The Inmans on the Emerald Isle

Christmas and New Years 2011

2012-01-22T09:16:00.000-08:00

This Christmas and New Years we had a fantastic time with family and friends! Here are a few pictures of our time in San Diego and Nashville!

Baden wasn't excited at all for Christmas this year :)

Avery couldn't resist all the sparkly ornaments

Upon opening Auntie Michelle's sparkly heart jeans and matching top, Avery immediately stripped off her pj's and pulled on Meesh's new outfit to model. Whereas Baden threw his new clothes aside with complete disinterest :) Hilarious watching the difference between them!

Yes, you are seeing that correctly! All four iPhones were out trying to catch the moment, what moment.... I don't remember!

Avery loved the new necklace her mommy gave me :) I did too!

Avery in her new cozy beanie. It was too cute to pass up!

Christmas at the Hotel Del

Grandma and Avery in front of the tree

Love this girl!

Baden's best bud :)

... tickle torture at its best

I love my B boy!

Julian with the fam

He not only delivers pumpkins and mistletoe... he is a pie deliverer too!

Lunch with our wonderful friends... Aniston is now born, and Bravery short behind!

Oh the love we have for these two!!!

Cutest boys around

Family Pictures: Thanks Tim Hardy!

All the boys

Such a precious family!

My dad's my favorite :)

Last day lovings

Dad creating a tire for our suitcase out of glue... and yes this was as we were walking out the door to the airport. Macgyver Bill indeed!

Christmas and New Years with the Inmans

New Year's Eve in downtown Nashville along with 60,000 other peeps watching Lynyrd Skynyrd

View of the concert stage and the dropping music note from the bridge

Yeah it's 2012!

Beautiful fireworks

On the bridge overlooking downtown Nashville

Loves his sissy :)

Amazing Nashville skyline

Celebrating Christmas with the Inmans

Dave with his authentic German stein glass

Darla rocked her jewelry talent this year! With a black velvet case of "Darla Designs", Rene and I enjoyed picking out of favorite timepiece pendent!

Fashionably sporting our "Darla Design" pieces! Shiloh and Saffron, two little girls at church, LOVE playing with this!

Grand Ole Opry Hotel

Manger scene outside

The beautifully lit trees outside the Grand Ole Opry

Cozy, low lit pub inside the Opry

Ross was *loving* his winged back chair by the fireplace

Rene sure knows what her brother will love :)

Lights inside the Opry

The landscaping is amazing!

Our last dinner together we celebrated Dave and Darla's wedding anniversary. In perfect Darla fashion, she pulled out a trivia game to test all of our knowledge of their marriage. I sure do love her!!! Classic honeymoon and wedding stories resurfaced as the entertainment of the night :)

What a great two weeks filled with friends and family. We felt so blessed to have the chance to go home once again for the holidays.

Christmas Markets in Germany!

2011-12-18T13:48:00.000-08:00

The first weekend in December we took a short, three day jaunt to the beautiful country of Germany to peruse their famous Christmas markets. As a lover of all things Christmas, I couldn't wait to kick off the season wandering through the charming Christmas stalls which sell everything from Gluwine (hot mulled wine-yummy, yummy!!!), spicy bratwursts, ornaments, scarfs, chestnuts roasting on an open fire :), and hand-made Christmas decorations. I couldn't resist picking up a nutcracker!

This was one of the most magical experiences! There was such a joyful and celebratory feeling in the air! I know it sounds cheesy, but it's true! I felt like a little kid on Christmas morning!

Frankfurt!

We flew into Frankurt and spent a few hours at their adorable market. At the first stall we stumbled across we enjoyed our first (of many!) bratwursts and were in heaven! So good!!! After a few hours we took a train to meet up with Rebecca, a friend of ours we met in Dublin. She lives in a tiny village in Germany right on the Rhine River. We had the privilege of staying at her Grandma, Gezela's house, who was a precious German woman who spoke absolutely no English! What a fun experience! We so desperately wanted to be able to communicate to her. Even with all the iPhone's help, the phrase we kept saying over and over again was "danke schoen"!!!

Frankfurt's Townsquare

Bratwursts cooking on an open fire!

Ross' first taste of bratwurst delightfulness!

Ross' first taste of gluwine... classic face which says, "Oh my word, amazing!"

My smile has turned crazy I'm so excited!

Stalls filled with German sweets and cookies

Beautiful handcrafted wood decorations

Kaub and Rudesheim

The next morning we went to church with Rebecca. She translated the whole service for us, bless her heart! She is a super star! Then she drove us down to Rudesheim to visit their well known Christmas market. Rebecca had no idea what she was getting herself into! As die hard Christmas market browsers, by the end of the day she was exhausted! Sorry Rebecca! :) Some of our favorite treats from this town were the delicious eggnog candied almonds and Rudesheim coffee (a tasty drink where they set their town's local brewed brandy on fire and pour coffee and cream over it, lastly they top it with cream...delish!).

A town on the way to Rudesheim

Another cute town on the drive

Castles along the Rhine... and we all know how obsessed I am with castles!

Favorite street in Rudesheim

And again

And from the other direction

At the top of the street

Fun with Rebecca!

Charming buildings

Three silly elves... and of course Ross went straight to the one holding the book!

Simply love the buildings!

These illuminated star decorations filled the German windows

Nuts from Nub-Hutte :)

Rudesheim coffee

The twinkly lights at night

Mainz

The next morning we said, "Aufedersein!" (Thanks to Project Runway's Heidi Klum, I remembered that one without a bother!) to Rebecca and Gezela and took the train to Mainz, another town farther down along the Rhine River. This Christmas market had gorgeous Christmas lights strung over all the stalls, which thankfully we were able to see lit right before we had to leave. After many glasses of gluwine, more bratwurts, a nutella banana crepe, and much more Christmas shopping we made our way to the airport.

The train station in Mainz... right, why is it that there would never be a train station this beautiful in the U.S.?!

At the entrance to the town square in Mainz

LOVE the architecture!

Mainz town square covered in twinkly lights

This one's for you Dagmar :)

The many, many ornament stalls

The yummy sweets stalls

mmmm... my chocolate, banana crepe!

He is so excited about his last bratwurst of the trip he doesn't even notice the ketchup running down his hand :)

Nuckcracker nutties

Enjoying Gluwine in a cozy barrel

I met St. Nick!

Kiddies snuggled up for the cold

So glad the lights turned on before we left!

Saying our last good byes to the Christmas markets :(

Although it was a speedy trip, it was absolutely perfect! I just wish this could become an annual tradition! Unfortunately, flying from California to Germany for Christmas markets might be a bit of a stretch!

ITALY!

2011-11-06T09:29:00.000-08:00

This past week we had the privilege to go to Italy! We traveled for one week along the west coast which was filled with plenty of amazing and terrifying adventures!

Milan!

We flew into Milan, and stayed one day in the bustling, high fashion city. We milled the streets admiring the incredible shopfronts and euro pop fashionistas :) The best stop of the day was the Duomo, a stunning site to behold with hundreds of spires reaching into the sky. Also, the place where St. Augustine was baptized, a point of great interest for Ross :)

The Duomo

Beautiful buildings

Shopping district

Beautiful storefronts

Covered shopping district next to the Duomo

Ross drooling over the Italian leather shoes all over 150 euros... the same brand of the ones he found in a thrift store in SD for $3!

