This past week Ian has been attending Karate camp at Bobby Lawrence Karate. Earlier in the summer he moved up from Little Ninja’s and became a Junior. When he did that he earned his solid yellow belt. Earning belts as a junior is quite a bit harder than earning them as a Little Ninja. There is a lot more to learn, and they seem to focus more on what you know rather than how many classes you have attended.

Summer camp is a great way to learn a lot all at once and to try to earn a new belt. When he attended the first week of camp earlier in the summer, he had just become a yellow belt. When he earned his yellow belt he skipped 2 Little Ninja striped belts. It was a big jump for him. I figured that at the end of the camp week, he wouldn’t be ready to promote. Turns out, he wasn’t quite ready. Since then he has been going to class twice a week and this week he attended camp again. I was really impressed with how much he learned this week at camp.

Today was promotion, and he was ready to promote to an orange belt. He worked hard at camp this week and he was really proud of himself.

Here he is getting his new belt.

This past weekend was the MS150 charity bike ride in Logan. This was my second year doing it and Scott’s third year. We had such a great time this year. My parents watched the kids for part of the time so we could just spend the weekend alone.

They have free camping at the Cache Valley fairgrounds. We went up early and took our motor home to get a spot. We met up with the rest of our group and got a great spot with hook ups. It was great to be able to use the air conditioner!

Scott and I spent most of Thursday and Friday just hanging out together. Most people came and got their camping spots early Thursday and then left until Friday evening. The campground was deserted. It was nice. I can’t remember the last time I had free time like that with nothing to do. I just relaxed and even watched some tv in the middle of the day!

The rest of the group showed up Friday night. We had a potluck dinner and then hung out around camp. We had such a fun group this year and it was nice to hang out with everyone.

Saturday the ride started bright and early at 7:00am. We rode together in a group this year and it was so nice. Everyone worked together really well and it made the ride really fun. It went by so quickly. The ride flew by and all of a sudden it was time for lunch. I felt great all day and really enjoyed the ride.

We spent the afternoon around camp and bedtime couldn’t come soon enough. I was exhausted! Everyone else went to the pool party and I went to bed. I was asleep by 8:15pm!

Sunday started again at 7:00am. We started out with a raging head wind as we headed up the canyon. It did not make for a fun ascent, but I just kept pedaling and soon the wind settled down. I was so happy when we got to the top. From there the rest of the ride was fun and mostly flat.

The whole weekend was great. The company was awesome and I really enjoyed myself. I am already looking forward to next year!

Last fall I spent a couple days at a really fun photography workshop with Ali Hohn. She came back to Utah for a few more workshops and asked me to help out.

This morning I went to lend her my equipment and brought Emma along to model for the people in the workshop. She was such a great little model. I took a few photos of her too, and thought I’d share them here. She did so well they begged me to bring her back tonight for the sunset shoot.

Stay tuned for a few more later!

For Mother’s Day my Dad gave my mom a trip to NYC and asked me if I would go with her. I was thrilled and thought it sounded like a Mother’s Day present for me too! I thought that 3 days in New York City, just the two of us, for shopping, sight seeing and theater going sounded wonderful.

We spent this past weekend doing just that.

We flew into the city on Thursday night. We got in around 4:00pm and we didn’t waste any time We got show tickets to see Billy Elliott on the first night. We checked into our hotel and then did a little shopping around the hotel. We grabbed a quick bite to eat a little deli and then went to the show. We both loved it! We love musicals and this one did not disappoint. The music was wonderful and so was the dancing. It was a great story. It was almost 3 hours long, but the time just flew by. It was the perfect way to spend our first night.

The next day we slept in late, had a nice breakfast at our hotel and then we both had plans to meet friends in the city. My mom went and met a friend that she hadn’t seen in 45 years. I went to meet a new friend I met at the Kelley Ryden and Tracy Raver newborn workshop. We planned to meet for lunch and then go shopping at Moods Fabrics for backdrops for newborn photography. Moods is the place that Kelley and Tracy get all of their wonderful fabrics. I was in heaven, and also a little overwhelmed. Luckily I had Royce there with me to help! We spent almost 3 hours just looking at fabrics. But it was soooo worth it. I can’t wait to get the package in the mail and start using them. My newborns are going to look so good We spent Friday evening seeing show that Royce recommended, Memphis. After Billy Elliott I was worried that we would be disappointed, but we were not. Memphis was fabulous too.

