucb704Ta1sRLJp1a9ELoaMhGua8lTLF8Vlnm1CO4dSBLdZ8uNAnlvUz_Xf2cMytGjUMAg1arUUZ-8Kw4ElCKkQgUun6HjAQTnc8oP3/s1600/Birr+Castle+Again+030.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463432872731255266" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNd6S7Fh3o55SKdCnUcg6XC3Ey_-_kh4MCggYBI3ucb704Ta1sRLJp1a9ELoaMhGua8lTLF8Vlnm1CO4dSBLdZ8uNAnlvUz_Xf2cMytGjUMAg1arUUZ-8Kw4ElCKkQgUun6HjAQTnc8oP3/s400/Birr+Castle+Again+030.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlqB9lM4bgzqXYqOYn8xAllayCM569NNVorYdcATVlD3KF-zPMHFMrEGTTpdrKJulEHgIy43LvWPF4kflBYZLr5ebYkzLNZsMB8r2FncMWVxutO-8Wx2Bt5UZyDc5sM4Re2IJNLZJwdq1f/s1600/Birr+Castle+Again+024.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463432422327450722" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlqB9lM4bgzqXYqOYn8xAllayCM569NNVorYdcATVlD3KF-zPMHFMrEGTTpdrKJulEHgIy43LvWPF4kflBYZLr5ebYkzLNZsMB8r2FncMWVxutO-8Wx2Bt5UZyDc5sM4Re2IJNLZJwdq1f/s400/Birr+Castle+Again+024.jpg" /></a> First came the ducks, then came the swan. He was almost as big as Sofie! His mate was sitting on a nest not to far from us on an island out in the pond. Sofie picked the cheese off her sandwich and fed it to him. Swans like cheese. Who knew?<br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFLgzVfOqOQeqhODzSPkJYsoBgCdeuT1JerAFhunF2o-0SmYTnxTj1ebmMLtNq9Ck4WQfm3JjxWnwaWZl8-BOPtBzvlwdhEN6VPZi8BkZMgXi_D0u8eh0vnvv_EPp_43z3d0UZnx4BnTkB/s1600/Birr+Castle+Again+056.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463431962698599730" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFLgzVfOqOQeqhODzSPkJYsoBgCdeuT1JerAFhunF2o-0SmYTnxTj1ebmMLtNq9Ck4WQfm3JjxWnwaWZl8-BOPtBzvlwdhEN6VPZi8BkZMgXi_D0u8eh0vnvv_EPp_43z3d0UZnx4BnTkB/s400/Birr+Castle+Again+056.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtJfJhRZT3fFhleEwzqp5M4QHCs-k7oz4mRioDZEKbgpiNQa2CT_m01c-08AcVx-W9T6olJDbJJ9pvJI9KUhzXuXTb6OnDDXn9-VObWjHXdVUqTx9A-Os4DZL6hx14pb4UccdR9pm3PuSU/s1600/Birr+Castle+Again+061.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463431573153565858" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtJfJhRZT3fFhleEwzqp5M4QHCs-k7oz4mRioDZEKbgpiNQa2CT_m01c-08AcVx-W9T6olJDbJJ9pvJI9KUhzXuXTb6OnDDXn9-VObWjHXdVUqTx9A-Os4DZL6hx14pb4UccdR9pm3PuSU/s400/Birr+Castle+Again+061.jpg" /></a> I had to put this photo of Lucy up here. This is one of the best shots I've ever taken of her. She's tough to capture. Photgraphing kids is like trying to photograph your dog. They move unpredictably, make silly faces, or just run from you! It's the easiest when they're sleeping. The girls say I'm their paparazzi. It's true. It's even worse now I don't have to take a break and change film!<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhia2dcH7zEGoE1iSOIjdoEIAVlJCcT9gQ2zrPGJs9EAGNMcmRU6bZXxoCwC6yLVSIVSz8WkvHx8xibDBRWB4415QjnnWp1CP4xneitbfTqBVqVFQut70I9PHuTHuQcqJjIXY-1adfJKQni/s1600/Birr+Castle+Again+060.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463431155454140642" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhia2dcH7zEGoE1iSOIjdoEIAVlJCcT9gQ2zrPGJs9EAGNMcmRU6bZXxoCwC6yLVSIVSz8WkvHx8xibDBRWB4415QjnnWp1CP4xneitbfTqBVqVFQut70I9PHuTHuQcqJjIXY-1adfJKQni/s400/Birr+Castle+Again+060.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-47144484560635393922010-04-19T08:53:00.000-07:002010-04-19T09:34:44.061-07:00Cork and KinsaleWe headed down to Cork on Saturday. Looking at the map, it didn't look too far so we left about 11 a.m. It took us 3 hours to get there! I don't know if we were spoiled by Germany but we were left feeling a little let down by Cork. The town center is fantastic but as soon as you walk away from it you feel like you're in a ghost town. There were no people, the buildings were boarded up and it was strangely quiet. The one thing to see when you do go to Cork is the Covered Market. It has a small doorway to enter but once you go in it's a maze of fresh fish stalls, fruit and veg., chocolates, fresh pasta and meats. Anything you could possibly want for you dinner was there. I'm not that into food so much--I don't really like to cook. Heck, I don't even grocery shop at home! (Tim does that) But if I had the Covered Market to shop at, I'd take over. That's how much I loved it. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo2UbIFLXOxL1FNnymz9_QJyAZHJ_yrl63to25CEnsJZAh1eaTvLg3MLo7FR_wKvbbid8AI3hUETx5r1Byjapk7ogVvGXvh9tU6ysBp_nFVlrIoNWWphEvGyNIYlCFFhh_VAbE-6-OUz11/s1600/Cork+and+Kinsale+020.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461881638332604946" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo2UbIFLXOxL1FNnymz9_QJyAZHJ_yrl63to25CEnsJZAh1eaTvLg3MLo7FR_wKvbbid8AI3hUETx5r1Byjapk7ogVvGXvh9tU6ysBp_nFVlrIoNWWphEvGyNIYlCFFhh_VAbE-6-OUz11/s400/Cork+and+Kinsale+020.jpg" /></a> Street performers are big in Cork. We came across this guy laying on a bed of nails.<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmETzltNxZvI5_pagKJ9nsreBGmMF8HwoS14i8dkK3aPVygIxXhlz4KzWl9d2mg4AOM6hPqLvnqVzDL4WuFeO4VaxdpRqmaC0Ry24wT4TipjPWLtOZi6OFLaBKOEIkF8vDP9zVawz6EaEK/s1600/Cork+and+Kinsale+022.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461881452115011474" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmETzltNxZvI5_pagKJ9nsreBGmMF8HwoS14i8dkK3aPVygIxXhlz4KzWl9d2mg4AOM6hPqLvnqVzDL4WuFeO4VaxdpRqmaC0Ry24wT4TipjPWLtOZi6OFLaBKOEIkF8vDP9zVawz6EaEK/s400/Cork+and+Kinsale+022.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixw1Psx-d9LJnncTqPzddLhW9hCGAQvULx9X_lra7CJJEfgEjxu8k_JbyvZrrERsNKbJLtK8XN68P6a4nRqQfyWAaZE754mj72cry0usBJzYqAK2oLLYZhIIzsmdkGCwnCJW1TLdvdYKZD/s1600/Cork+and+Kinsale+023.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461881035983550290" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixw1Psx-d9LJnncTqPzddLhW9hCGAQvULx9X_lra7CJJEfgEjxu8k_JbyvZrrERsNKbJLtK8XN68P6a4nRqQfyWAaZE754mj72cry0usBJzYqAK2oLLYZhIIzsmdkGCwnCJW1TLdvdYKZD/s400/Cork+and+Kinsale+023.jpg" /></a> When he stood up, his back looked like a pin cushion. Ouch.<br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhshgsW2We8HZl-9pM8UOdRvEDnYSGZvUU2ki6ELHbMGxWP9k8Bh8u09P4jWJhxhrOQEWHBFoICVd3bm57cSGIRrVf47QK3Nv82nT0h82oF-_A7Af_kDnqdMV4SOV8wMUyehDjrWR-0TDsp/s1600/Cork+and+Kinsale+026.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461880295519069090" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhshgsW2We8HZl-9pM8UOdRvEDnYSGZvUU2ki6ELHbMGxWP9k8Bh8u09P4jWJhxhrOQEWHBFoICVd3bm57cSGIRrVf47QK3Nv82nT0h82oF-_A7Af_kDnqdMV4SOV8wMUyehDjrWR-0TDsp/s400/Cork+and+Kinsale+026.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUuSzgTakpqncPCBfIikn9xbunT9ASlH9RC-Oypp5U0V7WffTCm2JYpJZT1fV6soPY25ZgscVx42M53BkgickS74aPoQecUc4SfJv8ksdFovW1cDDzEPklHdKrdsVzWsKwCG_ZSJSWGbBa/s1600/Cork+and+Kinsale+029.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461880038641100594" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUuSzgTakpqncPCBfIikn9xbunT9ASlH9RC-Oypp5U0V7WffTCm2JYpJZT1fV6soPY25ZgscVx42M53BkgickS74aPoQecUc4SfJv8ksdFovW1cDDzEPklHdKrdsVzWsKwCG_ZSJSWGbBa/s400/Cork+and+Kinsale+029.jpg" /></a> Then he showed off how flexible he was. Ouch again.<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHD8OguwXn9GBXnSg4kXOfVqFiecvBGVnj9dYx2bdM8S2FQQiL0oFandF9KtRX0nj0mRpYjdFiZUg4FknQuVuf2ugs3Rjp0npzOD_Yi1K2cFJlcK80sgTJwhPd-E5_iCOjlg4kXRuZMsjH/s1600/Cork+and+Kinsale+030.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461879753038565570" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHD8OguwXn9GBXnSg4kXOfVqFiecvBGVnj9dYx2bdM8S2FQQiL0oFandF9KtRX0nj0mRpYjdFiZUg4FknQuVuf2ugs3Rjp0npzOD_Yi1K2cFJlcK80sgTJwhPd-E5_iCOjlg4kXRuZMsjH/s400/Cork+and+Kinsale+030.jpg" /></a> My dream grocery store! Fresh pizza dough? They had it. Fresh whole cod? Done. Fresh ravioli? Yeah, that too. I even saw a whole cooked turkey. Cooked! Could it get any better? Should I go on and on about the wine? the chocolates? the cheeses? We had to get out of there before I hid in some stall, begging to work for food.<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4ZGCTFw9Aex4Ydy5IhuiAB98hOc1Mo5br3CHpSuPRdSCqOV76pmw7kfN1VfkFO_GaJhMZjNMtALBu43p7yahyphenhyphenoGp8Wy1-uxVS2ACnkVUiVxH98LHLKwCkoLTGZZJ36PXs58PHGIY45_zw/s1600/Cork+and+Kinsale+035.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461879526467468322" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4ZGCTFw9Aex4Ydy5IhuiAB98hOc1Mo5br3CHpSuPRdSCqOV76pmw7kfN1VfkFO_GaJhMZjNMtALBu43p7yahyphenhyphenoGp8Wy1-uxVS2ACnkVUiVxH98LHLKwCkoLTGZZJ36PXs58PHGIY45_zw/s400/Cork+and+Kinsale+035.jpg" /></a> The Covered Market<br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7omiuamtXHGNFFnwKYKZ64J0cE8vVkmehXrCJ-WXixDK9wQYnpMsRxQEAETHz9fEmDTf1F6vI7n9J6SZn7oAXqwLp6yb7UZ2JtRC5LJxYNbooD-1gdZb8La4lmjChqQXti5freu37X92t/s1600/Cork+and+Kinsale+038.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461879204144789890" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7omiuamtXHGNFFnwKYKZ64J0cE8vVkmehXrCJ-WXixDK9wQYnpMsRxQEAETHz9fEmDTf1F6vI7n9J6SZn7oAXqwLp6yb7UZ2JtRC5LJxYNbooD-1gdZb8La4lmjChqQXti5freu37X92t/s400/Cork+and+Kinsale+038.jpg" /></a> After walking around the town center in Cork we decided to follow Rick Steve's advice (he said Cork isn't worth seeing) we headed down to <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-error">Kinsale</span>. What a gem of a town. If you need to go to the south, this is a town worth staying in. It's small, very walkable and so charming--like a postcard. We grabbed a few pizzas and had a picnic in the park. I think the girls (and Tim!) are getting tired of sightseeing. So we ate our pizza and slowly walked back to the car, dreading the now 3 1/2 hour drive home.<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicG3vsqE2rYmAe4uDfi8UtBYBzLGGKMRdjfHc_ruwG4fe__7_WvQeC1yS5LXeLKbkR24O2duehgHHvjkMf98UFiGPUbyaQBQgJpiynzMutVCnblzxHd4AsxnuE3qQeO-cnkbtIGHfNCex4/s1600/Cork+and+Kinsale+044.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461878861221286738" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicG3vsqE2rYmAe4uDfi8UtBYBzLGGKMRdjfHc_ruwG4fe__7_WvQeC1yS5LXeLKbkR24O2duehgHHvjkMf98UFiGPUbyaQBQgJpiynzMutVCnblzxHd4AsxnuE3qQeO-cnkbtIGHfNCex4/s400/Cork+and+Kinsale+044.jpg" /></a> <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-error">Kinsale</span><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEsnpBXrAL7EyiPjaCD9MhvPFwZHwxUfjJuW3AfYtzACRPmPI3szCAa2etG9Y24D9GG0KUy2hExKnZzjHmhbMEWtrKFrMo3fLZDoLLJiSl1sEQJk27mXylJhyphenhyphen29_6CeCyRlWh_Mjizji0B/s1600/Cork+and+Kinsale+047.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461878637430125266" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEsnpBXrAL7EyiPjaCD9MhvPFwZHwxUfjJuW3AfYtzACRPmPI3szCAa2etG9Y24D9GG0KUy2hExKnZzjHmhbMEWtrKFrMo3fLZDoLLJiSl1sEQJk27mXylJhyphenhyphen29_6CeCyRlWh_Mjizji0B/s400/Cork+and+Kinsale+047.jpg" /></a><br /><div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461878378769449442" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0CSoHxtBTuPAWuH7haMZnkiBkE69k8eDJxN-afDicifY4cllnq8zCZtBN9VuYq5SBqhvBhpqP0ZcHTh3xAGTw6ijg3bwjyqdjkMYk9KhSQpfGbY6BOPzM6SnZnxv0GhADX5-Y1MEXf1gQ/s400/Cork+and+Kinsale+049.jpg" /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0vA6q6smba73Qsp9Wi5LcY8BrHnelBPH0EjQAo0cHja_1BwfgqYu6o0Zr7-HcZyMdIiRdhEahzpsGUcv3Y8sMZLRDp6RJR7w69FDCh7DoZNJBaB9JMsLNozlrIp9qXU7uR0-5IkKtWkY5/s1600/Cork+and+Kinsale+054.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461877827480908194" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0vA6q6smba73Qsp9Wi5LcY8BrHnelBPH0EjQAo0cHja_1BwfgqYu6o0Zr7-HcZyMdIiRdhEahzpsGUcv3Y8sMZLRDp6RJR7w69FDCh7DoZNJBaB9JMsLNozlrIp9qXU7uR0-5IkKtWkY5/s400/Cork+and+Kinsale+054.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-32662099362340577002010-04-15T11:34:00.001-07:002010-04-15T11:52:21.495-07:00Riding Lesson XI<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIKUpgOgTZpUM4MSIP14O0wlwydAycjj1wQI-MeKdzDyNGuBPV64aYeyB7g9KF63IsvNusS1qvPCbz-PK3Z_ZtVcc5irm8iEaaZS7P44q3p4yFUU7If52GuTEFdHclif93qgOKG8cwT38q/s1600/Riding+Lesson+XI+044.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5460436972465397714" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIKUpgOgTZpUM4MSIP14O0wlwydAycjj1wQI-MeKdzDyNGuBPV64aYeyB7g9KF63IsvNusS1qvPCbz-PK3Z_ZtVcc5irm8iEaaZS7P44q3p4yFUU7If52GuTEFdHclif93qgOKG8cwT38q/s400/Riding+Lesson+XI+044.jpg" /></a> Spring has finally arrived! The air is dry, the birds are singing, and there are daffodils everywhere. I mean EVERYWHERE. The ditches, the round-a-bouts, in window boxes, front yards, hanging baskets; I've never seen so many daffodils!