MMMMMM! Our first gelato experience of the week!

Assisi!

And here is where the drama of the trip ensued... a story much better suited for an in person re-enactment, but unfortunately a written account will have to suffice. Our train journey from Milan to Assisi was about 5 hours and we were to be getting into the quiet town of Assisi about 12am. With our Interrail tickets in hand, we boarded the train. Upon finding our seats we realized that that we had accidentally reserved 1st class seats instead of 2nd class seats and would have to pay the difference in the cost of the tickets. Since we had spent so much already on travel, I asked Ross to find someone to see if there were any 2nd class seats available that we could switch to. Ross, being the wonderful husband that he is, leaves everything (including me) behind with our tickets in hand to inquire about the switch. He stepped off the train for literally 2 seconds, and right when he did the train doors closed behind him. As Ross realized this, he attempts to pry the doors open and is banging on the doors and screaming at the top of his lungs. I am hearing this from inside the train and then I feel the train start to move. As the train begins to leave the platform, Ross starts sprinting with the train banging on it for it to stop. At one point both of us are pounding on the glass looking at each other with complete and utter terror on our faces... truly a Hollywood moment. As the train pulls completely out of the station, leaving Ross on the platform without luggage or a passport, we are both in complete panic. I am freaking out to everyone in my car, where no one of course speaks English and everyone is staring at Ross having a complete meltdown in the terminal station. Cell phone communication was not functioning... To make a very long and traumatic story short, with the help of the train conductor on the train (who was contacted by a fellow passenger who came to my beckoning screams) and the customer service desk in the train station who Ross finally convinced to help, Ross was quickly put on a speedier train to meet up with me in Bologna, a town 2 1/2 hours away from Milan. When I pulled into Bologna and saw Ross standing on that platform, I was the happiest girl in the world. We honestly didn't care where the heck we were going as long as we were together! A terrifying way to start our holiday, but made the "togetherness" of the rest of it that much sweeter!!!!

So after a very long evening, we finally made it to Assisi, a charming ancient village with incredible history to match the magical feel of walking the streets. A highlight for sure was visiting the Basilica of Francis of Assisi, a famous pilgrimage site for Christians. Unfortunately, we only had a really short time here, but would love to come back for a longer stay.

Our Hotel: Hotel Hermitage

The Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi

Inside the Basilica

St. Francis' tomb

Misty morning

Stone buildings

Main square in Assisi

Capri

Off on another train ride we went (repeatedly uttering to each other, "Don't you dare get off this train without me!!!") to Naples where we caught a ferry to the Island of Capri. And what a relaxing two days we had! We arrived while it was still dark, so it was a glorious surprise and delight when we woke up to the sound of crashing waves and the sunrise glistening over the Mediterranean Sea! The view from our balcony was spectacular! The entire first day, we simply laid by the beach and swam in the BLUE water, something that truly delights Ross' heart! The towns of Capri and Anicapri were charming with their winding roads and shops. Our hotel was the absolute best part of the island, being a short 2 minute walk to one of the 3 beaches on the island. It was exactly what we needed after the crazy train ride incident! Before we left, we took a chair lift ride up to the top of the highest peak to get a 360 degree view of the island. Breathtaking!

Capri shops

The view we woke up to from bed :)

View from our balcony

To the right of our hotel

The sound of the ocean from our balcony

Hotel Weber Ambassador

View from our balcony

The AQUA water!

A dream to swim in!

Our own free blue grotto

View of Capri bay from Anicapri

The blue, blue water never ceases to amaze

Ready for dinner

The main square at night

Limoncello!!!!!! Tart, sweet, kickin' yumminess!

Chair lift to the top!

Sorrento!

With only a speedy 20 minute ferry ride, we were soon in Sorrento, a precious seaside town. Arriving by water at sunset was the perfect way to catch a first glimpse of this lovely town. As you pull into the port, stunning buildings dominate the cliff. The center square has a bustling feel to it as people and mopeds whizz by. This and Capri is also where Limoncello is from, a new found *favorite* lemon liquor of mine! So yummy and tangy! Gelato was a staple of our diet during this week, but Sorrento had some of the best! So many flavors to choose from!!! We had a fantastic hotel tucked up into the hills over looking all of Sorrento. That night we had the yummiest gorgonzola gnocchi and fresh ravioli. MMMM!

View of Sorrento from our ferry

A hotel on the Sorrento cliffs

Sorrento cliffs

View of Sorrento coast

Sorrento's Main Square

Our hotel: Hotel Prestige

All the yummy gelato flavors! I swear we didn't gain any weight!

Complimentary Limoncello is served after the meal :)

Pompeii!

From Sorrento, we took a day trip to the incredible city of Pompeii where we hired Sasha, an AWESOME guide! He was hilarious and such an Italian fashionista! He made our trip to Pompeii so memorable and informative. I would highly recommend him as a tour guide for anyone who wants history to come alive! His accent, Georgio Armani murse, Euro pop glasses, detest for the huge Asian tour groups, and zest for history made the 2 1/2 hours fly by!

Our awesome guide Sasha!

Plaster cast of man covering his nose

Beautifully preserved 2,000 year old Roman bath fountain

Pizzeria kitchen

Pompeii Sunset

Amalfi Coast-Positano!

So off to our last stop of the trip traveled by a hairpin road that curves along the mountainside to your left and the sea to your right. Positano! By far our FAVORITE city of the trip! We LOVE Positano! If you are looking for a charming, romantic Italian coastal town with tons of character... this is it!!!!! Oh my word...amazing! It was the perfect way to end the trip and we wished we could have been there an entire week! With colorful hotels and homes clustering the hill which comes down straight into the sea, and the tiny windy streets dotted with adorable shops and venders, there is just nothing like it! Our hotel room had a spectacular view of the sea and colorful hill. We arrived early enough in the day that we were able to relax for hours on the beach with the most beautiful view we have ever seen. The only thing that could have made it any better was a Pina Colada, but don't worry Ross took care of that! To end off our trip, we had one of the best meals... tomato cream gnocchi, calzone, local wine, limoncello and tiramisu. Oh my goodness I'm going to miss the yummy food!

Amalfi Coast Drive

Glorious!

Positano!

Charming narrow streets

Mopeds everywhere!

Loafers of every color!

Colorful buildings

Cathedral right on the beach

Yes, he made the moment that much more perfect with a pina :)

Relaxing on the beach

On the beach

View from our balcony

View from our balcony at night

Our last dinner

At our hotel right before our taxi ride home :(

The next morning we had a few hours to relax until the crazy travel day began... 1/2 hour taxi from Positano to Sorrento, 2 hour train to Naples, 1 hour train to Rome, 1 hour bus ride to the airport, 3 hour plane ride to Dublin, and lastly a mad dash through the airport to the Aircoach to make it just in the nick of time for the 40 minute bus ride home... After a long 12 hour travel day... we were back home safe with memories aplenty :) Oh Italy how we love you! Can't wait to go back!

A quick work visa update

2011-11-06T09:00:00.000-08:00

So it is really obvious that we haven't updated our blog in absolutely forever! A quick recap since a new post is long overdue. After turning in our final appeal in July, and after a year of fervent prayer, in late August we finally received positive news that my work permit was approved. Amazingly, we heard this news the first day that my school started. Thankfully, I was able to tell my principal to hold my teaching position for me and once I received my visa in the post I hurried back to Ireland to start back to school immediately. Unbeknownst to me, there was a teacher lined up to take my spot, so literally it was in the knick of time that my work visa came through! Being back at St. Andrew's has been an absolute blessing and joy.

