Guest Post #3 - In which her hubby attempts to write something...

It's incredible that after knowing someone for 10 years, when you sit down to write something about them for the blogging world, the most incredible case of writers block seems to happen.

I remember the day I said to Laural "Hey, I started a blog, it's pretty cool.. You should try it out sometime". Little did I know that not only would she start blogging like crazy, but even attract a following. My blog sits there collecting dust and spiderwebs, while she on the other hand has gone on to have her own little group of blogging friends, be invited to blogging events, and even meet her favorite writers! I have to admit, sometimes she amazes me.

Sometimes I catch myself thinking "Gee, Laural should blog about this!", only to look over and see that she's already thinking long and hard about what she's going to write. Sure enough, shortly after we're within reach of a computer, she's off. It irks me at times, but that's part of being married to Laural. A beautiful, strong, independent, goal oriented, mother.

Sometimes she amazes me with the goals she sets and achieves. Losing weight, done. Running a 5k, done. Being a fantastic mother, done. Taking Matty all by herself on vacation, well.. almost done. Her strength of character and shear determination to finish what she starts is something I can always use a good dose of.

Of course it's not all paradise either. I believe she also has other, smaller goals, the purpose is to keep me on my toes. Goals like, surprising me with cats, asking me where her keys are, and my favorite.. Never closing zip-lock bags!

All and all though, I'm lucky to have such a wonderful partner at my side. I wouldn't have it any other way.

Guest Post # 2 - A Mom’s Eye View

I have two daughters, both of whom I am very proud to call “daughter”. They have grown into two women whom I admire for very different reasons. I think of them as my best girlfriends. I laugh with them, cry with them, and generally just have a wonderful time being with them.

Since this is Laural’s blog, I should probably be more specific about what it is I enjoy about having her as a daughter!

Laural is the whimsical one in the family who tells hilarious stories about every day events – they can be work related or home related. Many times I laugh so hard that tears run down my cheeks as she relays something that happened in her life. I usually shake my head and say audibly, “only Laural”. She was always the one her dad and I could rely on to tell us what was going on at school – usually with some embellishment.

She is the spontaneous one in the family who comes up with an idea and wants to run with it now. Like the time she decided that on the way to Vermont we should take a side trip – fly to New York. We don’t always go along with these outrageous ideas, but when you are around Laural you never feel like you are “in the box”; she pretty much operates “out of the box” whenever she can.

Yet there is a serious side to this crazy daughter of ours. We are both professional women in the business world. She works in the communications department of a large company, while I run my own soft skills training company. There have been times when I have called her for sage advice and gotten it. She helps design marketing materials for always edits and/or proofreads articles that I write for publication.

It has been a fun time watching both of our daughters grow into mature young adults who have each married wonderful men, had great kids and continue to be awesome human beings. But then as a mom, I may be just a tad biased.