Happy Birthday Avery!

Our niece Avery turned 2 on Saturday and we all had fun at her party on Sunday afternoon! Maybe this link to their blog will put some friendly pressure on her parents to put up some pictures! =)

Happy Birthday Cute Niecie!

Thanks Mom!

My mom visited for a few days this past week and although it went too fast, it was a great time! She spent a couple days with J & J and then a couple days with us. Kaylin and T.J. loved getting to play with Gramma Darlene! Amy and I were busy packing so we appreciated all her help entertaining the kids... Plus, you can't stop her, you can only hope to contain her... she packed boxes for us too! We were so busy we didn't take pics. Mom - Maybe you can email me one of you and the kids?

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!

My first seminary classes

I registered yesterday for my first semester of classes at Talbot School of Theology. I decided to go with a light load in order to ease back into being a student. I'm registered to take:

TTBE 520 - Survey of Matthew-Revelation (3 units)
Tuesdays 1:30-4:10
A general overview of the New Testament books, including selected introductory and critical issues, relevant background, major themes and divisions, and crucial problems. Required of M.Div. and M.A. students. Taught by Dr. John Hutchison

TTPT 706 - Personal Foundations of Ministry (2 units)
Wednesdays 12:30-2:20
Focused on the importance of self-understanding for spiritual and emotional well-being as well as effective ministry to hurting people, an investigation of the impact of personal and family history on theological outlook, emotional congruence, relational attractions and moral decisions. Several personal assessments as well as one or more therapy sessions are an integral part of this course. Taught by Dr. Rex Johnson

NOTE: Dr. Johnson is the professor that we got to meet through our friends Brent & Lynelle. The same weekend that I visited Talbot just after summer, we had lunch with Dr. Johnson and his wife.

Less than 2 weeks...

My last day at Mission Springs will be Friday, January 19th. I will pick up our Uhaul truck after church on Sunday the 21st and we're planning to drive away in the early morning hours of Tuesday the 23rd. We will be moving in with Amy's sister DeeDee and her family for a brief transition time. That will allow me to continue looking for work and us to look for housing without the time pressure of needing to move in immediately.

Flea, Fly, Flo!

To sell or not to sell...
To move it or lose it...
To pack it or chuck it...

Those are the questions we have been considering the last few days. Today, we answered those questions by going to the Santa Cruz Flea Market. With the help our our friends (and my co-workers) Sharon and Terry, we took a LOT of our stuff to the flea dark and early this morning. We go up at 5:30 and Sharon came over to spend the morning with Kaylin. Terrry went with us to the flea to help us set up and survive the initial RUSH of interested customers.

Here's Amy & Terry in our space AFTER the initial busy rush...

When we drove away this morning, this Mission Springs truck was full to the top of the rack with our stuff and we filled up our minivan. When we came back home, we only had two boxes to take to Goodwill!

Between our garage sale a couple months ago, selling some items on craigslist.com recently, and today's flea market adventure, we trimmed our stuff and made over $900 that will help greatly with moving expenses, housing deposits, school fees, etc.

Both Amy and I can be pack rats at times, but we also have times of desiring to live more simply. In the past few months as we've sorted through areas of our house, we've realized how easy it is to accumulate STUFF that we really don't need or use. Someone else might be able to use it more... toward the end of our day we started giving away all that was left. While we need to be good stewards of the resources God has given us, we also don't need to rely on material things. We've been so blessed throughout our marriage to watch God provide for our needs again and again. This sale was just another way that He's giving us what we need during this transition time!

No Human Interaction...

A couple weeks ago while we were staying with Amy's parents, I was sent to the grocery story around the corner. Amy needed some more eggs for her annual Christmas eve deviled eggs. Anyway, the store had a self-checkout lane with no wait... so having never done so before, I tried it out. It was easy enough, especially since I only had 2 items. But I never interacted with a human and I paid the same price for less service. Hmmmm.....

Self checkout, a good thing or not so much?

Some Progress...

Just a few hours after hosting a small New Year's Eve party last night and then a New Year's Day brunch this morning, our house is in a state of disarray! However, it's that way because we did make some good progress on getting organized to move. Amy worked hard to trim down, sort and pack some of our stuff. I spent a good part of the day listing many items on Craig's List. So here's the proof that we're starting to get ready to move:

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/gms/256227832.html

Happy New Year from the soon-to-be Southern Cal Olsons!

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! =)

Christmas - Take 2!