Throughout this year, God has graciously held us as we learned to rest in the midst of great uncertainty. We have become firm believers in the power and persistence of prayer and see this as nothing short of a miracle. So many times this year we felt like this great opportunity to live abroad was slipping through our fingers, and now having the gift restored to us we feel as though we have been given new eyes for Dublin. We truly see each day here as a gift, one to be treasured and rejoiced over. We appreciate everyone who has journeyed with us this past year!

Because of job uncertainty these past two years, we hadn't gone on a proper holiday, which was driving us crazy since we are so close to so many amazing European cities that we had been dying to travel to! So to celebrate a huge work visa victory after a year of rough going, this past week we were blessed to go on our first long awaited holiday to Italy!

Bummer news on the Inman front :(

2011-07-02T13:39:00.000-07:00

Unfortunately, this week we received news that we have been dreading to hear. My second attempt at a work permit was once again denied. After all the frustration we have faced these past two years, it doesn't surprise us that it was once again denied, and emotionally we took the news much better than last time! We are trying to remain hopeful as we try our last attempt at an appeal. I have attempted to contact my employer who applied for the work permit on my behalf, but he is on vacation for 10 days! Of course!!! From the date the letter was written on June 23, we have 21 days to respond and request for the decision to be appealed. We have a little less than 2 weeks left to respond to the denial. I have been in contact with my school trying to see if there is someone else who would be able to submit the letter of response I drafted addressing the 5 reasons they listed for why they refused my application. In the denial letter, they addressed one legitimate reason for denying it, that my school did not advertise the post for the full 8 weeks, a reason which I attempted to clarify was a result of miscommunication between my school and the advertising company. But besides this one legitimate reason, the other 4 were completely ungrounded and some blatantly contradictory to the official document on their website.

Please join Ross and I in prayer this one last time as we go through the appeals process. We truly feel that this is a spiritual battle and would covet your prayers! First, pray that I would be able to get in contact with the appropriate person at work who could turn in the appeal for me within the time constraint. Also, we would love to have it approved and processed before school starts for me on August 31. Lastly, pray that if it is denied that Ross and I would have wisdom in the next steps that we take. If it were denied the next phase of our journey is dependent on a few factors: whether or not Ross gets a lecturing post at Trinity next year to allow us to stay in Ireland without me working or whether or not Ross would be able to finish his PhD from a distance.

Although, we are frustrated that we are once again in this place of uncertainty, we feel at peace that we are in the Lord's hands and that regardless of where we are in September and in whatever capacity that looks like, we will be okay. Our journey is far from over. We would ask you to join us in praying that we would continue to abide in the Lord's peace and that we would not be overcome with discouragement or fear.

Thank you to everyone who has walked with us through this long and tiresome process. I know we aren't the only ones who will be greatly disappointed at this news! Hopefully better news will follow!

Irish Adventures with the Palacios!

2011-04-26T04:06:00.000-07:00

Coming soon! Pictures and stories of our adventures with Mingo and Fallon!

Newgrange with the Sturms

2011-04-26T04:02:00.001-07:00

Saint Patrick's Day is CRAZY in Dublin! All the locals leave town as the tourists flood in! Since we had experienced the parade and excitement of Patty's day last year, we decided to take the day to explore outside of the city. We went with our friends Katie and Aaron to one of oldest historical sights in the world, Newgrange. It is a prehistoric burial mound dating to 3,000 BC, predating some of the Egyptian pyramids and Stonehenge! It has artistic concentric circles and spirals carved into the stones, but the most fascinating thing about Newgrange was the architectural precision! Those who built this tomb were brilliant astronomers. There is a narrow square opening above the tomb entrance way. Every year in December during the winter solstice when the sun is rising, the rays of light shine through that small opening, extend to the back walls of the inner chamber, and illuminate the inside of the tomb! These engineers were smart!

When Newgrange was discovered the grey rock face seen in this picture had fallen, so they reconstructed the face of the tomb using the same rocks from the original

Get the shot Katie!

Weekend trip to Southern Ireland in County Tipperary

2011-04-26T03:43:00.001-07:00

In late February we had a long weekend to do a speedy trip down to one of the southern counties of Ireland called Tipperary. We borrowed Sarah and Adam's car and made a big loop hitting a few different cities along the way. Our first stop was in Kilkenny, a town I fell in love with. Why, you might ask? Because there is an amazing castle of course! The grounds extend as far as the eye can see and are covered with lush, green lawns and tulips. It was sunny and beautiful, so we decided to have a picnic overlooking the castle. To our shock, clouds swoop in and HUGE hail stones pelt us as we crammed food in our mouths and jetted to the car! It was painful!

Kilkenny Castle

Cathedral in Kilkenny

Next stop, Rock of Cashel! This huge stone structure dominates the skyline as you drive up to it. The green hills around it were stunning in the sun light. Although there was some serious construction going on, it was still a very worthwhile stop.

Entrance to Rock of Cashel

Rock of Cashel

A view of the surrounding green hills from the Rock of Cashel

We have a slight obsession with Celtic crosses

On this trip, going against my normal vacationing style, we decided to be adventurous and not plan B&B arrangements ahead of time. Well to our surprise, many B&B's close when it is not tourist season! As night was setting in, we stopped at 6 B&B's that were all closed for business. We soon were second guessing our carefree approach! Luckily, our 7th B&B we stumbled upon in the tiny town of Cahir was open and ended up being a charming little place. We learned our lesson and will call next time!

The next morning we visited Cahir Castle, a very well preserved fort. The tour was fantastic! And we discovered that a scene from Braveheart had been filmed there!

Cahir Castle

Edinburgh!!!!

2011-04-25T14:07:00.000-07:00

Plaid Anyone?!

Edinburgh is an amazing and mysterious city! When Ross and I first applied to PhD programs, the first school we were accepted to was the University of Edinburgh. For six months we planned to live here in the beautiful city of Edinburgh. When our plans changed and we were accepted to Trinity College in Dublin, we couldn't wait for the opportunity to travel to Edinburgh to see where we might have ended up. Although it was a very short and unexpected trip, we truly fell in love with the city.

On the second day we stumbled onto a free 3 hour walking tour, which ended up being the highlight of the trip. Our guide was funny and knowledgable and made the mysterious city of Edinburgh in the 1600's come alive! We also really enjoyed our tour of Mary King's Close, an area of the city, that is now underground, which was greatly affected by the plague. Edinburgh has a fascinating history!

View from Calton Hill

One of my favorite streets heading down toward the Grass Market

St. Giles Cathedral

View of the Castle from the back

View of the Castle from the front standing in front of Ross Fountain

David Hume's (a famous philosopher) grave

Charming shops on the Royal Mile

The school that Hogwarts was inspired by in Harry Potter

One of the college buildings apart of the University of Edinburgh

The lovely friends we stayed with in Edinburgh- in front of the Halfway House a great, yet tiny pub halfway up one of the closes (narrow alleys) between New and Old town

Work Visa Update

2011-04-25T13:49:00.000-07:00

Getting permission to work here in Ireland has continued to be an unbelievably difficult task! I will attempt to quickly summarize the ongoing saga we have had these past few months. Sorry for the very late update!

