I love my roots and branches

When Sydney first wakes up in the morning it is either, " I am hungry. I want breakfast." or "What are we going to do today?" And that is her coming to rouse me out of bed because, I am sorry, 6:30 is too early to wake up on ones own accord. Anyway, one of her ideas was that we needed to have a Fancy Nancy night out. I think it took about two weeks of hourly recommending, starting at 6:30 am, before we were actually able to pencil it in. So we put on our fancy clothes with as many accessories as manageable and went to Burger King to eat. Sydney was thrilled, but her night didn't end there. She and dad went to a children's production of Beauty and the Beast. She is now is determined to be Belle for Halloween. And when LeFue (sp?), a boy in our ward participating in the production, was at church on Sunday she couldn't get over why Gaston was not there too. It was really hard to keep her quiet as he was passing the sacrament. "But where is Gaston. Mom there is his friend. Look, look, look! Where is the beast?..." Eleanor is always game to dress up and play along. Lucky for Sydney. Unlucky for me when they are older. Ivan is six months and counting ( more like 7.5 now), but because I am a terrible mother and he is the third child this is the closest solo picture that I have of him at that milestone. This was taken Memorial weekend, almost two weeks after being six months. His stats as of June comparing them to Eleanor's two year measurements taken the same day are: Ivan (I) Eleanor (E) (I)weight 18 lbs 50% (E)25 lbs 25% (I)height 29 in 97% (E)34.5 in 50% (I)head circumference 45 cm 75%(E) 48 cm 50% Zach was saying that in about four months their measurements are going to be the same and we'll be asked if they're twins. He's so cute and crawling now too. On our way to Utah for Memorial weekend we took a scenic detour of Lehman caves. It was fun and while I worried how the kids would do in a dank dark cave, they championed through a sixty minute tour. We didn't want to press our luck with the ninety minute one. We did drill them that the number one rule is NO Touching. As you can see we went ahead and strapped Eleanor onto Zach to limit her mobility and ability as there is No Touching of the rock formations. Sydney was pretty upset when she was looking at an article in a magazine featuring Mammoths Caves and kids were climbing all over the place because she knew what the number one rule was (Mammoth caves is not hailed for its rock formations, so it is okay to touch.)

Her favorite formation was, and you could probably ask her and without prompting and she'll answer, the popcorn. You can see the excitement on her face. I just love this picture.

We continued our journey on to Antimony, UT! Where the heck is that? ( I have a shirt asking that same question.) Antimony is in central UT about an hour north of Bryce Canyon and an hour east of Beaver. It is where my grandmother was born and raised and her father played many roles in community such as outside wireman, school bus driver, sheriff and other things that my dad is probably sad that I am not listing, but I just can't remember. Anyway, it is basically the meeting grounds for a Ricketts family reunion and it has been two years since I have been.

This is part of the school ground, which was a one room grade school when my grandmother went and she had to go to a larger neighboring town to go to high school. This particular playground set is newer by about ten years. My sisters and I are just hanging around.

The slide has been there as long as I can remember and it is dangerously tall and metallic. I was behind Eleanor every step of the way. It would not be a trip to Antimony if we did not play at the park. From top to bottom: Aunt Linda, Amy, me, cousin Elizabeth, cousin Sarah, Kristen, cousin Kaitlyn and Paige. The merry-go-round has also been there as long as I can remember. Eleanor loved it even though she looked sick after she got done spinning yet kept coming back for more. Sydney would not cooperate for this photo shoot. The boys needed a photo op too. By looking at the beat red strain on their faces, you can compare and tell the agony of this pose was worse with them then the more agile group of girls given the same circumstances. In this picture, from left to right: Dad, Travis, Stirling, Derek and Zach. One year we did a distance swinging jump competition and Paige was maybe five. She did a belly flop into the sand from quite a hefty height. It was hilarious. I can't remember if we stopped laughing to console the poor child after such a death defying feat. She eventually got over it.

And here is the traditional tractor picture that is a MUST for every year that we visit. I don't even know how long it has been around. I am sure it worked at one point, though all I have ever known it as a picture prop and something to play on when younger. Oh and the cows are the next door neighbors and they are worse then roosters in the morning with all of their mooing. The first year Zach came out a cow was actually giving birth. So you can only imagine the noise that inhibited any kind of sleep that night. My Grandma and my children's Great Grandma, if it isn't obvious, is the one standing to my left behind the big tire. Oh, I love my family.

Recently we were also able to celebrate in the much anticipated graduation of my father. He earned a BS in Environmental Studies. It has been great to see him achieve this long awaited accomplishment, especially knowing the hard work that must come with raising a family in the process. Congrats Dad.

Travis also received his High School diploma (and his eagle scout award) and we look forward to celebrating more accomplishments that come along the wayfrom him. Way to go Trav!