Weekending

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How are we already mid March? I feel like this year is flying. We had some pretty nice weather this weekend, so we took advantage of that before the storms come our way once again. Ugh. I am so ready for summer.

Anyways, Friday after work, we grabbed a quick lunch and then Rory dropped me off to get a glorious pedicure. It was so needed. After he picked me up, we headed to Target to get some Easter basket things plus some staples for the house. I will be sharing what is in the girls Easter baskets on Thursday for Girl Chat. Don't forget to link up.

After Target, we headed home where I went to the Strange Bikinis store opening with a friend of mine. The bikinis fit differently this year, so sadly I walked out empty handed. But I did score some yummy cookies. 

I went home and picked up Rory and then we went to pick the girls up from daycare. That evening we made our last Hello Fresh meal and it was sooooo good. The pork tenderloin with a figgy balsamic sauce was amazing. We ate every last bit. Even the girls asked for seconds. I can't wait to make it again, but a larger portion for sure.

Saturday morning we headed out to breakfast since we didn't have much in the house. We went to our favorite breakfast place and then ran some errands to get dog food and return the girls sandals I purchased from Old Navy that were too small. But we did manage to buy them more stuff due to the great sales.

After Old Navy, we headed to the park to let the girls burn off some energy. It was still chilly out, but the girls didn't mind because they were running around. I on the other hand was cold. In the middle of their play time, Rory went to a Starbucks that was 3 minutes away and grabbed us some coffees, so the girls could play longer.

After the park, we headed home. We made the girls some lunch and then they went down for their naps. Rory worked on cleaning up the garage while I did some organizing in the house. Once the girls got up, it started to rain. They helped Rory in the garage while I ran to the store to grab a few things that I needed for some pudding cookies.

The girls helped me bake cookies and they turned out great.

Pudding Sprinkle Cookies

I made the girls a quick dinner while Rory went out and got himself some ramen for dinner. Once he got back, I headed out to Mexican with my friend Heather. It was soooo good to see her. I haven't seen her since before my Ireland trip as I was super sick once I got back and then she had a lot of photoshoots once I was better. We dined on yummy chips and salsa plus a chimichanga with salsa verde for me and fajitas for her. Plus we had margaritas.

After dinner, we headed to a speakeasy which I had no idea existed in Reno. I had this yummy drink that is a play off of a screwdriver. It has vodka, fresh orange juice, bitters, and one other liquor in it that I can't remember. It was really good. We just sat and chatted with some of her friends. I headed home around 11 pm since we had daylight savings coming up and I knew the girls wouldn't sleep in. Spoiler: they didn't.

Sunday morning the girls got up at their normal time of 6:30 (on the weekends) which was actually 7:30. It really threw off the whole day with the time change, but I feel like the time changes are harder now that we have kids. 

We made breakfast, protein pancakes and bacon with coffee. After breakfast, I did some cleaning around the house. I also organized my closet and went through all of my shoes. We loaded up my car full of stuff to donate and then waited for my parents to get to our house. They have been gone for almost 2 week in Florida, so the girls were super excited to see them. 

They brought the girls back all sorts of Minnie Mouse things from Disney World. The girls were in heaven. They told us all about their trip and all the fun things they did. Complete with lots of great photos. I am soooo glad my parents had a great time on their trip which was also a 35th wedding anniversary celebration.

The girls had lunch while my parents were there and then went down at 2 pm instead of 1 pm due to the time change. Once the girls were asleep, I headed to the grocery store. I got back in time to watch the last of the bracketology and see where Nevada falls. Nevada is a 7th seed and they will play Texas on Friday in Nashville. Go Pack!!!

Once the girls were up, we took them out in their Jeeps since it was 61 degrees. Then they rode their strider bikes around the neighborhood before getting too tired and wanting to head home.

 Jeeps

Once we got home, I started making dinner. Rory had a few items left to clean up in the garage, so he took care of that. In the 10 minutes that he was in the garage, the girls managed to bring out almost all of their toys from their room out to the living room. The only things they didn't bring were all the kitchen supplies (thank god) and most of their books plus nothing from their closets. 

Rory saw it first and then filmed it when I saw it. I was surprised to say the least. I did laugh because just wow. How many trips did they make to bring all of this out? The girls told us they were going on a train and needed to bring all of their toys. Ha.

While my sauce for our meatball subs was simmering, I helped them clean up. Once everything was back in their room, I finished dinner. The girls even ate the subs with an apple and arugula salad.

