No Barbecue

So I went home to Ireland as promised for my Aunt Mary' s 60th Birthday Barbecue celebration...except that there was no barbecue and no Mary!

But I still had fun catching up with family for the weekend...highlights follow:

• mum taking me shopping for clothes (that are not Tshirts and combats)
• my brother Olan taking, Sheila, mum and me to Greens where I had such an amazing tagine of monkfish that I considered leaving my number in the comments book!!!
• David and Sarah, my niece and nephew (above) making rice krispie cakes in my honour - Sarah did the sprinkles
  
• talking, eating and drinking into the early hours of the morning...my mums apple crumble featured in most meals (yes I will admit it even breakfast)
  
• dancing into the early hours of the morning
• walking some kms in the morning and getting sunburnt in the only 3 hours on Sunday from 10am-1pm that there was sun in the whole weekend.
• finding more Banksy-like graffitti (see right)
• checking out David's new blog and working through some different ideas and ways to share info and teach each other what we know and keep in contact.
• catching up on news and laughing at those family jokes or familyisms that would make no sense to anyone outside...
• finding the book that I told Craig that I was going to read again because he was reading it because the reason I couldn't find it at home was because I thought it was so good that I thougt my mum should read it and gave it to her - I got it back again and started reading it and realised all over how clever a book it is.
• did I mention the monkfish - no really if u are ever in Cork in Ireland - go to Greens - forget starters or deserts, don't eat breakfast that morning and order two monkfish main courses...you won't regret it - that is unless you actually do leave your telephone number in the comments book!
• oh and actually getting in and out of the country was definitely a highlight seeing as I discovered my passport was out of date!