<br /><br />The girls had riding again this afternoon. Only a couple more lessons and then we're back home! Trista--what are we going to do with them? They love to jump. I think Lucy really likes the challenge of doing an obstacle course. She won't admit it though. She'll say how awful and frustrating it is but then she'll get a good run and will just beam from ear to ear. They've built their own minature jumping course in the front yard for all their toy horses. I'm glad--for a while there they were using each other to ride and jump over stuff! My knees ached just watching them.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJFd67LsAOzznQI-E5E4la6tTOMRECbPU9iqiBzAOCl8KeHyv7WuIkVqo1I3bumIaObgs9rQdMD77v0i0QoAeQuVg4pPHMddUmj6HTroG8DE4XYtSYXg3W5W6ebQdyYpY4yFYtJgWF1bzm/s1600/Riding+Lesson+XI+013.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5460436730132297106" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJFd67LsAOzznQI-E5E4la6tTOMRECbPU9iqiBzAOCl8KeHyv7WuIkVqo1I3bumIaObgs9rQdMD77v0i0QoAeQuVg4pPHMddUmj6HTroG8DE4XYtSYXg3W5W6ebQdyYpY4yFYtJgWF1bzm/s400/Riding+Lesson+XI+013.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsxt-e-DkIldElUGY4gjbj0hcRUl_EiIymJMcqVKgCwnhPQSFJwlMd5qooCrIGYWEmp0JGEBG91AqjcVdbyGGjJYBIbnv25reyMGCSbg5nMh9uZL811JSbcA-1H5_Oc95HjGgqmg-lqI6v/s1600/Riding+Lesson+XI+015.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5460435777389466066" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsxt-e-DkIldElUGY4gjbj0hcRUl_EiIymJMcqVKgCwnhPQSFJwlMd5qooCrIGYWEmp0JGEBG91AqjcVdbyGGjJYBIbnv25reyMGCSbg5nMh9uZL811JSbcA-1H5_Oc95HjGgqmg-lqI6v/s400/Riding+Lesson+XI+015.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUZNyIl-293MHk4hm1JirarUmDP91Njwpz3tNuY9mrCd0cK21_XBadX_251vSNIhG0iVTKmCiSwDIuKnvZBLo4l0vIBpg2Isy0m3y01h5GFsofrqR0q9IWyGtqCFOfJzh8IfTfkIK2ruWf/s1600/Riding+Lesson+XI+006.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5460435298753245938" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUZNyIl-293MHk4hm1JirarUmDP91Njwpz3tNuY9mrCd0cK21_XBadX_251vSNIhG0iVTKmCiSwDIuKnvZBLo4l0vIBpg2Isy0m3y01h5GFsofrqR0q9IWyGtqCFOfJzh8IfTfkIK2ruWf/s400/Riding+Lesson+XI+006.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiShN1jQ1boQq2fBMnxvoqgOYqGAsM8lSnCtwypAS5w-3g8iHA7fLgL9yLWAHG6UqxV0msM_hIq7YMNPr3CWD12nQUVCSAHDNmhnZqcB4OGmyeJFxAIVEmLFIgTNWVBnTeQlAw6z9zAC16W/s1600/Riding+Lesson+XI+030.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5460434745232712466" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiShN1jQ1boQq2fBMnxvoqgOYqGAsM8lSnCtwypAS5w-3g8iHA7fLgL9yLWAHG6UqxV0msM_hIq7YMNPr3CWD12nQUVCSAHDNmhnZqcB4OGmyeJFxAIVEmLFIgTNWVBnTeQlAw6z9zAC16W/s400/Riding+Lesson+XI+030.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-56752857150065812012010-04-14T04:20:00.000-07:002010-04-15T11:53:51.265-07:00Munich<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6oCiyaFwPLgMTxts5aYPEz7aTlR1wvrKQlOHPD_ko2raw-Ji9LqoTwNjkliykSgqCw3SxT4c0zSOuhwBUALQ-op-54Xk6vwMq_hPMEScLRBkrX1lWDgsT-_YhgUHIF9fZMb2GeohgNphW/s1600/Germany+021.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459956627043947378" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6oCiyaFwPLgMTxts5aYPEz7aTlR1wvrKQlOHPD_ko2raw-Ji9LqoTwNjkliykSgqCw3SxT4c0zSOuhwBUALQ-op-54Xk6vwMq_hPMEScLRBkrX1lWDgsT-_YhgUHIF9fZMb2GeohgNphW/s400/Germany+021.jpg" /></a> We had an hour or so to wait for our train back to Munich, so we walked around Fussen and grabbed a sausage for dinner. Fussen was adorable. It was like being in a storybook--the buildings were all so soft and charming.<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMD74yoByhpsx1Kj9urGvQoKl2nU3cVnGsIDF_T4h-MTaTdEZD42XbhNlAHhkGBZTu45SCgi5wZA0YrAOEB2Ot1LsfUffL_5Sgcago7BUNoQFNhQMNHOynMzk9SLVRlcOmjgJ2LPNgMnoM/s1600/Fussen+(1).jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459956366632597554" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMD74yoByhpsx1Kj9urGvQoKl2nU3cVnGsIDF_T4h-MTaTdEZD42XbhNlAHhkGBZTu45SCgi5wZA0YrAOEB2Ot1LsfUffL_5Sgcago7BUNoQFNhQMNHOynMzk9SLVRlcOmjgJ2LPNgMnoM/s400/Fussen+(1).jpg" /></a> Fussen<br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJi_7qygUTvqjg9pi3jNX4xY4_u6__RK3V3B-tRfw8C0qdFLfarCSrjGIJySwB9Wjq8vaPGdUDmPej63EkxMXsXhtO_ISmj_xiykyPeW6O0cmLFhdopvmrUEa-bVmGJc9FurZIjP-IexZ_/s1600/Fussen.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459956152555160738" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJi_7qygUTvqjg9pi3jNX4xY4_u6__RK3V3B-tRfw8C0qdFLfarCSrjGIJySwB9Wjq8vaPGdUDmPej63EkxMXsXhtO_ISmj_xiykyPeW6O0cmLFhdopvmrUEa-bVmGJc9FurZIjP-IexZ_/s400/Fussen.jpg" /></a> Fussen<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRFvL1F3WsTnORcc7G-5UKg22tnh9HRWiTq4xt1EQKd1XnRRUyKFtsaEr9DqOrjrak2qIT3wIGRXIygMATfofJ9bEPyBuPAugF_E0brmWd1yUMCPc8K92fsaWWlwLv2wU8VH_zEKxY3YuT/s1600/Germany+294.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459955715480500482" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRFvL1F3WsTnORcc7G-5UKg22tnh9HRWiTq4xt1EQKd1XnRRUyKFtsaEr9DqOrjrak2qIT3wIGRXIygMATfofJ9bEPyBuPAugF_E0brmWd1yUMCPc8K92fsaWWlwLv2wU8VH_zEKxY3YuT/s400/Germany+294.jpg" /></a>On Sunday, we made our way to the English Gardens (like Central Park). It was gorgeous. You didn't even feel like you were in a city with 1.35 million people. </div><div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmHT_Jfoup0-2YZ4zF-Tfj_ZHb1Gf-42wyZmuDV5i5eJlvMbF9nbSpxhnA2CeGgVKFnl2iSGwXs7QCODfi7ZXFjlQ_nC12xD8tSXpwALVcPe5gwYIukIlf94fnJKPjpsvFLGVs96xf33fM/s1600/Germany+296.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459955314757047762" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmHT_Jfoup0-2YZ4zF-Tfj_ZHb1Gf-42wyZmuDV5i5eJlvMbF9nbSpxhnA2CeGgVKFnl2iSGwXs7QCODfi7ZXFjlQ_nC12xD8tSXpwALVcPe5gwYIukIlf94fnJKPjpsvFLGVs96xf33fM/s400/Germany+296.jpg" /></a>The girls found some very, very friendly ducks to feed. </div><div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirz9OYtfjeyubjoEgu0wZKAHZsBAIISv4o7PvImUTDZmNJ5ks_h_-ZU36GFj2HPHEws9NpTw8Zr0AuLINpi3vjUR3ID1zu8hG7s2vP9vNad9ZXUVRBR3Vo-JLCmlc0dSjFIf_0X7Mq_XU4/s1600/Germany+287.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459954892497657058" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirz9OYtfjeyubjoEgu0wZKAHZsBAIISv4o7PvImUTDZmNJ5ks_h_-ZU36GFj2HPHEws9NpTw8Zr0AuLINpi3vjUR3ID1zu8hG7s2vP9vNad9ZXUVRBR3Vo-JLCmlc0dSjFIf_0X7Mq_XU4/s400/Germany+287.jpg" /></a> Diana's Temple<br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLcG5pzh3vIJ5Yl1Ly8FYoXmsKSAvD2fV0bDVHE0dwJ0klfnv6zUvEbgRpw4GUCMNVKhDuVaycPnz9RnmvCqvXo8zmyHBACXSJ43D18_7npNp9E2xatBzDr2wtt_-JyVs2WrMcwctAEJFR/s1600/Germany+271.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459954444523864082" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLcG5pzh3vIJ5Yl1Ly8FYoXmsKSAvD2fV0bDVHE0dwJ0klfnv6zUvEbgRpw4GUCMNVKhDuVaycPnz9RnmvCqvXo8zmyHBACXSJ43D18_7npNp9E2xatBzDr2wtt_-JyVs2WrMcwctAEJFR/s400/Germany+271.jpg" /></a>Just when you need a break, you walk into the beer garden in the middle of the park- like an oasis! Yes, it's a real pretzel Sofie's holding and yes, it's bigger than her head! There's baskets of them at the counter. What more could you want on a sunny afternoon in the park but a beer and a pretzel?<br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiou9Az4Gnn1q28mo9jjnPvcpfmlrQ1fr8wgPWgPpkGaPXjIEKMbL6PG1k9_bOLtfOcc-LnqAq0tukTK4iCSNV3RmAcVcI8hF2FoCgWpGd_hee8BJ0lL6GMpQ1CZnRIxuo4FoZEDKITwcUe/s1600/Germany+350.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459954048735016722" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiou9Az4Gnn1q28mo9jjnPvcpfmlrQ1fr8wgPWgPpkGaPXjIEKMbL6PG1k9_bOLtfOcc-LnqAq0tukTK4iCSNV3RmAcVcI8hF2FoCgWpGd_hee8BJ0lL6GMpQ1CZnRIxuo4FoZEDKITwcUe/s400/Germany+350.jpg" /></a> Munich<br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdacUJcLUyxWXbhXiP8V8eEERhCsKWTHDUdpmQ8Q9HjY0FlwaYUIzc7UEJwsOlHcZFfBz6vGlsCW3rO2Hwo5UklR_5uStEbf5DOBcRxqemu-VyCd807AKXWiVVbDQxwB0K6qOgavbFVK4j/s1600/Germany+250.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459953537054789506" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdacUJcLUyxWXbhXiP8V8eEERhCsKWTHDUdpmQ8Q9HjY0FlwaYUIzc7UEJwsOlHcZFfBz6vGlsCW3rO2Hwo5UklR_5uStEbf5DOBcRxqemu-VyCd807AKXWiVVbDQxwB0K6qOgavbFVK4j/s400/Germany+250.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxr0mssejsOjDXn-dp_CbJYXoh6FsD7eUmDJ8Gfevx07js753J6VOWa6iSiUDRm65M9AZYdNcJW6Q2lb9uh9IGJwniZ6Y2oP5-pWk8mVbE1uPKGKohfi94TiiPx2jmd8C6WbJ2Cii45p9y/s1600/Germany+239.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459953166687709266" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxr0mssejsOjDXn-dp_CbJYXoh6FsD7eUmDJ8Gfevx07js753J6VOWa6iSiUDRm65M9AZYdNcJW6Q2lb9uh9IGJwniZ6Y2oP5-pWk8mVbE1uPKGKohfi94TiiPx2jmd8C6WbJ2Cii45p9y/s400/Germany+239.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhFrO4AAHU5E8_I2sjhfXh0Fxlbg2aRRd5XiKhRD3begITi9hvH0tQKSyul_u3jErYgwOUPAz-WgMxTHosEGvfIthX7x6MGw0Oe8HszvvnQkqF1znl54tsYP6dLeTAJxa-z8AlhWQER0yz/s1600/Germany+152.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459952666498155426" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhFrO4AAHU5E8_I2sjhfXh0Fxlbg2aRRd5XiKhRD3begITi9hvH0tQKSyul_u3jErYgwOUPAz-WgMxTHosEGvfIthX7x6MGw0Oe8HszvvnQkqF1znl54tsYP6dLeTAJxa-z8AlhWQER0yz/s400/Germany+152.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxNxZ59HlgqJ4nh9WiB5CUHNszH1ykPZyXcU7GBa_MxcDjPxaiiXpAPS2bj88_k80g_03Ox2wSn3s-rQoF_jmBsQsMNDCcicdnDCNq1istiwhq9JHpMb3dflTSnqsGQj_11tSBlWbZOmYR/s1600/Germany+170.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459952378225686290" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxNxZ59HlgqJ4nh9WiB5CUHNszH1ykPZyXcU7GBa_MxcDjPxaiiXpAPS2bj88_k80g_03Ox2wSn3s-rQoF_jmBsQsMNDCcicdnDCNq1istiwhq9JHpMb3dflTSnqsGQj_11tSBlWbZOmYR/s400/Germany+170.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-6593269241044651982010-04-13T04:47:00.000-07:002010-04-13T05:55:24.304-07:00MunichAs you can see from the title, we went to Munich for vacation! It was incredible. We all wish we could've stayed longer. After sorting through 350+ pictures, here's some of the things we did--<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzesx4snTFhX3LQ3vR831AFCKA6YmBuidAu3-hvp99K8kFQ1ORuXKFFpk5dK0QW7w28wTk96O34QW7jtVw-gvOSqmPUvuyDc6kG9Pyq2rPdbl5G43_TQBSyhimktQd5fxlkCSGYW3lo2dM/s1600/Germany+017.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459597320429575666" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzesx4snTFhX3LQ3vR831AFCKA6YmBuidAu3-hvp99K8kFQ1ORuXKFFpk5dK0QW7w28wTk96O34QW7jtVw-gvOSqmPUvuyDc6kG9Pyq2rPdbl5G43_TQBSyhimktQd5fxlkCSGYW3lo2dM/s400/Germany+017.jpg" /></a> After deciphering the fahrplan (train schedule) we headed to Fussen on Friday morning. Fussen is south of Munich and it's the town where you catch the bus to see the castles-Hochwangau and Neuschwanstein.<br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIa9CdihUNKaGVXVBRti94rmrZrGk-htXhCKVrNf9TcLyiYQTRK4opGsNk540hc3LhV0wNjJyLkRyXKXHjFL2ZtrTZ7HbtzYkOcFzNfaXgSf1jSwgyHg4SFVlSBS-ZLTfaKcx9ThbMCUYW/s1600/Germany+011.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459597130737907682" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIa9CdihUNKaGVXVBRti94rmrZrGk-htXhCKVrNf9TcLyiYQTRK4opGsNk540hc3LhV0wNjJyLkRyXKXHjFL2ZtrTZ7HbtzYkOcFzNfaXgSf1jSwgyHg4SFVlSBS-ZLTfaKcx9ThbMCUYW/s400/Germany+011.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNAoRmoKguRT29wBSIUDTih8m6x4bkqBXneujMavUmsBEeGVE1fxTNa8xsAVNG9v2RvEJUfQkYKG-Bd17glKgt4QGc76JlP1_cV35AKC4AfAMKzKOAXKyy32JJwqKMSc2qlwXu5TrvGrX7/s1600/Germany+016.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459596767333649602" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNAoRmoKguRT29wBSIUDTih8m6x4bkqBXneujMavUmsBEeGVE1fxTNa8xsAVNG9v2RvEJUfQkYKG-Bd17glKgt4QGc76JlP1_cV35AKC4AfAMKzKOAXKyy32JJwqKMSc2qlwXu5TrvGrX7/s400/Germany+016.jpg" /></a><br /><div>Hoschwangau--If you can believe it, this was a summer/hunting lodge, not a main residence. This is where King Ludwig II spent his summers as a child. Not too shabby! We all grabbed a bratwurst (so good!) and started the hike up to the castle. The weather was perfect-warm and 65. I can't tell you how good it felt after months of wet, damp, cold weather in Ireland. The girls were so happy they didn't have to wear coats! After touring Hoschwangau, we hiked down and started the hike up to Neuschwanstein. </div><div> </div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglsalvHPAxjfSHwkbJ3dVj1TXv6gqcFPUMDSNLC08j0PFhWuzM3HxjB9XFbjWJDAcdpyzu5kHe8BlYwGIAY-d8WAKEo9MEkjCprKZZZekBwIKvBNmIvW3neEZpWbjYageCMQLwHmYHMqTb/s1600/Germany+029.