Saturday was our day to do some serious shopping We went back to the same deli and had a delicious breakfast. Then we were off to shop. We went all over the city and had a great time. We walked our legs off and we both got some really cute things. That night we went out to a great little Italian restaurant called Scalinatella. We both had a delicious meal and then walked back to the hotel. We were both ready for bed!

Sunday we did a little more shopping before it was time to head to the airport.

We had a really great time together. It was so nice to be able to spend a few days together, just the two of us. We both wanted to do the same things and we really enjoyed each other. It was so nice of my dad to send us on the trip and it was great for both of us. I hope we can do it again sometime

Today was Ian’s last day of kindergarten. In some ways the last six years have seemed to last forever and in other ways they have flown by. It seems like yesterday that Scott was driving me down the canyon to the birth center. I was doing everything I could not to deliver him in the car! He came flying into this world as soon as I got to the birth center. His birth was a whirlwind and his life since has been a whirlwind too.

Ian does everything he does with energy. He started school at Little Miners Montessori when he was three. They were not sure quite how to deal with him. He was so full of energy and he had a hard time focusing. He moved to Soaring Wings Montessori when he was four, and that is where he has been for the last two years. Moving him was the best decision we ever made. At Soaring Wings he found a teacher that knew just how to handle him. Kim and her assistant Sara appreciated all of the wonderful things about Ian and knew how to lovingly redirect him when he needed it. He bloomed under their direction. I have felt so lucky to have them as Ian’s teachers the past two years. It was so nice to leave him in the care of people who truly cared about him. I think they loved him as much as he loved them!

The things Ian learned about at school this year were amazing. The things he remembered and told me about just blew me away. He even taught me a thing or two this year. He has the most amazing memory. When someone tells him a story or teaches him a lesson he remembers every detail. Sometimes I am astounded at the little details that he remembers.

I am so proud of him and everything that he has accomplished in his short time in school. Soaring Wings has been such a great start for him. I can’t wait to see what great things he will accomplish next year at the Weilenman School of Discovery.

Congratulations, little buddy!

Emma made her first communion last week. Here are a few quick photos. She was in heaven! She LOVED her dress.

This was the scene at our house at 4:55am this morning.

Emma and Ian got up at the crack of dawn and made me breakfast for Mother’s Day. They had first gotten up at midnight, but Scott chased them back to bed. They got up again around 4:00am and started my breakfast of cereal, waffles, and cinnamon toast.

They came in to wake me up about 4:45am. I was so tired I didn’t want to get out of bed. I didn’t realize at first what they had done, but as soon as I did I knew I had to get up!

They were so cute. Emma had made me all kinds of cards and crafts. Ian was so proud of himself for making my waffle all by himself.

I sat with them and ate my breakfast while I read all of my cards. They made me feel so special. It was so sweet that they went to so much trouble to make my Mother’s Day breakfast.

Ian has been taking karate at Bobby Lawrence Karate since last fall. This year he decided he wanted to enter the Bobby Lawrence Karate tournament. I thought it sounded like fun and I was excited that he wanted to do it. I took him to a few extra karate classes so he could prepare. He entered in two divisions–forms and self defense. For forms he had to perform Taikyoku Shodan, and for self defense he had to do Halting Ram. He has practiced both of these over and over again in class. But getting up and doing it on his own in front of the judges is a whole different ballgame.

When we got to the tournament we watched the team competitions. Ian was totally entertained by them. He loved all the jumping and especially the weapons! As soon as he saw them he talked non-stop about how he wanted to do that. When the competitions were over, though, I could see another side of Ian. I saw him get very calm and start to get worried. He was thinking about what he had to perform and he couldn’t remember a few parts. Luckily my friend Vicky was there. Since Vicky takes karate herself, she was able to help Ian, and I think it helped to calm him down.

Right after that they called him to the ring and I went to watch from the stands. I was excited for him. I was happy that he was so enthusiastic about the team competitions and I was excited to see him perform. When they called his name for forms he was great. He went running to the front like he was supposed to, and did great with his speech.

“Hello Judges. My name is Ian. My style is Kwon Shu. Today I will be performing Taikyoku Shodan. May I begin judges?”

