Ireland 2

 Greetings to all our dirks blog readers...anybody out there?  As Tyler mentioned in a previous post it is a bit trickier posting to our blog here in Ireland as our little abode in Kilkenny doesn't have wi-fi.  Yes, there is wi-fi in Kilkenny, but getting to it is another story.  But, alas I am able to post now as we Dirks five are spending a few nights in a B&B in Tramore (with free wi-fi).  We are here with the Kilkenny Pres. Church youth, however they are camping in tents, we were not so brave with three little ones and have taken cover in a hostel/B&B nearby.  As I type the kids are taking naps all around me.  Haven is usually our only napper, but with promises of riding rides at the beach pavilion tonight, the older two hunkered down as well so they can play longer tonight.  So, aside from this little jaunt to Tramore (close by to Wexford), what have we been up to you may ask?  Well, we have done a lot of hanging out in Kilkenny with the church folks,  at the castle playground (castle pic above I'll post playground pics soon), shopping at Lidl or the Eurospar, and hanging out with our four fabulous interns (Rebecca, Katie, Megan and Jacob) and hoping for sunny days!  Oh and catching mice, as our "wooden house" has a rodent problem (three so far...i know gross).  We have enjoyed many Sunday afternoon lunches at various church members homes and been to some beautiful places in the process.  The people here are lovely and very hospitable.  We are thankful for them and the kind church body at Kilkenny Presbyterian Church.  The kids are doing well, but missing Charlotte (especially Henry).  He keeps reminding us that Ireland is not our home and tells us often that he is looking forward to going home.  They have been battling sicknesses these past few weeks and at one point they were all three sick at the same time!  We have had some hard moments here but we are positive that this is where the Lord wanted us to be this Summer.  Thanks for all your prayers, keep them coming.

 The kids love picking flowers here and are giving them to me constantly.

 Haven isn't walking yet (and she doesn't seem to be very interested in the activity at all), but she is getting cuter and cuter.  She's got these two great little upper teeth with a big gap in the middle that are precious, and make her smile that much better.  She will be turning one July 8th!  I can't believe it has already been one whole year that this little munchkin made her debut.

Love from Ireland to all of ya's!

First Post From The Emerald Isle

So the Dirks Family Blog is usually Carrie's deal, but here on the Emerald Isle an internet connection is harder to come by than in the U.S. of A.  Carrie has not had many opportunities to get online these days, and thus our blog posts have come to a halt.  So - after much delay - Tyler is running the blog show just this once ...buckle up. - - - > 

On Sunday a gentleman by the name of Robert Harper had us out to his farm (Cobbler's Hill Farm)!  His lovely wife (Colleen) was not able to join us because she was in the Northwest of Ireland tending to her daughter who had come down with a case of pneumonia (we missed Colleen dearly, but alas her nursing duties were required on the other side of the country).  Robert was a marvelous host, treating us to a variety of grilled meat (which we ate sitting at a gigantic stone table), fantastic conversation, and he even got the tractor out for the kids!

Cobbler's Hill Farm is incredibly picturesque ...so we thought it a good idea to snap a Thrive Team 2012 Photo!  From left to right:  Megan, Rebecca, Henry, Katie, Tyler, Maggie, Jacob, Carrie, Haven!  What a bunch!

On Monday we visited Dunmore Cave.  Inside the cave we found this Buffalo.  All you Garden City KS readers will most certainly enjoy this!

The Irish love Guinness, and so what would an Irish cave be without an overflowing pint of Guinness!  They call stalagmite "The Market Cross," and many have interpreted it to be a pint of Guinness (foam overflowing the pint glass and running down the side), and/or a harp (which is an important icon on The Emerald Isle).

Haven thought the Dunmore Cave ROCKED!

It rained off and on Monday, but during one of the sunny portions of the day we went for a walk along a trail beside the River Nore!  Here is a pic of our crew at the beginning of our trek.

Maggie ran most of the trail!

Henry was in a contemplative mood on Monday, so he stopped to think for a while on these rocky stairs (most likely Henry is thinking about "The Thing" ...or as he calls him "Rocky Man" in this picture).