In September my work had applied for me (Suz) to get a new work visa to continue at St. Andrews teaching American History. Unfortunately, in February it was denied because I was currently working in the country on a Working Holiday Authorization, which required me to leave the country after 12 months. After going to the Immigration office, Ross and I were informed that we were required to leave the country for a 48 hour period, so we packed our bags, booked airline tickets, and the next day flew to the lovely city of Edinburgh. Upon arriving in Ireland again, I received a dependent stamp giving me permission to legally reside in Ireland. Unfortunately, what I did not know at the time is that a dependent stamp does not give my employer permission to apply for a work permit on my behalf. So... after contacting the US Embassy, I was advised to move back to the US while my employer applied for the work visa for me. So, off to California we will be heading this summer! After the initial shock, both Ross and I now feel a great peace about this decision and are actually quite excited to have a second chance this year to see the friends and family that we have been missing so much.

We are not positive of the exact dates yet, but we will probably be in SD for June, July, and part of August. I can't believe we will be home in 1 month!

Our New Home

2011-01-27T13:43:00.000-08:00

After our first flat was flooded, we had the blessing of moving to the precious seafront town of Dun Laoghaire. We have lived here now since September and absolutely love it! It is bright and airy, a great luxury in Dublin where space and light are both hard to come by. We have a lovely balcony which overlooks the harbor. Although being right on the water adds an extra chilly wind factor, our frequent pier walks makes this quaint sea town a fantastic new home for us!

View from our balcony

View from the outside

Our bedroom (a door to the balcony on the left)

Our living room and kitchen

A view of the water from our couch

The lovely bathroom with a much coveted tub!!!

Dun Laoghaire Pier: Our favorite place to walk

Our Trip Home for Christmas

2011-01-27T13:27:00.000-08:00

We had an amazing trip home this year for Christmas. We feel absolutely blessed to have had the opportunity to spend a few weeks with all our favorite people that we have been dying to see this past year! We spent our first week with the Inmans over Christmas. During our week we spent time in Austin, Ingram, Fredricksburg, and San Antonio. We had a relaxing Texan Christmas Darla style!

We then went to San Diego to have a belated Christmas celebration with the Howland family. What a joy it was to spend quality time with the fam. Baden and Avery have gotten so big! Ross and I enjoyed many days playing with them and catching up with great friends!

Inman Fam

Love you Dagmar!

Our Traditional New Years in Arrowhead... I love these girls!

Julian trip with Mom and Dad!

Matching Julian hats :) I love my stylin' cute mom!

Precious friends!

My two cutie prego friends :)

Sweet Avery! I love her little scrunched nose!

Love my sissies and mom!

Spencer on day care duty!

I could kiss my precious B boy all day :)

Avery's Irish plaid jacket... she's lovin' it!

The Beautiful City of Prague

2010-07-10T13:08:00.000-07:00

This past week we spent our first holiday outside of Ireland in the gorgeous city of Prague. We had always heard it was a beautiful place to visit, but neither of us knew what to expect. I (Ross) arrived a week before Suzanne to attend a philosophy conference where I shared a paper. It went really well and I had incredible opportunities to meet and dine with some important philosophers in my field of study. It was such a privilege to talk philosophy over a pint with some of the philosophers I most admire... and in Prague of all places!

I (Suzanne) met up with Ross on the last day of his conference. We spent five days and four nights touring Prague and two towns outside of the city. After a guided walking tour given through Ross' conference, we ate dinner at an authentic Czech restaurant with the Brower family (the husband is the man Ross wanted to work with at Purdue University). They were an incredibly sweet family. Once we went back to our hotel room my stomach started feeling really crummy. Unfortunately, that whole night I was keeled over the toilet... not the pleasant first night I was expecting! That next day, we had so much we wanted to see but because I still was feeling awful we took it really slow. I slugged through the Jewish Quarter, an area in town that was the Jewish Ghetto during WWII. There is a cemetery there where 20,000 Jews are buried, but because of how small the area is, the bodies are buried vertically. The headstones are literally on top of each other! It was really sad. After barely making it through that area of town, we went back for a two hour nap to power up. That night we went back out to explore the famous Charles Bridge.

Our beautiful room at Mosaic House

Sick, sick, sick

Old Town Square

Jewish Cemetery

The waterfront close to our hotel

Feeling well enough to smile by the end of the night :)

The next day, I felt dramatically better. We explored the castle grounds in Prague, a large area that contains the beautiful St. Vitus Cathedral and Prague's castle (which really doesn't look like a castle). The rest of the day we spent meandering through the narrow, windy streets. They have fantastic shops, gelato, and an outdoor market where you can find all sorts of fresh fruit and trinkets. That night we found a wonderful outdoor restaurant right on the water where we listened to live music. What a great way to end the day!

St. Vitus Cathedral

I just had to take a picture with this castle guard

Restaurant where we listened to live music

The following day we took a day trip to Kutna Hora, a town an hour outside of Prague. Oh my what an absolute adventure... well actually it was a nightmare trying to get to the right bus station. We were using a friend's travel book to help us get around. Unfortunatley, it was from 2002, and led us all over town to the wrong bus station. But, after a couple of hours, and just before giving up, we finally made it to a train station that led us to our desired destination... the BONE CHURCH! I know, sounds creepy right? Yes, it is exactly what it sounds like. It is a church decorated with real human bones from thousands of people that died during a plague and war in the 14th and 15th century. There is a bone chandelier, coat of arms, and huge bone piles. Creepy! Creepy! Creepy!... but very worth the day trip. St. Barbara's Cathedral was in the same town and a wonderful balance to the creepy bone church. After making our way back to Prague, we went to the same restaurant to listen to some more music... but this night the musician was terrible! Quite entertaining with a cowboy hat and a twang... we think he came all the way from the south to serenade us!

Huge bone pile

Coat of Arms made of bones

Bone Chandelier

St. Barbara's Cathedral in Kutna Hora

Our last day, and our favorite, was spent on another day trip to Karlstejn Castle. How amazing and beautiful!!! I was ready to move in! We loved the little shops selling Bohemian crystal, and we just couldn't pass it up! We bought two wine glasses that ring like a bell. To end our trip we went back to Prague and took a relaxing paddle boat ride on the river. Overall, a fabulous and wonderful trip! This country is a must do!

Karlstejn Castle... oh how lovely!

In the castle grounds

View from the paddle boat

Ross’ Birthday Getaway!

2010-05-06T13:27:00.000-07:00

For Ross’ birthday my parents so graciously let us stay in two of the bed and breakfast’s that we would have stayed in if their trip hadn’t been cancelled. On Saturday, we headed down to Killarney, an adorable town in the southwest of Ireland. We checked into Crystal Springs, our B&B, rested awhile, and then drove around The Ring of Kerry, a scenic drive around a large peninsula. It was a lot of driving, but the views were absolutely breathtaking… gorgeous rolling bright green hills coming right down to meet up with beautiful blue water…ummmmm a view you can never get enough of!

View from the Ring of Kerry road

The furthest tip on the Ring of Kerry... gorgeous!

