Matt & Elise's Wedding

This post is overdue... but better late than never I guess!

We'd like to congratulate Matt & Elise on their recent (March 8th) marriage! Amy and I have gotten to know Matt & Elise through church and it's been a joy for us to be part of their lives. Matt & Elise, we wish you all the best and we continue to pray that God will always be the center of your marriage!

Their wedding was also my first opportunity to participate in a wedding. OK, I guess I need to clarify that... I've participated in many weddings before. The BEST one was obviously my own wedding where I participated as the groom! =) I've also been a candlelighter, a groomsman, and a best man... those were also great weddings to be a part of. So to be more specific, this was the first wedding where I participated in a pastoral role. =)

The bride and her father are on the left and on the right are the groom, Pastor Ed Morsey, and myself

What a privilege to be a part of such a special day in their lives. Matt & Elise asked me to do the welcome and the opening prayer. It was an honor to assist in that way!

I suppose that pictures of someone praying are always going to look awkward! =)

Amy and I with the newlywed couple!
(sorry for the picture quality, only had my cell phone camera with us)

NorCal Trip - Part II

While we were at my parents' house, Earlene cut Amy's hair. The previous day, Jenni had also gotten her hair cut. Here they are in their new, short-hair looks!

After leaving Pittsburg, we drove to San Jose to visit my brother and his family. Our friends from Mission Springs, the Andersons, came over the hill to visit with us one evening... it was great to see them! When their 2-month old daughter Selah was born, Ocean became a big sister. So here are the members of the "Big Sister Club" at their first official meeting and wearing their official uniform.

Ocean, Kaylin and Avery - "The Big Sister Club"

Actually, Amy's latest sewing adventure was making these cute sun dresses! So after making
a couple different ones for Kaylin, she decided to make some matching ones for Kaylins friends!

Kaylins FIRST Movie Theater Experience!

While we were in Pittsburg visiting my parents, Amy and I got to take Kaylin to her first movie in the theater! Kaylin saw the beginning and the end... but fell asleep for the middle third of the movie! =) I guess Mommy and Daddy should have know that a 1:50 p.m. showing on a day when she'd been up early and playing hard might not work so well... Oh well! Kaylin still enjoyed the experience and, of course, it's just her first of many movies to come.

We saw Horton Hears A Who! Click here for the trailer

Here is Kaylin in her seat with her "Snack Pack" (Thanks Grams!)


Kaylin and Mommy ready for the movie to start!


Daddy and Kaylin in front of the theater

NorCal Trip - Part I

This week we are visiting family in NorCal. On Monday morning we left Cypress at 5:00 am and arrived at my parents' house in Pittsburg, CA at about Noon. We all enjoyed a nice visit with Grams and Papa! Thanks Mom & Dad for having us... we love you!

Our digital camera is having issues so we couldn't take any pics. However, Grams and Papa took the kids to the park and they took these pics...


TJ loves to hang any chance he gets


Miss Kaylin posing by a tree

Jesus is Risen!

Dear Family & Friends,

We hope that you are having a blessed Resurrection Sunday! Rejoice... Jesus is Risen!

The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: 'He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you." So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. "Greetings," he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. - Matthew 28:5-9

Here's a good article by Josh McDowell if you'd like to read about the 3 choices that Jesus gave us to explain his identity. Was Jesus a liar, a lunatic or Lord and God? It is our conviction that He is the Son of God who came to earth as a man in order to save us from our sins and give us access to God. Feel free to read the article and see what you think... Jesus: God or Just a Good Man?

Take care and God bless!

Love,
The Olsons

Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters!

Judging by the scoring, the kids were just along for the ride. However, it's also clear that Daddy whooped up on Mommy!

Mommy and yes, Kaylin is in there somewhere...

Daddy and Trevor

Lucky Girl!

I'm still catchin' up on blogging since I haven't done much lately...

