Moms here & planes, trains & automobile holiday's!

May 26:

Got the boys up and in the car early so that we could hit the road I Shannon. It was my first time going to Shannon so I wanted to give myself some extra time to get there just in case I got lost. Plus I figured her plane would be a little early so I didn't want her to have to wait for us.  So by the time we get there, go pee, get the boys changed out of PJ's and into clothes oh and feed them oatmeal while in the bathroom because they can't wait until we get out...Mom was already out waiting for us. She was like 45min early which was crazy.  So she got to play with the boys for a little before we headed out.  She even brought us a special treat from Chicago...Garrett's popcorn...so amazing!!!  Glad to have my mom here safe and sound and glad to have a little extra help too. 

So although mom was tired from her flight we were all hungry so we decided to meet up with a couple friends for a morning coffee and breakfast.  It was nice for mom to be able to meet some of my friends because I knew the week to be busy and I wasn't sure if you would have time to meet up with anyone. So Nicole and Michelle were able to meet her and I think they enjoyed talking to her. She was pretty excited to meet them as well... Meeting some of my Irish friends makes her happy.  After breakfast we went back to the house to relax for the rest of the day. It's going to be a long week...   Oh and later that afternoon we realize that mom and I have forgot the bag of Garrett's popcorn at the airport. I was pretty upset about it and even called the airport to see if anyone had turned it in at lost and found… Even though I knew it wasn't likely someone would turn in a bag if popcorn. The guy at the lost and found was very nice though, he said he would go into a sweep of the building to see if you could find it but he did say he doubted that it would be turned in. I was supposed to call him back later that evening but got too busy trying to get the boys bed bathed and in bed before heading out to my committee meeting.  I invited mom to come with me that I knew she was a little tired and will probably fall asleep during the meeting… We were only talking about mom and toddler stuff so it wasn't like it was going to be very interesting anyway. 

Apparently Kanye West & Kim Kardashian also flew into Cork today or last night and there have been a ton of Kim-ye sightings & FB post about it.  Kind of crazy ironic

May 27:

We decided yesterday that we would take a drive up to Kilkinny to see the sights so after dropping Mike off at work mom and the boys and I headed out on the road to Kilkinney. We made it in good time since we took the highway and the boys seem to do okay in the car ride as well. I wasn't exactly sure what to do there but I heard it was beautiful and lots of sites and a cool little town to walk around so that's pretty much what we did. Of course you have to go to the castle but I wasn't interested in going inside so mom tool Lino in with her and Shaun and I walked around the park area and waited for them. I also went to the tourist office to get the map and some information about what to doing to tell which was helpful mom got done with the tour we were able to plan the rest of the day. 

Mom and Shaun in front of the castle

So we pretty much spent the day in Kilkinny have lunch and did a lot of walking around. It was a cool little town I'm glad we went out there.  On the way home we took the scenic route and went through Waterford and Youghal.  I knew when we got to Waterford we would be too late for mom to go on the Waterford Crystal tour but it was cool anyway for her to see the building and walk-through and see all of the amazing crystals they had on display.  Waterford is also cool town to walk. We just didn't have the time to do it. Next was a quick stop in Youghal that ended up being alone stop and dinner. Mom wanted to get a picture of the boys by the beach even though the beach isn't the best it was nice for them to just hang out. And today was a very nice beautiful clear Irish day so it was perfect for walking around the town and getting a nice picture by the beach. 

We had dinner at the bar by the beach headed home everyone was super exhausted. I thought I was going to make it to Zumba class but I was just too tired to go so we just crash when we got home...need to rest up for tomorrow's adventures. 

May 28:

Took a drive up to Dublin so that mom could see the capital. I wanted to leave after dropping Mike off at work but we were a little slow...as usual.  I decided to pack us a lunch so that we didn't have to spend so much money eating out and hopefully save a little time as well so that we didn't have to stop to eat. That was a food idea in theory but in order to execute that idea it took more time than I thought...oh well. So we made the long drive to Dublin with only a couple of stops. On the way up I told mom that I should have put her on the train so that she could get there early to do her sightseeing but I guess it's too late for that now. So the plan was for mom to do the sightseeing tour bus, the hop on hop off the boys and I will go to the zoo. I would've went on the bus for with her but I just didn't want to put the boys on the bus and off the bus and then do it all over again we go on vacation this weekend. Plus we really didn't get to see the zoo that well the last time we went so I know the boys would enjoy going to see the animals instead. So since we were going to split up we need to make sure mom had a way to get in touch with me there's any issues so Mike gave up his phone for the day and mom and I were able to communicate phones which was very helpful. So once the park closes at six we had planned to meet up and have dinner head back. And it actually worked out pretty well except mom wanted more time in the city which I expected but the boys played at every single play area at the zoo and were pretty much ready to go at 6 when the zoo was closing. So we were trying to figure out what to do for dinner and mom wanted to get those cards that she did not have the time to do on her tour so we decided to go to the Houston train station so that she could get postcards and we might pick up something to eat. As we walked in I was looking around the postcard I ran into Cara and her husband and two boys, they were just getting back from their vacation waiting at the station for the train to leave. It was nice running to her so we all decided to sit down and have dinner together at the Supermax, chatted and talked about vacation & kids & stuff.  It was nice to my mom got to meet another one of my friends the funny part is that the three people that she's met in Ireland and all that American… It's just kind of funny that the friends that she's meeting are all American and none of my Irish friends. So what was supposed be a quick trip into the station ended up being a couple of our dinner with friends which was nice but meant we didn't get home until really late so we were all super super exhausted!!  And I had Lino out school today because I wanted him to spend the time with Nana and to visit the zoo but I was planning on sending him to school on Thursday so I just hope he gets enough sleep and isnt too cranky in the morning...we will see. 

May 28:

Mom was talking to me about how light it is in Ireland  and I can only just laugh because she just doesn't understand... I think now she kind understands why I have all the towels in foil sheets over the windows try make it as dark as possible to try to get the boys to sleep as long as possible during these long summer days. I didn't get a chance to do anything with her windows so she's up at 5 every day because the sun is basically shining in through the windows... Welcome to my nightmare world!  After a chat about the long days we dropped daddy & Lino off and mom got to meet some of the other moms at the school which was nice. Ten we headed over to Mahon Point to do a little bit of shopping and for her to see the farmers market.  I had planned to do some shopping for a few things but ended up running into some of my friends at the farmers market so we chatted with them grab some food and before leaving to get Lino I stopped to get Lino & Shaun some Indian food for lunch.  We spent the rest of the day at home...I needed to start thinking about packing so that meant I needed to do a little washing to get prepped so I put mom in charge of the boys for the afternoon.  Well I guess she was as tred as I was becaaue at one point she was falling asleep in the play room while the boys were playing.  It was too funny...I can't be mad becaaue I know she is more than exhausted and with the time change, jet lag and all the traveling she's been doing since she's been in Ireland I know she is completely spent.  But I still had to get a picture of her napping because it was too funny. 