After dinner, I gave the girls a bath and then got them ready for bed. They were in bed by 7:45, but didn't go to sleep until after 8:30. Time changes are rough on kids.

After the girls were finally asleep, we watched LA to Vegas and some interview with Nevada on their seeding and game ahead.

How was your weekend?

Friday Favorites

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I hope you had a good week. My week was pretty easy and the girls actually slept really well after having a talk with Avery about sleeping in and not waking us up through the night. Maybe they are actually listening and understanding better? Who knows, but I will take it. Let's hope this continues.

Anyways, onto Friday Favorites and Happenings.

ONE. Hello Fresh. I got free box from Hello Fresh (from a friend's coupon) and wanted to share what I thought of it. I have tried Blue Apron and liked some of the meals, but I found that the produce turned quickly.

I got three meals for two people. I ordered the fan favorite, Pineapple Poblano Beef Tacos, the Figgy Balsamic Pork and the Banh Mi Burgers with Fries. I made the tacos the night we received the box. Everything was packaged nicely in separate bags per meal. The only things that were separated were the meats. They were below everything near the dry ice. Every time I opened a bag, everything was fresh.

The tacos were soooo good. I didn't think the girls would like them, so I made them something else (I am trying to get away from that completely), but they did try ours and liked them. Though they only wanted one bite each. You cook the meat with onions and poblanos and add in the taco seasoning and leftover pineapple juice. Then you make a salsa with cilantro, poblanos, onions, pineapple, tomatoes and lime. You add on a simple crema and your taco is complete. They were really good. I understand why they are a fan favorite.

Next, I made the burgers. We love a good banh mi sandwich, so I had high hopes for the burger. And again it was really good. My only gripe was cooking the burgers in a pan. It gets messy, but luckily, we cooked burgers last weekend on the stove and learned our lesson. Since we have a burner attached to our barbecue, we made the burgers on that burner. So much easier. If you like banh mi sandwiches, this is a great option. Though I am not sure I could or would be able to replicate this.

And tonight, I am making the figgy balsamic pork. So far, I have liked this box, but not sure if I would keep it up as we haven't had any leftovers which made us go out to lunch more often than normal. Maybe we need to try the family plan.

Do you want to try Hello Fresh? You can use my code if you are interested.

TWO. I love hard boiled eggs, but I usually only eat them at Easter and when I go to a party and there are deviled eggs. But I recently saw that you can cook your eggs perfectly in the Instant Pot and knew that I had to start doing that. Then I saw a Guacamole Deviled Egg recipe and knew I had to try that.

I still love my Instant Pot and recommend it to everyone. You can do so much with it and infuse so much flavor into your dishes in a short amount of time.

I will also be making Stuffed Bell Pepper Soup that Jenn recommended.

THREE. Another recommendation that I got was these Indoor Snowballs. I wasn't sure about them, but after reading the amazing reviews, I think the girls will love them. They have been playing basketball inside (with their little basketball hoop) almost daily and love throwing balls. So this will help get the energy out, have fake snowball fights and prepare them for the snow better. Plus they are washable and no mess. Total win.

FOUR. Did you all watch the Bachelor this week? I am still shaking my head over it. If you haven't watched it or don't care about the show, skip to #5. And for those that have. Seriously, what did we watch? He dumped her on tv?! I felt sooooo bad for Becca. I think the worst part was when he kept coming back asking her to talk. Bug off asshole. Ugh. At least she is the next Bachelorette. I can totally get behind this season of the Bachelorette.

Anyways, I listened to the podcast with Reality Steve this week. He interviewed Courtney Robertson who was on Ben Flajnik's season. If you haven't read her book, I Didn't Come Here to Make Friends (you should if you are a Bachelor fan), then you might not know that she dated Arie. She talks about him a lot in her book and then a lot on this podcast. I really enjoyed the podcast. Also, I usually don't go on Reality Steve's website because he always posts spoilers, but now that the season is over, I will read his tweets a little more and saw this interview. Go listen to it.

FIVE. Don't forget, next Thursday is our monthly Girl Chat link up. This month's topic is, Tell us about your Easter baskets. Spoiler: I haven't shopped for my girl Easter baskets yet, so hopefully I get that done this weekend.

Have a great weekend!

I am linking up with April, A Little Bit of Everything, Meet @ the Barre and Cup of Tea.

11 Questions: Sunshine Blogger Award

Last week I was tagged by Europafox to answer 11 questions about myself and to participate in a Sunshine Blogger Awards. Thank you so much Joanne for tagging me. I am honored. Below are the questions she asked...

