My Year in Review: 2011 Adventures!

2011 was a great year! I had so many unexpected adventures, spent a lot of time with family and friends, reconnected with wonderful old friends, and met special new friends, too.

I praise God for His goodness in all of the highs and His friendship in all of the lows. I also thank all of you – I am so blessed to share my life with you!

Favorite Sports & Races:

• Pittsburgh Half Marathon
• Pittsburgh Challenge
• July 4th 5K (with Maur)
• Warrior Dash (with Conor)
• Gaelic Football Midwest Champions
• National Gaelic Football Tournament in San Francisco 
• Athletic stuff: Gaelic football, PSL co-ed basketball (mini-league champions), and running

First Place winners in the Pittsburgh Challenge

 Midwest Champs and Third Place winners at the National Tournament in San Francisco

Conor and I cross the Warrior Dash finish line

Travel:

• Ocean City, MD (Kennedy Girls Beach Vacation)
• Kite Weekend (annual camping trip with the family)
• Washington, DC
• San Francisco (Gaelic Football National Tournament)
• Sydney, Australia

 Kennedy Girls Beach Vacation fun in Ocean City

 Surprise! We stopped by DC on the way home.

 Adventuring through Rock Creek Park in DC

 

Our family celebrates the win - Pittsburgh Celtics are National Champions!

 
 Cronulla Beach on Thanksgiving Day

Milestones:

• My 30th birthday (my sisters gave me the best cards and my family threw me the greatest party)
• Receiving a copyright for a guidebook I wrote for a volunteer program I'm developing with a friend

Best Memories:

• Kennedy Girls Beach Vacation
• 30&30 Armageddon Luau
• Banshees winning Third Place in overtime in San Francisco
• Warrior Dash
• Sydney

<3

30&30 Armageddon Luau - family and practically family (Mikey, Amanda, and Mrs. Baker)

 Banshees bring it in - the second half overtime speech. Lots of fun and team love.

 Sisters, teammates, and offense (Maur) and defense (me) machines

A muddy road trip and race

 Bondi Beach after the Coastal Walk

Lots of good Bands, but looking back, there were a few favorite shows:

• Holy Ghost Tent Revival
• Two Man Gentleman Band
• U2
• Bearded Bastard Irishmen
• Trombone Shorty

 Tailgating sisters for U2 - welcome, Emmi!

Every Day Life:
This is where it’s at! I enjoy all the lunches, coffees, dinners, drinks, outings and events with family and friends – especially Sunday coffees with my sisters, Gaelic football watching and playing, anytime Hofbrauhaus, Maur and Ry’s fun parties like Oktoberfestifall, and a beautiful afternoon at a Steelers game with my Mom; and then there's teaching CCD, helping with youth group, Thursday lunches reading books with Alize, coaching softball and basketball, playing sports with my friends, and my enjoyable and rewarding job.

2011 was great! And I am excited about all the new (and unknown) adventures to come in 2012! It’s a good life.

Where Does Love Come From?

"...for God is love. In this way the love of God was revealed to us: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might have life through him. In this is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as expiation for our sins." 1 Jn 4: 8-10

Tonight I was thinking about how blessed I am to have a family that loves each other and laughs together, always. Dinners. Drinks. Movies. Games. Car rides. Sports. We talk. We laugh. We love. Even with our cousins and aunts and uncles, we're always laughing. I just spent the last two days laughing and laughing with my family. There is so much joy that has always been a part of my life because of my family and our love for one another.

Where does this love come from? The first answer that came to mind was that it comes from my parents who created a home of love. They created and taught and gave love so that we may know love. For every day of my life, my family has been a place of love. Not that we haven't known hardship or haven't had arguments -- we have. But we have unconditional love that was given to us and is shared between us. In that love comes freedom and joy. Freedom to be who we are, to make mistakes, to help each other, and to share our lives openly and without fear. Joy to appreciate each other and life together.

Following these thoughts came an answer from Scripture: God loved us first. God is love, and we love Him who loved us first. He loved us first. God Himself  is a relationship of love. God the Father loves God the Son, and God the Son loves God the Father. The fruit of their total and complete love is God the Holy Spirit. The Blessed Trinity is a relationship of never-ending, always-giving love, and in Heaven we are brought into that circle of perfect love that is God.

I teach my kids at CCD about the "domestic church", the church at home. Parents have love for each other and love for their child/children. The love that they share as a family reflects the love that exists within the Blessed Trinity. That is the love we are called to in family life.

