So we are having a Bank Holiday weekend this weekend and the weather is forecast for LOTS of rain and due to the amount of road accidents causing deaths lately, the Gardai (pronounced gardee), are "cracking down" with plenty of check points to deter drink drivers and boy racers.  Except that is just gonna put them on different roads, soooo we are safer just being at home this weekend.

yea! can't hold in my excitement of spending four days cooped up with three children and a husband that will be climbing the walls by the afternoon of the second day...

is it Monday night yet?? 

I get to go to Dublin...

I get to go to Dublin...

I get to go to Dublin...

In a twisted way I am so excited about this because I have not properly explored this city.  Well, as much as I would have liked to have done.  And now that we are talking about moving there really seems little or no chance to do so as we want to leave ... NOW! 

So in a twisted twist of fate, I have to go to the Canadian Embassy (wasters they are from all the phone calls I've made to them!!!) to get Oldest Large Child's passport.  We were trying to get OLC an Irish passport, as her Canadian one expired, but they said no.  SOOOOO...

I get to go to Dublin.!

I get to go to Dublin!

I get to go to Dublin! 

Hey, I'm not a lumberjack, or a fur trader....
I don't live in an igloo or eat blubber, or own a dogsled....
and I don't know Jimmy, Sally or Suzy from Canada,
although I'm certain they're really really nice.

I have a Prime Minister, not a president.
I speak English and French, not American.
And I pronounce it 'a-bout', not 'a boot'.

I can proudly sew my country's flag on my backpack.
I believe in peace keeping, not policing,
diversity, not assimilation,
and that the beaver is a truly proud and noble animal.
A toque is a hat, a chesterfield is a couch,
and it is pronounced 'zed' not 'zee', 'zed' !!!!

Canada is the second largest landmass!
The first nation of hockey!
and the best part of North America

My name is Rhea!
And I am Canadian!!!

(who is hopefully moveing out of Ireland sooner than later! ~ I wanna go home!!!))

okay so its been a month ... I've been busy!  So here is a recent family pic to keep you happy!

an equation for exhaustion....

take one new house (keys acquired) add packing frenzy muliply by five. 

add three children running about and needing attention, heavy, bulky objects that need to be moved from one house to another minus proper meals.

toss in a whirlwind visit from a very long standing friend who was graciously patient enough to put with simmering tempers and out of control children.

add late nights, early mornings, impromptu sightseeing tours, "mandatory" visitors to the new house (really they are coming just to check out the new digs) minus sleep and any type of rest that may have happened during the day.

equals one three hour nap on the living room sofa taken by insane mother of three 10 days after it all began.

For some unfathomable reason I pushed for us to move house.  We need a bigger garden, I said.  The neighbourhood children are a bad influence on oldest large child, I said.  The road close to the house is too busy and one of our children might get hurt, I said.  We have no space, I said.  Our cars keep getting damaged where have to park them, I said.  Well the last one was really a matter of fact and said by both insane mother of three and the husband.  Generally we were getting to not be happy living where we are currently. 

Okay we are getting four bedrooms (one ensuite), two sitting rooms, a LARGE enclosed garden with grass, a garage, off the road parking for BOTH cars, not just one that then needs to be  moved so the children can play in the garden (that has no grass) or landry hung on the wash line.  A nice quiet area that has (as much as I HATE to have to say it) a better quality of people.

But to get this we have to move.  That means packing.  Packing for four other people than myself ('coz I am a bit of a control freak about the packing and can't leave it for the husband to do it coz he will just throw any and everything in to a box!).  Sorting things to not be packed and get them where they need to go.  Getting general daily tasks done (laundry still happens!). 

CALGON TAKE ME AWAAAAYYYYYYY!

the nice weather has continued in to this week but alas we are told it will end over the weekend and the liquid kind of sunshine will happen once again...

but here's a loverly memory to keep us in mind of what once was.

We are now at the end of a two week stretch of really nice weather, that was probly our summer.  In April.  However the timing of the weather could not have been more perfect as it happened to fall during oldest large child's spring break, which was the past two weeks.  Over the course of the past two weeks, the husband has also been off work so he and oldest large child have been very absent from the house.  Only healthy weighty wee man and wee blonde child have remained ... to drive insane mother of three further insane.

Today school starts again, this will end and begin again in ernest the continual question from oldest large child "Do I go to school tomorrow?".  It will end because now the answer will be yes and begin again because Fridays will answer "no not until Monday"

to all who only wish St Patrick's Day was a national holiday were you live...

HAPPY SAINT PATRICK'S DAY!

this day last year...

same day same time this year...

we still have the parade to go to later, stay tuned for more antics for the day...

so healthy weighty wee man got his first pair of shoes today.  because of his size we had to go to the expensive shop, Clark's.  good thing about Clark's is they take a picture of the child in their first pair of Clark's be it first shoes or not.  in healthy weighty wee man's case it happens to be his first pair of proper shoes.  now this would be grand if hwwm would have co-operated and actually stood in his new shoes.  but noooooooooooo ... this was the time to crawl about the shop, especially towards the shop door where he could go in to the shopping centre, which was much more exciting than buying a pair of shoes and having mummy and the shop lady trying to make hwwm stand up and walk ...

then suddenly after all hope was almost lost, and hwwm was coaxed in to standing with the aid of the shop stools, hwwm decided to walk, no make that run for the front of the shop.  i don't think the shop lady knew she could move so fast to take a picture!

notice the scuff marks already on the toes of the shoes....

healthy weighty wee man stood today.  on his own.  for nearly a full 20 seconds.  he wanted to walk, I could see the desire in his wee weighty form.  but he didn't.  he plopped to the floor and crawled over to the plastics cupboard to spread them all over the kitchen floor, it was much safer.

