The Ricks Family

Merry Christmas!

2013-12-19T12:24:00.001-08:00

No crying this year!

Happy Halloween!

2013-10-27T22:10:00.002-07:00

Updates

2013-10-27T22:07:00.003-07:00

Madi's first day of preschool.

Olivia's first day of preschool.

Olivia started playing soccer this year.

Olivia in our "second living room" playing her little piano during naptime.

Olivia reading to her little siblings.

Atticus having a good time jumping around.

Madi's 3rd Birthday - October 11, 2013

2013-10-27T21:56:00.007-07:00

Our cute little 3-year-old.

Madi wanted rice and beans with cornbread for her birthday dinner.

Getting ready to blow out her birthday candles.

Opening her birthday presents.

St. George Marathon - October 5, 2013

2013-10-27T21:48:00.001-07:00

Daniel and his brother, Adam, ran the marathon together.

Daniel getting into his ice bath after the race. Madi was very excited to help dump ice on her daddy in the tub.

Daniel with the Ricks boys.

Atticus's First Swim

2013-08-31T23:29:00.000-07:00

This afternoon, we took the girls swimming and decided to let Atticus try swimming for the first time. I got a picture of Daniel and Atticus in the water as well as a little movie afterwards when he was all dried off and snuggled in his carseat. Sorry for the sideways video. I don't take many videos on my phone.

I will try to post some random pictures from the last few months, but don't expect much. Having three kids is seriously crazy! :)

Atticus Daniel Ricks

2013-06-05T20:41:00.001-07:00

June 5, 2013, 9:21 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time
7 lbs., 0 oz., 20 inches long
Hoag Memorial Hospital, Newport Beach, CA

Tide Pools

2012-07-25T21:55:00.000-07:00

My friend, Anjanette, and I took our kids to Laguna Beach to play in the tide pools. My girls and I had never done that before so it was fun to discover a new world of beach play.

The girls were fascinated by some small crabs they discovered. At first they were nervous to put their feet in the same water as the crabs, but that didn't last long.

The kids loved climbing all over the rocks.

A big pile of seaweed caught the girls' interest. They would systematically rip a piece off, walk over to a wall of rocks, and throw it over. Madi was paying special attention to Olivia's routine. I think they might be sisters.

The gang.

We finished off the trip with some ice cream: Rocky Road and Cotton Candy. Yum!

Anders chilling in the stroller.

Poor Madi fell asleep on the way over to the ice cream shop. She ended up eating Jackson's cone in the car on the way home. She didn't even realize she'd missed anything.

Play Time

2012-07-23T23:25:00.001-07:00

With Madi getting a little older, the girls are enjoying playing together more and more. Who knew that a little fold-up table could be so entertaining?

The other day, I walked around the corner to see the two girls snuggled up in Olivia's bed. I quietly grabbed the camera and got a few pictures.

Of course, once they noticed me taking pictures they got more silly.

This is Olivia's library. She checks out a book one at a time and takes it to her "reading room," a.k.a. bedroom, and then returns it and swaps for another.

Olivia didn't want to share her library space so Madi improvised her own version in mommy and daddy's room.

OC Fair

2012-07-23T23:14:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, Daniel and I took the girls to the Orange County Fair. We had a lot of fun!

The girls got to pet animals in a little petting zoo. Olivia thought the hairy cow was a lion and was SO excited that she got to pet a real live lion. Now that would be an awesome petting zoo.

Olivia rode on a few rides with Daniel and me while Madi waited patiently in the stroller. Madi was too short this year to do any rides so I let her pick out a treat. She chose popcorn and was content holding the bag and eating without having to share with Olivia.

Olivia got her face painted like a kitty cat. Whenever she would bump or rub her face on something, she would ask me, "Am I still a kitty cat?"

We watched two cows get milked. I had never seen that before so it was really interesting to me, but I'm not sure the girls really understood what was going on.

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

2012-07-16T21:19:00.002-07:00

Lately Olivia and Madi are really into dressing up as princesses, performing on stage (i.e. the fireplace), and playing with their dolls: Gracie and Rocket. (Olivia picked Madi's doll's name. Pretty cool, huh?) Madi has discovered the dress-up shoes and she wears them about half the day.

I love the diaper/high heel combo. It's a good look for Madi.

"Princess Belle" out for a morning stroll.

Olivia teaching Madi the can-can.

Madi exploring the new world of high heels.

These girls make me laugh.