Crystal Springs B&B in Killarney

Katie and Aaron, two friends of ours met up with us that night and spent the next day with us as we took a boat/bike tour through the Killarney lakes and Gap of Dunloe. At first we were a little hesitant of the boat ride since it was a pretty small, dinky boat, which we were to load our bikes onto. We said our classic line, “Well, this is Ireland!” Our friend calls it TI² (for “This Is Ireland”) for random things that you would only find here. It was freezing on the boat, but the scenery made it worth it! Once we rode down the lakes we unloaded our bikes and began our cycling journey of a lifetime! It was SO intense! For a large majority of the first half of the journey we had to walk our bikes because the incline was so steep! Even though we made it to the top with burning thighs, catching a first glimpse of the valley below made it all worthwhile. We coasted down the rest. Our classic line of the trip was, “Wow, my gap of dunloe is sore! How about yours?” Hee hee! Doing this bike tour after not having ridden a bike in ages, will do some serious damage to your rear!

View of Ross Castle from the boat

At the top of the mountain!

Cathedral in Killarney

That early evening we parted ways with Katie and Aaron and headed to the BEST part of the trip, DROMOLAND CASTLE :) . Amazing, breathtaking, charming, lovely! Our room was HUGE! Seriously, I think it was bigger than our entire flat here in Dublin. We had a delightful dinner surrounded by medieval and posh décor. Our server addressed me as madam, I think a first for me! We then enjoyed a live guitarist in their bar area. The next morning, we had delightful eggs benedict in their fancy dining room. Ross’ favorite breakfast meal, he was ecstatic when he saw it on the menu! We then played tennis, a favorite hobby of ours that we haven’t been able to enjoy since leaving La Mirada. As we were playing a helicopter landed right in front of the castle to drop of a guest. Ross and I looked at each other thinking, “Where in the world are we?” Upon returning to our room, I then had the delight of using my long awaited bath bomb! There is nothing like a relaxing bath in a castle :). After checking out, we walked the lush grounds and enjoyed a yummy cup-o-tea in the drawing room. Sounds fake, right? It felt surreal! Ross thought he spotted Mr. Darcy from Pride and Prejudice on the grounds in the cool of the day, I told him he was only a fictional character, but that he could pretend to be him for the weekend. And so he did.

Dromoland Castle

Another view of the castle

The cozy sitting room

Dinner... chicken and fish & chips

Chicken with Parsley Mashed Potatoes....mmmmmm!

Eggs Benedict...yummo!

Mr. Darcy relaxing in his castle

A fierce tennis match

Next, I surprised Ross with horseback riding! For some reason I thought it was something he has always wanted to do… well it turns out that as a teen Ross read an article in “Men’s Health Magazine” about how many accidental deaths take place while men were horseback riding. From that point on he had no desire whatsoever to ride a horse… oops! He told me that he thought it was going to be “interesting to say the least” but he really enjoyed it in the end :). I guess I should have done my homework before booking that one! Our horses were Smurf and Shrek, very calm, gentle horses who were great for us beginners. The countryside was amazingly beautiful and our guide was very informative, actually probably a little too much! Ross and I were a little overwhelmed at the wealth of horse knowledge she wanted to impart to us! The great thing was, she was happy to shoot tons of pictures for us during our trek, a woman after my own heart!

It was a great weekend! After all the emotional drama I had gone through the weeks prior, it was a much appreciated and needed get away. We can’t wait for the fam to be able to take the trip with us when they are able to come out!

Oh, the Ups and Downs!

2010-05-06T12:53:00.000-07:00

So as many of you already know, this has definitely been a very difficult few weeks for us! Since we moved here in August, we have been planning my (Suz) parents’ trip out here for this April. Especially since coming home from Christmas, there has been much planning and anticipation towards their arrival. We were so excited to have the opportunity to share our lives here in Dublin with those we love. The bizarre ash cloud from Iceland’s volcano caused my family’s flights to be cancelled the first go around. I was devastated. Then a few days later, my hopes rose again when my family’s flights were rescheduled for the following week! Yeah! The whole week I was telling myself, “Suzanne, don’t get too excited. It is possible that their flights could get cancelled again. Prepare yourself for it not to happen.” So I tried, a measly attempt I must say. The morning of their flights, I finally allowed myself to get excited. Right before heading out the door to go to my last tutoring, I quickly checked my email to find that my mom had seriously injured her back! I didn’t know how to react! I was an absolute wreck. I was so upset hearing that my mom was in extreme pain and that both of us were unbelievably disappointed that their trip was cancelled again! To both myself and Ross, it was immediately evident that my reaction to this disappointment was coming from somewhere deep. I didn’t know why it was affecting me so badly, but it did! I felt so incredibly helpless, frustrated, disappointed, and lonely. For a few days tears were my constant companion. My poor, sweet hubby was a champ during this time. I am so blessed to have a man who knows when to give an encouraging word and when to be silent and simply embrace me! A few days after finding out this news and experiencing a whole lot of emotional pain, the Lord graciously gave my sweet hubby insight into my life to help me process my emotions.

By living here in Ireland, many great things that I have held near and dear to my heart over the years have been stripped from me, my ability to teach and the ability to see my fam. Although these are amazing things in themselves, I have gradually placed my trust and emotional stability in them. Over the years I have become very good at trusting in my ability to manage my circumstances and emotions, rather than rely upon the Lord. It has only been during the times of helplessness, when I am completely unable to control my circumstances, that my unhealthy attachment to these things burns bright. Although it has been a really painful process to see my heart, the Lord has been so gentle and loving through it all. He keeps reminding me that He is my Good Shepherd that I can rely upon Him to take care of my needs. He will faithfully to lead me to green pastures and still waters. I often see myself as a lamb who can manage it on my own, but thank the Lord, He is teaching me to rest in His arms and allow Him to lead me. He has led me to a place of helplessness that I might learn to trust in Him. Both Ross and I are yearning to be in a place where the Lord is our ultimate treasure and we are tethered solely to Him, so that when the unexpected life circumstances come, we are built on The Rock who is stable, and not on our life callings or people in our lives (even each other) who were ultimately never meant to fill that place. Although, I am still really disappointed my family wasn’t able to come out, the Lord has graciously used the emotional pain I have experienced as a way to reflect those unhealthy attachments in my life. Thank you Jesus that crummy circumstances can be used to draw us closer to You!

If you think about it, please join us in praying that the Lord would use our time here in Ireland to continue to deepen our dependence on Him, as well as for my mom’s healing. She is still having extreme pain in her back.

Birthday Adventure to Doolin, Ireland

2010-03-16T09:44:00.001-07:00

So my sweet and loving husband took me this past weekend on a surprise birthday getaway to Doolin, a teeny town on the west coast of Ireland known as the traditional Irish music capital in the world. We started out our adventure by renting a car, which was an adventure all by itself, with neither of us having yet driven in Ireland (on the left hand side of the road).

Our favorite crisps and an awesome Dublin artist James Vincent McMorrow

Thank the Lord for Tom Tom!!!

With our handy Ireland Tom Tom we safely made it out of City Centre in one piece. I took the driver's seat being directed by my hubby, as I did not have a clue at this point as to where we were headed. Along the way, we stopped at various little towns off the freeway to scope out the used bookstores and charity stores (a favorite thing of ours... we love finding cheap treasures!) And let me tell you, we did! Ross came away with a sweet brown jacket and myself with two books. On one of our stops we found an adorable tea house for tea and lunch.

