Happy St. Patrick's Day

I want to share a little bit of my Irish decor with you.  On our dining room table, I have a Maple Leaf Dish that I gave to my mother when I was very young; I got it at our local department store and loved the design.  That's all I knew about it, until I turned it over last year and saw the Beleek Emblem on the back-I was shocked.  I probably only paid a few dollars for this candy dish, but to see it was Beleek made my heart sing.  Beleek is pottery made in Southern Ireland and very expensive.  Now this dish holds plastic Shamrocks in honor of my mom(who always wore plastic Shamrock earrings.

 This little plate isn't Beleek, but I love the sentiment.

This was one of the pieces we bought at the Beleek factory two years ago.  I got my girls some pieces too.

The tall vase in the back came from the factory as well, but years earlier when my brother and sister of my heart were there.  I love it.  We purchased the bowl in front of it when we were there two years ago.

Today is a very special day in our family and we celebrate it in style. When our daughters were little they would wake up to find gold glitter sprinkled across their dressers and treats, not only gold wrapped chocolates, but other things such as ribbons and socks laid out. We always wear green and I recount the stories of Ireland I heard while growing up. My mom always wore a green plastic hat to work as well as green plastic Shamrock earrings. My dad always sent her a bouquet of green Carnations. For dinner we always had Corned Beef, Cabbage, Carrots and Potatoes-the same meal we eat every year. My sweet hubby never had this meal until he met me; if it weren't for the high sodium content of Corned Beef, we'd have it much more often. That said, when we purchased ours at Costco last week, we bought two-one is in the freezer. Today I'll be wearing the green and having lunch with our daughters and granddaughters. Hubby will be taking the boys out to lunch. We will be taking our meal over to one daughter's house and spending the evening with them; Hunter will stay with them while we are in Ca. for the Memorial Service in a couple of weeks. We feel that he needs time over there to get used to their house and yard; he's never stayed with them before, but he'll love it with all the attention from the grands.
I truly believe that for many in the U.S. they become honorary Irish for the day.  I hope whatever you've got planned for the day includes eating something green.
Irish Blessings to you!
Noreen