So I thought I would treat myself to a little bit of some pampering since I had some help with the boys and we're going on vacation but it wasn't as easy as I thought it would be.  I have wash my hair that morning and just wanted someone to flat iron it for me so that I didn't have to break my arms trying to flat iron it myself. Called around a couple places and they all acted like they were super busy and since I didn't have a reservation they would be able to get me and finally I was able to find a place that would take me in. I was pretty annoyed by that because back home to city much any salon and get my hair flat ironed without an appointment. Then I wanted to try and find a place to do my nails since I hadn't had a pedicure in over three months and that was even harder. The next available appointment was like Saturday which of course wasn't any good to me since we would be gone by then so I have to just do my nails myself I guess next time a better plan further in advance.  So I ended up going to the little island salon and it seem like the lady who was doing my hair was just a trainee not even a real stylus. She was nice but you could tell she was an experience and totally had no idea what to do with my black hair...all  I could do was laugh. And she did a good job and I made an appointment to get my eyebrows waxed for the next day again crazy that I couldn't just relax today it would've taken more than 10 minutes away I'll come back tomorrow.  Then I went to get the car cleaned and vacuumed since I wasn't able to get it done this morning while at Mahon Point becaaue they were so busy.  It really worked out becaaue the place I ended up taking the car to was 1/2 the price which was nice...except I had used all my cash at the salon so I had to walk to the bank to get money out so that I could pay. I kind of felt funny walking to the bank because they were almost done with the car but I just made it seem like I needed to go to the store anyway which I did. So I picked up some money and picked up stuff to make dinner for mom and the boys headed home. 

This is her trying to take another nap before the evening.  Even though it's 7o'clock it's still super bright outside so what do you do… Put a blanket over your head!!!

So mom got the little napping before we headed out for our date night/ anniversary date. It is super nice to have family in town in order to do things like this without having to spend a lot of money on a babysitter. Even though we just went to the same little place we always go to it was nice to get out and have a chat and it was on a weeknight which never happens!   Happy 6 year anniversary honey!!!!

After dinner it was still light out even though it was late so we decided to stop by the wine bar and have another glass... or bottle of wine before heading home.  Ahhhhh the joys of having family at the house don't have to worry about how much more money it will cost us to pay the babysitter to stay out an hour longer. So after a bottle of wine now we were hungry again or maybe were getting a little bit tipsy so we decided we better soak up some alcohol two seats so we headed over to the Tesco and got a couple slices of cheesecake to go.  And on our walk back to the cards I saw this huge snail on the wall and I knew Lino would love it so we had to take it home with us to give him as a surprise in the morning. 

The snails of Ireland are HUGE!!!!!!

May 30:

Friday Friday!!!!  I was pretty much done party mom around Ireland so decided to drop her off at the city so that she could have a walk around Cork. Mike suggested that I let her take Shaun with her so that I could have a little bit of a break since she was in town...so I did. I know that you made it harder for mom to do her sightseeing but I'm sure she'll be back to visit us again and it won't be a problem for her to see Cork anytime so what the heck. So after dropping them off in the city I decided to head back over to my side of town and go to the coffee shop and chillout. Of course I ran into so instead of having me time and I ended up having semi-adult time which was actually pretty nice. So we sat and chatted for a coffee and cake until it's time for me to pick up Lino.   After I got Lino headed to the city to pick up mom at the train station and she was right on time which I was shocked about.  She seemed to have a good time with Shaun but said that she needed more time there as well which I knew she was going to say.  And she was all excited about going to see Cobh because she didn't know about the Titanic. I told her I would try to take her there since it wasn't very far from us but I wasn't sure if thhe would have enough time but I would try.  First we have to go home and pack so she help me pick out clothes for the boys and I got pretty much everything in order which was nice. Then I was going to head out take her to Cibh but Martha was also supposed to come by but we hadn't seen or heard from her so I wasn't sure if she was going to make it or not so we were about to head out when Martha finally came by. Martha seemed to be okay with me leaving the boys with her and taking mom to come but I didn't feel right leaving her there after she had just arrived so instead I just took mom to the post office so that she can mail off her postcards and we headed back home. Plus the guy for the boiler was supposed to come by so I didn't want him to come by with only Martha there.  The boiler guy said he would be about 20 minutes and of course it took over an hour to get there so technically I didn't have enough time to take mom to Cobh called but oh well nothing I can do about it now.  Finally mom was able to meet one of my Irish friends and my first friend so it was worth it anyway.   Mom seem to like Martha a lot which I expected more this pretty personable and mom pretty much likes anyone who likes to talk so they got along well.  So we hung out for a while while the boiler guy worked on the boiler, I just wanted to make sure the boy was fixed so that we got back he would have hot water.  Martha left, we finish packing and got Mike homework. Vacation is only a few hours away… Yipee!!!!!?

Saturday May 31:

We had an early flight out of Cork so we got up, loaded the car and just through the boys in the car seats in their PJ's/travel gear.  We were a little bit worried about the flights since Friday Aerlingus  staff went on strike and tons of flights were cancelled but  thankfully the strike was over on Saturday and we didn't have any issues getting checked in.  We actually got there early enough in the morning that we beat the early crowd as well so check you was really fast.   We even had time for breakfast...don't we look rested and excited?

Lino reading up on the safety procedures in case of an emergency.   He was seriously into it...seriously. 

So we flew from Cork  to Amsterdam and Amsterdam into Rome and I couldn't be happier to feel the heat in the air!  When we got to Amsterdam for our transfer Mike was a little bit behind us so mom & I went on ahead but got stopped at the customs station because I didn't have my husband with me.  I didn't realize I had to have him with me in order to travel I'm Europe. I never needed it to go to & from Ireland but i guess everywhere else you have to have the other partners permission or have them with you.  I guess that's to keep parents from stealing the kids...kind of crazy but good.  Thank goodness we were traveling together because I would have been screwed.  Other than that the flights were fine.  The boys were a little tired but not too bad but when we went to get our luggage and realized our luggage wasn't there we were starting to get a bit worried.  So Mike went to the helpdesk to figure out what happened and it appears that our bags got left in Amsterdam...which sucks.  Well it really wasn't that bad since we got to Rome pretty early in the afternoon and we were going to spend the day in the city anyway but it is kind of a pain that our bags aren't with us.  And it seemed to take over an hour to get the bag situation all figured out so that cut into some of our sightseeing time as well...oh well. Oh and since we didn't have any bags we could have took the Metro to our hotel instead of getting a taxi service but since we had already scheduled it we kind of felt obligated to use them so more money wasted.  But after we got checked into our hotel which was nice, we where able to get a quick lunch (pizza & carbanara) and start walking around to see what Rome was all about.  I didn't think about it until we started walking around but I didn't have my camera with me since it was still in my suitcase that mom had hers so we just made the best of what we had. We figured that we would see these sites again tomorrow anyway so it wasn't that big of a deal.  So we walked down to the Coliseum and I was just blown away by how amazing and amazing this amphitheatre was. I just couldn't believe that this amazing building was built so long ago when technology wasn't nearly as developed as it is today yet it is still standing... just amazing. 

I never really talk to Lino about the gladiators but I started to prep him on what we were going to see tomorrow when we go inside for a look. He was kind of excited to actually SEE the gladiators and didn't really get that fact that they use to fight there. Oh well, I tried to explain it more when we get inside. I can't wait. 

Just amazing!!!!

