The Olsen Family

Five.

2012-01-25T07:37:00.000-08:00

We had Ty's bday party on Sunday. All of our family that could make it came over for Ty's choice of a Lasagna supper. We opened gifts, then the kids broke open the pinuata (which by the way completely freaked Hayley out. I've never seen her scream the way she was. I guess that could be pretty frightening to a baby who has no idea why we hung up this thing the same size as her and are beating it with a stick...she probably thought she was next), then had skor cake and icecream. It was a lot of fun! we sure appreciate all the love and support we get from our families! I know Ty loves all of you very much!

Very excited about the money he got from Grandma and Grandpa Olsen

Lucky boy also got a DS from Grandpa and Penny. Right after he said "Grandpa your spoiled."

update.

2012-01-23T08:34:00.000-08:00

We had a really fun fondue party with the Olsen's on January 2nd. Cheese fondue with veggie's, bread, and weanie's, then chocolate with fruit and cookie. It was delicious!

Hayley is getting so big. She is so much fun and we are just loving her like crazy.

I put her in her Bumbo, and she immediately went for the toaster.

She loves sucking on her toes!

She loves her exesaucer

She tried rice cereal for the first time...wasn't too interested in it though

She's sitting all by herself!

The kids all love the DS

This boy is obsessed with Mario...the head band across his face is supposed to be a mustache

We've been housebound all last week when the weather was freezing. I HATE going out in the cold if I don't have to. We're happy this week is looking warmer. Life is good.

Ty Matthew

2012-01-19T08:44:00.000-08:00

My Ty guy...

Is 5 years old!

I can't believe my beautiful, chubby little baby boy is all grown up. He is so much fun and makes us laugh all the time. I'm excited for him to start Kindergarten in the Fall and see what this little guy is going to offer the world. Happy Birthday Ty! We love you!

5 months!

2012-01-16T07:47:00.000-08:00

Its been awhile since I've done a post on the little bean. She is 5 months today! The last two months have actually gone by quite slowly, which is fine with me. Here is what she is doing:

makes a lot of noise! she's chattering and laughing and shrieking. She especially love's her siblings and makes the most noise around them.

She was sleeping through the night but then got a cold and now she usually gets up once in the night to eat.

She loves her bumbo, exersaucer, and jolly jumper.

She's rolling over all the time and is even getting pretty good at sitting all by herself.

She's really strong on her legs and loves to jump.

We gave her rice cereal for the first time a few days ago, but she still hasn't really taken to it.

Still loves to be held and cuddled.

Plays with toys. Her favorite right now is a fruit snack wrapper!

She's such a happy little girl. We all love her so much! Here is a couple pics Devon took recently. Isn't she beautiful!!!

This Year...

2012-01-13T07:05:00.000-08:00

I love starting a brand new year! I am a planner, and a list maker. I make list's about everything. So when a new year starts I like to roughly plan the year out (of course I know things come up and things change, so nothing is set in stone) but here is a rough outline of what our plan for this year is:

We were working really hard at getting out of debt, and were almost there, but then the opportunity came up to buy our house. It sort of just fell into our lap, and felt right, so we dove in and are very glad we did. Everything just worked out, but our debt snowball kind of got put on hold and we even added some more debt on with a down payment and little fees that pop up when your purchasing a house. So this year we want to go crazy on our debt again, and get as much as we possibly can paid off.

Nate will start Coach pitch this spring and Ty will start T-ball. Ty is very excited to finally be able to play.

I want to start a mini garden. I've never done it before so I want to start small and will only plant a few things. I'm excited to start learning how to do this though. There is something so special about being able to eat things that you planted and help grew.

We also want to get our yard finished this year. We only have a couple of things to do. We have to close off the sides and put in a gate, and finish our shed. Ryan also wants to close in our furnace downstairs. Our basement is unfinished so its just sittin there and it makes us nervous to have the kids playing down there with out it closed off.

We are planning to get a piano this summer so that Nate can start lesson's in the Fall. I am excited to have a piano in the house and maybe I'll even learn. I know how to read music but have never played and practiced enough to really be good at it. I've always wanted to be a good piano player so here is my chance.

McKenna will start her dance combo class in the Fall which will be tap and ballet. It will be fun to see her learning to tap. Her Grandma Kim took tap as a child.

Nate will start grade two and Ty will finally be in Kindergarten! I think we will enjoy each other a lot more with him gone half the day.

I also want to get my main floor all finished. That means a few more finishing touches on the living room, a new Kitchen table, and my laundry room organized.

We'll also be saving for our family trip to Disneyland! Our plan is to go in February of next year!

So much to look forward too!

Remembering.

2012-01-11T20:20:00.000-08:00

One of my good friends that I grew up with's Mom passed away On Friday. Yesterday I went to the funeral. As I was driving to the chapel on the north side where I grew up going to church, in my old neighborhood, a lot of emotions, feelings, and memories came back. Memories of her. My Mother. Its interesting how I can go from feelings of absolutely missing her, to having a thought that I need to tell my Mom something, almost forgetting for an instant that she's gone. I was reading over the program for the funeral and some women from my home ward were going to sing. The thought that I need to tell my Mom that they sang went through my head. Still, after 3 1/2 years I have small moments where I forget. I wonder if that will ever go away. When I heard the tragic news of my friends Mother, I had vivid memories of driving to my parents to find out what was wrong with my Mom, knowing that something was seriously wrong. I could picture exactly where everyone was sitting in the living room, my Dad's actions and the way he told us, I remember not being surprised but hearing it out loud was very devastating. I remember having hope that night, hope that she could beat it. The days to follow the news kept getting worse, and I just knew it wasn't going to get better, it was her time. The next four months were a bit of a blur. I remember people saying "atleast you get to say goodbye and prepare". I'm not really sure you can prepare for something like that until it actually happens. Not emotionally anyway. Yes, it was nice that we got to say goodbye, but at the same time, sometimes I wish it could have happened instantly so that she wouldn't have had to suffer the way she did. It was so painful to see her that way. Loss is loss, no matter how it happens. My Mom's funeral is such a blur. As Devon and I were sitting at the Luncheon for M's funeral, we were trying to remember details of my Mom's funeral and just couldn't. I think it was because we had this bubble of protection over us to help us get through it. Anyways, the funeral that I was attending brought back a lot of memories. It was a beautiful funeral. M is an incredible woman. One of the sweetest most kind hearted I have ever known. My friend spoke at it, and did an amazing job. He reminded me of many things and I was proud of his courage and testimony. Testimony that he will see his Mother again. That she has an important job to do on the other side, and that she will be waiting for her family to join her one day. They will be together again. As I will one day be reunited with my Mom. There is no greater knowledge then that.

Christmas Letter 2011!

2012-01-06T06:32:00.000-08:00

Christmas is here again! It is definitely our favorite holiday here at the Olsen house. With Christmas comes the end of the year and the beginning of a new one. 2011 has been a pretty busy year for us…

We added baby #4 to our family. Hayley Kim arrived August 16^th at a whopping 8lbs 1oz, my biggest baby. She will be 4 months soon and is adored by all of us. She is still so chubby and just so darn cute. She is making lots of fun noises and loves to laugh and watch her siblings play. She is so strong and has rolled over, and is starting to grab things and play with toys. She is sleeping through the night and is such a good baby! We all call her “Hayley bean, beanie, baby bean, or beanie baby”, pretty much anything with bean in it. We are so grateful to have her as a part of our family.

McKenna will be 4 in February. She loves being a big sister and is so helpful with Hayley. She loves to play princesses and dress-up, and with all her little toys, and is very good at entertaining herself. She still has this high little voice that I thought would get easier to understand but is actually getting harder because she is starting to talk faster. She started dance class and swimming lessons this year and is enjoying both. She loves to play with all her cousins and is starting to play on the Xbox with the boys. She is so sweet and polite, but cries (which can be more like screaming) quite easily. She gives the best hugs!

Ty is growing up and getting so big. He will be 5 in January. With Nate at school all day he has had to jump into the role of big brother and is doing the job quite well. He and McKenna play really well together, and he loves little Hayley and loves making her laugh. He is a bundle of personality and charm and is always making us laugh, but he loves to test us as well. Still as mischievous as ever! He loves to do things with Dad and Mom and doesn’t entertain himself as well as his siblings. He loves to be outside and has made friends with the little boy who lives next door.

Nate is just sprouting up. He turns 7 in a week and started grade one this year. He is doing well and loves it. He excels in reading and is reading at a grade three level. He is doing really well in swimming lessons and even though he is a natural sinker, he works hard and is still a little fish. He loves to read, and is really into sonic and Mario right now. He loves all things electronic and would play all day if he was allowed to. He is a good big brother and is always willing to help out Mom and Dad. He also found a new love this year…Sprite and Rootbeer!

I spent a good chunk of the year being pregnant. It was my hardest pregnancy and was very hard on me mentally and emotionally as well as physically. I’m so glad to have Hayley in my arms and out of my tummy. Ryan and I just celebrated our 8 year anniversary and both are vowing to get into shape this coming year. We also bought our very first house this past April. It’s a cute little two-story with an unfinished basement that we eventually plan on finishing. Ryan worked hard on finishing the backyard this summer and made a fun swing set for the kids. We love having a back yard, and we love having our family and friends over to our home. We feel so much love and support from all of you! We are extremely blessed and are looking forward to a new year with new experiences and new adventures. We hope this season finds you well and feeling blessed.

We love all of you very much,

The Olsen’s,

Ryan, Kelli, Nate, Ty, McKenna, and Hayley

An Okotoks Christmas!

2012-01-05T08:13:00.000-08:00

We headed to my Dad's on the 27th to stay for few days. All my family was there. I forgot my camera, so I'm sorry to say there are no pics!

Here are the highlights of our stay:

Santa bags!

Shopping

Lots of yummy food

Swimming at the wave pool and water slides

Taking McKenna to Beauty and the Beast! It was so good and so much fun! It started at 8:00pm though so it was a little late and long for Kenna, so we left a little early, but we both loved it.

Playing games in the evening

We had a great couple of days!

When we got home I was feeling sick and ended up being sick for New Years. Ryan took the kids out to my Grandma's for a few hours while I stayed home in bed. It's a little weird that it's a new year because I didn't party or celebrate, but we had a good 2011 and are looking forward to 2012!

Happy new years everyone!

Boxing Day.

2012-01-03T07:26:00.000-08:00

This year we were able to get together with some of the guys and their families that I grew up with. We met at the Pratt's house and had an amazing breakfast with tons of yummy food! It was so nice to see everyone and we had a really great visit. It had been too long since I had seen any of them.

I went to school with Taylor since grade one. We were good friends all through school and he did me proud when he married the most fabulous girl and we became fast friends. She is one of my best friends and I love her to piece's. Sadly they live in Provo while Taylor is in school so we haven't been able to spend much time together. It was so nice to see them and their family. Love you Smith's!

Gotta love the spot of baby drool on my shoulder!

Here is a pic with all the kids. What a great looking bunch don't ya think.

Christmas Day!

2012-01-02T07:32:00.000-08:00

Highlights of our Christmas Day:

It always seems that I take a billion pics on Christmas eve, and then hardly any Christmas Day...well, that is the case again this year, so this post won't have many pics.

There is something so special about Christmas morning. It was so fun this year to watch the kids's excitement and joy as they opened their presents. I especially love stockings!

The boys were so funny when they'd open their gifts. They would have to close their eyes until all the paper was off so they wouldn't get any sneak peaks.

Getting a Disneyland and Wipeout game for the kinect! Both are so, so fun!

Not feeling rushed in the morning to meet up with my family. We didn't end up getting together till 1:30pm.

Staying in our p.j's ALL DAY.

Singing songs and talking about Jesus birth all the way to Raymond!

Lunch at my brother's. We had homemade soups and grilled cheese. Something new we did this year...might have to be a new tradition.

Playing wipeout with my brother's and Ryan, then again at my Grandma's with my uncle and cousin's! I've played 3 times and so far, have won all three times! Guess I'm the wipeout champ so far! It is definitely a work out though. I am still sore from it.

