It was 2015, we were in the middle of a pay freeze, and our life was generally chaotic with four little kids, a floppy-eared puppy, and a house that always seemed to need fixing. Toys were everywhere, our savings account was barely worth mentioning, and we hadn’t taken a decent vacation in years.

There were nights I couldn’t sleep, worrying how we would pay for school fees and music lessons and clothing for our children. Something had to change. 

Ten years ago next month, we made a big change: we moved into a house half the size of our previous home. 

Let’s be honest, St. Patrick’s Day is not really known as a culinary holiday. Most people prefer Guiness and Jamesons over boiled potatoes. A perfect example of this is Nancy. If there’s Guiness on tap, she’s there in a heartbeat. She actually survived in Ireland on Guiness and flights of Irish whiskey rather than eating such delicacies as Piggy Cheeks and the delicious blend of oatmeal, pork, bread, and suet known as White Pudding. However, we digress. We found an Irish pub in Downers Grove with an interesting menu with lots of creative and authentic Irish dishes. We jumped into the Mini-Mobile, followed the rainbow hoping to find a pot of gold at Ballydoyle Irish Pub.

I’m worried about my mom and could use some guidance. She’s always been fairly active, but after having knee surgery last year, she went through physical therapy, made great progress, and then… just stopped. Now she insists she’s fine and doesn’t “need” to exercise anymore, but I can see how much less she moves. She’s more sedentary and complains about stiffness. Even simple things like getting up from a chair are becoming more difficult for her.