We did think about just going ahead and doing a tour of the Coliseum today but when we got into the line and saw how long it was we figured we could just order tickets online to make it quicker to get in tomorrow.  So then we headed down to the Spanish steps just for another look around.  That was a cool little area is well, and  especially cool because I remember seeing an episode on amazing race when they had to count steps of the Spanish steps...makes me feel like I was a part of the show...hahahaha. 

I don't remember what this was but it was in front of the steps. 

 

The steps...were crowded!!!

View of the area.  So cool, I can't believe I'm in Rome!!!

Since we were in Rome we had to get gelato and Mike was dying to get some so we decided to take a little break amd sitdown have coffee and gelato.  Right near where we were at it was a little festival going on, it looked like a Buddhist or Hindi  festival but I'm not exactly sure.

Lino having his first REAL gelato...he seems happy about it. 

I think the festival is following us!!!

They were throwing cookies and bananas from the float...bananas??? Really??? That seems a but random but ok. Lino had to have a banana so we followed the float until we caught one. 

Some of the street performers...kind of cool.  But Lino was scared by them so daddy had to take a picture with them instead. 

Daddy looks happy even tho he is super tired...he's happy to be in Rome too. 

Went to see the Trevi fountain next...I didn't know you were suppose to make a wish but Mike made sure we all threw in a coin and made a wish.  I love these pics of the boys...love these little and big men to pieces.  

Daddy & the boys making a wish...well Shaun kept his coin. I guess he didn't understand making a wish but Lino & daddy did.  I can't believe I got such a good pic. 

Shaun was obsessed win the water and wanted to drink it of course. And yes the boys are in their PJ's but remember we have no luggage so we just went as we were. Love the faces of these boys...

My favorite!!!

We did a little more walking around after this then headed to dinner.  On the way I stopped and got a very touristy book on Rome but was pretty excited about it and Mike saw the biggest block of Pecorino Romano cheese that he's ever seen and had to take a pic...hahaha. 

For dinner we ended up just stopping at a pasta place that had pretty good pasta but the stuff they put on the pasta was a little to authentic for us. I made mom order an octopus something and I got a sea bass something...both were very fish and mom didn't like it at all. But to her credit she did eat the sea bass one...stomached thru it at least. Mikes was ok, but he didn't seem to be too impressed either...hopefully the food will get better. I think we are just to American that's all. So back late and boys were pooped of course so we got them cleaned up quickly and in bed and Mike & I were able to excape for a min up to the roof top patio for a glass of wine. This is when having mom along for the ride really makes a difference!!!

Sunday June 1:

Sun was up early so so was the boys. I tried to take Shaun out of the room and put him back to sleep so that he didn't wake everyone but Lino woke up anyway. Eventually I got Shaun back to sleep but not Lino...means it's going to be a long day. 

The view from our room...the colosseum is actually a little further to the right but I couldn't get a pic of it from the angle that I was at. 

Just a little bit more to the right and you could see it...we were pretty close with was cool. 

So while we were getting ready we got tickets for the Colosseum so that we didn't have to wait in line. We walked down to it and again I was just amazed...so excited to be able to experience such beauty with my own eyes!  We ran into some "gladiators" on the way there and I thought Lino might want to take a picture with them but he didn't...he was actually scared the poor baby. So maybe after we see the inside he won't be so scared.  Thankfully we had the tickets because the ticket line was long of course and we were able to basically skip all of it. We thought about a guided tour but decided it wasn't worth it and in the end I think that was a good choice.  We really enjoyed just walking around and seeig the different artefacts but sometimes we did want to ask questions about the place but who to ask??? Well my hand book ended up coming in handy because there was a lot if info in there so we actually did use it. I tried to explain the gladiators some more to him while we were inside but he just kept asking why weren't they fighting inside.  Eventually, like when we were about to leave, he finally got it that they use to fight there but they don't anymore. And he also asked why gladiators don't fight anywhere else and I had to explain how it's not nice to fight others people or animals and it was to "not nice" so they made them stop doing it all together.  He seem to get that right away :-)

Love birds inside the Colosseum 

Next to the hop on & hop off bus. We had bought our tickets yesterday but the buses were so busy because this was a holiday weekend so we had to wait a little while before we could get on. The sights were amazing and I couldn't tell you all the places that we say but the old city structures and buildings were all amazing.  The rest of the day was spent on & off the bus. We spent a little time looking at some Roman ruins that was pretty cool. Mom, Shaun & I did at least and Mike & Lino ended up taking a nap on the steps in front of some museum.  It was funny to come back to them and see them laid out on the steps. Mom took a pic but I didn't...I'll have to see if I can get it to add to the blog.  

Found it....

While we were looking at the sleeping birds some lady came over to me and wanted to take a picture of Shaun because she said he was the cutest baby she had ever seen.  I thought she was joking but she seriously took her camera out and asked me to move his head over (he was snuggling his head in my cheats while in the sling) so that she could see his face.  So I did, and I just laughed...that's the craziest thing I've ever seen. Who would want a picture of some strange random baby???? Crazy...  After that mom wanted to go into some building to go up to the top and Mike & I were not so interested so we decided to split up and we said we would meet at the "Parthenon" and Mike pointed towards some structure that he thought was the Parthenon. After mom went her way and we started on our way I told Mike, again that the building was the  Pantheon but he didn't believe me until we comfirmed with the map.  So we started walking towards the building that he had pointed towards earlier and come to find out it wasn't the right one. So we started to head towards the actual Pantheon but decided to stop and wait because we were worried the mom might get lost since we had told her to go that way. So it ended up waiting in front of some building for over an hour trying to see if we could see mom walking by going towards the building that Mike had directed at you earlier. In the meantime I had to walk halfway across the plaza area to find a toilet and decided to bring back some ice cream for the boys since they were just sitting and waiting for so long. We finally decided that we should just head to the Pantheon because she will more than likely find her way there. Well it wasn't as easy as just heading there because we debated about it for the while walk and then ended up getting turned around.  We were trying to figure out if she went back to the hotel or do she go to the building that Mike pointed at and stayed there or what.  She didn't have the tickets for the bus so we didnt really think she went back to this hotel so we just double checked in front of the building.  Then I decided to go into the building that she went into to see how long it would have took for someone to make it up to the top and back and found out it was a quick one, like 40min total.  So we knew she was more than likely at the Pantheon.   Finally, like 2.5hrs later we made it to the originally agreed meeting place and who was waiting for us at the steps...mom!!!!  She had an idea that we had got lost and she did go to the building that Mike had pointed at but once she realized it wasn't the Pantheon she started making her way to the real one. Thankfully she had only been there for about 30min so we didn't feel to horrible. But it was a little frustrating because we wanted to go inside since it was one of the only buildings with most of its original structure and arcithecher intact...oh well, maybe tomorrow. So we got dinner in the Pantheon plaza area which was really nice.  The place we went to was amazing and Mom really really enjoyed her dinner which was great!!!  By the time we finished and made it back to the hotel it was super late and I was beat but Mike was still wanting to hang out so he went up to thd roof top by his self...momma's getting to be an old fart :-(  but I need some rest!

Mike saw a sign with his mothers maiden name...