The first castle we stopped at

Ross pretended to be my knight and shining armor riding on a horse (in front of castle)

Once getting off the main freeway, we drove the smaller, and definitely more narrow country roads of Ireland. The craziest part about it was these teeny roads had the same speed limit as the motorways! There would be road signs reading, "Danger Ahead!" "Drive Slowly!" and the speed limit would still be 100 km (approx. 65mph). At points we were driving 40 km under the speed limit!

We finally arrived in the town Doolin which is right on the water. We watched the sunset go down over the ocean for the first time since leaving California. It was absolutely gorgeous weather the whole weekend!

Our first night, we went to the local pub within a 5 minute walk from our B&B to find the most AMAZING irish music! There was a group of 5-6 musicians having a jam session with there instruments and a Guinness in hand between each song. A flute, banjo, guitar, accordion, drums... (and a pint in between) all came together to create the most chill atmosphere. We really sensed a true taste of traditional Ireland, from the music at this pub to the amazing hospitality of Mave, the Irish grandma who ran the B&B.

The musicians' corner

The next day, we took the car out and continued to explore all the little towns surrounding Doolin. Exploring the small village shops and ruins of cathedrals, abbys, and *INCREDIBLE* castles filled our time. My absolutely favorite man-made sight was Dromoland Castle. It was straight out of a fairy tale! I don't know what it is about castles, but they put a smile on my face:) Saturday night we went back to the same pub for another great night of good food and music.

An abby ruin in Quinn

A sad face after finding out the castle was closed

My FAVORITE CASTLE yet... Dromoland!

Front entrance to Dromoland Castle

Lake in front of Dromoland

The first view of Dromoland as you drive up

The last day, Sunday, again was gorgeous weather! We saw the Cliffs of Moher (I know mom, we cheated and previewed a sight we are going to visit during your stay. They are amazing and we can't wait to go again!) They are massive cliffs that are absolutely breathtaking. These were by far the highlight of our trip (that is not man-made). Since I LOVED the castle, I had to make two separate categories of favorites!!!! On our drive home, we randomly stopped in a town along the route and stumbled upon a St. Patrick's day parade. You could tell it was the annual, small town parade will all the locals.

Cliffs of Moher

The parade

To wrap it up, Ross did good! He planned a fantastic and relaxing weekend that gave us a great opportunity to explore this beautiful country. I wish it could be my birthday every weekend!

Finally back in Dublin

2010-02-28T11:40:00.000-08:00

My how much time has passed! Since we had the privilege of seeing many of you over our Christmas holiday it seemed unnecessary to post on our blog. Let us just say what an incredible blessing it was to see so many of you, our precious friends and family! It brought so much joy to our lives! Since finally having the chance to come back to Ireland with a Work Visa (hallelujah!!!!!) the Lord has BLESSED me (Suzanne) with tons of work! I am tutoring three nights a week for three different students. I am tutoring two girls in high school in math and one 5th grade American boy in American History. Within the past week I was able to visit about 15 elementary schools to give them my CV and offer my substituting skills :) I look back now to the time in November when I did the same thing (but offering to volunteer) and I see how the Lord used that in amazing ways to connect me to Rathgar Junior School. Since I have been back, they have been such a great connection! I feel incredibly blessed to have come across this school. So far, I have had three opportunities to sub for them, and two times this coming week! That is loads (as they would say here) of times since the school is very small. The Lord has been so good! Plus, two weeks ago, I was able to work all week for a friend over here. It just so happened to be the same week that many schools were closed for a mid-term break, a time I would not have been asked to sub! So with all that said, Ross and I are very eagerly looking forward to the ability to travel around and see some of this amazing country we live in.

A few weekends ago to celebrate the Day of Love, Ross and I were able to take a day trip up to Howth, a seaside city north of Dublin. After church, we took the train up the coast and spent the day having a picnic on the cliffs and hiking a couple of miles toward a lighthouse that overlooks all of Dublin. Because our picnic took longer than we expected, we didn't make it all the way to the lighthouse, but in some of the pictures you can see it way in the distance. It was freezing, but not raining... so we felt very lucky! I know many of you have seen the pictures I posted already on facebook, but if not here are some of them again and a video that we took. I apologize ahead of time for my cheesiness!

The Lighthouse

We have really enjoyed the friends we have made here! We have found Dublin to be a very artsy place. It is very common to be invited to a music/art venue. One of our friends from church has done several living room gigs where he plays his original music. A few weeks ago, he showed his artwork at a local cafe and had a few friends of his play music. Our entire house group through our church went to support him. Here is a video clip of the amazing group that played that night. Enjoy!

YIPPEE! What a great day in Ireland

2009-12-03T13:33:00.000-08:00

As many of you know, we have been praying for a job for both Ross and I since arriving in Ireland. With the terrible economy here, it has been quite challenging to find work. Ross has been searching for a job that would be low stress, related to education, and something that would not require so much from him that it would keep him from excelling in his studies. Today we finally heard back from Trinity college on a note taking position that he applied for in September. It entails sitting in on Trinity courses and typing the notes from the lectures for deaf students who are unable to take their own notes. The job pays *great* and is offering Ross the perfect amount of hours that will allow him to make enough (together with his stipend) to completely cover our monthly bills, while at the same time not taking too many hours away in his week from working on his school work and dissertation. It is the perfect job! The woman that was previously employed had a baby and will not be returning. Ross was offered the job today and he starts tomorrow. Plus, it is no problem that he will be gone for 3 weeks at Christmas. It will start right back up when he returns in January!!! Also, he applied to teach an Ethics course for adults in an evening adult program. The director said that if 10 people sign up, that the course is his. Please be praying that that works out.

For those of you that don't know, I (Suz) have been volunteering at Rathgar Junior School, a private primary school. I have been there for four weeks now and it has been the perfect thing to do during this time that I am not eligible to work. I am applying for a working visa when I come home for Christmas so that when I return in January I will be eligible to work. The school I have been volunteering at has been fabulous to me! They have been so thankful to have me there, as I have been thankful to be able to spend time with kids while building relationships with teachers and the "headmistress" (aka principal). Today, a day that I don't normally volunteer, the principal called me to ask if I would substitute for a special needs assistant. (Even though I am not technically supposed to be "working", they are paying me!) The headmistress asked if when I come back in January if I could substitute for a teacher who will be gone for a week. I was so excited! In order to do this, I need to have my work visa processed in 3 weeks while I am home for Christmas. Please join us in praying that the paperwork is quickly processed by January 9th.

Anyways, it was all together an *AMAZING NEWS DAY* for the Inmans. Thank you to everyone who has been praying for us. The Lord is so good and responded in abundance to your prayers.

Hiking in Glendalough

2009-12-03T12:25:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago, our friends Katie and Aaron took us to hike in the Wicklow Mountains. Within the beautiful hills, filled with fall leaves and green hills, there was a monastery and cemetery. This amazing monastery began in the 600's when a hermit priest, St. Kevin, secluded himself in these mountains. Later, he brought a group of monks here to Glendalough to begin this monastery. It was absolutely breathtaking! Enjoy the pictures.

The gorgeous curvy road on the drive to Glendalough

The chapel/graveyard apart of the monastery

A view of the monastery

One of many AMAZING celtic crosses in the cemetery

A patch of forest along our hike... the trees were so thick together!

