Erin Go Bragh

I love Ireland. I love reading about Ireland. I love Aran sweaters and celtic crosses. Irish Dancing makes me want to curl my hair into ringlets and put on my dancing shoes. Seeing pictures of Ireland stirs the travel bug in me.

I'm pretty sure I was Irish in another lifetime, but sadly, I have not one drop of Irish blood in my veins in my current lifetime.

Some friends of a friend are finalists for the "Ultimate Job in Ireland". From the website...

"To celebrate the launch of Ireland’s most exciting destination wedding and honeymoon website, The Irish Times have teamed up with Runaway Bride and Groom to find the right candidate to do 6 months of research… researching the most romantic and ultimate wedding and honeymoon venues around the world - with their partner.

We are looking for the right person (and their partner) to research and test out the most romantic and ultimate wedding and honeymoon destinations all over the world and then report back with their verdict (on the place, not the partner!) to their boss, 4,000 miles away."

The job involves six months of travel and the selected couple will be compensated €20,000 (just over $27,000 USD).

To apply, Greg and Sarah Amidon had to submit an 80 second video telling why they should get the Ultimate Job.



Right now, they are not only in the top ten applicants, and the only Americans to make it that far! They're still about 2400 votes from the leader, so every little bit helps! Take a minute and vote for them and send your friends to vote as well!

Maybe the luck of the Americans will take them to Ireland!

Vote for Greg & Sarah Amidon!

Make No Small Plans

It's going to take more than a bit of putting this


Into this


So we can put these


Onto them.


Yep. We're planning a trip a little over a year from now. I'm really excited for many reasons. First, it's Disney for Pete's (Dragon) sake...it's the Happiest Place on Earth (just for you, NJ!)!

Second, both boys will be old enough to ride and enjoy everything and young enough to not be too cool for a pair of mouse ears.

Third, we're hopefully meeting up with family friends, which promises to be lots of fun!

Finally, this time, I have the most fabulous of all of the Disney Princesses herself helping with the planning. She's not Cinderella, Princess Aurora, Mulan or Jasmine. She's not Pocahontas or Princess Tiana.

She is my favorite princess ever, HRH Princess Frugal-Ears herself!

Princess Frugal-Ears has been to WDW more times than I can count and she knows how to stretch a dollar like Mrs. Incredible. She knows the best places to stay on property, which restaurants are a hit with kiddos and what attractions are "ears up".

I'll be sharing my planning with you over the next twelve or so months and, with Princess Frugal-Ears' permission, will share her tips with you as well!

Sing it with me kids!

"M-I-C...
See ya real soon!
K-E-Y...
Why? Because we LIKE you!
M-O-U-S-E!"

Tuesday Top Ten

Welcome to Ten on Tuesday! Today we feature a lovely list in honor of a 300 mile road trip with two boys.

Ten Travel Tips

1. Control the audio

When I was growing up the rule was that the driver controlled the radio. Notsomuch anymore. Sanity often dictates giving up the grown-up music for yet another round of KidsBop or Veggie Tales. Which leads me to #2.

2. Tune out the monkeys with a Personal DVD Player

Too much TV is a problem I constantly battle. In the car, however, I gladly set up the DVD player in the back and let them watch until they turn into zombies fall asleep.

3. No more melted crayons!

Three words: Crayola Color Magic

4. Yellow Car

SS#1 introduced us to this fun little car game. It actually keeps BOTH boys occupied for a good 30 minutes. The premise is simple. Look for yellow vehicles, have one of the munchkins keep track. As SS#1 puts it, "If it moves, it counts".

5. Very Few Snacks

This may seem contradictory to traveling with children, but I don't like to overpack the snackage. A couple of bottles of water or juice boxes, and some dry, non-messy snacks (shelled peanuts are a fave) and we're good to go. We tend to stop once to eat and usually twice more to empty the human bladders and/or fill the automobile bladder.

6. Everyone Pees

Whether or not they think they have to go, when we stop, we go. Got it?

7. Pillow

I've learned that a pillow for each child makes it much more likely that napping will occur. Of course, it also makes it more likely that at least one pillow fight will ensue, but that's a chance I'm willing to take.

8. Mrs. Garmin

It used to be that Mapquest and I were constant travel companions. I didn't travel more than a couple of miles from my house without him. For the most part, that relationship served me well.

Then I met Mrs. G. And while we've had our ups and downs, and sometimes I turn the wrong way just to irritate her, I usually follow where she leads.

And the best part is, she can play audio books and music WHILE she calmly directs your travel!