These two cute lil cousins. I can't wait to watch them grow up together.

Visiting with my Grandma. I LOVE spending time with her!

Singing Away in a Manger with my whole family. I again, feel so blessed to be apart of such an amazing and wonderful family! It was a great day!

My resolutions for next year: take more pics Christmas Day. And take one of me and my Grandma.

Hope you all had a fabulous Christmas!

ps. check out our new couches in the pics. They were mine and Ry's Christmas present.

Christmas Eve!

2012-01-01T17:50:00.000-08:00

Highlights of our Christmas Eve:

Gingerbread houses! I especially love that I don't have to help my kids decorate them!

Jode finally holding Hayley!

These two cuties...they read like this together for probably a half an hour.

This little bean! It was so fun sharing Christmas with her for the first time!

During the fish pond where the kids fish for some little gifts from Grandpa and Grandma, Ty complained about the first gift he got so for his second gift I told Shan to put nothing in the bag. He was surprised when he opened it to find nothing in it. I told him that's what would happen if he complained instead of saying thank you. I think he learned his lesson and we all got a good laugh!

The Nativity. I especially loved how sweet Joseph (Ben) was with Mary (McKenna). He had his arm around her the whole time and kept touching the baby. It was so precious!

Hayley loved it too...

The kids excited faces as they got ready to open up their gifts from Grandpa and Grandma.

The kid's blankets that Grandma made for them! Each one had the first letter of their name sewn onto it. They are awesome!

That we got a picture of all the kids sitting still for their Christmas P.J picture!

That I got to spend the day celebrating with these amazing and wonderful people! I am so blessed to be able to call them family!

Xbox party!

2011-12-22T08:20:00.000-08:00

Nate's birthday started Friday night when Ryan and I took him and his cousin Ben out for dinner at Moxie's. Its always fun and special to do things like this with one child at a time, and we really enjoyed our dinner with the two boys. We sure love Ben and were glad he could come and sleep over as well. I really hope the two cousin's will be best friends forever. Nate was especially happy he got to have two glasses of sprite! Saturday he had his birthday with his friends. He invited 3 friends over to play xbox. They had fun playing Kinect adventures and sonic racing. We're grateful that Nate has such good friends. My friend made him some Xbox cupcakes which were rootbeer flavored and delicious! Thanks Megs! Nate loved them and had two eaten before his friends had one eaten. On Sunday, we had mine and Ryan's immediate families over for supper and dessert. Nate wanted ichi ban so I compromised with a white sauce spaghetti. I messed up on the sauce and had to fix it and there ended up not being enough for anyone to have second's. I'm still not good at feeding lots of people and had moment of frustration where I was really wishing my Momma was here to help me, cause of course she would have known exactly what to do. We had skor cake and apple pie for dessert and did a pinuata for the kids. It was so much fun! We are very blessed with two amazing families! Nate got spoiled, especially by his Grandpa Jim and Penny. The boys had been asking for DS's for Christmas and I flat out told them no, not this year. Well, my Dad found one on sale on Kijiji that came with seven games. I don't know who was more surprised, me or Nate! I think he had a really good weekend! I always hope that my kids feel really special on their Birthdays.

Nathan James

2011-12-19T07:44:00.000-08:00

This little guy...

Is 7 years old!

I can hardly believe that my baby is that big! He is such a smart boy and is so much fun to have around. We have enjoyed watching him grow and can't wait to see what the future holds for him.

8 years!

2011-12-16T18:53:00.000-08:00

Ryan and I celebrated our 8 year anniversary on November 28th. Last year we went to Florida for our anniversary so this year we had to do something a little more low key. We planned to go out for dinner and have a night with no children. My amazing Mother in-law took the boys and Hayley, and McKenna was supposed to go to my Brother's, but that morning McKenna had a fever and had puked a few times (this was the start of our never ending sickness, which we're still enduring). So we ended up keeping her and my sister watched her while we went out to eat and then we did all our Christmas shopping for the kids. We picked up McKenna and that was that. Seems like a short way to celebrate 8 years of marriage! It was nice to spend some time together though. We haven't had much time since little Hayley joined our family.

I always joked with Ryan about the 7 year itch, but we did it and made it through our 7th year. I think that's quite an accomplishment! After 7 1/2 years of marriage we were finally able to buy our own house. It feels great! We feel like we're real grown ups now. In all seriousness, Ryan is really an easy guy to be married to. He is such a good Father, and he respects me and treats me way better then I deserve sometimes. I feel like we've accomplished quite a bit together and am excited for our future adventure's together!

Love you lots and lots Ry!

Lately.

2011-12-10T09:57:00.000-08:00

I am getting pretty behind on my blog, so I need to do some catching up. First off, we put our tree up on Nov 30th. I never like to put the tree up too early. I'm a firm believer that Christmas shouldn't start until December 1st, but it just so happened that this was the only night we could do it, and it seemed close enough. Its not that I'm a Grinch. Christmas is my most favorite time of year, but I also don't like to drag it out. I can only listen to so much Christmas music and wait so long for Christmas day. So I don't like to think about it until I know there are only 25 days to celebrate it. Seems like plenty of time to me! We had fun watching Frosty the Snowman, decorating the tree, eating fudge and drinking eggnog.

Watching a Movie

Beanie watching the excitement

Ty loves this Santa

A few days after that, came this...

Sick kids. Yuck. Ty and Hayley both now have colds. Guess that comes with the season as well.

On a brighter note...the little miss is getting so big. She loves her Bumbo seat, and we even tried the jolly jumper. She loved it, but is still a little small. She kept leaning over too far. She is getting so good with her hands as well.

Pictures!

2011-12-07T21:12:00.000-08:00

Just some pics that my bestest friend Devon (devondurocher.com) took for us over the last couple of years.

Our Christmas Card impromptu shoot

Hayley Bean

Our Father's Day shoot. We made a video for Ry

Family shoot 2010

Early.

2011-12-01T14:08:00.000-08:00

Well it seems that every Christmas we usually get an early Christmas present. We've had our computer for about 7 years and it is slowly dying on us. We decided it would be best to get a new one before it just up and crashes. We decided we would get a cheaper computer and then get an Ipad as well. Ryan gets very excited about these kind of purchases. There was a big sale at best buy in lou of Black Friday, so Ryan ordered one. It is lots of fun and very handy to have with little kids. I'm not a big electronic person, but I'm glad we got it.

Hayley's getting really good at grabbing things and loves to play with her toys!

Babysitters!

2011-11-30T15:12:00.000-08:00

I have the best little babysitters...well occasionally anyway!

Apparently Hayley had cold hands...I wonder what he'll do if her feet get cold!

They really do adore her, and she does them too.

Hayley's blessing!

2011-11-29T08:13:00.000-08:00

Hayley was blessed on September 25th, so this is quite late! I'm sure I could think of a good reason why, but atleast its getting done now. It was such a good day! It was actually the first blessing that I actually hosted at my own home. My Mom did Nate and Ty's, and McKenna's was at St. Mich's when my Mom was sick, which my Grandma and Aunt pretty much did. I was a little nervous about feeding and hosting 20ish people afterwards, but everything turned out so good. I made mexican chicken chili, and it was fantastic! We had all my immediate family, Ryan's immediate family and his Grandma June, and My Grandparents and Aunt Terry, and Uncle Dan and his family. We loved all the support and everyone made it a special day for Hayley! Here's her blessing:

As you grow your body will grow strong and healthy and you spirit as well

Desire to do right

Make pleasing decisions

Desire to stay active and be strong in the faith

be worthy and be married in the temple

Obedient to parents and family

Be successful in life and be happy

Form strong bond with family, look up to them and follow their example

Be an example

Cousin's!

2011-11-02T15:43:00.000-07:00

These two little cuties are only a month a part. I think they are going to be the best of friends one day. Do you know how I can tell...because when their next to each other and Ember puts her hand right on Hayley's mouth, Hayley licks it, and they both don't seem to mind. Now thats friendship!

Beanie baby!

2011-11-01T20:39:00.000-07:00

I absolutely adore this chubba wubba baby girl!

I left Hayley in the care of her older siblings for a moment and when I came back into the kitchen she looked like this...

our own little beanie baby bear! (I always call her beanie baby, Hayley bean, baby bean, pretty much anything with bean in it). She's got some great babysitters!

Halloween!

2011-11-01T14:15:00.000-07:00

The whole clan!

Cinderella

Mario

Our little milk cow!

2 months!

2011-10-22T19:37:00.000-07:00

Hayley Bean is 2 months! We all sure adore her over here. I seriously just want to squeeze her all the time because I love her so so much. She is:

was 11 lbs a couple weeks ago
smiles and coo's all the time
holds her head up really well and is strong on her legs when we stand her up.
she is so wiggly...always moving her legs and arms
starting to notice her hands
loves watching and talking to her siblings
when laying on the floor she gets right on her side
loves to be held and cuddled
loves her soother, but has been sucking her thumb quite a bit the last couple of days
sticks out her tongue a lot and makes raspberry noises
cat naps during the day with only 1 really good 2-3 hour nap
usually sleeps about 5 hours at night (usually from 10:00pm-2:30am), eats then settles right away, but will only sleep for 1-2 hours after that (one of us is usually up for the day around 5-5:30am)

Isn't she just the cutest thing you ever did see!

Love!

2011-10-08T14:28:00.000-07:00

Sleep.

2011-10-06T13:45:00.000-07:00

I wish I could say we are getting a lot of sleep over here, but it's just not true. Little miss has had a little cold the last week and has been stuffy. This has made sleeping a little hard. She's been doing better atleast. Without a stuffy nose she'll sleep from about 10:00pm until 2:30am, eat and settle right away (thank goodness), then she's up around 5-5:30am. During the day she's tired and wants to sleep but will only settle from anywhere to 15 minutes to an hour. Sometimes she'll have a really good sleep and sleep two or more hours, but only sometimes. I feel like all I do is rock her to sleep all day long. Its been hard going from 2 years of sleeping through the night and having independent children to having a new baby. But one thing I have learned over the years is that it does get better...and she will sleep good one of these days...right. Its a good thing she is so incredibly cute and lovable. I mean look at her...

One Month!

2011-09-16T19:28:00.000-07:00

Thats right. Hayley Bean is 1 month old! Crazy. She is:

smiling tons
trying to talk and laugh
she loves to lay on the floor
is very content and happy, but likes to be held
She usually only freaks out and cries when she's really hungry or when left alone too long...she can be settled really quickly, usually as soon as we pick her up.
she's a good burper, but will sometimes spit up a bit
loves to be rocked and sang to.
is so stinkin cute I can hardly stand it!

Beautiful Ballerina!

2011-09-15T16:07:00.000-07:00

McKenna had her first dance class a few days ago. I absolutely love to dance and have always wished that I had taken lessons and actually knew how to dance well. I always knew I wanted to put my girls in dance. In June I took McKenna to the dance studio's year end show. She loved it, and stood in the front of her chair and danced along with the dancers. I knew she was ready so I signed her up. Her first class was a huge success! She loved it and came out saying "that was so fun!" She especially looked so stinkin cute in her little ballet outfit.

For FHE this week Ryan showed the kids pictures and told stories about his mission to the Philippines. The kids loved it. They especially loved to listen to Ryan speak Tagalog and look through all his souvenirs. It was fun to talk about what it would be like when Nate and Ty went on missions. I'm glad its a long ways away though. It was sure precious to watch.

Bathing Beauty!

2011-09-14T18:59:00.000-07:00

Hayley bean had her first official bath the other night (meaning a non sponge bath). She loved it! and by that I mean she didn't cry and she kicked her little feet. I love a fresh, clean baby!

2011-09-12T09:21:00.000-07:00

Sunday naps are the very best!

Outside

2011-09-11T09:59:00.000-07:00

We are still having summer weather, so the kids have spent lots of time playing outside!

The kids being silly on the trampoline

Ryan enjoying the summer weather!

