All Ireland Football Final (and replay!)

We got back from our holidays just in time to see Mayo play in the All-Ireland Senior Football Final on Sunday 18th September. It's kind of hard to describe what this event (and inter-county Gaelic football in general) is like to non-Irish people. Gaelic footballers are amateur athletes who all have other jobs that they have to go to, yet they have extreme dedication to the sport. Around a third of the Mayo team live and work in Dublin, and they have to commute to Mayo (about a 3 hour journey each way) for team training. The league matches will start in early February, and the championship ends (usually) in mid/late September. The off-season is very short, and add club training and matches on to that, and the off-season is essentially non-existent. They play for the pride of wearing a county jersey. 

This year, Mayo played Dublin in the final. Last year the two teams met in the semi-final, and Mayo was defeated in a replay (the first match was a tie). In 2013, they met in the final, and Dublin won by a point. Dublin were the heavy favourites this year, and it was a bit like David and Goliath. Dublin has a huge population of players to choose from and tremendous resources at their disposal. Mayo were huge underdogs. 

Paul's mom, sister, and nephew came up for the match to stay with Gemma while Paul and I attended the match in Croke Park. The venue holds over 82,000 people, and tickets for the final are always like gold dust. We were lucky to get two! 

There were some crazy events during the match- Dublin got two goals which were own goals (accidentally scored by Mayo players), and in the last minutes, the captain of the Mayo team kicked an equalising point, forcing a replay! 😁

The replay was held this past Saturday, October 1st. This time we were EXTREMELY lucky to get amazing seats right in front of the Mayo bench (the bench sits a few rows back from the pitch). 

The President of Ireland, Michael D. Higgins, after he was introduced to the teams. 

The Sam Maguire Cup- the trophy that the winning team receives. 

Unfortunately, after a tense game, Mayo were defeated by a point. It was heartbreaking. Because we were sitting so close to the players, we saw their extreme disappointment close up. Mayo have come SO CLOSE so many times. The last time they won was 1951, but they've lost 3 finals in the past 5 years, and lost in the semi-finals (after replays both times) the other 2 years. 

Mayo are known for being a resilient team with huge support, so onwards to next year. Mayo for Sam 2017!!! ❤️💚❤️💚

Mediterranean Disney Cruise- Day 8

Our last day 😩 We were up early to have breakfast, do our final packing, get off the ship and head to the airport for our flight back to Dublin. 

Travelling is hard work!

Back in Dublin

Gemma was going to run errands with Paul when we got back. This was her 10 minutes down the road. We can count on one hand the number of times she's fallen asleep in the car/van since she was 6 months old, so this was definitely the sign of a great holiday! Paul and I have said it was the best one ever- seeing Gemma's excitement and reactions to everything was amazing. She's said, "I want to get back on the ship" more than a few times since we've been back. I couldn't agree more! Couldn't recommend a Disney Cruise highly enough! 

Mediterranean Disney Cruise- Day 7

Friday, September 16th was supposed to be a day at sea, but turned into a stop in Marseille, France. We had tickets booked for a couple of events onboard, so we only had time to get off the ship for about 10-15 minutes. 

First thing in the morning we did some swimming and Paul and I went down the two waterslides onboard- we couldn't talk Gemma into giving one of them a try. She preferred the pool with the movie screen!

The first event that we had tickets for was a Disney Princess Meet and Greet. Gemma got to see Rapunzel, Belle, and Cinderella!

After lunch, it was the Frozen Gathering!

Gemma was feeling the effects of the jam packed week and asked to take a nap in the afternoon! She actually slept! It's been months since she did that!

When Gemma woke, we made our quick trip off the ship to some tents of shops that were set up on the pier. 

Back on board, Gemma went to the Kid's Club in time to prepare for and participate in the show that they performed in the theatre! Gemma got to be on stage with Mickey and Minnie!

That evening it was dinner, one last game of bingo, an amazing show in the theatre, and our final towel creation!