If You're Irish (or even if you're not) Come Into The Parlor!!!

Thanks Kathy,
I was actually born in Brooklyn, New York and my brother Mike was born in Boston when my parents decided to try their luck in the States. After two years they were too home sick and returned to Ireland where the rest of our clan was born. Seven kids in total. That is how I and my brother were fortunate enough to join the Air Force. We have been lucky enough to be assigned in England and Germany for 13 of the 22 years and given plenty of business to Ryanair travelling back and forth over the years. On a separate note: Recently my father recommended a wonderful book called "Angels In My Hair" by an Irish woman now widowed named Lorna Byrne. To learn more about the author see www.lornabyrne.com. This is a must read if you are in anyway curious about how your Guardian Angels play a vital role in our lives. I still have a few weeks left in Afghanistan and this book made the world of difference to me spiritually while out here. Another sanity keeper was a very funny Irish movie called "An Everlasting Piece" about a pair of Catholic and Protestant men trying to tap into the Hair Piece business in Northern Ireland during the 80s... Hilarious! (Beware; some typical Irish colorful language is to be expected if you watch this movie). I find another great way of staying in touch with what is going on back home is the web site for the main Irish TV channel RTE @ http://www.rte.ie.

Fran... What part of Dublin were you from? My brother Simon still lives in Glasnevin.
Will chat again. Cheers, Dave

Hi Diane We're all glad you've come in to visit a bit with us. I think it's great that you're Dad has had such success in tracing your family history. My Dad had only just begun ours before he passed away. But because It's on an older computer, I'll most likely have to begin all over again, unless I can get the information off of the old computer.

As for your family crest, I do have a few suggestions. Is there an Irish Festival near you at any time during the year? The one near me always has a vendor that specializes in being able to print out Family Crests and a bit of information along with them. There are also other places online where you can search as well. It really depends on what kind of items you may be looking for, or if you're just curious about what your crest looks like. Here's one link I found just now on the web: http://www.allfamilycrests.com/ But I know that a crest can vary from one source to another.
But it is always intresting to at least get a look at what your Family Crest looks like if nothing else.

Hi Reilly David It's nice to make your aquaintance. I'm sure we'll all enjoy talking with you since you were actually born in Ireland.

Hi Sienna Friend -- You can call me anything you feel comfortable with. Some people on CAF call me IK, some call me Irish, still others just call me Kathy. I kind of like them all, depending on who the person happens to be.

I think it would be great if someone here were to win a trip to Ireland. Unfortunately, I'm not sure it's possible from a logistics perspective. Still it's nice to think about anyway. I would give just about anything but my soul to return one of these days. BTW, I love the story about the healing. Thanks for sharing it.

As for Heather, I've loved it for years because (of all things) a Soap Opera couple and the movie Wuthering Heights as well. I think it would truely make a lovely crown for a May Crowning. I just wish I could make some grow here in Pittsburgh. I don't think we have the right kind of soil for it to thrive. Whenever I have some, I have to settle for just letting it dry. It looks lovely for a while (that is until the buds begin to drop off). But it does smell really nice.

Kathy

Hi everyone. My name is Diane and my dad has been doing the geneology thing for quite a while. He has traced family, the Sullivans, coming from County Kerry. Havn't gotten any actual info from County Kerry though. Any suggestions would be wonderful. Would love to find a crest, anybody point me in the direction of beginning that?

So nice to meet you all. Talk to you soon.

Hi all, just a quick note to say hello and I love all things Irish except the weather. I grew up and went to school in Baldoyle Dublin but left in the late 80s for a career in the USAF and have been all over the world since. My parents moved down to Kilkenny to retire and I married a lovely woman from Co. Mayo in 95. We have three wonderful young kids Conor, Roisin and Lorcan and will move back to Mayo in the next year or two and can't wait. No matter if you're Irish or not there is something special about the country that draws folk to it. Hope to chat more. Slan, Dave

Hi Irish Kathy (hey is it IK for short?) teasing..., from your key board to God's ears! I would love to go to Ireland. I guess Queens County is Laois (spelling?)Co. now, pronounced Leesch. I just go and look at pics of old Tombs It is so irritating not to have gotten all those family details and stories before the family passed etc. My imagination works over time..
I do recall my mom telling me a story her mother told her. There was a woman that had an abscess or tumor on her breast. She was told to take her fasting spit and make the sign of the cross three times for three days over it. My mother would get a big grin and say...and on the third day it burst! She was healed. At the time we laughed, but I now would not be a bit surprised. I remember the details she put in, walking through the woods, over and past creeks and rolling hills (on her way to somewhere?) and it burst! That would be the Whelan side, the Tracey side I have no clue of where they were from.
Oh..and yes..crowns of heather would be lovely, as a floral designer I know they turn our really pretty! I wonder if there are any no strings attached contests going on to WIN A TRIP?

Hi Siena Friend You are so right that the May Crownings in Ireland would be especially lovely. My thought is that they might use Heather, both in Ireland and Scotland. That way, they would be a nice mixture of green and pink, purple or even white.

I sure hope you get to Ireland one of these days too. I think you'd really enjoy your visit. It's an experience you'll never forget, especially if you go with someone special.

Speaking of family crests, I also don't know what the crest for my Dad's Mom's family is eather. So I've got three family Crests I've got to investigate for myself.

Kathy

Hi everyone, thanks for sharing family crests and may traditions. It's coming to an end unfortunately, can't believe how fast this month flew by. I really need a Mary statue, one taller than 6in would be grand. We used to make a wreath for May Crowning when I was in catholic school, my sister would cut those baby roses and we had that lacy fern, she would make it and I would reap the benefits..hehehe. I bet they have lovely flowers and greens to work with in Ireland. Someday..I'm gonna get there..

Hi Siena and everyone else here I'd especially like to pay a special welcome to Frances Liv. Speaking of Family Crests, my Family Crest from my Dad's side of the family is three Lions. I even did a hooked rug of it several years ago and it's hanging in our family room. I'm not sure what the family crests are for my Mom's Dad's family. I'll have to investigate them. My grandma's maiden name was Griffin, so I assume a Griffin would be on her family crest in some way. But I think it's fun to make new discoveries like that too.

Hi Siena. My Family Crest has three Knights heads on it with the motto 'Ireland'. I'm convinced somebody made it up! I have a Keyring with my husbands coat of arms which has a shield. A lot of coat of Arms have variations like this.
As for May traditions, when I was little we used to get branches of a tree called the 'Mayflower' or 'Maybush' and put them on beside a statue of Our Lady. We learned hymns to Our Lady in primary school in that month. Gosh I'm only remembering these things now.........of course I'm still v.young!

Fran

Hi Everyone!
I'm from Dublin and how great it is that there is an Irish section on the forum!! I'll be keeping in touch.

Fran