Ah, my last morning in Ireland and the first night that I’ve actually slept somewhat soundly! This is what the past 10 days or so have looked like….
Ten days ago, my husband and I flew to Michigan to attend Dr. Mark Barclay’s Ministry of Helps conference. Every one of his conferences are amazing and I wanted to take the whole 5 sessions we were able to attend, bottle them up and bring them home to our church. If people who are serving in their local church (and those who attend but don’t serve, especially!) could just grasp whom they are serving and the excellence in which we should be doing so…but so many go through the motions when it’s convenient and treat serving like it’s optional dependent on whether it’s raining outside, sunny, there’s a football game or if they’re “tired” (my personal favorite) and miss the blessings intended for the cheerful giver. Commitment and a spirit of excellence is missing at workplaces, in marriages, and in church…. but I’ll save that post for another day.
From Michigan, we went to southern Ohio and had a quick dinner out with my mom, my sister, my niece and her boyfriend, my daughter AND my sweet little grandson, Killian Thomas. Too short of time to spend together but oh-so-sweet to me. Alas, the dinner was cut short by an early morning schedule because several hours later, Rick, my mom, and I drove to Cincinnati to board a plane for NYC. This trip, thus far, has been so special to me as I’ve watched my mom take in sights and sounds she’s never seen. She loved St. Patrick’s Cathedral and I am smiling inwardly now as I anticipate what she’ll think about all of the equally and exceedingly beautiful churches she’ll see in England and Rome. A couple of days ago, we wandered through a Catholic Church here in the little town of Adare (Limerick County) that was built in 1270. What a gift to have seen that, walked the Cliffs of Moher, eaten clotted cream and scones, visited with our rented farm cottage’s owner, Bryan, shopped through the narrow streets of Kinsale, played cards by the fire on the quiet evenings, and the many other things we’ve been done in the past 4 days in this beautiful country of Ireland. Beautiful memories. 
In a couple of hours, we’ll leave this sweet little cottage and say good-bye to Miller, the farm dog (a border collie) who greets us by our door every time we’ve come and gone. We’ll leave the greenest green grass and board a plane for London Town! I have to say that taking all of this in with Rick has been so, so sweet. The last time I visited Ireland, it was a little bit of a “pub crawl”. This time has been vastly different; vastly richer. Life is so much sweeter on this side of things.
When I have a little time, I’ll blog the photos we’ve accumulated! So… I’ve got to get dressed and get my British accent polished and ready to go. Who am I kidding~ I’ve been speaking in a horrendous British accent all week while trying to mimic an Irish brogue…. linguistics is not my thing. I try but it’s pretty laughable.
We’re slowly making our way to Rupacanina, Italy where my son will be marrying his stunning girlfriend of 10 years….but there are many adventures that lie between that day and now. My mom and other sister, Denise (who flew in to Shannon and met us a day or two ago) are packed and ready to tackle the UK and the weather forecast looks amazing!
Blessings,
Amy