Northern Ireland

We had a wonderful time in Newcastle, Northern Ireland! Thank you to everyone who prayed for a safe trip. On Monday, July 14th, we flew from Knoxville to Newark, NJ and then on to Belfast, Northern Ireland. We had a 5 and a half hour layover in Newark so my Aunt El and her husband Sal met us at the airport. We enjoyed dinner and had a nice visit. We arrived in Belfast Tuesday morning. My Mom and step-dad met us at the airport and we took two buses back to Newcastle where they live. The bus from the airport to the bus station was a double decker and the kids LOVED it! Riding on the opposite side of the road was really different. Every once in a while when I looked out the window I would startle thinking we were in the wrong lane!

The kids at the Knoxville airport

Visiting with Sal and Aunt El

My parents rented a 4 bedroom, 2 bath home for us to stay in during our visit. It was so cute and only a block or so from the Irish Sea. We walked everywhere while we were there and took a bus when we wanted to go further.

The house and our view

On our first day we walked down to the water and let the kids play at the waterfront playground. The view was beautiful of the Mourne Mountains and the Irish Sea. Everyone had such a thick Northern Irish accent and they talked so fast! I found myself asking some of the people I met to repeat themselves on occasion. Havana and Helene got to ride Shetland ponies on the beach!

Pictures from the park

Our second day in N. Ireland was Haddon's sixth birthday! My mom made a dinosaur cake with a volcano and toy dinosaurs. Haddon loved it! I found dinosaur birthday accessories at a $ store in Knoxville and had brought them along for his party.

Happy Birthday Haddon!

In the next couple of days we walked through town and visited another park. We also went on a scenic walk through the woods and saw a waterfall in another park. Everything was so green and beautiful! Of course we stopped for Fish and Chips! We ate at John Macs and it was wonderful! Everyone enjoyed it, even Hudson! In the evening we walked along the beach collecting shells and watching the tide come in. This was one of my favorite evenings.

The main street in town

On Friday we visited the Dundrum Castle. John De Courcy chose the location overlooking the Mourne's in the 1180's! We were the only ones there and spent time walking through the different parts of the castle and climbing the spiral staircase to the top. The view was amazing! We all had a great time there and my Mom had never been and enjoyed it as well.

The view on the way to the castle

Dundrum Castle

Taken through a window in the castle (one of my favorite pictures!)

We had a big day on Friday! After the castle we visited a museum and old jail and went to see the Church of Ireland and St. Patrick's burial site. We were disappointed that the church was locked because the inside is beautiful!

St. Patrick's grave

Hudson on the bus

There is so much more to share, so check back shortly for many more pictures! Thank you again Mom and Niall, for allowing us the opportunity to visit and experience your "world." We enjoyed it so much!

*~*~ 4th of July! *~*~

We had a great time on the 4th of July! We all dressed in our RED, WHITE, and BLUE and headed out for the local parade. We had a slow start when our battery gave out not even half-way there. Someone brought back his battery booster and we were on our way...again!

The parade was a lot of fun! We had a great spot around many friends. We were able to see everything and the kids got all sorts of fun stuff including flags, footballs, and tons of candy! After the parade we walked down the street to where our church had a booth set up. We had hamburgers, hot dogs, chips, drinks, watermelon, and snow cones! The kids got balloons and played on all the inflatible fun stuff that was set up.

We went back home afterwards and the kids had more fun playing outside and in the sprinkler. It was a busy day!

We headed out to the brand new Wal-Mart for diapers and a few other necessities. As we were leaving a big storm was starting. The sky was black and as we drove toward Lakefront Park the lightning, thunder, and rain was crashing down. The closer we got to the park the better the weather became. We pulled into one of the last parking spots under the bridge and sat in the car watching everyone around us. The lightning subsided and we brought out the stroller and chairs. It was still raining but we were nice and dry under the bridge. The fireworks show was supposed to begin at 9:30 but due to a delay they began at 10:10! There were other people setting off fireworks around us and the kids were so excited and had a lot of fun with them. Hayley was a riot! She would yell "Yay!!" at the top of her lungs and clap every time she saw one. By the time the actual show started she was getting sleepy. No one had a nap that day! She was sitting on my lap and would lift her head and say a half-hearted "Yay!" when one went off and then immediately lay her head abck down. Eventually I looked down and she was sound asleep. She slept on my lap the remainder of the show, through the Grand Finale and all! Hudson was mesmerized by the lights and sounds. Helene was a little timid but I think she actually enjoyed it. Havana and Haddon had a blast! A family next to us gave all the kids neon glow necklaces so they had a great time with them.

Well, we're off to Ireland on Monday! Please pray that we have a safe trip! Our next update will be all about our trip and filled with pictures! See you soon!

PS-Check out Hudson's new favorite spot...

T-ball, Cub Scouts, Dragon Boats, & 1st haircuts

What a fun summer! We've been having a great time and as usual are keeping very busy! We're leaving for Ireland on the 14th. We have all of our passports, tickets, luggage, etc. The kids are counting the days and Harley and I are looking forward to a much needed break.

Haddon started Cub Scouts and T-ball this summer. I don't have a picture of him in his Cub SCouts uniform yet, but here are a few from T-ball. I think he's the smallest one of his team! They're doing well and have won their first two games! Haddon's #7!

Hudson got his first haircut recently. Mommy tried to cut it Saturday evening and we weren't thrilled with the results. Sunda morning Daddy tried to fix it and we were even less thrilled. So out came the clippers and he got his first big boy haircut!

The Knoxville Dragon Boat Festival was on Saturday. It was a blast! We came in 41st place out of 44 teams. LOL! It sure was fun though! We made the news during practice. Check out the video below to see me row, row, rowing! Hopefully I'll have the opportunity to do it again next year! The festival took place at the Cove at Concord Park. There was tons of stuff for the kids to do and they ahd a great time playing in the sand and water, at the craft table, and so much more!

http://www.knoxnews.com/videos/detail/teams-practice-2008-knoxville-dragon-boat-races/

Enjoy the pictures. I'll try to post again soon!