Bobby had been thinking about this birthday for a long time, and he had his birthday menu planned out weeks in advance! He asked for oatmeal playa bowls for breakfast. This is a homemade version of his favorite thing from the PlayaBowls restaurant in Belmar…oatmeal, strawberries, bananas, peanut butter and nutella.
In the afternoon, we planned to go kayaking at the beach. When we got there, it was so cold and windy that we were going to cancel, but Bobby had the need to do something epic for this birthday! Thomas was willing to do it with him, as were Kelly and Colleen. The rest of us sat on the sandy sidelines, trying to stay warm.
Here are Kelly and Colleen getting in their 2 person kayak, assisted by Helen, who owns Derrynane Sea Sports. Pretty sure she thought we were insane!
And off they go! Paddling into a pretty strong wind was not easy.
Oh no! Man–I mean men–overboard! They tipped it and both fell out. Undeterred, they got back in and kept going for almost an hour.
While we waited, I took some pictures of the beach and pier.
A whole host of stand-up paddleboards, one and two person kayaks, just sitting on the beach in front of the Derrynane Sea Sports hut. The paddles and wetsuits were locked in the hut, but the life jackets were also in a big, unlocked box.
I am not sure what to call this sport, but the young man seemed to be having a ton of fun! His feet were on what looked like a snowboard, and he was harnessed into and holding onto controls for the parachute/sail. At times the wind was so strong that he was lifted out of the water by several feet!
They are back, and they had a great time despite the wind and cold.
Bobby got what he wanted; an epic 8th birthday, and a (cold, wet) kayaking adventure.
The girls enjoyed it too, and were disappointed when we waved them back in to shore. Apparently half of the children like being cold and wet, while the other half waited in the warm car.
Nora and Sean would like to give it a try on a warm, sunny day.
After a warm shower and some dry clothes, it was time for Bobby’s birthday dinner. Remember, he’d been planning this for some time. There were no typical 8 year old things like pizza and chicken nuggets for this guy! His request was tortellini bolognese with garlic bread, naturally.
Chocolate cake for dessert, homemade this time because I learned my lesson when I couldn’t find a cake for Sean’s birthday in Arklow.
We used our handmade candles from our farm visit last week, which was perfect because there were 8 of them! Happy Epic 8th Birthday to my sweet Bobby!
Brogans Across the Pond 
Happy Birthday, Bubba!!!
It was plenty warm & sunny in Chattanooga yesterday, so if you put kayaking on your calendar for your next birthday, I’m pretty sure it’s a safe bet that it’ll be much much warmer and you’ll get more takers to join you in the water. I’m glad you came up with such an epic activity and menu for your 8th birthday. You’re sense of adventure (and resistance to cold) are already becoming things of legend. You’re focus on the culinary aspect of the “perfect” day was not lost on me either…good thing your mommy is one of the world’s greatest cooks. I may have a suggestion to kick it up a notch next year, as there’s a place downtown which has awesome fried chicken called Bantem & Biddy…Sean can tell you about it. Next year, you could throw that in for lunch, perhaps. Just the same, it looks like you had a truly great birthday, and I’m so glad that you did, Buddy. God Bless you, Love, Dad
Now for a message to your beautiful mommy…
Honey, it’s called Kite surfing or Kiteboarding, because you’re surfing with your feet strapped in on a Kiteboard, with a Kite catching the wind as your source of propulsion. There’s a guy who does it in Sea Girt occasionally, and the acrobatics are unreal. As much as I love surfing and tumbling and the idea of flying, you’ll never need to worry about me trying that one…it takes tremendous upper body strength and a hefty disposable bank allocated to fun, since the Kite usually costs about $3K before getting the Board and other equipment. The closest I’ve come was using a similarly-inspired Kite designed to be used on land and using it to pull me while I was on Rollerblades. That was cool. As much as I’ve always dreamed that Kite surfing would be a blast to try, I’m fully resigned to it being one of life’s pleasures I simply will not know.
Good thing I have you all to keep my life adventurous and exciting, instead.
Love,
b xo
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Thanks, honey. He is already looking forward to kayaking again. THe kite surfing was totally amazing to watch!
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Happy birthday to Bobby!
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Thank you! He had a great day 😊
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Happy Epic Eighth Birthday to Bobby from all of Team Tombs! You can pick my birthday menu anytime: that breakfast Playa Bowl looks delicious and chocolate cake is my favorite!
Jen, maybe Bobby the Warm-Blooded has Viking ancestry somewhere in his distant past. He looks completely comfortable braving harsh and frigid seas!
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Yes, I’m certain there is something in the family history because he comes from a long line of people who love the cold. I have to say that as I get older I don’t love it as much as I used to!
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