In the run up...

I've been having a very busy but fantastic run-up to Christmas.
Lots of all the nice things; friends, fun, food and music!

2 really lovely surprises this week.

This first one was knitted by a fellow French Horn player! I've hung it in my car, with a few drops of my Christmas Burner Oil dotted on the red, and sometimes when  it twirls I get the most delightful waft of cinnamon, orange, clove, frankincense!

This other surprise arrived by post from Brussels, with a note that said "this was made for you!".
My dear friend, Cee, sent it.

Hope you're all keeping well, warm, and looking forward to some good celebrations (if you celebrate).

Summer Mountain Walk

I've neglected my blog again, and have so much to talk about that I don't know where to begin.

Maybe start with a recent lovely walk on the Dublin Mountains.. that's Dublin city in the background.

 The weather this summer has been bad, cold with lots of rain, but we were blessed on this Saturday, just the right amount of sunshine!

 There are some very interesting heathers up there

 and this green stuff only grows where the air is pure, so I'm told..

 the 3 amigos on top of the mountain!

 in the forest..

 looking into the forest, looks like snow in this pic!

 This is one of my favourites, just so much flora in it

 and cheering when we came down. It's hard to believe that this place of beauty is about 15 minutes drive from my house!

a lazy post

I'm really, really tired this week.

Been thinking about a new post, but just couldn't come up with anything, then Kerri had a beautiful photo with a cute quote and , hey ho! here's a post!

This fridge magnet was given to me by my dear friend Cee, who lives in Brussels. I think of her every time I open my fridge! It says "there is nothing better than a good friend, except a good friend who brings chocolate", and she always brings the most delicious Belgian chocolates, but even if she didn't, I would be delighted to see her. She's been living in Brussels for 10 years, I see her about 4 times a year, we talk and email every couple of weeks, but I still miss her very much, and look forward to when they come home, whenever that is!
The first photo is edited, in sepia with camerawesome. I really like that app a lot!

 I do not like the new blogger, how do other people feel about it?
I had already turned the bottom photo in my files, but for some reason blogger has decided to post it in the original form?????

Meet me on Monday

Java at Never Growing Old hosts this meme, and I thought I'd give it a go this week.

It sounds like a great way to meet new friends, and this week's questions were very easy. Next week? we'll see..

1. Do you have any New Year's resolutions?

No, I hate them and I never keep them anyway. Because I'm a teacher, I tend to think of years in terms of school years, so sometimes in September I set a goal or two, nothing too elaborate.

2. What food item are you craving right now?

Anyone who knows me already knows the answer to this - chocolate.

But I'll abstain tonight as it's almost midnight, I'm off to bed in a few minutes and I've already had the most delicious mincemeat and almond slice, a Christmas/New Year gift from a friend (box of 10, home-made) this evening, hot from the oven! Delicious! Yum, yum!

3. When is your birthday?

24th November.

4. What were you doing an hour ago?

Watching "The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas" - it was the Monday Movie on tv here. Brilliant film; I thought the book was brilliant too.

5. Last thing you cooked?

Rack of lamb and roast veg yesterday.

I ate out today, as I was meeting my sister for lunch. I hadn't seen her since early November, we were supposed to meet for lunch for my birthday, but loads of snow here meant that her birthday, 25th December(!), has also come and gone. So, we had a joint birthday lunch, and we left 5 hours later! Avoca, where we met, is a restaurant and shop, similar to Cracker Barrell in US, so there's no pressure to leave. It was wonderful to see her and to chat without watching clocks. Avoca also have the most beautiful clothes(see right), but I didn't have time to shop today, as I was meeting my friend (see No 2) afterwards, so I had to dash.

If you'd like to go meet other people, especially the lovely Java, who started modelling at 40! just click on the link above in the Meet Monday picture.
Been nice meeting ya!

Last trip of summer

This week, we made one last trip, before school starts again, and we're caught up in homework, activities, routine.


I flew out to Brussels on Saturday to see my friend Cee and her daughter, Ais. I wrote about Ais and the operation here. We had a lovely two days together, timed so Ais was home from the rehab unit for the weekend, and I could give her a massage as promised. Ais is doing really well, she walked 15 steps, on her own . It's still awful to see her struggle so much to make just one step, remembering how she would run around, and it's hard that she needs a wheelchair for outings, but it's a big improvement in a short time. Thanks to everyone who has prayed for her, and kept them in your thoughts.

We chilled out, our only outing to a bookshop-cum-restaurant. That's a whole other post.



When looking at the return flight, I just couldn't face the "silly o'clock"/ 5am at the airport" start. Ryanair had lovely, cheap flights to Madrid from Brussels, so I decided to make a detour on the way home. The girls flew out from Dublin to join me- their first "alone with no adults" flight.











We loved Madrid!










Perfect weather, friendly people, and lots of good food









- all the ingredients for an enjoyable break.















We didn't do a "whirlwind", preferring instead to savour fewer activities and leave some for a future visit.



















But we did do the bus tour, just to get a flavour of Madrid,

and we saw what I think is the most beautiful train station in the world

Interfere or not?

I've a dilemma.

On Saturday, my teenagers had some friends over. They are teenage children of my Brussels friend, but she had gone back to Brussels. When they were living in Dublin, 8 years ago, the kids were all good friends. It was lovely to see how well they got on together on Saturday. I invited them for lunch i.e. a few hours, but they reluctantly left at 9pm to go back to their grandmother's, where they were staying until their Dad got here Sunday.

My own 2 seemed genuinely sad to see them go, and they had made an arrangement for the 5 of them to go to the cinema on Monday. There was a bit of friendly teasing going on between them, especially trying to pair off my boy with one of the twins (all 13 year olds!). My daughter and the older sister of the twins were joking about being sisters-in-law!

Anyway, today I was going off shopping, and asked daughter had she made contact re the cinema outing- "no". I urged her, out of politeness, to do so, and she promised she would take care of it. I returned a few hours later to find she had done nothing, and to be told there was no need for me to be involved, that it wasn't anything to do with me - though she wasn't especially rude in saying this.

Now my problem is this- I think it's rude to make arrangements and not follow through. In fairness, they didn't contact us either. And I'm trying to let them make their own arrangements as far as possible- maturity, responsibility and all that. And I don't know how much of the arrangement was a joke "date" between my boy and the twin.

Do I keep out of it, just let them at it, or attempt contact myself tomorrow???