The Rickards Family

Moving was an adventure... to say the least!

We took so long to decide if we were going to make such a big change, that by the time we decided to make the move, we had just a week before Jason would need to start work in Utah.

We had already made two short trips to Utah to look at towns we would want to live in and houses we would buy. After the first trip, we came back pretty discouraged and feeling like we should just stay in Clovis. Nothing felt quite right, but we didn't feel good about turning down the job either. So, we went back the next weekend. After putting 400 miles on our rental car in just one weekend (We flew to Salt Lake and drove every town between Salt Lake and Provo.), we felt really good about the "city" of Alpine. BUT after looking at every available house to buy or rent, still nothing felt right. We were hoping to choose a house and then go to the ward that we would be in to try to get a feel for what it was like, but we hadn't found a house and we were leaving that evening.

I wondered again if maybe we weren't in the right town. We got online again and started looking at other towns and quickly lost interest. We knew we felt good about Alpine. We looked again at the available houses. There was a really "fun" house (fun as in amazing! The kind of house that would be awesome to throw a huge party- with all the friends we don't have in Utah) that was available and in the budget. We wondered if maybe we were too quick to pass it by and if "maybe we would feel differently if we drove the neighborhood again".

We decided we needed to pray about the whole decision again. So we did and we both felt like we needed to do nothing. We didn't need to make any decisions right then. We felt so much peace. Anyone that knows me well, knows that is just plain crazy for me. I am not a girl who likes limbo. If there is a decision to make- especially life changing, I am not one to sit still until I have it figured out. We had been mulling over this decision for almost two weeks. We wrote pros and cons, life goals, financial goals, lifestyle wishes. We talked about each of the kids and how it would effect each of them and each of us. We had family meetings. We spent countless hours on the MLS and KSL and Google Maps. It was on our minds CONSTANTLY.

And now, we were just supposed to do nothing. Nothing at all.

And I was completely fine with that. I was totally at peace with no decision. I just lived. I didn't organize or try to think about what I wouldn't want to pack or move if we decided to move. I didn't make any trips to Goodwill. I didn't try to get together with friends that I thought I would miss. I just lived like normal. I took the kids to the water park and drove kids around to various friend's houses and activities. I did laundry, made dinner, did some back to school shopping and registered Ashlyn for Kindergarten.

A few days went by and we started feeling anxious to make a decision again. Jason got online and saw a new house for rent.

We had seen it for sale, but didn't really like it. We "drove" the house on google maps and had a really good feeling about it. I called my little sister, Janelle, who lives in Lehi and asked if she would mind going over to the house and videoing for us. The house looked better empty, but I still didn't love it. It felt peaceful though, so we sat the kids down and showed them the videos. I think we were secretly hoping they wouldn't like it, but they felt good about it too.

We had heard some bad things about Alpine like the people weren't very friendly and "keeping up with the Jones'", and the kids thought they were better than everyone else because a lot of them were privileged. It made me really nervous, but as we settled on our decision, I felt peace and knew it was where we were supposed to be. In the back of my mind I wondered if we were supposed to be there for blessings or trials, but either way, it was right for us and we were going.

We scheduled the movers as soon as they could come. The earliest they could be there to start packing was the first day Jason needed to be at work. He said he could push his start date back, but I thought it wouldn't be a big deal to send him while I stayed with the movers.

We made a trip out to the ranch to bring all of the toys back to the house to get packed up. I got all choked up as we were leaving. We have so many memories here!

Here is cute little Lauren when she was 5.

Ronna and Stephen hamming it up!

I was just looking through old pictures and found this post about the ranch
http://www.rickardsfamily.blogspot.com/2009/08/ranch.html

It's funny that Jason's words now ring in my head. "Someday when we look back and remember, these will be the good ole day." So true.

Okay, back to moving.

So, Jason left for Utah and the kids had their first day of school. Austin started High School (9th grade)and I had the complete, I can't believe I have a kid in High School moment. Jessica started her last year of Junior High (8th grade).

Lauren started the year off like she has every first day of school for as long as I can remember- with her hair curled. I tried to talk her out of it this year because I wasn't sure if I would have time, but she was sure to have a bad day if I couldn't put her hair in curlers! Lol! But, we found time and the first day of 5th grade was a success!

Ashlyn started her first day of Kindergarten with the same sweet teacher that Jessica and Lauren had, Mrs. Sullivan. Jason said it was probably good that he wasn't there because he would have cried. We took lots of pictures and video and even called him on our way.

And Paige started her first day of nothing, but here is a picture just because.

And I started my first day of three with the packers, not to be confused with the movers, who I nicknamed, Tweedle-dee, Tweedle-dumb, and Mr. Rules.

The picture doesn't do justice to just how large Tweedle-dee and Tweedle-dumb actually are. Huge boys, I'm sure they are men, but they were boys. Sweet as can be and dumb as rocks. I was amused as the days went on trying to figure out exactly what the rules were they were given. Mr. Rules, I'm certain, knows exactly what the rules are and I'm pretty sure one of the rules, is not telling me what the rules are. Mr. Rules was my favorite though. Skinny, tall and slightly more intelligent than the others. Here is a picture of Mr Rules unloading the small truck from our storage unit.

