Walking my first half marathon

So this week I started training for walking my first half marathon. It's not very hard and I've always liked walking so I'm letting you all know in case 1. you want to join me or 2. you want to give me words of encouragement! I have 12 weeks of training. Here it is below:

http://www.halhigdon.com/halfmarathon/walk.htm

It's simple and it's daily which I like. I'm way excited. :)

Ferry to Poulsbo

Jim and I took a nice ferry ride to Poulsbo and Bainbridge Island on a gorgeous Friday. It was his first ferry ride ever, however he did live on a ship in the Marines for about 9 months. Not the same says I. We enjoyed the beach, yummy cinnamon rolls, and a nice game of Dominos at a local cafe. It was a nice relaxing day! Here are lots of pics!

Salmon Spawning

Last year while my good friend Scott and Carren were visiting for the UW vs. BYU game we had the chance to go to the fish ladder and see the salmon spawn. It was incredible with fish flying about every half a second or so. I became obsessed with each jump and splash the salmon made. It just made me happy until it was pointed out to me that they were on their way to die, at which I was sad but still happy. And i vaguely remember learning about that in first grade. So yesterday Jim and I went down for a Sunday stroll to watch the salmon jump and jump they did! Jim could care less about the salmon only about my reactions. Because with each salmon that jumped I would yell out and point. I was like a kid at the candy store. However, in my defense there was someone else just as excited as me oohhing and aweing at these fine specimen, however it was just an 8-year-old girl. So what! So here are some pictures of me freaking out. Jim was trying to get an "authentic" pictures but mostly they were me pointing. :) IF YOU HAVE CHILDREN I DEMAND YOU TAKE THEM! I cannot wait to take my own children there! They will love it!






And in case you didn't know-Salmon and steelhead hatch and partially grow up in rivers and streams. Then they journey to sea where they spend most of their adult lives. Near the end of their life cycle, the few that have survived journey back from the sea to spawn in the streams where they were hatched years before. Between hatching and spawning, the returning fish must survive many hazards. In the end, less than one egg in 1,000 survive to spawn as an adult.

Snow Cones

In 1919 the snow cone made its debut, at the State Fair of Texas. This iconic treat was dreamed up by Dallas inventor Samuel Bert, who also patented the first snow-cone-making machine. I have always wanted a snow-cone machine and I would always ask for that as a gift when I was younger, you know the kind, the Snoopy machine. Oh how I yearned for one of those. I still yearn for one of those. I can't wait for the fair in Nashville that I will be going to in two short weeks! And then when I get back or even before I get to TN, I will attend a fair here in the Seattle area and then one in Yakivegas. The only reason I attend fairs are to 1. eat snow cones and 2. people watch.


This does bring up a dilemma to me though as well because I also am an avid fan of shaved ice and what I wouldn't give for one of those machines too (roughly $1000)! Cherry is my favorite flavor in both forms of delight!