 1.If you had 15 minutes in a super-market sweep to grab what you could, what would it be?
I loved watching super market sweep growing up. I soooo wanted to be on that show. Now I watch a different version of it, Guy's Grocery Games, which is good, but not as great as Super Market Sweep.

If I were playing the original game, I would be grabbing all the big items like roasts, hams, liquor, expensive sauces, etc. But if I were playing it for what myself and my kids eat, I would go with coffee, wine, yogurt, ranch (my kids LOVE ranch way too much), pasta sauce, pasta, ice cream, fruit, Gold Fish, etc. 

2.If you could invite 5 people to a dinner party (can be from history), who would they be and why?
Oh wow this is such a loaded question. I would invite Johnny Cash because I love his music and his life was crazy. I would invite my dad's parents because they died way too young. My grandfather died when I was about 5 1/2 and my grandmother when I was 16. Still stings. Next, I would invite Justin Timberlake because he is a god at everything. He can sing, dance, golf, run a restaurant, act, etc. And finally I would chose, George Sieffert, former coach of the 49ers...because I am a huge niners fan and he was an amazing coach.

3. Describe your ideal party.
It would be like a wedding with getting married. All the good food, drinks, fun and dancing. I would love it to be outside in beautifully warm weather. 

4.What is your favourite Christmas film?
This is easy. A Christmas Story. I have loved this film forever and watch it all day Christmas Eve into Christmas. 

5.If you could institute one global law what would it be?
Better maternity/paternity leave. We get zero in the states and we need bonding time with our children.

6.If you could belt a tune out on karaoke better than the original artist what would it be and where would you sing it?
Ha, I don't have a great singing voice at all. I am going to just pass on this one.

7. If you had to choose between living without make-up for a year or a smart phone for a year what would it be?
I would go without a smart phone even though it would suck when I am on work trips and it is the only way to see my kids. We are all way too addicted to our phones.

8.Who inspires you most in your day to day life?
I would have to say my kids because they make me strive to be a better person and mother.

9.If you could pick any epitaph for your life – what would you choose?
Another loaded question. I would have to research a little to see some quotes and things to live by before deciding on an epitaph.

10. Who was your first famous crush on?
It was either Jonathan Taylor Thomas or Joey McIntyre (from New Kids on the Block). I can't remember, but I had the biggest crushes on them.

11. Do you have a hair or fashion faux-paux from the past you would like to obliterate with a magic wand, if so what would it be? Photos appreciated haha!
I would have to go with perming my hair. At the time, it was big, but now when I look back, I just shake my head. Sorry, no photos, I would have to sift through photos at my parents house to find these.

Weekending

Our weekend started early with a snow day on Friday. We woke up to about 5 inches of snow at our house, but other areas had a lot more. All the local schools were cancelled, but we were waiting to see if the state offices would be closed. We didn't see anything, so we started getting ready as usual and then got word via twitter that the state offices would be closed.

We finished getting the girls ready for school and then dropped them off. I picked up some coffee and pastries and then Rory and I set off to go snowboarding at Mt. Rose. I haven't been at all this season and my season pass was burning a $500 hole in my pocket. Ugh. So I finally got to use it Friday. By the time the mountain opened, there was 38 inches of new snow and it was still coming down. In fact, it snowed all day Friday, Saturday and a bit Sunday. Mt. Rose had over 5 feet of snow in this massive storm. We have about a foot in total at our house from the storm.

 We were about chair 30.

Lakeview run all to myself

After just over two hours of snowboarding, we headed home because we were tired and had to get the girls since the daycare was closing early.

After picking the girls up, we grabbed a quick lunch and then stopped by our new favorite donut shop, Holey Schmidt. We were right around the corner and figured we could eat some the next morning.

Top: Fruit Loops donut, Fruity Pebbles donut (both for the girls)

Middle: Caramel Macchiato donuts (one for myself and one for Rory)

Bottom: Oreo Mint donut (Rory), Samoa donut (for me)

After we picked the girls up, we came home and built a snowman. Well Rory built a snowman and the girls and I played in the snow.

The girls are in their pjs with snow boots since it was PJ day at daycare.

We took the girls to pizza at our favorite shop during their happy hour which gave us a large pizza with one topping (pepperoni of course) for $14 total. Rory and I did add in a beer each.

After dinner, we came home, relaxed and started the bedtime routine. Then Rory and I watched an episode of American Crime Story: Gianni Versace.

