Castletown
Castletown is a rather modern looking palace built in Celbridge in the1720s. Celbridge is the biggest town near us where we do our grocery shopping and such. We had driven past the entrance just about every day since we had been here. Only took us about 7 weeks to stop by for a visit. The tour guide, however knowledgeable and witty, spoke too quickly and too quietly for the size of the group. We also got stuck standing near someone who was translating for others as well. The kids enjoyed running around outside more than the tour.Balbriggan Beach
Went to the beach with my friend, Aoife, and her kiddos. (We had met in a previous life when we were paid for working.) A storm the previous day warranted red flag conditions, so the kids couldn't play in the water but were happy enough to dig in the sand. 
Glendalough and the Wicklow Mountains
Glendalough was another one of those days where we just piled the kids in the car and started driving without having a destination. "Let's head south. What is south?" "Let me check -- there's a monastic settlement from the 6th century." "Sounds good." 
There was a decent amount of tourists but the bulk of the people were locals that go to the site for its various hiking trails.
We drove home through the Wicklow Mountains. Words just can't describe the beauty.
I absolutely love this shot despite my mishap. The clouds are not threatening as they may appear in the picture -- that would be the edge of my thumb unfortunately.
Oughterard
So the Relocation Company sends someone out to give me an orientation -- show me where grocery stores and malls and such are -- 8 weeks after we arrived. Really. Anyhow, the woman did happen to tell me about this old church/castle/cemetery that is close to our house. There is no way we ever would have found it (or known to look for it) without her. 
Very cool spot. There is a spiral staircase still standing that you can climb onto a partial collapsed roof; it has a stunning view of the county in all directions. (It is as treacherous as it sounds -- so the kids loved it.) Incidentally, Arthur Guinness, the founder of the slightly well known brewing company, is buried there.
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Nadia really does own other clothes. It is just anytime these ones are clean, she puts them on.
This wasn't really a day trip. This was an after-supper-let's-get-out-of-the-house-since-it-is-sunny trip.
