March 23rd-29th

So here we are on 29th March, that much talked about date. This is what has happened over the last few days.

WEEKEND AWAY

On Saturday we went south for the weekend. There was a bit of drama due to a forgotten bag and a cut finger but in the end we had a great time.

A good time was had by all and we returned to Lima on the Sunday evening.

OUTINGS

No week would be complete without a bit of D’Juliando

BREXIT

Brexit, where do we go from here? Today was supposed to be the today the UK left the EU but that has not uappened.

Mrs May’s Withdrawal Agreement was voted down again today which was no surprise to anyone.

Vote on 29th March

HINODE

Licety is working with a company, HINODE, selling cosmetics. Working with them gives her a lot of flexibility so she can spend a lot of time with Liam. If you are interested in selling products with Hinode, thus being able to be your own boss and organise your own schedule, do not hesitate to contact us.

Today her friend Gisella is helping her.

MOTHER’S DAY

Mother’s Day in Ireland and the UK comes from the old Mothering Sunday and is on the fourth Sunday of Lent, Sunday 31st March, so I would like to wish all mothers a very happy day.

Bye for now. Take care.

March 17th-22nd

Here is what happened over the last week

SAINT PATRICK’S DAY

On Sunday, St Patrick’s Day, we went to Lima Cricket and Football Club were some people had organised a Gaelic Football match.

In the end we had two short games of 7-a-side and I was the referee. Good fun

A great day was had by all.

THE ASHES

Before the football, it was the annual England v Australia cricket match which consisted of two Twenty-Twenty games.

The teams could only play twenty overs each so that is why they declared. The Aussies had an easy victory.

It was good fun watching the cricket and drinking beer in the sun. The Gaelic Football match was the highlight of the day and after it was over we went to Pardo’s, where Liam fell asleep.

PARKLIFE

On Wedneday Liam went to the park with his school. Here he is with his teacher

D’JULIANDO

And on Thursday it was our turn to go out, for breakfast.

BREXIT

As I watched Newsnight last night and they said that this might be the last time a UK Prime Minister attends an EU summit as a member, even though I don’t identify as British, I couldn’t help feeling sad. The UK is a nation that has decided to give up power and influence on the international stage, its fate decided by others over dinner as its leader eats in another room.

The reasons for Brexit, I think, is a lack of knowledge about the EU and how it works. The D’Hondt system used for European Elections in Britain means that people just vote for a party and not for a person. The only MEPs that the British public know are from the far-right.

In Northern Ireland we have the Single Transferable Vote system and we know our MEPs. I think if this system was used in Britain, people wouldn’t talk so much about a “democratic defecit.”

In many EU countries, there have been referendums on EU treaties and voters have sometimes rejected treaties which led to them being ammended. The British public have never been given the opportunity to ratify a treaty with a public vote. I believe that if they had been given the opportunity, the public would be more educated/informed about the EU.

Another reason is that the EU’s goal of “every closer union” is at odds with what the people of Europe actually want. Eurosceptic parties all over Europe have been gaining support in recent years and Britain has always felt slightly aloof from Europe

I feel the EU Enlargement of 2004 was rushed through and countries entered the Union before they were really ready. This led to a mass East-West migratiom which perhaps took a bit if time for Western European countries to adjust to.

My only real concern is how Ireland is affected by Brexit and the North in particular. The Common Travel Area has served the UK and Ireland well and I hope this continues.

WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE

Hopefully the UK will come to its senses and end this deliberate self-harm that is Brexit. The situation is developing daily.

The much talked about date of 29th March will not be Brexit Day now but it will be the date of my next post. See you then.

March 1st-16th

February has long since gone and we are half way through March. This is what has happened so far

BABY SHOWER

Liam had a bit of a cold and so only Licety attended the Baby Shower for our friends Karina and Renzo on 2nd March. Liam and I stayed at home.

PANCAKE TUESDAY

March 5th was Pancake Tuesday so we celebrated the day in style by having Pancakes for breakfast

We didn’t just have pancakes for breakfast but in the evening as well . They turned out really well.

Licety also enjoyed her pancakes on the day

DERRY GIRLS

Tuesday 5th was also the start of the new series of Derry Girls so that is something to look forward to on a Tuesday night now. Sometimes, when a show has a great first series, the second series can be a bit of a letdown but not in this case. The first series is available on Netflix and I am watching the second one online. The blackboard in the photo is a scene from Season 2 Episode 1

LENT

Wednesday 6th March was Ash Wednesday, the start of Lent, so I decided to stop ordering things from Glovo for Lent. Glovo is an app that we use to order food and deliver it to our home but we had been using it too much lately and so it was time to stop.

