From the Emerald City to The Emerald Isle: Seattle - PEPs Group, Farmer's Market, Marathon Expo and Bridal Luncheon

This collection of pictures (going chronologically) is a bit of a hodge-podge but this was our trip. First, on Tuesday (of week 2), we went to see our beloved PEPs group (group of 6 couples and their toddlers whom we have now met with for 3 years!). All the kids have just turned three and it was so fun to see them all together again. In our group, one family has welcomed baby #2 (Maya, you'll see her with the stunning blue eyes), and two couples are expecting baby #2. (Colin and Jesica, imminently!) So, now, three of our six couples have added another kiddo to the family. We absolutely adore this group of people and feel so lucky to have known them through this whole journey thus far, from birth to three. (At once it feels like no time at all since we met them, AND an eternity. I suppose that's parenting in a nutshell.)

Here's us this year:

Only missing Dianna (the 2nd preggo mommy right now)

All of us last summer, June 2012 - when Maya was still in Shannon's tummy.

This is Alex - one of the cutest little guys on planet earth. Norah and Alex heard there would be cupcakes so they sat down promptly.

Now we're up to four toddlers

Five have made it.

And here's all six.

These six are so cute it hurts your pancreas.

6 Parents, 6 three year olds and 6 swings - this calls for a synchronized push-off.

And a relatively rare photo of the three of us. :)

A beautiful sunset on the way home to Mimi's. I found myself newly in love with Seattle's landscape - with the evergreen trees that I've considered almost invisible my entire life (or at best, "boring"). Now that they're non-existent in Ireland, I find them majestic. Or the massive lakes - Lake Washington (probably the size of half of Ireland) and Lake Sammamish - of which Mimi and I ran from one tip to the other. You would never know but the length of that lake is 10 miles! Nothing like that exists in Ireland - at least not a gorgeous lake with a fully maintained paved trail that runs for nearly 40 miles straight. Anyway, I digress, but this trip we found ourselves thankful for so many things about Seattle (and the States in general) and we hadn't expected to feel that way.

And then Wednesday we went to the Sammamish Farmer's Market. Each week, Mimi, James, my Dad, Marko and little Simon go to the Market (about a mile from Mimi & James' place).

Marko rolling down the hill like a champ.

Norah having a Hawaiian Shaved Ice

Mimi in line at the bakery tent - happy happy!

Don't be fooled, these are not normal-sized donuts. To their right are FULL loaves of bread - to give you an idea for the scale. They are larger than the diameter of my head. The "donut holes" alone are as big as a softball (which they also sell).

This woman was doing henna tattoos and we couldn't resist.

Even Marko got one and sat perfectly still.

Then on Thursday we made our way to the Marathon Expo in downtown Seattle.

In Pioneer Square (the oldest part of Seattle), on our way to the Half Marathon expo!

Native murals on the side of an abandoned building.

There were literally cheerleaders, cheering Mimi on, as she walked into the expo (she's pushing the buggy with Simon in it).

Sisters, super....duper excited to get their race numbers!! Mimi and I ran a 5K race a couple years ago (my first race ever, though she had already done a triathlon at that point). So, to run this half marathon together was really exciting!

Brooks really pulled out all the stops at this expo. They had carnival booths and this weird "play" thing...

Do we look like we're running?

I won this for Marko in the Brooks' game and don't worry, we told him to try and pick his nose. :)

"Stayin' alive, stayin' alive"

That's right - World Tour - I've finished the Seattle half marathon and in 3 weeks, I'll run the Dublin Rock 'n' Roll half marathon!

Of course I had to take a picture of this sign at the Seattle race expo.

All three kids playing Lego together in Marko's room. It was so cute! Simon had his huge baby Legos and Norah and Marko were playing so nicely together. You've got to capture these moments.

Finally, on Friday of week two, we had Mimi's bridal Luncheon in Madison Park. It was just closest family there and it was perfect.