You Will Always Find What You Are Looking For...

A SMS conversation between me and my wife got me thinking... and that is always a dangerous thing. The conversation reminded me of an old adage that I truly believe but seem to have forgotten lately. "You will always find what you are looking for." In short, if you look for the bad and negative in life, you will find it. If you look for the good and positive, you will find it. It made me think, "What am I looking for?"

The conversation with my wife started out with an observation about Facebook and how one of the posts I read was really showing the person's bad attitude. My wife's reply back was that she was tired of all the complaining on Facebook. I was about to reply that I agree with her, but then I looked at my last post. Yep, I was complaining, specifically about how hot it was in my office. Needless to say, I was ashamed and did not reply in agreement to my wife.

Instantly, my mind went back over the past few days, and I mentally reviewed how I had responded when presented with certain situations.

• My daughter came into my bedroom in the middle of the night, again. Of course, she was awake and wanted to talk. How did I respond? I am sorry to report I grumbled something about her keeping me awake and asked her to go to sleep or back to her room. I failed to recognize a chance to cuddle with my daughter, show her that I love her, and perhaps help her overcome a bad dream which had disturbed her sleep. All it would have cost was a few minutes of sleep. One opportunity missed!
• My older daughter asked me for help with her math. I had just gotten comfortable in my recliner watching my favorite show and inwardly resented the fact that I had to get up again. After making a not-so-fake joke about being comfortable, I did get up and help her. But was my attitude showing? Did I see this as it truly was - an opportunity to bond with my daughter and show her that I think education is important? A second opportunity missed!
• It's not just relationships either. I didn't get up early this morning and hit the gym, like I promised myself I would. When the alarm rang, I thought about those few minutes of missed sleep with my youngest daughter in the middle of the night. I thought about how much of a pain it would be rise at 4:45, get dressed, drive the the gym, and start my running routine again. Did I see this for what it truly was - an opportunity to improve myself physically and show my family that I value my health and fitness? A third opportunity missed!

I could go on and on as I review my past week, but that would be boring reading for you, right? Suffice it to say I find myself doing the exact same thing I was accusing one of my FB friends of doing. My poor attitude was showing. It's been a real reality check to say the least.

I also remembered another old adage I love and that I wanted to share with myself and whoever else reads this blog. This adage has proven true so many times in my life, especially during those time I find myself searching for the negative and not the positive...

"It is your attitude, not your aptitude, that determines your altitude!" 

Truer words have never been spoken!

What does it mean to be an Olsen?

For my parents' 50th Anniversary they gave me and my siblings a gift (I know, it should be the other way around, right?). They had spent countless hours creating a family history book. The book speaks of my parents' history. It includes priceless pictures of them individually and of our family. Each page is carefully placed in a sheet protector to keep them safe for many years to come.

My brothers and sister and I were asked to contribute our own little piece to this family history book. We were asked to answer the question, "What does it mean to be an Olsen?" I have been cleaning out some files and recently found the answer I submitted.

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What does it mean to be an Olsen?

It means being tall, and loving it

The Olsen Klan at the SLC Temple

For the record, I am 6 feet 8 inches tall. OK, really I am 6 feet and 7.75 inches tall, but with shoes on, I am easily 6'8". I grew up in a family where my Mom was 6'1", my dad was 6'8", my brothers were 6'9" and 6'4", and my sister was also 6'1". With such a tall family, I never thought of myself as tall. Even when I would look at class pictures and I would stand way above the rest, I just had to look around my home, and I felt "normal." 

I remember going shopping with Mom as a child. We would walk into a store and I never felt insecure about going off on my own because I could always spot Mom over the racks of clothes. I remember walking into the Lion House Pantry and watching the stares of amazement as our entire family had to duck under one of the support beams. 

Even today, I will be walking in the mall or standing in line at a wedding and see someone whose head sticks up above the crowd and think to myself, "Man, he's tall." Then, when I get next to this person, I find out I am taller. It is a source of some amusement for my wife.

It means music is a vital part of your life

You cannot think of the Olsen home without thinking of music, specifically piano music. Since before I can remember, Mom taught piano lessons. My daily schedule in elementary school would have me wake up early enough to practice each song three times and after school sitting at the kitchen table doing homework while the sounds of piano lessons came from downstairs. I can still sing some of those basic songs that every student had to master.

As I grew older, the piano wasn’t the only source of music. You could regularly hear the sounds of saxophones, choral music, and loud stereos. Mom and Dad spent countless hours at band concerts, choir concerts, and musical performances of all types. All Olsen family members also remember me running around the coffee table in circles for hours listening to Pops Roundup. To this day, I cannot decorate the Christmas tree without listening to Mitch Miller. Luckily, Dad found Mitch on CD, because I think the record was worn out years ago.

Music has the power to stir emotions and revive memories. I will always cherish the gift of music in my life and be grateful to Mom and Dad for their love of music, which they passed on to me.

It means living up to great expectations

In the Olsen home, you were not expected to be perfect, but your were expected to put forth your best effort. I think the results of this attitude are more than evident when you look at the lives of the Olsen children. While trying to avoid arrogance and boasting, I can say that my siblings and I have been very successful, and that success is a direct result of our parents’ efforts.

