Reality

OMG! Where has the time gone?  All of a sudden we're down to 45 days!  What happened to the other three months?  It seemed like we had all the time in the world and the days were crawling by.  Now we're a week into May and I'm wondering how everything will come together.

A couple more planning weekends and hundreds of emails have gone by.  Itineraries have been changed over and over and new things we hadn't heard of added.  B&Bs rearranged and reviewed.  The first day is now one of the last but horseback riding on the beach and an afternoon at the races have been added.  Lots of gardens, castles and other adventures. It's so hard to eliminate places and things that sound so interesting but even when it stays light until 11:00 p.m. we're still not going to have enough hours in the day.  If only we didn't need to sleep.

I'm also noticing that as we get closer to reality I'm getting a little more emotional and melancholy.  Maybe it's because of the Mother's Day weekend and wondering what my mother would be saying.  I know she'd be thrilled for me but I also know it was her dream to go someday as well.  She was so disappointed when her sister went and she wasn't able to join her.  So part of the journey is dedicated to her.  After all that's the Irish side of the family!  Here's hoping I can find out something about our family that no one else has been able to discover.

We're also getting ready for my nephew and niece to head over the end of this month.  Mike and Sue (also my Great Grandparents' names) will be flying to Dublin on May 29th with another couple to see what they can discover about the Easons and Gypsy Horses.  Now that's a combination.  Sue has the most beautiful Gypsy, Shamrock, that she has been training and is now, after months of work, able to ride.  One of the driving forces for her was to see the Gypsies in their "natural environment" lol!  They'll even be visiting a farm while they're there.  Unfortunately they only have about 9 days and they'll be home before we leave.  I guess it's also a good thing for them to have returned before we leave.....lots of feedback.  I know they're going to have a wonderful time.  Maybe next time we can all do it together.

I'm pretty much rambling here but my mind is so full of so many things that need to be done at home, work and for the trip I'm feeling more than a little overwhelmed.  I know it's all going to come together but I wish I were just a little more organized.