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Return from the Emerald Isle – Trip Recap
We are back home from Ireland. It was a whirlwind trip and we are all completely exhausted, but I am so glad that I had a chance to do it all. We spent two nights on the Aran Islands, one night in Galway and one night in Dublin. It wasn’t nearly enough time and I can’t wait to go back and explore more, but it was a great trip all the same. The whole trip was very go-go-go from the start. We picked Ryan up early from school at 1pm and headed straight to Boston, where we picked up my sister and went to the airport. We had a 5:50pm…
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Heading to Ireland!
I cannot believe it is already here! Tomorrow we are getting on a plane and flying to Ireland to get married. It is going to be a whirlwind trip and I really cannot wait. We will be flying all night (plus losing 6 hours to the time difference), then we will hop on a bus and head to Galway. From there, we will catch a ferry to the Aran Islands where we will check into our accommodations. Then, we have about two hours to shower and get ready before our officiant comes to pick us up and bring us to the ceremony site. I don’t anticipate getting much rest during…
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Writing
Today, I just want to write. Writing has always been a passion of mine. Unfortunately, lately Saoirse does not make it easy to get that writing done. She is a velcro baby (well, toddler now I suppose) and the instant she sees me computer she has to be right there poking at the screen and banging on the keys. So, I avoid pulling out my computer when she is around. The thing about being a stay at home mom is, she is always around. Pretty much my main opportunity to write is if I wake up early enough in the morning and have time to write before she wakes up.…
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What’s in a name? Our last name decision
When we made everything legal last Friday, we finally had to address an issue we had been dancing around for years: our last names. Tradition would have me change my last name to match Cal’s. However, I am not big on tradition for the sake of tradition. There are so many different approaches to last names with marriage now. I could hyphenate. Cal could hyphenate. We both could. We could choose a new name altogether. Cal could change his last name to mine. You get the idea. For us, this decision was further complicated by the fact that we we had children before getting married. When Ryan was born, I gave…
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My Awesome Bookworm Beachfront Proposal
On March 18th, Cal suggested an impromptu trip to the beach. It is still very cold in New Hampshire in March, but it was nice to go to the ocean. Ryan collected seashells, while Saoirse and I watched the waves crashing on the shore and enjoyed the fresh ocean air. The beach was surprisingly busy. A lot of people had the same idea to go enjoy a cold but sunny day by the ocean. Even without any other plans, it was a great family day. Cal had bigger plans though. While we were alone on our stretch of beach, Cal told me he had a gift for me. He handed me a…
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Mo Anam Cara – My Soul Friend and Our Journey to Here
Today we are going to City Hall to take care of all the paperwork to get legally married. We are going to Ireland in two weeks for the ceremony, but it is a lot easier to take care of the legalities here first. The Irish have this beautiful concept of a soul friend. According to the philosopher John O Donohue, the anam cara is a “friend of the soul”, a person with whom you can share your true self, mind and heart. A friendship that applied across all convention and category. Someone with whom you can experience unconditional understanding, love and belonging. For me, Cal is that soul friend. I…
