GHFC Student Ministries Team

The GHFC Student Ministries team... Zoro, Duane and Derek. A talent you didn't know they had...

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Daddy-Daughter Disneyland Date!

California Adventure's "Golden Gate Bridge" behind us


My princess wasn't really sure about the Jungle Cruise. =) Apparently, neither was the woman in the background.


Amy saw this pic and called Kaylin "Princess Ragamuffin." I guess that's my fault though... when Daddy and daughter leave the house at 7:30 in the morning for a quick 3 hour Disney adventure... why would Daddy do the princess' hair all fancy?

Fans in Enemy Territory!

Giants @ Dodgers, July 29, 2008

Our church got 50 group tickets for this Dodger game and we got to go to dinner and the game with our friends, Matt & Mishawn. Matt & I are both San Francisco Giants fans and I think every true fan has to have this experience at least once:

• Go to a game where your team is the road team.
• Not only that but THE hated rival team.
• Wear your team's colors/gear anyway
  

Matt & I

Then, after the game... walk out of the stadium while drunken Dodger fans try their best (weak efforts) to insult you. It was a very interesting experience to say the least! =) Even though I would have preferred the Giants win the game, maybe it was better that they lost. Who knows what the Dodger fans would have been like if the Dodger had lost.

Amy & Mishawn enjoying the ga... I mean the chatting.

Done with Classes until August!

I finished my last summer class today! I really enjoyed my two summer classes... but boy was I ready to be done. I've been in class almost non-stop since last August... fall classes, January term class, spring classes and then summer classes... whew!

Last weekend, this was my favorite spot to study during the heat wave:

Chair submerged in pool, umbrella for shade, Coke within reach!

Hoopin'

Since they no longer had room for it, Amy's sister DeeDee and her family made a generous donation to our rec room...


Our family enjoys shooting hoops and it was a popular attraction during the last church gathering we hosted on a Sunday evening... thanks DeeDee and Steve!

While the Moms Are Away...

...the Dads and Kids Will Play!

Amy is away this weekend at a women's retreat. She and many other ladies from our church are enjoying Laguna Beach! She was ready for this get-away and I'm so glad that she gets this chance to connect with Jesus, with the other ladies and just plain gets some down time and time away from our kiddos.

Anyway... while the ladies are gone, some of us dads met at the park for dinner and fun on the playground. It was fun!

Zoe, Isaiah, Elsie and Kaylin (L-R)

Classic Boy!

TJ is all about trucks... especially firetrucks and trash trucks!

I'm not usually here during the morning when the trash truck comes, but I was this morning. Amy has told me about the routine before, but now I got to see it firsthand. As soon as Trevor hears it coming down the street, he starts yelling "Tra Tru." So we hustle out there so that he can watch the truck pick up our trash. The picture above shows them waving... this morning they got a friendly wave back. Good times!

Starbucks & Lights, A Christmas Tradition!

Now a bona fide family tradition, we went on our annual Christmas time drive that includes picking up a beverage treat from Starbucks and driving around to check out the beautiful Christmas lights. Here's last year's blog entry. This year my mom was here to join us!

GHFC Staff & Elders

The GHFC Staff & Elder Christmas Party!
With all the staff, elders and spouses, it was a big group and a great evening of fun and food!

Olson Elves

Click Here!

Elf fun... starring the Olson family!

Olson Family Travel Services!

Who needs Expedia, Travelocity or Orbitz?
You can make your travel arrangements through Olson Family Travel Services!

We'll post more details on this soon! Plus, we might email you more information... but until then, here's the quick version:

Do you ever use the internet for...

• buying airline tickets?
• booking a cruise?
• renting a car?
• reserving a hotel room?
• planning your vacation?
• ordering flowers?
• getting concert/sporting event tickets?

We thought so! Please check out www.olsonfamilytravel.com ...and be sure to bookmark it for future reference!

Using our state-of-the-art website and travel search engine, you'll have access to the sames flights, the same hotel rooms, the same cabins on the cruise ships, etc. Plus, most likely our prices will be the same as or cheaper than other online travel sites. If you find that to be true, who would you rather have benefit from your purchase... those huge companies or... the Olson family! =)

So there you go... an easy way for you to support our seminary and ministry endeavors! You're gonna make those travel plans somehow and you're gonna spend the money somewhere. Why not go through Olson Family Travel? And please, spread the word! If you have friends or family members that travel frequently, please send them to olsonfamilytravel.com

Or... if you're interested in owning your own online travel business, check out this website to learn more about YTB. You can be a travel industry "insider," getting better deals than ever on your own vacations. Plus, you can earn commissions when friends and family members book their travel through your site!

