Happy happy Monday, friends!
It is SO good to be back with you today!
On Thursday night, I returned home from Northern Ireland with Smith, Ashby and Madeley. My dad met us at the airport and grabbed Smith because the two of them were going to head out to Cincinnati the next day for the Red Sox game. Over the years, my dad has been trying to see the Sox play at every MLB stadium and Cincinnati was 26 out of 30. Does Smith have any interest in either the Cincinnati Reds or the Red Sox? Absolutely not. Does Smith have a lot of interest in a quick trip with just his grandpa? ABSOLUTELY. They had such a good time together.
Kensington Shull finally got her Christmas gift over the weekend and she and Andrew went from Belfast to London to see Taylor Swift in concert. When we were deciding on “experiences” this year in lieu of traditional gifts, I picked Walt Disney World with the littles (they had always wanted to go together!) and Andrew picked this one. Those two had an EPIC time, but I was oh so happy to see them back in McKinney yesterday afternoon.
Needless to say, between Belfast and Swift, we’ve had a fun few days 🙂 .
Before I start today’s post, I wanted to share a bit about what’s on my heart. Forgive me for rambling, but you know, this is my space for things like this, and I hope you bear with me. This last week, my heart has been heavy. A father in our little community (two of his kids are friends with two of mine) lost his battle with cancer and then one morning on our trip, I woke up and opened my Facebook app and a dear, dear friend from high school had passed. I hadn’t seen him/spoken to him in 25 years, but it really struck a nerve. This was a “first” for me. This was a first to open FB and see that a classmate who I knew dearly had passed suddenly. I don’t know if 42 is the age of this starting to happen…but throw in the fact that my other friend is still desperately needing a heart transplant (I believe this is day 55 in the hospital), and then last week while we were gone, our dearest dearest friend who lost his wife last year and his two children went to spread her ashes (we had a funeral for her last year and this was a private occasion just for them) and was texting and sharing throughout and oh my word, LIFE IS SO FREAKING SHORT.
I’m not scared about the other side of eternity (Jesus, baby, JESUS!), but I am in no hurry to get there, and all of this heartache and sorrow and grief that seems to be at every turn is reminding me over and over and over again that I need to focus on what matters most and pour into that…my family. I just cannot imagine ever looking back and thinking I spent “too much time” with Andrew or our kids. Life is so short, and I want to spend as much time as I can as a family because you really just have no idea what’s around the corner.
If this year is the year I want to encourage ALL OF US to take care of our health and wellness (including our mental health too!), I hope it’s also the year we all spend our precious time with the ones we love the most. We will never get our time back, and it’s our most valuable asset.
Before we get to the vacay pics, prayers certainly so appreciated for the B Family, the H family, the V family and the W family.
Time to share pics of family time 🙂 .
Last summer on Nantucket, I ended up binge watching The Derry Girls on Netflix with Kensington and Smith and well, Andrew had always wanted to visit Belfast and thus, a vacation was born. You guys, we had SO MUCH FUN!
If you’ll recall…
…in 2018, we took the kids and visited Scotland and then flew to Ireland and drove across. Here’s a map I shared back in the day…
That arrow represents our roadtrip back in 2018 from Dublin over and across to the west side of Ireland. If you want to check out those blog posts, they’re right here:
Part One: Edinburgh
Part Two: St. Andrews
Part Three: Edinburgh and our flight to Dublin
Part Four: Dublin Day 1
Part Five: More Dublin
Part Six: Dromoland Castle
Part Seven: Cliffs of Moher
We loved the Republic of Ireland when we visited but like I said, Andrew has always wanted to visit Belfast and well, I love the Derry Girls, so this time, we visited the country of Northern Ireland (which is one of the four countries in the United Kingdom along with England, Scotland and Wales).
You guys, WE LOVED IT.
Where we really really liked our trip to Ireland, we LOVED our trip to Northern Ireland.
So, that’s how we landed on this spot and there’s a little bit of info for you before we dive in…
We arrived on Thursday, the 13th at the airport in time for lunch before our afternoon flight from Dallas to London. We were all so pumped!
Fast forward about 10 hours, and it was Friday morning in London and here we are about to board our second flight from London to Belfast. This one was only about 50 minutes.
Off we go to Belfast!
Oh my word, IT WAS GORGEOUS! Look at that view flying into Belfast!
Yes, please!
We landed, checked into our hotel, and one of the rooms was ready, so all six of us showered super quick, changed clothes and hit the streets to grab some lunch…
There is so much to say about Belfast. It is a beautiful, beautiful town that has really dealt with oh so much.
It has all the charm and character of a European town with so much unique history (some very recent history) that makes it worlds different than most places I’ve been.
We headed to The Thirsty Goat for lunch…
…and it did not disappoint! We didn’t have a single bad meal all week. The food was absolutely delicious, and because we do our research in advance, we were always able to get K gluten-free options as well.