Hayley enjoying the back yard for the first time!

I think she likes it!

3 Weeks!

2011-09-10T07:32:00.000-07:00

Hayley bean is 3 weeks old. Sometimes it feels like she's been a part of our family longer then that. Here's whats going down with her right now:

she weighs 9 lbs 8oz. is 21" long
is sleeping anywhere from 3-5 hours at night.
is starting to sleep less during the day (yesterday she barely slept at all)
is starting to get a bit fussier (seriously though, her fussiness is nothing to complain about)
is smiling now. I love baby smiles!
she loves to be held and cuddled
she loves driving in the van or taking a walk (she will always fall asleep)
is starting to suck on her soother more
loves getting her diaper changed
is still the most beautiful little baby girl! We love her to piece's!

Grade One!

2011-08-31T17:46:00.000-07:00

Nate started grade one on Tuesday. He was feeling pretty nervous the whole week before. He'd look at the calendar and say "oh no, I start school in 3 days". On Monday we went over to the school to see what class he was in and who is teacher would be. We got to see his class and meet his teacher so I think that helped out a ton. After that he didn't feel so nervous. We also found out that about 5 kids from his Primary would be in his class as well, so he was glad he would know some people. The first day went very well! He was excited and went and sat at his desk with no tears and looking very confidant. I am so proud of him! So far, he seems to like it. He did say he was sitting in his desk tired wondering when he got to go home. Ha ha ha...I guess it takes some getting use to.

Yes, he's wearing the same t-shirt he wore on his first day of Kindergarten!

Sunday!

2011-08-29T16:30:00.000-07:00

We finally made it to church on Sunday. We haven't been for a few weeks now. As we were getting ready, Nate was trying to convince me that Hayley was still too little to take to church. It didn't work. I bought a cute little newborn dress at Target when I was only a few months pregnant. I didn't know that we would have a girl but it was too cute to pass up. It is pretty small so I planned for it to be the first dress she wore to church. Sunday morning I go to put it on her and realize its a bit small. It was not easy to put on, and I wasn't sure I'd be able to get it off of her, but I got her in it, and she looked cute. Well, of course she slept in her car seat through most of church and then the last hour she was wrapped in a blanket, so its not like anyone got to see her in it anyway. Oh the things we do when we have little girls! I did get a cute picture though...

She'll be two weeks tomorrow. She is just too precious!

Its been one week...

2011-08-23T13:02:00.000-07:00

since Hayley girl joined our family. We couldn't love and adore her any more then we do. She has been such a good, happy, and content baby. I often joke to Ryan that we saved the best for last...lol. Only meaning that she's so good and already on a pretty decent schedule for the first week. Our other babies took a little bit longer then that. The other night she slept from 9:30pm-2:30am, ate and then settled right away and slept until 7:00am. I couldn't believe it! She of course sleeps and eats a lot, but also stays awake for a few hours a day where she's happy and content to just stare around. She really is a joy! The kids love her and are always wanting to hold her and help feed her. We took her to her one week check-up and the doctor couldn't believe how much weight she gained. She was born at 8lbs 1oz, weighed 7lbs 11oz when the nurse weighed her the next day, and now weighs 8lbs 11oz! She's definitely not starving over here. I am doing pretty good. I've had lots of help this week. Tomorrow will be my first day all by myself. I'm not worried though. Hayley is great, and the other kids are old enough to entertain themselves and each other, and are pretty independent! Its been a good first week.

We love our little girl so, so much. We're so happy your a part of our family Hayley girl!

The classic Hayley scowl.

She's here!....Finally.

2011-08-17T18:00:00.000-07:00

Well, our little Hayley Kim was definitely worth the wait! She is beautiful, perfect, and we all just love and adore her!

I had been having contractions for the past two weeks off and on. They would be regular for a bit and then just taper off. Finally on Monday they started coming more regularly in little spurts all day and I began to have bloody show. Around 5:00pm they started to come quite regular and were getting stronger. By 8:00pm, they were quite strong and I was feeling quite a bit of pressure so we called Ryan's sister Shannon and when she got here we took off to the hospital. The kids were quite excited that the baby was finally going to come...and so was I. By the time we got to the hospital and were hooked up to the monitoring machine, my contractions seemed to be getting less intense and less close together. Seriously. This is not happening I kept thinking. Then I heard what every laboring woman never wants to here after being checked by the nurse "well, there's not much going on up there. Your not really dilated and still very thick". What. No. I am not going home. So we walked around for a bit. It was getting hard for me to walk because my legs kept cramping and the contractions were getting hard again. Back into the room, the nurse checked me and finally said something reassuring. "Yep, your definitely making some progress!" So at a 11:00pm we were admitted and got comfortable in our birthing room. After a couple of hours the contractions were getting very hard and intense. I came to the hospital really wanting to do it with no drugs (I've done it with and without the epidural), but when they checked me again I was still dilated at 3, and I worried I'd be in for a long night so I requested the epidural. It actually came quite quickly and I was all set up by 1:40am. As soon as it kicked in I couldn't believe I actually wanted to do it without one. I was ready for a long night, but to my surprise I dilated really, really fast and was ready to push. She was definitely harder to push out then Ty and McKenna. At 2:17am she arrived! The first thing the nurses said was "she's chubby" and they were right. Oh, and yeah! Finally finding out she was a girl was great! I couldn't believe the rolls she already had on her. When they told me she was 8lbs I was shocked. Ty was my biggest at 7lbs 11oz, and I just never thought I would ever have anything over the 7 lbs area. They put her on me right after they were done all their tests and I fell in love instantly and couldn't stop thinking about how beautiful she was. She was happy and content while Ryan and I held her, but when the nurse took her to do some more tests she was not happy, and she screamed and screamed. It was hard to calm her down after that. Once we got settled in our private room (yeah!) we were able to settle her down and take some cat naps here and there while they came in to check us every half an hour. In the morning we called all our friends and family, and had visitor's all day. Of course auntie Shan and the kids were our first one's. The kids couldn't believe she was really out. Nate looked her over and then asked to play on Daddy's phone! I knew he wouldn't be that interested. Ty and McKenna both took a couple of turns holding her. We were lucky enough to be able to come home around 5:30pm. Yes, I may be crazy, but I prefer to be in my own home. Not a huge fan of staying in the hospital.

We are settled in at home and my Mother in-law is staying for a few days. She is wonderful and I'm so glad to have her here to help out. Our first night wasn't too bad and she's been sleepy and happy and content all day. We are so happy and grateful to have her home! She just fits!

See for yourselves....she's gorgeous!

8 lbs 1oz! Love her chubs!

2011-08-15T13:36:00.000-07:00

One week overdue folks! I've decided I need to stop putting my life on hold waiting for this baby to come! Life goes on! The little bean has to come at some point...he/she can't stay in there forever...right?

Waiting.

2011-08-12T07:52:00.000-07:00

Isn't it so hard to wait patiently for something you want so badly! I'm still waiting for this little bean to make an appearance. I guess I shouldn't be surprised since all my babies have gone over my due date, but its still annoying and frustrating. Everyday I think "this could be the day...the 12th is the perfect day to have a baby", and every night as I climb into bed I think "please don't go into labor until the morning...and tomorrow is a new day...maybe THE day!" Most nights I climb into bed and the contractions begin. I think "okay, I'm going to try and sleep through these as much as possible", then I wake up a few hours later, and there gone. Guess I better start getting out of bed and walking when that happens again. Then maybe something will come of them.

We spent the weekend in Cardston for Heritage Days. We had a lot of fun! The kids loved the parade and got a ton of candy. Ryan was in the family ball tournament so we spent a lot of time watching him play ball. It brought back a lot of memories for me watching him play. Its been awhile since he's been able to play. Back when we were dating and engaged I would go to his games all the time. All I can say is he's still got it! We took the kids to their first fireworks show. The boys were so animated and funny. They loved them, and if you know Ty, he could not keep quiet the whole time. He had to make noises or comment on each firework. It was so funny. McKenna just laid her head on Grandma's lap cuddled in her blanket with her little face peeking out and had no reaction. She doesn't really like loud noises. When it was all over I asked her if she liked them and she said no. I said "but they were pretty!" and she said "well I liked the pretty one's!" It was a really fun weekend. I was really hoping I would go into labor so we could just leave the kids out there, but no such luck.

Monday was back to reality. Monday was my due date. We went out to Adam and Britt's, and spent the day out in Raymond to keep my mind off of the fact that it was my due date. We visited with Grandma and Grandpa and had a nice day. By Wednesday morning the kids and I had had enough of each other. Really a bad combination...a grumpy Mother, and kids who were whiny and disobedient because their tired of having a grumpy Mother! So in the evening Ryan shipped them off to my amazing in-laws. They are having much more fun out there I am positive! It has been peaceful around here. I have been cleaning and cleaning...hoping to clean myself into labor, but no such luck. So here I am waiting....waiting for something to happen. Waiting for this little bean to want me as much as I want them. Hopefully the waiting ends soon. The kids will return on Saturday. Please come before then little one!

Maybe I need another day out in Raymond. Visiting with my Gram. She is so like my Mother and I am desperately missing her right now. Then I can go hold my sweet little baby niece. Maybe she will inspire her cousin to finally want to come!

Baby update!

2011-08-09T03:35:00.000-07:00

My due date has come and gone...and still no baby.

Sleeping Beauty!

2011-08-04T07:39:00.000-07:00

Or I guess I should say Sleeping Snow White!

And her Prince...

Waterton!

2011-08-03T10:21:00.000-07:00

We finally made it to Waterton on Monday. And she didn't disappoint us. The weather was beautiful! We enjoyed a nice picnic at Red Rock Canyon, then played down in the canyon for a couple of hours. I sat on a rock feeling very uncomfortable. Then we went into town for some ice cream (the kids chose candy instead). We headed to the park where the kids had fun in the spray park and on the swings. I again sat uncomfortably on a rock and then a park bench. Then we walked down by the water and threw rocks in. Do I need to mention that I sat uncomfortably on the beach, and then a big rock. Then we headed to the Falls where we finished off our picnic lunch. Then Roy, Connie, Ryan and the kids walked up the trail that overlooks the waterfall and surprise, surprise, I sat uncomfortably on the bench and watched them! Then we headed back to the farm for bath's and a snack before we left for home. I have to say, Waterton obviously isn't the best when your a week away from your due date, and I was uncomfortable pretty much the whole day, but it was nice to be there instead of at home. It is so beautiful you can't help but feel happy, peaceful, and content. I was kinda hoping that I'd go into labor at Red Rock and my sister-in law (who's almost a nurse) could deliver the baby, and then we could use Red Rock in the middle name...but only kinda!

Another belly shot! 39 weeks!

Who's belly's bigger...I think this time, I actually win!

Swing Set!

2011-08-02T14:45:00.000-07:00

There are many reason's I love my husband. One of those reason's is that he's just so darn handy to have around. He can fix or build anything. As you know, he's been busy working on our backyard. Well, the other day he built a swing set for the kids...from scratch...with no recipe! And I think he did a pretty fantastic job! So do the kids!

Ty loves helping his Dad

can you see the little ledge to jump onto the tramp from!

Pretty spectacular, eh! What a guy! Next up on our list is a shed! Ryan's going to be building that from scratch as well!

Temple talks!

2011-07-31T10:09:00.000-07:00

Ty said his first talk last Sunday. He did a great job! He spoke loud and clear, and looked so darn handsome standing at the pulpit in the Primary room. He spoke on Temple's. Here are his wise words...

This is the Cardston Temple. My Dad and Mom were married there so that our family could be together forever.

I love my family. We have so much fun together. It makes me so happy that I can be with them forever.

My Grandparents live in Cardston. Whenever we drive to their house, I love to look for the temple cause its so beautiful and reminds me of how special my family is.

In the bible it says: “Our homes can be as sacred as the Temple.”

I can make my home more holy by: listening to my Mom and Dad, playing nicely with Nate and McKenna, and helping my family when they need it.

Then we can be closer as a family.

Maybe you can do that too!

