Tuesday, November 25, 2008

high school advice for my kids


So I'm in the midst of planning my 20th reunion from high school, and I must admit I'm enjoying it even more than I thought I would. It certainly causes me stress, but the connections I've made with old friends, and even finding some new ones has been a blast! It's got me thinking about my own kids. They seem so far away from high school at the moment, but while I'm in the midst of walking down memory lane I thought I'd share some advice about high school with them. So here goes...

To my girls...

Be a loyal friend! Make tons of friends in high school, but above all else, be loyal to them. That way you will never regret the way in which you treated those precious friendships.

Find a couple of girlfriends that you know you can trust and KEEP THEM. Who knows, when you are nearing 40 you may have a few friends that have been there during the best & worst times of your life. They will know everything about you, and love you in spite of it all.

DON'T BE CATTY or MEAN!!!! For some reason, this is something that many girls, and sadly women, are like. You can't change this about others. Sometimes you will have to walk away from friendships for this very reason, but do not participate in it yourselves!

Don't be afraid to love. Yes, your heart will get broken, but it WILL heal, so let go of the fear and just love. The lessons you learn by loving in high school will help you to love more completely in marriage. Might sound silly now, but alas, it's very true.

Love does not equal physical intimacy. That means ANY physical intimacy. They are not the same thing. At some point, someone may try to make you think that they are. THEY AREN'T.

And while we're on the subject, physical intimacy in high school (and quite frankly before marriage) has limits. Very specific limits. Don't forget to tell the boys you date exactly what these limits are. This doesn't mean I don't want you to ever kiss a boy or hold his hand, just do not go beyond that. Period. And honestly, if you are going to kiss them, make sure you are both standing up. It's much more difficult to go beyond that while you are both standing up. :)

Take the time to find out who you are, what you believe, and what type of person you want to become. Learning more about yourself during high school will help you to make good choices today, rather than bad choices you'll regret later.

No matter how hard you try, there will always be choices you regret. Learn to forgive yourself and move on.

Get involved. In clubs, sports, student government, choir, WHATEVER interests you. Just get involved.

Do not, under any circumstances, drink alcohol or take any drugs of any kind. Sometimes it takes just once. I know from heart wrenching experience that drug & alcohol addiction can happen to "all american kids". Drug addiction destroys lives. It destroys families. It breaks hearts. It kills.

Work hard and play hard. Keep a balance between work and play, otherwise you'll graduate and think to yourself, "I wish I hadn't missed out on so much!".

Tell your mom what you're feeling and what you're up to, because I KNOW she'll want to hear about it.

To my little guy...

Ditto to everything I said to the girls, plus a few extras.

Open doors for your dates. Every. Time.

Be Strong. Not just physically, but spiritually, emotionally & socially.

ALWAYS, ALWAYS Stand up for yourself and others. Be a protector of what is right. It just takes one person to treat themselves and others this way for the rest to follow.

AVOID PORNOGRAPHY as if it were the plague!!!! It is. It will affect your life FOREVER if you don't. Sadly, this is not an exaggeration.

To all three of you...Your mom and dad do love you. They want you to be happy. They want to be involved in your lives. Please let them.

Saturday, November 22, 2008

Happy Birthday Mike!

Call me weird, but I love this photo. This is how Mike and I end up every night after we put the kids to bed. Side by side on the couch, watching tv, holding hands & playing footsie. Life is good!


Mike and I on one of our annual family trips to the pumpkin patch. Yes, he is texting. One of the good/bad things about owning your own business and using your blackberry as your office, it goes with you where ever you go. :)


Enjoying each other at a family party at Aunt June's house.

Snuggling with daddy before they're off to bed!

Caleb working on his swing with help from dad.


Happy Birthday to my sweet husband! He turns 37 today, so he is finally the same age as me for a couple of months before he can accuse me of robbing the cradle again. I love this man! He and I met while serving missions for our church in New England. He was one of the missionaries who took me to the airport to fly home when I was finished, and I knew then at the very least I wanted to marry someone exactly like him. I mean, how often do you find someone who is incredibly hard working and yearns for adventure at the same time? Not very often. I had dated enough in college to know, that's for sure. So why do I love him? First off, he loves that I'm crazy. How lucky am I? Second, he isn't perfect, and he sure as hell doesn't pretend to be. (side note - I'm trying to curb my cussing habit, but it's been difficult. It's just two cuss words that I use, that can't be too bad can it?). Sometimes as little girls, we often dream about the handsome prince that is going to come and carry us off to live happily ever after. Instead, I was lucky enough to find someone who is handsome, but wants to enjoy the journey with me rather than carry me through it. Believe me, after nearly 15 years of being together, he is still the man I absolutely and completely adore. Happy Birthday Mike!

