Because Rangers are cool

Just a quick fun story that I thought I would share from last weeks camping adventures . . .

We had spent the morning with Annie and her cousin, Sean, doing the duties that are required to become a "junior ranger." This meant doing a few worksheets out of a junior ranger workbook, picking up some garbage and reflecting on the beauty of the Grand Canyon (serious - it was in the book!). They had just sat in on a junior ranger program (about California Condors and their wont to hang around the Grand Canyon ice cream shop) and in so doing had finished the requirements to be a junior ranger. Now all we needed was to find a real ranger and have them "swear in" the new rangers and have them sign off on their certificate and give them their official junior ranger badges.

The South rim of the Grand Canyon has very little parking, so they have devised a bus system that can take you to different parts of the rim. We were standing at one of the bus stops (waiting for an empty bus to arrive) when a cute little ranger girl came up to the bus stop. We chatted for a minute and then she told us that she could swear in our little rangers at the bus stop. She even had the badges in her pack to give. She swore them in, gave them their badges, signed their certificates and we had to make one less stop to find a Ranger. I was sore impressed, and then I noticed that her name tag said "Anastasia." For those of you who don't know, our little Annie's name is actually Anastasia Elizabeth. Yes - we gave her a spelling test for a name. We just loved the name - thought it was so feminine and beautiful.

So when we told Ranger Anastasia that she was swearing in a red-headed Anastasia, she got really excited. She said she doesn't meet too many Anastasias. We then told her what her middle name was - and guess what? Ranger Anastasia's middle name is Elizabeth, too! We're not the only crazy parents!! We took pictures with the Anastasias - and of course I can't access them yet. You'll just have to mentally picture a cute-as-a-button Ranger Anastasia (seriously, she couldn't have been more than 24 - and she said she taught kindergarten in a one-room schoolhouse. Seriously cute) and the cutest and dirtiest little junior ranger Annie.

So much fun!