Greetings form Ireland

I was in 2 minds sending this letter but decided I will…so



Weekend


16 May 2008


To all far and wide family and friends,

Last year on the 14 of May the first sod was turned in the renovation process of the cottage. One year later and we achieved according to Irish standards a miracle!
The building has been completed !!!Our long dreamed of kitchen-bright with sunshine and light from sun rise to sun set, equipped- not to the most modern but the most practical. The sun lounge the greatest joy ever, all furnished and a very pleasant room. The guess bedroom needs a carpet which will be fitted hopefully next week the study/office and emergency bedroom completed and all furniture will be moved into it to-morrow morning. The exterior paint has been picked up this afternoon and weather permitting the process of painting outside will commence soon!
Then on top of it all the bathroom has had its 2nd revamp as we did not like the tiles that we laid there first ..it is a transformed room now and a pleasure to the eye.
Most people take about 3 years to do all this but with the master of all workaholics we are nearly there !!!!!!
We just spent some quality time in the vegetable garden weeding!!! The spinach looks so good –the Irish does not really eat spinach and you cannot buy it in a shop therefore this is going to be like manna, The carrots are there and the peas are flourishing! Somewhere between the planting of the apple trees and the cat the beans are few and far between! The 32 strawberry plants are growing like mad and there might be a stage where we will be able to pick one strawberry from each plant every day for 2-3- weeks and that will be our desert!!!
Saturday

Just in from outside …yet another day somewhat cooler than the 16 days past and also cloudy…the strawberries are forming on last years plants and it all looks so promising…

The lady who used to play the organ in church is dying of cancer and it means that if she dies it will be the first person in our small group of acquaintances that will pass a way…Barry and I are both not good with funerals
Tomorrow , always the best day of the week we have the pastoral help giving the sermon …he is very good but has a bit of a speech impediment which makes it difficult for the older people to follow…I know all the hymns he chose and God willing we will lift the roof again in giving praise
Thank you for all the letters I have received… there are a few that seems to be quiet …hope you are all keeping well! Sue you are great in corresponding…thank you so much. Fumi …are you still out there..please let me know how you and the baby are doing!

I greet ye all
Barry and Christina(Sr Dunne. Stien ‘ma’ and Ouma)