I am grateful for God's constant and self-giving love. He loves all of us. Everyone. I am also grateful and blessed that my parents created a domestic church at home that our family can rejoice in and grow in love.

It is with the love of God, experienced in many ways, but especially in my family life, that enables me to reach out and love others. It's a love that is given by God, who loved me first.

Merry Christmas

Just Be | Finding God's Love in Stillness

It's back to normal life ... where I use minutes and hours to do things. I am highly efficient with my time and move from one thing to the next working on various projects and interests. Crossing things off of my to-do list is satisfying. If I do something that isn't on my list, I put it on the list just to cross it off. I get stuff done.

So, being in Oz was a different and wonderful experience for many reasons, but one of the most appreciated was that I stopped doing things -- everything. All my responsibilities were left behind, completely on hold. No checklist. Nothing on my mind.

I was free.

Sometime last year, I was praying to God and saying, "God, I know you love me. I know this. You died for me. You are present in my life and you are leading me to you. You are love, and I know that you love me through my friends and family. But I don't feel your love."

In Sydney, living in total freedom, all I felt was His love.

I don't think I had to go all the way to Sydney to experience that, but I think it helped. In Pittsburgh, in my daily life, I keep a full schedule of responsibilities that I enjoy and find fulfilling, and as a single person, I try to be the best sister and daughter I can to my family, and the best friend I can be to my friends. I'm in a great place where I'm in "the zone" in my life. The activities and relationships in my life are where I encounter God and try to live for Him. It is a joyful growing in relationship with God through the things He has called me to do.

Because of this, I was creating a lifestyle where I was most frequently experiencing God in my tasks and relationships with others. Whereas on vacation, I had nothing to do and no one to serve, so I could not express my love for the Lord and receive Him in my usual ways.

In Oz my heart desired God, and the only things I could do were pray and share every moment of the day with Him. I could not do anything. I could only be. And it was in just being (walking around, thinking, daydreaming, praying, sitting, exploring) that I felt his love poured upon me unceasingly. Just for being me. He made me. He loves me. He knows me. He made all of us. He loves all of us. He calls all of us to Him.

He loves me. His sacrifice on the Cross tells me that my soul is worth that much to Him, and that He wants me to be with Him forever, that is Truth, but also, He just loves me. :)

I hope and pray that you know of God's love for you. Take some time to just be with the Lord, and let Him love you.

[We have come to know and to believe in the love God has for us. God is love, and whoever remains in love remains in God and God in him. 1 Jn 4:16]

My Awesome Parents

I love my parents and am so grateful for them. They are always supportive of me, and gave me the best childhood and life and home. They do so much to help me, and they have given everything to my siblings and me, and they have done it all with immense love.

Today I got really sick (my best guess is dehydration + beer drinking), and at a really low point I called home to talk with my mom and have her do the best mom stuff over the phone (you're awesome, Mom). Minutes later, my dad was out the door and on his way over to my apartment with ginger ale, crackers, soup, etc. He took care of me and we had a really nice talk with stories from his childhood among other things.

Just to share a story with you -- when I was little I was sick a lot with asthma and spent weeks in the hospital from ages 5 through 8. My dad spent every day right by my side while my mom was at home with my brothers and sister. When he'd have to return to work because he ran out of days off, I would cry and lie to the hospital staff in an attempt to delay my IVs, shots, tests, and all that scary stuff until he could come back after work. He was my hero and protector, and still is.

2011 Armageddon Luau 30 & 30 Party
(Row 1: Mom, Emily, Alanna, Conor, me, Rory | Row 2: Ryan (Maur's husband), Colleen (Conor's wife), Uncle Frank | Row 3: Dad, Dillon, Maureen, Devin, and Charlie)

I have no idea how my parents raised nine kids -- providing for us everything we needed. My mom would say, of course, that it's all God. We had the loaves and the fishes story every day. She trusted; God provided, every time. When a family puts God first, God takes care of the rest.

I have the best parents in all the world! Thank you for everything. I love you! <3

For some smiles:

 1984

1993

 

2008 

How Do I Love Others?

Tonight I was challenged to think about how I love others. I love others a lot -- that is if "others" means "family." I love the heck out of my family. I love my family with all my heart, and I find joy in giving them everything I can. Love, friendship, support, encouragement, advice, listening, caring -- I would give everything I have to them, and I want to. I think my siblings know this -- I hope so!  ...Ok, I'm getting sidetracked.