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459595546578537714" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglsalvHPAxjfSHwkbJ3dVj1TXv6gqcFPUMDSNLC08j0PFhWuzM3HxjB9XFbjWJDAcdpyzu5kHe8BlYwGIAY-d8WAKEo9MEkjCprKZZZekBwIKvBNmIvW3neEZpWbjYageCMQLwHmYHMqTb/s400/Germany+029.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGs19V3fogbxNDi_uGqydyywppozDZjA-2AMXMZOAQR1JBN9oIhStMze2b9CDeH42WsBtUfyGZJwoh9scFkUfNwNzvxEviWV0C5EIvOj0p7LkL-ud7wP887NxI6GZXqpNCq6gVulXJDoHS/s1600/Germany+037.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459595178794244706" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGs19V3fogbxNDi_uGqydyywppozDZjA-2AMXMZOAQR1JBN9oIhStMze2b9CDeH42WsBtUfyGZJwoh9scFkUfNwNzvxEviWV0C5EIvOj0p7LkL-ud7wP887NxI6GZXqpNCq6gVulXJDoHS/s400/Germany+037.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwL-E20wdRC5Rw1oN3Kn1uSIOZm6-xX8TzGFH6u0t00R7OnDyxw4FhNGVBrlaujF1R2Ax8LtueuYFNepVcBpaNvLZM2HtfVxQiafY4aHUarRF21nWIgnY5bWbPWEYfuqgSfTWaa2HbIDhM/s1600/Germany+048.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459594755067005634" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwL-E20wdRC5Rw1oN3Kn1uSIOZm6-xX8TzGFH6u0t00R7OnDyxw4FhNGVBrlaujF1R2Ax8LtueuYFNepVcBpaNvLZM2HtfVxQiafY4aHUarRF21nWIgnY5bWbPWEYfuqgSfTWaa2HbIDhM/s400/Germany+048.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHzp1P5mxwbwloxs6NsrqyyqYpyGq42Ht6YSvgZdt94t71YWe8BtLQxTuem_NdFS680aBsJtDAykm3M6nt7YGWeCqQwwA0piric7RQZGgsDRrJybwHBhiyHXhkeahImcKpbFSA2kJf4qR4/s1600/Germany+045.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459593990529256114" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHzp1P5mxwbwloxs6NsrqyyqYpyGq42Ht6YSvgZdt94t71YWe8BtLQxTuem_NdFS680aBsJtDAykm3M6nt7YGWeCqQwwA0piric7RQZGgsDRrJybwHBhiyHXhkeahImcKpbFSA2kJf4qR4/s400/Germany+045.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbIrmmDxdupWXwLkOyIaLejO_sNoTVg47S8OLm9aMJZJkov0Xfag_kf0LK0664Loj3g4d8I2PyqsLgEB-7bMsvsaGhyNWzgVxW6H2edXikyF9ouSDXNsQeZUJHOJPWZg7jIskudTR51e02/s1600/Germany+065.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459593556257477538" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbIrmmDxdupWXwLkOyIaLejO_sNoTVg47S8OLm9aMJZJkov0Xfag_kf0LK0664Loj3g4d8I2PyqsLgEB-7bMsvsaGhyNWzgVxW6H2edXikyF9ouSDXNsQeZUJHOJPWZg7jIskudTR51e02/s400/Germany+065.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNoAgJd4rciXZfVzd_YRKk29bMJQQYFZ7XryEaW2pgAAU3THQ8UFEd_zd2YrZD1wb7mznlDbqH7dM22VUH1vkND_dhfmULnguQuroOx0pzUtLPYbAC-BfZbIaAr08N3cFz1tWKatgiVAz4/s1600/Germany+113.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459592885308718130" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNoAgJd4rciXZfVzd_YRKk29bMJQQYFZ7XryEaW2pgAAU3THQ8UFEd_zd2YrZD1wb7mznlDbqH7dM22VUH1vkND_dhfmULnguQuroOx0pzUtLPYbAC-BfZbIaAr08N3cFz1tWKatgiVAz4/s400/Germany+113.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8xN5OOOmT-vhg1r-yTN8POmcXRFuH38mhPlN5pR4N5qstxfToVbFJZTRB1OMDgSSmRslp2rskD6J0D5xBJJYnWWcG4vfOgEFRim30hIWBd-2Q2SV_9mxLa6Nuwftv4i4xXjJvf79jLcwa/s1600/Germany+072.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459591993913989602" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8xN5OOOmT-vhg1r-yTN8POmcXRFuH38mhPlN5pR4N5qstxfToVbFJZTRB1OMDgSSmRslp2rskD6J0D5xBJJYnWWcG4vfOgEFRim30hIWBd-2Q2SV_9mxLa6Nuwftv4i4xXjJvf79jLcwa/s400/Germany+072.jpg" /></a> The hike up to Neuschwanstein is a lot longer and steeper than it's neighboring castle but the views from the top are outstanding. The girls did wonderfully on the hike. It's amazing how much energy there is in a brat. </div><div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ2MI2mlHTU1bSkj2A5DKHtkckoSo1ef-MbLbRvG5QWDO5eR8NUgzdO9GoTO4Frz2CkGf9WrwS4Hsc3YAXwgkcVW_yvwe_bCbGnKeMAqrmsm0AlFFAWDvMttLwxXJkPUxGUNP-D7btFiwU/s1600/Germany+075.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459591661257004210" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ2MI2mlHTU1bSkj2A5DKHtkckoSo1ef-MbLbRvG5QWDO5eR8NUgzdO9GoTO4Frz2CkGf9WrwS4Hsc3YAXwgkcVW_yvwe_bCbGnKeMAqrmsm0AlFFAWDvMttLwxXJkPUxGUNP-D7btFiwU/s400/Germany+075.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX3hqWWAIPEnr7r3QMO6dJqmhQa2q72w8iYEDsBvLKlGbrwygNZo9G3VFzjTa5Sx3K_lAGnPYYJJNj-ZN8WxC0-60WqsqG7cn9Tt5QKEa-YnmTSqKvGZI1EMmNs8XSGDOG_2mJxErrNZmW/s1600/Germany+354.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459590952838298018" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX3hqWWAIPEnr7r3QMO6dJqmhQa2q72w8iYEDsBvLKlGbrwygNZo9G3VFzjTa5Sx3K_lAGnPYYJJNj-ZN8WxC0-60WqsqG7cn9Tt5QKEa-YnmTSqKvGZI1EMmNs8XSGDOG_2mJxErrNZmW/s400/Germany+354.jpg" /></a>Sofie and I are sitting in the courtyard. You have timed tickets for your tour and we made pretty good time on the walk up so we all sat down and just enjoyed being up there! </div><div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaw5O-lDomlcflJXcDtHZl1K_s8a5a5QZTS-lpFwzUZuhHqhbrk7uPcFoD-OzBGIa4GmcIJg4XLEcXcZjAMdqKPr3RO0KfQ4Ms2p4wLAA_uhEHOh7XipFPLSVyV6idZ5qcLBB8DjtolGGc/s1600/Germany+093.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459590576420275586" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaw5O-lDomlcflJXcDtHZl1K_s8a5a5QZTS-lpFwzUZuhHqhbrk7uPcFoD-OzBGIa4GmcIJg4XLEcXcZjAMdqKPr3RO0KfQ4Ms2p4wLAA_uhEHOh7XipFPLSVyV6idZ5qcLBB8DjtolGGc/s400/Germany+093.jpg" /></a> There is a glass lookout platform that hangs over the ravine before you get to the castle. Luckily, none of us are scared of heights! </div><div><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIGnkXWAi8eceD3z0FzQvRKZ5-w-cldyahWHXVnm7d0XKD8MvVCpfCEtUC1UBW255UXWEO1SRxx-JEUbE3l37LbpW-f92KqVv-gNMHEV6B4ZKgPup4myPjZKruA8MOpcnuWU0cidGo2EYL/s1600/Germany+109.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459590059795339330" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIGnkXWAi8eceD3z0FzQvRKZ5-w-cldyahWHXVnm7d0XKD8MvVCpfCEtUC1UBW255UXWEO1SRxx-JEUbE3l37LbpW-f92KqVv-gNMHEV6B4ZKgPup4myPjZKruA8MOpcnuWU0cidGo2EYL/s400/Germany+109.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv_085Id9xDh1rK5N4oeGVwpKFyEqS-xa6p8NESAoXhOAWbKJGdRsCie9YS0bcdEMQBeUaq2u-w7GzlPwckHdvuGVhdgSEwFj3ZCJAhJcbfDDy2yXp5ie9nrMvMpYCNCqYI3kHeuAC96ay/s1600/Germany+121.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459588892748018866" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv_085Id9xDh1rK5N4oeGVwpKFyEqS-xa6p8NESAoXhOAWbKJGdRsCie9YS0bcdEMQBeUaq2u-w7GzlPwckHdvuGVhdgSEwFj3ZCJAhJcbfDDy2yXp5ie9nrMvMpYCNCqYI3kHeuAC96ay/s400/Germany+121.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-13563710606433297242010-04-04T09:02:00.000-07:002010-04-04T10:56:09.425-07:00Belvedere Easter Egg HuntSusan tipped us off to the Easter Egg Hunt at the Belvedere House so we thought we'd take the girls for their very first egg hunt. Below is a picture of the starting point for all kids 5 and over. Most of these kids looked like they knew what they were doing. They all had their tote bags and muscled their way to the front of the line.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl5LF4m4CrbZNMDTLP4pPerZCDLg8nFns-G2mfl0nkc5Xe906OJja9VCMWpuCYrfuw8wcv42rCGfhR0jU-Qhw6XwmFEl7gxgSz_fX6qYEj0ERD4WjTOE_EbR9k6A108sM6hrV3UzJY9V6x/s1600/Belvedere+011.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456316958073080962" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl5LF4m4CrbZNMDTLP4pPerZCDLg8nFns-G2mfl0nkc5Xe906OJja9VCMWpuCYrfuw8wcv42rCGfhR0jU-Qhw6XwmFEl7gxgSz_fX6qYEj0ERD4WjTOE_EbR9k6A108sM6hrV3UzJY9V6x/s400/Belvedere+011.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBcbKjwwgNARBAkcGtQWv7qmJVp4JHNaKhMg-hQ7u8xl6VuS0m4oqW_UMKFjGQUsO0jxRdlgp9VxqjaaSgnKPAKY9qCeoytd3YntWoVPF5R4h8Nd-k0XJ7z30cFl2drk_7EezBxMfgcuNA/s1600/Belvedere+012.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456316402506252882" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBcbKjwwgNARBAkcGtQWv7qmJVp4JHNaKhMg-hQ7u8xl6VuS0m4oqW_UMKFjGQUsO0jxRdlgp9VxqjaaSgnKPAKY9qCeoytd3YntWoVPF5R4h8Nd-k0XJ7z30cFl2drk_7EezBxMfgcuNA/s400/Belvedere+012.jpg" /></a> Lucy, Sofie, and another Sophie they met before the big hunt. I think Lucy is already pointing out eggs and working out the egg hunt strategy with her team. </div><div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBrE9hx_VJN8XYeNe-8iMSg9eNH6SfsbFAF4adv7BwQll8W__pOcfAN7SW9pSv8ts8smIIj8xCTzJYtC1IVQEfJ_gWLhiKtq46go8tqnPxQOYC8IERgxU5zNyMv0euLBig5zy445NE6vVg/s1600/Belvedere+013.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456316140731113618" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBrE9hx_VJN8XYeNe-8iMSg9eNH6SfsbFAF4adv7BwQll8W__pOcfAN7SW9pSv8ts8smIIj8xCTzJYtC1IVQEfJ_gWLhiKtq46go8tqnPxQOYC8IERgxU5zNyMv0euLBig5zy445NE6vVg/s400/Belvedere+013.jpg" /></a>They all took off running just after I snapped this picture. I'm lucky I got out of the way. It was like a herd of elephants. I didn't see any of them until it was all over. 160 acres is a lot of ground to cover. The girls did find a couple big chocolate eggs and a handful of small ones. Lucy was more thrilled with the small frog she caught and with their new friend they made. I'm so glad she has her priorities in the right order! </div><div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy3epkiQXCuvgmWjEH3OE8Vtwl9tEyMsc_9Oz4Dg8_AfKYfZ0B6EflvQx_dnYi5fMOoet3IPG-Y7BsfXMwxdOgmuUbsnGpxRhG8vIXaGeBJOf7QLpOX9Z4s2HSnVpFMU9ci3LZqcO_9i73/s1600/Belvedere+021.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456315718959285138" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy3epkiQXCuvgmWjEH3OE8Vtwl9tEyMsc_9Oz4Dg8_AfKYfZ0B6EflvQx_dnYi5fMOoet3IPG-Y7BsfXMwxdOgmuUbsnGpxRhG8vIXaGeBJOf7QLpOX9Z4s2HSnVpFMU9ci3LZqcO_9i73/s400/Belvedere+021.jpg" /></a>After playing down by the lake skipping stones, we walked up to see the house. It was in use until 1988. The views from the house of the surrounding grounds were just gorgeous--enormous beech and cedar trees, walled gardens, and the lake. Not a telephone pole in sight! <br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhObSL8XUIbqn7bJah8CEAfLv-0s-vVHj8iF9dFqwgS99MQAVOcFlUeyWxmRGI2vwOTKDGf8PK7pzZO8wt6N1zewn51ZRXSzWQ_7DoUyf_DqqBMcGZb197lcNWXpUBMOlVTRlO16uq0cyfs/s1600/Belvedere+025.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456315310741783202" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhObSL8XUIbqn7bJah8CEAfLv-0s-vVHj8iF9dFqwgS99MQAVOcFlUeyWxmRGI2vwOTKDGf8PK7pzZO8wt6N1zewn51ZRXSzWQ_7DoUyf_DqqBMcGZb197lcNWXpUBMOlVTRlO16uq0cyfs/s400/Belvedere+025.jpg" /></a> View from the top of the terrace.</div><div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgopadu4CkaBeWQSEHORU3r8B6ER9wIHxpJ5K0ZKCyk0s8BdL88MzuKv2b-MJR88zlgG-unCjwdj_8rn_sXwwyIqVjbvAUYSqZYMarVS4Lu4t7cytyeNgjMY9XZ30dDH6Vrkj_9H-mhZ6CG/s1600/Belvedere+018.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456314988177467282" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgopadu4CkaBeWQSEHORU3r8B6ER9wIHxpJ5K0ZKCyk0s8BdL88MzuKv2b-MJR88zlgG-unCjwdj_8rn_sXwwyIqVjbvAUYSqZYMarVS4Lu4t7cytyeNgjMY9XZ30dDH6Vrkj_9H-mhZ6CG/s400/Belvedere+018.jpg" /></a> The Terrace<br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJHkwkqG2VGIO9V2R4ugwuIRKWuhn0NOYRda_eUsDZxVEk-92c0x07LdXWzOq_3zTPofjGDtXVsGvnDDF8WM1JnOckvDJe1Wj8wf5HymrjRd7QuGgxH2KFPFJVCb5Kxe0xFmHpnrrCnO7T/s1600/Belvedere+027.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456314706983966466" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJHkwkqG2VGIO9V2R4ugwuIRKWuhn0NOYRda_eUsDZxVEk-92c0x07LdXWzOq_3zTPofjGDtXVsGvnDDF8WM1JnOckvDJe1Wj8wf5HymrjRd7QuGgxH2KFPFJVCb5Kxe0xFmHpnrrCnO7T/s400/Belvedere+027.jpg" /></a> Belvedere House<br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaR0Lf_92qpDJ3CHXx4qQhJ0jhkDLFEO5ApmvAKg98i4l2FHqPUAeQVGJXqdxGSIpScbQ2VrlOn79XEj02Z3He9wnnYcsqWrgSLDgRoSzkwzEQithq00OGMI2khyphenhyphennZIib88bHd7TV483AT/s1600/Belvedere+042.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456314416998117858" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaR0Lf_92qpDJ3CHXx4qQhJ0jhkDLFEO5ApmvAKg98i4l2FHqPUAeQVGJXqdxGSIpScbQ2VrlOn79XEj02Z3He9wnnYcsqWrgSLDgRoSzkwzEQithq00OGMI2khyphenhyphennZIib88bHd7TV483AT/s400/Belvedere+042.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR0SPJ6nj5Tv9XY9NXx91SDwhnMrIODRKWn0TDwFOEA3-5VCTr5mZ3qs8WvPcF8bDixYNCS84xG56CL3J-m595ZPzOb2gA5UGyn8miGUBxZgB7Qp7p7LnXEm2P5SXKjjkk7jeBGNXbhtkN/s1600/Belvedere+039.