Sitting on a log :) I know it's exciting!

A view of the hills during our hike

Far left: Rebecca a friend of Katie's visiting from Germany; Far Right: Katie and Aaron

One of my favorite pictures ever! It was so magical!

The view of the valley driving home... notice the specks of white in the grass... you guessed it! Sheep

The Northern Irish Coast

2009-10-29T10:11:00.000-07:00

What an AMAZING weekend we just had in Northern Ireland. We went to a conference with our church at another Vineyard church called Causeway Coast Vineyard. We were both so encouraged and challenged! We left knowing that our lives would never be the same. At the end of the conference our friends Katie and Aaron took us to two famous sites on the coastline: Giant's Causeway (huge stones in the shape of octagons protruding from the coastline) and a rope bridge (the bridge went from the mainland to a small island). It was insane how windy it was! We have never been in such intense wind before. At one point Ross' entire body was leaning at a 45 degree angle and the wind was holding him up! The island was covered with grassy knolls that were bouncy! We felt like little kids running and jumping on the bouncy grass. With the wind, we were picked up as we jumped! It was one of the most exhilarating and freeing experiences playing on a grassy hill surrounded by the crazy ocean waves. The northern coast is absolutely beautiful, although the weather is definitely more extreme than Dublin. Enjoy the pics!

Giant's Causeway

The Coastline

A view of the island from a distance

A wee little path we walked on to get to the bridge (and yes they actually use "wee" in the North!)

The bridge from a distance

The bridge

The bouncy hill

Bouncy... bouncy... bouncy

New Hopes for Working

2009-10-29T09:44:00.000-07:00

A lot has happened in the past fews weeks in regards to my (Suzanne) prospects of working. Basically, because I have a stamp on my passport that only allows me a visitors status, I have been ineligible to work. Upon discovering this I was very discouraged. Thankfully, I found out about a Working Holiday Authorization that I can apply for at Christmas time while I am at home in the States. This authorization will give me permission to work for a 12 month period of time. Finding this option was an incredible blessing! At a time when I was getting very discouraged, this was incredible news. Ross and I will be flying home December 16 to go directly to the San Francisco Irish Consulate. Please join us in praying that the authorization will take less than four weeks to process. Also, pray that between now and when we leave for Christmas that I will be able to connect to a school to work at upon my return. We are so excited to be coming home for Christmas especially with the ability to come back to Ireland mid-January with permission to work! The Lord is good!

The Ole Abbey

2009-10-11T10:21:00.000-07:00

Today after church we were kidnapped by some of our new friends and taken to explore a bit of the beauty of the Irish countryside. They took us to the largest castle in Ireland (where some scenes from Braveheart were filmed) as well as an old monastery that was built in 1120AD. It was absolutely breathtaking! We have learned that the Irish countryside is littered with historical ruins like castles, ancient graveyards, and monasteries. This was our first true taste of the rolling green hills and historical character of Ireland. It was just what we needed after a long and uneventful week (as I, Ross, was sick all week). Here are a few pictures of the monastery.

Success at the Garda!

2009-09-22T03:35:00.001-07:00

With the grace of God we were successful going the Garda a few days ago. It took weeks to gather all the proper documentation, but what a relief it was to know that after all the hard work, we found favor with the Garda. Although it was an exhausting all day affair, it went surprisingly smooth. What this means is that I (Suzanne) have permission now to remain in the country for a year, until Sept. 30, 2010. With the type of Garda card that I have, I am currently not allowed to work, so we are going to have to be very creative in order for me to get a job and the Lord is going to have to work a miracle. If you could, please pray that the Lord opens an avenue of work for me. There are two ways in which this could happen. I could become a student, which would allow me to work 20 hours a week. Or, I need to find an employer that will sponsor me for a work permit. Currently, I am seriously considering taking a course through an adult program for working with Special Needs students. This would give me the training I need to become a Special Needs Assistant, and provide me with a beneficial certificate to have coming back into the states. I am also currently in the difficult process of applying to their Teaching Council, something I have to do in order to show that my teaching qualifications are equivalent to those here, and thus be eligible to teach or substitute. If the Teaching Council approves my application, then they could be the ones to sponsor me in attaining my work permit. It is quite the process... so please pray that we will patiently rely upon the Lord as He provides an open door in His timing. Your prayers are deeply coveted. We are confident that the Lord brought us here for His good purposes and will not leave us without the provision to stay. It is our hope that through the course of this time here, that our confidence in the Lord grows and truly sustains us with a deep shalom.

Our Celebratory Dinner Upon Receiving our Garda Cards

We're all moved in!

2009-09-21T13:37:00.000-07:00

It has been so long since our last posting and much has occurred over the past two weeks. To our excitement, we have moved into our place over here. We have spent long days making it a comfortable place to call home. We have enjoyed painting the walls and scavenging the city for the best deals for all of our home essentials. Our flat came with a kitchen table, a couch, and a bed. It has been like getting married all over again as we chose our dishes, towels, bedding... Every time we go to do something we find one more thing we need to buy. We went to hang a cabinet in the bathroom and realized we needed a drill and screwdriver. We were doing our laundry and in the middle of it had to go and buy two clothes drying racks (many people choose to hang their clothes here rather than dry them). It has been quite adventurous carting all of our purchases back home on public transportation. One Sunday at church, a man came up to us and said that he had spotted us walking down O'Connell Street (the absolute busiest street for pedestrians) with huge bags in each of our hands. It was all of our bulky bedding and pillows. I am sure it was quite entertaining for him to watch us weave in and out of the crazy crowds. Gotta love it!

Although our place is quite tight, we are absolutely loving it. For all you planning to come and stay with us... expect a teenie tiny bathroom and an aero mattress on the ground... but for the lucky few who stayed with us in our last place in La Mirada it is a step in the right direction. At least now you will have more than just a curtain between yourself and us snuggled in bed :)

The entry way into our flat

Our TINY bathroom

The hallway between our bedroom, bathroom, and kitchen

Our livingroom

Our free pantry so generously given to us by a man in the church

Our Kitchen

Gotta love shoes! Looking at this now sheds light as to why our luggage was soooo expensive!

Our bed... obviously :)

Ross' Beloved Bookshelves: Now empty but soon to be filled up!

Random Videos of My Beloved Wife! Part 2

2009-08-31T11:34:00.000-07:00

Suzy summing up the beginning of our day into the city centre.

Random Videos of My Beloved Wife! Part 1

2009-08-28T11:01:00.001-07:00

Suzanne's First Attempt at An Irish Accent! Super cute, I know.

More to come...

Slowly, But Surely!

2009-08-27T03:12:00.000-07:00

The past few days we have been bustling around trying to accomplish some of the things that we have previously taken for granted in the states. Yippee! After several trips to the bank, we were finally able to open a "current account", or a checking account for Ross. This doesn't seem like a huge deal, but it is considering that you can't do anything else here without one. That night we celebrate our small victory with delicious American style hamburgers from a restaurant called "Gourmet Burger". Each day we try to hold on to the little successes so that we don't get discouraged with how S...L...O...W things are here.

