My Life as an Irish American Girl

On June 22, I turned 26. For the first time ever on my birthday, I felt like I was having a relaxing day. Basically I slept in till eleven in the morning, then I made myself french toast. Took two tries to get it to look perfect. But it did taste delicous. As I ate my birthday brunch, I watched two episodes of Switched At Birth on Netflix. I'm really hooked to that show. You should watch it if you have netflix.

As I was making my birthday brunch, my brother brought in a vase filled with flowers. Apparently my Aunt sent them to me. I love flowers. They are very pretty.
Anway, my parents and my brother Brendan and I went out for dinner. One of my favorite resturants is Applebees. Which is where we ate for my birthday. I got the chicken tenders platter with french fries. For my appetizer, I ordered a chocolate milkshake. Usually I'd get the pretzels with the beer dip, but I was really craving a shake.

The funny part at Applebees was seeing my dad take the miniture tomatoes off his plate. He hates tomatoes. There must of been at least twenty little ones sitting on his grilled chicken and hiding in his mountain of french fries.

After dinner, we drove to Carvel to pick up my personalized icecream cake. It had yellow frosting covering the square shape with green frosting outlining around the top, and the words "Happy 26th Birthday" was in green. I did it that way because I love the Green Bay Packers. And basically that's their colors.

When we got home, I opened my gifts from my parents. I got a box of cadbury chooclate which came all the way from England, a Green Bay Packers spinner and cash. My brother says he has a gift for me but it hasn't arrived yet. So I'm just waiting patiently thinking about what it could be.

My grandma came over for cake. We sang happy birthday and chatted. She didn't really understand how the new spinners can be so entertaining. I don't think she'll ever grasp an understanding.

The cake was delicous, my gifts were amazing. I'm ready to write chapter 26 of my life. Pretty much 25 was really good to me. Let's see how 26 goes.

After it stopped raining, my mom and I decided to take William and Henry to their local park near their house. It was only five or six blocks away so we walked. The park was connected to the beach which is very cool. Lots of nice three story houses near the water. Sounds like a great idea until you get a massive storm, then it doesn't seem so nice anymore.

Henry and William love going on the swings. The swings are very enjoyable. Also William and I went on the slides. I was trying to teach him how to be creative. He ended up walking down and up the slide once then sliding down it normally. Being two years old your brain bounces with ideas.

Henry on the other hand pretended that the park was a big boat and we were on water swaying back and forth really fast. Being four can make you be very creative. I like the way that kid thinks. I was the same way when I was little.

Last December, my dad's feet were so itchy that he decided to put cream on his feet. But he decided to take a nap first. When he woke up from his nap, He applied the cream to his feet. Without thinking about what he just did, dad took his first step down the stairs and fell on his butt all the way to the bottom. We heard a big bang. Victoria was upstairs in the bathroom at the time. We thought it was her that fell. But turned out to be silly dad. My mom and I had to bite our tongue from laughing. Ryan went to check on him. He left a big hole in the wall from the tumble. We were grateful it wasn't Victoria. To this day we still laugh about it.

Many years ago back in 2003, my dad took my two brothers and I to Camel Beach. Camel Beach is one of the biggest water parks in Pennsylvania. It was really hot that day, the weather man predicted thunderstorms. The four of us decided to walk all the way up this big hill to the Family Ride. A water slide where you sit in this big tube and go down the slide. It's a lot of fun. But my brother Ryan started to feel dizzy and very sweaty. That's when he took a piece of gum off the garbage can and almost put it in his mouth. My dad was madder than a hornet. He ended up taking Ryan back down to the bottom to get him some water. As soon as my brother Brendan and I were up next, the ride closed because of thunderstorms. It was a pity because we walked up this big hill in the heat just to walk back down again. More importantly, my brother Ryan ended up being okay after he got hydrated.

When my brothers and I were little kids, we decided to build a spaceship that would take us to the moon. Each night we would go into the basement and plan our trip as well as work on the cardboard spaceship. As young kids, we really thought we were going to the moon. It felt so real to us that we told our mom about it. Who questioned our imagination. My brother Brendan used real tools to put it together. Sadly we did not make it to the moon but we had a great time using our imagination. The funny part in that story was that as kids we really thought our adventure was going to actually happen.

