Thursday, March 17, 2016

Happy St. Patrick's Day!



Hope you enjoy a special day if  you're Irish
or
Like the old saying goes,
"Everyone's Irish Today"

My father was Irish 
and
growing up we always celebrated this day
with a meal of corned beef and cabbage or Irish stew.

I can still recall the cozy aroma of those meals in my memories.
Wonderful preparations made by my mother,
who was an awesome cook!!


Ireland is about the size of West Virginia,
 and this tiny island has some of the richest history of the Western world.
Some important dates are 600 B.C. when the Celtic arrived on Irish soil.
 In A.D. 432 St. Patrick brought Christianity to Ireland. 
During the time from 500- 800 known as the Golden Age of Ireland, 
great music, literary creativity made Ireland the most accomplished in Europe

 When the Vikings invaded Ireland in 800,
 they founded the first towns including Dublin in 988.
 In 1002 Ireland is united for the first time under one leader
 and by 1801 Ireland is part of the United Kingdom. 

1845 saw a million and a half Irish starve to death due to the Great Potato Famine
 and a million more people emigrate to avoid the same fate. 

By 1922 Ireland becomes a free state within the British Commonwealth
 except for six counties of Northern Ireland
 which still remain part of the United Kingdom.
 Leaving the year of 1949 to see the twenty six counties of Ireland become an independent republic.



St. Patrick is the man who converted the Irish to Christianity 

and is the most famous Irishman of all time.
 No one is sure where exactly the patron saint was born or buried,
 but they do know when he died, which is March 17Th.

 So on this day, the Irish worldwide celebrate the holiday in honor of his name. 
The shamrock is the symbol of Ireland and comes from Gaelic Seamrog, 
which refers to the plant's three leaves. 
As the story goes, 
It was in a heated debate with a Druid priest that St. Patrick bent down,
 picked a shamrock 
and used it to demonstrate the Christian trinity 
using the three leaves held together by one single stem.

 We don't really know for sure if the story is true or not, but still regarded today as the national plant of Ireland and worn in many forms on St. Patrick's Day.


William Churchill once said," We have always found the Irish a bit odd. They refuse to be English"

My grandfather was from Dublin and came to this country residing in Pennsylvania in 1921.

Here is a picture of Dublin today overlooking the River Liffey.
 Shown is a portion of the Ha'penny Bridge.
 The Dome building in the background is the Custom House.



Some of my favorite books!



Some pictures from these book are among my favorites.
 Pottery and shamrock bowls, ending with spring roses!





I hope you enjoy a bit of the Irish on St. Patrick's Day
 and may your day be filled with blessings and good cheer!
 The following pictures are a bit of Irish in my home.











Vintage porcelain bells from Ireland.





Thank you for stopping by,

 ERIN GO BRAGH "Ireland Forever"
 Smiles,

44 comments:

TexWisGirl said...

nice that you know your roots. :)

Jemma@athomewithjemma said...

My Dear Texas Friend,
How nice to know your roots and also that you are connected to Ireland. Most of my family came from Sweden and England so I am always enchanted with those friends that truly can say I am Irish!
I have always enjoyed the Irish sayings and nearly all of them have such a deeply embedded message in them.
So today I will wish you a Happy St. Patrick's Day and also thank you for joining us in Thoughts Of Home On Thursday!
xo
Jemma

Penny from Enjoying The Simple Things said...

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Latane Barton said...

I went to Ireland once... wish I could go again. I loved it.

Debby Ray said...

Thank you for this lovely bit of information. My background is German but if I was to be able to take it trip faraway, it would be to Ireland. Green and lush is what comes to mind. Happy St. Patrick's Day! :)

Stacey said...

Good morning Celeste. You wrote a beautiful post for this special day. I never seem to remember all the details about St. Patrick so it's nice to read this. You are lucky to have some neat things from Ireland especially since you are a descendant of the beautiful country.

So glad you shared this with us at Thoughts of Home on Thursday. I'll share on Facebook today too.

Unknown said...