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Definitely NOT Politics as Usual

It is 5:47 am after a morning run and I have 45 minutes to spare. Instead of sleeping or even showering I am blogging instead. I'm beginning to think that I may have a blogging problem. Is there a support group out there that I should know about? But, I have SERIOUSLY wanted to write about everything going on in my brain and heart since the election, but my last post consumed me for a while. Thank you, by the way, to everyone who read it and commented. Writing it made me feel incredibly vulnerable, but it was something that I knew I needed to do for my own sanity.


So, what about the rest of the election? Honestly, I found it to be quite amazing! I think I ended up crying at least 3 times while listening to various speeches. Now that I think about it, that's pretty sad. I mean who cries over someone's political speech? I guess I do. Sometimes watching politics play out is like watching a good movie for me. Sometimes it's a comedy that is funny as heck, sometimes a horror show and I'm afraid to even watch, and like this one, sometimes it's a really good drama. First off, let me say that things didn't exactly turn out the way I was hoping. I voted for the other guy. BUT, I am a realist and it was quite obvious that my guy was going to get blown out for quite a while now. And, since Presidential elections only come around every 4 years, I watched nearly every minute of both conventions (thank heavens for tivo) and soaked in McCain's concession along with Obama's acceptance speeches. Here are a few of the things that I loved about this Presidential election.


The nomination of Sarah Palin for the Republican VP. Okay, now time for a little more honesty, I didn't think she was the best choice. I know, I know, I got all fired up on this very blog due to the way she was being treated by feminists. And believe me, I was fired up! That post had to do with FEMINISM, not with being the Vice President of the United States. In my gut I just don't think it was a wise choice. In all honesty, I was rooting for Lieberman (no, not Mitt, because as I said, I'm a realist when it comes to politics, and the religious bigotry issue is still a major issue). When I heard that she was going to get the Republican VP nod I kind-of cringed inside. I think she has serious potential in the Republican party, but was thrown into the thick of things a little to soon. Needless to say, I was very curious to hear her nomination acceptance speech. As I sat on my couch and watched as she was introduced at the National Republican Convention the tears started rolling down my cheeks. Maybe I've been a little crazy since childhood, but my childhood dream was to become President, before I realized that women in this country just don't "become president". Watching the first woman being added to a Republican national ticket was pretty darn awesome, whether I felt she was the best choice or not. As I listened to her, I thought to myself, "this woman is a spit-fire!", and sometimes there's nothing like watching a strong woman go out and kick some butt - no matter what side of the political isle she is on, or whether you would vote for her or not. She and Hillary Clinton made it possible for little girls all over our country to dream about becoming president without our sometimes idiotic system knocking the wind out of their sails.


It wasn't long before I was crying again - just the next night in fact during John McCain's speech. Listening to him describe his captivity while serving our country was gut wrenching to say the least. To hear him describe how upon receiving his freedom his life was no longer his own, but belonged to his beloved country was inspiring. Then he did something I will never forget. He passionately implored each of us to "Stand up and fight" with him for the that very country. Anyone who has watched John McCain speak knows that "passion" is usually the last word you could use to describe it. However, this night I saw something that is rarely seen in politics, raw and honest emotion. There was no doubting that he would do anything for his country.

I watched Barack Obama's speech at the Democratic National Convention hoping to be swept off my feet, but only ended up thinking to myself, "I wish I could believe you man". I'm a lower taxes, smaller government, stay out of my way and let me succeed type of gal. I'm also a big believer in "sharing the wealth" philosophy, but I want to determine who to share it with and how to share it. But despite our political differences, his acceptance speech the night of the election did not disappoint! It was a surreal feeling, watching the first African American being elected to our nation's highest office. The only thing I can really compare it to from my own life experience, is watching the Berlin Wall being torn down in 1989. Both were something as Americans we had always dreamed of, but didn't know whether or not we'd live to see happen. The humility and resolve in his voice and words that night are truly something I hope I can believe in. I hope that he has an amazingly successful first term as President of the United States. Why? Not because of his gender, political party, or the color of his skin, but because this is America - and I hope to always see her rise above any challenges that lie in her way. I hope that we are better off fours years from now than we are today. I hope that in four years I'll be running to the polls to vote for Barack Obama because of what he has done for our country. Only time will tell.