9. Audio Books

Oh, my audio books, how did I ever travel long distances without you? Now I can hear your wonderful words on my GPS or on the CD player. Oh joy, oh rapture. And Cracker Barrel even has audio books you can rent and return on your trip home.

10. "______________________ or-so-help-me-I'll-stop-this-car-right-now!"

Pick your poison.

Fragmentation

I took today off work. Which is probably a good thing since I have to work an event tomorrow from 7 am-1 pm and then will be headed to our Haiti Banquet (Which doesn't begin until 6, but like most events, I can't just GO and be a guest. I have to get myself involved in the PLANNING. I'm crazy that way.), so say a prayer that the MORE THAN 200 GUESTS will have a great time and loads of money will be raised for our Haitian brothers and sisters!

Diva Husband, the only one of our little family of four who chose not to receive the flu vaccine, has the flu. I'm not, however, going to rub it in his face, out of sheer terror that the strain against which I was vaccinated is not the strain which he has contracted.

I'm leaving in four days for a conference in Grand Rapids, MI. My sheer joy at being off work for three days is only topped by the fact that I'm then driving home to the Buckeye State BY MYSELF to go to Homecoming at the best university in the world. Did I mention that I'll be in Ohio for three days BY MYSELF. As in SANS CHILDREN AND HUSBAND? And I'll get to go to Oxford and eat toasted rolls and greasy pizza? Diva Nana (and maybe Diva Papa) will be traveling down with me to share in the joy that is a quintessential college town in the fall.

But my children and husband?

NOT!

I've decided to put out an all points bulletin for early Autumn. Clearly she's been snatched away and we've gone right past October and into late November weather.

Our dining room ceiling is leaking. More accurately, I suppose, it's actually our master bathroom floor. Either way, it's not good. And it's wet.

SS#1 is having his school pictures taken on Wednesday. I leave REALLY EARLY Wednesday morning. No way in Hades am I leaving the outfit up to him. We'll be having a practice dressing session.

Did I mention that I'm going to be away from home BY MYSELF for six whole days? Of course, I'll probably miss the boys (big and little) and have to talk to them every night. I'll probably end up sleeping on the edge of the bed, just because that's where I usually end up.

Maybe the hotel will hire a couple of local school kids to bang on my door to wake me up in the morning?

If I Had a Million Dollars...

I never really wanted to be rich. Oh, sure, I've dreamed about what it would be like to have serious money, but when I think about it. I mean REALLY think about it, I'd be happy with a modest home, my family's needs met, and have the opportunity to bless others with some serious cash.

I'd love to endow scholarships at my high school alma mater, the high school where I taught for five years, and my undergraduate alma mater, all in the name of my maternal grandfather. He never went beyond eighth grade, but he so valued education, and encouraged me until he passed away nearly 20 years ago.

I'd give lots of money to my church. We're looking forward to building our own church and being able to minister and bless others.

Most of all, I'd go to Haiti. Our church is part of a mission organization that is working hard to bless some very poor villages. I'd love to be a part of a mission team working for a few weeks down there.

But since my chances for winning the Mega Millions aren't looking so good, I'll do some smaller-scale giving. Most of my friends are in similar situations and probably do the same. Of course even though big money gifts are always appreciated, Margaret Mead said it best.

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has."

With that in mind, I'd like to share a letter with you. A dear friend of mine has been called to do a 10-day mission to Perm, Russia. She needs assistance in raising the funds necessary for the trip. Even the smallest gifts will help.

Most of all, she needs prayer. Prayer for the trip, prayer for the team, prayer for the people who will be blessed. Please read her words, and if you feel called to bless her with funds, leave a comment with your email address and I'll pass along her mailing address.

Dear Friends,

Imagine a place where atheism was the formal statement of faith of the government for most of the 20th century, where the population is dying faster than they're giving birth. Imagine a country where life expectancy for men has decreased by six years, and where alcohol is said to play a role in the deaths of nearly a third of the population. Imagine living in a place where your faith is determined largely by your ethnicity instead of the state of your heart, and where less than 1% of the population is comprised of evangelical Christians. Imagine going to a city that was right in the heart of the Russian Gulag and trying to bring light into darkness.