Beach Time with Uncle Donovan

2012-03-05T15:49:00.000-08:00

My brother, Donovan, flew in to Orange County for some work training. He arrived on Saturday morning so we could hang out for a few days before he had to work. We headed down to Newport Beach and let the girls enjoy running in the water. It was fun having him here!

Happy 3rd Birthday, Olivia!

2012-01-31T15:22:00.000-08:00

To celebrate Olivia's 3rd birthday, we decided to throw her a birthday party with some of her friends. We ate some food, played some games, and opened presents. Olivia loved all the attention and is already looking forward to her next birthday party.

Olivia and her little buddies.

Olivia's rainbow cake that took way to long to make. It's pretty cool, right?

Olivia and Madi checking out Olivia's new doll crib from Daniel and me.

Three year olds definitely know how to party. :)

Olivia's reaction to the celebration. I think she approved.

Happy 3rd birthday, Olivia! We sure love you!

Happy First Birthday, Madi!

2011-10-21T21:25:00.001-07:00

Madison is one year old! I can't believe it has already been one year since she was born.

To celebrate, we invited a few friends over for cake and ice cream. Madi got her own little cake to demolish. She wasn't as aggressive as I was hoping, but she's a girl. What can I expect?

As soon as Madi woke up, we had her open her birthday presents.

Loving the new outfit from my mom.

Madi loved ripping the wrapping paper. She got so into, she poked Daniel right in the eye. :)

Madison, we are so happy to have you in our family! Happy first birthday!

Law Firm Retreat

2011-10-04T14:04:00.000-07:00

Daniel's law firm had a firm retreat the same weekend as our anniversary. We have officially been married six years! Happy anniversary, Daniel! We flew Daniel's mom and dad down to our place to watch our girls so we could have a weekend away. And Daniel's little sister, Amanda, flew in to join the babysitting crew and have fun with the girls for a few days.

The retreat was at a resort in Palos Verdes, California on a cliff overlooking the ocean. It was a beautiful place!

The resort had a main hotel, some 1-bedroom bungalows closer to the water, and some huge villas which are basically houses. Because it was our anniversary, Daniel's law firm put us up in a bungalow. It was so generous of them and a great surprise!

Our bungalow

Pretty much the only picture documenting what we did during our stay--lots of relaxing. Our activities consisted of sleeping in, a couples massage, daily naps, endless food/drinks on Latham's tab, reading, watching the BYU game, and Daniel putting in a few hours of work.

One last picture before heading back to real life.

Daniel's parents and his sister, Amanda, did a great job entertaining and taking care of our girls while we were gone.

And the girls did a good job taking care of them too.

Madi's Reaction to the BYU-Utah Game

2011-09-17T21:11:00.000-07:00

Labor Day Fun

2011-09-08T14:09:00.000-07:00

For Labor Day, Daniel and I decided to take the girls to Disneyland. After a year of living in Orange County, we figured it was about time. We bought a year-long pass. So Labor Day was our chance to give the girls a little taste of what Disneyland is all about. I was so excited about going to Disneyland (for my girls' sakes, of course) I had a hard time falling asleep. Madi woke me up at 4:00 in the morning to eat and I had such crazy butterflies I didn't even try to lay back down. We had a great time and could hardly get the girls to look at the camera for pictures.

After nap time, we took the girls to the beach.

A Snapshot of Our Summer

2011-08-27T15:55:00.000-07:00

We spent the first ten days of July visiting family in Utah. I took our camera, but did a terrible job of using it. Daniel and I ran in the 4th of July 5k with his family. After our race, Olivia and Belle ran together in the kids' quarter-mile race. Olivia finished dead last, but had no concept of competing against others. She was loving all the cheering people and reminding her cousin to run fast. That weekend, we also went to Lagoon with my family. My parents got camping spots in the campground right next to Lagoon so we could set up our tents and trailers within feet of the park entrance. It was so nice being able to lay my girls down for their naps and not have to fight them in strollers all day. This was Olivia's first experience with an amusement park and she did AWESOME! Her favorite rides were the lady bug drop that "tickled her tummy," the roller coaster (where she put her hands up in the air, despite my dad insisting she hold on), and the ferris wheel. I have never heard Olivia scream with such delight. I was so proud of her for being brave and enjoying some pretty crazy rides.

Olivia riding in first class on our first trip to Utah

Hanging out with Heather and her kids, Belle and Platte

On July 13th, my Grandma Beardall passed away. A week earlier she had fallen and broken her back and the doctors didn't know how long she would be alive. I was able to go to the hospital and tell her goodbye. Less than a week after returning home to California, Daniel and I loaded up our car for a quick drive back to Utah for the funeral. My grandma is one of my favorite people ever. She had such a great attitude about life and was always looking for ways to serve others. She had been a widow for 27 years, which made it easier to say goodbye, knowing she would be reunited with my grandpa. I am so grateful I was able to know my grandma and I will miss her.