Friday, November 14, 2008

Why and What I Believe

I’ll be honest; I’ve always believed that one’s religion and faith is something to be ingrained into the heart and soul of the believer, not onto their sleeve for the masses to view. My religious faith is at the very center of who and what I am. I am certainly not perfect at practicing it, but that is what makes faith so amazing.

So why am I now writing about what I believe and why I believe it? It’s a long story but I will try desperately to sum it all up. In a nutshell, it’s the state of California’s vote on Proposition 8. The vigorous way in which my church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (or Mormons), sought to ensure that Proposition 8 passed has opened it up to vicious attacks on individuals, businesses, and the church in general. I have no problem with the peaceful protests. To be honest, they make me proud of the country that I live in and love. I certainly don’t agree with everyone in this world, why would I expect everyone to agree with me? In fact, I think that a civil discourse about our nations’ differences is healthy and necessary. However, when homes & churches are being severely vandalized, families are forced from their homes, and people become targets of violent attacks, then sitting quietly in my peaceful home is no longer an option.

Rather than fighting fire with fire, and hatred with anger, the only thing I can do as a Christian is explain what and why I believe. My intent is absolutely not to convert or convince the reader, but simply to explain WHY Mormons worked so diligently for the passage of Proposition 8. Then maybe, just maybe, the community we have so obviously offended will offer us the same “tolerance” they fought for these many years.

I am a practicing member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, often referred to as “Mormons”. Having been born and raised in Bountiful, Utah it would be easy to assume that this faith was pounded into my head from birth until I no longer had any choice but to believe. However, this couldn’t be farther from the truth. I grew up in a family that didn’t actively participate in any religious activities. I was taught that there was a God, and that I was His child, and quite frankly that was all that mattered at the time. I was baptized at the age of 8, but had absolutely no understanding as to what this meant.

At the age of 6, my parents divorced. For a young girl, my world as I had known it seemed to crumble around me. What on earth could I believe in if it wasn’t that my mom and dad would always love one another? If their love could die, was there anything out there that could possibly remain true forever? I obviously didn’t realize it at the time, but this began my quest for truth. My desire to find something that was constant, absolute, and never changing.

When I was a sophomore in high school, I became pretty serious about my “search for truth”. I had a lot of crazy friends at the time (wonderful, yet crazy) and I started to think, “Why am I trying so hard to be good, when all the while I just seem to be missing out on a lot of fun”. I decided to study religion, and if I didn’t find what I was looking for, then to hell with it all – I was going to join in on the craziness. What happened next was completely unexpected. I remember distinctly going up to my bedroom and locking my bedroom door so I could kneel by my bed and pray. Heaven forbid that someone actually find me praying! It certainly was not something I was used to or comfortable doing. After talking to a number of adults that I trusted, I had started reading the Book of Mormon. A book revered as scripture along with the Bible by those of the Mormon faith. I honestly wanted to plead with God to know if it really was what it claimed to be, “Another Testament of Jesus Christ”. I don’t know if I expected to get an answer or not, but in my heart of hearts I know I got one. This was the moment that my life changed; the first moment I knew what I was reading was true.

Since that day I have done my best to live in accordance with what I believe to be true. And what does this mean exactly? It means that I believe I am a daughter of God, that He knows me and loves me unconditionally, just as He does every human being who has ever lived on this earth regardless of their faith, gender, ethnicity, or any other characteristic that make each of us unique. I also believe that God reveals His will to His people through His prophets. These prophets include those from the Old Testament such as Adam, Abraham, and Moses. They also include what we consider to be “Latter-day” prophets who continue to live on the earth today. The man who I believe to be the Lord’s prophet on the earth today is Thomas S. Monson. He is also the President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Since I believe these men to be prophets of God, it is vitally important to my faith that I listen to what they say, and pray to know that it is right. Contrary to popular belief, we are not simply “brainwashed” into believing whatever our prophet says. We are strongly encouraged to always listen to his words, ponder them in our hearts, and then pray to know of their truthfulness.