Celestina Marie, Happy St. Patrick's Day! Your Dad was a Proud Great kind Irishman!
LJ

Lisa said...

What a lovely post Celeste! I love the quote from Winston Churchill . How funny! And I never knew what made shamrocks so special. Such a beautiful christian illustration. Beautiful post!
PS Now I need to go find something green to wear.;-)

Betty said...

I love the story you told and Happy St. Paddys Day to you.

Roosterhead Designs said...

Celeste you are amazing! Thank you so much for the wonderful lessons shared today~
And the glimpse into you past : ) and present! Have a wonderful day~ Karen O

Kim said...

I love hearing about people's heritage. Everything has become so homogenized today. As kids we had such a sense of our ancestry...the customs, the language, the food. Today, it's all pizza, all the time!! ;) Thanks for sharing. I really enjoyed this post!

Nancy Chan said...

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Debbie Harris said...

Thank you for sharing this lovely post filled with wonderful information, Celestina. How beautiful that you are able to share your roots.
My dad's mother's side was Irish, quite Irish I must say. I enjoyed family gatherings when my grandmother (dad's mom) was alive, as she was a spit fire and full of Irish energy. A family gathering with her many siblings was loud with conversation and you were "lucky" if you could get a word in. Ha!
Grandma and I would lay on the grass for hours looking for four leaf clovers, and grandma always found one. :-) she had the luck of the Irish.
Enjoy your day in all its glory.
Much love~ Debbie

The Bear's Blog said...

Happy St. Patrick's Day.

Dorthe said...

Thank you for your telling of important dates of Ireland.
The beautiful island , green and wonderful. It must be a special day for you, Celeste, to celebrate, The island so far away ,from where your father came to live another life in USA.
What an exiting history Ireland has had, I can imagine those books are very dear to you, for you to collect knowleage , from your ancestors.
Happy St.Patricks Day, dear.

Dreaming of Vintage said...

Happy St. Patrick's Day Celestina! I'm not Irish, but I love reading about Irish history and the mysterious folklore! I'm going to have to see if the books you featured are on amazon and of course I love your sweet decorations!

Karen @ Beatrice Euphemie said...

Lovely to read about your ancestry in Ireland, Celeste! We are both Irish sisters, as my Grandfather was from Cork. Interesting history of this beautiful country you have given and I love the story of the shamrock and St. Patrick. Love your sweet decorations and glimpse inside the book. The pottery is wonderful:) Thank you for the toast - here's to all things Irish and a Happy St. Patrick's Day to you, my dear! Hugs xo Karen

Valerie-Jael said...

Happy St Patrick's day, hugs, Valerie

Castles Crowns and Cottages said...

Hello dearest Celeste! I love the Irish, their music, language and culture. Enjoy the day!

Daniela said...

Hi my dearest Celestina and thank you for this amazing blog post celebrating St.Patrick's Day, I've enjoyed it so much !

Sending blessings of joy on the remainder of your week and Happy St.Patrick's Day to you !
With much love and gratitude

Dany

craftyles said...

Such interesting facts about Ireland. I have a bit of Irish on my Mom's side. Love your cute touches in your home. We are gearing up for corn beef and cabbage for dinner tonight. Have a Happy St' Patrick's Day, Celeste.

Alessandra said...

Happy S. Patrick's day, dear friend. I love reading about the irish history and traditions. Your decors are beautiful as usual.
Hugs
Alessandra

Tete said...

Great post! Never knew all of that, but I do now! I will have to do more research and google irish images...love all the traditions. I will never look at a clover without thinking Father, Son, Holy Ghost....

AnnMarie aka Vintage Junkie aka NaNa said...

Great post for St. Patrick's Day! And I found a new blog party to link to through your post...Thoughts of Home. What a nice party!

Jan Hermann said...

Great post, Celeste! Happy St. Patrick's Day!

At Rivercrest Cottage said...

Would love to visit Ireland someday. I'm not a drinker at all, but think visiting pubs in Ireland would be so fun.

Sue Kosec said...