Saturday morning we were woken up early by Avery. She has been waking us all up the last several days. Not at all fun. After getting up, we had our donuts and some coffee before heading out to Target to get some sleds. We had no luck at Target as they already got rid of all their winter stuff, but we were close to a Scheels, so we headed there. We got our sleds, plus I found some shirts there and then the girls took photos in the little booth for the shirts I got.

The girls were in pretty good moods at this time (it gets really bad and I kind of want to forget most of this day). We headed to the university for some sledding. Avery wasn't too sure about it at first and didn't like going fast. Sutton on the other hand loved it. We kept taking turns going down with each of the girls. Sutton wanted to go by herself, but Avery wanted to go home. Once Sutton went by herself, then Avery did. But at that point they both started melting down. They wanted to go home.

 Avery (crying) and Rory

 Sutton and Rory

We went to grab some bagels to refuel and this is where the meltdowns started. The girls slowly ate their bagels and since Sutton took her time, Avery started screaming. Rory had to take her outside and this is the decline in our day. Ha.

We came home and put the girls down for a nap. Avery woke up first and woke her sister up which made for a grumpy Sutton. We got the girls ready (they fought it) for their first birthday party of the weekend. 

We arrived at the party and the girls were being shy. They wouldn't talk to any of the kids. We went to a fun center and the girls were still too young for all the games. We helped them and they enjoyed that, but they didn't like that some of the games were off limits. They didn't want to go on the merry go round or the bounce house or anything like that. They wouldn't even talk to the birthday girl. Ugh. We had cake (which was the highlight) and then the girls asked to go home. So we thanked the parents (Rory's cousins) and left.

We went to the grocery store to pick up something for dinner and the girls were mad that the double cart wasn't available. Then they had to go to the bathroom and we didn't know the layout of this store, so we had to search. They threw fits while shopping and it was really embarrassing. We got everything and left, but then the girls threw a fit that they didn't want to go home. It was never ending.

Once we got home, we started making dinner and told the girls to stay out of the kitchen because it was a messy dinner (grease splatter, etc) and they kept coming right up to the stove/oven. So they got a time out in the fit chair and that made them even more mad. But the girls ate their dinner, did well in the bath and even better at story time. So the day turned around.

After the girls went to bed, we settled in with a glass of wine and talked about their behavior. I seriously questioned if I am a bad mom for their awful behavior (this post doesn't even go into how bad it got) or it is just three year olds. I hope that is all it is because we tried and felt like we failed all day with them. Luckily, Sunday was better.

Sunday we got up and made breakfast and then got ready for our second party of the weekend. This time it was at the trampoline park which the girls love. We got there, got our wrist bands and started jumping. We jumped for an hour with the girls and everyone else for our friends sons birthday. We had a blast. Then we had pizza and homemade cake without sugar which was really good. She used honey and it was amazing. Then we were able to go jumping for another half hour. We ALL had a great time.

After the party, we headed home and put the girls down for a nap. They said they were really tired, but when it came to naptime, they just talked. 

I left and went to meet my sister to get a manicure for her birthday present. Her birthday was about two weeks ago and we finally got to celebrate it together. We talked about her upcoming wedding and even about the date night Rory and I were about to have. I told her I wanted sushi or Italian and then we discussed the best sushi restaurants here.

After our manis, I went back home to meet Rory to start our day date. We went to a thrift type of store to search for 90s attire for Rory's 40th birthday. Oh and a friend already ruined the surprise of his birthday (where it was at, some of the people coming, etc.), ugh. We got the best costumes for the party. I can't wait to rock them.

Then we headed to the outlets to look for some old school Vans and just hang out. Then we headed to sushi. As we were pulling up, my sister and her fiance pulled up. They decided to try my favorite sushi place our and showed up right at the same time. Totally unplanned. So we all had sushi together. It was so much fun!!!

We got home and tucked Sutton in (Avery was already asleep) and then relaxed and tried to stay awake from our sushi comas. 

How was your weekend?

TBB Asks - Beauty Edition

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It is a new month which means a new The Blended Blog Asks series. This month is all about beauty. So grab the image and go link up with TBB.

TBB ASKS MARCH BEAUTY 

1. Eyelash Curler Yes or No? Nope. I used to use one a long time ago, but now I get lash extensions and haven't looked back. Even when I don't have the extensions, I haven't used a curler in forever.

2. Favorite Nail Shade? Anything pink. It is my go to and pretty much matches everything I wear.

3. Favorite Lipstick Shade? More neutrals and pinks. I don't wear lipstick often, but I need to start. Something about a bold lip that makes you feel more confident.

