Laughter of children is medicine for the soul.

My children bring me great joy. Now don't get me wrong, we have our fair share of stress and frustration just like any parent does. That aside, there is nothing more fabulous than when they are happy. Ever since they were small little baby beings I have loved the sound of their giggles and laughter, signs that they are truly happy and worry free.

Since our girls share a room, we tend to put one of them in our room to fall asleep and then move them into the same room together. Last night as I was going into our room our youngest started a full out giggle. I asked her what she was giggling about only to realize she was asleep and couldn't answer me. She had a huge smile on her face, all cuddled in her blanket and was just laughing away. It melted my soul and in turn brought a smile to my heart. How amazing what a small little being can do to a mommy! I love it.

Afternoon with friends.

One of the few wonderfully sunny Sunday afternoons this last August, we were able to go and walk around Port Gamble and Poulsbo with our wonderful children and some good friends of ours that were visiting from California.

It turned out to be a wonderful afternoon. After taking a few photos of Shawn and Sofia, my fabulous husband of course had to step outside of the box and try something over the top.

Of course immediately after I snapped the photo, he proceeded to fall off and practically take out the little white fence behind them. It was about that point we decided to head to Poulsbo for a little walk and some lunch.

Having great friends is priceless. Thanks to Shawn and Sofia for a great afternoon.

Leavenworth Half Marathon Accomplished!

Wow! That is the most craziest thing ever, but I did it. I seriously want to go crawl in a hole and cry my eyes out but I did it. Not only did I finish, but I ran the entire Leavenworth Half Marathon. Who would have thought that even possible? OK. . . my mom, my husband and my friends all thought I could do it. But in my own mind I was slightly skeptical. Not anymore though. Was it hard? Heck yes. Probably one of the hardest athletic accomplishments of myt life but fully worth every one hundred and fifty nine minutes of it. That is right, 159 minutes to run pretty much 13.5 miles of hills. CRAZY!

That was Saturday morning. Then as if that wasn't enough, we couldn't leave Leavenworth without a fabulous lunch and some much needed exploring, so walking around we did. For the next 4 hours we ate, explored, shopped and visited with friends. It was a great afternoon. When I finally could not possibly walk any further, we found our way to our vehicle and settled in for the ride home.

Yay for me! I am definitely patting myself on my back and once I can walk upright again I might even think about doing another one of these.