I've only once missed Thanksgiving with my family, and this year I will forgo my single annual pilgrimage home to go where I believe the Lord is sending me. To Russia. In the middle of winter. November 20-December 1, I will be traveling to Perm with a team from the Atlanta Vineyard Church. The purposes of the trip are:
1. To encourage the believers in a dark, lost part of the world and pour out spiritual refreshment from the Lord.
2. To allow God to work in our own lives as we watch Him transform hearts and lives through testimony and rhema word.
3. To pray "on sight with insight", setting foot on Russian soil and letting the Holy Spirit inform us of how to pray for this nation.
4. To develop and foster relationships with local believers, to make the world smaller geographically but explode it relationally.

I am excited about going on this my first mission trip. I consider it no coincidence that I started learning Russian in April and decided to apply for a passport in June, and then was asked to pray about this trip later that same month. I am writing to ask for both prayer and financial partnership.

While I'm comfortable asking for prayer support, asking for financial support is a bit more difficult. As you can imagine, a trip like this requires support from a number of people. I need to raise $2,000 by November 15, with $1200 due by October 1. If you'd like to be a part of this mission financially, checks may be made payable to the Atlanta Vineyard Church and mailed or given to me. A receipt for tax purposes will follow. I covet your prayers as well, knowing that this trip will not accomplish its God-intended end without covering. If you'd like to commit to praying for me as I prepare for the trip, please let me know. I so value your friendship and support.

Passionately Pursuing the Kingdom,

Heather

The Song That Never Ends...

Two weekends ago, The Manimal and I took a quick little road trip to visit some friends in Northern Indiana at the best summer camp in the world, where I spent six of the best summers of my life as a counselor.

The drive is only about 2.5 hours, so I decided to forgo the usual travel babysitter portable DVD player and just bring a few kid-friendly CD's. I have the Disney "For Our Children" CD's and they were a big hit on the trip.

One of The Manimal's faves was a tune by children's artist Peter Alsop called "I Am a Pizza". Cute little call-and-response song that the kiddos love, even after forty-seven times in a row.

I think it's the song of the devil a really sweet song as well, and while Charlotte Diamond's version is a bit different, I've included it so you can hear it for the rest of your life enjoy a bit of pizza today.

Travelogue

I love to travel. Maybe it comes from growing up an Air Force Brat, where "visiting family" usually required no less than a 300 mile (one way) road trip. I don't mind driving long distances to see family or friends.

I don't mind flying either, but with small children, I tend to worry more. Of course, my worries usually involve how my kiddos' behavior is affecting the other passengers. SS#1 is old enough that he's a pro at flying (having done two solo trips last year). He flew more in the first five years of his life than I did in my first 30! On one of our last trips to Texas before The Manimal was born, SS#1 settled into his seat (we weren't even moving yet), turned to me and said "So when will they bring me my apple juice?"

Anyone who has traveled with children knows that no matter how stress-free or relaxing your trip is, the child factor will magnify even the smallest, most seemingly insignificant issue, and the best laid plans will unravel at a rapid pace.

So now imagine this. You and your Superstar Husband have three lovely children and you are pregnant with your fourth. You live very happily in the Western United States. Then you decide to move.

To India.

And you give birth there. And you travel some more.

With four children.

Both you and your Superstar Husband happen to be bloggers and photographers. So the Interwebz can share in your adventures.

Rae and Chinua are amazing, wonderful people who are travelers in the truest sense. On Fly, Fishes Fly!, there is a fabulous little iMovie about his rickshaw adventure in Delhi with Kid A, YaYa and Leafy Boy.

And if you want to meet Rae and Solo (the fourth) and see more adventures of this little family, you can meet up at JourneyMama.

Mayday, Mayday!

Happy May Day! It may only be 50 degrees outside today, but at least it's not snowing!

So I shared with you my nutty next few weeks, and although things will be crazy, I'm pretty excited that I'll be doing a little traveling. They are road trips (which I actually love), not flights, but y'all know I'm a HUGE fan of Southwest Airlines. I "luv" them, as it were.

One of my friends, the Sandwich Blogger, is taking a birthday trip to San Diego. She IS flying (because the drive from Pittsburgh to San Diego's just a bit too far!), but sadly, not on SWA. She did, however, post this fun video.

Another fun reason to fly Southwest!

If it's Tuesday, it must be Belgium.

It's Tuesday and I feel as though my brain has been hit by a Mack truck. T.S. Eliot may have been referring to the unpredictability of spring weather when he said it, but in the world of higher education events, April really IS the cruelest month.

Our work calendar for the next three weeks has so many meetings and events on it, that your eyeballs would probably bleed if I showed it to you.

Since I don't have the space or time to schedule a nervous breakdown, I look for other ways to escape.

Thanks to my friend K. for this little escape into the wonderful world of musical theatre bliss...