Now the biggest update - I decided to surprise everyone and come to Canada for a quick and jam-packed visit! Yes, the only person that knew was the bff (Rimi) as she's the only person who DOESN'T like surprises and also would be upset if I took a taxi from the airport. So, thank you Rimi for keeping it a secret (for the most part) for over a month. I know you were bursting at the seams everyday!
I took the 345am bus from Galway to Dublin early Sunday morning as my flight departed at 9am to Heathrow (ugh, I know) and then with the past experience I had with Heathrow on my way to Ireland last October, I rushed from my plane to my connecting flight with 10 min to spare (almost 2 hour layover to note). So, by the time I got to Toronto I was exhausted to say the least but also very excited to be home (with the exception of the frigid temperatures) as I hadn't slept since Friday evening because I didn't see the point of going to bed Saturday night if I had to take the 345am bus.
Naturally, Rimi was waiting with a big 'love bug' sign and jumping with joy and said she had been waiting for over an hour...doesn't surprise me and I love her for that.
So, after 1.5 drive back to Harrington the moment had finally arrived to surprise my family. It's been tough not telling my Mom and family/friends about it as I hadn't seen them in almost 5 months...especially when hearing how they couldn't wait to see me in April when I originally planned to come home (and still am planning to do another visit in April too!). It was funny seeing their expressions. I luckily had learned that my sis and bro-in-law would be over at Mom/Dad's for dinner as they are leaving this Friday for their 3-week adventure to Costa Rica (jealous!) so it was perfect timing. I told Mom that I would be 'calling' from Galway so they said they were waiting by the phone but I decided to take it one step further. :)
When I walked up the stairs, they still had not realized that Rimi's car was in the driveway and when I knocked on the door I just saw Mom stare at me in awe and kept saying "It's Shannon? It's Shannon!"and then my sister was frozen behind the counter cutting fruit saying "Shannon! Shannon's home!"...ha. Mom literally stood there with her jaw dropped for over a minute when I finally opened the door because I realized she was frozen in her stance to not open the door. After that there was lots of hugging and laughing and more hugging and it was a great moment after all these months. Rimi, being the great friend she is, took some pics with her phone and see them below. :)
So, it's been a whirlwind of a week thus far and I'm just about half way through it all. It's been funny seeing people's reactions in town that are confused when they see me when I should be in Ireland. It's definitely difficult fitting visits in with everyone but I think, being the planner I am, I have organized a way to fit in a small visit with everyone. Luckily, I will be back in the end of April for a longer visit and the annual "Shimmy Bash". I've realized how much I miss things like sushi (ok, it's not Cdn but we don't have it in Galway!), driving (I miss you Trix), my pup/fam/friends, Boars Head wings/Cdn beer (tonight's dinner), and TV. I've been watching Food Network Canada, Canada AM and anything NOT Irish as, I'm sorry my Irish friends, Irish TV sucks and I'm glad I didn't invest in cable at our apartment. Oh - and Jonny, just for you I've been watching TSN and lots of hockey to get mine and your fill.
I guess that's about it for now. Going to go see Gramma again today to show her some of my pics and then more visits with friends and family. Down to Tdot tomorrow for some drinks/dancing and bff time (BFF-Friday) and then back to Stratford on the weekend for more family/friend time. I knew this week would fly by but I wish it would slow down just a tad...ah well.
Will try to post another update before I depart back to Ireland but we'll see...
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