He often looked like a deer in head lights when Tweedle-dee or Tweedle-dumb broke one of the rules, like packing candles in a box- one of the many no-nos. He would remind one of the Tweedles that we weren't supposed to do that, but it was super funny to watch because they weren't quite smart enough to figure out what to do next. It was like that cartoon with the Do-do birds that kept saying "Whatchoo gunna do? I don't know. Whatchoo gunna do?" And then they would shrug and look at me hoping for an answer.

They were super quiet and polite. I decided one of the rules was that if they had any question, they had to walk into every room of the house until the found me and then address me by saying "excuse me ma'am" in a calm quiet voice, without any deviation. Ever. I think there were rules about what they were allowed to say because a few times, when I tried to make small talk with the strangers who were in my house all day touching all of my personal belongings, one of the Tweedles would look at Mr Rules like they were wondering if they were allowed to answer and sometimes give me a brief canned answer. Curious, I tried a few times, just trying to figure out the rule. I think it had something to do with not talking about their personal life, but job history was okay. I also noticed that they never commented on anything or spoke unless they had a question. And I'm pretty sure they had do anything that I asked. I asked them if I could take a picture of them. Tweedle-dumb is camera shy and looked away like "ahh man do I have to?" but of course, didn't speak. Mr Rules quickly reminded him, "She asked us..." Then they gathered for a picture that of course didn't come out. Entertaining and super busy trying to stay ahead of them going through things I didn't want to pack and trying to get as much laundry done as possible before they packed my washer and dryer.

After three days, my house looked like this. All Boxes.

Then the movers came and it was a whole new game! They look like a small gang, but really they are family who have worked together for years. They were LOUD and funny and high energy! They gave each other a hard time, worked hard, called me darling and sweetheart (which I'm sure was a major no no for the packers) and told me no less than 50 times that I have a lot of stuff! He also brought up a dozen times that he isn't driving his truck. His truck was in the shop and that was just a rental. His truck was much nicer. That was his trailer, but that is not his truck.

good to know

They spent 2 1/2 days just loading the truck. Mr Rules came back on the second moving day with another guy that wasn't around long enough for a nickname. They were given the job of getting everything from my storage unit and packing it into the truck. It was funny to see Mr Rules talk! It was like he was a whole different person! Clearly, he was following "moving rules" not "packing rules".

Frank and the gang made the process a lot less stressful, even when they were worried that it wasn't all going to fit in that enormous truck. They did end up strapping one of the box springs to the back because there wasn't enough room inside! Then, Frank drove away with just about everything I own. It was a really strange feeling! Frank would be meeting us in Utah the next week, but his sons were not coming. He would have a new crew to unload in Utah. The adventure begins!

A house is just a house. The people that live in the house and the memories that are created there make it a home. This is home.

It's funny, because for as long as I can remember, we have been looking for another house. We wanted a bigger yard and more space to spread out. (Below is our backyard.)

But as we got ready to move and really say goodbye, we realized just how much we loved our home. We have so many memories tied to the house. It's where we became a family.

We found the house together as we were dreaming of our future together. We bought it hoping we would be ready to be married by the time it was done being built.

We picked out all of the options, cabinets, floors, tile, etc.

We even added a few upgrades that weren't on the list, like extra lighting, a pool door for the pool we never put in, cable in the garage so Jason could watch TV while he worked on whatever, and my favorite not in the book option, our raised fireplace mantle.

We went over to the house almost daily to watch the progress. It was such a fun time.

Each piece of furniture has a memory tied to it. We often bought furniture with some event in mind or happened across a great deal while we were out shopping, etc.

As I look at these pictures, I see spaces where we sat with friends and other areas where my babies played.

I remember when we first moved in and didn't have very much furniture, we put the trampoline in the living room. The kids thought it was great! It was fun until I realized there were hand prints up higher than I could clean!

I remember Jason tracking down the baby gate that is at the top of the stairs when Ashlyn started to crawl. It was hard to find something that matched and that would be sturdy enough to keep our little one safe.

So many memories are made in the kitchen!

Some of my favorite memories are making cookies with the kids.

Our living room was the heart of our home. We spent most of our time here. When the house was built, we decided not to have the TV area built in because we weren't sure how big our TV was going to be. We love home projects and finally got around to "building in" our TV area last year.

I always loved that our living room was open to our kitchen. It was great for big gatherings.

Our guest room was once known as Ronna's room. We always loved to have her come visit. We decorated with her in mind and for months were on the look out for the perfect chair to put in there for her. Lauren moved into into the room for about a year and then we decided we didn't like having one of the kids downstairs so we moved her back upstairs.

The Laundry Room that never ever looked like this except for the day we moved in and long enough for me to take this picture to list our house for sale.

Ahhh. Paige's nursery. I love this room and all the memories tied to it. Here is the link to the post when we did it. http://rickardsfamily.blogspot.com/2011/02/nursery.html

This was Jessica and Ashlyn's room. I wish I had a wider lens so you could see the room better. More projects, more memories. http://rickardsfamily.blogspot.com/2012/04/project-loft-bed.html

Lauren's room when we moved her upstairs. We never quite got around to making it how she wanted. She had cute blue and yellow Roxy bedding that didn't match the purple walls. She agreed to go back to her old surfer girl theme until we could paint the room. It used to be Ashlyn's nursery. Sadly, I lost most of my pictures a few years ago and the only pictures I have are of the finished product in Ashlyn's baby book.