The summer is half over, and will be ending soon. My Mom reads me the friend, and Matt and Mandy say that the best things never end!

Because we have Temples, I will always be with my family! I am grateful for that!

I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

After he spoke, he got to pick the name out of a little container of the next person to speak...well, of course he picks out Nate's name. So another talk on Temple's it is! Nate will be giving his talk today. I am at home with the pregnancy blue's, so will miss him speaking. He practiced it a lot for me. I think he will do a good job! Here are his wise words:

Last Fall I started Kindergarten. I learned a lot of cool things and made lots of special friends. It’s important to have good friends. I would like to tell you about the very first special friend I ever had. This person became my friend on the very day that I was born. The first night my Mom and Dad brought me home my friend came over and rocked me, cuddled me, and took care of me all night because my mom was really tired. That night my friend and I were bonded in a very special way. The next few years I spent a lot of time with my special friend. Sleepovers, walks, I would help her bake, and we laughed and played together. She was my best friend. My special friend is my Grandma Kim. When I was just three years old my Grandma Kim got really sick. So sick that Heavenly Father thought that she would be happier in Heaven with him. I had to say goodbye to her. Because she went to live in Heaven with Jesus, I don’t get to see her anymore. Sometimes this makes me sad. But there’s another reason my friend is so special. When she lived on Earth she went to the temple, just like my Dad and Mom go to the temple. That means we’re all sealed together, and I will get to laugh and play with my Grandma Kim again. This makes me very happy. President Hinckley said “The temple is a place of light, a place of peace, a place of love where we deal with the things of eternity.” I want to go to the temple some day so that I can feel peace and love, and feel close to my Grandma Kim. Even though I am young I can do things to prepare now. I can go to Primary, read the scriptures, say my prayers, and follow the commandments. If I do these things, one day I will be ready to go to the temple. I can’t wait! I am so grateful for temples!

In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

A little bit of random!

2011-07-28T07:46:00.000-07:00

For starter's, I am 38 1/2 weeks! That means only 1 1/2 weeks left until my due date! I am ready. I would be very happy to go into labor right now. And yes, I do remember what I have to do to get this little bean out of me! But I'm ready. I can't wait to hold him/her, to finally know if its a him or a her, and bring that little spirit into our home where it belongs. I've been getting a ton of Braxton hicks contractions which of course aren't painful, but are definitely uncomfortable. This baby moves around so much and pokes and prodes me in places I really don't want to be...not to mention it HURTS! My feet and hands are swelling, and I'm hot and tired all.the.time! So...bring on the contractions! I am ready! So, what do you think? Is it a girl baby, or a boy baby? Any guesses?

I'm really bad at taking pics of myself. I'm usually the one behind the camera, so this one will have to do of a recent belly shot!

This little man finished his last year of T-ball this spring. Next year he'll go into Coach pitch and Ty will start T-ball. That means baseball every night of the week. It will be busy. He did very well and has learned a lot. We're definitely proud of him! Isn't he so handsome. If I already posted this pic or anything about Nate playing T-ball then I'm sorry, but I do have a good excuse...its called baby brain! and I definitely have it!

And just because I love him so...

Backyard Fun!

2011-07-27T07:48:00.000-07:00

Our Backyard is coming along great! The grass is in, the patio's done with the patio furniture set up. We bought a trampoline and Ryan's been building a swing set (I'll show you the whole thing when its all finished). The kids love to spend time out there and so do Ryan and I. The other day we spent the whole day out there. We put the sprinkler under the tramp and the kids played in it for hours, then we enjoyed freezies! Its the perfect backyard to entertain...so, who wants to come over for a BBQ!

The last thing on our list of things to do in the Backyard is build a shed! Hopefully that will get done in the next couple of weeks!

Our New Toy!

2011-07-26T07:38:00.000-07:00

Birthday Parties!

2011-07-25T14:16:00.000-07:00

We were able to go to two birthday parties this Saturday!

First we went to my niece's strawberry shortcake themed 4th birthday party. The kids had fun playing games, making candy bracelets, and eating their own mini cakes with strawberries and whip cream!

Making candy bracelets!

Bella opening her presents

Eating cake

Next my cousin planned a surprise party for his wife. We met at my Grandma's for cake and then headed over to the town pool. He rented it just for their family and some friends for an hour! We had so much fun! The kids love to be in the water! Summer birthday's are the best! Too bad all my kids have winter birthdays...well, except for this new little one who will be joining our family soon!

Calgary weekend!

2011-07-24T19:00:00.000-07:00

We had so much fun spending a long weekend in Okotoks/Calgary last weekend! We got to spend some time visiting my Dad and Penny, went on some adventures with them to the creek and to this huge rock that we could climb all over. The kids loved it! and had no fear when it came to climbing and heights...not so fun for me! I thought they were going to put me into labor. I was constantly holding my breath for fear they would fall. Here are some pics of the rock...

We went swimming at a wave pool with water slides, did some shopping, and had lots of yummy dinners with Dad and Penny! On our last day we met our Olsen cousin's at Calaway and had a fantastic time with them! The boys were fearless when it came to the rides and wanted to try everything. Nate was even big enough for the big roller coaster and loved it! I forgot my camera the whole weekend so all the pics we have are one's from Ryan's phone. A couple of Calaway pics to enjoy...

Thats mine and McKenna's little faces peeking out of the balloon in the last pic in case you were wondering! I only went on two rides...that balloon ferris wheel and the carousal. Kind of sucks to go to an amusement park when your 9 months pregnant! We really had a fabulous weekend! Its so nice that we don't have to travel very far to do such fun things!

BBQ!

2011-07-14T07:25:00.000-07:00

Ryan was working on the patio the other day. I was convinced he would be done in time to have some family over for a BBQ. The deck would be all cleaned off, the patio furniture all set up, and even though we couldn't use the lawn it would be pretty perfect! I invited my brother and his family, and my Dad was in town so he was going to stop by on his way home. He lives a couple of hours away. I told everyone 5:30pm. Well, of course Ryan ran out of stone and needed to go pick up some more. He didn't get home with it until 5:00pm, and started trying to finish it. When my family started showing up at 5:30 we had nothing done. I had to ditch the idea of doing it outside. The patio wasn't completed and it and the deck were a mess and covered in dust. I had to pry Ryan away from the job (he has to finish what he started) to get the BBQ going. Only to find out that we're out of propane. Our poor hungry guests. Ryan had to run and get some propane while I started to get everything else ready. By the time he got back and everything was ready it was 6:30pm. My Dad had to eat and run. I felt really bad, but at least the food was good! Hopefully our next BBQ will be a little more successful and we'll be more prepared! And I guess I shouldn't do it on the day the patio is "supposed" to be finished!

Here's a pic of the kids eating at their table!

Patio!

2011-07-14T07:07:00.000-07:00

But first...our lawn is starting to look pretty good. We are counting down the days that we can actually enjoy it! Only one more week left.

Ryan's been working on the patio the last couple of days. We decided to do a stone patio right off the deck. He and the boys, and my brother Adam worked hard on it and it is completed. I LOVE it! Now I just have to set up my patio furniture! What do you think?

Next summer we're going to put a fountain and some flowers in that little corner plot!

Wicked!

2011-07-13T14:26:00.000-07:00

About a week ago Devon and I went to see Wicked in Calgary. It was everything I thought and wanted it to be! I love everything about broadway...that its done live, the stage, the props, the music...its just magic! The hardest part is not being able to belt out the songs along with the actor's! It was very well done and I loved every minute of it! Even the C-train ride there and back. Good times friend, good times!

ps. my nose looks extremely big in the above pic. I hope its just the camera, not my nose swelling to keep up with the swelling in my hands and feet...lol!! Only 4 weeks left!

Ready for paintballin!

2011-07-10T12:52:00.000-07:00

I LOVE this little boy!

New Love!

2011-07-08T19:59:00.001-07:00

This girl is in love...

She followed Ryan's aunt's dog around while we were camping. She loved him. Too bad her mean..or maybe smart, Mama will never get her one of her own.

Sod Party!

2011-07-04T20:26:00.000-07:00

We have grass in our backyard! Yeah! Now we just have to keep watering it, can't walk on it for a couple of weeks, and we'll see if it takes. Finger's are crossed. We had a bunch of family and friends over to help lay it. It only took like a half an hour and then we fed everyone pizza. It was lots of fun and we're grateful to those who came to help us out! It's lookin good so far, but there is a big hump in the middle of the yard. The guy who came to level it before we put sod down didn't do a very good job. Not much we could do about it...so there's a hump. I'm trying really hard not to dwell on it. I'm sure the kids will love it. Here are some pics:

Next we are building a shed, and a patio. We'll keep you updated with the progress.

Oh, and I'll show you a picture of the grass when it takes and starts to look good! Finger's crossed!

Horseshoe Bend!

2011-07-04T11:47:00.000-07:00

After all our Canada Day festivities, we packed up my Grandparents trailer and headed out to Horseshoe Bend to do some camping. The camp spot is actually on my in-laws land just outside of Cardston. They have a nice little camping area, with camp kitchen, swingsets, sandbox, big firepit, and a nice little creek that runs through it. It is very beautiful! The best part about it is my in-laws house is only a 2 minute drive away! McKenna and I slept over at their place while the boys slept in the trailer. We spent the weekend with Roy and Connie fishing, quading, playing in the creek, and just enjoying the beautiful weather while we visited. The kids had a blast playing on the swings and in the sandbox. We roasted wiener's and s'mores Saturday night, and just had a perfect little weekend getaway. I wish I would have taken more pictures, but here's a few for you to enjoy!

Canada Day!

2011-07-03T20:54:00.000-07:00

For as long as I can remember...we've been celebrating Canada Day in Raymond at my Grandma Shurtz's house. It is definitely my second favorite holiday to celebrate. Second to Christmas of course. It is so fun to pass this tradition on to my children and watch them play with all their cousin's like we did when we were young. This year we even started a new tradition. My aunt rented an astro-jump for the afternoon and it was a huge hit. So much, that I think it will be something we do every year from now on. It was a great day as usual!

I'm also grateful to live in this beautiful Country. It may not be perfect, but I think its pretty darn good. We have so many opportunities here. Sure makes me thankful. Hope you all enjoyed your Canada Day!

Park Lake!

2011-06-30T07:52:00.000-07:00

We went to Park Lake yesterday. It was cloudy and overcast, and windy, but still warm. The kids had so much fun and I relaxed. It felt great and we're looking forward to this summer. Because the sun wasn't out much we failed to think much about sunscreen. Big mistake. We're all a little crispy, but in the end, it was worth it! And I think we've learned our lesson!

Daddy-o!

2011-06-21T20:32:00.000-07:00

Ryan is like the best dad ever! Really, he is. I'll tell ya why...

He works really hard for our family.

Any spare time he has (which isn't much) he's out working hard to give our children a nice backyard to play in.

He reads to our kids.

Taught the boys how to ride two-wheelers.

Took all three kids to Nate's T-ball games all by himself while I was at work.

Is Mr. Mom for two nights a week, while I'm at work.

Is affectionate with our kids and love's to give them hugs and cuddle's.

and the biggest way to see that he's the best Dad ever is how excited the kids get when he comes home from work! They adore him!

I am so grateful that my children have such a loving, hard working, and fun Dad. And especially a Father who honors his Priesthood and makes the gospel a priority in our life! He truly is the best!

I've been feeling pretty lousy lately, so Father's Day kind of crept up on me. I had all these fun idea's but actually executing them was another story. Luckily I have an amazing friend who takes amazing pictures. When I asked her very last minute (like the Friday before Father's Day), to take some fun pics for Father's Day, she found a fabulous idea of making a slideshow. It turned out awesome! She is really the bestest, and I'm grateful she helped me out. For the life of me, Ryan and Devon, we cannot get video's posted on my blog, so here are some pics from the slideshow. We put it to a song called Daddy-o by Frances England. I think it turned out perfectly!

Ryan loved it! How could he not with these three absolutely adorable little children!