My Grandma Beardall at Olivia's baby blessing, March 2009

A fun thing I got to do later in the month was leave the girls with Daniel overnight while I played with some of my girlfriends in Santa Monica. We ate at Javier's, a great Mexican restaurant in Newport Beach, before driving up to our hotel in Santa Monica. The next day started at 9:30 in the morning - it was heaven to sleep in. We ate brunch at the Rose Cafe in Los Angeles, went to the Getty Museum, and shopped for hours at the Promenade in Santa Monica. We didn't get home until about 11:00 that night. It was so nice being kid free!

One of our favorite things to do with the girls is go to the beach.

Madi is Eight Months!

2011-06-21T21:47:00.000-07:00

It has been eight months since Madison joined our family. The thing that stands out most about Madi is her happy personality. She is ALWAYS smiling and it is so easy to make her laugh. Even though Madi thinks her mom and dad are hilarious, Olivia gets the best results with the smallest amount of effort.

After scooting around our place for weeks, she has finally learned how to crawl. Her new challenge she is working on mastering is pulling herself up on everything. Many times it's not the getting up part she struggles with, but the going down without toppling over.

The older Madi gets, the more fun the two girls have together. Already Madi loves to copy everything Olivia does. She loves playing at the park, especially on the swings. She also loves going down the slide on Olivia's lap.

Madi has picked up her older sister's ability to make a lot of noise. She has successfully learned how to scream - a lot. She loves to make noise. Sometimes she is so noisy we call her our Madisaurus. With Olivia around she fits right in. We are so lucky to have these two cute girls!

Scoutmaster Minute: May 25, 2011

2011-06-20T08:39:00.000-07:00

I shared this video with my scouts last month. The point of my message was that you never know who's watching you. Fortunately, she comes home from scouts every week saying stuff like this rather than a mouthful of profanity (which is what you'd expect from spending time with a typical group of 12- and 13-year-old boys).

It's amazing how much Olivia is paying attention to what we say. On Saturday, I was playing a game with her. I asked her why she gave me the blue boat and not the green boat, and she said, "Cause you've been a good girl, daddy." Later in the game when I drew an unlucky card, I pretended to be upset and I started to cry. Olivia told me, "It's OK daddy. Just take a deep breath." A few days ago at dinner, Olivia asked for some more food. When Andrea gave it to her, Olivia said, "I appreciate that, mommy." What a funny little girl.

Happy Father's Day!

2011-06-19T20:56:00.000-07:00

Happy Spring!

2011-04-17T17:04:00.000-07:00

Joshua Tree

2011-04-09T19:44:00.000-07:00

This weekend we went with a group of friends to a rental home in Joshua Tree. Olivia was the oldest of the six kids that were there.

We had a great time relaxing and getting to know our friends better.

Olivia discovered a flashlight and held onto it until the second we got her into the car to go home. She even took it to bed with her and flipped it on twice in the middle of the night while we were sleeping.

The trip also gave Olivia another opportunity to learn how to share. Can you tell how good she is at sharing? :)

Life These Days

2011-04-09T17:39:00.001-07:00

One of Olivia's favorite things to do these days is dress up. She loves high heels, purses, necklaces, her tutu, and pretending to put on makeup. What a girl!

One thing that can keep Olivia occupied for hours is play-doh. She loves having me mold the play-doh into animals and snowmen that she can manipulate and move all over the table. I love watching her imagination go crazy.

Madi has discovered her toes. She loves to suck on them and will try to get them in her mouth any chance she gets. It can make changing her diaper a little tricky.

Madi has officially started solids. She is terrible at keeping the food in her mouth, but she enjoys tasting it for the short time it is in there.

Are We Human?

2011-03-29T22:04:00.000-07:00

Olivia pays really good attention to songs. The other day, I heard Olivia repeat a phrase over and over. After a while, I figured out that Olivia was singing "Are We Human?" (from a song by the Killers that we often listen to in the car).

And a couple of weeks ago, a song came on Pandora and before the Snow Patrol singer had begun singing, Olivia sang out "Just Say Yes."

It is so cute when a song will come on and Olivia will dramatically say, "I Love This Song!"

Not surprisingly, Olivia also likes to sing. In fact, she sings all day every day. Here are a couple of our favorites: