Ireland got sun!!

Saturday was a great day. There was sun sun sun!

I had a full day planned which involved dashing all over the city by bike and tram. 

To start Amy and I got out and cleaned the canal for a nationwide Canal Clean Up Action Day. 
After that it was back on our bikes where we made our way to St Patricks Cathedral to meet up with Together for Yes Dublin Bay South to canvas for the upcoming referendum. 
This brought us up to 2pm where we then went home and got ready for our nephew's confirmation. We took the luas tram which took us from door to door from Southside to Northside.

The confirmation was lovely and it was great to be able to sit outside for dinner in the sun.

Here's pics of the day.

Of course, normal weather has resumed today with rain and cooler temps expected for the week ahead.

All kitted up and ready to clean up the canal

I pulled a waistcoat(!) out of the canal and Amy threw it in to her rubbish bag

 Coffee cake and cupcakes were a lovely dessert after a tasty dinner

 Amy and I didn't plan our outfits but we nicely coordinated with each other #twintastic

Delivery Man

Watched a great film the other day on Netflix.

It's Delivery Man and it stars Vince Vaughan and not only one Irish actor but two Irish actors! The first actor is Simon Delaney who I remember for his breakout role in Bachelors Walk (which I loved) and then the other is upcoming actor Jack Reynor.

I wasn't expecting much from the movie but it was a nice feel good film and well worth a watch. Perfect for a chilled out rainy Sunday afternoon.

What I've been up to....

Thursday evening brought me to the Stephen's Green Shopping Centre where I tried on 22(!) dresses to finally choose one for an upcoming wedding which is on in Tenerife. A big thanks to my twin sister who carried dresses in and out of the fitting room and changed sizes and colours and who without her help I may not have finally said "Yes to the dress!"

Then on Friday I met up with two friends for coffee and a catch up and then met my mother for a browse around Homesense which is the new TK Maxx homewares store. 

In Homesense I found the perfect item to bring with me to a friends house on Saturday night.
Look! My favourite Key Lime Coconut Patties that I normally buy in Key West.
Perfect for visiting Alice for a catch up about our last KW trip.

On Saturday I was working so a strong coffee in the car was in order.  Later after work I got the bus to Alice's with Amy - the bus is literally door to door as it goes from one side of the city to the other.

Alice served us amazing food and drinks and we had great chats.

And we got to chill with Baxter!

Red wine and cocktails with best friends all make for a great evening.

We were back on the bus by 11pm and home well before midnight. Sure it's nearly as good as a taxi service!

Fun weekend of incognito art

Incognito 2018 was on this weekend in the Solomon Art Gallery. It's an amazing public art initiative in aid of Jack and Jill Foundation. Over 2000 postcard sized pieces of art are for sale for €50 and after buying a piece you then get to see who created it. What fun!

Even more fun if you discovered a famous artist like Tracy Emin painted the postcard you bought.

 

Ciaran chose the piece below and  after handing over the €50 he turned to the back of the card to see that was painted by Liam Plant.

I visited on Saturday with Ciaran when he bought this piece and then returned on Sunday with Amy for another browse. 

It was a really popular exhibition with people lining up really early to get in and choose their favourite pieces. Here's an RTE news report that captures the excitement of the event.

Ranelagh.......ever changing

When I got off the Luas today, I looked down from the bridge and noticed a new store front on the main street of Ranelagh.  It is the Dublin Lettings store and I think it has possibly gone in to a shop that was formerly a cobbler and man's shoe shop.

Here is a closer pic of the new shop

Further up the road there is a new juice bar called Apple Jacks. There used to be an Apple Jacks in Terenure in the unit that now houses The Lovely Food Co.

And next door to Apple Jacks is the Ranelagh Arts Centre which is of course not new but it does have a new life drawing exhibition which we called in to on Thursday evening for the opening.

Across the road from the arts  centre is a new restaurant called Host which is in the old Bow and Pearl shop. Pics to follow another day!

Kramer vs. Kramer

I'm in tears. Kramer vs.Kramer is now on Netflix.

I knew what it was about but I had never watched it from start to finish. What a film. And what a performance from the actor who played little Billy. He was nominated as an eight year old for an Oscar. Decades later and I can see why.

This is a must see film.

Easter Monday Brunch

My Easter break came to a lovely end with a brunch in Pot Bellied Pig. It was an impromptu brunch. We were just passing by the restaurant after dropping items that I was clearing out to the charity shop in Rathmines. Rain was bucketing down and it was a miserable day so we decided a nice brunch was a good idea!

Pot Bellied Pig is a cute place with friendly staff and great food. I had Pulled Ham and Eggs with Benedict. Ciaran went off menu choosing poached eggs and black pudding. He was unsure what type of pudding it was but reckoned it tasted as good as Clonakilty.

The restaurant was not busy probably due to the rain and also because it was the last day of a very long weekend. Our food was made super fast but was cooked to perfection and very tasty. It sure hit the spot.

Afterwards, it was back home to more house cleaning and clearing out. I am happy to report that my the house is clean from top to bottom!