Kaylin is one lucky kid, particularly lately. Not only has she been to Disneyland a couple times recently (because our family was given Disneyland passes), but her Grams came to visit and took her to Knotts Berry Farm for the day! =) Thanks Grams! Kaylin was talking about it for a couple weeks before going and now she's still telling me about what she did there.

Knotts has an area called "Camp Snoopy" so Kaylin got to hang out with the man, uh the dog, himself!


Kaylin & Grams on a rollercoaster!


Looks like she enjoyed the ride!

Valentine Dinner @ Blue Bayou

As a belated Valentine's Day celebration, we went to Disneyland last night and had a very nice dinner at the Blue Bayou Restaurant. Blue Bayou overlooks the "swamp" at the beginning of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride... the atmosphere was great! Note: You can see a boat full of riders behind us below.

This was also our first time we used our Disney passes for just the two of us to go and have a date. We had a great time going on various rides after dinner, including our first time ever on the huge rollercoaster at California Adventure called "California Screamin'." We both loved the rollercoaster... but Amy wasn't doing so well afterward... she was white as a ghost and felt nauseous. However, the most important thing was that her icky feelings wore off just in time for us to share a dessert treat before heading home. It would take a lot more than a rollercoaster to force Amy to miss dessert! =)

More Disneyland Pictures... Finally!

I know, I know... in the previous post, I said I'd post more pictures soon. Well, it wan't "soon" but here they are. Kaylin got her one, big souvenir for the year... an autograph photo album. Each character that she gets to meet signs her book and then later we'll put these pictures in there too.

TIGGER



POCAHONTAS



WINNIE THE POOH



SNOW WHITE



ARIEL (The Little Mermaid)



Just before we "met" Mickey (see picture in previous post), TJ ran right up to him and gave him a big hug and a kiss on the nose! CLASSIC!



Mommy and Kaylin on the train



Daddy and TJ saying "cheese"



Dumbo! That's the name of the elephant, not the guy in the black sweatshirt.

Disneyland!

We went to Disneyland today! This is just a "teaser" post... more pictures will be posted in the next few days.

We bought annual passes and will be able to go to Disneyland for occasional family fun days and date nights. We had been saving up gift money and then we received a couple of generous gifts specifically for the passes or for "doing something fun for the family." What a blessing and what fun!

Here we are after meeting Mickey!

Kaylin had a nice chat with Cinderella and then posed for a picture!

TJ's FIRST Haircut!

It's a family tradition... all the boys in the family get their first haircut from Amy's Uncle Gene. So today we went to visit Uncle Gene and Aunt Joyce in Huntington Beach for this special occasion....

Here's the MopHead before his FIRST haircut!


Amy's Uncle Gene doing the honors. Trevor had fun, was very cooperative, didn't complain but he was a bit impatient... a couple times saying "All done. All done."

NOTE: After receiving some questions about it, we'd like to clarify that Amy is NOT pregnant... her shirt just happens to look a bit "poofy."

Trevor ran over to the mirror to check himself out!

TJ even received a personalized, framed certificate from Uncle Gene documenting the occasion.
Thanks Uncle Gene!

Power Wheels!

Here's Kaylin taking her brother for a ride in the 2nd-hand Barbie Power Wheels Jeep she got recently. She's enjoying learning how to drive!

This video features some good problem-solving by Kaylin to get out of a jam... followed closely by her brother making sure he's in the shot while saying "Cheese!"

Her driver's training wasn't without some, learning experiences...

More Christmas Celebrations...

Great Grammy opening a present from us


Kaylin opening the new shopping cart and food... thanks Grammy & Grampa! Kaylin and Trevor play store together quite often... loading and unloading the cart, scanning the food, bagging it, etc. =)

Christmas Recap... finally!

Christmas in Pittsburg... It was great to be together! Thanks Mom & Dad for your hospitality!

Kaylin got some Christmas socks in her stocking and was so excited that she had to take off her socks and try them on immediately! =)


Kaylin was VERY excited to have her own camera! She has been quite interested in photography and Grams gave her some pointers.