Sometimes it was hard to be the youngest and to follow in the footsteps of Mike, Nate, and Kris. Teachers would look at me and ask if I was going to be as good in math as my brother or if I was going to be as involved and caring as my sister. For a while, it upset me and caused me some anxiety. However, I eventually learned that the path which was set before me was a good one, and instead of being upset about the comparisons to my family, I should be honored and work hard to live up to those expectations. As hard as I try, my parents and siblings keep setting the bar higher. My work never ends, and I am thankful for that.  

It means you are loved

My parents sharing their anniversary cake

In my job, I get to read a great deal of research about children and what helps them succeed. Among all of the influences in a child’s life, a loving, caring adult will help that child more than anything else. A child may face multiple challenges, some that seem insurmountable, but if that child has an adult that truly loves and cares for him or her, that child will be a success. I consider myself one of the luckiest people in the world because I not only have two, loving parents, but I have brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, a wife, cousins, and now children who love me.

A family can be a struggle. Raising children can be chaotic. Yet, no matter what happened or how often I may have gotten in trouble, I always knew I was loved. When I would refuse to clean my room or wake up too late to practice the piano, I knew I was loved. When I would come home late at night or use Dad’s tools and not put them back, I knew I was loved. Today, I know I am loved, and that’s what it means to be an Olsen!

Count my many blessings...

When upon life's billows you are tempest tossed...
When you are discouraged thinking all is lost...
Count your many blessings, name them one by one...
And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.

Why does it sometimes take a bad week or bad day to make me realize how truly blessed I am? But, that's the way it went this past week. It was a week of long hours, frustrating work, and bad news. It was a week that made me realize something. I have so many things for which I should be thankful. Let me list just a few.

• First, I have a great sister, who is willing to take my calls and let me vent to her about my frustrations. She listens and doesn't complain. She loves me no matter what!
• I am grateful for my family, who serve as my safe haven. I can run home to them, gather them in my arms, and remember what truly matters in life.
• My daughters are my comic relief. They help me see that life can be and should be fun. They keep me young and give me reasons for pushing through trials.
• I am amazed at my neighbors and friends, who are examples of patient endurance. Some face trials so much greater than I have ever faced, and they face them with grace, humility, and even happiness.

There are so many more I could list, but these are the blessings that have stuck in my mind this week.  As I look around me and sit down to examine my life, I realize how blessed I am. 

New iPhone anyone?

OK, I will admit these are all just photoshopped mock-ups of what the new iPhone could look like, but which one do you like?

#1

#2

#3

#4

As far as what specs I expect to see on the new phone, here's my prediction:

#1 - new design (as shown by my pics above)

#2 - LTE

#3 - faster A6 processor

#4 - 10-12 MegaPixel camera

#5 - updated and improved Siri (voice control)

#6 - updated and improved maps and navigation

What do you think?

Some Christmas Traditions

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Location:E 5150 S,Ogden,United States

Some fun Christmas pics

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Maybe traditions don't matter all that much

My wife, my daughters, and I just returned from what can be called a most untraditional Thanksgiving celebration. When I say untraditional, there was still a turkey dinner shared with family. There was still time spent watching football on TV, but the location and some other familiar traditions just weren't there. And I'm not sure that really matters.

The Syracuse Olsen household has plenty of traditions for Thanksgiving. It typically starts on Wednesday before Thanksgiving when my wife, her parents, and many of our nieces and nephews on the Schroeder side of the family get together and go on a pie baking frenzy. It lasts most of the day and results in about 15-20 pies, and our kitchen covered in flour and some other sticky messes. But its a tradition and those in attendance enjoy it.

Next comes Thanksgiving dinner. We are lucky enough to have both sets of parents, as well as most brothers and sisters, living close, but it means we have to split our time between our two families. Traditionally, we rotate years. One year we will go to my parents for dinner. The next year we go to my wife's parents, or more accurately, my wife's family comes to our house for dinner. Of course, the dinners are a bit different with different recipes and flavors, but there is always turkey, stuffing, potatoes and gravy, green bean casserole, and pie.

The tradition - at least for my wife, her mother, and the girls on the Schroeder side of the family - continues on Black Friday. All girls over the age of 12 spend the ENTIRE day shopping. It begins at 4 or 5 a.m. and continues until at least 9 or 10 p.m. It sounds horrid to me, but they seem to enjoy it.

This year, all of that got tossed out the window!

Thanksgiving 2011 was spent in St. George with the extended Olsen family. My family gets together every other year for a large family vacation/reunion. This year, it was decided to spend Thanksgiving weekend in a family home in St. George. There was a turkey dinner, and there was a bit of shopping on Black Friday, but things were definitely different. The weekend was filled with family pictures, hiking in the red rocks, building and launching two-liter bottle rockets, remote-controlled helicopter flying contests, and games of Dingleball. It was a great weekend filled with fun, but quite untraditional for us.

During the drive home, my wife and I discussed how certain Schroeder family recipes were missing from the Thanksgiving dinner table and some of the other changes to our Thanksgiving traditions. As I look back now on the Thanksgiving weekend, I realize the activities and what we do matters far less than who we are with. It's not really about shopping versus bottle rocket launching or pie-baking versus hiking, it's about family!