When my brother Brendan was five, he decided to do something stupid. I guess we have to credit him for being five with no brain. Anyway he got this crazy idea that he could jump from the rocking chair all the way to the piano chair. Yeah folks, he really jumped and ended up cracking his head opened. My dad and our Uncle Lou had to put a kitchen towel over his head and rush him to the hospital. He needed a LOT of stitches. Folks don't be stupid, DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME EVER!

When my brother Ryan was nine years old, his friends and him, got this crazy idea. Which was to stand on a folded table and dance. Ryan danced and then the table folded with him on top. He ended up getting a gash in his lower leg. We had to rush him to the nearest hospital in Manhattan. Ryan needed stitches and was told not to do that again. DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME EVER!

I was only ten years old when I was playing outside my Aunt Bug's house. As I was having fun, a bumble bee crawled up my sleeve. It stung me in the middle of my arm. I screamed so loud that I think all the neighbors heard me. Oh my gosh it hurt so bad. I had to keep putting a wet paper towel on my arm to keep it from swelling up. If your near a bee, moral of the story is remain calm.

On Saturday June 10th, my mom and I went to my Aunt Amy's house. Aunt Amy through a birthday party to celebrate Henry and William's birthdays. Actually Henry was born on May 30th and William was born on April 3rd. Every year my their mom throws them a big pool party. Some of their relatives and friends attend.

Beleieve it or not, two years ago at the party, Their Uncle Michael bought the boys a goat. Yes a real goat. But unfortunatly they couldn't keep it. So they donated it to a local zoo. The following year the same Uncle bought them baby ducks. This year He bought the boys two parakeets. I'm not sure if my Aunt is going to keep them or not.

It was 83 degrees and sunny. Perfect weather for the birthday celebration. Since they live near the water, there was a nice breeze. I sat in the outdoor lounge chair on my aunt's patio and watched the kids have fun in the pool.

Every year my aunt has a waitress come and cater food. Which is always delicous. This year she had chicken tenders, three different types of pastas, egg plant, chicken covered in gravy and rolls. Aunt Amy is really the best party hostest ever. Her parties never dissappoint.

Besides a pool, there was also a bouncy house. Im not sure what show its from or if it's a character from a show. But it was a square shaped house with a dalmation dog on the front. Really cute. After all it was a firefighter themed party.

Henry loves anything that has to do about trucks or cars. He also loves Paw Patrol. William loves cars too and the show Blaze. Even though they are two years apart, they still love each other and get along very well.

For dessert the boys had a firefighter themed cake and cupcakes. Wasn't icecream flavored though but what matters the most is that the birthday boys liked it.

The sun was starting to set as the party came to an end. Most of the people left, as others stayed for a little while longer.

What a fun filled Satuday with my two favorite boys. If I could do change anything, to be honest I wouldn't.

Did you know that the background of my blog is a picture of Dundalk way up high on a hill? I know it's pretty awesome. A lot of you are probably wondering what Dundalk is like and where it's located on the map. I figured you would be so that's why I decided to write this post. To help you understand where I go when I visit Ireland and what it's like.

Dundalk is located on the North Eastern side of Ireland. Three miles from the border which separates Ireland from Northern Ireland. It is town in County Louth. The capital is an hour from Dundalk.

There are lots of shopping centers in the town itself. You can take a bus, drive or even walk to the town in Dundalk. They actually have this really big mall called the Marshes. The Marshes has lots of small stores and food places as well. There's another mall called the Long Walk. The Long Walk is still opened to the public, but a lot of stores closed down.

If you ever want a delicous breakfast, lunch or dinner, this Resturant is worth every penny. It's call the Copper Kettle. The Copper Kettle has been around since I was a little girl. They have the best Chips and gravy. The Irish love their gravy as much as they love their beer. There's also something new on the menu everyday. There's also this bakery called Home Bakery. They have the best rolls in my opinion. But they also have lots of sweet treats.

