Three Cheers for Endorphins

I ran my first half marathon yesterday and loved it! It was a gorgeous morning, a beautiful course following the river, and two hours and nine minutes with a great friend. Krisi and I have run together for years, starting back when I was a college student on summer staff at camp. We now have seven kids between the two of us and were thrilled to see them all (not to mention Andy, my folks, and Matt, Krista & Anna) at the finish line yesterday.









The Sonneland kids then showed Grace & Isaac the Radio Flyer slide and the ever popular trash-eating goat.



Eli was asleep in the stroller so didn't make the picture.


Dad and I also took G & I on their first carousel ride. Grace loved it, but after the first minute or two, Isaac wasn't so sure...

Outdoor Kids

Now that spring has arrived, we spend most of our time outside. Somehow the sunshine, warmth and budding new life seem to make everything a little better. Just this week a fence was installed in the backyard and boy, what a difference it has made! The Adirondacks that Dad built finally made it out of my storage shed, and the kids are content to play, eat, and play some more...I think they'd even nap outside if I'd let them. :)

There is a large park with a playground and plenty of open space to run and romp just down the street from us, so when we do need a change of scenery, I load up the triple stroller and head down to the park. Nicole came with us one evening last week and spent a good deal of time capturing photos of the kids. Here are a few of my favorites.

Just What We Needed

When Eli was born, a number of friends asked what I thought I needed, what would make life more manageable - meals, diapers, cleaning - what would be most helpful? At that point I must have been in a bit of a fog, as I didn't really have an answer for them. Then it was suggested that I hire someone to help a few times a week to give me time to focus on Eli, run errands, work, or just have some time to myself. At that point Kim entered our lives and she was just what we needed. Really. She has been a tremendous gift of life, love, energy, patience and FUN these past few months for Grace, for Isaac, and for me. I am so very grateful for Kim and for the generous friends who helped make our time with her possible. I can hardly imagine these past months without her help. Kim graduates from Whitworth next weekend and will be leaving the area. Congratulations Kim, we will miss you! Can you tell how much the kids adore her?!

Who Would Have Thought?

When I envisioned my life as a mother, I NEVER envisioned this:



That's right folks, a TRIPLE stroller!! Crazy. I don't recall ever having seen a triple before, and now I use one daily and am so grateful to have it. The kids love it, and apparently so does the rest of the world...you should see the looks we get. As you can imagine, triple strollers are not easy to come by; many thanks to James & Stacy Hill who passed on this stroller as a gift now that their three youngest have outgrown it. Check out Grace & Eli's enthusiasm below.
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