Kaylin & cousin Avery putting out cookies for Santa!


Trevor posing on the basketball court, saying "Cheese!"


Trevor enjoying racing cars down the track!

Merry Christmas from the Olson family!

What a year 2007 has been! In moving from NorCal to SoCal, our family experienced lots of change this year. These times of transition brought many challenges but it was a year FULL of experiencing God’s patient guidance and faithful provision. We have been greatly blessed by all that the Lord has done and for that we are very thankful!

Year In Review
Although most of you are already familiar with what we are doing now, here’s a quick recap of the year. In order for me (Derek) to begin taking classes in the Master of Divinity program at Talbot School of Theology (part of Biola University in La Mirada, CA), we moved from Santa Cruz to SoCal in January. Amy’s sister and her family graciously allowed us to live with them for a few months during the transition, the first of many blessings that God provided for us via the support of family and friends. We were able to move in to our own place, a comfy 2-bedroom townhouse-style apartment in Cypress, on June 1st.

Derek
On July 1st, I began serving as the Pastor to Young Adults at Granada Heights Friends Church (also in La Mirada). In addition to being a student and serving at church part-time, I have also been working part-time in an administrative role in the Talbot Dean’s office. That temporary position, which was supposed to last from February through May, will actually continue providing needed income through January or possibly even February. Seminary classes have been challenging and very rewarding. I just finished his first semester of learning Greek and really enjoyed it.

Amy
As if being a full-time, stay-home mommy isn’t a big-enough job, Amy stays extra busy with all the things she is involved in… MOPS (Mothers of Pre-Schoolers) at church, a women’s Bible study, and a leadership role (planning events for moms and kids) for the Talbot Wives Fellowship group that she participates in. Plus, she's a great partner in ministry to the young adults at church! For the second year in a row, she sold all her hand-made items at some holiday season boutiques and did very well. Check out her purses and other hand-made items at sewonandsewforth.blogspot.com Also, you can read about her recent boutiques here, here and here. The whole family is enjoying living closer to Amy’s side of the family.

Kaylin
Kaylin turned four in October! She enjoys going to her classes at church throughout the week while mommy goes to MOPS, Bible study, etc. Since we are fortunate to be part of a great church family/community, including some other young families like us, Kaylin is making many new friends. She loves keeping busy doing various crafts and “homeschool pre-school” activities at home with mom. She is a really great big sister, always helping mommy and entertaining Trevor. They sleep in the same room so it’s pretty classic to listen to them “talk” and laugh together before going to sleep at night! =)



Trevor
T.J. is 20 months old and is beginning to say lots of words. He is a very active, energetic and rough-and-tumble boy! He is still obsessed with basketball and now with watching Barney (much to my dismay =).

For more about Kaylin and TJ, just bookmark our blog and check back regularly! Let's face it... this blog is mostly about our kids! =)



"Nicknames" of Jesus
We visited Community Covenant Church in Scotts Valley yesterday and Pastor Mike FitzGerald's sermon text was the story of Christ's birth in the Gospel according to Matthew, which includes this verse:

"The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel"—which means, "God with us." - Matthew 1:23

In explaining that verse, Pastor Mike described the name Immanuel as a "theological nickname" because it describes the incredible significance of God sending his Son Jesus to live among us. What an amazing thing that we have a God who is not distant and uncaring, but rather so loving and caring that Jesus came to be our "God with us."

The name he was given on Earth, Jesus, means "God saves." That name is a simple but great description of His mission, to provide for us a means to access life with God both now and forever!

Below are some more "nicknames" that the prophet Isaiah used to describe the coming Messiah... they give us more insight to the character of Jesus:

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

As we celebrate the birth of Jesus, our Savior, we wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

With love,
The Olsons - Derek, Amy, Kaylin & Trevor



LINK: View the rest of our blog at olsonweb.blogspot.com

NOTE: All these pictures were taken by Sam Carrigan, a photographer & friend from church... we love all the great pics we got!

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!