Dear Family,
I decided to add our family to your family letters. No promises that it will happen again any time soon but I thought that even just every once in a while was better than never so here it goes. (Please excuse run on sentences, spelling, grammatical errors, etc. I'm "stealing" a moment to do this and so don't have time to really think about how to write correctly.)
We have had an extremely crazy summer and fall. Our big news is that we are expecting another baby. Baby #4 is due on April 13, 2013! Yea! We are very excited. We didn't really expect to be pregnant, hence the craziness. Before I get pregnant I usually try to get the big projects done so that I can just keep life running while being sick. This time I was pregnant before I even started to get ready to be pregnant and so we have had to do a million projects while trying to keep normal life running while having me be sick. With all that being said we both have run ourselves ragged. We are so tired. The good news is that I am currently 13 and 1/2 weeks along and starting to get some energy back and only feel nauseous for part of the day instead of all of the day. Life is looking up, hence the extra moment/energy to sit down and write you a letter.
JC has been running like crazy at work because he was asked to train a new employee for 4 months while doing all his normal work plus having one of the office assistants quit and so having a new replacement that is only now starting to get the hang of it. He just sent the 4 month trainee off to a new location just in time to have the company send him another trainee who he will be training for the next year. The good news is that he says the new trainee is really "hungry" to learn and so he thinks it won't be long before he is a help instead of a burden. YEA! Once he gets done at work, (which never really happens since his phone comes home with him and he is on call until he goes to bed and before he is awake), he comes home to change the water, mow the lawn, and anything else that needs to be done to keep the outside of our home and field running. Then, on the days that I am really sick, he comes in feeds the kids, bathes the kids, takes over the main part of the bedtime routine (scripture study, prayers, tucking kids in bed), all before he gets to sit down for a few moments before heading off to bed to start all over the next day. Wow, does it ever slow down? I don't think so, so in between all that we try to enjoy the cute little things the kids say and do and the multitude of blessings/miracles we see each day.
My biggest miracle has been the energy I feel at least 3 days a week that has made it possible for me to keep our home running (basic things like keeping clothes cleans, dishes done, living room and dining room floors vacuumed and swept, and the very occasional floor mopping, bathroom cleaning and bedroom vacuuming). I have not had the energy to keep it clean the way I usually like it but it has been miraculous to me to see that the nights when I break down to JC about a specific thing and then pray for energy to accomplish or to be okay if it doesn't get done I have been blessed, on most occasions, with a truly miraculous energy. Those times have been my "tender mercies" from our Heavenly Father. Here's an example: Last Tuesday night I was looking at our floors and realizing that it had been almost a month since I'd had energy to completely mop them. I had mopped spots as kids spilled stuff but had not been able to just mop the whole floor and the bathrooms were looking horrible since it had been 2+ weeks since I had cleaned them. I was heavy hearted and broke down to JC about how frustrating it was to sit in the middle of that mess and not have the energy to clean it up. That night I prayed for help and the next day I felt my exhaustion lessened to the extent that I could push myself and was able to mop the main part of our house, the bathroom floors, and clean the sinks and toilets. Did I have energy to do ALL the stuff that was driving me crazy, no, but I was able to do enough that I felt Heavenly Father's love and awareness of who I am as an individual. Another day I was overwhelmed by the mountain of clean laundry that was growing on my couch and also broke down that night to JC which made it so that as I was praying it was on my mind and I prayed again to either have the strength to get that done or the emotional strength to be okay with it not done. I was blessed to again have the exhaustion lessened to the extent that I got 14 batches of clothes folded and put away in ONE DAY and babysit a little girl from our ward and held an Activities Day at my house, all in the same day! That was miraculous for sure!! Anyway, to some people those stories would mean little but to me they are my gift to let me know He is aware of me and my family.
I should add that almost all of the days that I have had energy have been days that I have been serving others. Many of those days I have been a little worried that I shouldn't have agreed to serve because how in the world would I be able to serve others when I couldn't hardly keep up with my own life. I have felt impressed to trust that it would work out and have been amazed that as I have put my faith in Him, He has truly given me what I need to be able to take care of those He has asked me to take care of. I'm not saying I have felt "normal" just well enough to get the job done on a pretty consistent basis.
