A visit with the Great Grandparents

My grandparents from South Dakota were in California for a few days. It was great to be able to visit with them and they got to meet Avery for the first time!

Avery with Great Grandma

Avery and Kaylin

Trevor

Avery helping Grams in the kitchen

Kaylin's Birthday Celebration

Our favorite cutie pie neice, Kaylin, celebrated her 3rd birthday yesterday. The Olson fam got together on Saturday to celebrate her birthday along with Dad and Mom's (Papa and Grams Olson). We had a great time as usual. Kaylin was hilarious to watch as she opened her presents...no smiling whatsoever! Present opening is serious business! She got some great things, but she was very excited about her nurse outfit and medical bag. She checked us all out and found we were indeed healthy. She is a crackup!

Outdoor Ed

So, last week I headed out to Marin Headlands for 3 nights and four days with my lovely 6th graders. This was my first time ever leaving Avery overnight so I was of course a bit nervous, but only a few tears were shed and I survived. Overall, it was a great experience and I had a blast with my kids. The weather was a bit cool, only reaching a high of 62 degrees the whole time we were there. The camp was beautiful, right on the ocean, and the program and food were fantastic. I was impressed.
Our days started off with breakfast at 8am followed by a 9am meeting and then off on our hikes from 9:15-4pm. We then had 2 hours of free time with dinner at 6pm. Our night program began at 7:10 and ended around 8:30pm. The kids had to be in bed with lights out at 9:15pm...thank goodness because I was so tired by that time. I was so thankful to get to know the kids outside of the classroom. The girls all wanted a mommy hug from me at bedtime and I was told lots of fun info like who likes who in the 6th grade. :)

Harker Football Game

Last night we attended our first Harker football game. Harker played against Overfelt high school and unfortunately lost...by a lot. Jaron's dad was able to come down and hang out with Avery and I to enjoy the game. Jaron kept pretty busy the whole night and definately earned his money.

Great Fun

This weekend was very relaxing and thankfully not filled with too much work. During the week, I do not stop all day. It has been pretty exhausting and hard to not have any time to breathe during the school day. Thankfully, I know it will slow down, especially after I go to Outdoor Ed. This will be Sept. 26-29th, the first time ever to leave Avery overnight. Please keep me in your prayers! We will be going to Marin Headlands...check it out at www.yni.org
Anyways- this weekend Avery and I headed over the hill to Santa Cruz for a baby rummage sale at which we met up with my good friend Rachel who is expecting a baby in February!! We helped her pick out some fun baby things and then headed over to Watsonville, where she treated us to lunch at Applebees...thanks Rach!
After that, we drove to my parents house in Gilroy and were able to spend time there and with my grandparents. It was a beautiful day and we enjoyed smelling the roses and swinging at the Ranch. Unfortunately, Jaron had to be at a Harker football game in Roseville and could not join us. Harker won! Yahoo Eagles!



On Sunday, we all went to church at Westgate Church, only a few blocks down the road. We enjoyed the service and are excited to get involved. We will be taking their "Explore" class to learn more about the church and hope to get plugged in quickly. You can visit their website at www.westgatechurch.org
The rest of our Sunday was spent relaxing and I of course had to do a little work. I am taking an online class to renew my private school credential, like I don't have enough to do already!
Jaron has really been enjoying being at home with Avery in the mornings. Here is a pic of them preparing pancakes, one of Avery's favorites!
Avery has been so much fun to watch lately. She is very into playing with her baby and other animals, covering them with blankets for "night night", wiping their boogers with tissues (thanks to Jaron for teaching her that wonderful word...all she wants to do is wipe her boogers!), and feeding them crackers and milk.

A Family Day

On Saturday we were able to spend the day with Grams, Papa, Derek, Amy, Kaylin, and Trevor. We had a great day of talking, laughing, and BBQing some great steaks (thanks mom!). As always it was so fun to watch the girls chase after eachother and enjoy one another's company. We are so thankful for such a fun and loving family! We look forward to our next crazy get together.

Avery and Kaylin playing dress up

Trevor John; what a handsome boy!

Papa and his girls

A whirlwind of a week

Thank goodness tomorrow is Friday! That pretty much sums it up. This week has been hectic. Tuesday went great and though the day was long and exhausting, everything went as planned...except that I lost my voice. So, the last 2 days have been a bit rough trying to teach without much of a voice.
Many throat lozenges later, the actual reality of going back to work full time, especially in the teaching profession, finally sank in and I felt overwhelmed with the responsibility of educating crazy 6th graders. It's not just 8-3, but many hours of planning, researching, and oh yeah...actually re-learning the material myself so I can teach it and feel competent in doing so. Plus, getting up at 6am is a huge bummer.
I am greatly looking forward to this weekend as Mom and Dad Olson, Derek, Amy, and the kiddos come over on Saturday to BBQ. Mom and Dad Hansen as well as my Uncle Scott will be here on Monday to celebrate my Mom's birthday.

Back to School

I have been frantically preparing for the first day of school (tomorrow 8/29). My classroom is put together and my lesson plans are ready to go so now all I have to do is teach. I have been suprisingly calm the last 3 or 4 days and actually feel excited about tomorrow, which is totally a God thing. I have not had a single nightmare about the first day, very surprising considering I was plagued with them before the start of the year at Monte Vista.
It will be a very long day as Back to School Night is also scheduled for tomorrow at 6:30pm. I will need lots of coffee!