Everyone who knows me knows that I love my job. I believe in the organization, the leadership, what we do, the people we serve, etc. It's a cool place. I'm not going to become wealthy there. I'm not set on climbing some ladder to a title or position or salary. In fact, it's actually a bit humbling compared to other jobs I've had or how I used to spend money (budget what?). However, about two and a half years ago, after two years of praying for God to call me to work that would serve Him with all the gifts He has given me, I had the opportunity to take a position where I am now, and my heart knew it was the right thing.

My job has a lot of perks: I make my own appointments and control my own schedule. I have a lot of independence. I'm out of the office 70% of the time. But the most awesome thing about my job is that I get to love people. I meet many people who have serious barriers to succeeding in life, who deal with painful and/or frustrating tribulations, who are living in poverty, who experience discrimination or judgment from others and face many other hardships. And I get to listen to them. To encourage them. To be firm but kind to them. To help them brainstorm ways to achieve their goals. My job is about loving people and treating all people with dignity and respect. The source of love that pours out of my heart and reaches to others is Christ. Jesus' love can shine through the way I listen, speak, and be fully present. (There are also times when my actions do not convey love!)

God's love can shine through all of us in our words and actions. The blessings we receive multiply when we are aware of the love Christ has for others, allow His love to come through us, and share that love with others.

I think we all have the opportunity to experience this in our lives whether it's work, volunteering, spending time with friends -- it can be anything and everything. Ideally, we will live in ways where Christ's love is in all we do all of the time. I think it requires just asking God to come into a situation and be present in our heart and in the conversation, presentation, discussion -- whatever. He is always ready to rush in, and He is love. His presence enables us to humble ourselves, be courageous when needed, be kind, be happy for others, and want the best for others, etc. God is generous to all.

We can love others with Christ's love in the most simple of tasks as well as the most significant. All we need to do is invite Him into our hearts. Then, the journey begins!

Coogee Beach... So long, Australia

@ Coogee Beach this morning...

It's so hard to say goodbye, but I'm heading home...

The Blue Mountains

Today Yves and I took a 2hr 20min train ride to Katoomba to see the Blue Mountains. On the ride out, the scenery looked a lot like Pittsburgh in the summer -- green trees, hillsides, and neighborhoods. Once we got to The Three Sisters Echo Point, it was breathtaking.

It was a beautiful, warm day that was perfect for being outside and walking nature trails. One of the walkways led to narrow, uneven stone and metal steps that inspired an overwhelming child-like curiosity in me, so I had to explore. These steps take a hiker to the bottom of The Three Sisters. Fortunately, I saw a sign stating that it takes two hours to walk all the way down and back up -- heck no. I'm curious, but not that curious.

When Yves and I got back to the CBD, we walked to a bar called Sweeney's and had a beer. Then we headed through town and over to St. Mary's Cathedral for Mass. Then we took the train back to Yves' apartment, ordered pizza, and I began packing...

I realized that my friend, John Tierney, who played Irish football in Pittsburgh a few years ago (one of the best players I've ever seen), is living in Sydney too! We tried to connect, but with only a day left in my trip and me without a phone, it didn't happen tonight. That would have been cool. I also got a Facebook message from Jared saying he was at the beach if I was around... I think it would be easy to get used to life out here.

I feel blessed to have had such a beautiful day!

Taronga Zoo and Koalas

I started the day in the best way -- Skyping with my family just before they sat down for Thanksgiving Dinner. It was so great to see you all! I love you!

Today Yves and I went to the Taronga Zoo. We took the train to Sydney Harbour, and on our way to the ferry, I ran into Jared! Of all the people in Sydney, I ran into the other friend I have here! I was so happy to see him again. He's such a special person and it reminds me of all the wonderful friendships and experiences I had at Westminster. Good 'ol Westminnie.

Koalas

• At the zoo, the first exhibit I saw was the Koala Walkabout, where you can see a few koalas in the trees. I put a short video on YouTube if you'd like to see that cutie in the middle climb a tree.
• Later I got to "encounter" a koala, which means I was in an enclosed area with a few koalas and they were only an arms length, or less, away. I got to stand next to a sleeping mommy and her joey. So sweet! People are not allowed to touch or hold koalas in New South Wales because it's stressful for the animal. Darn, because I wanted to hug these little guys!

A mommy, her joey, and me.