Downtown Disney!

Our friends Scott & Amanda and their kids were down in SoCal recently to go to Disneyland. We got to see them and our friends Gus & Cami (Scott & Gus are brothers)! These pictures were taken in Downtown Disney after we'd all just eaten together at the Rainforest Cafe.



It was great to catch up with Gus & Cami!



Hmmm... we're all in this one... so who took the picture? =)

Amy's Birthday Parties!

I'm really glad that Amy has had a few opportunities to celebrate her birthday in the past few days. First, she and some friends had a "Girls Night Out" this past Thursday in Santa Cruz. They had a nice dinner together and then enjoyed spending a night at the Coast Santa Cruz Hotel on the beach (we had a free voucher!). I'm told that the theme of the night, which was also a celebration for Amy's birthday, was "Thirty, Flirty and Thriving." For those of you keeping score at home, that's a line from the moving "13 Going On 30."


Jenni, Robyn, Amy, Kylene and Michelle (L-R)


Then, tonight we got together with most of Amy's family to celebrate five birthdays in one party! Here's a picture of Amy goofing around during the singing of the birthday song.


Also, on Sunday we got to have lunch at Chevy's with my parents. I couldn't pass up the opportunity to have them put a sombrero on Amy and sing to her!

Happy Birthday Amy! We love you very much!

Happy 30th Amy!

Today is Amy's 30th birthday! In the spirit of Amy's post a couple months back for my birthday, I'm going to unashamedly copy that idea! A list of 30 things for the 30 year old!

30 Things We Love About Amy...

1- She loves Jesus
2- She's my best friend
3- She's an amazing wife
4- She's an amazing mother
5- She's a great cook
6- She's ridiculously funny
7- Velocoraptor!
8- Rat face!
9- when she gets into bed she leaves all the covers completely askew, making me fix them before I get in bed
10- she teaches the kids about Jesus
11- she teaches the kids good manners
12- she's my partner in ministry
13- she supports me in my work and ministry
14- thanks to her the kids will have photo albums
15- she's a purse-sellin' entrepreneur!
16- she's a great hostess
17- she keeps our hectic family schedule organized
18- she keeps track of the finances
19- Mom My Ride
20- she encourages great family traditions like our own version of Dance, Dance, Revolution
21- she changes diapers! Trevor really appreciates it!
22- she's "Spice," aka "Spice E. Chicken," aka "the Duchess of Frontier Ranch"
23- she's extremely thoughtful
24- she's always the balance I need in my life
25- she prays for me and the kids
26- her "Disney eyes" are quite striking
27- she makes me laugh
28- she's very caring and considerate
29- she's beautiful on the outside and...
30- on the inside

If you get a chance, take a minute to encourage Amy by posting a comment here or sending her an email! I know she'll enjoy and appreciate that! Thanks!

The Reception Celebration!

Kaylin & Molly became instant best friends during the few days we got to spend with our dear Kansas friends, the Moore's.


Wow... that's a pretty... uh... excited face... I guess.


During the "money dance," Kaylin got to dance with Uncle Chops and...


T.J. danced with Auntie Kirsten!


A Stockton Reunion! Here I am with the newly married couple and some friends of ours from our college days. These amazing people were part of our Campus Crusade for Christ college ministry at Pacific.

Fun with cousins!

Amy, Lisa and DeeDee took the kids to the LA Zoo


Who's that short, blonde gorilla?


Fierce lion or overgrown kitty?

Jenna, Garrett, Danny, Dylan, Josh, T.J., Kaylin (L-R)

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Happy St. Patrick's Day everybody... and special thanks to Grams and Papa for sending the green shirt!

Decades of Dance Moves!

I was eating lunch at home, no one else was home... so I was surfing YouTube and saw this. I think it's a classic dance routine that shows the evolution of dancing. Amy wasn't sure it was blog worthy. Give it a chance and then let us know what you thought by posting a comment!

2007!

Happy New Year to all our family and friends!

Our evening started with Jaron, Jenni and Avery coming over to have dinner with us. Then, later Chris and Kirsten came to hang out. The kids entertained us all until they went to bed, we snacked, we chatted, we ate, play games, snacked some more, toasted at midnight, smooched our spouse (or soon to be spouse), played more games and then called it a night just after 1:00 am. Pretty good for a group that included parents of small children! =)

"You're Tall!"

Several months after summer, I finally got some videos of me speaking at camp put online. Below is a brief preview called "You're Tall!" For more full-length videos, go to Derek's Teaching/Speaking Videos.