Combine

Yesterday was a whirlwind of a day. I had the kids for an hour and a half longer than I normally would because Gill had to run to town to pick up something for school after she got off work. The kids were great during the day. The weather was perfect, so we went out looking for more blackberries and found another secret spot. We were able to fill two tupperware containers full of them and still there were tons left to pick. By the time Gill and Kieran got home, all the blackberries in one of those containers had mysteriously disappeared... (Eoghan...!)

We also walked up to the farm and got to see a little calf. Eoghan wanted to name it Eoghan- how original! I told him it was a girl, but he was still stuck on naming him Eoghan.

Once Gill got home, both of the kids really started to act up. I kept apologizing that she had that to deal with when they were as "good as gold" (a common expression here) all day.

After dinner they went off to Kieran's sister's soccer/"football" match and I stayed at home. I was going out with William, Paddy, and Marion last night and they didn't think they'd be back in time. I was happy with that because I think I would have been an ice cube if I had gone to the game!

We went to Buckley's End of Summer BBQ in Whitechurch (where they all grew up). It was such a different experience from my night out at the pub in Killavullen. Because it was a BBQ, the pub was packed. They kept telling me that they had never seen it so crowded. It reminded me much more of American bars (loud music, a lot of people, etc.). I almost prefer the quiet relaxing environment of the Killavullen pub. But we had a great time. I met a lot of nice, entertaining people and it was good to get out of the house for awhile. The three of them are so easy to get along with. It was a late night- we didn't go to bed until about 3:30 which is probably a record for Miss Page Otey (whose bed time is closer to 11:00!). Needless to say, I'm exhausted now.

This morning, Paddy picked me up from Marion's in a tractor (classy) and drove me to his parents house where I spent most of the day with his mom Norene. After lunch Norene drove me over to Watergrass Hill where William and his dad/her husband Pat were working in the "combine". I wish I had taken a picture of these massive machines. They are huge! They are used to cut the barley. If I ever go again, I'll be sure to have my camera ready. Apparently this year was a really bad season for the barley because it's been so wet. Uncle Pat took me up for a long ride in the combine and its such a smooth ride- I guarantee you I could have fallen asleep if I had been given the opportunity. The combine William had been driving was having an electrical issue, so they had to do all the work with only one- of course it was taking them twice the amount of time. Kieran came to pick me up at about 4:30 and now I'm at home wishing it was socially acceptable to go to bed right now (its only 6:45..). Anyway, I had a great time!