Ashby’s face. She was smirking at her older brother who was giving her a hard time trying to get her not to smile…siblings.
We had a little time to stretch our legs and stroll after lunch before our activity for the day. Belfast was a very walkable city.
Going on little sleep and a lot of happiness! (And maybe a Coke…who am I kidding?!)
Belfast’s City Hall was gorgeous!
What was our big plan for Day #1?
We had to go see the #1 thing this city is known for…
…yup. So many things to note here. The Irish would like you to know that they built the Titanic but the English sank her. Ha, but for real, they said that a lot 😉 . They built her right here in this shipyard in Belfast. We are standing in front of the official Titanic museum and memorial and please also note that the actual size of the building there behind us is the size of the actual ship. Do you see it? That was the exact size of the front of the Titanic. One last thing to note, much to one child’s disappointment, this museum had nothing to do with Leonardo DiCaprio. Parenting is never dull, people.
This museum, complete with interactive ride, has so many things to offer, do and see, but I’m going to share the Cliff’s Notes version or else this post is going to end up taking you guys 8 hours to read.
This is an exact replica of the ship pointed towards and looking out the window on to the actual shipyard where construction took place.
They had three different vignettes set up replicating the sizes and furnishings of the different cabin categories on the ship (they were all crazy small but some of them were CRAZY small).
They had a very lovely memorial wall with the names of every person lost that day. It was extra hard to see all of the families.
The actual violin that was discovered after the ship wrecked. This is the very famous violin where survivors’ accounts said these musicians continued to play as the water rose up around them until their death.
I took a lot of video and a million pics (I’ll post more in Stories), but we thoroughly enjoyed our time there. It was somber and educational all at the same time. You’re able to walk out and visit the shipyard as well which is here.
It was a very full afternoon exploring the history of the Titanic. A must see stop for sure!
After the museum, I asked for recs on Instagram and one lovely person suggested we head…
…here to grab a bite. Since we were going on fumes and still had a bit until our dinner reservation, we stopped for drinks and a snack as a little pick me up. It was our aperitif time 😉 .
Dinner that first night…
…was amazing and delicious at Meatlocker! We LOVED it!!
It’s always so fun to travel way up north this time of year. We had oodles of daylight. In fact, we missed the longest day of the year by just one day (where they say it never really gets dark). I never once saw it “dark” the whole time we were here…
…we climbed into bed that night absolutely happy and exhausted. The view of the river from our room was pretty perfect too.
That’s PART ONE of this summer’s family vacation.
My travel agency would LOVE to send your family on vacation too!! From Europe to Mexico, Asia, Africa, Australia, Hawaii, Walt Disney World, Universal and of course, cruises too, we would love to connect with you today about your next vacation. Contact us now!
Sending you all so much love today. Go spend time with your people. I’ll see you tomorrow. xx
Amy Heinl says
What a lovely start to your vacation and for Kensington to get Taylor Swift at the end and to share that experience with her daddy is a memory she will treasure forever. Did Smith have his excursion yet? This was a wonderful Christmas gift idea and I am planning to gift my kiddos a trip/excursion for their Christmas gifts. I cant wait for them to receive and to see where they will be going
Mix and Match Mama says
They were all experiences of some sort and Smith has always wanted an electric bike, so he now has one that he enjoyed here…and that we sent to Nantucket too. His is the gift that will keep on giving 😉 .
Elspeth says
Keeping all your friends in my prayers! What a great first day of vacation!
Looking forward to more!
http://www.elspethsdaybyday.com
Vicky says
Love it when you guys come to the UK. It’s always so fun to see places I know through someone else’s eyes!
Gail Prowant says
Grandparent trips are the best! My husband took a last minute trip with our 2 grandsons (13 and 14). Last March we found out a week before the college hockey NCAA championships that our team Michigan Tech was going to the championships. He flew from Orlando to Dallas to pick up one grandson and they flew to Chicago to pick up the other grandson. Off to Boston they went. They rented a car to drive to Providence and spent the long weekend watching hockey. They had the best time. I think this will be a trip all three will remember forever.
Beth Knecht says
I’m so sorry to hear of the heavy heartbreaking news! Praying for all of those families! Life is just so short!! Have a fabulous day with your people!
Emma says
The Titanic Museum looks really interesting!
Kristin says
We were in Ireland and Northern Ireland in 2018, and they are truly two of my favorite places I’ve visited. And yes, the food is fantastic! Loved the Titanic Museum and also the gorgeous City Hall. Can’t wait to follow along for the rest of your trip. I am sorry for all of the losses you are experiencing, and the struggles your friends are having. Spending time with family is definitely important, and I’m thankful to have a family I want to spend time with and with whom it is healthy to spend time. So many people don’t have that.
