Irish Gifts For St Patrick's Day

An Irish Toast

St. Patrick was a gentleman,
who, through strategy and stealth,
drove all the snakes from Ireland,
here's toasting to his health.

But not too many toastings,
lest you lose yourself and then,
and see all those snakes again.

Clip Art

A New Year, a fresh start, rebirth. One week in and how many of us have already broken our New Years resolutions? The answer is: most of us. But there's no shame in it, we're all in it together. There is simply an international lack of will power when it comes to New Year's resolutions.

In 2009 Jonah Lehrer, author of "How We Decide" wrote "Willpower, like a bicep, can only exert itself so long before it gives out; it's an extremely limited mental resource."

Writing in the Wall Street Journal, he said "Given its limitations, New Year's resolutions are exactly the wrong way to change our behavior. It makes no sense to try to quit smoking and lose weight at the same time, or to clean the apartment and give up wine in the same month. Instead, we should respect the feebleness of self-control, and spread our resolutions out over the entire year."

But remember the old proverb "A beautiful thing is never perfect" and anyway we can always try again next year!

Here's a list of Ireland's top New Year's Resolutions:

1. Spend more time with family and friend

Read More of the 10 Irish New Year's Resolutions

Clip Art

Irish Coffee

Yields 1 serving
1 C freshly brewed hot coffee
1-2 t brown sugar
1 1/2 oz Irish whiskey
Heavy cream

In a mug, combine coffee with sugar and whiskey (don't skip the sugar, it's supposed to help the cream float). Place cream in a small bowl and lightly whisk until it's slightly frothy. Place a spoon upside down and rest on the surface of the coffee. Pour cream over the spoon and serve without stirring.

Photo

For showin' of the green on St. Patrick's Day, gather scraps of felt to make a fun no-sew leprechaun.

Using an iron and bonding medium, in no time you'll have a handful of lucky leprechauns to pass out to friends. Finish with a pin backing for a gleeful shirt trim, with a magnet so he'll guard the refrigerator, or with pressure-sensitive adhesive so he becomes a computer buddy.

What You Need:

Kids can create this felt fellow.

1 square of dark green felt (trousers, cap)
Scraps of felt in beige (face, hands), white (stockings), black (shoes), light green (jacket), and light brown (beard)
Tissue paper
Paper-backed fusible web
4 x 4-inch piece of medium-weight, nonfusible, nonwoven interfacing
Embroidery floss: red, blue, and green
Embroidery needle
1-inch-long pin back
Crafts glue

Continue Reading For Instructions For The Leprechaun Pin

Miss O'Leary, our lovely little old spinster from Leitrim makes a return visit this week. After Mass one Sunday, she went up to the priest and said, "I have to tell you Father, your sermons are a wonder to behold. Sure we didn't know what sin was till you came to the parish!"

Q: How many Irishmen does it take to change a light bulb?
A: Three. One to hold the bulb, one to screw it in, and one to say how grand the old one was

A Texas rancher comes to Ireland and meets a Kerry farmer.
The Texan says : "Takes me a whole day to drive from one side of my ranch to the other."
The Kerry farmer says:"Ah sure, I know, sir. We have tractors like that here too."

Have you heard about the Irish boomerang?
It doesn't come back, it just sings sad songs about how much it wants to.

Jokes Page

Ingredients
1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
2 cups vanilla or white chips
1 cup milk chocolate chips
1 tablespoon butter
Dash salt
3/4 cup chocolate-covered English toffee bits
1/8 teaspoon rum extract
1 cup vanilla frosting
Green food coloring

Directions
Line a 9-in. square pan with foil and grease the foil; set aside. In a large saucepan, combine the milk and chips. Cook and stir over low heat until chips are melted. Add the butter and salt; stir until smooth. Remove from the heat; stir in toffee bits and extract. Pour into prepared pan. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours or until firm.
Using foil, remove fudge from pan; carefully remove foil. Cut fudge into 1-in. squares. Place the frosting in a small resealable plastic bag; tint with food coloring. Cut a small hole in a corner of bag; pipe a shamrock onto each square. Yield: about 2-1/4 pounds.

Shamrock Toffee Fudge

Island Golf Tour
Ireland is one of the world's top golf destinations. Did you know?
There are over 440 golf courses in Ireland with over 110 developed in the 1990s alone.

Irish Bargain Travel

Whether it is St. Paddy's day or any day, this traditional corned beef and cabbage recipe will warm your insides. And you just know with that leftover corned beef, the sandwiches the next day will be fabulous!

Corn Beef and Cabbage

4 quarts hot water
2 cups coarse salt
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons mixed whole spice
5 pound piece of beef, brisket or tongue
3 cloves garlic
3 small parsnips
6 large carrots
3 large yellow turnips
8 small onions
6 medium potatoes
1 head of cabbage

Brining the Beef:
Combine the hot water, coarse salt sugar and whole spice. When the water has cooled, pour over the beef in a large enamelled pot or stone jar. Add the garlic. Weight the meat down to keep it submerged and cover the jar. Cure in the refrigerator for 3 weeks, turning the meat every 5 days.

Cooking Corned Beef:
To cook, wash beef under running water to remove the surface brine. Cover with boiling water and simmer for 4 hours until a fork can penetrate to the center. Remove the meat to a plate, but do not discard the boiling water. Use it to boil the vegetables.

Peel and quarter the parsnips, carrots and turnips and simmer in the stock for 30 minutes. Skin and add the onions. Peel, quarter and simmer the potatoes in the stock for 15 minutes longer. Cut the cabbage into small wedges and simmer for 10 - 15 minutes. Reheat the meat in the stock.

Serve the cut corned beef on a platter, surrounded by the vegetables
.

Makes 10 - 12 servings.

Photo And Recipe

Fun Boxers Get Lucky Pajama Pants for Men
St. Patrick's Day print
Fun Boxers brand
100% cotton knit
Size small: 29" inseam, 38" outside seam
Size medium: 30" inseam, 39.5" outside seam
Size large: 31" inseam, 40" outside seam
Size XL: 32" inseam, 41.5" outside seam

Get Lucky