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.

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!

But lately I have been feeling guilty about it.

The food they serve is so unhealthy. She comes home and talks about corn dogs and chicken nuggets and macaroni and cheese. I know that she loves those things, and I am OK with my kids eating them once in a while. But I am really not happy that Emma is eating those things every day.

I have been thinking about starting to pack her lunch. I am already packing a lunch everyday for Ian, so it really wouldn’t be hard to just pack two. Then I saw this post with a great giveaway and I think I am convinced.

I HAVE to have these Goodbyn lunch boxes!

They are adorable and would make lunch preparation so easy! They even have a 3 week menu plan complete with shopping list that you can download.

I’m hoping that I will win one in the giveaway, but even if I don’t I think I will order them.

Healthier lunches for my kids can only be a good thing!

One of his front bottom teeth has been loose for quite a while. A few weeks ago I asked him if I could check to see if he had any loose teeth. Emma lost her first tooth right around this same time, so I thought I’d see if he was close. Sure enough, one of his bottom front teeth was a little bit loose.

We ordered him a pirate tooth pillow so that we would be prepared.

Today was the day. When he came home from school it was literally hanging by a thread. He couldn’t keep his hands–or his tongue–off of it. During karate he came running out and he had it in his hand.

He is really excited for his first visit from the tooth fairy!

This year, at three, she was old enough to do the Deer Valley ski program. All of my kids have learned to ski in that program. But Nora has been the first one who resisted going. Every week she cried when I dropped her off. All week long she would talk about her instructor “Connie” and tell me how much she loved her.

“Mom, did you know Connie is from Argentina?”

“I love ‘the magic’ Connie!”

“Mom, Connie is a princess.”

But as soon as we got to the door to drop her off, she would take one look at Connie and burst into tears. Every week I would reassure her and then just leave her crying. Each week when I picked her up they told me she was just fine as soon as I left. I saw her skiing on the magic carpet a few times. A few other times she was just sitting in the snow. I really didn’t think she was getting much out of the program, but I kept sending her every week.

Every Saturday Emma and Ian ski in a ski program all day at Park City Mountain Resort. This weekend Scott and I decided to take Nora up and ski with her for a little while. I was expecting it to be a ton of work and a lot of skiing with her between my legs. Boy was I wrong!

She was skiing like a champ on the first run. She could ski totally on her own and in control, make turns in both directions, and stop whenever she wanted to. I was SHOCKED and really glad I kept sending her to the Deer Valley ski school.

We had a great time skiing with her. Skiing as a family is looking like a real possibility now!

Check out this video:

The weekend after Emma’s birthday Scott and I headed to California for one of his childhood friend’s birthday parties. It was a so much fun to see a bunch of our old friends. The kids stayed home at my parent’s house. We just spent the whole weekend relaxing and spending time with friends.

Then last weekend we headed back to California–without kids again! This time they stayed with Scott’s mom. One of our dear friends turned 70, so we went out for the party. I got to do a little photo shoot for some of our friends, as well. I got some really cute photos! I can’t wait to get them all edited so I can share them. It was also Scott’s birthday, so we had a little surprise party for him. It was awesome to see old friends. People came to Scott’s party that we hadn’t seen in years!!! The only unfortunate part of the weekend was that we both came down with strep throat.

Besides traveling, we have just been busy with our usual family things. Ian has been playing hockey. He has had a few little scrimmages in the past few weeks. They are so cute! It is so fun so see them out skating around. They all look so tiny. Often there are more of them laying on the ice than there are playing the game. He also started a skating class last week. Emma is still taking ballet, and she loves it. She is also taking an after school art class. She can never get enough art! All three kids have been busy with ski lessons. I, however, am happy to see the ski season winding down. I love that the kids are learning to ski, and loving it, but it makes for a lot of running around for me.

This time of year everyone starts looking forward to spring, and I am no exception. I have been enjoying skate skiing, but I am ready to start biking. Scott and I signed up to do the Cycle Salt Lake Century in May. So now I have extra motivation to start getting back in shape. Last year I wasn’t quite ready and it was a tough ride. I don’t want to repeat that again!

That is about it for now! I’ll try not to wait so long before I blog again. I have been better about keeping up my photography blog. If you haven’t checked it out you might want to pay me a visit over there: http://kerrysundahlphotography.com/blog/

Emma turned 8 this week! Where did those 8 years go? I can remember the day she was born like it was yesterday. That moment I first laid eyes on her is etched in my mind like a snapshot. I can still picture that little scrunched up face and swollen eyes.

Emma had a week long birthday celebration. First she had her birthday celebration at school. The we had a family party at the bowling alley. Our “little” party turned into about 20 people. We had a fun time bowling, eating pizza, and just hanging out. The party that Emma couldn’t wait for was her Build-a-Bear party with her school friends. She invited a few of her closest friends and they all went and picked our a bear and had a little celebration. It really turned out to be fun! Then she got to go out with Grandma Dava and Grandpa Russ for her special “grandparents birthday dinner”. She was thrilled to be the center of attention all week long.

This last year Emma has really started to look so much more grown up. She has gotten so much taller. She has lost all of her baby teeth in the front and her 2 front teeth are almost all grown in. It has changed her little face and made her look so much older. I really need to do a photo shoot with her soon to capture her cute little smile right now!

Emma’s interests have stayed pretty consistent over the past year. She still loves art–I think she always will. Most mornings she still gets up and heads straight to her art table to work on a new project. She is in second grade this year and she loves her teacher, Ms. Hendrickson. She is a fantastic reader. I am always amazed when I hear her read out loud. She truly reads better than most adults. She reads with such emotion. The best part is that she really enjoys it. She has turned into a really good skier this year, too. She is in the Learn to Race program at Park City Mountain Resort. I have been amazed at how good of a racer she is. She isn’t afraid to go fast. She says she wants to win a platinum medal by the end of the year! She still loves to dance. She danced in her dance school’s production of the Nutcracker this year. She is hoping to do it again next year.

I am so proud of the sweet person that Emma is growing up to be. She constantly amazes me and I am so lucky to have her in my life.

Happy 8th birthday, Emma!