Clare

Back in Liscannor (pronounced liss-SCANNER), where my dry throat has turned into full-fledged something. I hope it's not strep. :P The kids all have it too, lots of coughing and fever. This makes them extremely irritable. Last night at 1 AM, I found Beau sitting in the middle of the hallway, sobbing his heart out because he couldn't find a clean pair of pajama pants. There was a chorus of wailing from him and Eli, the baby, before bed. Beau because he was itchy. His mother, Jeanne, called him a drama queen.

The joys of taking care of three kids...

Beau is the oldest, at 5 years. He goes to school on weekdays, this must be his first year. He is full of energy and tends to throw himself everywhere. He can be very sincere, but also very cheeky. He likes building boats and forts and whatever you like out of couch cushions and other objects, and also looking over my shoulder whenever I'm on the computer (which means I have to be careful). He has longish brown hair and huge blue eyes that are pretty amazing. I'm not surprised that he already has older girls following him around the playground. :) He's losing his milk teeth at the moment.

Ruby is the middle child, at 3. She is very style-conscious, and always wants to know what colour toes (socks) someone has, and whether they match hers. And she likes nailpolish. She loves Peppa Pig. I don't mind Peppa Pig, so far at least, because it gets them quiet! She has the requisite pink stuff everywhere. She's also very independent, and rebels against being told to do things, by telling adults (usually me) what to do in the same tone of voice. She'll also tell me that other adults have said things are or are not ok... for example, when I cut my finger and put a plaster on it, she said that mummy had said they were mummy's special plasters and nobody else could use them. And her daddy apparently said that nailpolish was not for adults. She's also frequently reminded me, when I say that I need privacy in my room, that it's not actually "my" room! She will also put stickers on anyone who stays still enough.

Eli is the baby, at about 1 and a half. He's just beginning to talk, and walk without support. "At's dis?" or "A dat?" he'll ask, pointing at something, and repeat it until you duly tell him that it's dog (bow-wow), duck, strawberry, or whatever, whereupon he makes the sound of whatever it is--"oof oof!" for dog is his favourite, probably because there is an actual dog hanging around outside. He also does high fives, and blows people kisses, and gives his siblings spontaneous hugs, especially when he's been walking on his own and is pleased with himself. He can also be a little rascal and does things even when I say no, giving me a huge smile as he does them...

Benny is the dog, who's never been trained to do anything, and you can't walk or bike down the road without him following, crossing the road, chasing cars, running in front of cars, etc.

Jeanne and Jimmy are the parents, and they're both really nice people; Jeanne works in a pharmacy and Jimmy works in a bar. They're not married, which apparently offends some members of her family. They plan to marry at some point, though. They're both from Ennis, which is not very far away.

I am trying to spend more time outside, as it's difficult with a crawling baby to look after and the unpredictable dog, who Ruby is scared of. But I did take a bike trip to the Cliffs of Moher a couple of weekends ago. That was mostly uphill, and when I got to the car park, I realized that I didn't have a bike lock and didn't want to leave it somewhere unattended, and also they were charging €6 to see a piece of coast! But I did get to see St. Brigid's Well. There's a pub called Murphy's right beside it, and someone hangs their washing practically inside the graveyard there. On the way back, it was a dream! I practically coasted the whole way!

The weather has been warm and sunny one day, and rainy and cold the next. Lahinch, the town down the road, is very nice. Lots of people go surfing there. The other day we went to a beach cleanup along the coast. We found a lot of horrible plastic stuff. And I went to a traditional session at the local pub. Apparently Christy Moore's brother, Luka Bloom, was there; I didn't know, and I don't really know who he is anyway. But hey, cool.

Actually, this place reminds me quite a bit of Iowa. Even the accents sometimes sound the same to my ears... I don't know how... I'm going back to London at the beginning of July, and it will be a bit of a relief to get back to somewhere where you can walk to the nearest shop. But the scenery is quite beautiful.