Wednesday morning kicked off with a solo run for Anna through St. Stephen’s Green and Iveagh Gardens, while the rest of the fam took the slower route with a leisurely breakfast.

With Liam down for Nap #1 in the car, we headed south to Wicklow for lunch and a little waterfront wandering. We stumbled upon the perfect spot, Firehouse Bakery, where we grabbed a great lunch and had some #foreshadowing…not only was it a restaurant/bakery, but also seemed to have everything we needed for our upcoming sprint triathlon: biking gear, swim gear, and running tennies. (T-minus 10 days… wish us luck.)

We dawdled a bit, soaking up the coastal calm, before driving inland to Glendalough—a hot tip from a taxi driver on our first day, and one that delivered big time. Tucked deep in the Wicklow Mountains National Park, this lakeside gem gave us peak Ireland: hills rolling in every shade of green and a still lake perfect for dipping our toes in the water.

Nap #2 happened on the way back to Dublin, giving us just enough calm before the next days of soccer mayhem.

While Brian was off chasing early morning glory again on Thursday, Anna and Liam stayed loyal to Team Sleep-In. Once upright, it was off to a nearby park for a casual morning stroll and some expert-level grass inspection (Liam-led, of course). Brian returned grinning from ear to ear after a 7–0 win over Puerto Rico.

With the crew still back at the field, we put Liam down for his nap and did a little run back to the college to catch the small-sided U.S. team doing their thing.

Lunch was an easy-peasy Carved sandwich situation back at the hotel, followed by a U.S. all-family soccer game on the lawn. There were some major studs out there. We’re calling it now: future stars in the making.

Later, we joined the U.S. team for cocktail hour—mingling, toddler-wrangling, and clinking glasses with our fellow travel warriors. Dinner was a spicy send-off at a local Thai spot, Baan Thai Ballsbridge with some of the OGs from the team. Great food, great company, and enough noise to keep things interesting.