Happy Father's Day Ry! We sure love ya!

2011-06-21T07:56:00.000-07:00

This is what happens when Daddy does McKenna's hair...

Pretty scary...although McKenna loved it and wore it it that way until we were leaving the house, and then Mommy put her foot down.

And...

A tea party with cheerio's! How fun!

Front entryway!

2011-06-18T08:01:00.000-07:00

Its been a long time since I've done a post on our new home. We are absolutely loving it, and really like being in Coalhurst. It feels like home. There is a lot of work to be done in the house and yard though. It will be a long process since we are saving for EVERYTHING! We need to finish the yard, the basement, need all new furniture throughout the house, and all those extra little things that make it special. The only thing that is done is the front entryway. It was the first and easiest because we didn't do that much to it, so its not very exciting, but I'm happy with it none-the-less. So here are the before and after pics...

Before

Nice and simple! I like it! We're not finished with the closet though. I have some fun plans for that! We really want to get our backyard done, but this rain has been making it very difficult. So if we ever get it done, that will be next for our little home!

Kindergarten graduation!

2011-06-08T11:30:00.001-07:00

If feels like it was just yesterday that I was blogging about Nate's first day. Remember, I left him crying...and now, we just went to his graduation. I can't believe how fast the school year has gone by. Nate has grown tons and has become smarter, and more confidant. He even know's how to read really, really good. We are so happy and impressed with the L.P.S.P program and with Nate's teacher's. He has learned so much, done some really fun things, and met some really special friends. I can't believe he will be going to grade 1 in just a few short months and will be gone from home ALL DAY! I think it will be harder for me.

The graduation started with the kids performing again the story reading they did at festival of "Where the Wild Things Are", then they dressed in their caps and gowns and did a grand march where each graduate was presented. They entertained us with a few songs, and then they were presented their diploma's. It was lots of fun, and we were so proud of Nate. Thank you to Grandpa and Grandma Olsen, Auntie Shannon, Lora, Ginger, and Devon for coming to support Nate! He loves each of you so much! After the graduation we celebrated at Mad Moe's with an ice cream treat!

Nate's whole class

Our little graduate

Nate receiving his diploma

Nate and his Teacher's

Nate and his best friend Tanner

Our family!

Finally...

2011-06-07T07:53:00.000-07:00

Nate learned how to ride a two-wheeler! He has had absolutely no desire until Saturday. We would try and get him on a bike and he would give it one try and stop. He loved his scooter and would sometimes ride the strider, and that was good enough for him. Ryan and I have mentioned to him a couple of times that we needed to get him a new bike this summer, so Saturday out of the blue he said to Ryan "Daddy I want to go get my new two-wheeler today". So Ryan told him if we got him one he had to learn, and not give up. He agreed and they went out and picked out a bike. About 4 helps from Daddy and he had it! Now he ride's all over the place and loves it! Of course after Nate learned Ty just had to learn too. So Ry took the training wheels off of Nate's old bike (Ty's been riding the strider), a couple of helps, and Ty had it too. The boys are loving the new freedom, and want to bike ride all day long. Too bad for this awful rain. Please come out Mr. sun, so I'll have two happy little boys!

Lethbridge Hawaii!

2011-05-31T07:57:00.001-07:00

Every year in Miss Pati's kindergarten class the kids do a fundraiser collecting bottles from family and friends to save up for a trip to Lethbridge Hawaii! It is the highlight of the whole Kindergarten year. What is Lethbridge Hawaii? Only the best school field trip ever! The week before they make up little passports with their picture on it and everything. Then they get plane and bus tickets. The class meets at the school at 1:00 in the afternoon and board the bus to the airport. The children get to tour the main terminal, have their passports stamped, enjoy a snack, and actually fly up in an airplane over the city. Then they take the bus to the Lethbridge Lodge where they go swimming, eat Hawaiian pizza and punch for dinner, watch a hula presentation and get to participate (which Nate wouldn't show me what he learned because its only for girls). They changed into their pajama's, then went for a sunset stroll where they got to souvenir shop, tour the hotel, and make a wish at the wishing bridge. They got ready for bed, then had bedtime stories, and everyone camped out in sleeping bags in the honeymoon suite! In the morning they are presented a Hawaiian t-shirt, they get dressed, and eat breakfast, then are picked up by their Mommies and Daddies with big smile's on their faces! Nate had so much fun! When we got home he showed us all his souvenirs and told us all about his trip to "Hawaii".

Nate with his plane ticket!

Nate with his souvenir's!

Mud!

2011-05-28T07:58:00.000-07:00

I'm kind of a sarcastic person who likes to joke around a lot. Sometimes I forget that my kids might not understand that kind of humor yet. McKenna was reading me books when I had a craving for oreo cookie ice cream. I didn't want to get ice cream out for all the kids (selfish, I know) so when I brought my bowl into the living room, I held it up high so McKenna couldn't see what was in it. She kept wanting to know what it was so I kept telling her it was mud. She would say "oh, mud." I finally brought it down so she could see what was in it, and started eating it. It definitely does not look like mud. She said "I don't like mud, but I like ice cream!" I thought she had it figured out, but when I offered her a bite she turned her head away disgusted. I couldn't stop laughing, but then felt bad for tricking her. I didn't know she would believe me after she actually saw the ice cream. I told her I was joking and convinced her to take a bite. Then we had a nice time sharing a bowl of ice cream. I hope she is always this trusting of her wise, all-knowing Mother!

Sunshine...

2011-05-27T12:38:00.000-07:00

if you can remember what that looks like anyway. Well before all this rain took over, we had a few really nice, beautiful sunshiny days. We definitely took advantage of them and I'm glad we did. On one of those beautiful days we met my sister in-law Britt, and two of my cousin's Ashley and Jessica and their kids at Henderson Lake. We had so much fun playing at the park. Then we had a picnic lunch and walked around the Lake. It was the perfect afternoon. We spent like 3 hours at the Lake. Then we went to Wendy's for some french fries and frosty's. I'm looking forward to some more outings like this, so please Mr. Sun, oh please come out so we can play with you!

Baby update: I'm 29 weeks and in my 7th month. I don't have a pic to show you yet, but I'm still pretty tiny (atleast thats what everyone keeps telling me!). At my last appointment they told me my iron is pretty low so I need to take some iron supplements. No wonder I've been extremely exhausted. Like so much, I can barely walk upstairs without passing out. I thought it was just normal pregnancy stuff, but apparently not. My doctor also reefed on my stomach trying to feel the baby and see what position he/she was in (I hate it when they do that...it stinkin hurts), only to tell me that I'm measuring quite small for my date's, so now I have another ultrasound scheduled for Monday. I guess its nice to get another glimpse at our little bean, but really, they did this with Ty too. They thought I was measuring small and he was my biggest baby! I guess better safe then sorry, but I'm sure everything is fine. I remember last time the tech was like "so why did they send you for another ultrasound!" Here's to hoping I will get the same response. When I found out I was going for another ultrasound I called Britteni to make sure she could come and watch the kids so that this time Ryan could come with me. When I mentioned that to him, he was like "what do you mean this time?" So I said "you couldn't come for my first one, remember?" He was like "um, ya, I was there!" I thought for a minute and then realized that yep, he was. Seriously the story of my life right now! I have preggo brain 24/7. I've forgotten what it feels like to be normal...but then I feel this little babe moving inside of me, like ALL THE TIME, and I remember that the sacrifice is worth it! I can't wait to meet this little bean!

We're also getting to the end of the school year. Lots of exciting things coming up for Nate. Like graduation, and his Lethbridge Hawaii trip is coming up on Monday! I know your all wondering what the heck is that. Well let me tell you, it will be fabulous and I know Nate will have a blast! I'll tell you all about it soon!

Mother's Day continued...

2011-05-13T18:33:00.000-07:00

First off, what the heck has been up with blogger? I couldn't get on it for days...so this is much later then I intended, not that there is much excitement to report on, just more for journaling purposes.

To be honest, Mother's Day is usually not a very exciting day for me. It has nothing to do with my family not spoiling me or making it special, but more that I feel the loss of my own Mother very strongly. First thing Sunday morning I decided I wasn't going to be depressed. I prayed to feel grateful and special, and to feel comforted and to feel my Mom close. It worked! I had a really nice day. Right as I finished my prayer Ryan and the kids brought me breakfast in bed. And Ryan let me rest a lot while he took care of the kids and everything throughout the day. On our way to church I realized I forgot to get flowers for my Mom's grave, so I was really hoping we would get flowers at church (I usually don't want flowers and usually want chocolate), so of course, we got chocolate! Which was great for me and I definitely enjoyed it. My bestest friend came over later and cooked me a fabulous spaghetti dinner and I had a nice visit with her and the kids got to play with their Auntie Ginger. We all went to my Mom's grave site in the evening and the kids even made foam flowers for her. Then we headed back to our house for some yummy dessert! It was really a wonderful day! I am so grateful for all the love and support, and wonderful people that I have in my life! My husband is truly incredible! And I have beautiful children who tell me they love me and always want to hug and cuddle. I am one lucky Mama! I'm grateful for this little bean growing inside of me, and for the trust that Heavenly Father put in me to raise these children. I am grateful to be a Mom!

Mother's Day!

2011-05-09T14:30:00.000-07:00

First of all, let me say Happy Mother's day to all you amazing Woman out there! Mother's day for me has always been more about Womanhood then actually having children. A time to celebrate the special qualities that only a Woman has. I feel very blessed to be a Woman, and a Mother, and am grateful for the wonderful example that my Mother has always been to me. She is the most selfless, loving, and accepting person I have ever known and I will spend the rest of my earthly life trying to emulate her!

Mother's day started for me Friday morning. Ryan took the day off so that I could go to the Mother's day party that Nate's Kindergarten class was putting on for their Mom's. We had an hour of yummy food, pampering, and entertainment. As each Mother entered the classroom, their child met them at the door, said "thank you for coming", and took us to our seats where they pulled out our chairs for us, and gave us a little firefly pin to pin on ourselves. Once all the Mother's were seated our children served us angel food cake with strawberry's and whip cream, and punch. While we ate they did a little fashion show for us. Modeling very fun and unique hats. Here is a pic of Nate with his golf hat...

It was so cute. Our child then cleared our plates, then we moved to a bigger area and the kids did a little dance for us, which they then taught to us! Then they sang us a special song! When we went back into the classroom, the kids had a gift for us, which we couldn't open until Sunday. It was so nice and special! The perfect start to Mother's day! Here's Nate after they performed their song...

We headed home for some lunch, and then Ryan and the kids drove me to Fort Macleod to meet my Mother in-law and sister in-law. Here's a pic of Ty falling asleep on the drive there...

I said goodbye to my family and headed to Calgary for a weekend of girl time, pampering, and spiritual uplifting! First we did some shopping, ate dinner, and then went and got pedicure's done. Here is my finished product...

Then we headed to Time Out for Woman where we listened to some fabulous speakers. We got back to our hotel pretty late but were hungry so we ordered some food, then went to bed. We ordered breakfast in the morning, and then headed back to Time Out for Woman. We spent the whole day there listening, learning, laughing, and feeling inspired to be better, but to also love and appreciate who we already are. The conference theme was about becoming. What we can become and what we want to become. It was very, very good, and inspired and motivated me. The biggest thing I took away was that sometimes I tend to put myself in this Motherhood bubble. There are so many things I "can't or shouldn't" do because I'm a Mother (this is probably the reason that so many woman say they lose themselves as their rearing small children), but that anything is possible. Raising our children is the most important job we will do but that doesn't mean that we can't still learn and grow in other ways, and do the things that make us happy as well. It was a really good conference. A perfect pre-Mother's day weekend. I had such a fun time with Connie and Jacki and am so grateful for their example's, but especially their friendships! On our drive back home I was wishing we were staying just one more night, but it was exciting to see Ryan and my little kiddies cute little faces! I looked at them and saw just a little glimpse in their excited and happy faces the way THEY see me and it felt so great and wonderful! Sunday was also a fabulous day, but I'll continue that post tomorrow. I've already spent enough time on my blog. So....