In 1995, the prophet and President of our church introduced a statement to the entire membership that is now considered to be sacred truth. It is titled, “The Family: A Proclamation to the World”. It begins by stating, “We, the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, solemnly proclaim that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children. All human beings - male and female - are created in the image of God. Each is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents, and, as such, each has a divine nature and destiny." The entire document is a powerful affirmation of what God expects of His children regarding their family relationships while they are on this earth. Literally millions of Latter-day Saints read and re-read this statement and prayed to know if it truly was from God. As the membership of the Lord’s church, we accepted it as such.

Little did we know that in 13 short years our belief in this document would be severely tested. With the introduction of Proposition 8 to the ballot in California this year, it surely was. The leadership of our church asked members, especially those in California, to contribute their time, money and talents into making sure that Proposition 8 passed. Did they issue it as a requirement for continued membership in the church? Absolutely not. President Monson did tell us that one of his roles as a prophet of God was to act as a “watchman on a tower”, and that though we may not see the importance of the proposition passing at this time, the Lord certainly did. I have no doubt that hundreds of thousands of members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in California did exactly what we have always been asked to do. They considered the statement of the prophet, and prayed for direction from the Lord. It is certain that not every member of the church in California voted in favor of Proposition 8. For those who did, I am positive their decision was not based on bigotry and intolerance, but instead on a desire to follow their spiritual leader’s counsel.

With the membership of the Mormon Church making up only 2% of the population in California, and 52% of the entire Californian population voting in favor of Proposition 8, I continue to ask myself why is it that Mormons seem to have taken the brunt of the vicious attacks by recent protestors? The only conclusion I can come to is that for some reason, in this supposedly “progressive” and “tolerant” nation of ours, it is still socially acceptable to rage against the Mormon’s. After all, we are a peculiar people. We have traditions and beliefs that make us stand out even among other Christian faiths. However, we do have the courage and determination to stand firm against accusations that we are somehow prejudiced against homosexuals and others who choose to pursue an alternative lifestyle. How can we do this? Because we know what we believe and why we believe it. We are following the counsel of a man whom we believe to be a prophet of God, nothing more and nothing less. We believe that every single person on this earth, regardless of their beliefs, is a child of God. At the same time, we also believe marriage to be a sacred institution. To those who preach or espouse violence against us for adhering to our religious beliefs, I ask you to please consider if maybe, just maybe, we Mormons are simply doing what we consider to be tolerant and faithful at the same time.

Kristen Ricks

Monday, November 3, 2008

Man, I love this little guy!

Okay, so my son Caleb is a little too much like his mom when it comes to loving and needing sleep. This makes it very difficult to get him out of bed in the mornings for school. The school bus comes at 7:30 am, which means I wake the kids at 6:30 am. It usually takes Caleb at least 2 times of being "officially woken up" before he can actually function and get his clothes on. It's when I have to trudge up the stairs 3 or 4 times that I really begin to loose my patience.


This morning I sent Kassidy back up stairs for me to see if Caleb was out of bed and getting dressed yet, while I manned the Cinderella waffle maker. And surprise, surprise, he was still sleeping. So I started a new waffle and hustled upstairs to push and prod my seven year old stinker into waking up. I was NOT HAPPY when I entered his room, so I was prepared to use my "mean mommy" voice and demand that he GET OUT OF BED!!! But as I turned him over to give him a little talking to I noticed a tiny yellow paper airplane laying on the bed beside him. I picked it up, it was quite intricate as far as paper airplanes go, and noticed that he had written something on it. I quietly opened the airplane, praying that I would somehow know how to refold it when I was done, and read the words he had written. This is what it said:


To: Dad
Your the best. I love you dad.
And you are realy silly.
I love you dad. The end.
From: Caleb

He looked at me with his sleepy little eyes and said, "that's why I'm so tired mom, I stayed up late making that paper airplane". There was no "mean mommy" voice left in me. How could there be? He had stayed up late writing his daddy a note and making him a paper airplane. My heart literally melted on the spot, and I just had to hug him. Then I proceeded to help him get dressed in record time before I burnt the next Cinderella waffle. Man, I love this little guy!