Other cute marsupials
I pet a kangaroo! That exhibit, and many others, was totally open, and by that I mean that the animals were not actually behind glass or in a cage -- they were in the same area as people. The kangaroos just hop all around wherever they want, and as long as you stay on the path, you might get to befriend one. At least I think so... there were no zookeepers to tell me otherwise.

 
Other notables

• I saw a platypus! I saw my first one at the aquarium the other day, and I was lucky to see another one today because they are mainly nocturnal and hard to see and/or don't come out while people are there.
• The Harbour was visible from the pathways throughout much of the zoo, which made the walk extra beautiful.
• The zoo is so large that it took us five hours to see everything, and I'm glad we did.

Cronulla Beach and Happy Thanksgiving

 
Today Yves and I took two trains to Cronulla Beach. We had lunch and walked along the beach looking at all the different marine life, many alive between the rocks, living between the tides, and many dead, washed up on the shore. We saw a lot of those blue bottle jellies, technically zooids, some octopi, and other odd creatures.

 

Pollution becomes a habitat

Blue ringed octopi swim here, no known antidote (no worries, didn't see any)

Later in the afternoon I relaxed and read -- and helped prepare Thanksgiving dinner... although Yves did all the real work. We had lamb chops and potatoes and Leffe Blonde. It was yummy. Yves almost burned the apartment down while preparing dinner, but the little, sudden blaze only damaged the "sucking machine" (a.k.a. vent).

The mustache mystery was solved: All theses young Aussie men are doing it as part of Movember. Whew! They're growing mustaches to raise cancer awareness for men (just like at home). I'm happy they're doing that, which, then I had my "ah-ha!" moment, thinking so that's why Dan Bylsma was growing a mustache (at first I wondered if it was last man standing, or what?). I'm also glad it's not some new trend that will make its way to the States.

I finished my little hat project. I was a Kennedy to the fullest -- I was totally obsessed and goal-focused until it was achieved. I wanted to change the ribbon on the hat to something more my style, and I randomly brought to Sydney a bandanna I bought a few years ago (I tied it to my suitcase). So, I decided that I wanted to cover the original ribbon on the hat with this funky bandanna pattern. I tried krazy glue and then epoxy glue, but those didn't work. I thought I would wait until I got home so mom could sew it, but then I googled how to sew and took a few late night and early morning hours to sew a new band on the fedora. I'm really happy with the hat now! You can see it in the photo above.

After dinner we walked up to an Irish bar called Kelly's on King Street in Newtown. I had a Kilkenny. It's the first time I've tried that beer, and I can say, Mmm...

Happy Thanksgiving and lots of love! Slainte!

Sydney Aquarium: The Icing on My Vacation Cake

 I <3 the aquarium! Man, it was awesome. I was smiling and exclaiming ooos and ahhhs the entire time. I was practically skipping around the ramps to the underwater tunnels where visitors can view the tanks from below. There was a dugong (like the manatee) tank, a Sydney shark tank with native species, and the world's largest Great Barrier Reef tank. Plus a lot of other stuff. OMQ!, as Alanna would say.

Smart dugong! He brought up his feeding tray to the staff person.

First of all, I love marine life, especially sharks, and there were so many of them. Second, I saw a dugong bring up his feeding tray from the tank floor and give it to the aquarium staff. Whoa! Third, I saw so many incredible species and learned a lot about marine life in Australia.

Buzzing Around Town

It was another rainy day in Sydney, but nothing can get me down! I started the day by taking the train into the CBD and going to the Australian Museum of Natural History. Yes, minerals might not do it for me, but exhibits on Indigenous People and Aboriginals and the artwork and scientific discoveries of the Scott sisters did. On the way I actually  helped an Australian find his way through town to an appointment. Yes, I am getting around pretty well. After the museum I crossed the street and went to daily Mass at St. Mary's Cathedral. It was a very nice message for what will probably be my last Mass for this liturgical year: Share the Good News, stand up for the truth, and spread God's love. It felt great to be there -- I am so grateful for all my blessings and for how God is present to me through everything in my life.

I walked through town looking for a coffee shop where I could just hang out, stay dry, and read for a little, and I found a place called Vivo where I ordered a vanilla latte and brownie. Then I walked down to Darling Harbour and through Tumbalong Park, admiring the water features and green space. My friend Jared mentioned there was a little garden that direction, so I found the Chinese Garden of Friendship. On the way, I saw a sign for Paddy's Market, which of course I was curious about, but from a distance it looked like shops with produce and other goods, which has been confirmed by searching online. Was hoping it was something Irish!

