After four airports and three plane rides, we made it home. Although the luggage had it worse, being a day later and specially delivered to our home. It missed our connection flight and so did we. Only we would not have if the airline didn’t move us up to an earlier flight than the one we booked. I suppose it’s alright though because I got one more round of pretzels and orange juice out of it, and a trip to Philadelphia. Not to mention that the darkened world is pretty neat from up above with the congested lights marking cities and still areas of farmland otherwise. I could imagine that Thomas Edison would be quite proud of how his invention faired for all these years.

Above was my last look at Ireland. I was beyond happy to have a window seat on this flight. My parents say they are glad to be home, but I would very much like to drive on the left and tell myself I’m driving through Ireland. It was that interesting feeling where I still couldn’t believe I left the country. It still seems like I just visited another state instead of flying overseas. (I do blame that on my lack of window seat going over). And despite all the cultural differences and all the languages that I heard, it really did feel as though it were just another state, I simply couldn’t make myself comprehend that I was not in America.

I’ll share a conversation I had with a young girl, our friend Dean’s daughter. She had seen Mattie’s collar with her identification on it and was asking me if we’d ever lost a dog before. I told her what I remembered from years ago, that our big white dog (the English Setter, we called him Big Al), had escaped. He was found several miles down the road, and the person that found him had called us from the number on his collar. She had asked me if he was still in America. I told her that he was. That question made me really think about the difference in culture, how countries are so small like Ireland and Northern Ireland, and the two combined have the land mass of South Carolina.

If you walked up the lane at our first stop in Larne, Northern Ireland, you could see the ocean. There were also blackberries along in the hedges which made for a delicious pre-breakfast. And these rams were the perfect posers for our picture.

Less far up the lane there was this tree stump that made for a good place for Mattie and I to have our picture taken.

Giant’s Causeway was absolutely stunning. If you ever find yourself in Northern Ireland, I highly recommend it. We saw several dolphins in the distance too. I love the myth that said giants from Scotland had made the Causeway. I also like the stones once you get closer to the coast, they were formed millions of years ago and they’re shaped in such a specific hexagon shape that they all are the exact same size.

A fellow American that we met whilst we were there made the comment that this location would be where Indiana Jones finds the treasure. It was almost a full circle of water in amongst the stones.

All together, it was such a wonderful trip and I have so many people to be thankful for! There are so many people that supported my bake sales and pancake breakfasts that I cannot possibly name everybody. But I’ll give it a go. Thank you Colleen Croxall, Tolli Nelson, Bob and Bobbie Washer, Paul and Leigh Anne Tucker, Greg Jones, Cheryl Hinton, Mary Ames, Patti Sumner, Mike and Janet Wagner, Annie O’Toole, Marianna Schreeder, Mike and Dana Neary, Karl Gunzer, Ray Voigt, Nancy Penley, Lisa Berglund, Rebecca Gibson, Dean McAuley, Curly McAuley, and everybody else!

And thank you Don Laferty for the pictures! Below is one of my favorites.

I do believe you all are right, that I will remember this trip for the rest of my life.