Galway Playground

Since we arrived here in Ireland we have been searching for playgrounds. My friend who lives here gave me directions to a few. Playgrounds in Ireland are not located in every town or at every elementary school like w are used to in the states. Yesterday we finally made it to a playground - the girls were in HEAVEN!
We started the day by meeting Nicholas - my Dublin cousin at the Galway train station. We wandered down shop street and around the canal to the main cathedral and came upon this truly magical place.
There was a play yard for little ones my kids' age, a climbing gym for older kids where Lucy took a try adn a skate park for teenagers who were out in droves. Even the public outside bathroom was memorable. It cost 20 cents and was fully automated. The money went in a slot the door opened with an automated voice notifying the user of this happening. The door then closed. The lock button was like an elevator button on the inside. Everything about the washroom was spotless, clean, and automatic. After
each use there is a cleaning cycle - sounded like a dishwasher!
We spent a couple of hours playing in the sunny weather with a herd of shorties. Everyone had a lot of fun. The girls slept all the way back to Kinvara.

Ireland, Playgrounds, Thrift Shops, Organic Farms, and Family

Chris, Lucy, Violet and myself, just arrived here in Nogra, near Kinvara this morning. We flew from JFK to Shannon without a hitch. The girls were so excited about the thought of flying on a plane I was worried about the amount of sleep any of us would get on our overnight flight. I was also worried about Violet having one of her unexplained night time coughing attacks that sounds like everything is coming up, on the plane or in the airport and being summoned off the plane in the latest media panic for Swine Flu. Yikes!
We all slept as well as undrugged people can sleep on planes, and there was not so much as a throat clearing from the youngest of our possee. I would like to plan our two week stay around Playgrounds, Thrift Shops, Organic Farms and Family - not necessarily in that order. Delving into a little research has been pretty friutless so far. Am I going to have to write a book mapping out and reviewing these things? I have thought about the Thrift Shop Guide before. Not sure how playgrounds partner for the average reader - there maybe the beginnings of two volumes here. For now, stay tuned here and I will let you know what I learn.

Tea Party

Wait staff at my Tea House on Melville Street

Calendar Time

The ffrench family business, called The Dolphin Studio started 38 years ago by John and Primm, (my Mom and Dad) is in the throes of another busy calendar shipping season. We produce a hand silkscreened calendar every year and have since the beginning. When I was a kid printing was one of the daily chores that each kid was required to carry out. It was our task to register the paper on the table and then carry the fresh, wet prints from the print table to a clothesline to hang to dry. Since then things have gotten a lot more organized and fluid.
Primm cuts all the stencils, John did do all the printing single handedly for many years. This year he had help from his friend and master screen printer John Ahlen.
Sofie, my sister, and I have been heading up the mailing and shipping departments. It has been really great to have time to add this to my day.
Just last year Primm hand wrote each mailing label and 'thank-you for your order' enclosure. She swore off it after literally doubling sales due to features in the NY Times Magazine and DailyCandy.com. Sofie and I hold onto her personal touch as much as we can while adding computer printed labels and UPS pick-up to the mix.

We normally sell out by mid December and they are going fast so if you want to get one, don't wait. They cost $50 and can be ordered right from here: The Dolphin Studio.

Zinnias and Hue Test

Zinnias are one of my favorite cutting flowers. They are pretty long lasting in water and the hue and texture of their colors are just so rich and yummy. I had a bumper crop in my first year cutting garden on Melville Street. They are still coming too!

Are you a color lover? I sure am. The richness of color next to color is one of my earliest childhood memories - in the art supply store. Truly better than candy. Here is a fun test to take. Click here and see how you do.