Dinner cuddles in front of the Pantheon

Monday June 2:

Another early morning for the boys but not too bad.  We got up and tried to get tickets to the Vatican but there were none available to purchase online so that meant we were going to have to test our luck with the lines.  Today was also a holiday so we didn't know how crowded if would be.  So on the way there Mike decided that it wasn't worth it to wait in the 3hr long line so we signed up for a guided tour.  In the end I was happy we did it because we got a lot of information and we did get to cut the line which was great.  Being inside the Vatican and the Sistine Chapel was amazing...I wish I could have absorbed the atmosphere a little more but with the two small boys it wasn't possible.  They didn't seem to be impressed by all the sculptures of old men's heads and they weren't even impressed by the naked sculptures either...I guess these kids were raised by wolves because they have no culture in them at all :-0

After a very very long day touring Vatican City we finally got a family picture.  And it was crazy because the lines to get in were crazy that morning but by the afternoon when we were done there was barely a line.  I guess if we would have waited to go in the afternoon we wouldn't have needed a guide, but I think it was worth it anyway. 

So we still had a bit of daylight left so we hoped on the bus one more time to take a ride down to the Spanish steps again because Mike wanted to get a Gelato at this place he went to when he was here in high school. Come to find out it was a pretty popular place because it was super busy but the Gelato was pretty darn amazing so I guess it was worth it.  We also ended up stopping at a little bakery to get some fresh pastries...ammorette cookies, some pistachio cookie and a cannoli...yum yum. That was real, authentic Italian bakery, so freaking delicious!!!! We walked around for a while just kind of wondering the streets of Rome and came up on a park area where there were a bunch of kids and a little street performer doing tricks & stuff for kids.  So we ended up sitting there for a while relaxing and enjoying the moment.  Lino had fun playing with the clown guy.  And even though he couldn't understand what the guy was saying he seemed to follow along well enough to have a few laughs and play with the Italian kids.  It was actually pretty special.  This was a great day and even though we aren't seeing any special/famous monument it's great family time for us.  The boys are happy running around with the other kids, chasing after dogs and getting balloon characters from the clown...just a perfect day. It was a busy day for us and long day for the boys so we called it quits and got dinner and headed back. Dinner was at some sandwich place but they had a nice meat & cheese board which we really enjoyed. 

Tomorrow we head up to Lake Garda...

Tuesday June 3:

Up, cleaned up, breakfast, packing and checking out of room.  I sure we could have spent another 5 days in Rome but we were pooped and it was time for some relaxation so we headed to the train station I catch our train to Lake Garda.  Overall I would have to say Rome was amazing and I really enjoyed it. I'm so blessed to have been able to go with my love, my boys & my mom. We also had really great weather so that made it all the better.  I wonder if Lino will remember any of this trip??? Probably not but I took lots of pics so I can show him all the cool things we saw.  I must say the boys have been pretty amazing so far so that is a true blessing. Now on to the relaxation part of thd trip. 

So we thought taking the train would be a little more relaxing than driving up but we didn't really factor in properly the logistics of transporting all of our crap to the train station, that was only a 10mkm walk (less really), then manoeuvring all of it through the train station which was a bit of a challenge while trying to chase after 2 boys.  Oh and you had to pay 1

€2 to use the toilet in the train station which was ridiculous!!!!!  I didn't know that at first so went to go pee but had no money then had to go back to get money...ugh. All that was nothing compared to not making it off of the train for our stop.  Yup, we got the doors slammed in our face when it was our stop because we were too slow.  It was crazy because we had no issues among the transfer in Milan, dragging our 50 bags with us but when we heard or stop and started to walk towards the doors to get off first the door wouldn't open then when I finally I fired out how I open them they closed right back.  Mom & Lino had actually got off but thankfully jumped back on before the doors closed so we were all stuck on the train together.  I was in such shock because the doors were only open for like 1.5min at the most.  I couldn't believe it was so quick.  And I was saying that and some Italian guy was like "yup, you missed your stop. Have to he quicker next time" and he walked off. I was so annoyed.   But thankfully a nice guy did tell us that we could get off at the next stop and wait for the next train going back to our stop.  So thankfully we were not completely screwed!!!!  So that's what we did but Mike was so worried that there wasn't going to be another train or that we would miss the 2nd train that he checked the train schedule at the main desk like 5x.  Thankfully we only had a 20min lay over at that stop before the next train came.  This time we didn't even go to our sears because we knew it was the next stop, 10min at the most, so we just stayed at the exit area with our stuff so that we could get off for sure.  Then when we did try to get off the freaking doors wouldn't stay open so there were like 3 guys helping us keep the doors open so that we could get off and get out crap off. It was a little funny too because mom was almost throwing the boys off of the train trying to go fast...hahaha. None of us wanted a repeat.  So we made it to Perchia del Garda & got a taxi to our camping site...not exactly camping but it wasn't a hotel either. It was an apt so no maid service but it was big and it worked out nice.  So we walked around the resort after we got all settled and tried to go to the pool but we got there too late, it was just closing, so off to dinner we went.  The resort was nice because even though our apt wasn't really fancy they had a small grocery store that we could get pretty much everything at so it made it a little cheaper than it would have been if we were at a hotel or if we had to go to a restaurant for every meal.  So before dinner we got a few things, wine snacks & stuff that we knew we would need for the night.  Dinner was ok, nothing special but the staff was super nice which was great.  After dinner we got the boys cleaned up and they hung out with Nana while Mike & I took a walk to the town with our cheap wine!  The walk to town want very long and the funny part is that Mike had suggested that we walk from the train station to our hotel but I gave him the look of death so he quickly gave that idea up and I think he agreed with the decision at the end.  It wasn't that it was a long distance but it would have been a pain with all of our bags and the boys and it would have only saved us €10.  Anywho, we had a nice walk an found a nice place to sit, chat and drink some more.  We ended up staying until this place closed then walked back to the apt.  Thankfully we had got some snacks from the store because now we had the munchies...how cool it is to sit and chill with the hubby and enjoy cheese, crackers, dried sausage and cheap wine together...no kids to worry about and no worries about rushing home so that we don't have to pay the babysitter extra!!!

 

Shauny pooped after a long day of traveling.

Wednesday June 3:

Chill day!!!! Hung out by the pool all day.  Well it wasn't exactly they are easy.  Since we were in the apartments you pretty much have to bring all of your suppliers that includes beach towels. And since we didn't bring them with us we had to rent some from the reception area. It wasn't that bad but it was just an extra step that we had to make before going to the pool.  We had already rented towels for the room and sheets with the bed so what's another €10 for beach towels???  The water in the pool was ice cold so Lino didn't enjoy it as much as I would have liked but he had fun anyway.  Shaun was in love with the water and even though he'd be shivering he didn't want I get out of the water.  At one point Mike went back to the store to get a float for Shaun because I did some pretty bad packing and totally forgot to bring the two floats that we had back at the house. The original one that he got was just for that arms which wasn't good for Shaun so we semt mom back to exchanging for the big tube that he could float in.  She didn't seem to get any grief from the people which was nice and the float that she got was perfect for what we need.  So now we were able to have a fun and relaxing pool day. The pools were very clean and we got there earlier enough to get a spot so it wasn't to bad.  It was nice to have a chill day!  And we made plans for Mike & I to have a late dinner so once the pool closed Mike & mom took the boys back to the room to clean them up and I went to get them some take away dinner.  They ended up eating outside which was nice but when it was time for Mike & I to leave they actectd like we were never coming back.  Those boys were in tears and having the biggest fits ever.  We tried to calm them down but it really didn't work so we just had to leave them.  I knew they were tired but it was a little hard to see them screaming for us at the door.  I guess they don't see us leaving them often enough.  So we headed to dinner in the town and we went to some place Mike found on trip advisor and it actually was really good.  Mike had the biggest veal steak he'd ever had and I had my first black pasta that was amazing. 

