Ireland in a Nutshell

Hi, my name is Julie Ledford and I’ll be your guest blog poster today. This is pretty significant for me because 1) I stalk check the Parkers’ blog regularly, and 2) I have never written a blog post in my life. So I appreciate your patience as I fumble through this important milestone in life. My trepidation is magnified by the fear of a spelling or grammar mistake on the blog of a teacher who always notices... but that’s neither here nor there.


Like the other guests for this week so far, I considered lots of different topics for my post. My husband Justin and I just completed our first Whole30 (I was inspired by Nicole and by disgust at the quantity of processed food we were consuming), but my findings weren’t that different from hers. In short, I lived on Nicole’s Whole30 Pinterest board, we’re glad we did it, and we will keep up some of it.

Instead, I thought I’d post about our trip to see Nathan, Nicole, and Ireland. You’ve seen some of the highlights of England already (including an April snowstorm and a chance encounter with Her Majesty), but after Durham we flew over to Dublin and spent a week working our way around the southern half of the island. The best two pieces of advice we got beforehand came from Nathan Parker (take only one small backpack each), and a nice Irishman at our local dog park (don’t make any reservations before you leave). It was the first vacation overseas that either of us had ever taken, but after how well that advice served us I’m not sure I could travel any other way! I am your classic Type A personality – I plan everything down to the smallest detail and I research ad nauseam before making decisions… so this trip was a refreshing change from that. If you’re at all like me (and maybe even if you’re not), you may be surprised that you don’t need much for a spectacular vacation in Ireland:

1. A small backpack (we’re talking junior high Jansport size, folks) with a couple outfits, toiletries, and some detergent to wash your clothes in the sink. You may never wear those clothes again because you’ll be so sick of them, but who cares! It was worth it because I have back problems, and this way we could just hop up some stairs or walk to the train station in the rain and leave people with rolling suitcases in the dust.

2. Layers. The three-in-one North Face jacket I got on clearance paid for itself on this trip, as we were in constant transition between rain, sun, wind, snow, coasts, mountains, and plains. We were prepared for all of it!

I actually used all of the features on the tag of this jacket - liner, waterproof shell, and both together.

3. Good shoes. Ireland is best enjoyed if you’re willing to get out of the car and go for a hike in Connemara or a bike ride on the Aran Islands.

From the top of one of the Twelve Bens in Connemara National Park

4. A small rental car with GPS. We mapped out a rough idea of cities we wanted to visit before we left, but that’s it. No schedules, no tour buses, just driving until we felt like stopping each day. This prevented me from being stressed that we might not make it to our next city for the hotel room we already paid for, or that we might not see the 67 things in Town X that I had read about. Justin and I each had a couple ‘must see’ places, and that’s it. Thankfully Ireland is more about the gorgeous landscapes and kind people than touristy checklists.

Justin in his new Irish hat with our trusty Peugot

5. One or two tour books max. We brought a (literally) pocket guide to Ireland and a book of B&Bs so that once we felt like stopping, we could find something with decent reviews. Every other house in Ireland is a B&B, so we never had a problem finding a place to stay. The fewer hotels, the better – the B&B owners were so fun, and after a huge Irish breakfast all we needed was a PBJ and a banana to get us through to dinner. 

The Cliffs of Moher are tall (an understatement). That's a castle on top there.

 

Gorse. It's like the Irish version of kudzu. But way prettier.

There are a few more things, but nothing you couldn’t come up with on your own. Besides, I don’t want to wear out my welcome and this post is getting a bit long. The end result was a relaxing trip with breathtaking views and sweet memories. So glad we got to share part of our journey with the Parkers - we miss you, nPn!

Because this isn't my blog.....

Hi! I am Abby, and I am usually found here, blogging about the sweet girls we are so blessed to parent.
I am honered to do a guest post while N squared get to travel. I've never guest posted in my whole life!
Like Amy posted yesterday, I was going to do a "Quite Like - Rather Dislike" post because I love reading the ones Nicole posts.
But then I couldn't think of anything to say. I thought about an edition about adoption (oh, my girls are adopted, in case you couldn't tell), but I decided not to.
That leaves me here....with nothing that I could think of interesting to say.....
So a picture of gratuitous cuteness. Seriously, could they have any more personality?