They recently opened up this new store called Dealz. Dealz is a shopping center that sells grocery, sweets, crisps, soft drinks, chocolate, pet supplies, gardening, art and party supplies for a lot less. Similar to Dollar Tree in America only Dealz isn't all a dollar but defiantly cheap. One of my favorite stores actually.

Besides shops, malls, pubs and resturants Dundalk has a whole lot more to offer. You can drive, take the bus or even walk to the Navy Bank. The Navy Bank is a board walk that lets you see this amazing view of the Irish Sea and the mountains while you enjoy the fresh air.

Unfortuantly there aren't any books on Dundalk yet. But one day someone will write one. Who knows who will be the author or when it will happen. But I can say there has to be one. For now we have google. Which is helpful in certain ways. I still think a book would be a lot more helpful. It would attract more tourists.

Now that you got an idea what Dundalk looks like, close your eyes and use your imagination

For the first time after seeing pictures of Cooper and Sasha, I was FINALLY able to meet the both of them when I went to Ireland in February.

My cousin Neil and his fiancè have this really cute, loveable Border Collie named Cooper. You may be wondering what makes Cooper so special than any other Border Collie. Neil and Rachel trained Him so well that He can even give you hugs. All I have to do is kneel on the floor and say, "Cooper give me a hug!" Then He jumps on top of me with his paws on my shoulders. Sometimes He gives me slobbery kisses on the cheek. He's the sweetest dog ever.

My Aunt Lorriane, Cousin Eimear, Uncle David and my granny have this cute little dog named Sasha. I'm not sure what breed she is. Sasha is still a puppy getting trained. But I can assure you that she wins an award for the loudest barker EVER! Loves to cuddle. Actually one day she fell asleep on my lap while I was sitting on a lounge chair. She is a darling puppy that's for sure.

Back in 2013 I went to Ireland to visit my dad's side of the family for a month. But for four years I decided to take a break from flying. One of the reasons why I hate flying is because my ears get clogged and remain clogged for a couple of days after the flight. After talking to my therapist and saving up my money, I decided to go back to Ireland but for only two weeks. I really haven't seen my Irish family in a really long time plus I wanted to have a better relationship with my little cousin Eimear. She's going to be twelve in October. On February 23rd, 2017, I took the six hour plane trip with my dad to Ireland.

Early Friday morning at the crack of dawn, I landed in Dublin Internation Airport. My family lives an hour from the airport in a little town called Dundalk. Keep in mind the time difference between New York and Ireland is five hours. They're five hours ahead of us. While we waited for my Aunt Lorraine to pick us up, I got a packet of Cadbury Chocolate Buttons at the shop. My ears were still clogged at the time. Finally when I got "home" to my Aunt's house, I was introduced to my cousin's dog Sasha. She's a barker but really cuddley. I took a much needed nap after meeting Sasha. After my nap, I went for a walk down with Sasha, my dad and Eimear.

At noon my dad, Eimear, Granny and I drove up to town to have lunch at this restaurant called the Cooper Kettle. While we were there I got to see my Aunt Blonde. She’s a sweetheart as always. As we left my granny with Blonde, the three of us went for a walk. We went to this store called Deals. Great prices for snacks and other things. We also exchanged our money.

Me, Granny and Eimear

Eimear and I

Eimear, Sasha and I

Me eating toast on the Irish Ferry

Uncle Philip and I

Gareth and I at the pub

Neil, Cooper and I

Tower Bridge

The Big Ben

A church in London

British and Welsh Flags

What the London Eye looks like from up high

Dad on the London Eye

My name is Chloe. I'm an Irish American Christian girl who loves her life. I have three hobbies, watching planes theough my window using my binoculars, studying the country Ireland and writing books as well as blogging. Let me define my hobbies so that you can get a better understanding as to what I love to do. 

1) Watching planes - I live near an Airport and planes do come in low in my backyard. Basically I use my binoculars to see what airline is coming into land. It is a simple hobby that keeps me happy. 

2) Geography  - Jn school, my favorite subject was always geography. I love learning about different countries and their history/culture.