We had a nice romantic dinner then a late night cap at the bar.  Loving this day!

Thursday June 4:

Free day for Mike & I. Mom took the boys for the day and we took the train to Venice.  But before we left mom took a stroll down to the town to see what it was all about.  So I got the boys fed & dressed.  Mom even had time to go to the store to get snacks for the day...so efficient when she wants to be.  So we walked to the train station, had a quick cup of coffee & warm croissant before our train departed.  It was a 40mim train ride which wasn't bad.  We could have don't the trip with the resort but it was a guided tour and we just kind of wanted I do our own thing.  So we get to Venice and we are like "so what do we do???" Hahaha, so Mike hooked us up and went to the tourist station and got us a gondola ride set up.  So we only had the day in Venice, really only 5hrs so we didn't have that much time to do much but we didn't really want to do much.  So we strolled to the gondola place but stopped to take a bunch of pictures first and got pizza & ice cream of course. 

Before our ride, took a selfie on one of the million bridges.  A beautiful city...but a little smelly. 

So for our gondola ride I kind of had it in my mind that it would be similar to the gondola ride we had for our wedding...the guy would serenade us while we shared a bottle of wine/champagne as he told us a bit of history about Venice.  Well for €90 it was nothing like that!!!   The guy bairly talked to us and he was defiantly not going to serenade us. There was no booze and bairly got any bit of history.  We did see a guy, that tried to get us to ride with him, who was talking to his customers a lot and telling them all sorts of facts & history about the canals. So the moral of the story is don't book with the tourist people because they are over priced and not a good as the guys doing it on their own.  Otherwise, it was amazing, beautiful, romantic and pretty darn cool to be traveling through the canals like that.  Definitely a once in a life time type of thing.  So after our little ride we walked to San Marcus square which was packed with people but nice. Then more walking, I thin we walked about 20milles, untile we finally decided to stop and eat. We knew we were pressed to time but I didn't want to leave Venice thinking I didn't even stop I have a cup of coffee and sit and enjoy the moment.  So that's what we did...it was quick, as quick as can be in Italy, then we darted on.  We had actually walked quite a ways away from the train station and for a moment we thought we would be able to navigate ourself back in time for our train but decided it was too far and our sence of direction wasn't good enough so we thought, heck let's just get a water taxi back.  Well that sounded good in theory but when we asked one of the water taxi guys how much and he was like €60 we knew there was no way that was going to be an option. But thankfully there is a great boat bus system so we just took the boat bus back which was cheap and quick.  On the boat we were working out our time because we knew we didn't have a lot of time left but enough time for us to stop and get some souvenirs and for Mike to finally stop at a really bakery and get some fresh ammorette cookies.   Well we or our souvenirs but never found an authentic bakery, just the chain ones.  So we headed back to r&d train station thinking we still had about 20min to spare so I stopped to pee & Mike got something and he hecked the tickets to confirm the time of our trains departure only to discover it left 40min sooner than we had thought.  So we raced to the train to see if it was possibly late but no...SHIT!!!!  We are not having good luck with the trains here in Italy :-(.  So we went to the customer service area that was run on a ticket system and we thought we were going to be screwed.  We thought we had booked the last train to Perchia del Garda but come to find out there was another one going that way. Then Mike saw a self service Kios and was able to switch our tickets without much hassle...and we didn't have to wait in the crazy long line to do it thank god!  While we we doing all that I did see a couple that was on our train there and I stopped to see if they had missed the train too but they hadn't.  They were just now booking trains go back.  We chatted with them for a bit then on the train we went. We made back with no drama, met up with the boys & mom to get the the update for the day which seemed to he good.  I had forgot to tell mom to put sunscreen on Lino but she did anyway so I was happy about that.  I needed to so laundry so I put on a load of clothes while they got changed out of their pool gear.  The boys were happy to see us and they looked popped from being out in the sun all day.  Lino actually was staring to complain about his shoulders...I hope he doesn't have sun burn.  But just in case mom went to the store to get him some sun burn stuff...I feel so bad.  I didn't think he would burn. We hardly ever put sum screen on him but I guess that's because he's hardly ever out in the sun for a full day like this.   So dinner for all of us then bed for the boys. Mike & I decided to sneak out one last time because we knew we wouldnt be able to tomorrow.  Another walk to town, chats at the cafe & a gelato before heading back.  

Friday June 5:

Bad news...Lino has sum burn & so does daddy.  The spray stuff mom got seems to help a little but he doesn't want his shoulders  to be touched...poor kid.  Last day in Lake Garda so we asked mom what she wanted to do and she wanted to rent a boat.  She was a little sad she didn't get to go to Venice but was happy to spend the day with the boys but she also wanted to go on a boat ride which was perfect because we were planning on taking her on a boat ride anyway.  So we rented a boat for a couple of hours!   Mike loves the boat and even though we kind of wanted a guided tour it was nice to be able to so our own thing.  The boat was nice and the boys & mom enjoyed it.  The guys we had rented the boat from told Mike to find this gelato place and stop there because they had the best gelato on the lake.  So with some horrible navigating we find the dock that they were talking about but come to find out that was the easy part.  It took us about 45min to figure out how to park this damn thing.  We totally poked like tourist and finally someone felt bad for us and helped us.  By this time it was almost time to turn around and head back to the bill rental place.  We only barely had time to get a gelato walk to the end of the block a while back to the boat so that we could start the process of trying to get out the dock.  This process of course took us 20 minutes and I almost lost a finger trying to get the ball and hurt from the dock.  We were barely tired on to the place and getting now was a complete mess… Then again somebody had to come help us and they were all disgusted about the way we had hooked onto the dock as well but somehow we managed to get free and I didn't lose a finger.  So we spent almost an hour trying to park in and park the book I need to get a gelato...I'll we could do was laugh.  The gelato was pretty good then not sure if it was exactly worth all the hassle.  Thankfully we won't see those people ever again that Mike has a funny suspicion that there was a time of videos posted on YouTube or Facebook about crazy Americans trying to dock a boat.  In the In we all have an amazing time it was super relaxing than just nice to be out in the lake. I think we regret not getting the boat for the day because there are a lot of little towns on the lake that we would have liked to have seen.  And of course Mike was back into his boat fever and was talking about getting  a boat when we make it back to the states.  I guess we will cross that bridge when we get there but for now it was a great day with the family...

Lino driving the boat with daddy. 