Beth Valenta says
Sending prayers to your families.
Ireland is my bucket list for sure!
Lacey says
Love your pictures of your trip! Did Kensington see Prince William and his children at the concert on Friday? They were there for his birthday on Friday.
Mix and Match Mama says
Wouldn’t that have been amazing?! They went on Saturday night.
Paula R. says
But was Saturday night’s concert the night that Taylor’s boyfriend, Travis Kelce, performed in a skit with her on stage? That would have been so fun to see-live! I heard the crowd went wild when he showed up on stage.
I think that was the night that Tom Cruise was there, too.
What an amazing experience for Andrew and Kensington to share together… and in Belfast… and after Taylor’s new album dropped with all the new songs. Even though Kensington didn’t get to see her last year in TX, it was even more special leading up to this concert in London!!! Once-in-a-lifetime “core” memories for sure.
Mix and Match Mama says
That was last night (Sunday night). Wasn’t that cute?!
Trudi says
Sending love Shay, life can be so tough sometimes ♥️
SS says
Shay,
Praying for all those families!!! My heart aches for all of them!!! Sadly, as my Dad would say it stinks to get old all your friends start to pass away…I just thought yeah because you are getting older, but no words are more true!! Within a few years of each other our family lost a couple cousins.. one younger than me and one only a couple months older (her kiddo just graduated this year) and then my Dad. So yes life is SHORT!!
I love the pix from your trip, but I am a sucker for the had holding walking away pix. I used to take those of my Dad with our kiddos and he would always say, “Here she goes again another picture of our behinds!” Lol. But they are some of my favorite pix I have. Plus, I have been taking pix of hands. I have a few pix of my Dad holding our youngest kiddos hand. I mean all the “life” this hands has seen and the newness of a small child. Ugh. One of my last pic of with my Gram was of us holding hands.
So Kensington & Andrew and TS!!! How fun!!! We have a Swiftie in our house and awe with her Dad too is what was said!! Can’t wait to hear about that too!!
Erika Slaughter says
The views look great but I’m digging your need for a jacket even more. 🤣🤣
Kristen says
I don’t know one thing about Northern Ireland, excited to read these posts! Know what else would be super exciting.. getting a recap of the Taylor Swift concert and London! Can Andrew or K do a pop up post!!!!????
Mix and Match Mama says
Awwww! I’ll see if I can add some pics here of it. They had so much fun!
Sheaffer says
Part 1 was great! Excited to follow along for the rest!
K.K. says
I’m excited to hear about this trip!! So intrigued!
Also, so sorry to hear about those losses and hard situations. It does seem more and more frequent, and it does absolutely helps make the small things small and the big things worth our time!! Praying for those families along with you.
I agree with another reader – a recap from Andrew and/or Kensington would be awesome! 🙂 (even as a non-Swiftie)
Rachel says
The Titanic museum looks so interesting! Can you share more about the ride? I saw a glimpse of it on your IG stories.
Mix and Match Mama says
They call it a “ride” which it was, but it wasn’t a “thrill ride”. You got in these cars (six to a car) and it lifted you up and around this space while showing you how the Titanic was constructed. It was really cool!
Therese says
Praying for your friends today!
Had the chance to visit Ireland and Northern Ireland in October with my mom and 16 of her 1st cousins. This included visiting the house where their grandfather was born and raised before emigrating to the US and meeting 2nd and 3rd Irish cousins. Anyhoo, even without that family connection, it is just magnificent! Belfast, Derry, the Giant’s Causeway and more. We also loved the Titanic Museum!
Mix and Match Mama says
Wow!! What a powerful trip! I bet it was beautiful in October 🙂 .
Bev McGuire says
Shay, I could feel your pain through the screen. I’m so sorry for the families you care about that are hurting. We were just gone for a 3 day get-away and in that short time learned that someone very dear to me had to be hospitalized and two families lost their sons suddenly, one only 15 and the other in his 30s leaving a young family behind. Life can be so hard and yet our God is so good and I’m trusting Him as I know you are to work through it all.
Glad you’re back home. We all miss you when you’re gone. 💖
Caycee H. says
XOXO I SECOND THIS!
Lindsey says
We are also experience people and I’m so thankful our kids treasure that over material items as much as we do! (For the most part). Do you still provide them SOMETHING to open Christmas morning? Or is it understood that’s really all they get? 🙂
Mix and Match Mama says
We wrapped a few things just not to throw them off the scent (they would have known something was up if come Christmas Eve, there were not any gifts under the tree). This year, we wrapped things they needed like new pjs, one kiddo had broken her water bottle at school, etc. So, we had a few things like that just so they didn’t think something was up.
Kacey says
Experience gifts are the BEST!! K&A’s swifty weekend looked incredible and WOW Northern Ireland looks amazing!! Can’t wait to keep reading…