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456314019208642818" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR0SPJ6nj5Tv9XY9NXx91SDwhnMrIODRKWn0TDwFOEA3-5VCTr5mZ3qs8WvPcF8bDixYNCS84xG56CL3J-m595ZPzOb2gA5UGyn8miGUBxZgB7Qp7p7LnXEm2P5SXKjjkk7jeBGNXbhtkN/s400/Belvedere+039.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-49159554616972771672010-04-02T02:48:00.000-07:002010-04-02T03:20:19.405-07:00Riding Lesson XThursdays sure do come up fast! The girls had a great lesson--lots of cantering and jumping. It's another rainy, cold day here. I hear there's quite the heat wave going on at home-80 degrees! What I wouldn't give to wear a pair of sandals and a t-shirt!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK46odt6DC3JTALhxLsGZuh03OM_iL0Sz8oKrV49sjAbr9HRkmukfO-lF2kXUJIX52oB2o6lF1WZXgZ0NKl3mlRyfwGO72Wac6j6yrsRpajc0rq6bOycLFuivnBqwP-hk6UmHLx16isrOp/s1600/Riding+Lesson+X+004.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455480577622077186" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK46odt6DC3JTALhxLsGZuh03OM_iL0Sz8oKrV49sjAbr9HRkmukfO-lF2kXUJIX52oB2o6lF1WZXgZ0NKl3mlRyfwGO72Wac6j6yrsRpajc0rq6bOycLFuivnBqwP-hk6UmHLx16isrOp/s400/Riding+Lesson+X+004.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWfhIIF8293CwC3xUadlGhIZ7NWDPOjn9yZefyQKWSGHjHWoiAm8AoBfAEah9vdgdHR4voT1IskYj4gnQnzHs9oYwLFq6toiAmy8xM3BEOJ4eX6uUtlXw3YfuVZjVYwucKAaVFDWjsgthO/s1600/Riding+Lesson+X+029.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455476569971399330" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWfhIIF8293CwC3xUadlGhIZ7NWDPOjn9yZefyQKWSGHjHWoiAm8AoBfAEah9vdgdHR4voT1IskYj4gnQnzHs9oYwLFq6toiAmy8xM3BEOJ4eX6uUtlXw3YfuVZjVYwucKAaVFDWjsgthO/s400/Riding+Lesson+X+029.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOU2XLeK4H41pw8R3JCpUeWNutQ0aQXaC6oXQvoKn6Loc98pRRTsiv5JY6SDkHeJSTBK1GHBX6cP81phJdhMrsx1JuzspGs9HZ1jSD_fn3p71ZH6-8r-WIau7hY1dBZiJdicFKPuMkHD2Z/s1600/Riding+Lesson+X+024.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455476369656562274" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOU2XLeK4H41pw8R3JCpUeWNutQ0aQXaC6oXQvoKn6Loc98pRRTsiv5JY6SDkHeJSTBK1GHBX6cP81phJdhMrsx1JuzspGs9HZ1jSD_fn3p71ZH6-8r-WIau7hY1dBZiJdicFKPuMkHD2Z/s400/Riding+Lesson+X+024.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz5u4KtKJ9wol3DZ1ltXCo0LwITSv2WCSll_rfwSRZdFn9gtsLkyJ_HmqJW6iGPd6v4EnPnZ3ne2rrgpS5Dp1vLnGeuoYQBe-aUqsvRrM_gdRkwAaQ2EFU-m4mVN3ojvDDFbjdqiG2dqBV/s1600/Riding+Lesson+X+030.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455475774637783906" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz5u4KtKJ9wol3DZ1ltXCo0LwITSv2WCSll_rfwSRZdFn9gtsLkyJ_HmqJW6iGPd6v4EnPnZ3ne2rrgpS5Dp1vLnGeuoYQBe-aUqsvRrM_gdRkwAaQ2EFU-m4mVN3ojvDDFbjdqiG2dqBV/s400/Riding+Lesson+X+030.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT6d1wAvm4468YpZzQai6rW5BQpapT5XnvBbGlQ8RvLtvG2VUnjw5xnInlSydBt0J5NLV8YPKs-IplirJwdMZzGoyQLm7WoqT6i300bDrpXj5hO8jHUDaBm7gdTdk8SsMsRL6Q7OEyCsK3/s1600/Riding+Lesson+X+031.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455475302607031554" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT6d1wAvm4468YpZzQai6rW5BQpapT5XnvBbGlQ8RvLtvG2VUnjw5xnInlSydBt0J5NLV8YPKs-IplirJwdMZzGoyQLm7WoqT6i300bDrpXj5hO8jHUDaBm7gdTdk8SsMsRL6Q7OEyCsK3/s400/Riding+Lesson+X+031.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-9066466175470577242010-03-28T05:13:00.000-07:002010-03-28T11:52:03.907-07:00GlendaloughOn the way through Avoca, we stopped at Avoca Handweavers. Can you see in the sign that the date is 1723? 1723! We saw a couple looms set up but they weren't running. They make the most amazing wool blankets and scarves. Needless to say, when I walked into the shop I was in heaven. After we made a few purchases, we drove on to Glendalough. As we pulled into the visitor's center, I had major de ja vu. I had been here before. Fifteen years ago when my roommate and I came to Dublin for a weekend, we took a bus out into the country for the day. I didn't keep much of a diary or travel log back then and I can't remember that far back anyway. I know I took much better pictures this time around. Glendalough is a 6th century monastic settlement, that's set in among the Wicklow Mountains. Just the drive through the mountains to Glendalough is a trip in itself. The roads are very narrow and very curvy. Tim's just dying for his motorcycle. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8ggOO9BEjEK6fpXtI093AB3CCyE2hVZ1zOHWuIDqmEy_F5yJjQthandgEmkHJUhw378dQ_KBtrpn7LcsFPOFywNnNfpZdqHJ_hVY-QV0Ebq5QZql6CtmU1wbCD8tJevez0Seb09f_0CJd/s1600/Avoca+and+Glendalough+015.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453737585545314818" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8ggOO9BEjEK6fpXtI093AB3CCyE2hVZ1zOHWuIDqmEy_F5yJjQthandgEmkHJUhw378dQ_KBtrpn7LcsFPOFywNnNfpZdqHJ_hVY-QV0Ebq5QZql6CtmU1wbCD8tJevez0Seb09f_0CJd/s400/Avoca+and+Glendalough+015.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaNI5oZEbj3UppqUYfJ9G7QKy3ga3mq0gTRHtoM73ZbuIbIMoo9MhZaObfzpUqEKCRLfWGTTKWOtvK1VXrI8ZTRo2xO2q1wZsOgF9q9el4-Y76Qq8wF6Y1yAHMpYAVNNbXHdAnYHZDefQE/s1600/Avoca+and+Glendalough+016.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453737179866924162" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaNI5oZEbj3UppqUYfJ9G7QKy3ga3mq0gTRHtoM73ZbuIbIMoo9MhZaObfzpUqEKCRLfWGTTKWOtvK1VXrI8ZTRo2xO2q1wZsOgF9q9el4-Y76Qq8wF6Y1yAHMpYAVNNbXHdAnYHZDefQE/s400/Avoca+and+Glendalough+016.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf2m1xEEay2uTU7MyXZVmhWpDRyVHiCOqPEh0xShc9THlWJMcKqJlEvw-PxbrXSIS2wX2eQ2m8WTdMcDxEWKofD7hstRbxBrWdTl3T6Q6xeCja-tGBJe8VG5fCMqLDnzH939GhJYOdV1wH/s1600/Avoca+and+Glendalough+044.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453736668893425954" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf2m1xEEay2uTU7MyXZVmhWpDRyVHiCOqPEh0xShc9THlWJMcKqJlEvw-PxbrXSIS2wX2eQ2m8WTdMcDxEWKofD7hstRbxBrWdTl3T6Q6xeCja-tGBJe8VG5fCMqLDnzH939GhJYOdV1wH/s400/Avoca+and+Glendalough+044.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid9nWRbviE98fR8VOCgrljJL0uPqvkjmbNJaB4xVhPNLq5TX66XU2eEz6VH251jrp5wUSK-AU6DsaN-SfV_EKcuT9B6tw8uLpDL97J2DsokmguOfaCxgaTNNSBcSxmFHISYh12NxflOnJI/s1600/Avoca+and+Glendalough+053.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453734446952115266" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid9nWRbviE98fR8VOCgrljJL0uPqvkjmbNJaB4xVhPNLq5TX66XU2eEz6VH251jrp5wUSK-AU6DsaN-SfV_EKcuT9B6tw8uLpDL97J2DsokmguOfaCxgaTNNSBcSxmFHISYh12NxflOnJI/s400/Avoca+and+Glendalough+053.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ5nMcE50edlBUtNzj0hYDyJTTMVY5bdhyphenhyphenPEW1mMRa-XNj7mxkCvFrn0Q4U5H__K8ebnWlL45I7_Ed3fWVXBAocZQPRH6CZv-RBudzCiozU7VPgSK2Bj68gOG5WoBvWD75H1l1a8urtDt_/s1600/Avoca+and+Glendalough+073.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453658674591179666" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ5nMcE50edlBUtNzj0hYDyJTTMVY5bdhyphenhyphenPEW1mMRa-XNj7mxkCvFrn0Q4U5H__K8ebnWlL45I7_Ed3fWVXBAocZQPRH6CZv-RBudzCiozU7VPgSK2Bj68gOG5WoBvWD75H1l1a8urtDt_/s400/Avoca+and+Glendalough+073.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJDajyv7VgKVcef44lDPxGvUzqBXrbE2dDFCV73S_9dIWJvZ-1cAticBNSRpdmdAyB4utzKlM3RmYzCSYzgE3ZxFmElIfWTCuuFFC9HPgJHHXmIcJS2rb73N6IlhFQAt9fcAbNJaOwZt9t/s1600/Avoca+and+Glendalough+067.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453658247185281522" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJDajyv7VgKVcef44lDPxGvUzqBXrbE2dDFCV73S_9dIWJvZ-1cAticBNSRpdmdAyB4utzKlM3RmYzCSYzgE3ZxFmElIfWTCuuFFC9HPgJHHXmIcJS2rb73N6IlhFQAt9fcAbNJaOwZt9t/s400/Avoca+and+Glendalough+067.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQFqp6jDPW15aVsCdGPeFtccqGdw7386y9L9PgA59s_bcG0U7I8Qlg7mQNu5VC_ltvW1PmHPyIMcQvqguJq1ER0mUaBi5wNl20MUUEJlWdXclC84AOMZw7z_czJ-ZZPVs3C7ZF2eeAX0nC/s1600/Avoca+and+Glendalough+094.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453657707555589410" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQFqp6jDPW15aVsCdGPeFtccqGdw7386y9L9PgA59s_bcG0U7I8Qlg7mQNu5VC_ltvW1PmHPyIMcQvqguJq1ER0mUaBi5wNl20MUUEJlWdXclC84AOMZw7z_czJ-ZZPVs3C7ZF2eeAX0nC/s400/Avoca+and+Glendalough+094.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPgaTooDCtsTRe03yCGtJ_HYVSCY0hU9EIlC7O4B0oI2YC4_9JWAdzkbBvuQ2uJc-asN8pTIHexFW0laVgmBOKzQ9hjdflbFLSRhl5aGqIifTFzmO3_C1umDfTLSHnY9EvH-HAWXT_fOsb/s1600/Avoca+and+Glendalough+072.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453657327075037746" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPgaTooDCtsTRe03yCGtJ_HYVSCY0hU9EIlC7O4B0oI2YC4_9JWAdzkbBvuQ2uJc-asN8pTIHexFW0laVgmBOKzQ9hjdflbFLSRhl5aGqIifTFzmO3_C1umDfTLSHnY9EvH-HAWXT_fOsb/s400/Avoca+and+Glendalough+072.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-5662260061874377102010-03-27T13:17:00.000-07:002010-03-28T02:15:27.104-07:00BallykissangelI've made my pilgrimage to the home of Ballykissangel! If you have no idea what I'm talking about, Netflix the show. The town is actually called Avoca and it was a little tiny village nestled in the Wicklow Mountains. I can't tell you how surreal it was to sit in front of Fitzgerald's; I was just waiting for Peter to come strolling down the street. It was even more surreal walking inside! Inside the pub, the walls are decorated with photos of the cast. I'm not the only one that was not happy with the direction of the show. I don't want to give away too many details for those of you who haven't seen it. It's not in the guide books but definitely should be.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiULf7nJSiyhN4iYNaWhvdJtOVTuHSmw-MO4wQP7219qp26mnL3buALAUBa0kLPO6X2LDBV1sgJaAtnegpjggkXt5rpCr-FIvszLV0Vqu8MUqMu87-wHwIxHvUtlsPpcGYZuC5-7A1RxvHu/s1600/Avoca+and+Glendalough+022.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453604939343952866" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiULf7nJSiyhN4iYNaWhvdJtOVTuHSmw-MO4wQP7219qp26mnL3buALAUBa0kLPO6X2LDBV1sgJaAtnegpjggkXt5rpCr-FIvszLV0Vqu8MUqMu87-wHwIxHvUtlsPpcGYZuC5-7A1RxvHu/s400/Avoca+and+Glendalough+022.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaaTlDZOezF2MzOYieoHWmIzBSS4K_PA2bKqsxGJvIQQthzUrfstVlSy085J9_5EzuIfMRWJtia8maxbd5Iy_Vk13vd4a5GzQx2cDfxOYGweyMh0vPkKLF3ZvwFOVJeTW9mO9-neg4c8TH/s1600/Avoca+and+Glendalough+025.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453604504127238658" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaaTlDZOezF2MzOYieoHWmIzBSS4K_PA2bKqsxGJvIQQthzUrfstVlSy085J9_5EzuIfMRWJtia8maxbd5Iy_Vk13vd4a5GzQx2cDfxOYGweyMh0vPkKLF3ZvwFOVJeTW9mO9-neg4c8TH/s400/Avoca+and+Glendalough+025.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhy2am5wWRms1urdVlAZmiXxymwZSUK27Eb9ydYHzJBpc_FuSuD0jirbzQgVgLE8kUItdjJoli9jWESkbqeGP8lClTdDsO58feISucivDJE0R-SVZb1aAF8D7bqp2IUUEcpS9seK8WLbwf/s1600/Avoca+and+Glendalough+021.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453603997608992754" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhy2am5wWRms1urdVlAZmiXxymwZSUK27Eb9ydYHzJBpc_FuSuD0jirbzQgVgLE8kUItdjJoli9jWESkbqeGP8lClTdDsO58feISucivDJE0R-SVZb1aAF8D7bqp2IUUEcpS9seK8WLbwf/s400/Avoca+and+Glendalough+021.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhegt3Oc6ycPTRnHggJIPVRtr9oQekgyce2AxlB-UzetKqZA-dpa19H4HG8Av-usKrfN-HCgFnuq98dKd_6dGM7EF0YrhEagbIyTGPwThyphenhyphendgZSkWJvx4b39DuxYTaftd8_UrtVUQ8VI_j96/s1600/Avoca+and+Glendalough+033.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453603647691153586" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhegt3Oc6ycPTRnHggJIPVRtr9oQekgyce2AxlB-UzetKqZA-dpa19H4HG8Av-usKrfN-HCgFnuq98dKd_6dGM7EF0YrhEagbIyTGPwThyphenhyphendgZSkWJvx4b39DuxYTaftd8_UrtVUQ8VI_j96/s400/Avoca+and+Glendalough+033.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_7xLvU3G4n1N0FEW3-1kaD3EElD1A3FcaYYzYFmzWB4bwWgxfKOe8a770TyNaeS01oUkY8bmuzMn6p30TOkBHt7qPVa4-EosbHGhhvrBLbGhylH7xEjwCXZKtaoEnfgdhjh7HkSlBk1Ua/s1600/Avoca+and+Glendalough.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453603268147850898" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_7xLvU3G4n1N0FEW3-1kaD3EElD1A3FcaYYzYFmzWB4bwWgxfKOe8a770TyNaeS01oUkY8bmuzMn6p30TOkBHt7qPVa4-EosbHGhhvrBLbGhylH7xEjwCXZKtaoEnfgdhjh7HkSlBk1Ua/s400/Avoca+and+Glendalough.