Once we get back we decided to walk around the town together for a little while to stall before going to dinner. We were going to go back to the place that Mike and I went to so we didn't want to go back to the room and truck our way back to town so we decided to just hang out in the town until dinner.  The problem is that when we went to the restaurant to get a table we realized that they didn't open for another 1.5hrs... we kind of regretting that decision.  But instead of going back to the room Mike, the boys and I just relaxed in a parking lot area while mom walked around a little more.  Finally we had dinner that at this point everyone was completely wrecked so I  race to finish and rushed the boys back to the room to try and get them in bed.   Our last night in Lake Garda, seems like time flew by way too quick. 

Saturday June 7:

Time to move on to the next part of our vacation.  Since we were in an apartment we were responsible for cleaning up the room. So after the boys and we cleaned up, a little bit, then Mike went up to the reception area to check us out.  It was kind of sad to leave because we were having a really good time just relaxing and not doing any major sightseeing but we must press on.  Once mom and I got up to the reception area with the boys I saw this massive line and I just knew that was the checkout line.  Even Mike came around the corner and made it seem like that was the line we had to be in to check out and we were probably going to miss our train because the line wasnt moving at all!!!  Thankfully he was just joking, and outline was what people checking in. He had that is all checked out and we were just waiting for the taxi. I couldn't believe that massive line was for people checking in. I guess that's why we couldn't book the room for the weekend.  It was also pretty crazy because a lot of those people were getting told that there was no rooms available, even though they had reservations.  That's not good at all a good time to us to make sure the next time we can we can during the medium low season.  Which means we just barely missed the major crown and vacationers.  So we took the train to Mikan so that we could rent a car and drive to Switzerland.  We had decided a few weeks ago that we were going to extend our trip by two days so that we could visit Switzerland since we were so close.  I had asked a few people beforehand if they thought it was a good idea and most of them said no because they got Switzerland wasn't very nice but I think we made a good decision.  It seemed like it took us forever to get out of the Milan train station and make it to the rental car place but eventually we made it.  Oh, we "lost" Lino for a few minutes which was scary.  When we got off the train he was standing with mom and I. Mike was going to go and find directions to the rental car place so Lino was supposed to stay with us. I looked down to do something with Shaun then turned around to talk to mom for a few seconds when I turned back around and Lino  was gone!!!  It was literally less than one minute between when I saw him and when I didn't so I just assumed he walked over to one of the shops.  So for about 10 minutes and walked around the Milan train station looking for him trying not to freak out. Mom was pretty sure that he walked with Mike to go by directions but I wasn't so sure. After 10 minutes I walk back to mom and just waited...thankfully it was only another couple minutes before Mike was back and Lino was trailing him with a new car. I was so relieved. I told Mike what happen and he thought that Lino was staying wit us too but then all of the sudden Lino was at his heals so he assumed that I told him it was ok to go with daddy. So scary!!!  It's bad because I'm getting so relaxed with Lino in Ireland, not much kidnapping going on in Cork, so when we get in big cities like this I don't turn on the hyper vigilant mode quick enough...so scary.  So after that minor trama we grabbed a bite to eat in the train station before picking up the car and heading on our way.  At this point we pretty much use all forms of transportation, planes to get to Italy, trains and buses while travelling around Italy, now car to travel to Switzerland...what a vacation. The drive to Switzerland was pretty uneventful. Other then as being pretty annoyed with the GPS only working in Italy we made to the Switzerland border with no problem until the border patrol guys stopped us and told us to pull over.   We worked exactly sure why but it only took a few minutes to figure it out... Apparently we needed a tag to drive on the Switzerland roads which was gonna cost €25!!!!  Talk about a steep road tax that's kind of crazy but what can you do???  we are kind of committed at this point.  So we have decided beforehand that we would take the scenic rout to a destination and then I'm away back to take a more direct route. So scenic rout in Switzerland means winding roads and mountains!!!  Was actually a really really beautiful drive but all the winding roads did kind of make my stomached a little and easy...and moms stomach & nerves too.  It was one of the most beautiful and amazing dries I had ever been on.  I'm just glad I wasn't the one driving because some of those curves were a little scary

The view on the drive

One funny thing we saw while driving was the roads have a weird way of sharing lanes. The left side of the road was marked off with white lines and on the right side of the road was marked off with the orange lines. But in the middle of the road the white and orange lines crossed so basically you share a proportion of the road.  It was a little freaky at first but after a few minutes a kind of made sense. I guess the majority of the time you really don't need 2 full lanes you really only needed when your passing.  So when you pass muster the courage just move over a little bit more closely to the outside in order to give you room to pass.  Weird but I guess if works.   After we finally made it through the winding roads we start for a quick pee break and look at what I find in the vending machine.  Want some chocolate? Soda? Pregnancy test? Condoms? Marijuana soda? Dominos? 

Whatever you might need you can find it in this vending machine... Crazy.  And I guess we didn't really start at a gas station but rather a place that you can get gas because when I want to use the toilet I don't think it was exactly a public toilet. It must have been an apartment building because the kid came out and was fussing at Mike about throwing trash in one of the bins.  It was a little weird that I'm not exactly sure what we should have done. And the kids didn't say anything to me about using the toilet but he didn't give me a look like I shouldn't be doing that. How was I supposed to know???  Anyway after I quit and probably illegal start we headed on to Interlaken.  Since I GPS didn't really work my cared a second set semi directions for me to use but actually it was just a printed map of Interlaken.  So of course I was not able to navigate as directly to the hotel. We had to stop and ask for directions but still got miles but eventually we made it.  The town was so cool just driving to make this work to get out and walk around. You could definitely tell it was a tourist town because there were so many people walking around with cameras but we were excited to be there anyway.  After we finally get to the hotel and checked in and the car parked, everything was pretty much closed, 6 PM. We really only had one day to spend so we were hoping to get to the tourist station to figure out what to do but since it was closed we had to make our own plans.  We start are the people paragliding and dad about doing now but after seeing a video at the hotel about the top of Europe tour we knew that's what we wanted to do.  So we walked a little bit more than just decided to get dinner and head back to the hotel so that we can get up early and start our day.  We had been warned before hear that the Switzerland food wasn't the best but nobody warned us about the prices!!!!  I cant believe how freaking expensive the food is around here.  At least we went to a place that had decent food so it wasn't like we paid a lot and got crap food too but it was still more expensive then I would have guessed it to be.  So although we were excited about how nice our hotel room was once we got back to the room after dinner we realise there was a small flaw in the room, there was no AC!!!!  Of course Mike is the one to pick this hotel and I remember us having a debate about it when he picked it.   I wanted more time to look around at other options and he was like just pick a hotel so we can be done with it.   Anyway I had to laugh because now he was dying because it was so warm in the room.  The other crazy part was that we opened the windows but there was absolutely no guards on the windows at all. So now we were worried about the boy is trying to look out the window and accidentally falling out and falling to their death.  Who designs a room with no AC and puts windows in the room with no guards protecting people from five out of them???? Seriously who does that????  So we did some shuffling around and found a way to open the windows and keep the boys as far away from them as possible now all we can do is say a prayer that the don't get up in the middle of the night and sleep walk to one of the windows.   We were all pooped and hot so we all crashed!