My Lent didn’t actually last long as I ordered food from Glovo on Friday 8th and then on Sunday 10th but I have since eliminated the app from my phone, so no more.

WOMEN’S DAY

As Friday 8th March was Women’s Day, Licety and I decided to go out for breakfast. After dropping Liam off at school we went to a local restaurant and had breakfast. Very nice.

A TRIP SOUTH

That weekend we went to Punta Hermosa, south of Lima. Licety and Liam went there on the Friday afternoon and me at night.

As you can see, I arrived around 11.30pm as I had to work until 9.15pm and I decided to order a burger and chips and eat it in the taxi.

On Saturday morning Liam and his cousin Sofia went to the pool at 9.30am

Licety and I went too

And we were joined by Licety’s friend Natalie. Amanda and Ivonne came too.

A good time was had by all.

Liam especially, he loves the water

We came back to Lima on Sunday afternoon. It was a lot of fun.

CONGRATULATIONS RORY

Sunday 10th was the baptism of my brother’s child in Belfast. Obviously, we couldn’t make it but everyone had a nice day

SUPERMARKET SWEEP

On Wednesday 13th Liam went to the supermarket with his school. He’s learning a lot of new vocabulary and this outing was a nice experience for him.

BREXIT

What can I say about this that has not already been said. I have spent the last two years watching shows like Newsnight and Question Time, I have read extensively about this issue, I have even had dreams about it.

My prefrence would be for the UK to have some type of Customs Union with the EU or to just cancel Brexit. Brexit Day could be 30th June or maybe later. I think the UK should seek a long delay to Brexit to get its house in order and prepare for European Elections.

THE WEEKEND TO COME

I hope everyone reading this, about 25 people if the WordPress stats are to be believed, has a very happy Saint Patrick’s Day. We will be going to Lima Cricket Club to watch a Gaelic Football match.

Talking about Gaelic Football, I hope Tyrone can beat the Dubs later today.

Have a great Paddy’s weekend.

February 23rd-28th

We have reached the end of February. Two months down, ten to go. So here is how we closed out February.

SWIMMING CERTIFICATE

Liam finished his swimming class on Saturday 23rd. He had a lot of fum and he is a natural in the water. It has been fun but it will be great to have more free time on Saturday mornings.

He got a certificate for his efforts but he wasn’t as excited about that as me.

BYE BYE DEBORAH

On Saturday night I met up with a few friends/colleagues to say farewell to our friend Deborah. She is going back to her homeland, Scotland, to study and work and we will miss her.

MANCHESTER UNITED v LIVERPOOL

I was up early on Sunday morning feeling a sense of excitement about the match that I was about to see. It wasn’t on ESPN so I went down to Molly’s Irish Bar to watch it and while I was there have the jumbo breakfast. The match ended 0-0 but the breakfast was nice.

A NEW PLACE

On Sunday, and again on Tuesday we took Liam to a new place to play. It is near our home, within walking distance, so very convenient.

I’d say it is a place that we will spend a lot of time in, in the coming weeks.

ART WORK

Liam made a little house in his school on Wednesday. Here it is.

SWIMMING

On Wednesday 27th Liam and Licety had lunch at my sister-in-law’s house and also had a swim. Liam loves the water and a good time was had by all. Here he is with his cousin Sofia.

MARKING AND FOOTBALL

Tuesday 26th was Final Exams at work and this month I left most of my marking until the next day. I didn’t have lunch with Licety and Liam but instead went back to work to finish marking exams.

As I finished my marking around 4pm I decided, instead of going home, to go to Starbucks for a coffee and biscuit and follow the second half of the football matches taking place in the UK online.

While I was happy with Liverpool’s win and disappointed with City’s win, I was particularly happy with Celtic’s 2-1 win at Hearts given the managerial changes that happened there this week.

BREAKFAST OF CHAMPIONS

On Thursday we didn’t have to get up early as I was working in the afternooon and Liam’s didn’t have to go to school so Licety made breakfast.

It was a delicious way to start the day . Yummy.

THE NEW D’JULIA

On Thursday we went to Liam’s school for his report, which was good, and then to the new D’Julia restaurant which is located in Bolivar Avenue.

We were really impressed with the food there, the bread was warm and crusty, delicious.

GLOVO

We have been using the food delivey service, Glovo, a lot recently, maybe too much. With this service you can get food from various restaurants delivered to your door. When you have a child it is difficult to find the time to go out to eat but Glovo is a great solution

It is a very useful service but maybe we should give it up during Lent, which starts on Wednesday.

WELCOME MARCH

Today is the first of March, it means the summer is near its end. It’s not as hot at night any more so we are sleeping better which has to be welcomed.

Have a great start to the new month.