4. Blow Dry or Air Dry your hair? I blow dry my hair almost every day unless it is a dry shampoo kind of morning.

5. Artificial Nails: Yes or No? No. I have in the past, but now I just paint my nails myself or get a shelac manicure about three times a year.

6. Foundation: Yes or No? Yes. Always. I pretty much wear make-up everyday. It makes me feel more put together. I do love my days with no make-up, but I do love a full coverage foundation. I am currently using Dior Forever Foundation.

7. Hair Up or Hair Down? I wear my hair down daily because it is short. I rarely get to wear my hair up.

8. Bar Soap or Body Wash? Body wash. I have been using Dove Deep Moisture Body Wash for years.

9. Bath or Shower? Shower. I haven't taken a bath since the day the girls were born. Ok, I take that back. I have sat in the bath with the girls when they were a few months old because they were too tiny for their baby baths.

10. Favorite Body lotion? Bath and Body Works Champagne Toast

11. Do you wear perfume? Is so, favorite scent? I go back and forth on wearing perfume. I will go months without it and then I get on a kick and wear it. I love one by Juicy Couture (Viva la Juicy).

12. Do you shave your legs everyday? I used to before I had kids. Seriously, every single day I did it. But now I am lucky to shave them weekly. Yep, I have become that person. Don't worry, I make more of an effort during the summer. 

13. Favorite Lip Balm? I love classic Burt's Bees.

14. How old were you when you first started wearing make-up? When I was a freshman in high school. Before that, I had no interest in make-up and when I did, I started off slowly with a little eye shadow and mascara.

I can't wait to hear your thoughts on beauty.

Friday Favorites

We survived another week. We have a crazy busy weekend filled with birthday parties, a manicure, friend time and probably a lot of snow. It is supposed to snow several feet in the mountains and up to a foot in the valley by Saturday night. Oof.

Onto Friday favorites and happenings.

ONE. I forgot to mention that last week the girls had their second dentist appointment. We have been working on brushing our teeth since the last one and I believe it has paid off. But now we have to work on flossing which is a lot harder than one would think.

Let me back up. The first appointment, Sutton was great, had her teeth cleaned and no issues. Avery freaked out and had a hard time. This time was the exact opposite. We had an early appointment and we waited a few minutes before going in. Avery hopped right up on the chair and laid down. They were playing Monsters Inc or Monsters University on the tv above their heads. She was happy to get going. They cleaned her teeth, flossed and the dentist came in to do her check up. Sutton on the other hand wouldn't lay down, only wanted her daddy and was not having it.

Avery got her teeth checked out and she has a slight cross bite on her left side due to sucking on the paci, but it should correct itself. She got her teeth brushed again and then a cupcake scented fluoride on her teeth. Sutton on the other hand, had to put her legs around Rory's waist and lay her head in the dentist lap. She fought getting her teeth brushed and flossed, but was ok with the fluoride. No cavities for the girls and they got a reward and stickers before leaving. Next time they get x-rays, so that should be interesting.

So please give me your flossing tips for children. They gave us those flossers that are on a stick, so we are not sticking our hands way in the girls mouths.

TWO. So I finally caved and decided to try the Try Before You Buy at ThirdLove. I did the Fit Finder and I got the Classic T-Shirt Bra. I got it in the naked-2 version. I really hope this bra fits, feels great and doesn't show under my shirts. I decided to try it for 30 days because I feel like I am never satisfied with bras (completely) and this gives you the ability to use it for 30 days. If you don't like it, send it back. They will help you find the best bra for your body. Fingers crossed it works. Want to try it out as well? Go here and you can.

THREE. Do you watch This Is Us? I do and I LOVE it. I have been seeing these shirts around and I REALLY want one now. I love the tank version. So cute.

Pearson Shirt

FOUR. So I am sure if you have read my blog long enough, you know that I am a huge Wolf Pack fan. Nevada Wolf Pack that is. And the Nevada Wolf Pack basketball team has been doing pretty well the last couple years under Musselman (he used to be the coach for the Kings and Warriors). Well they recently won our conference (Mountain West) and are currently ranked #21 in the AP poll. I think they will move up a spot or two when the new weeks standings come out. But the icing on the cake was the domination that happened on Wednesday night against our rivals UNLV. UNLV has been the long standing basketball team in the state of Nevada, but not anymore. The Wolf Pack has beat them twice in the last year with our score over 100 points. That is pretty amazing. 

