Erin go brach! (what does that mean anyway? I hope that wasn't obscene.)

I utterly and completely dropped the ball on Valentine's Day, so I tried to compensate a little with St. Patrick's Day, even forcing Kyle to join us at the smallish, more-funny-than-cool (if you know what I mean) St. Patty's Day parade in some ghetto neighborhood of downtown Phoenix.




Mariachi bands originated in Ireland, right? Well you know what, it was a welcome reprieve from kilts and bagpipes.

Not the first place in the world you'd expect to find a delorean, but it at least solidified in Kyle's mind that the parade was well worth attending.

Some leprechaun tossed his hat to Ellie during the parade and this became a much fought-over prop throughout the following days. That leprechaun must have transferred some of his mischievous nature with it, as well...

Because we woke up St. Patrick's Day top o' the mornin' to chairs and furniture overturned, a green slinky hanging from the ceiling fan, general messes made (hard to make those look unusual, though), gold glitter glimmering from the toilet bowl (hmmm, we all found that a bit icky and no one used the potty until the sparkles were flushed), and of course our milk was dyed green. Oh yes, and the lousy, lazy trap we'd set for the fiendish little elf was successfully evaded, but some gold-wrapped candies remained in the trap, as well as some hidden around the room.

I have it on good authority that that leprechaun was mighty exhausted the previous evening and highly considered cancelling all scheduled shenanigans at the Larsen abode, but we're all grateful he bucked up in the wee hours of the night and got the job done. The kids were absolutely giddy about all of the damage, so we do hope he'll visit again next year, and hope we'll be a bit more prepared with a proper trap next time!

One of our traditions is to look ridiculous on St. Patrick's Day, donning every last item of green available in the recesses of our wardrobes. Every year, I feel a little more ridiculous than the last (I'm supposed to be getting more mature and all) and this year was no exception. However, I'm determined to make the most of these precious few years in which my kids deem my nerdiness hilarious rather than humiliating.

We met up with the Brammers in the morning and had a lovely time doing what stay-at-home-moms and happy, rambunctious kidoodles do.


We spent the afternoon cooling down at the Jacobsen's pool where we enjoyed a most satisfying potluck lunch (which for me was mostly peanut butter cookies-- dah! my nemesis!) and I must say that this was the most fun I've had in the pool in recent memory. Ellie and Erik, with some floatie-assistance, fended for themselves, and Charlie is actually beginning to enjoy water adventures. Rather than cling insecurely to my swimsuit straps, he repeatedly climbed out of the pool to "jump" into my arms. Yay! Charlie is becoming fun!


You can see that the leprechauns even managed to cast a eerie, greenish glow to the atmosphere of our home. Either that or someone needs to give me some photography lessons.

Either way, we had so much fun having the Thomas' over for dinner. I didn't feel like corned beef and cabbage, so I certainly would have slacked in the festivity department for dinner, but with Becca bringing green beans, spinach salad, and green focacia bread, all I had to do was throw in some green mashed potatoes and a rainbow fruit platter (with whipped cream "cloud" dip), and I think we enjoyed it much more than the authentic Irish dinners of our St. Patty's Days past.




Preparing such a healthy feast was unintentional, I assure you, but still so satisfying and delicious! Hands down the Larsens' best St. Patrick's Day to date! (Wait, I just remembered that last 3/17 was the first time Charlie slept through the night AND he took an almost two-hour nap. That was an isolated incidence, but still... okay it's a tie!)