Wishing The Kids Were Here: Martinhal Cascais Review

*Review: I was invited to review Martinhal Cascais, but all opinions are my own* I put my book down on the lounger and turned my face to the sun, pausing for a few seconds to appreciate the moment - to appreciate sitting by a pool in Portugal, with nobody to look after but myself. I thought back to ...

Better than a Roman Holiday in Bloomfield House Hotel

Bloomfield House Hotel - Andrea Mara Office Mum

We spent our first wedding anniversary wandering around Rome, eating pasta and drinking wine, and asking strangers to take our pictures in pre-selfie, pre-smart-phone days. We spent our second wedding anniversary sitting in Shanahan's, eating steak and drinking wine, and praying we hadn't forgotten to bring our voucher. Our third anniversary was different - it was the ...

A Place You Have To Go Twice – Kenmare Bay Hotel

Out for dinner in Kenmare 7 years ago

Back when I had two-under-two, I found that going anywhere further than the local shop was a challenge. Actually, even going to the local shop was a challenge. So when the smallest was nine weeks old, and the biggest was a whopping 23 months old, we were understandably nervous setting off on our very first ...

Into The West – Review of The Connacht Hotel & What to do With One Day in Galway

Arrival at the Connacht

Eight years ago, I went along to the Saturday Night Show in RTÉ, and came away with a one-for-everybody-in-the-audience night in a hotel. So we duly booked our night, and headed off to Clane with our then seven-month-old. We weren't quite sure how staying in hotels with babies worked, but everyone else seemed to do ...