Some pics from the past few weeks

Back to Bloggin'

Well, we have been off-line for a few weeks so now that we are settled in our new place and have Internet access again, we are back in business! We have settled in San Jose in a great 3 bedroom, 2 bath house. The house is about a mile from Jaron's work and a 1/2 mile from Avery's preschool. My commute is not too bad...only 20 minutes! We live in a great neighborhood and the house had everything we wanted so we are very happy.
I am one week into my new job and so far so good. It has just been meetings and working on curriculum, but I am starting to get familiar with the school and am anticipating the start of the school year. I got a brand new laptop too (a macbook) so that is a great plus! I found out that along with science and math I will also be teaching one period of Bible and one period of Art. AHHH! Luckily, the other 6th grade teacher is sharing her lesson plans with me for Bible and Art.
Avery is happily settled into her preschool. She really loves the outdoor area and as soon as she gets there, wants to go on the rocking horse or the swings. The teachers have said she has had great days and has been very happy. She told me on Friday that she did not want to go home. No Home!, she said. :)

"More Cookies, Please!"

Avery and I decided to make cookies for the first time today. Chocolate chip was the cookie of choice. :)

Avery had a fun time for about 5 minutes until she lost interest. She did appear again when it was time to scoop the batter onto the cookie sheet!

We all enjoyed the final product. Yummy!

In search of a home

For the last week or so we have been trying to find a home rental. At this point we are being a little picky, wanting 3 bedrooms and a couple of other fun extras. We have seen a few things, but not "the one". We would really love to be in a place by the 13th since I start my new job on the 14th!
I have also been in search of a daycare facility for Avery Lynn. I think I have found a place...My Preschool in Saratoga, but I am still trying to find a Christian Preschool/Daycare. I was a little shocked by the tuition rates (between $1200-1300 per month!). Pray I make a good decision, as it is already hard enough to know I have to leave her at all.
The weather has finally cooled down to the mid-80's. We headed down to Monterey for lunch on Sunday, which was very fun... it was only 65 degrees there! Avery loved the sea lions. She kept saying "lions" "water"! She amazes me more everyday with the things she says and does. She has been putting words together and telling us all what to do. Daddy couch! Grandpa water! She really loved the kiddie pool Grandma bought for her and she absolutely loved when Grandpa would take her in the water. Lately, one of her favorite things is going outside with Grandpa and collecting flowers.
This weekend we will head up to Pittsburg to visit with Grams and Papa. We are all excited to see them, it has been a long time...since the end of April!

Fun Times

On Sunday, we all headed over to Scotts Valley for a fun visit with the fam. Kaylin and Avery were hilarious! I loved watching them wrestle and giggle. Avery wanted to copy everything Kaylin did. It has been great to see them loving each other up!

Fun with my cousins

Today, Avery and I headed out for a long awaited visit to Derek and Amy's in Scotts Valley. Avery and Kaylin were finally able to play and they had a great time! It was so much fun to watch them interact. We were able to go to the Mission Springs pool, which was a great escape from the hot weather (95+ degrees in Gilroy!).
The whole family will head out to visit again on Sunday. Yahoo!

New Job For Jenni

I recently had two different phone interviews with Milpitas Christian School. I interviewed for a 6th grade science/math position. Today I received word that I got the job! I am meeting with the Middle School principal tomorrow to discuss details. Praise God!

Back to sewing

I recently took my sewing machine in for service and am back to sewing again. I got a new pattern and tried it out for a friend of mine. It was really easy and it came out great if i do say so myself! I altered it a little bit by putting in 4 pockets so it makes a great everyday bag. Check it out!

Well we packed most of our stuff in a POD, and the rest in a Budget truck and headed north. We are staying in Gilroy with the Hansens for now. We will look for a rental in San Jose when we know we are out of our lease for the place in Simi Valley.
I'm starting my new job tomorrow, and Jenni is waiting to hear back about a teaching position she interviewed for. I already miss all the L.A. smog.

Fun, Friends, and Fireworks

So to celebrate the 4th of July, we went down to Cypress to meet up with our friends Mike and Zariq. We hung out and had a BBQ then we headed off to the Navy Golf Course for a fireworks show. Great times were had by all!

Family shot at Arlington



Here's Jaron and George W.




Here's Avery at Mount Vernon

Fun in D.C.

We are back from a great trip to Washington D.C. We left last Saturday and returned on Friday afternoon. On Saturday, the first thing we did was head out to dinner. We were in Pentagon City and walking toward the mall when it started to rain...not just sprinkle, but rain! We were soaked by the time we reached the doors. On Sunday we decided to walk the National mall and see all the sights. We walked about 7 miles I think! After walking to the White House while on the way to the Washington Monument, we were soaked again...a total downpour (see picture!). There was no place to go and get dry so we just kept on walking!
It rained again on Monday and Tuesday. Because of all the rain, alot of the museums were closed.
Among the sights we saw are Arlington Cemetary, the National Zoo, Mt. Vernon, the WW2 Memorial, the Korean War memorial, and the Lincoln memorial.


It was great to see Tom and Kari and to finally visit Silver Spring, Maryland (the city where they live). We went to a lot of great restaurants and enjoyed a great time with my parents as well.