Then......it dawned on me. I have something to share. Something I've actually never shared on my blog and since this isn't my blog, I'm going to share it here.

It begins with a question. Who is Jesus? We have historical proof and documentation that He existed.

Think about it. It's the most important question you will ever answer in your life. A good man? A great teacher? Or the Messiah?

You must make that decision. No decision is still a decision.

I will say, without hesitation that Jesus is Lord and the Bible is God's true Word.

Which leads me to this point. Our death. According to the Bible, we are "destined to die once, and after that to face judgement" Hebrews 9:27.

What do we do with that information? Romans 10:9 tells us that if we "declare with our mouth 'Jesus is Lord' and believe in your heart God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved."

And you must know that He is the only way to eternal life (John 14:6 "I am the way the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father except through me").

Now, life is messy, yes? It's hard, disappointing and sometimes it just sucks. But I have encouraging news. Those of us that belong to Him (and He wants all of us, it says so in 2 Peter 3:9 "...not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance"), He knows us. Psalm 139:1-4 says "O Lord, you have searched me and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely O Lord."

Don't think you have enough faith? Ask Him, He will give it to you. Matthew 7:8 tells us to ask and we will receive, we are to knock and the door will be opened.

Did you know there has never, not one single time, been an archeological dig that has disproven anything in the Bible?

So the Bible is true and Jesus is the Messiah. You must think on that.

If you have any questions, ask Nathan:)

Quite Like, Rather Dislike--Olympic Edition

While Nicole is traversing the land to the south, she will have a few guest bloggers. I have the privilege of being one of them. I have guest-posted once before--if you'd like to read my previous post, click here!

For those of you who don't know me, my name is Amy Erickson, and I have been friends with Nicole for about eight years. She was actually my Bible study leader and substitute teacher during my senior year of high school. Thankfully, we remained good friends after that.

Alright, enough of this intro business--onto the post! If you've read Nicole's blog for any amount of time, you've seen her Quite Like, Rather Dislike posts. I'm such a big fan of them that I've started doing a few on my own blog. In honor of that and the upcoming amazingness of the Olympics, I bring to you:

Quite Like, Rather Dislike--Olympic Edition 
(Disclaimer--although I love and watch all of the Olympics, gymnastics is by far my favorite, so you'll see a bit  lot of that in this post). 

Quite Like:

The stories of sacrifice, extraordinarily hard work, and success--like this one about Gabrielle Douglas who is a favorite for a few medals during these games. These athletes sacrifice so much for a sport they love and the chance to represent our country every four years.

Medal ceremonies--especially when USA is standing at the top. I can't make it through an entire national anthem without crying.

Photo Credit

Here is the Magnificent Seven--the girls who won Olympic gold in the 1996 Atlanta games. 

Rather Dislike:

Mistakes--they happen, it's inevitable, but in the Olympic games, a little mistake can (and probably will) stay with a person for the rest of his or her life. I can't imagine the pain of working so incredibly hard for your entire life, to have a trip, a fall, or a muscle twitch keep you from a long awaited dream. Not to mention the fact that the media will continue to play it OVER and OVER and OVER. Because of this, I will NOT post a picture or video for this "dislike," but I will say that I still cringe and get upset every time the video is played of one such mistake from the 2008 Beijing games. It breaks my heart for those athletes....

Different Time Zones--why can't every event happen live in MY time zone? Huh? :) 

Photo Credit

It drives me slightly crazy knowing that events are happening when I can't watch them live. During the Olympics, I won't turn on my computer or go on the internet on my phone. I have to be on the edge of my seat screaming and yelling at the TV as the action happens. If I found out results before, it'd ruin the suspense, the intensity, the magic. And we just can't let that happen, now can we? 