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-34400203727550245882010-03-26T09:47:00.000-07:002010-03-26T10:08:06.707-07:00Riding Lesson IXI can't tell you how important Thursdays are here. It's riding lesson day! The girls get dressed in the morning in their jods and boots even though their lesson isn't until 4pm! Sofie was very proud of herself that she was in the lead during class. Usually she just follows the person in front of her but not this time. She did a brilliant job cantering today. Lucy had a great lesson as well. They're getting much better at cantering into their jumps and keeping the canter going.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUSMl_EHIYXn8v31NnfL1LTJMWiCDcO3um_DCZX6NPQ1e_IAHlAMclr2gQMv-XLaD0TXDDnAI0mAXDNf1vq9A-L2WcU7-FBbeP2R28zneAKXFkZ1pCmBxgGG-msg8Zf25MBOzfPUOkAU6q/s1600/Riding+Lesson+IX+003.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5452988268004308034" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUSMl_EHIYXn8v31NnfL1LTJMWiCDcO3um_DCZX6NPQ1e_IAHlAMclr2gQMv-XLaD0TXDDnAI0mAXDNf1vq9A-L2WcU7-FBbeP2R28zneAKXFkZ1pCmBxgGG-msg8Zf25MBOzfPUOkAU6q/s400/Riding+Lesson+IX+003.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO7e98AYmzbZWjalGtqekwv6symt1sscf5O46w1Hx2jIutpY1Ndkk8jkn_bjg_co9tQewygDZvIfLwReYxe159hLmM44KcbYRnrI6n7Qa-6kE-rjUwAmD5FHmhRbQZlZwgt9JDaYT7cXcU/s1600/Riding+Lesson+IX+060.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5452987963434446210" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO7e98AYmzbZWjalGtqekwv6symt1sscf5O46w1Hx2jIutpY1Ndkk8jkn_bjg_co9tQewygDZvIfLwReYxe159hLmM44KcbYRnrI6n7Qa-6kE-rjUwAmD5FHmhRbQZlZwgt9JDaYT7cXcU/s400/Riding+Lesson+IX+060.jpg" /></a> Lucy on J.R.<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinSAyvB7GMTXkdH_6xFq2LsvIfoVOWzm2rKByi7ncD8iARv_EG6Do1CoHewSy4dpcJf6s540jptH2L42QnwO3ugxkIre0v299QxyVjMb0aScf7VY634j9tqKcjwovgt0AZHclBQA_HN6B9/s1600/Riding+Lesson+IX+057.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5452987725930935794" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinSAyvB7GMTXkdH_6xFq2LsvIfoVOWzm2rKByi7ncD8iARv_EG6Do1CoHewSy4dpcJf6s540jptH2L42QnwO3ugxkIre0v299QxyVjMb0aScf7VY634j9tqKcjwovgt0AZHclBQA_HN6B9/s400/Riding+Lesson+IX+057.jpg" /></a> Sofie on Pele.<br /><br /><div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5452987169451412098" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDUYxPN1rd_v3abrBJu71xvNL1LFTROH6Ii5I2XPWUMuRTpfE4Rn_zYF0863hmEkIvRALLWBWPz8dx1vS00wmwY6ZdPEVToUaY9oTn810JxiWzkC_49ltCgXi0EdelMGU_8hnkD5mJ2tDP/s400/Riding+Lesson+IX+012.jpg" /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoIDRLU2tBTD7KK1SuS1SPHem5flW0UWdXK31GxzRBXGEZuTLJwpH_lDpLG12sRSuvqjcYxyTa0tgMWDokTCpinl5zkxraRl-blDEQgaGFIk2VpseYeCK7PDLZyUwP4FdvB29vbqFiY_NQ/s1600/Riding+Lesson+IX+013.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5452986867026369010" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoIDRLU2tBTD7KK1SuS1SPHem5flW0UWdXK31GxzRBXGEZuTLJwpH_lDpLG12sRSuvqjcYxyTa0tgMWDokTCpinl5zkxraRl-blDEQgaGFIk2VpseYeCK7PDLZyUwP4FdvB29vbqFiY_NQ/s400/Riding+Lesson+IX+013.jpg" /></a><br /><div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh33Oo_TEHtS-FVQO4qeKd6dbeW67LfkPk0TiNO9Ncc7qLJBEZ5qSkOGEJ_sBDK5bV5Frha3RSIvA75DmVNH_keNg9IMxAD-2ofr1cVDMu-pk_EH1SET03cElTO-APvjBop8yWNasZRI6FE/s1600/Riding+Lesson+IX+066.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5452985925102085218" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh33Oo_TEHtS-FVQO4qeKd6dbeW67LfkPk0TiNO9Ncc7qLJBEZ5qSkOGEJ_sBDK5bV5Frha3RSIvA75DmVNH_keNg9IMxAD-2ofr1cVDMu-pk_EH1SET03cElTO-APvjBop8yWNasZRI6FE/s400/Riding+Lesson+IX+066.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-57125932867750881952010-03-21T03:35:00.000-07:002010-03-21T04:18:16.114-07:00Crough PatrickWe finally got to go climb Crough Patrick! We've been wanting to do this for a while but weather and illness always got in the way. It was well worth the wait. The girls were a little skeptical when they first saw it but they met the challenge with amazing energy. At 2,500 ft., the hike took us 3.5 hours round trip. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmMkLckLhYTPQS3F4aBfwmG_wRx174ptxUiKjZkNIHqhyphenhyphenG5JIJ-iUP16K7hyChxYLb_b4ERWAo9u_CTo6mikedsHBdYfpwYQmMJUqb-WJxu7rr6-rfkIYIa0jjnKPuyrCVaUiGQBN5C2xY/s1600-h/Crough+Patrick+006.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451039671594407074" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmMkLckLhYTPQS3F4aBfwmG_wRx174ptxUiKjZkNIHqhyphenhyphenG5JIJ-iUP16K7hyChxYLb_b4ERWAo9u_CTo6mikedsHBdYfpwYQmMJUqb-WJxu7rr6-rfkIYIa0jjnKPuyrCVaUiGQBN5C2xY/s400/Crough+Patrick+006.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC6vkGYXB2j1648jg4GEq-LJ7KYPnfM2QBUzlhAeJgLxkcoeFuA7ET3DJu0gbwuQxzcglU1varXPS4WCjKNy_igOQ6096K2G-NKvXvdH5PaqXQd7r7Cd-jJJ6Z9iRnmw3jcfa15RY6MtDV/s1600-h/Crough+Patrick+002.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451039366599408114" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC6vkGYXB2j1648jg4GEq-LJ7KYPnfM2QBUzlhAeJgLxkcoeFuA7ET3DJu0gbwuQxzcglU1varXPS4WCjKNy_igOQ6096K2G-NKvXvdH5PaqXQd7r7Cd-jJJ6Z9iRnmw3jcfa15RY6MtDV/s400/Crough+Patrick+002.jpg" /></a><br /><div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451039117997420434" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_qUZJkCZnmkT-YC_kcytLqlInWTjBTzBiteb2t0qFilHs4tDjOGTKdiMzonDep9RPVnHI27R3B3drtwd0rD9T_lUWCpO2-X4zPTdm5uaqAk2xv8sHpGHm1fQUZ1I-qRDKpDSGL7z94uv3/s400/Crough+Patrick+005.jpg" /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8gFVyEK9j1P5QjbzX9vicGnrkvgJxLR1hqRw_nOf6KSjVM7SQJGjJfFO6-qK2OOKkChUXD69c9CWZYipawERf4Hv6oht24GXPlr3yf-5oVB_xvNqVQD3X2JRQt3MwlPvWqhwVj_w1-phZ/s1600-h/Crough+Patrick+018.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451038817548266034" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8gFVyEK9j1P5QjbzX9vicGnrkvgJxLR1hqRw_nOf6KSjVM7SQJGjJfFO6-qK2OOKkChUXD69c9CWZYipawERf4Hv6oht24GXPlr3yf-5oVB_xvNqVQD3X2JRQt3MwlPvWqhwVj_w1-phZ/s400/Crough+Patrick+018.jpg" /></a>The path was anything but smooth.<br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifmQ8EBCs1Wj7w7ktdU0-drFFQm6OsSh9BYizB7CYBN7ldMjBKYqTvyBQe62ZhmC5muvdR5GugEdkRKyZYIc8TXCdhzbC-Yq8DF-ZO4UtGGwAukxVegxrnw7gVC13m3gcKeEUDeH2T5dRX/s1600-h/Crough+Patrick+020.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451038373683252626" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifmQ8EBCs1Wj7w7ktdU0-drFFQm6OsSh9BYizB7CYBN7ldMjBKYqTvyBQe62ZhmC5muvdR5GugEdkRKyZYIc8TXCdhzbC-Yq8DF-ZO4UtGGwAukxVegxrnw7gVC13m3gcKeEUDeH2T5dRX/s400/Crough+Patrick+020.jpg" /></a> Every so often we'd stop and turn around to see the view. It kept getting better and better. That's Clew Bay. Could it get any better than this? Oh....it got better.<br /><br /><br /><br /><div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451037905710710610" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoVpfoessickpbgwrIIFIIRPuwjAXJMMw3j9thLJ1AWOZyZYX7-PYk0wnA4fYWngTpXOdUx-SIeqyV6Jp4dprhNU5i9UFHG-GdmDFPmkoB0ZoPfKvOKDwDBGx7rj35TWnGTeL0htazlFCI/s400/Crough+Patrick+022.jpg" /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6eaYy7YiXQzirMEHnOPdTC-yifGPilpPWPCQqEfoOtC3-p4CNxtApjJB1d0ydaEd43ssetlbjE9IULX3tgy3O6HL-mtuqf4HLoAP6Eq4j_6onYq-48XnPFBkv3rHB3b5XZnUNNWQK573G/s1600-h/Crough+Patrick+026.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451037620236096898" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6eaYy7YiXQzirMEHnOPdTC-yifGPilpPWPCQqEfoOtC3-p4CNxtApjJB1d0ydaEd43ssetlbjE9IULX3tgy3O6HL-mtuqf4HLoAP6Eq4j_6onYq-48XnPFBkv3rHB3b5XZnUNNWQK573G/s400/Crough+Patrick+026.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2cjf5Hu4RTX9XvI0bv8znsUEbvRx80zzGnfa1zO6bLjGJgJB3hNh5JVQuk_rEHoN9M-ec84beNjuAchr9ypE_MNWeiiPX7dH3LWVl3qn4USAWsZmrAFpeOPZdDj2FdjepABtSw3Izh8pu/s1600-h/Crough+Patrick+032.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451037323209917730" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2cjf5Hu4RTX9XvI0bv8znsUEbvRx80zzGnfa1zO6bLjGJgJB3hNh5JVQuk_rEHoN9M-ec84beNjuAchr9ypE_MNWeiiPX7dH3LWVl3qn4USAWsZmrAFpeOPZdDj2FdjepABtSw3Izh8pu/s400/Crough+Patrick+032.jpg" /></a> The rocky path turned into just plain rocks. Lucy was off like a mountain goat. She wanted to be the first one to the top. She's a born leader.<br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr-iFC-uqfWSmSlBfaAt7N2lJ6xDslOQ7drf7NNIwmG8x-wIywx54tW_j-1SsnXKVpuFTM_2FxWDbnkNXFfuYplAp1dAR9I-4ZXbnSsBpw_PPxXthTz_kZlWHbTmqIY9u7BxfKHOt_2h8F/s1600-h/Crough+Patrick+034.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451037050885405634" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr-iFC-uqfWSmSlBfaAt7N2lJ6xDslOQ7drf7NNIwmG8x-wIywx54tW_j-1SsnXKVpuFTM_2FxWDbnkNXFfuYplAp1dAR9I-4ZXbnSsBpw_PPxXthTz_kZlWHbTmqIY9u7BxfKHOt_2h8F/s400/Crough+Patrick+034.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQJaP8tuOXJa_tgALm6aApSI8DqDOJFnuuRa3839LCp0ow8tqc-TZXR3R9binYXRWtzwerynyQf-rHFsSgoq53RhvUOrPk9mjJLt5K1NibLBkAVTWuJ77aXR1pVq0iJf7Ypzy4d9fvFM0u/s1600-h/Crough+Patrick+035.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451035884066604786" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQJaP8tuOXJa_tgALm6aApSI8DqDOJFnuuRa3839LCp0ow8tqc-TZXR3R9binYXRWtzwerynyQf-rHFsSgoq53RhvUOrPk9mjJLt5K1NibLBkAVTWuJ77aXR1pVq0iJf7Ypzy4d9fvFM0u/s400/Crough+Patrick+035.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXkUjcrvmmOQe4XxhxHzdAcFKeaZCMfqaUcyxmXuXqdMJM33xu4Gcar3scllehFJkopHW9PhRgBwNE8dLYwCkyCDqjVeM_coeJmxWr54WY5m475CwZ5q0bfk1l-zMNKOY-k0POUZEr4Y39/s1600-h/Crough+Patrick+044.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451035456343469858" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXkUjcrvmmOQe4XxhxHzdAcFKeaZCMfqaUcyxmXuXqdMJM33xu4Gcar3scllehFJkopHW9PhRgBwNE8dLYwCkyCDqjVeM_coeJmxWr54WY5m475CwZ5q0bfk1l-zMNKOY-k0POUZEr4Y39/s400/Crough+Patrick+044.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbttJxeP_Bz_nU5RPBPkI9ZaFQ4no_eDKJUWe7VtFGBR_CKFufcRAfAINwyZSUqfYvp1Qzo3Ya_T0CuekAarqL4Xt35JeOAPIPGfgncX-8soCGACf97R44Mo6gEKmuVtPDujdf-RX3RzwG/s1600-h/Crough+Patrick+039.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451035026188009762" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbttJxeP_Bz_nU5RPBPkI9ZaFQ4no_eDKJUWe7VtFGBR_CKFufcRAfAINwyZSUqfYvp1Qzo3Ya_T0CuekAarqL4Xt35JeOAPIPGfgncX-8soCGACf97R44Mo6gEKmuVtPDujdf-RX3RzwG/s400/Crough+Patrick+039.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlK0uPI12LVNmQFS3gp2bY6VwLHgCMXNbOpuQ9HKHb1AAxI_rfNagxUS60s6h8kJjrwyCr27H0-kFAx9sw1mb47LvtdszfyBykHxBP9U_R-IXLR5syLFpKpV6wwrA0IpMmSWqJR8o9N3BB/s1600-h/Crough+Patrick+043.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451034549080152754" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlK0uPI12LVNmQFS3gp2bY6VwLHgCMXNbOpuQ9HKHb1AAxI_rfNagxUS60s6h8kJjrwyCr27H0-kFAx9sw1mb47LvtdszfyBykHxBP9U_R-IXLR5syLFpKpV6wwrA0IpMmSWqJR8o9N3BB/s400/Crough+Patrick+043.jpg" /></a> Lucy and I stood at the top together and she said, "It was so worth it." as she looked out across the bay. I totally agree.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-84877912008378958452010-03-18T06:08:00.000-07:002010-03-18T06:48:54.349-07:00St. Patrick's Day<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZSefbLvAtv0rmGhx9RYeqtYjX0lKsbloQmenpMifSl1cQ3Em-3vxwLOxrQOzLARDstQXDUp4riFpOYrXBWz4RIa4h-7KosYWR_-25gOmQF6T1L4x7DbhHmRfVeRWsbl0E75utkS1GAvf3/s1600-h/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+030.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5449963791883515858" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZSefbLvAtv0rmGhx9RYeqtYjX0lKsbloQmenpMifSl1cQ3Em-3vxwLOxrQOzLARDstQXDUp4riFpOYrXBWz4RIa4h-7KosYWR_-25gOmQF6T1L4x7DbhHmRfVeRWsbl0E75utkS1GAvf3/s400/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+030.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjggAePuhXo8PxzE3QNrNQytpiymXGIEfRXQPgDf00G5ISDwnlYeK2cRPAvnYmVxQqiA8znkEHReeHGshvd2R70B2wzHic21wApZoHlhr04z1s6Ev6y8ji3mhiepPMIETTe0PQ51ygBefPd/s1600-h/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+066.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5449963505871408866" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjggAePuhXo8PxzE3QNrNQytpiymXGIEfRXQPgDf00G5ISDwnlYeK2cRPAvnYmVxQqiA8znkEHReeHGshvd2R70B2wzHic21wApZoHlhr04z1s6Ev6y8ji3mhiepPMIETTe0PQ51ygBefPd/s400/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+066.jpg" /></a> And I almost did my hair just like this! Wouldn't that have been embarrassing? Same hair do at the parade as someone else. Jeesh!</div><div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGtlH4vHbkYaqrmRyY0f29QUQ5S2bCDAFBXbsRJGgSyZHF8iDuzqdR-9nR-hKgUj4b5n2RBeXfpWBgtnttay3xyg3bqUSf77SZIwzeTpcXImT9v0uY7GGSaEtimZOFYrgvJYP99f5TeiKH/s1600-h/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+002.