Monday June 9:

Shaun was up super early today and again I tried to get him back to sleep before anyone else woke up but no luck. Lino was up too but I lift daddy in charge if him so that I could walk the halls € try to get Shaun back to sleep. If course since it was only 6am daddy wasn't in the best if moods so Lino ended up screaming at me through the door for a while before I went back in to settle him.  I only hopped he would go back to sleep but by the time I got back to the room with sleeping Shaun Lino was rolling a truck across daddy's head :-0.   So time to get up!!! I got Shaun and Lino cleaned up then headed to breakfast.  Mom met us down there then I went back up to wake Mike up so that we could get going and I was shocked to find he was showered and ready to go.  So he got breakfast and we headed to the train station.  We just barely missed the train that we were trying to make so had to wait another 30min for the next one. The tickets for the ride up to Jungfraujoch - Top of Europe, were SOOOOOOOO expensive, like $200 each!!! I can't believe it was so much, this better be worth it!  This was like the train ride from hell. The darn thing broke down and we had to stop like 4 times for some issue. What should have been a 2hr ride up the mountain took almost 3hrs which was crazy. Thankfully the view was amazing so we were able to keep the boys entertained with that.  At one point Shaun was getting pretty fussy and some guy had took our seats so I was standing rocking Shaun in the sling and the people sitting next to us were just all goo goo eyes over Shaun. The one man actually wanted me to give Shaun to him and Shaun wanted to go to him so I let him.  He actually sat with him quietly for about 10min which I was shocked about.  Shaun is like a super star!!! Everyone wants to hold him & he's so friendly too...that Shauny.  

One of the many stops along the train rid up the mountian. 

We finally made it up to the top and it was amazing. We spent the rest of the day there and the boys enjoyed every moment of it.  There was even a nice cave inside of the glacier which was amazingly cool!!!

View from top of Europe!

Lino & daddy climbing a snow hill then sliding down. Lino loved it. Shaun would have went up too but I had him on lock down...fear of him eating to much dirty snow.   

Eventually Shaun did get down and he loved being in the snow. Maybe his first time being in so much snow???  Lino kept trying to get us to make a snow man and we were like please no!!! That would take forever and we didn't have any gloves so he settled for throwing snow balls at Nana & daddy!  It was amazing how cool it was up there, not freezing cold at all. I was shocked but happy at the same time since we didn't really have the proper clothes for winter weather. 

Love this picture of us. Such a beautiful day, just amazing. 

Way up on the right of this mountain is where we took the pictures up above.  Crazy how high up we were!

A little bit about the mountain:

The Top of Europe is a high-altitude building located in the Swiss canton of Valais. It overlooks the eternal snows of the Aletsch Glacier from the south side of the Jungfraujoch, at a height of 3,454 metres (11,332 feet) above sea level. It is connected to the undergroundJungfraujoch railway station by a tunnel and to the Sphinx Observatory by an elevator. It has five levels.

The Top of Europe includes several restaurants and a permanent exhibition about the Jumgfrau Railway and the Alps. It also includes Europe’s highest-altitude post office. An older building includes a research station.

What a day we had. So much fun. The train ride down the mountain was much more bareable and Shaun saw his friend again who held him for a while and even too a picture with him...very funny.  So dinner and back to the room...daddy & I were not even thinking about going out. Oh at dinner another lady wanted to take a picture with Shaun...they love that kid. She was trying to convince her partner that they need to have a kid...not sure if Shaun helped or hurt her case :-)   After that long day and another long travel day ahead of us we just wanted to rest.  This must be one of the best vacations I've ever had. Having so much fun and getting to do some different things.  I'm really happy because the boys seem I be having a good time too which makes it all worth it!

Monday June 9:

Time to leave Switzerland but not before getting real Swiss chocolates and then for a little train tour of Interlaken, per Lino's request.  After our train ride, lunch & ice cream before hitting the road.  Had to share some classic pictures of Nana...everyone I try to take a picture of her she gives me this crazy look so it ends up taking 3-4 pictures before I get one with her not looking so mean of focused...love her!  

This is always the first shot that I usually delete. 

Shot #4 

Lino wanted some photo time too. 

Again, shot #1 for the group picture...I just gave up after this. 

So a nice long drive back to Milan. Mike did a great job on the mountain and actually enjoyed driving through it...while mom & I were a little less excited about it.  We both get a little car sick with all of the curves and turns but the ride to Italy seemed to be a lot easier.  We made it to our hotel & Mike took the car back to the rental place while we got settled in & found a place for dinner.  When he got back he was all upset because the rental car place tried to charge him an extra €18 to "fill up" the tank because it was 2L shy of full!  We had filled it up then he dropped us off at the hotel and he took it back so drove it less than 10miles and they acted like he didn't even fill it up.  Somehow he was able to reason with the guy and they only charged him for the 2L...unbelievable.  So dinner was close and good. Some of the best pizza I've had while in Italy.  And for dessert mom finally got her tiramisu and apparently it was amazing...she gave it the official Nana stamp of approval :-) 

Lino was in agreement that it was good. Too funny. 

Last night of vacation so Nana was on duty one last time so that Mike & I could have a stroll & sit at the bar & enjoy the Milan atmosphere.  I must say, I didn't realize there were so many things to do in Milan so I guess we are going to have to plan another trip to visit Milan.  But I didn't exactly love the vibe of the night life. We really felt like outsiders because of the way the waiter at the bar treated us, we had to ask for a menu & it took forever. But when locals would sit down she was right at their table with menus, cleaning the tables & snacks...oh well.  It didn't ruin the vibe...we've had such an amazing trip I don't regret one moment!!

Tuesday June 10:

Early flight to Amsterdam but luckily our hotel was only about 20min away from the airport.  We had decided to take the early flight to Amsterdam and the late flight out so that we could spend the day seeing a little bit of the country.  We didn't tell Nana until we got there and she was pretty excited about it.   So basically we got lunch, got on the hop on hop off bus and toured around for the day.  The weather was good but when it was almost time to go it did start raining a little but it didn't last long.  Nana went on a mad search for postcards and went into the marijuana shop and was like "their postcards are way to high" I had to die laughing...I had to. Hahahahaha. It was a fun & quick trip with the only real notable event being Mike loosing the HOHO bus tickets and the lady giving us a little grief about it.  And I mean a little, she was actually really nice about it and let us get on the bus even though we had no proof that we had paid or that we were valid to ride today.  She even called aroud to the lady I said we bought our tickets from to check to see if she remembered us which she didn't but she wrote us out a makeshift pass anyway.  Very nice of her.  The funny part is that I was the one buying the tickets while Mike & Nana were finishing up with lunch and when Mike got over to me he "took over" because I wasn't moving fast enough or something.  Either way, he took over and of course tossed all the credit card receipts so when he loss the pass we had nothing I mean noting to prove we had just bought the tickets.  Thankfully we were dealing with some nice people so it wasn't a major issue.   Flight home was quick & easy...boys even got some quality time together in their seat watching frozen together. 