Here he is gettin down at the Jazz game last Saturday night. You'll have to tilt your head to the side, as the mom videotaping still doesn't have much to speak of in the tech skills department.


Sunday, November 2, 2008

Apparently I've been tagged ...

5 things I was doing 10 years ago ...

1. I was living in Northern Virginia with my husband and 2 1/2 month old baby girl.
2. Wondering, "Will I ever get enough sleep again in my entire life?"
3. Wondering, "How come everyone makes this mommy thing look so easy, and I'm just not getting it?"
4. Wondering, "Will I ever feel normal again?"
5. Obviously doing a lot of wondering in my sleep deprived state. I must have been absent that day in school when some competent adult explained how INCREDIBLY HARD being a parent is. I mean, seriously, they wouldn't just send me off completely unprepared for this insane adventure they call parenthood would they?

5 things on today's "to do" list...

1. Get an extra hour of sleep! Man, I LOVE the end of Daylight Savings Time for this very reason. (DONE!)
2. Go to church, and try to gain some spiritual insight into my life without falling asleep or yelling at my kids. (DID MY BEST!)
3. Clean my laundryroom. I kind of threw everything in there for my Halloween Party the other night so my home would "appear" clean. Today I had to pay the piper for that one. (DONE!)
4. Watch "Journey to the Center of the Earth" with my family. (DONE! this was totally fun, and we ate tons of Halloween candy at the same time. Wahoo!)
5. Snuggle with Mike. (Still lookin' forward to this one!)

5 snacks I enjoy...

1. Really good icecream (Dreyers/Edy's happens to be my favorite)
2. Tortilla chips and homemade salsa. (I'm starting to drool just thinking about it)
3. Costco's chocolate cake (the round one with chocolate shavings on top). YUM!
4. 3 Musketeer's candybar. Also YUM!
5. My mother-in-laws homemade sweetrolls! DOUBLE YUM!

5 things I would do if I were a millionaire...

1. Hire a housekeeper to clean my house EVERY DAY and do my laundry for me EVERY WEEK!
2. Hire a chef to cook all of my and my families meals.
3. Buy a houseboat & ski boat and leave them at Lake Powell. Spend LOADS of time there!
4. TRAVEL!!!!! Everywhere and anywhere.
5. Share it with those I love.

5 places I have lived...

1. Utah (Go Beehive state)
2. New Hampshire (Live Free or Die! I love that slogan!)
3. Vermont (Nothing like Autumn in the Green Mountain State. Sigh...)
4. Virginia (They aren't kidding, Virginia truly is for lovers. wink wink.)
5. North Carolina (In my mind I'm goin' to Carolina - miss that place)

5 jobs that I have had...

1. Subway Sandwich builder (high school)
2. MTC Teacher/Supervisor (college)
3. 8th grade history teacher (intern for 1 year)
4. Political Fundraiser (fresh out of college and still an idealist)
5. The best one ever that only offers "on the job training" - Mommy!



Rules: Each player answers the question themselves. At the end of the post the player then tags 5 people and posts their names, Let the person that tagged you know when you've answered the questions on your blog.

Okay, so I don't know if I even have 5 people who read my blog. So if you are reading this, consider yourself tagged!

Saturday, November 1, 2008

Our Annual "Frank & Stein"

Kassidy, Kaitlyn & their cute neighborhood friends!!

My Mom & Kami as the Pink Ladies (I was one too, but someone had to take this cute picture)

Kassidy (a ghost from the 1800's), Caleb (Star Wars Clone Captain) & Kaitlyn (Dorthy)


Around our house we love to celebrate nearly everything, but we especially love to celebrate birthdays, the 4th of July, Christmas & Halloween. I think it has to do with the fact that these are my FAVORITE - and as the mom - I get to decide when & how to celebrate most of these things. I must say, this is one of the very cool benefits of being the mom :). So every year since moving to North Salt Lake we have held our own version of Halloween fun. It's called the "Frank & Stein" and it is always held the evening of Halloween. We buy yummy hotdogs from Costco & I wrap smaller hots dogs in Rhodes dinner rolls to create hotdog mummies, which happen to be very spooktaculer I might add! We also serve homemade rootbeer in frosted mugs (our makeshift "steins"). It's all very casual, and our friends come and celebrate with us before heading out to go trick-or-treating. Needless to say, it was once again a very, very
HAPPY HALLOWEEN!