Meeting the Fam

Hola everyone! Well this weekend was GORGEOUS here! So much sun I got a mini sunburn on my chest and loved it :) Saturday we spent eating bagels by the river and then soaking up the sun in the yard. That evening when it started to rain we met Sheila at the internet cafe to plan Eurotrip. It's all booked, exciting huh?!

Sunday morning we woke up and caught a bus to Ennis, which is about an hour and 20 minutes from Galway, to meet my Grandma Clark's cousin, Sean, and his family! I was so excited to meet family here and it could not have been a better day and night. Sean's daughter, Kathy, picked us up from the bus station and as soon as we pulled up Margaret (Sean's wife) said I looked just like Andy Fahey (my dad's uncle)! There were tons and tons of kisses and hugs and welcomes, it was great! We went inside and had tea and coffee and biscuits and talked a lot about the family. I learned so many new things about my Grandma's side of the family and I really enjoyed talking to Sean about it. Turns out my grandparents were sitting in that exact house when I was born! I also learned that Grandma's family originated in Partry, which is in County Mayo, and which happens to be about 5 minutes from Ballinrobe! (where David, Lenny, Mick, and Lizzie are from...weird huh???)

After tea and coffee we had dinner, at like noon! It was a gorgeous feast: potatoes, carrots and parsnip, a roast, and it was all so delicious. After dinner we again had tea and coffee and chatted, it was a lot of Fahey/Staunton history for Katie to take in, but it was so interesting! Sean and Margaret have 5 kids and we got to meet 4 of them. After dinner Orla and Maria came over with Maria's son Ian, who is 10. Maria had a wedding that night so Orla was watching Ian and they were going to come with Kathy, Katie, and I on a driving tour of County Clare! We started out in Doolin, this small, like teeny teeny town on the coast with beautiful views. We stopped in Gus O'Connor's pub, which is famous, for a pint, and then continues up the coast to the Cliffs of Moher! Recall the first time we went we got to see about half of one cliff because of the fog, so it was amazing that we got to see them again! Ireland's coasts are spectacular...From there we went to Lahinch, this beach that Ian loves and goes to weekly in the summer. Who knew Ireland had such great surfing?! We got ice cream at Enzo's, which apparently has the best ice cream ever (I would have to agree..) and sat on the beach wall for bit. Ian gave us lots of info and pointed out the rich people's houses where he would one day live (I was invited to visit, as was Katie :) ). Next stop was Milltown to meet their brother John and his family in their mobile summer home. John and his wife, Fiona, have four kids who would be my 3rd cousins we decided (though for the day everyone was just cousins, and we were the American cousins!), Owen who will be starting college in the fall, Aiofe (ee-fa), who is 15, Niamh (neve), who is probably 12 or 13, and Gerald, 6? Anyhow they were so welcoming and showed us the beach where they lived for the whole summer. They wake board, body board, fish, wind surf, everything! It reminded me of Lake Como before the TV, DVD player, huge outdoor toys, etc.. They had no TV and no electricity, by choice! So cool...

After our driving tour we went back home, where Margaret had prepared a dozen home made scones, a rhubarb tart, and an apple tart, delicious!! I couldn't stop eating, so luckily she sent us home with lots of everything :) Ian's sister Roisin (ro-sheen), 5, came home from her friend's home to meet us and showed me that she had just lost a tooth. She was a little nervous but very sweet. When Orla took the kids home for the night Kathy asked if we would like a glass of wine, but before we could answer Margaret said "O yes they would, they would, yes, get them a glass, yes..." So we had some wine and chatted some more, took a few pictures, and then Kathy really had to get to sleep. She works for Continental Airlines at Shannon airport and had to be there at 6 am! I think I should look into that job because she flies for free, as do Sean and Margaret!! I promised I'd try to plan a big Chicago reunion because she said they could come at the drop of a hat! Sean dropped us off at the bus station the next morning since I had to get to work and gave us lots of hugs and kisses goodbye, he told me to give Grandma a big kiss too. It was such a great day and I'm so happy I got to meet and learn so much about my family. I'll post the pics soon, sorry for everyone who was super bored by this post; we'll be going out like every night now because we have so little time left, so I'm sure they'll be more exciting ones soon!!!

Love you all, less than a month now!!
-Erin