To be continued...

Easter!

2011-04-27T14:50:00.000-07:00

We had a very busy weekend! Easter started for us Thursday morning when Nate had his Easter party at school. I had to make him an Easter basket (which I forgot to take a picture of), which I am so proud of. I'm really not a crafty person, so if it all holds together and looks decent, then I am happy! I also made him an Easter tie. All the boys wore tie's and the girls bonnets! They all looked so cute!

Nate and his friend Tanner

All the boys in their Easter Tie's

His whole class

Thursday/Friday we moved. Saturday morning the Easter bunny came and left some surprises for the kids and later in the afternoon we headed to Grandma Shurtz's house to color eggs and then find them after the Dad's (and a really awesome uncle) hid them in the backyard. We had a nice taco dinner and a great time visiting! The weather was beautiful, so the kids spent most of day outside.

Some pics of the kids on their easter egg hunt

Sunday Devon and I decided to do Easter dinner for my family in my new house. We made a turkey and a ham, mashed potato's, corn, carrots, and stuffing! It was lots of fun and it turned out delicious! We also had cherry cheesecake and mars bars rice krispie square's for dessert. Everyone in my family was able to make it. Even Dad and Penny, and Cody brought one of his room mate's. We had a nice visit and then went for a walk around the little lake by our house. It was fun to host the dinner and I'm excited to finally be in a house where I can do that. Grandpa and Penny even brought Easter buckets full of wonderful things for the kids.

On our walk around our little Lake

McKenna is learning to ride the strider

Sunday we also sat down with the kids and talked about the Savior and the atonement. Of course, that is the main reason we have Easter! I am definitely grateful for the personal relationship that I have with my Savior. I have had to lean on him a lot the last few years and I have always felt him and know that he is near. He has carried me through some tough times. I am especially grateful that he died for me. That through him, I can return to live with my Heavenly Father, and those who have gone on before me again. What a blessing!

It has been a very fun, but very busy weekend! It is nice to have some quiet, peaceful days until Nate goes back to school. I love days where you can just enjoy each other and not have huge lists of things to do! So, here's to the rest of Easter holidays...you will find me at home, just being a Mom!

New house tour!

2011-04-23T21:36:00.000-07:00

Well, we are officially moved into our new house! It has been quite a busy couple of days but we are getting settled, and definitely love it here. It already feels like home! We had so many people helping us out and I am seriously so grateful for all of you! Here are some pics of the house when we first arrived for our walk through. These are the before pics with no furniture. We will be slowly putting the finishing touches on it and will have to concentrate on one room at a time, but when a room is completed, I promise to share with all of you!

Sorry, no pic of the front of the house.

The front entryway

Front room

Front room from dining nook

Dining nook and back door from front room. The random door is our half bath/laundry combo

Dining nook and back door

Kitchen from dining nook

Half bath off the front room

My laundry room (closet) from the half bath

Stairways from front room

Upstairs: Master bedroom from doorway

master bedroom from our ensuite

our ensuite

our walk-in closet

upstairs hallway from our bedroom

upstairs bathroom

The kids's bedrooms are typical rooms with big closets, and then we have our unfinished basement. We love it and are getting settled quite nicely. I'll keep you updated on the progress we make.

Lately!

2011-04-18T11:33:00.000-07:00

We have been busy, busy. Here are a few things we have been doing:

-a lot of packing and organizing of course! I've been packing a little here and there over the last two weeks, but am now in panic mode because we only have 3 days left! THREE! Can you believe it? I am so excited! We take possession on Thursday so Ryan and I will start moving and unpacking some things and then Friday all the Olsen men are coming in to move the big stuff, while us woman unpack at the new house. I cannot wait until we are all settled.

-We had our last day in Primary on Sunday. Ryan and I teach the 7-8 yr olds. The kids love their classes and their teachers so it was hard to say goodbye but we're excited to meet new people and make new friends in our new ward. We have one more week in 10th ward but will only stay for sacrament. We have loved every minute of being in the 10th ward!

-We have been busy with Nate's Kindergarten. He had a snack day (muffins and cheese strings, with juice), we had his last gym and swim day at the YMCA. We all got to go and play in the gym for an hour and they had a huge astro jump set up. All the kids had so much fun. He had festival where his class did a reading of "Where the Wild Things Are". It was so cute! They did a good job. They've been learning the alphabet and Nate was assigned the 'N' bag. We had to collect up to 5 objects that he could take that started with the letter 'N', and he had to memorize a little poem and recite it to the class. On Friday I got to go to school with Nate for a day of Science. The kids got to go to 4 different science stations and learn about being an Astronomer, a Meteorologist, a Chemist, and a Paleontologist. Me and another Mom were in charge of the astronomy station. We both had a fun day! Last night I was making an Easter basket for Nate's Easter party. Its a surprise for the kids. Now I just have to decorate it! I also need to make him an Easter Tie for his party as well. His party is on Thursday and then he has a week off for Easter holidays! It will be nice to have a little break from Kindergarten. I can't believe he only has 2 months left!

-Nate's supposed to start T-ball tomorrow, but I don't see that happening because of the weather, so maybe Thursday.

-We went to Okotoks on Saturday with all my family to celebrate the April birthdays in our family. We had a fun day! A very yummy ham dinner, did some shopping, and watched Tangled. It was nice to spend some time with Grandpa and Penny. The only downfall was leaving at 9:00pm and having to drive home in a snowstorm. We didn't get home until 12:00am.

Nate and Grandpa playing a game!

My cute girl reading all of Penny's books!

The girls waiting patiently for cake!

-Yesterday was my 30th bday. Yes, I am the big 3-0. I still feel like I'm 23 though. It was a nice relaxing day. We went to church and the primary sang happy birthday to me and I got a chocolate bar. Ryan and the kids got me Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, and cooked all the meals, and let me relax all afternoon. I had a nice hot bath and a nap. I got lots of birthday phone calls and birthday wishes on facebook, and later in the evening my sister in-law Shannon brought me over a piece of chocolate cream pie. It was a good bday!

My next post will be a tour of my new house! Stay tuned...

23 weeks!

2011-04-10T18:23:00.001-07:00

I will officially be 23 weeks in 2 days, which means I'm starting my 6th month. It's going by quite fast, but I guess thats to be expected being busy with 3 other little one's. This has definitely been my hardest pregnancy. Even though everyone tells me how tiny I am for 6 months, I feel like I'm nine months. I'm already always uncomfortable, have a hard time sleeping, and am still feeling yucky at times. I am exhausted ALL THE TIME! Most of you are probably saying "well, what did you expect? you are pregnant", but this is new for me because my other three pregnancy's were so much easier. With all the complaining aside...we are really excited to add an addition to our family. The best part about it is feeling this little bean moving inside of me all the time! I love the excitement and the questions that the kids have and I know they will love and adore this baby so much. Now, only 4 months to go!

Packing!

2011-04-09T14:58:00.000-07:00

That's it. Thats what I've been doing. 12 more days!

Not much.

2011-03-23T16:27:00.000-07:00

Not much going on here at the Olsen house. I should be packing, but I'm not. I went to Nate's Kindergarten for an observation day. It went really well. Nate is coming out of his shell and has improved so much on being comfortable and confident in a big group. His reading has improved a ton too, and he's starting to use so much expression when he reads. He's reading Charlie and the Chocolate Factory right now and is loving it! Its fun to watch his world grow and his little mind grow with it.

I'm 20 weeks along now and even have a little bump! My ultrasound is tomorrow and I promise to do my next post strictly on the little bean, with a picture and everything. We have definitely been enjoying the warmer weather! Even though it has been snowing its nice to go outside without gloves and a toque and without pretty much freezing our butts off. Can't wait until the snow melts and its gone for good! Seriously, things are pretty boring around here. Here's a few pics that might excite you a little more then this post!

Okay, so McKenna doesn't look so excited or thrilled to say the least with getting her picture taken, but she's still cute, right.

Okay, not really exciting either, but there is something so precious about little kids falling asleep in the middle of the floor!

Okay, again not really exciting, but look at Bella's cute face! They had a fun little sleepover! Much more fun then it looks.

This one might have hit the jackpot for ya! Or at least made you smile. What a character!

Okay, so maybe this post didn't get much more exciting, but its your own fault for reading...the title is "Not much".

Lucky!

2011-03-18T11:28:00.000-07:00

Lucky the leprechaun came to our house yesterday while the kids were playing downstairs. He left his green little footprints all over our house!

He left little messages telling us what he had been doing in our house while we weren't looking, and then the kids had to do what Lucky did. We first followed his footsteps to the table where he had written his name.

Next he lead us to the T.v, where he left the kids a quiz about some of their favorite show's and movie's! The kids aced it!

Next he took us up to the boys room where he read a book!

Next we went to McKenna's room where Lucky had started a puzzle but needed a little help finishing it!

Back downstairs to the computer where Lucky watched some of his favorite you tube video's. He left the preview of Charlie and the Chocolate factory for us to watch! (Nate's reading the book and is a little obsessed. I hear him and Ty playing it all the time).

We followed his steps to the bathroom where he made silly faces in the mirror! Here are each of the kids silly faces:

Next he lead us to the fridge where he told us he was tired and had to go home, but that he had so much fun playing at our house. For letting him stop by he left us a pot of gold (aka candy!) to enjoy! Thanks Lucky! Hope you come again next year!

Catch up!

2011-03-13T10:19:00.000-07:00

Wow. I feel like I've been MIA lately. Not only from blogging, but from the rest of the world. It started a week ago with Ty getting sick, then Nate, then McKenna, and now I'm getting past the worst of it. Its been a full week of non-stop sickness. There is finally a light at the end of the tunnel and I'm hoping to greet the world happily tomorrow! The crazy thing about this LONG and BORING week, is that some exciting things have actually happend! I guess there will always be positive's with the negative's...sometimes they're harder to spot but they're always there none-the-less. Our's this week were the definite easy to spot kind! Here they are...

While we were at home all week little Miss McKenna learned to go on the potty like the big girl that she is always telling me she is! We've tried a couple of times throughout the last year but she never took to it, or even seemed interested in the slightest. This time she was ready, and let me tell you, it was easy peasy! The first day she had a couple of accidents, but since then, she's been accident free, and is even dry when she wakes up in the night! We are all quite proud of her. When she was sick and had the dreaded D symptoms, I thought for sure we were done for and she would regress, but she made it to the toilet every time all on her own. She is quite amazing and after changing diapers for the last 6 years (yes, 6 continuous years), I finally get a little break from the diaper arena! I am thrilled!

We started a new tradition that the kids and I are quite excited about! My Sister in-law's boyfriend just opened up a new pizza place in town, so Ryan's been delivering pizza's for them on Friday nights. We don't see him all day, so its a long day for us. This Friday McKenna and I weren't feeling good so I had Ryan pull Ty's mattress into the living room and we pretty much lived there. So in the evening I pulled our old crib mattress down for McKenna and made a bed on the couch for Nate and we had a big ol' slumber party. We had snacks and watched a movie, and then the boys and I slept there all night, while McKenna went and slept with Daddy when he got home. It was fun and the kids loved it! Definitely our new Friday night tradition! The funnier part is the boys kept saying "I'm tired, when is this going to be over" then I would say "you can just close your eye's and go to sleep, you don't have to watch the whole movie". They didn't quite understand that. After the movie was over they were quite excited that they could finally go to sleep. Hopefully they'll catch on as the time goes on.

Of course the best news and definitely most exciting is that we bought a house! Aaahhhh! Can you believe it! We are finally going to be home owners! We've been planning and preparing to build this summer (and even had our house plans done), but decided that it just wasn't the right thing for us to do right now. It wasn't good timing with the baby coming and would be too much stress and work that we just weren't quite ready for. We started looking for newer homes with unfinished basements so we could finish the basement ourselves over the next couple of years, and found something quite perfect. The way everything just fell into place and worked out just makes it seem like it was meant to be! Its a cute little two-story home not too far from where we live now (not about to announce it here on my very public blog). We take possession April 21st. I am so excited! Its definitely smaller then the house we were planning to build, but I think its the perfect first step for us! Can't wait to post some pics and give you all the grand tour!