On the way out of the game, someone took a shirt they were giving out at the game which states Our State. The shirt is red because that is UNLV's colors and it has their logo down in the Las Vegas area. But they crossed it out and put Pack because the Pack now dominates the state in basketball and football. So awesome. Side note: Emily, can you spot the Martin twins? For everyone else: her team is the NC State Wolf Pack and the Martin twins used to play on her team. Pretty cool to have that in common.

I am linking up with April, A Little Bit of Everything, Meet @ the Barre and Cup of Tea.

Ireland Recap Part 2

I am back for another recap of Ireland. You can see Part 1 here.

We met for breakfast in our hotel each morning, but on this morning, I headed over to a little coffee shop (The Bakehouse) across the street for a latte and almond croissant. We had a meeting to get to, so we took a taxi to the south side of Dublin. We were there for the day and worked. Once we were done, we headed back to the hotel to change. Then we headed to the Guinness Brewery. We walked there from our hotel which was only about a mile away. The tour cost 25 Euros, but it was worth it. You walk around about 6 stories. Each story is different. There is a story dedicated to the advertising of Guinness, one to the brew process, one for a small tasting, one has a large store, another has a learning area where you can learn to pour a pint of Guinness the right way and another that is the gravity bar. This bar is on the top floor and it has an almost 360 degree view of Dublin. You can see many landmarks while you drink a freshly poured Guinness pint (included with your ticket).

 The Guinness Brewery lease. It was for around 10,000 years or so.

 Factory mills

Guinness Brewery art piece. 360 degree art piece which was really cool.

You had the choice between the learning to pour your Guinness (and drinking it) or going to the gravity bar. You can walk in both areas, but you only get one beer. We chose the gravity bar.

After going through the tour, we headed back down to the first floor to check out the Guinness store. We bought a few things each, but my favorite was the Guinness dark chocolate bar. It has Guinness in it and definitely tastes like Guinness. Can I just say that Guinness beer tastes so different in Ireland. It is sooooo good. I drank Guinness anytime I had a beer and it renewed my love for Guinness. Now if only I could get a proper Guinness here in the states.

After our brewery tour, we headed to Teelings Distillery for a Irish Whiskey tour. This was a short walk from the Guinness Brewery.

There was three levels of the tour which were based on what you wanted to taste. They had one with the Teeling Small Batch and a whiskey cocktail for 15 Euros, another with the Small Batch, Small Grain and Single Malt for 20 Euros and finally the last with the Small Batch, Single Malt, Vintage Single Malt and Limited Edition Single Cask for 30 Euros. We chose the 30 Euro one because go big or go home. Plus I love trying whiskey's.

While we waited for our tour to start, we grabbed a sausage roll and coffee in the bakery and walked around an area where you learn more about Irish Whiskey and its role in Ireland.

Then the tour started. We went into a room and learned about the owners and the distillery before heading into the distillery. From here you learn about the process of making whiskey.

We were able to smell barley, the fermentation process and see the three stills. From there we went into a cask room to see many barrels of whiskey.

Then from there, we went into the tasting room. I LOVED all the whiskey's we tried. They taught us how to drink Irish whiskey properly, so you can really taste and smell the whiskey. You don't want to put your nose in the glass to smell it. You keep it a couple inches away from your nose and pass back and forth so you can really smell it.

Then you drink a small sip, taste it in your mouth and then exhale out (loudly) to get the full flavor. It was funny to watch this happen, but I have been doing that ever since. I even taught Rory about it.

 That is water in the back just in case you need to add a drop or two to your whiskey to tone it down.

After the tasting was done, I bought some items from the store and then we took a cab back to our hotel. We dropped off our things and went to an Italian restaurant (Bar Italia) for some pizza and appetizers. After pigging out, we headed to the Temple Bar area to go bar hopping a bit and stumbled into an amazing bar. We were upstairs getting a beer and saw/heard music playing downstairs. So we headed down and there was live Irish music being played. Everyone was dancing and having a great time. We sat there for a long time, singing, having Guinness beers and taking it all in. It was so much fun.

The walk between our hotel and the Temple Bar area

 I took a picture of this to show to Rory.

After pouring the beers, they would stack them for each order.

After many beers, we walked back to our hotel and called it a night because we had a flight the next day to catch to England.

And there you have my Dublin, Ireland experience. I wish I was there longer to experience more, but I am so glad I got to spend the few days there that I did. I can't wait to go back and explore more of the country side.