I could go on and on about my beloved Olympics. I am so jealous that Nicole gets to tour the Olympic grounds on her vacation. I can't wait to put on my USA Olympic shirt tomorrow and curl up in front of the TV to watch the Opening Ceremonies. 

For those of you who love the Olympics as much as Nicole and me, tell us why in a comment below!

For those of you who don't, I'd love to hear why as well (since I can't quite seem to wrap my brain around the fact that someone may not love this incredible event as much as I do!). 

Thanks for reading and commenting! Enjoy the GAMES tomorrow!

Taking It Eas(ington Colliery)

On Nathan's birthday weekend we drove to Easington Colliery and went for a walk. I expected there to be lots of people because 1) it was the first Saturday after state schools broke for the summer, and 2) it was sunny, but there was no one! We had a good time being warm and exploring.

Bugs and thistle

My handsome husband

Big rocks and the North Sea

Beautiful scenery

My attempt at an artsy shot

Nathan found this little cave and some rocks and had an idea...

He wanted to run to the top of that rock and have his picture taken with the water splashing around him and get back down without getting wet.

Climbing to the top

Uh oh! Big wave! He had to run away quickly. This picture cracks me up.

He did it!

The intended photo, although the one of him running away is way cooler.

Caught between the rock and the wet place

Just a wee splash of sea water

We climbed back up to the cliffs. Nathan is working on taking self portraits from behind now. :)

Almost to the top

Nearly there

Almooooost

Phew! We made it.

We're actually down in the south of England on holiday for a week, but I have a few guest posters who should be sharing some fun stuff with you. Are you going on vacation this summer?

Celebrating 34 Years of Nathan

My love is older than Jesus! Nathan turned 34 on Sunday, be we kind of celebrated over a few days. The weather even cooperated and we cleaned up the yard, the car, and Nathan shaved and cut his hair!

We grilled out on Friday night.

Sam and Em joined us for grub, and then they treated us to The Dark Knight Rises.

On Saturday we had brunch at our house with our friends Hamish, Marije, Xander, and Rebecca, but I forgot to take a picture! Rats!

On Sunday, his actual birthday, I offered to make him whatever he wanted to eat. I forgot to take a picture of breakfast, but we had bacon, eggs, and fruit before church. For lunch, he wanted "the perfect sandwich." I added veggie crisps and cherries.

Cullen joined us too!

Here's his first bite. Wheat bread, turkey, cheese, Duke's mayo, whole grain mustard, horse radish, lettuce, tomato, avocado, onion, salt and pepper. I think he liked it.

For dinner, what else besides Nathan's favorite savory chicken? We had salad too, but you can't see it in this picture.

And a chocolate cake!

We took the cake over to Bob and Sue's house, because Bob and Nathan share the same birthday. It was scrummy!

And now announcing our winner of the latest contest....

MY DAD!!!

He actually did win fair and square (Nathan picked a random number), but I thought y'all would think the system was flawed, so I picked another winner too...

MELISSA R.!!!

Melissa was my roommate in 2000-2001 at Taylor University in English Hall on Third South, Room 304. She used to leave me notes on our white board that were littered with song titles by Steven Curtis Chapman. I was a bridesmaid for the first time in her wedding, and now she's just had twins, her third and fourth boy! You want to know something else cool? She just had HGTV Disney-fy her back yard, and it's on TV! Check out more about their story and see pictures on her blog here.

Daddy and Melissa, I'll get you guys something awesome from our time down south this week. I can't wait to see what finds me to give to you.

To Look Homeless, or Not to Look Homeless

Last weekend before we met up with Sam, Em, and Rob and left for the Lake District, Nathan ran out of hot  water and time to shave. He let a little stubble grow over the next day or two, and I mentioned that I kind of liked it. He took this to mean that he should take a Nazarite vow and refuse to shave his face or cut his hair. What I actually meant is that I kind of liked it. Literally. Not coyly. 