See. There are positive's during the hard times in our lives! The kids and I are all staying home from church today, just to be sure we don't spread any of our unwanted germs and Ty and McKenna have been crying and whining for the last 10 minutes cause they want to go go...think this will last into their teenage years? A mother can dream! Sorry no pics this post, but there will be some soon to come!

She's Three!

2011-03-06T08:45:00.000-08:00

Last weekend we had a dinner with the Malacko clan to celebrate all the February birthdays at my Dad's house in Lethbridge. We did it in the name of all the birthdays for the month, but it was mostly for McKenna. We had a nice dinner, McKenna opened her gifts, busted open a pinuata (or as Ty calls it a Prada), and ate delicious cake. We had lots of fun and it was nice to spend some time with Dad and Penny.

Sleeping Beauties!

2011-02-25T07:29:00.001-08:00

Yesterday was my second attempt at potty training McKenna. It started out a little rocky but by the end of the night she told Ryan twice that she had to go (once #1 and once #2) and did both times. Maybe this time this will go somewhere! We'll see how today goes.

The other day our Olsen cousin's came to play! Here is a pic! Can you believe I had so much cuteness at one time in my living room! We really love playing with these kids!

I love how Nate is so into his book, he could care less about the pic!

Baby girl!

2011-02-22T12:50:00.001-08:00

My baby girl is three today! Here's a little reminiscing of how things all began with her!

July 13, 2007

"We just found out that I'm pregnant again! It was quite a shock. We were being really responsible and not expecting it at all. But we're really excited and I know that this baby needs to come now. I really hope its a girl. But I guess we'll see. I'm due Feb 17, so Ty and the baby will be like a year apart. Crazy! I'm nervous and scared but I know I can do it because I have lots of help."

Feb 20, 2008

"Well, I'm still pregnant...but I've been getting contractions that I can feel all morning and I lost my mucous plug so at least I know its coming soon. The contractions aren't too hard, I can still walk and talk through them, so Ryan went to work. No point in him waiting around here when it could be awhile before I'm in hard labor. He's still planning on taking the boys out to Cardston today. He has a job out there so the plan is for him to take the boys out around 11:00am and then do the job. So if nothing changes with these contractions then that is still a go. I hope it all works out. I need these boys gone. I'm just too tired and cranky to deal with it."

March 2, 2008

"This has been the longest week of my life! First of all McKenna was born @ 4:41am on Feb. 22. It seemed like a long labor, but the easiest. I was getting contractions for 2 days but they would be regular for awhile then completely stop for awhile, and they were always 5 min apart or more and not too strong. It was a little frustrating. Connie had the boys so I was able to relax. Then @ 11:00pm on the 21st they started getting closer so we headed to the hospital. I was already dilated to 7 cm and the labor hadn't even been that bad. I was like Yeah! This is going to go quick. But like 5 hours later I had her. I got the epidural though so I didn't even feel any of the hard stuff. I pushed her out in about 10min. She weighed 7 pds 7 oncs and about 19 3/4 inches long. We only stayed in the hospital for like 13 hours. I wanted to get the heck out of there, and McKenna and I were both doing well enough. She is so beautiful! We all just adore her! She's a week old now and is doing very well and growing tons. This has been my fastest recovery. I'm doing very good. I tried nursing the first day but when it started to get hard I decided to not even try anymore. I've actually really been enjoying McKenna at the newborn stage. Ryan's been home all week so Its been nice. Regular life will start again tomorrow."

I'm so glad you came when you did McKenna Ray! You are an important piece of our family and we love you tons! Happy Birthday!

reading books!

2011-02-20T10:35:00.000-08:00

Ryan and I both love to read, so we are thrilled that all of our kids love to read too. Before Nate was even born his auntie Ginger bought him a basket full of books. He loved books from a very young age. When he was a year old if he was really quiet for a long time, I knew that he was looking at his books. He'd sit by his basket and pull them out one at a time and look through them. He would spend a half hour doing this. Ryan and I were quite surprised that at 4 years old, he started to memorize the sight of words and pretty soon was reading children's books on his own just from word recognition. When he received his first letter from Kindergarten just before he started he could read pretty much the whole letter by himself. Ryan and I were so impressed. I wish we could take credit for this, but he pretty much did it on his own. Now he is already reading young children's novels! It is still so shocking to me that he taught himself to read. Although I don't expect for this to occur with Ty and McKenna, I love how Nate is such a good example to them, and they too love to read. I will find them all sitting like this a lot:

Now if you look really closely, you will see a little toy in each of their hand. Nate started doing this a long time ago. Whenever he read he would have a little toy in his hand that he would follow the words with. Now Ty and McKenna do the same thing.

I think it is so cute and funny! I'm so glad that they love to read! I hope it lasts forever.

My Man!

2011-02-15T07:35:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday to my handsome, and amazing husband! For the boys birthday's I posted bits from my journal on their births, and well, since I wasn't there when my dear husband was born I went directly to the source! So here are some words from my fantastic Mother in-law...see girls, its very important to keep a record of these things!

"On February 15, 1982, our second beautiful boy was born. Sunday the 14th, I was very tired of being pregnant so I took castor oil but Ryan wasn't born till Monday afternoon at 4:05. Dr. Sefcik broke my water at 11 am, then after 3 hours of nothing, suddenly the pains started at 2 pm and it only took 2 hours. Dr. Sefcik was at a clinic in Stand Off and didn't make it back in time. It was an easy delivery so the nurses didn't have much problem. Cheryl Beazer was the nurse that delivered him. Ryan's birth was a beautiful experience. I had no painkillers so I was very much awake. (The smell of Roy's hamburger and fries made me very sick though!) As soon as he was born, they laid him on my stomach and there he lay, just crying his heart out. I kept patting him and telling him not to cry! The doctor stayed right in the room with us for about an hour as we marvelled over this brand new person. He was a nice 7 lb 7 oz and 19 3/4 inches long. Dr. Sefcik had me get up off the delivery table and walk back to my room. I was very shaky. My mom had phoned the hospital 3 or 4 times and finally got the news. I was very tired afterward which took me several weeks to get over.
We couldn't decide on a name for this new little one for quite awhile. Nothing seemed right. (especially when everyone told me it was going to be a girl!) Finally, the day I was to leave the hospital we stood around for a half hour throwing names around. I had been reading a book in which there was a man named Timothy Ryan and I liked the name Ryan so I said "Ryan-----Matthew, for Roy's grandfather. It just seemed to be right.
Ryan slept through the night at 6 weeks and was a very good baby. David called him Rynan.

Happy 29th Birthday Ry, we love you!!
Mom"

I am so grateful to this wonderful, amazing woman who raised my equally amazing husband! Everyday I marvel at how perfectly suited we are for each other and I have no doubts that are meeting was inspired! The older you get Ry, the more I love you!

Happy Birthday!

15 weeks!

2011-02-14T08:59:00.000-08:00

Last week I said goodbye to my first trimester and hello to the second! This was a highly anticipated transition, and although I didn't magically feel better as soon as I hit 14 weeks like I had hoped, I am definitely feeling better and things are looking up! I am still pretty tired, but am no longer feeling sick all day long. Usually in the evenings I get hit with a bit of nausea and I am still careful what I eat in the evenings, but have been puke free for a couple of weeks. I've been getting a lot of headache's, but other then that I'm feeling pretty good. I was able to hear the little bean's heartbeat a few weeks ago. It really doesn't get old and it makes you realize that you truly are growing a little life inside of you. What a special feeling! The kids ask lots of question's and are really excited to have a new brother or sister. Every time I eat something Ty and McKenna will say "is that for your baby?". They are so cute and I love their interest and their questions. I thought about adding a picture but you really can't see a baby bump yet. There is a little one, but not one that would be noticed by most. I'm looking forward to a little bump to start to grow, for my upcoming ultrasound (no, sadly we aren't finding out the sex this time), and to feel some movements! I love the second trimester!

My friend Devon has an amazing Motherhood Project that she's working on this year. Once a month she's featuring Mother's at different phases. The Mom will answer some questions about Motherhood and of course there will be some stunning photo's of the Mom and her children doing things they love to do together. It is really inspiring and special so I urge you to check out her blog once a month. We will be featured at some point and I'm really looking forward to it. Go to devondurocher.com and click on her blog to check out her feature of the beautiful Jessica and her darling lady London. The pictures are to die for!

down the toilet!

2011-02-10T07:22:00.000-08:00

Nate's favorite Grandma Kim story:

When my Mom was young she was using the washroom and as she bent over to flush the toilet her glasses fell off into the toilet and were flushed down the toilet! She came out of the bathroom crying and upset cause they were gone.

Nate tells me atleast once a day that he'll never flush his glasses down the toilet like Grandma Kim and he and Ty usually have a good laugh over it!

Thanks Auntie Terry for telling us that story! It warms my heart and brings a smile to my face when the kids talk about their Grandma Kim!

Family Pic!

2011-01-30T14:12:00.001-08:00

We got our newest family pic on canvas. I'm really bad at sizing (I'd have to check with Devon for the exact size) but Ryan guesses 24x36. Its big and beautiful! I love it! Of course the above picture doesn't do it justice. Now I wish I had a big, beautiful front room to put it in. Oh well, I guess our little, hand me down everything living room will have to do for now.

I forgot to mention we had an Olsen family bday party for all the January birthdays. Everyone came over to our house for yummy stew, delicious homemade buns (good job Shan!), and ice cream cake. Then we played Kinect and had a good visit. Here are the two birthday boys! Ty and Steve.

My two cuties that I get to spend my days with!

Remember my last post of Nate with his new glasses. Well Ty asks and cries for his own glasses everyday. If he only knew.

Just an update: I'm almost 13 weeks and have been feeling much better. Still feel pukey sometimes and am extremely exhausted, but its not nearly as bad. And I haven't actually puked in almost a week! (knock on wood). I feel like a new person! It feels great!

New Look!

2011-01-29T15:07:00.000-08:00

This boy can rock any look!

I think he looks so smart and handsome!

Woody's Round-up!

2011-01-28T08:23:00.000-08:00

Saturday we celebrated Ty's 4th Bday. I woke up that morning feeling relaxed, no stress, had no reason to rush around doing any last minute things. How is this possible you say...because I had to do absolutely NOTHING for this party but show up. My amazing friend Devon and sister Ginger did everything. The invites, the decorations, the cake, the food, the games, and the party favors. They did a fabulous job and we all had a fantastic time, especially Ty! Thanks girls! Your the bestest!

Feelin Good!

2011-01-22T07:16:00.001-08:00

It feels good to forgive and forget and move on. It feels good to stop feeling sorry for myself and to feel grateful...

grateful for this life growing inside of me...

grateful for being surrounded by amazing and supportive people...

grateful to be loved so completely by an amazing Man (seriously Ry, you have been there for me in every way possible these last few weeks! Thank you, thank you, thank you!)...

grateful that Heavenly Father let me be the Mother of three precious and beautiful spirits...

grateful that Heavenly Father listens to me, answers my prayers, and helps me move forward!

I am so blessed, and it Feels Good!

lessons learned!

2011-01-20T11:41:00.000-08:00

You all remember my last entry about having my feelings hurt after being what I felt was an attack on a comment I made on a friends blog. It has been an amazing learning experience for me, and even though I was hurt and my ideas and beliefs were challenged, it felt good to think about the reason's I believe what I do, and it only reaffirmed what I already knew to be true. I want to share these things on my blog for all of you, but especially for me. When I make my 2011 book, it will be in there for me to read and remember, because its a lesson I may need to be reminded of over and over again. Its going to be long, so bare with me, and I will completely understand if you don't read it all. I of course won't post everything, but just the things that I feel are important and that I want to remember.