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5449963331055979506" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGtlH4vHbkYaqrmRyY0f29QUQ5S2bCDAFBXbsRJGgSyZHF8iDuzqdR-9nR-hKgUj4b5n2RBeXfpWBgtnttay3xyg3bqUSf77SZIwzeTpcXImT9v0uY7GGSaEtimZOFYrgvJYP99f5TeiKH/s400/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+002.jpg" /></a> The parade started a little after twelve o'clock. Even though we couldn't see much of the parade-it was like 5 rows deep along the route-it was the whole atmosphere that really made it worth while to go. The people watching was first rate. </div><div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP08YN0bcxJ-sC9whiGQBamOJkgOyQZ67ic-Rm8f7gnCjOuQ455BxuphD9AadtXQtFJf2T7yIjt5HmBjY_8UVsV7NejFxJW8R6WaJ8pHmbahjCXb9Y2jEJ3UxAjaUfpkAs7mjIwc3armLi/s1600-h/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+008.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5449963068071395842" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP08YN0bcxJ-sC9whiGQBamOJkgOyQZ67ic-Rm8f7gnCjOuQ455BxuphD9AadtXQtFJf2T7yIjt5HmBjY_8UVsV7NejFxJW8R6WaJ8pHmbahjCXb9Y2jEJ3UxAjaUfpkAs7mjIwc3armLi/s400/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+008.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS5-1xIdii8_GujEbUnL36_c3W3RNx4khfZk3ZujmixWN3bVWy306KS67w295K2bYATnvTCeIUASAyKCDWqOz06Jr-i-fsH97SfHmKdRUS7_kJAtC3TnIVu0pB7apIhBJZsR7Ez3Dx2Nu5/s1600-h/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+018.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5449962871580370498" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS5-1xIdii8_GujEbUnL36_c3W3RNx4khfZk3ZujmixWN3bVWy306KS67w295K2bYATnvTCeIUASAyKCDWqOz06Jr-i-fsH97SfHmKdRUS7_kJAtC3TnIVu0pB7apIhBJZsR7Ez3Dx2Nu5/s400/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+018.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhus1hvsnG4EfAtE9Bsn7XOaTgWgvWbhGGtUay4061hD8pfrlq7f53haam1tvraxZhQt21WQilxdNXUKIdTEWUk16Y02CjBzqbduieAa6hBN_DCPpKQahETPirxC2CO1OY6dl9ij4tmFx8S/s1600-h/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+015.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5449962669225822338" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhus1hvsnG4EfAtE9Bsn7XOaTgWgvWbhGGtUay4061hD8pfrlq7f53haam1tvraxZhQt21WQilxdNXUKIdTEWUk16Y02CjBzqbduieAa6hBN_DCPpKQahETPirxC2CO1OY6dl9ij4tmFx8S/s400/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+015.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQrI_lJXY7Ulb2DXGx0JTTd6qfSORRZMLjYVxj8suHt4xw19vU_hRi1iLrXYp_lRx7ct3PRu3wXsdEduFjNVDqvkJCcedElN2qNOb4zoETA_Kw1wrKBHkOCBLBo5E7RB43Eofcxg-4Z4tp/s1600-h/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+019.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5449962454028495378" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQrI_lJXY7Ulb2DXGx0JTTd6qfSORRZMLjYVxj8suHt4xw19vU_hRi1iLrXYp_lRx7ct3PRu3wXsdEduFjNVDqvkJCcedElN2qNOb4zoETA_Kw1wrKBHkOCBLBo5E7RB43Eofcxg-4Z4tp/s400/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+019.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJgBkh_CKPZYcVnvs3CoIWrNrtxvcpLT_Ya8lWoryujtyMMk7qGWkAbYdpKaxISeNk6hEmS_s_vlBXrRAuBHXLQ7_PINn8TPIdZQ0Pf81GU7hfLAJJ_X-BCF3f8RyNEEcgp4TZFY3mQzkC/s1600-h/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+040.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5449962233477572770" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJgBkh_CKPZYcVnvs3CoIWrNrtxvcpLT_Ya8lWoryujtyMMk7qGWkAbYdpKaxISeNk6hEmS_s_vlBXrRAuBHXLQ7_PINn8TPIdZQ0Pf81GU7hfLAJJ_X-BCF3f8RyNEEcgp4TZFY3mQzkC/s400/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+040.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkFEjxOODYa7UoaEdY9oEA0_7igaZvAYbn2wqWJl0Iwp5758KprvDs-45gu_MHJ0Mky3FqudRjvyGKr-qXe1iVpQpApy1wGcwYu1YM0Q8r5CGI90IoKcLy9UWn231prhOid5W1hSetUcBB/s1600-h/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+064.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5449961984779008402" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkFEjxOODYa7UoaEdY9oEA0_7igaZvAYbn2wqWJl0Iwp5758KprvDs-45gu_MHJ0Mky3FqudRjvyGKr-qXe1iVpQpApy1wGcwYu1YM0Q8r5CGI90IoKcLy9UWn231prhOid5W1hSetUcBB/s400/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+064.jpg" /></a> After the parade, we walked to Croke Park to watch a hurling match and a Gaelic football game. Sofie and Owen walked and talked the entire way. They had a mutual love for cats- instant friends.<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmegDTdyHBz3TgUbS0NsMQy6FoIHqo-5joFFuJmyJaVkIT5c-2VbaQ7AfGx8R32vNwHeHYFJrtIIOQbiEV2FY3JjXWc2ArBZoGz1R24fwMZu5M7_DzGPe6_-PCx0U5qo6z7AB7z6WaNtuX/s1600-h/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+044.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5449961615398661842" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmegDTdyHBz3TgUbS0NsMQy6FoIHqo-5joFFuJmyJaVkIT5c-2VbaQ7AfGx8R32vNwHeHYFJrtIIOQbiEV2FY3JjXWc2ArBZoGz1R24fwMZu5M7_DzGPe6_-PCx0U5qo6z7AB7z6WaNtuX/s400/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+044.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTLWIMGj9zX6npG87pXQyKfL52rt5PX4kWp4NNgTYVCNpDesRGUVUk6k2CWXcFhGpOXs7Sxoqz-egYQOpqhc0nk1Pm7OlQTQuxoIBVGR0uE5fkWXUvxJcK8M6ctgfrPsskdUeYjVoQpCou/s1600-h/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+047.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5449961399123615042" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTLWIMGj9zX6npG87pXQyKfL52rt5PX4kWp4NNgTYVCNpDesRGUVUk6k2CWXcFhGpOXs7Sxoqz-egYQOpqhc0nk1Pm7OlQTQuxoIBVGR0uE5fkWXUvxJcK8M6ctgfrPsskdUeYjVoQpCou/s400/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+047.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0AtNPnFS-BQo8w8cyc-m2DnfCyxW0RljGx2gf59jjQr4_-yiSQ-abLxu5paaoyTUQ7jxgpNbG_DauayIxxq8M0PEX4pAe6ze9ltRJCsVyqPqnIOE1ncpxAl6L6txxovKphHfqBvMLjj3_/s1600-h/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+071.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5449961154841239890" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0AtNPnFS-BQo8w8cyc-m2DnfCyxW0RljGx2gf59jjQr4_-yiSQ-abLxu5paaoyTUQ7jxgpNbG_DauayIxxq8M0PEX4pAe6ze9ltRJCsVyqPqnIOE1ncpxAl6L6txxovKphHfqBvMLjj3_/s400/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+071.jpg" /></a>Gaelic football is similar to regular football, except you can use your hands and bounce the ball once when running with it. Tackling with your shoulder is also allowed. Owen was great at explaining all the rules for both the hurling and football games. Note the absence of shin guards, pads, etc. for both games. Talk about toughness training! </div><div><br /><div><div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-HKWpKKUPv5Jelv0OpofMFv7mQb1zDfOtRsy274BJIdIJA3q9Yj_5Puw2yhS34OmCrhevIQyyGAGd7FfJr4HJMNorkw3vnUPLwprcVkowVifOGvYy8wJ8OlakFcTvdd3VrF2EPSj9EkSp/s1600-h/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+068.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5449960676689317938" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-HKWpKKUPv5Jelv0OpofMFv7mQb1zDfOtRsy274BJIdIJA3q9Yj_5Puw2yhS34OmCrhevIQyyGAGd7FfJr4HJMNorkw3vnUPLwprcVkowVifOGvYy8wJ8OlakFcTvdd3VrF2EPSj9EkSp/s400/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+068.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqQ857vMSOEyflD0R_0XogKhpGUzANUBMdgEup6p3W4mXg-FnYX4mIWKXbtMe2AIc6zbDjpodDE6H3-y8Ueg0CD2tWQAYDC7ffxlHp8h6poLe5NVABFKRVB7qzleVHtLMeeNeMp9_EC0Ce/s1600-h/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+069.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5449960501200202578" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqQ857vMSOEyflD0R_0XogKhpGUzANUBMdgEup6p3W4mXg-FnYX4mIWKXbtMe2AIc6zbDjpodDE6H3-y8Ueg0CD2tWQAYDC7ffxlHp8h6poLe5NVABFKRVB7qzleVHtLMeeNeMp9_EC0Ce/s400/St.+Patrick%27s+Day+069.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-67038096872546419092010-03-15T10:15:00.000-07:002010-03-15T10:52:05.191-07:00Riding Lesson VIII<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdGhJdK32CEc4NPN_2pZluprr5e0tARaCj4HB7zXpdDfuPkQjsHSaVBghC6JE56r3pib_L-QU-U-OMvAJWJJ68BUUBL65SJR4DruEqinWeQXR1lSBPbYg_fuJQziQegO7_vPHG1v5OY_6U/s1600-h/Riding+Lesson+XIII+(27).jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448911890941164146" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdGhJdK32CEc4NPN_2pZluprr5e0tARaCj4HB7zXpdDfuPkQjsHSaVBghC6JE56r3pib_L-QU-U-OMvAJWJJ68BUUBL65SJR4DruEqinWeQXR1lSBPbYg_fuJQziQegO7_vPHG1v5OY_6U/s400/Riding+Lesson+XIII+(27).jpg" /></a> Lucy on J.R.<br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaOykxI5k8rGF4d9ZZS4rbg_eTKAU7-XuAk9gyCB6NqpFRGLNrkPk8rk_bCB6dVCf7MLgMZimFc73mznwp1esPKHrIh-cwWmWPh5FrdG4kgJe8Y_8uUR5tXpJf9N3-tkp_Y-GOatuXPLtg/s1600-h/Riding+Lesson+XIII+(23).jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448910797648228994" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaOykxI5k8rGF4d9ZZS4rbg_eTKAU7-XuAk9gyCB6NqpFRGLNrkPk8rk_bCB6dVCf7MLgMZimFc73mznwp1esPKHrIh-cwWmWPh5FrdG4kgJe8Y_8uUR5tXpJf9N3-tkp_Y-GOatuXPLtg/s400/Riding+Lesson+XIII+(23).jpg" /></a> Sofie on Pele</div><div> </div><div>Well, we're back to our normal, quiet routine. Tim's caught another cold so we stayed home all weekend. The girls need a break from being in the car too. Only for a couple of days though. We're heading to Dublin on Wednesday. In case you don't know, it's St. Patrick's Day! We're going to a hurling match after the parades. The gorgeous weather continues......sunny and 50. I've heard people comment that April is the best month here. </div><div> </div><div>The time is going by so quickly and there's still so much to see! It's hard to believe we've been here a little over 3 months. Tim and I both feel like it's now our second home. Everything people tell you about Irish hospitality is true. I've never met more friendly people. Not creepy friendly either; there's something so warm and decent about having a cup of tea next to the fire with a stranger that makes it feel like you're dear old friends. Is it the fire? The tea? I don't know but I'm hording tea to bring home and I've made plans to tear out our sterile gas fireplace and replace it with a real fireplace--hearth and all! There's something so primal about gathering around an open flame-listening to it snap and pop, poking in it, and watching the flames and embers glow. We will need a project when we get home and really, how hard can it be, right? I've got Tim!<br /></div><div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-73290129967384188212010-03-11T06:36:00.000-08:002010-03-11T07:01:15.059-08:00Goodbye Nana<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2GRzDTiOqkBO0zVrfpQfegKNHTmxkewsuPBVMHyHbjPg02N2vR3z4x7kkbY5Gd0np4YApPtQ1sH_MdFWduCk-QwTaDFGpVzG9WYVHZS_qR8Bm10Fyq_PTGbFFIZpbPAboMOvWQ5B6vcGT/s1600-h/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+028.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5447387738504825090" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2GRzDTiOqkBO0zVrfpQfegKNHTmxkewsuPBVMHyHbjPg02N2vR3z4x7kkbY5Gd0np4YApPtQ1sH_MdFWduCk-QwTaDFGpVzG9WYVHZS_qR8Bm10Fyq_PTGbFFIZpbPAboMOvWQ5B6vcGT/s400/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+028.jpg" /></a> Waterfall at Birr Castle<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG-PMkvjPZxFmfJVM1UP64VCRdPN8NxEvX645Q2BeQyewekvvltiM8VOeo1vQS0zkntxq5N1YxYTBHTCfqz26fCD1ntofGeY3EXp2b3hMfZd9oA56qEHV0CZXQ4qqmdROtHCQ5gV7ucrJV/s1600-h/Athlone+with+Nana+(10).jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5447387427805846082" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG-PMkvjPZxFmfJVM1UP64VCRdPN8NxEvX645Q2BeQyewekvvltiM8VOeo1vQS0zkntxq5N1YxYTBHTCfqz26fCD1ntofGeY3EXp2b3hMfZd9oA56qEHV0CZXQ4qqmdROtHCQ5gV7ucrJV/s400/Athlone+with+Nana+(10).jpg" /></a>Left Bank, Athlone<br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFqIGpYwg9PiapB7XdRZ8QdDuRKChum59jxgV1Ea_kte0fxF_4AJAWWOPfwqih61RZlSlQm7xZP5UydoN3X-zxIc_2GVRJC_i2CmH1-ksgpEFT-Wuhe6-Bie0rXnzMdjIHPOo9HcYU2X-S/s1600-h/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+029.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5447387043195511458" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFqIGpYwg9PiapB7XdRZ8QdDuRKChum59jxgV1Ea_kte0fxF_4AJAWWOPfwqih61RZlSlQm7xZP5UydoN3X-zxIc_2GVRJC_i2CmH1-ksgpEFT-Wuhe6-Bie0rXnzMdjIHPOo9HcYU2X-S/s400/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+029.jpg" /></a> 300 yr. old Bavarian urns at Birr Castle.