Ornament Advent #3

I’ve yet to tire of these kind of Christmas ornaments that come  in pairs now at our house.

Christmas Ornament Advent #2

Quilter friend Dixie Earl fashioned this for me many years ago when we lived in Woodruff, Utah.  We used to have ‘Christmas Thursday’s’ together months before December.  She is so creative and talented – this perfectly quilted square is about 2 1/2 inches tiny.

 

Right now she is in Peru with her husband serving a mission.  They also have a daughter just returned and another daughter and a son serving missions.  Five in one family serving at once!  I think all of them are Spanish speaking too.

Sore Throats are Better with a Book

Today Mark has a sore throat.  Sore throats are better endured in front of a fireplace with some juicy oranges, chewable vitamin C, nowhere else to go -  and a new good book.  Tylenol is good too.  And someone to fix whatever sounds good, and a colorful Christmas tree to look at between naps.  Hey!  I think I want a sore throat too!

Here’s our new found book:  “The Mysterious Benedict Society” by Trenton Lee Stewart.  We give it a thumbs up so far.  I got this book on recommendation from a new friend (we were both searching for book treasures on the same book shelf at Barnes and Noble.  A half hour later we wrapped up our conversation about our favorite books for kids, and now the Olsen's have 3 new treasures. ) The other two will show up under the Tree.

Speaking of the Tree. . . ours (like most Americans) is loaded with many years of collected ornaments along with their memories.    I’m going to post an Advent calendar of Christmas ornaments.  Hey kiddos, friends, and sisters-o'-mine,  see what you remember about them too.  And then call!
This cowboy boot was handmade by the Jay 21 years ago when he was a  cowboy for Deseret Ranch in Florida.  We were at our friends the Cook's house as we were almost every night that year.   All of us made salt dough ornaments.  Even Jay and Kent.
Salt Dough Recipe
1 Cup flour
1/2 Cup salt (you can put in blender for a finer grain)
about 1/2 C water
Mix together by hand.  It should not be sticky, just soft and shape-able.  Keep in plastic bag when not using.
Tips: For colored dough you can add food coloring to the water.  Or you can paint them with craft paints after they’re baked.
For ornaments, put a little loop of wire or a snipped off paper clip in top of dough before baking.  
Bake in a 250 F oven overnight.
For a nice finish you can dip in polyurethane (spraying never seemed to work)

Little Boy Blue

 Anna and I marveled and laughed for joy at his every expression during this photo session.  We wished his adorable baby sounds could be heard through the images we caught.

So thankful at Thanksgiving for . . . everything!  And specifically for the life of this little guy.

Trooper Curtis Jr.

Big, wonderful day.  Kyle was sworn in as Trooper Curtis today.  So pleased, so proud, so happy, so tired . . .  I’m just posting one image for now.  Casen wore his ‘badge’ today too!

Hafta Post

Just finished editing 77 images of the “C’s” and decided to force myself to pick a favorite.  This is it – my favorite.  The autumn color is leaping off the screen and I also love that even though their faces aren’t part of the image their personalities show through their height, hair length, jeans (a person’s jeans are almost as  individual as a fingerprint).  And there’s something sweetly symbolic about a family holding hands and going down the road together.  I hafta post this one!

But I love this one too!

Missionary Neil

Here's Neil's email from Brazil this week.  We miss him, but wouldn't want him here either.  He will return May 25, 2011 - 7 months away.

Dear Fam,

I'm so excited for Emily!  Bolivia!  This week we went four hours away to a
meeting and do a division in a beach city called Torres ("Towers").  Elder
Bond already passed there and it was really cool for him to be able to visit
the members and converts he already knew.  There's a Bolivian member there
and they call him (ironically) "Boliviano."  He and his family were baptized
a little more than a year ago and were sealed in the temple a little while
ago.  He speaks a mixture of really fast slurred spanish and a little
Portuguese.  We have a little bit of a hard time understanding him.  But he
and his family are awesome.  We woke up a little early on Friday to watch
the sunrise on the ocean with him.  That is an experience everyone should
have.  When is Emily leaving?  Where is Shandi going again?  When does Fale
leave to Guatemala?

Don't worry about me worrying about home.  On the contrary, I'm so grateful
for all the blessings and changes that are happening for you there.  There
has been some amazing things happening there while I've been gone.  I know
that you're all in good hands.  There's a lot to worry about here anyways.

I will be transfered tomorrow.  I've never stayed in one area so little
time.  In Montenegro and Estância Velha I had a little more time to leave a
legacy.  But here it seems like there's still work for me to do.  But  I
don't know what more I could have done - me and Elder Bond hardly had a
second to breath this whole transfer.  There are always little things that you
look back and think, "I could have done that better," but I guess that's
life.  Just learn from the past, plan for the future, and live in the
present.  I know that in the moment I always try and do the best I can, but
things look different in retrospect.  We had a lot of baptisms fall this
transfer, and I'm puzzled at what more we could have done for them.  It just
gives a greater determination to really dedicate yourself in the future.
I'm gonna miss Elder Bond.  He's a great guy and a great friend.  It seems
like so little time that we've been together.  Time really flies when you've
got so much to do.

I'm pretty sure that things will be pretty different these next few
transfers, but I'm not entirely sure what will happen yet.  I'll try and
keep you posted.  For a long time I've had a letter to send to Nan and Carl
and a few other people, I hope my next area has a post office, but either
way I'll get them sent off.

Oh, it looks like the Stake Presidency is still sending their newsletters
for me to the MTC (or CTM) in São Paulo.  They take a really long time to
get here and I'm not sure how long the CTM will keep forwarding them.  That
would be great if you could pass the mission address to them.

Elder Neil J Olsen
Caixa Postal 13008
Porto Alegre - RS - Brazil
CEP: 91010-971

As we were coming back from Torres on Friday morning on the three-hour bus
ride, I looked over at the woman on the other side of the aisle and saw that
she was reading a "Spiritism" (?) book.  Some guy that claimed to have
revelations from some spirit of somebody that had died a little while before
and he wrote these books while the spirit whispered in his ear about what
it's like on the other side.  They believe in reincarnation - that we are
born again in another body after we die.  It is a really huge religion here
in Brazil.  They claim to use and believe in the Bible, but obviously don't
know much about it.  Philosophies of men that have no authoritative backing
whatsoever.  It's very hard to work with them sometimes.  Anyway this lady
was reading one of these books and I thought, "I should share a little bit
with her about where we really come from, why we're really here, and
what really happens after death.  I was nervous that she was one of those
fanatics, but I though I should do my part anyway.  Who knows? maybe she's
just in the search for the truth.  So I tapped her on the shoulder and asked
if I could share something with her and I gave her a pamphlet that talks
about the plan of salvation.  She accepted it and started thumbing through
it, stopping to skim some parts.  Then she got to the last page that talks
about praying to know if it's true.  She read it intently and read it
again.  Then she asked if she could keep it.  I said yes, took down her
address and passed it to the missionaries in Torres.  There are so many
opportunities to share, we just need to swallow our doubts, fears, and
preconceptions about how people might react, and just make the invitation.

I know this work is the work of the Lord.  I know that this church is the
only true church on the earth.

Love y'all!
Elder Olsen