Change of Plans

My Life

When we leave for trips, Hank usually hugs us, kisses our faces, and asks what kind of toy we’ll bring back. That was the drill for all of our travel for the last couple of years, it just didn’t really phase him. Until Saturday, that is. Bryan told Hank he was leaving on a work trip to Ireland, and Hank was displeased. I’ve been traveling a ton this summer, and all of Hank’s friends have been leaving daycare to go to preschool. Hank’s preschool doesn’t start until later this month, so he’s been feeling a little left behind.

Apparently, Dad leaving was the last straw. Hank refused to make eye contact for a few hours, and then began to shriek, “DON’T GOOoooooo!”

Oooh, my friends.

So I find myself unexpectedly in Dublin. The original plan was for me to stay home with Hank, because I was busy preparing for the Mighty Summit. But the heartbreaking dismay of our three year old happened to coincide with a crazy cheap last-minute ticket sale. When we realized we might be able to swing it, we asked Hank what he thought.

-Kiddo? Mommy and Hank and Daddy could all go on the airplane together, would you like that?
-Oh, YEEEES! That would make me very much happy!
-OK, should we pack your suitcase?
-YES! YES! Oh, thank you! I love you so much!

We love you too, little guy.

Also, it’s 2 a.m. in Ireland. Go to sleep.

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30 thoughts on “Change of Plans”

  1. While you’re in Dublin, you NEED to take a bus out to Powerscourt House and Garden. It’s about an hour away and totally worth it! It’s a nice break from the city and it’s so beautiful, and I bet the kiddo will love it 🙂

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  2. While you’re in Dublin, you NEED to take a bus out to Powerscourt House and Garden. It’s about an hour away and totally worth it! It’s a nice break from the city and it’s so beautiful, and I bet the kiddo will love it 🙂

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  4. I just spit out my cheerios, that picture of Hank is SO CUTE! I’m sorry to gush (and to admit the thing with the cheerios), but what a great photo! He looks so pleased!

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  5. you’re in Dublin?! Hello:)
    I wrote about Dublin – my hometown – here http://queenofbirds.wordpress.com/2009/12/14/blog-around-the-world-dublin/
    I’m sure with your travel mojo you’re sorted for tips, but just in case (or for anyone else) here’s some:

    Hank might like The Ark, in Temple Bar, which is an awesome children’s art/theatre/museum space.

    The National Museum on Dawson St. has beautiful Celtic and pre-Celtic jewellery and metalwork on display as well as awesome and creepy bog bodies.

    If you’re here til the weekend, the Dublin Fringe Festival kicks off on Saturday http://www.fringefest.com. First event is free street theatre by Macnas.

    I love Powerscourt, too: the 48A bus goes from the city centre and ends in Enniskerry, Co. Wicklow, about a ten-minute walk from the house and gardens. Gardens are free.
    Some scenes from the Tudors were filmed in the stable buildings around the side of the house.

    Feel free to email me if you’d like any other info!

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  7. Oh my goodness, this made me so teary. My husband spent four months away on sabbatical in Taiwan this year. And this weekend, I went away without my 19 month old for the first time and since I have been back, my little sweetie does not want me out of sight! I am glad you could work something out to make everyone happy.

    By the way, I can cross something off my life list! I began teaching my first college course last night. And guess what?! I love it! Thanks for continuing to be an inspiration.

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  8. Welcome to Dublin! And yes, Irish coffee is an actual thing.

    May I recommend the Guinness in the Stag’s Head, all of the cakes in the Cake Cafe, breakfast at the Metro Cafe, lunch at Avoca or the Winding Stair, craft beer, delightful staff and excellent pub grub at L. Mulligan Grocer and a wander round the National Gallery and the Chester Beatty Library.

    Also, the rain we had over the weekend is not usual. Yeesh.

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  11. Ooh also! The coffee in Third Floor Espresso is delicious and they have free wifi.

    And for Hank, Murphy’s ice cream (delicious, Irish, small batch) have two shops in Temple Bar and Wicklow Street, Stephen’s Green has a lovely playground and some permanently hungry ducks, and the Biorhythm exhibit at the Science Gallery has at least an hour’s worth of entertainment value.

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  14. I second Catherine on the Biorhythms exhibit.

    The Chester Beatty is gorgeous and has a garden and a rooftop terrace if it stops raining. IF.

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  16. Welcome to Dublin. Thankfully it’s been a bit sunny here for for ye, compared to yesterday’s monsoon. If you have time, my favourite entertain the tourists advent is the Viking Splash Tour: http://www.vikingsplash.ie/ you get to go in the water and everything. I’m sure Hank would love it.

    Enjoy the city. 🙂

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  20. Mighty Girl in Dublin and I’m not there! I wish I was cos I’d have asked to meet you, I’ve been following your blog for so long.

    A dart journey out to Dun Laoghaire is a nice way to spend an afternoon, lovely piers to walk on.

    Avoca that was mentioned above is on Suffolk Street which is at the end of Grafton Street, though if you go to Powerscourt, they run the cafe there too. Enniskerry Village is worth a walk around also.

    Stop in Stephen’s Green and enjoy the trees before they get chopped down.

    For good coffee – starbucks is to be avoided and if you are doing champagne and chocolate (even though you said you are stopping) then Butler’s chocolates are delicious. They also do the best coffee in Dublin in my opinion.

    Afternoon tea in the Merrion Hotel is a great way to while away a few hours, lots of lovely Irish Art to be admired for free in there, as there is in the National Gallery, entrance on Nassau Street (beside Trinity).

    For good music free (aka quiet) pubs, Peter’s Pub, Kehoes and Davy Byrnes are all nice places.

    Oh, if you are hungry, Itsa Bagel is hard to beat in Dun Laoghaire for something quick.

    Enjoy!

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  23. Maggie! Wow, a quick trip to Ireland. you are AWESOME! Hank is a lucky guy to have a momma like you. It’s very special that you saw how important it was not to leave him behind at this time. We found ourselves unexpectedly in Ireland this summer when we decided to make it up there for a wedding only a month after our first baby was born. What an awesome trip it was though. I hope you guys have an amazing time! Here are some highlights from our trip: http://abudhabimomma.wordpress.com/2010/07/29/traveling-with-baby/

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  26. Should I admit that I once kept my mom home from a work trip by telling her I’d had a dream the plane crashed and she died?

    See. it’s good that Hank isn’t forced to such Machiavellian lengths 🙂

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  27. I’m glad I’m not the only one who got teary when I read that! I thought it was pregnancy hormones. Poor little Hank! My son was really stressed out when we moved to Japan, and he’s just starting to get comfortable that we;re not going to pack up his toys and leave again. It’s good that you guys found a way to make him feel more secure.

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  29. WAIT! I just realized that you’re rather unexpectedly going to be able to cross something off the life list. It’s so much more crazy cool that it just sort of fell in your lap.

    Having drunk whisky in Scotland, which had been on both my and my husbands lists for a long time, I know what you’re in for… AND IT WILL BE AWESOME (Was? Was awesome? You might have done it.) Anyway, if you haven’t, try to find a pub with an accordian player guy in the back. Apparently, at least in Scotland, old guys get kicked out of the house for practicing too long and go down to the pub. And then good things happen. Like dancing. Dancing happens.

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