</div><div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj61aPzpnffBDy1tTzjXO2k34M_DuBM8maAgAyky0X3BQOZ4biW_vbwvTj-kLjSeHPqWw9CG5ZEhP_wiuuBRrDsWJdNRO7NsqQ0RMaVAmgz9xYnC07sMoFKXv_knpdWZZ9sVHCTfH-MuTIL/s1600-h/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+034.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5447386300729519458" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj61aPzpnffBDy1tTzjXO2k34M_DuBM8maAgAyky0X3BQOZ4biW_vbwvTj-kLjSeHPqWw9CG5ZEhP_wiuuBRrDsWJdNRO7NsqQ0RMaVAmgz9xYnC07sMoFKXv_knpdWZZ9sVHCTfH-MuTIL/s400/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+034.jpg" /></a>Mom at Birr Castle, walking through the formal Millenium Garden.</div><div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAg0I6IOcLn5ueTl0Irih1xomwptjbG1flCujESpDL3Ot96knpHkFsm5dYcIS1daNDcvI47Fnc_N5ywnKFwNiuQEWuTAVs8pP02DdfWImKfP7ekDbnMVybQhb9mcp1Iy7IZ89G08V-YN19/s1600-h/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+024.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5447385996889323474" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAg0I6IOcLn5ueTl0Irih1xomwptjbG1flCujESpDL3Ot96knpHkFsm5dYcIS1daNDcvI47Fnc_N5ywnKFwNiuQEWuTAVs8pP02DdfWImKfP7ekDbnMVybQhb9mcp1Iy7IZ89G08V-YN19/s400/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+024.jpg" /></a> Mom left this morning. It felt normal there for a week being all together, seeing her everyday. The girls have been pretty quiet all day. They definetly miss their Nana already. I'm still amazed at their strength and resilience to all the changes that have been going on the last three months. Are they oblivious? Do they really notice all of it? Or am I doing a great job at keeping things normal and right in their little world? I hope Yes is the answer to all the above. </div><div></div><div>Everyone here talks so much about the awful weather. I told Mom she'd better bring a raincoat and be prepared for gloomy days. Not the case. Mom had the best weather we've all seen here since we arrived! Nothing but sunshine and clear skies the entire week. Ruth, on the other hand, experienced true Irish weather. Only a couple more months, then we'll be homeward bound!<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-14277807054783726652010-03-08T09:25:00.000-08:002010-03-08T09:48:56.411-08:00Trim CastleAnother ridiculously sunny day. I say ridiculous because we've had nothing but grey skies, fog, and rain for so long that when you get a couple sunny days it's like someone is playing a joke on you. I swear mom brought it in her bag. My face hurts from squinting!<br />Sunday we drove over to Trim to see Trim Castle. It's the largest Norman castle in Europe. It was amazing. The film Braveheart was shot here (in case you wanted to know). We toured the keep with a guide. Not for those who have a fear of heights--we got to go on the roof of the keep and look out across Trim. To exit the roof, we walked down a very narrow spiral staircase, 84 steps in total. This was a great site for the kids--they could run around the grounds. They are getting very tired of "staying on the path". It's was really nice to just lay on the lawn and soak up the sun.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib9Ymt64sAjhKCVmDAYS3e8PQn9lGk1UeSf2z4s4qlHazaZjQWyjmQ-_9p8K1P1O1EPb20n2xD-5OjlH0kEFVaI8hAHqS9K7NcIzHCWhf4NkRfYd02skRRQtCqF6fdHI1XReKLq297XSTB/s1600-h/Trim+Castle+043.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446317673626246402" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib9Ymt64sAjhKCVmDAYS3e8PQn9lGk1UeSf2z4s4qlHazaZjQWyjmQ-_9p8K1P1O1EPb20n2xD-5OjlH0kEFVaI8hAHqS9K7NcIzHCWhf4NkRfYd02skRRQtCqF6fdHI1XReKLq297XSTB/s400/Trim+Castle+043.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQiiCVXedYoXHV-T6ftmSyXWRp_4EZve_1AOkTyOospixa6qzvK7Pap-C0xLDqxDVjJrKAfYz8XOU_rUBZEZTO2WILtFhdDfZWZWg9DFTGqKMpIiWoAijDl3-Vi6s3_E3OKVB0svAw2ukj/s1600-h/Trim+Castle+023.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446317157879302642" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQiiCVXedYoXHV-T6ftmSyXWRp_4EZve_1AOkTyOospixa6qzvK7Pap-C0xLDqxDVjJrKAfYz8XOU_rUBZEZTO2WILtFhdDfZWZWg9DFTGqKMpIiWoAijDl3-Vi6s3_E3OKVB0svAw2ukj/s400/Trim+Castle+023.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq4lLw1qF5uQ_bEtZ-dhF8dTXjMmkdigjA4UMGa2PpdcojLPXXS34jbdaA81xHzXv-9bMFb036N7pvpUDT2CAaejzBNAhKjYtAqM-aYvsK_w9_3xpfwtCzRN2WeZ9a9tspwKnfwaP5Ju1Q/s1600-h/Trim+Castle+001.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446316826959426050" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq4lLw1qF5uQ_bEtZ-dhF8dTXjMmkdigjA4UMGa2PpdcojLPXXS34jbdaA81xHzXv-9bMFb036N7pvpUDT2CAaejzBNAhKjYtAqM-aYvsK_w9_3xpfwtCzRN2WeZ9a9tspwKnfwaP5Ju1Q/s400/Trim+Castle+001.jpg" /></a> Part of the moat that once surrounded the entire castle.<br /></div><div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNgLqkUotNknYOt9Prj-FpUVdDIYR1uPwVlWJVmJB__hDRJRuC8dILmVF1XxvBbGGGrEq1pcKQcXEuSfjHI1s6PP7e7rsW_ZJKapwazvG4IHFpinMvu7uZ1zZt8JWSVLK0lakHYvd9sbhm/s1600-h/Trim+Castle+021.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446316526236633906" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNgLqkUotNknYOt9Prj-FpUVdDIYR1uPwVlWJVmJB__hDRJRuC8dILmVF1XxvBbGGGrEq1pcKQcXEuSfjHI1s6PP7e7rsW_ZJKapwazvG4IHFpinMvu7uZ1zZt8JWSVLK0lakHYvd9sbhm/s400/Trim+Castle+021.jpg" /></a> The keep<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTS-6aTJzjvfkZrWjdCHh2-BSosHSwCcW9Kd5nCvN0ZtORBhNL8Tjjogw0ABxLfr1rWlfcRiVVk0gZgBgDIkAW6-IIv5hRmPokgurPjfqj-11T9aQ64LfkucFsqAdSkjo7Ls_Hy0E-Taj9/s1600-h/Trim+Castle+047.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446316062327915234" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTS-6aTJzjvfkZrWjdCHh2-BSosHSwCcW9Kd5nCvN0ZtORBhNL8Tjjogw0ABxLfr1rWlfcRiVVk0gZgBgDIkAW6-IIv5hRmPokgurPjfqj-11T9aQ64LfkucFsqAdSkjo7Ls_Hy0E-Taj9/s400/Trim+Castle+047.jpg" /></a> Trim Castle<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-4635298192433748782010-03-08T08:40:00.000-08:002010-03-08T09:24:49.858-08:00Galway and The CliffsAnother gorgeous, sunny day. I think Mom brought the sun with her! We're on a winning streak with the weather so we're taking full advantage of it. We drove over to Galway in the early afternoon and then headed over to the Cliffs of Moher to watch the sun go down.<br /><br />I love how every time we go someplace we've been before, we always see something new. We've been to Galway a couple of times now and it was the first time we saw live statues. The statue in the picture is of a real person. If you drop a few coins in his jug he tips his hand to you. He was the best one we saw. He even had a pigeon sitting on his arm!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxgKV5xrTXAncvtfwfh1vCRE-m6nBNxt_kw68ruOgy08l1wEe_8Jo5ZgGtbgywTidGUyNkBGYhlQSCFNT4jxUWHtbIrc3C-hjgyofyNLzYVoX3nRjM_38Of4bph666nLPTTzsZ1qP598wR/s1600-h/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+047.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446307026337369442" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxgKV5xrTXAncvtfwfh1vCRE-m6nBNxt_kw68ruOgy08l1wEe_8Jo5ZgGtbgywTidGUyNkBGYhlQSCFNT4jxUWHtbIrc3C-hjgyofyNLzYVoX3nRjM_38Of4bph666nLPTTzsZ1qP598wR/s400/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+047.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbVAtK8A51pz6e1b7_5fmY5PIMvgLOvPpI_s-1ZD8y5pQQVdU-F3WhWX9SPYrE2kmqxmRpeCJhXfOsWGxMYr05JdLXvwjmPE8ofGrg4NTfan1cTD7TmxjmaLKTopLj7pfo6-bq5VzfBzWf/s1600-h/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+048.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446306738221234434" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbVAtK8A51pz6e1b7_5fmY5PIMvgLOvPpI_s-1ZD8y5pQQVdU-F3WhWX9SPYrE2kmqxmRpeCJhXfOsWGxMYr05JdLXvwjmPE8ofGrg4NTfan1cTD7TmxjmaLKTopLj7pfo6-bq5VzfBzWf/s400/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+048.jpg" /></a> This woman was really good too. Sofie ran up and threw some coins into her bag (a great way to get rid of some change).<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiag_44NnraEFu-7xu84HzRZObmbH4XAsPvNF89A3MekVwOIEUlGF1S5iZ6q2VGdevwaOlg47g83AoggooBIZqjHR6WQeoHphNHW3chOOdAAANYvIEgOBrKuLLQ3i-_NkvJKh5TIj9UVHF5/s1600-h/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+049.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446306527900439330" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiag_44NnraEFu-7xu84HzRZObmbH4XAsPvNF89A3MekVwOIEUlGF1S5iZ6q2VGdevwaOlg47g83AoggooBIZqjHR6WQeoHphNHW3chOOdAAANYvIEgOBrKuLLQ3i-_NkvJKh5TIj9UVHF5/s400/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+049.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnH7xy80nQAUTt821z3uDSi3CL3aYoptY9_MGLDGOvPvK-K6DpKpTPpxt5y3a55OhAt2oEJqgKKYDHdWMbyS4x5hMWfJS6zoL_dmirOclThXgXpCVL00Q3KHsiWCDjOAZx1J38jvZFisHQ/s1600-h/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+050.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446306311725145266" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnH7xy80nQAUTt821z3uDSi3CL3aYoptY9_MGLDGOvPvK-K6DpKpTPpxt5y3a55OhAt2oEJqgKKYDHdWMbyS4x5hMWfJS6zoL_dmirOclThXgXpCVL00Q3KHsiWCDjOAZx1J38jvZFisHQ/s400/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+050.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9AfPFvu26w94j84RwmgBHaamwtS60F9UpwdupxqkIFNbxsIBwsrl3HBk2OFTSAp5-jm3zSVnOfwBmaYDdMSiV4jkAV6bz7UuhXgfc2vD3Q9HbuALUEF5pQL0foKQ4k7sK7XI8xE6ksyh-/s1600-h/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+051.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446306045645821218" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9AfPFvu26w94j84RwmgBHaamwtS60F9UpwdupxqkIFNbxsIBwsrl3HBk2OFTSAp5-jm3zSVnOfwBmaYDdMSiV4jkAV6bz7UuhXgfc2vD3Q9HbuALUEF5pQL0foKQ4k7sK7XI8xE6ksyh-/s400/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+051.jpg" /></a> The Snow Queen handed Sofie a fortune from her bag. It read "We are what we imagine ourselves to be.", Kurt Vonnegut Jr.<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQqScoCdGcq46AfuIFiUE86O1N-CD0ME4tkutKunCZWjz93SPrrvp8QOzPRbd0uNPrwu4jQUgwbjG2i0KV3rvWoAbZHiWnlweZFbiR1bwpTD6Nf_jO1RZT1ASqZ_-4iuJquDGoWnmK5K81/s1600-h/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+065.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446305787502847122" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQqScoCdGcq46AfuIFiUE86O1N-CD0ME4tkutKunCZWjz93SPrrvp8QOzPRbd0uNPrwu4jQUgwbjG2i0KV3rvWoAbZHiWnlweZFbiR1bwpTD6Nf_jO1RZT1ASqZ_-4iuJquDGoWnmK5K81/s400/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+065.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmGbHFvBVYpElONcGhRpJfbY_2EysebfLSNCJfF647X8RrOgW0jRCWGTpibGAJr5ZEAEat847bxhFlDDNLAKW3HQrSVp2sxQrec2f9eFUsR7QJeSmIPGMK0sP_KlZgMtU7u83je_fkRd3P/s1600-h/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+077.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446305326073081762" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmGbHFvBVYpElONcGhRpJfbY_2EysebfLSNCJfF647X8RrOgW0jRCWGTpibGAJr5ZEAEat847bxhFlDDNLAKW3HQrSVp2sxQrec2f9eFUsR7QJeSmIPGMK0sP_KlZgMtU7u83je_fkRd3P/s400/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+077.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKRi-WZxUGvYTDJ90_Q8iy1tt9u8QTABTbSkDVFa1e8qsEFKA8Nxkql0WOGrkQiOobTCLIAUcIV2nJv8ec-OrKRQgnUkOBG7fPiF2mQtPdIJj5kbq4BN_x88HD-7BChAiqwrzkiFvfd8Pc/s1600-h/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+061.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446304926524711522" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKRi-WZxUGvYTDJ90_Q8iy1tt9u8QTABTbSkDVFa1e8qsEFKA8Nxkql0WOGrkQiOobTCLIAUcIV2nJv8ec-OrKRQgnUkOBG7fPiF2mQtPdIJj5kbq4BN_x88HD-7BChAiqwrzkiFvfd8Pc/s400/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+061.jpg" /></a>Since the wind wasn't blowing 30mph, I took hold of one girl, Tim grabbed the other one and we hopped the fence and walked along the footpath that follows along the edge of the cliffs. Can you see all the little people standing along the very edge? When you're on top you don't get the sense of how high you are until you lean over and look down. Still haven't seen any puffins. All we see are loads of sea gulls. After we watched the sun go down we drove home, first stopping in Ballyvaughn for dinner. We ate at Monk's, a seafood pub on the coast, complete with a roaring fire and hand knit wool curtains. Sofie promptly read the menu and said she'd like the mussels. Mussels? She loved them. I had mussels too. We had quite the pile of shells when we were done. </div><div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeqhWPvWy3Gkc-aPoLg8nllPsU3Nxgf_i6q2ZTeaDyDGkJ_lj6wKWxfcHv-IVQDHUPWPG091GwR8B_tXtbbK5WJ65XLmX7K2ramdHsNP6ogs-BoXbNCRMoeHCpu2xRdBfHtb_5KL9awVbE/s1600-h/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+109.