Last night we celebrated Christmas with my parents, Jaron, Jenni and Avery. We went to J & J's house in San Jose for the afternoon and evening. We ate tasty finger foods, opened presents and enjoyed our time together. We gave my Dad a personalized license plate frame for his El Camino that reads "My Grandkids Call Me BIG PAPA." We also had the 2nd annual "Dollar Store Stocking Stuffer Exchange" with Jaron and Jenni. My stocking stuffers for Jaron featured a Tidy Bowl tablet. =) I'm very thankful for my parent's contribution to my Laptop Fund (I'm planning to get a laptop for my new adventures as a student).

The picture shows Kaylin sitting with Grams and displaying one of her presents. She was very excited about them but when asked to hold them up, she put on her serious face

Warriors 110, Celtics 100

My Dad got NBA tickets from mom for Christmas... so Jaron and I got to go with Dad to last night's Golden State Warriors game! This blogger forgot to take any pictures... but we had a good time and Dad's team won. Here's a recap of the game.

Christmas Pics!

The Olsons - Christmas '06

Princess Cousins - Clara & Kaylin both got Disney princess "dress-up" clothes for Christmas... here they are modeling matching outfits.

T.J.'s already 8 months old!

Happy 8-month birthday today to our little man,
Trevor John Olson!

T.J. getting a love squeeze from Big Sis on Christmas Day

Merry Christmas!

For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
- Isaiah 9:6 -

Christmas Eve - "Revolution" Style

Amy and I enjoyed and were blessed by an excellent Christmas Eve service this morning at Revolution Church. Our friends Brent & Lynelle and their kids attend Revolution. Also, some of you might remember that Amy and I had lunch with a Talbot professor and his wife a couple of months ago. Brent & Lynelle introduced us to Dr. & Mrs. Johnson, who also go to church at Revolution.

Anyway, today's service and message were a good reminder to all of us that Christmas is a busy, busy time and we can be doing lots of great things, hanging out with lots of great people, planning a great Christmas celebration... but if we forget Jesus, we're missing the point! Christmas is a celebration of Christ's birth. Revolution's production provided a humorous look at what the classic nativity scene would be like / look like if we forgot to put the baby in the manger at the center.

Worship of the shepherds, by Bronzino

We all know that Jesus is the "reason for the season" (sorry for the cheesy expression =) but let's make sure that, like the nativity scene, He is the centerpiece and focal point... not just an afterthough!

Merry Christmas!

Ho, Ho, Ho!

A few days ago, Amy took the kids to the mall. Last year, Kaylin saw Santa across the way and, not wanting to get any closer, yelled "No thank you Santa!" That was her very polite way of saying that she didn't want to meet, sit on lap, talk to, etc.

This year though, she was quite interested in seeing him, sitting on lap, etc. Although she looks a bit uncertain in the photo, she talked with Santa about what she likes and what she wanted for Christmas.

Trevor seemed to be pretty interested in the man with the long beard too!

(Picture quality is poor because that's a digital picture I took of a printed photo)

Merry Christmas Eve everyone!

"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.

God Among Us...

Translations of John 1:14

• The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us (NIV)
• And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us (NKJV)
• And the Word became flesh and lived among us (NRSV)
• So the Word became human and made his home among us (NLT)

When we think of “The Word,” we might usually think of God’s written Word, the Bible. However, in this verse, we can understand that “The Word” refers to Jesus. Jesus is the living, incarnate Word of God... God in the flesh, God in human form. The Greek word often translated as "dwelling" or "dwelt," can also mean "to pitch a tent" or "to tablenacle."

At Christmas time we are celebrating the fact that God loves us so much that he came and "camped out" among us!

Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, "I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life." - John 8:12

To our friends and family... May God bless you as you celebrate the Light of the World coming to live among us!

Merry Christmas with love,

The Olsons (Derek, Amy, Kaylin and T.J.)

Things that make you go hmmm....

While we were out and about Scotts Valley tonight running errands, we noticed this sign on the door of the local movie theater...


We're sure glad we saw that sign... cuz now we know where to go for $4.50 sodas and $3.00 candy bars!

All the Time!

God is Good, All the Time!
All the Time, God is Good!

Seeking to follow the Lord's call, we have been making plans to move to Southern Cal and begin this new adventure. There are many details that make Amy and I a bit anxious (job, housing, moving, timing, etc.) but God's faithfulness to us in the past, has allowed us to trust Him for provision in the future. We had been excited to wait and see how God would surprise us, lead us and provide for us.

Now, we're excited to report that we've been blessed by the things God is already doing in regard to this crazy time of transition...

First, I learned that I was awarded a Dean's Grant based on financial need that will help pay for school during my first semester.

Then, we were informed that we will receive a generous (and unexpected) financial gift from our local church that will greatly help us with relocation costs!

We give glory, praise and thanks to the Lord... for He is Good!