It all started when I read a friend of mine (whom I'll refer to as H)'s blog. She wrote a very personal experience about a very real thing for a lot of women, including me at times, She talked about the awful feelings and thoughts about not being an adequate Mother, about feeling like she made a mistake in thinking she could do this, and that she didn't want to do it anymore. She also talked about an answer through prayer that she received through her little boy, that made her want to try harder and be better. It was beautifully said and I for one was grateful for her honesty. I commented about how I felt the same way and talked a bit about my experiences and then I said that these feelings were normal but not right. That Heavenly Father didn't intend for us to be unhappy in this calling. I felt good about what I said, but later when I checked to see some of the responses and advice that she got, one of her follower's totally dissed my comment, making me feel really bad. I wrote back making sure H new what I meant and that I didn't hurt her feelings, then I politely told N that she said some hurtful things and that I thought it was uncalled for. Anyway, she wrote back saying she was sorry for hurting my feelings, but that what I said was damaging to young lds women and that she stood by what she said. So I wrote a response back to defend myself and my beliefs. I'm still undecided as to if I should send it to her or not, but I would like to share my answer now, on my blog, because its something I believe in strongly and want to remember.

"I appreciate your response, but feel that we have differing views on this. I think you got to explain why you feel the way you do, so I would like to explain why I feel the way I do. I’m not trying to change your opinion, but only defend my reasons. First I would like to say that what someone says reflects who they are, so when you attack someone’s words, you are attacking them. I did feel attacked. I’ve had a hard couple of years with some very hard circumstances and struggles and it’s been a long time since I’ve truly felt good about myself. That is a journey that I am facing and I am slowly putting the pieces back together and am trying to find that inner happiness within myself. Just because you have a different opinion then someone else it doesn’t mean you should tear their opinion down and say unkind and offensive things to prove your opinion or ideas. There is a much nicer way to do it.

You assumed right. I always think about a response before I say it, especially with something so raw and personal as what H shared with us. I meant what I said. Of course we’re not going to be happy all the time. Nobody enjoys “cleaning up messes all day long”. I will always hate potty training my kids, but we are not talking about little things like that. We were talking about feeling so bad and having such awful thoughts that we “wish we were doing something else” or that we “regret having kids”. To me, those are serious, and dangerous thoughts. Are they normal, yes. Many women feel that way. I have felt that way. Are they rational? No. They are dangerous. Is it right for us to regret having kids? NO it is not. When we feel those feelings, do we like it? No. Does it scare us? Yes. So what do we do. We pray, we find anything that will help us be happy again, that will help us enjoy our lives. I know women personally who have let those feelings fester and do nothing about them. They feel justified in feeling those things and they spend less and less time with their kids, and more time doing things for themselves and it has caused problems in their marriage. Women leave their kids and husbands searching for a more selfish kind of happiness. I’ve worked with women who have gotten their children taken away from them because they didn’t want to take care of them. Are these extremes? Yes. But they’re real things that are happening to good people. My comment was for H, because I knew she would know what I was talking about and not be offended or be hurt by my comment. We have discussed this and she wasn’t. She understood what I was saying. Does she agree with me? I don’t know, that’s not the point. But atleast she knows that I cared enough to share my experiences and ideas. When you share something like that, your going to get opinions and advice that you don’t agree with or will never try. The point is you see the support and friendships that you have to help you get through it. She said she didn’t want “any pats on the back” and that’s what I did. I told her how I felt about it, and I stand by that. It’s normal to feel those things, but it’s not right. We should do everything we can to move ourselves away from those destructive thoughts.

Motherhood IS a calling from God. He does want us to be happy in this calling. Will we be all the time? No. Does he know that? Yes. But he also trusts us to do all that we can to find that happiness. To be good Mother’s, and to take are job seriously and do the best that we can. It’s a journey different for each of us, but he wants the same outcome for all of us. My friend said it best when she said “so just b/c our thoughts or feelings are human nature...doesn’t mean we should encourage them and coddle ourselves and not learn or grow or try to change our thoughts or bad feelings...about motherhood, about life, about ourselves...about anything...

you allow yourself to feel those thoughts and then move on..move up..move forward...that is why we are here...bottom line.”

I guess we will just have to agree to disagree on this matter. Are my ideas flawed or dangerous? No. Are yours? No. They are just different. What works for you, may not work for me. That’s okay. If we’re both happy, and are learning, and growing, and are striving to be something better, then that’s the most important thing. I don’t expect you to respond. I think we both said how we felt and explained why. That’s the beautiful thing about differing opinions. Sometimes your ideas will change and grow into something more, or sometimes it will just reaffirm even more strongly the things you already believed. I just ask that you be careful how you express your opinions and not do it by tearing other’s opinions and ideas down.

Good luck to you in all you do

Kelli Olsen"

I sent my response to my dearest friend Devon to see what she thought. She truly is my soul sister. We are very different people with very different personality's but we are both passionate about the same things and have the same beliefs about pretty much everything. She wrote this response back to me, which I thought was beautiful and inspiring, and so true. Again, sorry for the length, but these are very important things to remember!

"I think that regardless if you send this or not..that 2 things happened here as a result of this situation:

1. By stating your original thoughts and then by having them challenged like they were in a public way you perhaps created a moment for any other woman who read what transpired to dig deep and decide how they felt about the negative thoughts in their life. Will they all agree with you? Perhaps not, but maybe one will...maybe the next time her readers feel like motherhood is a noose around her neck- there may be a small voice that whispers to her that there is no greater calling..that joy in motherhood is possible..and is of God. There may be a voice that reaffirms the power of your words.

2. And perhaps most important... This incident reaffirmed what YOU know to be true. So when YOU have those feelings of inadequacy, when you feel like motherhood is a noose around your neck..then perhaps what you have said here is an affirmation of the testimony you have that motherhood is a divine calling from God, it will give you the strength to get through the rough moments, because you know in your heart that there is joy to be had, that you have been blessed beyond your ability to comprehend with these glorious little spirits, because Heavenly Father trusted you enough.

I truly believe that this has been one of God's tender mercies, and although it may have felt harsh and hurt your feelings, the lesson you are learning far outweighs the momentary hurt that it caused. Heavenly Father knows you. Without a doubt, he knows your name, your strengths and every one of your weaknesses - He sent his son, our savior to feel each one of your sorrows and heartaches and every feeling of sadness and inadequacies. he felt it all- collectively for all of us, but most importantly individually for you. If you were the only one ever to be sent to this earth..Christ would have still died for you..it's really quite humbling..reminds me often that I can overcome all things.

And so maybe my friend 3 things have come from this...another tender mercy..perhaps you have reminded me (not a mother- and because of that I have my own self pitying thoughts) that I should step up and fulfill my divine calling here on earth, you have reaffirmed my belief in a Father in Heaven who ultimately sent us here to find joy..that we might overcome the natural man to become like our savior.

So friend maybe it did not feel at the time like this was a life lesson, or a blessing...but I think that indeed it is. I said it before and I will say it again..even though many times I will stumble, and forget..many times the weight of motherhood for you, and the lack of motherhood for me will cause us to be filled with self pity, despair and heartache...

Joy is of God. He provided a way that we might find happiness in ALL things..Satan is the father of despair..it is as simple as that.

As women, no matter what our trials are..we must remember who we are, who we have been sent to be, who we can become..step up and rise to the occasion. Despite all of those voices in our heads that tell us we can't, or we shouldn't have to, or it is too hard...I know that you and I can.

That was a long winded response sorry, but these words are coming a mile a minute and I feel impressed to write them, perhaps more for me even..to remind myself of who I am.

Your response was so articulate, so pure and true..and brave. Whether you send it or not..learn the lesson that Heavenly Father is placing before you as a result of this...see this as a tender mercy..and feel reaffirmed in your testimony of your divine and sacred calling.

I love you! I'm grateful that we have these moments as friends and sisters where our spirits feel as though they are one! I almost want to thank that woman for providing a way for this to happen..I think I needed it.

Have a good day, drink some Ginger tea :)

If you need me. I'm here"

Isn't she the bestest! I just really want to thank all you amazing Women out there who are giving it your all. You have all been such good examples to me and I really enjoy reading your blogs! I know that Heavenly Father appreciates all that you do and will be there for you when you need him! Love you!

Feelings hurt.

2011-01-19T10:00:00.001-08:00

I just had such a bad blogger experience. Its probably because I'm pregnant, and crazy emotional, but it still hurt. A friends blog that I read was sharing about a really hard time that she's going through that I can totally relate to because I've had the same feelings. I commented (because thats what we do, right) and the next person that commented came right out and said "whoa I can't believe Kelli just said that" and then dissed me a whole bunch of times by saying "she's completely wrong and off the mark" that I "kicked this girl while she was already down" and that I was "spiritually immature". I couldn't believe it. I went back to read my friends comments to see if anyone else had good advice, because I have felt the way she was feeling, and read somebody completely dissing me. I felt awful, then I felt like I had to apologize to this friend because I said something wrong. I didn't think I was saying something wrong, maybe I'm just not as good as expressing myself as others are. Anyway, I've been sitting here trying not to get emotional and let it bother me, but it is, so I'll vent about it on my blog because I know you guys will understand and not judge me for it!

Ty!

2011-01-19T09:33:00.000-08:00

For Nate's birthday I posted a few things from my journals about when I found out I was pregnant, being pregnant right before I delivered, and then right after I delivered, so I wanted to do the same for all my kids, but of course I'm not a perfect journal keeper so I don't have anything written about when I found out I was pregnant with Ty. So here's just a few things I remember:

As soon as Ryan and I agreed we were ready to start trying for another baby, boom, I was pregnant. We were so excited, and both wanted a boy so that Nate would have a brother. I remember being exhausted, and feeling yucky, but I didn't really throw up. I remember laying on the couch a lot for the first couple of months.

Jan. 16, 2007

Well yesterday was my due date yet Ty is still not in my arms. I should have known better. Now I'm just hoping I don't have to be induced! I'm hoping I go into labor before Friday. C'mon Ty, I know you want to come home! I'm so tired of being pregnant! I'm exhausted, uncomfortable, emotional, and I don't sleep at night. Every women should just have their baby on their due date. It would make life easier. But I guess life isn't supposed to be easy, only worth it!

Jan. 30, 2007

Well Ty has finally arrived! He was born Jan. 19th @ 3:14am. He weighed 7 pds 11 ounces and was 19 1/4 inches. I went from 6-10 cm dilated in 1/2 hr, so I wasn't able to get an epidural. Man, what a different experience! It was one of the hardest things I have ever done! But now we have Ty and he is so cute and precious. He has been a really good baby so far. He's even nursing! Although he'll only nurse on one breast! The little stinker! He's sleeping really good at night. He kind of had a rough start, mixing up days and nights but now he's on track. He usually sleeps 4 hours. I tore again so I've been really sore. Ry, Mom, and Devon have all spent a couple of days helping out because I could barely walk or sit at first. I'm doing much better now though. I know it will be hard sometimes. I'm lucky though because I have such good kids. Ty's getting blessed this Sunday. That will be exciting!

Happy 4th Birthday Ty! The 4 years I've spent with you could not have been any better! I love you lots and lots!

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Knock, knock!

2011-01-10T07:03:00.001-08:00

The kids are really into telling knock, knock jokes. They get the process, but of course none of their jokes actually make sense. Half the time we can't even understand what McKenna is saying but it must be pretty hilarious because she laughs like crazy after she's done telling it! We've told them a few that we know and they think we're pretty funny. Well the other day Nate came to us with this one:

Knock, knock
who's there?
Wah
Wah who?
Don't get too excited, its just a joke!

We couldn't believe it! We were so amazed that he came up with that one all on his own. So much that we've been bragging to everyone about how brilliant our child is and made him tell everyone and anyone who was around to listen. Well, yesterday he brings down his Nate book that he got from his birthday and show's us the joke written in there. We laughed. I guess we should have asked him where he got the joke from instead of assuming he made it up himself. I guess he's not the brilliant joke creator that we thought he was...but he did teach himself to read and is reading novels! That's pretty brilliant to me!