For the past three days we have enjoyed looking at different flats (apartments) to let (rent) in the various districts of Dublin. The city of Dublin is comprised of 13 different postal districts, each with a different feel and culture. We have been familiarizing ourselves with the area to decide where we want to call home. While walking miles and miles to get to one flat viewing, we stumbled upon the most adorable little district (6 to be precise) called Ranelagh (RON-A-LAH). We quickly decided that this was the area for us. Whenever we talk about it, the word "charming" seems to suit it perfectly. Here are some pics.

On our way to the next flat viewing for the day we were ecstatic to discover that the flat was right on the corner of the street we fell in love with. Here is an aerial view of our new place (the green arrow is our complex):

View Larger Map

We were offered a one bedroom flat to let for 650Euro, an absolute steal for the area! It is in a period house with five other units. Ours is on the garden level which basically means it is submerged in the ground (our windows are right above the grass line). It is super cozy, meaning tiny... but a place we feel we can make homey. The location is incredible, as it is within a 30 second walk to the LUAS station, a train that goes directly to Trinity College, and yet it is still a part of a quite neighborhood. It is right across the street from an upscale market and a tasty Italian market called Best of Italy with fresh meat, gelato, fruit, and veggies that are reasonably priced. Directly down the street is a gothic style church, whose spires always inspire Ross with one glance. Right after viewing this flat we knew we had to jump on it immediately. With tons of students looking for housing at the moment, cute places to live for cheap are gone in a flash.

Another blessing we have been graced with is the Dublin Vineyard Church. We had been in previous contact with a member from the church, Katie, before we left the states. Since every Vineyard church is very unique, we were unsure that we would find Dublin Vineyard to be a good fit, but we went this past Sunday and were pleasantly surprised. Here is where we meet on Sunday.

It reminded us very much of our beloved church back home. Katie invited us to her small group last night. We felt so welcome by the couples there and were overjoyed at how similar it was to the small group we had attended in La Mirada. The Lord is so good! We have been here only a week, and already we feel connected through the church.

A few things that you can be praying for...

We are going to the GARDA station soon to inquire about extending my (Suzanne) holiday visa for a year. Please pray that they will grant us this request. Once we have successfully done this, I will have a year to find a job, which will allow me to apply for a work visa.

Also, I (Suzanne) have been asking the Lord to reveal to me what my place is here in Dublin. I know that supporting Ross in his work at Trinity is a huge role I will be playing here, but I also truly desire to find my place here and how the Lord wants to use me. I desire to find a job where my gifts are being utilized and where I feel that I am ministering to others. At church on Sunday I met a lady who worked for the YMCA. She told me about a few job vacancies they had. I have contacted the HR person, but have not yet heard back. One area of the YMCA that I would love to work in is their STEP program. It is helping young adults (18-25), who have not finished their schooling and are homeless, get back on their feet, get temporary housing and work. I would help mentor/tutor them. This sounds really interesting to me. I would also love to nanny for a family. Please pray that I meet someone that knows a great family that lives within walking distance to our flat.

Although we are truly enjoying this wonderful city, we do miss you all tons! Keep in touch with us. We love hearing from you!

Cheers!

Our First Trip Into The Dublin City Centre

2009-08-19T12:15:00.000-07:00

Suz and I just got back from our first trip into the Dublin City Centre where Trinity College Dublin is located along with the famous Grafton Street and the Temple Bar district. We had a blast with our new friends Katie and Sara. They pointed us to the various shops (including to Suzanne's excitement H&M, TK Max (yeah, that's right, not TJ Max but TK Max) as well as various products like MAC and Bobbie Brown makeup (Oh yes, this is truly exciting!). Katie and Sara also helped us set up our cell phones on a pay-as-you-go plan with O2 (well, Suzanne's works and mine doesn't. We have to go back down to O2 to get my SIM card reactivated). It turns out that if you (supposing you are in the states) call us here in Dublin, we can talk for free. So feel free to email me or Suzanne and we will send you our new phone numbers so we can chat.

Dublin is such a charming little city. For starters, Suz and I began our trip with a bus ride into the heart of Dublin, the city centre. The very first thing we noticed

was that the majority of homes and apartments have different colored doors (pink, yellow, blue, green). If you don't believe me, just google image "dublin

doors" and you'll see the variety of photos. But to save you some time, here they are:

We also noticed that most of the buildings on the way to the city centre were red brick. The city centre is filled with stone buildings (the kind that are dirty a

nd filled with ivy) dating back to the 1500's (Trinity College having been founded in 1592). For those of you who know me (Ross) well, I was in heaven. Here are some pics of my school.

The city is very lively and, as we expected, the people are young and fashionable. At one point during our trip, I sincerely felt as though I was no longer in a foreign country as the city feels very safe, warm, and welcoming. We are very excited to get acquainted with such a beautiful and historic place. We can honestly say that we are beginning to feel very blessed to be here. Here are some more pics of Dublin and Trinity College.

Until next time, we love you all and miss all of you dearly.

Our Temporary Place

2009-08-19T02:08:00.000-07:00

Here is another video of the place we are temporarily renting from a wonderful woman named Bethan until we can secure housing.

The precise location of our place is here (feel free to zoom and what not):

View Larger Map

A Wee Little Path...

2009-08-19T00:50:00.000-07:00

Here is a video of Suzanne and I on our way back from buying our first groceries. We found a sweet little nook of a path along a river. Sorry for the sideways video as we are still learning to shoot video on the iphone. Rene, I totally thought of you when I said "A Wee Man Path". It just sounds like something we would say. Love you!

Adventures upon arriving!

2009-08-18T22:24:00.000-07:00

So the adventures have started already! After a long and cramped flight, endured by watching three movies, reading, and sleeping, we made our way to the dreaded customs lines. We had been told that because of the sluggish economy that they are being very strict as to who they are letting in. A friend from Ireland had told us to say that I was coming to "support" Ross. Unfortunately, she meant emotionally and the customs man interpreted that as financial. So the first thing he says to me (Suz) is, "Well, do you have a work permit?" (something I didn't have since I didn't have a company already sponsoring me to work). So I respond that I don't and he tells Ross that he is going to have to deport his dear wife back to the states! Oh dear! The hearts were racing and pumping! We smoothly attempted to back ourselves out of that corner by showing that we had the funds to support both of us without me working here for awhile. So all in all, he let me into the country with a three month holiday visa. We now have to go into the Garda Station and try to extend my visa using a better story.

So to say the least, we DEFINITELY need your prayers for us to find favor with the customs department. Also, that I (Suz) am able to find a company that will sponsor me to work for them so that I can apply for a work visa. Nothing is ever easy:)

After we made it through customs we gathered all of our HUGE luggage. Katie, a girl over here that we were connected with through Dublin Vineyard picked us up from the airport. We crammed our luggage into her teeny car, with only a tiny spot for me to sit in the back with my legs folded up to my chest! But surprisingly everyone and everything fit.

We met Bethan, the lady we are staying with for a few weeks until we are able to find housing. She is great and has been super helpful. It is hilarious just how different things are over here. To bad we couldn't even figure out how to flush the toilet! The light switches and door handles are opposite, you drive on the left hand side of the road, and the normal sized refrigerator is the size of a bar refrigerator in the states. Say adios to costco runs and 1 stop grocery runs for the week!

Soon we will be looking for housing, setting up our phone service and bank account. Pray that all goes smoothly! We love you and miss you all already.

Much love from the Emerald Isle,

Ross and Suz