Reflections

Clarence and I have been married for almost 13 years and we have never had a house. We have always lived in a modular home or rented, which is perfectly fine with me. I could have worked and had a house but it has always been more important to me to be home with my children. Because the markets have plummeted, Clarence has a higher paying job, and we now have four children in a 2 bedroom apartment, we recently made the decision to begin house hunting. We have been house hunting for about a month or so, and have found the house that we want. However, yesterday, about 60 percent of my husband's company was cut to part time hours for a while. This did not affect my husband, yet. The fear engulfs me at times, yet in quiet moments we still feel good about offering on this house. All of this hardship around me actually is causing me to feel extremely grateful for the blessings we do have. What is a house and things really? The real wealth that I have is a loving husband who takes care of me, 4 beautiful children, a wonderful extended family and many amazing friendships. I am also grateful for the experiences of life that are helping me to turn to the Savior and rely on Him more fully. I am excited about the opportunities coming our way.

I just have a spare minute or two, but I wanted to post a few pictures. Maybe in a day or two I will have some time to do a real post. Notice Oliver's cheeks. I just want to squish them daily. He's so fun!







Here is one of all the kids ready to go to church.

Update and pictures

Just a quick update on what is going on at the Olson house. We have been frantically trying to get ready for Christmas as I have put most of the shopping off to the last week. We finally got all our shopping done on Saturday. Who waits til the last Saturday before Christmas to go shopping? Apparently everyone where I live. The stores were packed. That's what I get for procrastinating. It seems that my life is spinning out of control and I am constantly pedaling to keep up. How have I allowed so many distractions to get in the way of my most important job, which is nurturing and teaching my family. It's time for me to inventory everything I'm doing in my life and drop about half of the things. I figured out that I spend about 6 hours per day (at least) taking care of the baby, yet I am still trying to do the same amount I did pre baby. It does not add up, and my housework and homeschooling is suffering. I can not let this happen. That is why I have been spending much less time at the computer. Okay, I'm done venting.

McKay was recently asked to share some of his knowledge of birds with a co-op group of homeschoolers who happenned to be studying birds. He did such a great job talking about birds in the area and showing some of his drawings and paintings. It was fun to see that he knew the answers to every question that was asked. The only pictures I got were at the very end of the presentation when all but a very few children were left. The others had lost interest and fled the scene. I think it was a little disheartening for McKay to see that not everyone shares his passion for birds. He was also there for an hour or more and they stayed through most of it. What a great learning opportunity for him.

Elena got to be Mary for our Primary's Nativity scene at our Ward party, and she was so excited to hold Oliver posing as the baby Jesus. What an exciting day for her. We also saw Santa at the party, and Elena and Alexia enjoyed it very much. I guess McKay is too old for such things.

Oliver had his two month check up last week. He has gained 4 1/2 lbs. and 4 inches in length! He is growing too fast. He's already wearing size 3-6 months. All of the newborn pants go to his shins. I guess my hopes of having a little baby for awhile are already being shattered. He smiles all the time now, and even chuckles on occasion. Especially for his Dad. He is such a good, sweet baby, but he doesn't tolerate any of the kids holding him for very long anymore, so I usually tote him around in the ring sling. What a joy it has been to have him. He is very loved.

I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season. I may not be posting again for a little while as I have put off many things that really need to get done, and I am determined to enjoy this little one while he is still little. Here are a few pictures of Oliver in the last few weeks.

Shakespeare Fun

For the past few months, we have been studying England in Culture Studies. If you haven't been following my blog, Culture Studies is something we do with 3 other homeschooling families. We study a country every month, and get together weekly to discuss and present things we have learned. We decided to take 3 months to cover England, because it's such a rich part of US History. We broke it up into Early England, Shakespeare, and Modern England. In October, we had a lot of fun learning about the medieval period of England. We read and discussed the book King Arthur and his Knights by Howard Pyle, which, by the way, is the best version I have read. We also played a revised version of Risk which my sister Sara made up, which was very fun and taught us more about the conquests of Europe in the dark ages. November was set aside for Shakespeare. We read "A Midsummer Nights Dream" and the kids did a very impromptu play which was a lot of fun. December, we will be reading A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. I can't wait to experience more of England. What fun it has been!

The cutest cast of "A Midsummer Nights Dream" ever.

Just Pictures

A Cute Little Lion

Halloween Fun

Yesterday morning, the kids had a Halloween Party at Liberty Academy, with lots of candy, games and fun. And then last night, they had fun trick or treating with their cousins from Lindon and Provo. We had yummy soup in bread bowls and salad before they left. What a fun day for the kids, but very tiring for mom, dad, and Oliver.

Two beautiful Medieval maids

Just back from trick or treating

Proof that all that candy really does make your teeth fall out