Okay maybe not quiet as you might think, I find that when I go places and then I discover I have forgotten my camera or don't even take it along as it is not really a photo taking adventure (shopping is not always worth taking the camera along!) and then I want desperately to share the experiences with others, my descriptive words seem to be lacking.

Yesterday I went to Dublin on an adventure of my own, (I went to be a model for an advertising campaign the company I work for is doing) and when I got home I was full of the desire to share my experiences of seeing buildings hundreds of years old, never mind the fact that I called into one to buy a sandwich and a coffee, mixed with the modern designs the likes of the Dublin Spire, the bustle of people as they go about their own business of the day, the mix of different voices from all over the world, I over heard conversations in French (which I understand), Polish (which I don't), London accents, Scottish accents, very Belfast accents, along with a some North American (I didn't stop long enough to decifer between Canadian & American), the city dressed up for Christmas, carols being sung by buskers, the unmistakable crinkle of the heavy paper shopping bags the shops use, the wind whipping my hair about bringing with it scents of food cooking from take aways & pubs, perfumes from shops, that green smell only trees have, overlaid with exhaust and cigarette smoke as only a major city can have.

The sights I have instilled in the photo album of my mind are bursting to be shared and I just can't find the words to describe them.  I think I must ask Santa to bring me a small digital camera that will fit in my hand bag so that at times like this I can share my adventures with you.

7am before the alarm goes on insane mother of three's mobile, the squirms of a healthy weighty wee man can be heard but are attempted to be ignored as he is not screaming ... then a wee blonde head peeks over the side of insane mother of three's bed ... "Hello mummy!" this wee blonde head is attached to a wee body that is clutching something from insane mother of three's dressing table that is 'forbidden'.  A groan is elicited and out of bed insane mother of three gets. (on a RARE occasion insane mother of three is able to hit snooze twice and this happens at 7.45am).

7.05am amid numerous SHHHH's to the wee blonde child (whose volume happens to be stuck on LOUD!) to be quiet, oldest large child is raised out of bed, her uniform gathered up and three of us go down stairs. (most mornings the healthy weighty wee man has gone back to sleep)

7.15am cereal is poured and oatmeal set to cook in the microwave as the school uniform gets put on the heater to warm before wearing.

7.20am school lunch is started between getting oatmeal out of micro wave & cooling it while setting kettle to boil a couple times in a vain effort to get a cup of coffee poured before its time for insane mother of three to leave for work.

7.30 to 8am school lunch is made and put into school bag, consistent nagging at oldest large child to finish breakfast and get uniform on as lady from two doors down will be arriving soon to collect her to go to bus pick up, amid constant shhh'ings to wee blonde child to be quiet as healthy weighty wee man is sleeping and so is daddy most mornings at the moment. also during this time work clothes are sought out and pressed as need be and clothing for healthy weighty wee man and the wee blonde child is collected and set out for the daddy to dress said children if not enough time is had before leaving for work.

8am to 8.15 oldest large child is bustled out door to wait at gate of neighbour lady two doors down that walks oldest large child to bus pick up coz she already goes with her own two children. this is amid constant shhh'ings and chastisings of wee blonde child to get out and off of cupboards.

8.15 to 8.30 healthy weighty wee man is brought down stairs to join mayhem of wee blonde child and have his breakfast. also during this time insane mother of three's face is washed in kitchen sink for convenience of watching & feeding children as well as tap is easier for washing face as only one spigot and the bathroom sink has two .... not all that easy to wash face with warm clean water .....

8.30 to 8.35 wake up daddy to mind children as insane mother of three gets dressed to go to work.

8.35 to 8.40 reminder to daddy that insane mother of three is leaving for work and wee blonde child and healthy weighty wee man are loose on ground floor of house

8.40 to 8.45 brush teeth (if insane mother of three remembers to!) and run out door to car to go to work to start at 9am

8.45 to 8.50 run back in to house to grab kettle to use warm water to melt thick layer of frost that has formed on car over night.

8.50 to 8.55 drive like insane maniac (usual for over here!!!) up to work car park

8.55 to 9am run at break neck speed into building up stairs and to desk to log on to phone before scheduled start time has expired on clock.

9am to 5.15pm answer calls from people looking for information about bank insane mother of three works for as well as take in the occasional personal loan or savings account application.  Calls are very slow this time of year and more time is spent on limited surfing the internet (many web sites are blocked), passing bad jokes between co workers via email, web texting husband & sister-in-law out of boredom.

5.15 to 5.30pm drive home (at a normal pace this time) and occasionally make stops to get things needed at home for evening meal etc.

5.30pm to 9pm make evening meal as needed, feed children, bathe children, eat own dinner, visit with husband, read homework with oldest large child, fold laundry & put more wash on, if lucky check email, and read blog(s) of friends in Canada before being evicted from computer by husband in aid of of the guise of looking for work while he is really shopping on eBay for christmas pressies!

9pm to 10pm get children off to bed in varying stages while trying to continually visit with husband and trying to stay wake.

10pm to 11pm fall asleep in arm chair while holding either wee blonde child or healthy weighty wee man, to be woken by husband and sent to bed.

11pm to about 7am ish get broken sleep as one child or another (usually wee blonde child and healthy weighty wee man) or both will wake at one point in night only to be tucked back up in bed usually happening about 3am.

7am start day over again ...