While a little stubble is quite different from a full beard, I told him that I supported him in his hair-growing phase if he needed to do it as a man. After all, he felt a little emasculated driving around and handing out sandwiches to the guys on their 112 mile bike ride. Every day he asked me if I liked his beard, and I said "No." Then he would shake his finger at me and smile and with a little twinkle in his eye he would say, "I can tell it's growing on you." And then I would say, "No, it's growing on you, and it's rather patchy."

My life-giving support as a wife meant the world to him, but I pulled the plug after a week. I begged him to PUH-LEASE shave it off. He wanted me to put it to a vote on the blog. So... what do you think? Should he shave and cut his hair or just let it keep going?

Gross? Yes. I completely agree with you. So, I basically stopped kissing him unless it was squarely and lightly on the lips because he tried to give me beard burn otherwise, which was rather annoying. The "no kissing" thing got his attention. And then this happened...

Phew! He's back! I guess we didn't need to put it to a vote after all.

You have a few more hours to enter the latest contest! The winner will be posted tomorrow...

A Llama and Another Contest

Well, hello there!

I don't know why, but this picture I saw on Pinterest a few weeks ago always makes me smile. You know what should make you smile? This picture AND a blog contest! 

That's right, folks! It's summertime, and I'm feeling both bored and generous. Next Tuesday Nathan and I will be leaving for a week's holiday to the south of England. We'll be in London, the Isle of Wight, Dartmouth in Devon, Avesbury in Wiltshire, and everywhere in between. Perhaps I shall bring you back a little treat from my trip?

As usual, I don't have a prize in mind already. It will depend entirely on who wins. When JEG won a contest last spring, I went to her Pinterest page and chose a summer weight scarf based on recurring color themes on her Style and Home boards. How brilliant am I?

To qualify, leave a comment on any post between now and Monday, July 23rd, at 6 p.m., British Summer Time (that's 10 a.m. in California and 1 p.m. in Georgia). One entry per person. First time comment-ers get three entries! Commenting using your husband's account doesn't count.

Not sure how to leave a comment? Go here.

May the odds be ever in your favo(u)r.

"You Are Such a Little Girl!" Love, Nathan

This weekend we went with our friends Sam and Emily (our first English friends) and Rob (who wears flip flops in April) to the Lake District. Sam and Rob did a 112 mile bike race up and down the 12 highest peaks in Cumbria. It was absolutely insane. 

Nathan, Emily, and I were in the support car. We waved British and American flags, held up signs that said things like, "Dig in, bear down, press on!" and "You are such a little girl! Love, Nathan" and fed them lots and lots of carbs throughout the day. 

We could not have asked for better weather, which as you know, is a true miracle. It was perfect! The views in the lakes were gorgeous, and we loved being with our friends for such a long time. We stayed with friends of Sam's family, and we ate amazing food and had great conversations. We are so blessed!

Unfortunately, the camera battery light came on first thing in the morning, so I hardly took any pictures except at the beginning and end of the race. We took loads of pictures with Rob's fancy camera, so hopefully he'll pass some on for me to pass on to you. 

Here we are at 4:30 a.m., getting ready for the start!

We arrived at the start a little after 6 a.m.

Same and Rob took the little chips on the lanyards and beeped them on the side of this wall at the gas station. They beeped in and out of several locations, and it kept track of their time.

Here we are on our way to the first stop. The view was breathtaking, so we had to pull over and take some pictures.

See?

Yay.

Here's our car in the clean, fresh air of the Lake District.

Here's Nathan, waiting to see if he can scout the boys climbing the biggest ascent.

What a view!

Here's Emily, running toward the boys to cheer them on.

Here they come... up a 30% grade!

Almost there, Sam!

Here are the boys at the finish, which is where we started. They did 112 miles in 8 hours and 43 minutes and about 20 peanut butter and honey sandwiches and a pan of brownies. They did not stop or walk at all, which was truly inspiring, but not inspiring enough for me to try next year. 

Nathan, on the other hand...