John Tyler started Kindergarten last month and he is really liking it. I have been concerned since he already knows almost all of what the are teaching him. I asked for a copy of their year end goals and was not surprised to see that out of 7 pages of goals I only found 7 or 8 goals that John Tyler has not already mastered. He is being tested today to see where he is at and I will meet with the school counselor tomorrow to discuss the results and how she feels about moving him to first grade. Then on Wednesday I will meet with the Kindergarten teacher to hear her plans if we decide to keep him in her class. We have big decisions ahead of us for our brilliant little man! He is reading like a pro and loves to read stories to Kailee and Will Tucker and any other visiting child. He even adds inflection and emphasis in all the right places so it really is interesting to listen to him read. My favorite thing is that he occasionally will take the Book of Mormon with him to bed during the afternoon "Quiet Time" and read on his own and then tell me what he read about after. I love that he already comprehends a lot of what he is reading and that he recognizes the sacredness of what he's reading, even if he would not use that word to describe it. When he shares he talks differently than when he shares what he is reading in the latest chapter book or picture book. He is a pretty amazing guy and I 'm thrilled that he was sent to us first so that the other kids can follow his example.
Kailee continues to be all girl. She has really enjoyed having a friend come every other day so that they can play girly stuff together while John Tyler is at school. The Barbie doll house that was sitting unused has suddenly become a staple for her play, along with the dolly high chair and bed. For the hours when John Tyler is gone the regular boy toys are mostly untouched. We have been babysitting a little girl 3 days a week for the last month or so and will continue for a few more weeks while her dad gets some training to help their family. I'm not sure what Kailee will do when it stops. The little girl is only 3 weeks younger than her and they get along really well. Kailee has also started her own preschool here at home with Mommy as the teacher. I tried to get a group of moms together to do a Mother Taught Preschool like we did in Wendell but all the moms around here send their kids out for preschool. I was very disappointed because I loved how the last group worked out. Kailee seems pretty happy with just mom and Will Tucker in her group so maybe it'll be okay. She's writing her abc's by herself and just in general getting really excited about learning what John Tyler knows. Now we just have to work on her recognizing and naming what letter she's writing since right now she's a little confused and tells me she's written a different letter than is on her paper. She already knows how to count to at least 15 by herself, which is farther than John Tyler's class which is working on counting to 5. Anyway, Kaillee continues to be our sweet heart and my little helper. On Saturday she peeled 5-6 carrots almost all by herself and helped me put all the cut vegetables into the soup. The fun part is that she asked me if she could help. She also unloaded the dishwasher almost all by herself the other day just because she wanted to help.
Will Tucker is growing so FAST! We just switched him from 2T clothes to 3T clothes and he's not even 2 yet! He is not fat at all just tall and big, like his daddy. He is a little chatter box and can say almost anything. He's very good at letting you know what he thinks about life. We often hear, "Don't want it!" and "Please, please, please, please...." repeated over and over when he wants something. Our new favorite is how he very carefully says, "baby rabbit". He makes every sound just right. He also has started to say the prayer for us by repeating what we say. JC purposefully adds big words when he helps and it is so funny how Will Tucker does a pretty good job copying every word you give him.
Will Tucker is our mover. He goes ALL day long and most of what he does he isn't supposed to be doing. Stuff like climbing on counters to find treats and unrolling toilet paper, etc. Wow, he keeps us busy but also entertained! He is so fun to watch and listen to. When he does naughty stuff you can tell he doesn't think about whether he should or shouldn't he just does it because he finds it interesting. He is generally happy, unless you stop him from exploring in the way he likes to explore.
So, this letter ended up being VERY long. Before I write a novel I will end it.
I hope this finds all you of well. When we get the chance to read your letters we very much enjoy them.
With love,
JC, Beki, John Tyler, Kailee, Will Tucker, and Baby #4 Olson
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