A beautiful morning to you, lovely readers! As St. Paddy's Day is on Monday, it has become a yearly tradition of sorts for me to share a post of Irish goodness. As you may probably well know, Ireland is a favorite place of mine, and one that holds many special memories for me as well. There is a very special place in my heart for the Emerald Isle, for so many reasons. Today I have decided to share a collection of Irish favorites. I hope you'll join me for this little celebration and maybe after you've read this post, you'll put on some Irish music and let it whisk you away to the land of green hills, ribbon roads, and the wild Atlantic coast.
{{Cliffs of Moher, County Clare, July 2016}}
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five favorite irish albums to listen to . . .
While it was a challenge for me to pick *just* five albums from my favorite Irish singers to recommend, I did it! Here they are...
The High Kings ♥ The Road Not Taken
Celtic Thunder ♥ Odyssey
Orla Fallon ♥ My Land
Cuig ♥ New Landscapes
Emmet Cahill ♥ Ireland
{{somewhere in County Galway, February 2017}}
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irish favorites to watch . . .
Leap Year ♥ Although this isn't a Leap Year, I absolutely recommend this movie for St. Paddy's Day, as well. It is one of my very favorites. This is a movie that is funny and heartwarming all at the same time, and it truly showcases the gorgeous countryside scenery of Ireland.
The Carter Couch Podcast ♥ I am not a podcast listener...at all. I seriously detest podcasts, but somehow last September I fell down the most random rabbit hole on YouTube and ended up watching the first episode of this podcast the day after it released. My sister and I quickly became obsessed and never missed an episode...now we're anxiously awaiting the second season's release. This podcast features Irish country singer, Nathan Carter. I admit I've only listened to one of his songs with The High Kings before as his music isn't really my taste. But this podcast is so hilarious! I literally have tears streaming down my face when I watch these episodes from laughing so hard. And yes, I do prefer watching on YouTube instead of just listening. I think you would really miss out on some of the antics and funny moments if you just listened. Highly recommend for a good time!
Celtic Thunder ♥ My family and I have loved watching Celtic Thunder concerts on DVD for over a decade. We've even seen them live in concert four times...so far. My personal favorites to watch are Mythology; X; Odyssey; Live and Unplugged. This is a sure way to have a fun evening as a family!
{{Dingle, County Kerry, June 2016}}
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my five favorite irish songs . . .
Okay, so this was nearly impossible...I seriously have dozens of Irish songs that I love so much, but I chose my top five favorites at this very moment. Note: tomorrow I could be loving five others...but, seriously, I love them all so much. I am linking to videos of versions of these songs that are really exceptional. I hope you take some time to give them a watch or listen.
{{County Wicklow, June 2016}}
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my five favorite things about ireland . . .
♥ the winding ribbon roads, though they be very, very narrow
♥ the green patchwork grass and seeing it both from the air as you begin your descent into Dublin airport as well as driving on the hilly/mountain roads and looking down and out and that's absolutely all you see
♥ Connemara's secluded quietness and the feeling of being somewhere absolutely no one knows exists, except the fairies, of course
♥ County Wicklow's rolling hills...the absolute first place I was able to breathe in and see Ireland with all my senses. One of my most favorite places.
♥ the scent of turf fires lingering in the air and gentle rain surrounding you as you wander the paths through the countryside and the misty fog hanging in the air so low you think you can touch it
{{Powerscourt Waterfall, County Wicklow, June 2016}}
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irish blessings for you . . .
May green be the grass you walk on,
may blue be the skies above you,
may pure be the joys that surround you,
may true be the hearts that love you.
&
May every sunrise hold more promise,
and every sunset hold more peace.
Wishing you a beautiful St. Patrick's Day, friends!