Happy, happy St. Patrick's Day to you, too! Whether you're wearing green or not, whether you're eating corned beef and cabbage or not ... just enjoy your heritage.

xo
SuZeQ

decorayadora said...

hi dear celestina!!! espero que tenga un feliz dia de San Patrick

Createology said...

It is so wonderful that you have shared your Irish heritage with us and some interesting history. Ireland has always fascinated me and someday I hope to visit. Top O'the Mornin to You...

Julie's Lifestyle said...

Hello Celestina, I hope you had a nice St. Patrick's Day! I enjoyed your lovely post and facts.
Enjoy your Friday and weekend.
Julie

kitty@ Kitty's Kozy Kitchen said...

We do share our Irish roots, Celeste, and grandparents that ended up in Pennsylvania. I so loved seeing your touches of Irish decor around your home and the Irish blessing at the end. I also enjoyed reading all the information you gave us on St. Patrick and of Ireland.
I hope you and your sweetie had a Happy St. Paddy's Day! ☘

quakerhillfarm said...

Lovely photos and great information! Ireland certainly has a rich heritage and how wonderful you are a part of that!

quakerhillfarm said...

Lovely photos and great information! Ireland certainly has a rich heritage and how wonderful you are a part of that!

Linda @ Life and Linda said...

Thank you for so much history of this special holiday. Your Irish decor is lovely. love the little fellas. The books are great resources and I am sure fun to read. Isn't it fun to find out more about our roots? Wishing you great happiness and luck. Happy St. Patrick's day. xoxo

Row homes and Cobblestones said...

Celeste,
A beautiful post for Saint Patrick's day. Full of information and amazing photos. I've never been to Ireland but friends tell me it's enchanting. Didn't know it was the size of West Virginia, wow tiny. Enjoy your day☘
xoxo,
Vera

Kathy said...

I loved reading this post! My heritage is Irish on one side and Scandinavian on the other. An odd combination after reading your post - haha!

Laura said...

You have created a beautiful post, full of wonderful details and photographs.

Thank you for sharing this with us at Thoughts of Home on Thursday. We are so glad you are here.

Blondie's Journal said...

I so enjoyed reading about your heritage which I can see you look upon so warmly. And the history of Ireland going so far back to the present is very enlightening. Thank you for a lovely post, Celeste!

Jane

Karen@Southern Gal Meets Midwest said...

What a nice refresher of Irish history. My darling and I are both of Irish decent and we enjoyed corned beef and cabbage meal. Thanks for the lovely post Celestina :)

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Celestina, I really must visit Ireland one day. It looks so beautiful. I only this month discovered a 17th century Irish bread and posted about it a few days ago. Goes well with a nice cup of Irish breakfast tea.

Feral Turtle said...

I just have to say that I really enjoyed this post. Very informative Celeste!! My grandfather came from Ireland too but unfortunately that's all I know. Wish I would have asked my Mom more about her family. Hope you had a great St. Paddy's Day!!

Conniecrafter said...

I will always regret that when we were stationed in England that we didn't make it to Ireland or Scotland, thanks for sharing a bit of the History of Ireland. Your decorations are sweet, I don't have any myself. My hubby's family is from there but my family is from Germany.

Maria at inredningsvis said...

I always wanted to go to Ireland looks AMAZING and Scotland to :)

Check out my top 6 Ikea furniture list today ...lots of tips :)

Have an amazing spring dear:)

Hugs and kisses Maria at inredningsvis blog

Jillayne said...

Love this post Celestina.... my husband's mother's family came from Ireland and we plan to go there next year. You have piqued my curiosity with these tidbits and I will certainly be reading up on this lovely country over the months ahead - thank you!

Post a Comment

Thank you for stopping by. Your visits and comments are always welcome and I look forward to visiting you in return. Have a blessed day!

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.

Celestina Marie
Celestina Marie

Welcome To Rose Garden Market from Celestina Marie Design. It is so nice to meet you. My name is Celestina Marie named after my grandmother and my friends call me Celeste.My creative journey extends over 30 years enjoying the love of painting and redesigning vintage and new treasures. I love to go treasure hunting and the fun of finding great vintage pieces to redesign..