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446304479630791122" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeqhWPvWy3Gkc-aPoLg8nllPsU3Nxgf_i6q2ZTeaDyDGkJ_lj6wKWxfcHv-IVQDHUPWPG091GwR8B_tXtbbK5WJ65XLmX7K2ramdHsNP6ogs-BoXbNCRMoeHCpu2xRdBfHtb_5KL9awVbE/s400/Birr+and+Cliffs+with+Nana+109.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-45849005863517388802010-03-04T13:08:00.001-08:002010-03-04T13:27:01.045-08:00Riding Lesson VIIRiding lessons today. Perfect weather and finally (I think) I've kind of figured out how to take better action pictures. Who knew action shots were so hard? I thought my digital camera would do everything for me and make me look awesome. Not that easy. I picked up a couple photography books at the library....still trying to make sense of f-stops and aperture settings. My brain usually freezes when they start talking about depth of fields, light levels, etc. but I tried really hard to make sense of a couple of the action tips.<br /> The girls did four jumps in a row this afternoon. It was just grand. Lucy is very serious when she rides. Sofie on the other hand shows all her emotion in her face. It's such a thrill to see them jump (and not fall off!). I think I hold my breath when they go over!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMf8wbFAJ_olD2GPrzLWJ1t3R0avkB2FKopTXKN1s88sjES0rjFH_xjpSmJgUp3i0y0BT0X1HTj2hDhusfLrz0v3a_wsQSWOnsLasQFionEoS0BvNJWdFxnKO-I_bu-GNhjAM1p11uIImu/s1600-h/Riding+Lesson+VII+027.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444890669299729666" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMf8wbFAJ_olD2GPrzLWJ1t3R0avkB2FKopTXKN1s88sjES0rjFH_xjpSmJgUp3i0y0BT0X1HTj2hDhusfLrz0v3a_wsQSWOnsLasQFionEoS0BvNJWdFxnKO-I_bu-GNhjAM1p11uIImu/s400/Riding+Lesson+VII+027.jpg" /></a> Sofie on Pele.<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZq9Uprrr91NzVx2UNXz9N5_ya0Q6-7hnOKRrnzLGDRkqhqFRPT5UfXz25d4EWaoyVh5N0r_D3cgc0TGxwVfB-csfE7v0yB3K2o8_KZizodssJgHaNPLp5nmXIm1Q3lYjx4nHM10h-0bvO/s1600-h/Riding+Lesson+VII+050.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444890196597275538" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZq9Uprrr91NzVx2UNXz9N5_ya0Q6-7hnOKRrnzLGDRkqhqFRPT5UfXz25d4EWaoyVh5N0r_D3cgc0TGxwVfB-csfE7v0yB3K2o8_KZizodssJgHaNPLp5nmXIm1Q3lYjx4nHM10h-0bvO/s400/Riding+Lesson+VII+050.jpg" /></a>Lucy on Berty.<br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC9c62oMl1uGh2TwJ2-CH8_T_58teoVJLLoeeJQba2DVJubtWbcg18RN5EYLWArpnMlnZNCv_-9bTzzzMkkQ0zYyiRzZ3Xoc4irgIi-DX20kJV6uLIfTJ_yHqBIimUX9rgEr-_7w8oGT1z/s1600-h/Riding+Lesson+VII+064.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444889842825267362" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC9c62oMl1uGh2TwJ2-CH8_T_58teoVJLLoeeJQba2DVJubtWbcg18RN5EYLWArpnMlnZNCv_-9bTzzzMkkQ0zYyiRzZ3Xoc4irgIi-DX20kJV6uLIfTJ_yHqBIimUX9rgEr-_7w8oGT1z/s400/Riding+Lesson+VII+064.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhym1rWkGP1wpbwCM6f3TfZK0iyWjAa6SOYzhddrwbLckJtwzzS_ky4LWu9I_iuHhjmCL3PXZq5K3B7ejGf90Dg-QwdEcbuZrOzpexiy5Eek3v0BnLL27ybMqFG8WMn_JGKaBTiGIoxtldg/s1600-h/Riding+Lesson+VII+107.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444889381380874818" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhym1rWkGP1wpbwCM6f3TfZK0iyWjAa6SOYzhddrwbLckJtwzzS_ky4LWu9I_iuHhjmCL3PXZq5K3B7ejGf90Dg-QwdEcbuZrOzpexiy5Eek3v0BnLL27ybMqFG8WMn_JGKaBTiGIoxtldg/s400/Riding+Lesson+VII+107.jpg" /></a><br /><div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444889077496983842" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH8V6WHay1A7Kn6x_SLoF91yJ2MKM6WaowDRBMOPAtRo-engky1DcYetHthFrja0SHbclGn1gzFxNHWBxx_9hEGwGwbJPhZb7fyx4RDGDbpwXfPm0Gm9LUfGrBcdMlGh9Jvzdx9b-DgL1o/s400/Riding+Lesson+VII+Close+up.jpg" /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaFlL2Rji17LWG12FxISYUFgZnb8j6NmgYS7ff1z4NltZki01AYzJl-PEZ3XHKCmFUJxueJDS9fHAmR9WgW-bHB-RGf3jlsbxKH3fESIw5k76vV8inz0BKz97jzUv98uCLZFjXra0yzH_R/s1600-h/Riding+Lesson+VII+119.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444888829505842306" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaFlL2Rji17LWG12FxISYUFgZnb8j6NmgYS7ff1z4NltZki01AYzJl-PEZ3XHKCmFUJxueJDS9fHAmR9WgW-bHB-RGf3jlsbxKH3fESIw5k76vV8inz0BKz97jzUv98uCLZFjXra0yzH_R/s400/Riding+Lesson+VII+119.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-38082503409976920912010-03-04T12:39:00.001-08:002010-03-04T13:07:50.196-08:00NanaMom made it here this morning! The world is set right now that Nana is here. What a Thursday--Nana and riding lessons all in one day. Could it get any better? Jet lag hasn't hit yet.....it's coming. We went down to Athlone in the afternoon to walk around, feed the swans, and play at the playground before riding lessons. She was treated to a rare Irish sunny day. Athlone felt very alive today. The sidewalks were full of people, kids on the playground, bicycles zooming by....funny how a sunny day cheers everyone up. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh__ad0WUUnMzaueiFsagv2lTJAH2xla7iJLysJcRTYLJJEpd2MoOadtxyRXnQhSBvB-0RZR3aGDcPf1ZYq9rcyWUX5XCPgSJxP8rY2Q06Ux6Tr1jq0Vc9g5dgOzW7gDKWA8FCn7IigbuJG/s1600-h/Athlone+with+Nana+(8).jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444881927473316530" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh__ad0WUUnMzaueiFsagv2lTJAH2xla7iJLysJcRTYLJJEpd2MoOadtxyRXnQhSBvB-0RZR3aGDcPf1ZYq9rcyWUX5XCPgSJxP8rY2Q06Ux6Tr1jq0Vc9g5dgOzW7gDKWA8FCn7IigbuJG/s400/Athlone+with+Nana+(8).jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFcf4hulTG_wTxsmJTzRdvHy-eXI5b6Z4FwwCajf-I6RCprtpl-0TGyUWGsnOHmLBQBUnAAKNetAKl05W6Ss9PEmyz7hZOb9nIQIbq1M8v7zrAXiEaVD5yQxXA_SZ9IaaWppn7gZoI-SrS/s1600-h/Athlone+with+Nana+(4).jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444881727189849506" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFcf4hulTG_wTxsmJTzRdvHy-eXI5b6Z4FwwCajf-I6RCprtpl-0TGyUWGsnOHmLBQBUnAAKNetAKl05W6Ss9PEmyz7hZOb9nIQIbq1M8v7zrAXiEaVD5yQxXA_SZ9IaaWppn7gZoI-SrS/s400/Athlone+with+Nana+(4).jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaHvQR0FC4ksXjtBeom_NMK5uPAbnnCGihE49efIfqq5QR9avsPu0afBKkJrUWMePIjlKNhGWTfhojeSHgcxeMYsyH_BLQ8Gc3EvKD819ixv8pBXRXfS6nDTOtcymITuwKmFRSDuGszC8J/s1600-h/Athlone+with+Nana+(1).jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444881365316572146" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaHvQR0FC4ksXjtBeom_NMK5uPAbnnCGihE49efIfqq5QR9avsPu0afBKkJrUWMePIjlKNhGWTfhojeSHgcxeMYsyH_BLQ8Gc3EvKD819ixv8pBXRXfS6nDTOtcymITuwKmFRSDuGszC8J/s400/Athlone+with+Nana+(1).jpg" /></a> Nana and Sofie<br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-33347245172874813082010-02-25T03:16:00.001-08:002010-02-25T03:51:09.761-08:00The BurrenChecked the weather for Tuesday.......looked promising. Those weathermen are worthless. Sunny and 40 translated into 30 and snowy. We headed west over to the Cliffs of Moher with Ruth hoping maybe the weatherman had been right and drove through the Burren. In Irish it basically translates to The Rocky Place. Appropriately named I might add since everywhere you look it's nothing but slabs of limestone. As fierce as it was you can't help but think of how people actually lived out here. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDFldW3-VtNwdKJFzd_0zYyHoD5mXxyNcSSwdddXgtAgVuD-NfhMXy9ey0BDmLMTfeqGFjeZfyp2UWdhUmiIcMlisHAF0JzBPziKV3f_E58m3fP7dMHN-mvY81-0qlE2sGLsli3p6-8yeK/s1600-h/Tomb+and+Cliffs+of+Moher+003.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5442139341137782706" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDFldW3-VtNwdKJFzd_0zYyHoD5mXxyNcSSwdddXgtAgVuD-NfhMXy9ey0BDmLMTfeqGFjeZfyp2UWdhUmiIcMlisHAF0JzBPziKV3f_E58m3fP7dMHN-mvY81-0qlE2sGLsli3p6-8yeK/s400/Tomb+and+Cliffs+of+Moher+003.jpg" /></a> Poulnabrone is one of 70 megalithic tombs in the Burren. It was excavated in 1968 and the remains of people were found inside dating between 3800-3200 BC. The men must have been incredibly manly to move such slabs of rock. Amazing.<br /> <div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiOjP3DaXc9EI7fEKQ6qaUgv9Fg-ONCDkBynYn4od0VoFrQHYnllegpSE-HmMHL8nUb5LCDX4FuRPr-Mz9x6994qVyU9eZghBTw4m2UaJSDpk2Ecsx5gVdXUGen_iSQRlpJlYFq1Or4KiK/s1600-h/Tomb+and+Cliffs+of+Moher+005.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5442139125026966722" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiOjP3DaXc9EI7fEKQ6qaUgv9Fg-ONCDkBynYn4od0VoFrQHYnllegpSE-HmMHL8nUb5LCDX4FuRPr-Mz9x6994qVyU9eZghBTw4m2UaJSDpk2Ecsx5gVdXUGen_iSQRlpJlYFq1Or4KiK/s400/Tomb+and+Cliffs+of+Moher+005.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP5adE96zjfowOtL2xOD4Flll-fXD3ExbgOmfY3AxR3wzDrJTZmJNGkWhv8i6p2p4isbI0UypHwMSHQWRsHYYTfIp67BxrioolyuTxUPgCT7pV_Vh6ikU7HZ1kV2cg50tyN1mUM9vZY7xn/s1600-h/Tomb+and+Cliffs+of+Moher+006.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5442138880317727202" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP5adE96zjfowOtL2xOD4Flll-fXD3ExbgOmfY3AxR3wzDrJTZmJNGkWhv8i6p2p4isbI0UypHwMSHQWRsHYYTfIp67BxrioolyuTxUPgCT7pV_Vh6ikU7HZ1kV2cg50tyN1mUM9vZY7xn/s400/Tomb+and+Cliffs+of+Moher+006.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8742510994575860185.post-37705005820661560842010-02-22T10:59:00.001-08:002010-02-22T11:17:47.034-08:00DublinWell, we finally made it to Dublin. We walked down Grafton St., O'Connell St. and Temple Bar. We play Irish Monopoly here and I think the highlight of our day was seeing that there really is a Krumlin Place. It would be the equivalent to Baltic St. on American monopoly. I don't think Krumlin Place is on any tour. Think government housing. Who wants to tour that, right? The architecture was outstanding downtown. I prefer the small towns. You can take the girls out of the country but you can't take the country out of the girls-Lucy and Sofie were fascinated by all the pigeons. I think they miss playing with the chickens because they were desperately wanting to catch a pigeon and hold it. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq5P5iliiK1AA1J-SIF1AtwJyjxxrXt9TzagsvPJdDGy6S2-9UtZMZhxLq_3h1wMZGFCqc2tBbVhYC9wvfBdc06MTlayAbZZ-5RBkZGbrMO9S8EDo_JzaxRXGB-O-lQoNcPaclcsLeXogj/s1600-h/Dublin+(8).jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5441145749523547730" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq5P5iliiK1AA1J-SIF1AtwJyjxxrXt9TzagsvPJdDGy6S2-9UtZMZhxLq_3h1wMZGFCqc2tBbVhYC9wvfBdc06MTlayAbZZ-5RBkZGbrMO9S8EDo_JzaxRXGB-O-lQoNcPaclcsLeXogj/s400/Dublin+(8).jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL7C5VjtNmPQinwWTcav1dfXZHAUoKAPlTFV3nCNKRMiAN9nYglppD_aZ4yQPl0XLp1xxMMKOKEhtzid6hXGHJSUZwWtpAAQQh22kUQzQbfJYp7jGcsFu2ydSpKwhGPpy_4sTBkl5gDfv0/s1600-h/Dublin.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5441145469746028226" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL7C5VjtNmPQinwWTcav1dfXZHAUoKAPlTFV3nCNKRMiAN9nYglppD_aZ4yQPl0XLp1xxMMKOKEhtzid6hXGHJSUZwWtpAAQQh22kUQzQbfJYp7jGcsFu2ydSpKwhGPpy_4sTBkl5gDfv0/s400/Dublin.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzID6t-sgfzKzyongPdQJgXDYGinS-7Wd6y32kVOEfAR_7AcDEezgVZq2A8ezb8X5owWC9YTUYy6-XTwDJVTNerRZp_gAp11ShyphenhyphenKHhKKznxj84DdZYgLsem164mH4Su26WgEjvW_SMp2e2/s1600-h/Dublin+(1).jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5441145142786110882" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzID6t-sgfzKzyongPdQJgXDYGinS-7Wd6y32kVOEfAR_7AcDEezgVZq2A8ezb8X5owWC9YTUYy6-XTwDJVTNerRZp_gAp11ShyphenhyphenKHhKKznxj84DdZYgLsem164mH4Su26WgEjvW_SMp2e2/s400/Dublin+(1).jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjStrBr32p6Fnd5sN7lCNryG6WtMZw1VWq09VjRE6h0loiSY4G7FA42lgCKe7RVot_tXfSRJn42ZGy-zShvV4qPLt1dT5B3rPuY8HOlD9Lb-1kq2S7FLHE8n81F_X5AxtfTtsIFPOMye5Y3/s1600-h/Dublin+(4).jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5441144815880116114" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjStrBr32p6Fnd5sN7lCNryG6WtMZw1VWq09VjRE6h0loiSY4G7FA42lgCKe7RVot_tXfSRJn42ZGy-zShvV4qPLt1dT5B3rPuY8HOlD9Lb-1kq2S7FLHE8n81F_X5AxtfTtsIFPOMye5Y3/s400/Dublin+(4).jpg" /></a> Ruth and Lucy<br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div>The Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12041900828263349053noreply@blogger.com0