Once we got home, which was kind of late, we were all tired and I had to get up early to get Nana to the Shannon airport so we just brought stuff in with the lights half way on and tried to get the boys in bed as quickly as possible. In the midst of all this I saw something on the ground and thought it was socks or something and picked it up.  But when it got in my hands I felt feathery and upon a closer eye I realized it was a FUCKING DEAD BIRD!!!!!  I about died!!!!! I screamed so loud and jumped up on the chair screaming "it's a bird!!! It's a bird!!! A dead bird!!! I just touched a dead bird!!!"  Nana immediately followed me up on the chair and the boys where not sure what to do.  Thankfully Mike stayed calm and got the carcus out.  It did have an odor so it must have been dead for a day or so but no bugs thank god.  But now I was freaked out at how it got into the house and what the hell it did!  So on the lights went and the inspection began.  I was horrified because there was bird crap everywhere.  We started to bleach/clean the floors and tables but I just couldn't deal with it.  I got the boys in bed then came back down to see what had to be cleaned and did that and left the rest for the next day.  I was pretty upset because of course the dumb bird tried to get out of the window that was closed which meant it was all over the couch by the window that had a ton of clean clothes on it.  So poop on the couch, a few poo drops on a couple of clothes that I could see and poo on the window seal in the kitchen.  Great...that means in have to rewashed all the clothes and figure out how I'm going to wash & sanitize the couch.  As I'm heading upstairs to bed Nana tells me that the bird also got into the computer room and took a couple massive dumps on the computer chair and the couch in there...that's just great.  I really couldn't deal with it and just went to bed.  I was already not looking forward to the busy day I had ahead of me now I have even more laundry & some massive cleaning/sanitizing to do along with driving to/from Shannon...perfect...thanks.  Well it was a great vacation and I hate to see it end but I really hate to see all this shit all over the house too but there is nothing that I can do about either.  So I guess I'll just be greatful for our amazing trip.  Saw a ton, ate so much good food, lots of great time with the family & hubby and we all made it through safely....it was a blessing.  Thank God and good night!

June 11:

Up early to take mom to the airport. Boys actually transitioned from the bed to car without waking up...they must be tired.  Although I only had a couple of hours of sleep I wasn't too sleepy but I was a little envious because Mike got to sleep in 3.5hrs more than me!!!  But he also had to go to work so I guess I shouldn't complain too much.  So got to airport, boys still sleep bit not for long so we decided to go inside and sit with Nana for a while before she left.  It's do bitter sweet for my mom to leave...we are always at each other's throat when we are together but both very sad to see the other leave.   I know she had a great time and even thought I try her nerves to the limit she wasn't ready to go back to her reality & leave us.  I told her that just meant she had to come back to visit us soon ;-)   We thought we might have time to have breakfast together but I forgot she had to do customs there so she needed the extra time to go through the line.  So off she went and we ended up staying at the airport for a little while longer so that the boys could play for a bit before getting back the car for 2hrs.  Once we got in the car we were all hungry and I didn't want to spend a long time at a restaurant so we went to McD's.  Lino is so funny because he was like "I like McDonald's mommy" but we never go there so how does he know he likes them...that kid.  So we got breakfast and headed back home.  Shaun was out within 10min and Lino was out another 15min after that.  At this point I was really getting tired plus I had food in my stomach so I had to stop to take a nap.  I only slept for about 15min but it made all the difference.   So made it almost home and the boys were still sleep and I knew I wanted to get a vacuum or hover as they call here to help with my bird clean up efforts so I ran into the store really quickly & got my vacuum and back out again without one movement from the boys...thankfully.  Once home the boys slept a while longer so I had a chance to do some serious cleaning without little fingers interrupting me.  Shaun was up first but I had already got one couch cleaned and ready so I fed him & put a movie on and he was good to go.  I got a bunch more done before Lino got up and he joined his brother on the couch.  By the end of the day I had the living room & kitchen & hallway & bathroom all bleached except the one couch.  I didn't want to destroy my freshly cleaned house so we went to dinner at the Chinese place in Glanmire.  It was much better there than when we had it as take away a few months ago.  So glad I didn't decided to bring that home because the rice would have been everywhere.  So yet another day down...someone please get me a bed!!!!!

The rest of the week was less eventful.  More intense cleaning but also some play time for the boys.  Lino went to school Thu & Fri so I had some time to do a few things around the house.  

This is a reflection of our bad parenting. Lino's poor sun burn now peeling.  Poor thing. 

Thursday after school we met up with Nicole and went to the park.  Mike got sent home early from work so he ended up hanging out with us for the morning before retreating to the bed that afternoon to rest.  He has had this caugh for a while but since we've been back he's gotten worse.  But on the other hand of that was me I would still have to work so I call it a man cold :-)    The weather in Ireland was a little cloudy over the past weekend while we were gone so everyone was excited to see the sun come out these last couple of days.  Lino was happy to see & play with his friends too...we had a nice time. 

My wild & crazy Shaun Shaun.  

Lino & Shaun are always making new friends.  

Friday we relaxed a little because I finally finished cleaning all the house...all of it!  I actually got Mike to stay home with Shaun after I dropped Lino off so that I could have a little Renee time & maybe blogging time.  He was still home sick but only because his caugh was so nasty still...otherwise he was about 60%...more than enough to watch Shaun :-)   It was nice to have a little break...2 free moments in the last 3 weeks is kind of a record.  I enjoyed my time at the coffee shop but didn't get through nearly as much of my blog as I would have liked.  Plus my phone was almost dead so instead of 2.75hrs of freedom I had to settle for 2...which was still amazing.  So that afternoon we went to the circus with Michelle & Nicole (Mike stayed home).  The kids had a blast and it wasn't very crowded at all so that was really nice.  It was a much better circus than the one we saw last year. 

The first act was the animal keeper & his 5 Bangle tigers!!!!

Mixed emotions about this...very beautiful powerful scary creatures. Nice to see them up close but not sure the circus facilities are the best and these guys are all over weight such a shame. 

Love my boys!!!

Donkeys!!!!

A little up close & personal...and I got in trouble about my flash. Oops 

The last act was a re-enactment of Indiana Jones...they had rats, lizards, crocodiles, snakes & tarantulas!!!!   It was cool!

The weekend went fast.  I had a training that I went to all day Sat & half day on Sun (Father's Day).  Daddy was kind enough to watch the kids without giving me too much grief.  They seem to have a good day on Sat...took a walk to the train station & daddy got a pork shoulder to cook from the butcher.  They had coffee/hot chocolate & sweets and even a little picnic in the city and a nice relaxing walk back home.  I know it's mt exactly a relaxing day/weekend like Mike would have liked but it was great quality time with the boys and he said he actually had a great time.  I'm glad!

Sunday I got a ride to the training and jogged to Mahon Pt to meet up with the family, Lino had leapfrogs.  I just barely missed Ha Eun which sucked but her little one was ready to go so you can't argue with that.  We had lunch at the mall, did a little shopping for FD dinner, homemade General Toa's Chicken & fried rice.  Mike had already started the grill before they left this morning so the boys got to give him his card while he was enjoying the smoke from his grill. 

Happy Father's Day daddy!!!  You are one hard working dad & husband & we love you more than you know. We are not the easiest bunch to deal with (with me being the ring leader) but you seem to manage just fine. You may not be perfect but you are perfect for us and we adore you to pieces.  Thanks for all you do, have done and will do for us...we will never be able to repay you.  Love ya!!!

Daddy & his boys!