We’re Not Catholic, but I Sent My Kids to Mass
My kids went to Catholic Mass today. We’re not Catholic. We’re American expats living in Ireland where the public school system is run by the Catholic Church with public tax dollars. Even many private schools are Catholic-influenced. Our kids (now 7 and 10) attend a private school that is not Catholic run. As a percentage, there aren’t a lot of these schools in Ireland, but they are growing in number and popularity. Twice a year our school offers the children an opportunity to attend a community-wide Mass during school hours. All the various primary schools in the parish attend. Of course, as parents, we have the right to opt our…
Visiting Ireland: Talking Statues
If you’re visiting Ireland or the Dublin area anytime soon, there’s a cool new feature in town. Statues that talk! And I’m not talking about the ones that ‘talk’ after you’ve spent the night at the pub. I’m talking about ones that can call your phone. With a lot of support, an initiative called ‘Talking Statues’ was commissioned by Sing London, whose projects “set out to connect people to each other and to the public spaces we share.” The statues use humor and drama to tell a story and connect the listener with Dublin’s history. Plus, these stories are written and recorded by some pretty famous folks whose work you might have…
Happy List: #45
Hello again! How was your week? I hope you knocked it out of the ballpark with your awesomeness! This week I shared a really good rule to help keep your home tidy. This tip works best if everyone in your household abides by the rule…which may very well be the rule’s downfall. I also shared a recipe I tried recently for Vanilla Coconut Cashews and Almonds. In other news, I’m out of Vanilla Coconut Cashews and Almonds. Here’s this week’s mash-up of random goodness. SWEET POTATO BROWNIES Speaking of goodness, has anyone made sweet potato brownies? I love sneaking vegetables into food, so I’m super curious about this recipe for…
Vanilla Coconut Cashews and Almonds
Our household is a bit nutty consumes a lot of nuts: cashews, almonds, pistachios, pecans. In fact, I just ate a handful of almonds while writing this post. I’m all about raw nuts for baking and cooking, but for snacking I like a bit of salt. Sometimes in the afternoons around 3 p.m. I like a bit of sweet. While procrastinating doing important online research, I saw a recipe for Vanilla Cashew Clusters on Kitchn and I could not make the recipe fast enough. But first I had to go to the store. Isn’t that always the case? Motivation strikes and you’re missing an ingredient. But when temptation strikes there’s ALWAYS a pint…
One Touch Cleaning Rule
Do you know how many titles I went through for this post trying to keep it clean (no pun intended) and not suggestive? Ha! Still not sure I succeeded. I recently read an article on Apartment Therapy about a simple strategy for keeping your home tidy. You had me at simple, Apartment Therapy. I was hoping thinking perhaps the simple strategy was to hire a housekeeper. And then the universe laughed. In other words, nope. Not the strategy they were advocating. But it was almost, if I use a very loose definition of that word, as good. It was to use ONE and only one touch to move an item from…
Happy List: #44
Welcome back to the Happy List! This week I shared the Scandinavian idea of using two duvets on one bed. I also debriefed our experience with Storm Ophelia. Here are some other things that floated my boat this week… BROWN SUGAR FUDGE WITH PUMPKIN SPICED WALNUTS Okay. I like the IDEA of this recipe, but I’m wondering if it is all hype because there’s hardly any pumpkin spice in the recipe. I make these controversial declarations in the hope that someone will make the recipe and give me a sampling. Walnuts aren’t my jam, so I’d probably switch them out for pecans. Hint, hint. Check the recipe out for yourself…
Living in Ireland: Storm Ophelia
I had planned to share a delicious recipe with you today, but food isn’t on my mind. Coming from me, this is pretty shocking, I know! I’m always thinking about food. Storm Ophelia, the remnant of Hurricane Ophelia, pounded Ireland on Monday. It was predicted to be the worst storm in 50 years to hit the island. The island, which includes two countries, the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, is the size of Indiana in terms of land mass and approximate population. If you’re thinking it is extraordinarily rare for a hurricane – even one downgraded to a tropical storm or depression – to make it this far north, you’d…
Sharing a Bed, But Not the Bedding
Editor’s Note: Hurricane Ophelia is expected to hit Ireland today. A ‘red weather warning’ has been issued for the entire country as this could be the worst storm to hit the island in 50 years. The west coast of Ireland is expected to take the brunt of the storm. The Dublin area, on the east coast where we live, will be impacted as well. As of 11 a.m. local time there is no rain, but wind gusts have started and it is unusually warm. Buses and trains are running this morning in the city, but schools and government offices are closed and people are advised to stay home. Thanks to…
Happy List: #43
Here we are again, folks! And it’s a Friday the 13th! Ooh! This week I shared how I used rope to makeover a planter and a list of easy, mostly recyclable Halloween decorating ideas. Also, this mirror makeover of mine made an appearance on Funky Junky Interiors last week. Be sure to check out that post. So many great projects and bloggers were featured! Here’s what else made me smile this week. FUNNY PARENTING TWEETS I love it when HuffPost rounds up funny tweets. This latest article on 23 Funny Tweets That Will Ring True To Anyone Who’s Been Married made my day. Here are a few that made me…
5 Easy, (mostly) Recyclable Halloween Decorating Ideas
My interest in holiday decorating comes and goes. I’m not sure why. Different seasons of life, perhaps? My interest or lack thereof in storing A TON of holiday decor is more steady. I like to keep some Christmas and autumn decor, but I don’t have space or the desire to store items for all the other holidays. If I can make it and recycle the decor when I’m finished, I consider that a holiday decorating win. Here are 5 easy Halloween decorating projects that are low-on-cost, high-on-impact and (mostly) recyclable. I should note that after I wrote this post, I was doing a little fact checking. Yes, I do aim…