He started out strong, but then he got to one spot and he got confused. He started asking the judges to help him. When they couldn’t, he just turned his back to them, put his head down and started crying. I could see him from the stands and I just wanted to run out there and hug him. It was so sad. Luckily, one of his regular teachers just happened to be one of his judges. Mr. Markus went out there and put his arm around Ian and started talking to him. He helped him remember what to do and Ian decided to give it another go. I was so proud of him for starting over and trying again.

When he went up the second time it went much better. Except for the part where his partner didn’t know what to do. He had to stop in the middle and teach her what to do so that he didn’t hurt her. It was cute! Here he is getting his self defense scores.

After everyone in his ring finished, the kids waited while they gave out the medals. I loved watching Ian’s anticipation and then seeing him so excited when they called his name and said he had tied for second place in self defense!

He came running up to the stands to show me his medals. I gave him a hug and told him how proud I was of him for starting over, even when he was scared and it was hard. He just hugged me and gave me the cutest little smile. Then Mr. Markus came up with a second medal. Apparently they had made a mistake and Ian also got second in forms. She he ended up getting second place in both of the events he entered.

I think Ian’s first karate tournament was a success!

Scott and I have had season tickets to our local minor league hockey team, The Grizzlies, for about 10 years now. Before that we used to go to as many games as we could fit in. I used to be a HUGE Grizzlies fan. I read all the stats, kept up on the players, and went to all the team events. Then we had kids, and I just didn’t have time to be such a dedicated fan. But we did take Emma to see Canada vs. Finland in the 2002 Olympics when she was only 5 days old!

I have always wanted to go on a road trip to see the Grizzlies play. We just never seemed to be able to work it out when they were playing one of the two closest teams: Las Vegas Thunder or the Idaho Steelheads. This year for the first round of the playoffs we played Las Vegas. We tried to see if we could go see on of the away games, but it just didn’t work out. When Utah beat Las Vegas in the first round we were scheduled to play the Idaho Steelheads. The first two games just happened to be in Boise, Idaho on Friday and Saturday night. We decided to pack up the kids and make the trek up there for the weekend.

The kids were thrilled to be staying in a hotel with a free breakfast buffet and a pool. They were not so thrilled about going to the hockey games. But once we got there they had a lot of fun. Our seats were right by the Steelheads booster club. They had face painting and sign making booths set up. The kids were thrilled with that part!

All of the Boise fans went out of their way to make us feel at home. I was a little worried about it, since I have never been to an arena where I was cheering for the other team. But they were all great. Especially the booster club members. Of course, the Grizzlies didn’t give the Idaho fans much to be mad about. They slaughtered us the first night 7 to 2. The second night it was a better game, but the Steelheads managed to score a goal in the last 2 minutes to win the game.

I am really glad that we decided to go. It was fun to see the Grizzlies on the road and fun to spend time together as a family. Maybe we will get to do it again next season. Now the Grizzlies have a tough road ahead of them in this best of 7 series!

A few weeks ago Scott’s sister Stephanie posted on her Facebook account about her 4 year old cutting her own hair. I immediately thought to myself how glad I was that my kids had all outgrown that stage. I kind of smirked and felt like that was one parenting experience that I was glad that I missed.

So, I kind of feel like I deserve what I got

I was upstairs working on my computer when I heard Ian say “Um, Mom, Nora is cutting her hair.” in a completely calm and collected voice. I immediately panicked and ran down the stairs, all the while hoping she hadn’t cut much. After all, Ian didn’t seem fazed by it.

But, I wasn’t so lucky. I started yelling as I ran to Nora. She knew immediately that I was going to be mad. I have talked to her so many times about not cutting hair. Every time I cut someone’s hair I always tell her that only mommy can cut hair. We never cut our own hair. Each time she shakes her head and says she will never cut her hair. I guess she forgot, because this is what I found when I got downstairs.

I know it looks like I set this up, but I really didn’t. This is exactly how she was sitting with the blanket and everything.

I didn’t handle it very well. I just looked at her and yelled “NO, NO, NO!” and then saw all of her curls in a pile in front of her. I was so bummed! I just walked away because I was so upset I felt like I needed to be alone.

After a bit I went back and hugged her. I told her I loved her and I would always love her–even if she had no hair.

I took her outside and took a few photos of her new do.

I still wish she hadn’t cut it, but it could have been a whole lot worse. I know it is just hair and it will grow back, but I loved her messy curls. I promise never to judge the actions of other kids again