 This little guy wiggles his tail around and hops about in such a cute, squiggly way.

It was nearly 4pm -- time to go to the aquarium! (I bought the ticket online for half price, the requirement being that you enter at a specific time.) The aquarium gets its own post on this blog because it was soooo awesome.

Now this is a beer menu!

After the aquarium, I walked to meet Yves in a part of town called The Rocks. We went to The Belgian Beer Cafe as a small gift of my appreciation for him inviting me to stay at his apartment during this vacation. I got real Belgian food, the Flemish Beef Stew Cooked in Beer, and my favorite beer, Leffe Blonde. Yves had his favorite, the mussels.

I am so happy to be here and loving every minute of it. I'm not thinking about anything else, besides, at times, my amazing family and friends and how much you would enjoy it too. No work, projects, activities, other stuff -- nothing. It's just the good life, and I walk around with a smile on my face all the time. I'm also very happy to be here on my own and taking that time for myself. I think God gave me the opportunity for this trip at a time in my life where I truly live in the moment and don't think too much about what's next or worry or anything. It's taken awhile to get to that point of freedom, trust, and existing in the present, but it's such a joy-filled place, and to have this trip at this time in my life is a gift. ... So thankful!

Sloshing Through Sydney

After my run in Sydney Park, I got ready for the day and took a train to Circular Quay (Sydney Harbour) and then a ferry to Manly. I walked the beach for a few hours and loved every second of it. The water was rough and people were not allowed to swim, but there were several surfers taking advantage of the bigger waves.

I chatted with two locals during my walk, and they looked like what the boys would envision about Australian outdoorsmen. Both were catching bait - sandworms - by dragging a net with dead fish back and forth over the wet sand. The worms smell the dead fish and come up to investigate. I was told they're very long worms that are hard to catch, and they make great bait.

The second man who was catching bait happened to be standing nearby when I discovered a clear gel with some bright blue color and what looked like threads of fabric. There were a few of them scattered in the sand at Bondi Beach too, which is why I was curious to find out exactly what they were. So I asked the man and he said it was a blue bottle jellyfish, which is actually three animals that exist together as one.

Eventually I walked off the beach and went to rinse the sand off of my feet. Why is this something to write home about, you wonder? Well, I put my foot under what looked like a spout, and I pressed the button. And, whooossshhh! I hear the water rush out of the shower head - above me. So, my legs and pant bottoms were wet because of the beach walk, and now my full front side was wet because I just stood in a rinse with all of my clothes on. I'm sure I gave some laughs to the people standing around, and I laughed too. No worries! I'm in Australia, loving life.

I took the bus back to Circular Quay (pronounced Key) and walked through the CBD to Darling Harbour. I love maps and finding my way around based on instinct and recognition! I was bustling through this city of nearly 5 million people like I was from Sydney. I really enjoy that.

On the Pyrmont Bridge. The ship is part of the Australian National Maritime Museum.

I ate a late lunch at Darling Harbour and then walked up to the Art Gallery of New South Wales (New South Wales is the Australian state that I'm in, which is also abbreviated NSW). I saw Australian art by the aboriginals, as well as by other artists, many of whom were born in England or Scotland and then moved to Australia.

I caught a train back to Erskineville, Yves' stop, and was craving a beer. I was soaking wet and had been wet all afternoon due to the mishap at the beach rinse and then the pouring rain in Sydney, so instead of popping into a bar for a quick drink, I bought a six pack of Matilda Bay BeezNeez, a honey wheat brewed in Australia. Sooo good.

Yves got home for work and made a delicious dinner of chicken, rice, and mango sauce, and then I worked on a little hat project, where I'm changing the ribbon... It's going to look awesome (in theory).

You know, I'm not sure if it's because of my Irish heritage or because I'm American, but I really don't care at all about the personal statues in the city, and I like history! Out of habit I read them, but then it's like Sir So-And-So, Captain Blah Blah Blah. All these British. However, I am very interested in the war memorials and feel reverence for the soldiers, especially of WWI and WWII, which are throughout the city.

Today I will find other adventures! I asked Yves if the Australian Museum was worth visiting, and he said, "It depends on what you find interesting. Do you like minerals?" ...Eh, we'll see. I do have a ticket for the aquarium this afternoon, and I'm totally pumped for that!

Love to all!