A Short Two Years.

Yesterday, Terry and I celebrated our two year anniversary. Terry said he couldn't believe Christmas was already next week, that our TWO year anniversary was today (yesterday), and he feels like he just barely shut the water off for the year. These two years have gone by so incredibly fast! We have had some major accomplishments in it as well! We have had two successful years farming, purchased a tractor, a house, a car, 70 acres of property and other useful farm equipment, and our greatest gift, the birth of our son, Oliver. We've made it two years and we're looking forward to so many more!

The start of our family 12/18/2010.

Our sweet little family today!

Too Pure

Yesterday, after hearing the news of the tragedy that had occurred in Connecticut, I held my sweet baby and caring husband close to me. I cried, more than once, and felt pain for those families that lost a dear member of their family. I wish that there was something that I could do for them. That there was someway that my family could help those who were mourning. As I pondered this, I knew there was nothing that we could do, but through Christ, these families might find peace. Peace in knowing that they will see their sweet baby or devoted spouse once more. Through the Gospel of Jesus Christ, it will be done. It is Terry and my testimony that we know families are absolutely forever, and we hope our children will learn to know this as well.
I read This article that put my feelings into words better than I can. This is not anything put out by the Church of Jesus Christ of Ladder Day Saints, but it is what we know to be true. In this article he quotes our prophet Joseph Smith, "The Lord takes many away even in infancy, that they may escape the envy of man, and the sorrows and evils of this present world; they were too pure, too lovely, to live on earth; therefore, if rightly considered, instead of mourning we have reason to rejoice as they are delivered from evil, and we shall soon have them again." I hope that through our mourning of any soul lost, we can still rejoice that they were "too pure" to live in this cruel world and our Heavenly Father felt it best for them to return unto him, until it is our time to join them.

"He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds." Psalms 147:3

Lazy Mornings

Every now and then Oliver will sleep in until 8 or 8:30. We just have to make sure he is completely exhausted the night before. I was sure that we would get lucky and be able to sleep in this morning. However, I couldn't have been more wrong. 5:50 rolled around and our alarm clock went off. I was hoping that if I fed him, he would fall back asleep. Unfortunately, he was one wide-eyed boy and ready for the day! I pawned the kid off to Terry, and went back to bed for a few minutes. Terry came in a short twenty minutes later and headed out to the tractor, and I got the baby. I laid him down next to me on the bed, while he babbled along I continued to "rest my eyes" a little while later there was complete silence. I look over and there was Oliver fast asleep! He doesn't fall asleep like that.... ever. I grasped the opportunity and tried falling back to sleep myself. Sherri (my mother-in-law) has told me that Terry used to fight lions in his sleep, rolling around, tossing the sheets, waking up on the opposite side of the bed. I believe that Oliver will be fighting tigers and bears in his sleep. Oh my. For the 45 minutes he slept, he was kicking, grunting, and talking the entire time. He has been like that since birth. I sure pity his younger siblings that will have to share a bed with him whenever we go on vacation. Terry grew out of it though, maybe there is hope for Oliver!

This was the best I could do with the wee light from a lamp.

Weekday Get Away

This week we have been lucky enough to get away from the house. Terry has been a bit stir crazy with the rain, so this little "trip" couldn't have come soon enough! We were able to attend the Idaho Farm Bureau Convention that was held in the far away city of Boise! See what I meant by little trip? It was a mere 45 minute drive or so to get to our destination. We stayed at the Riverside Hotel, and because Terry was competing in the State Discussion Meet, all of our expenses were paid for the one night we stayed. Terry's dad is on the State Board for FB so we were able to spend time with them as well!

Did you know that Farm Bureau isn't just insurance? They've got Women's Committees in each county to help do service and other deeds for their community, they offer a Young Farmer and Rancher program that Terry and I participate in. We really enjoy YF&R we are able to meet other people around the state that are our age that are in an Ag related profession. Like I said Terry's dad is on the State Board, they try to work with legislature to make appropriate Ag related laws. The Governor actually spoke at this convention. I always thought that Farm Bureau was just insurance, but apparently I have been wrongly mistaken!

Here is a little bit of info on what a Discussion Meet is, after all, that was the main reason we went.
It is almost like a debate, but instead of going back and forth it is literally a discussion between 5 or so people. They will be asked one question that they will discuss for about twenty minutes. There is a District, State and National level. The top two proceed to the next level. Terry placed 2nd in our District. This was his first time making it to State so he wasn't really sure what to expect. The other contestants are serious about winning this thing, but I can't blame them they win a four wheeler as well as their trip paid for to Nationals, which is in Tennessee this year. Terry however, didn't even make it to the finals. He did great for his first time though!

Some how our almost seven month old managed to get kicked out of the bar at the hotel too. I had asked grandpa to hold Oliver while I watched Terry in his last round in the semi-finals. He had been talking some people in the lobby, but who knew that half of the lobby was a bar? Terry's dad was asked to leave the bar because Oliver was under age. I was wondering why he was so wiggly when I got him back.

We ended up having to leave early because Terry caught some sort of bug, so we weren't able to get a family picture. I was able to snap a quick shot of the view from our hotel room though, it's too bad it's December instead of spring! We heard ducks all night.....

Half A Year

Our little boy has grown so fast! Can you believe he is already six months?! Here's what we know about Oliver:
Weight: 17 lbs. 13 oz  60th percentile
Height: 26 in.  30th percentile
Rolling over from belly to back and back to belly (as of 3 days ago.)
Sleeps 9.5 hours THROUGH the night
Takes a nap every two hours 
Pulls hair and noses
Puts everything he can get his hands on in his mouth (surprised?)
LOVES the tractor
Can't seem to get enough of Dad
Gets too much of Mom
Bath time is play time
A huge flirt - especially with grandmas (whether they are his or not)
Knows he's cute, and flaunts it
An incredibly happy little boy!

Raising Pumpkins

We were so lucky to get to have Halloween twice this year with Oliver! What fun we had too! We went to our ward Harvest Party the Friday before Halloween and Oliver was a good sport and dress up as a little pumpkin. He even wore the stem and leaves the whole night.

We then were invited to go to my parents ward Halloween Party on the 31st. We thought it would be cute for Oliver to be a little cowboy, but then chuckled at the thought of dressing him up as a farmer. We decided a farmer it was. Irrigating boots, shovel, and all! (Yes, the irrigating boots are for like a 2 year old, but we just couldn't resist!)

Wasn't as good of a sport this night, unfortunately.

A Corny First

Oliver finally got a chance to ride in the tractor. He is officially a working boy! We pulled a grain cart while Grandpa Walton combined corn.

Our sweet little family all on the tractor!

 Mom and Oliver

 One day he'll beg to go ride the tractor with his dad, but for now, he just wants that pacifier!

The FAIRest of Them All

Well, this is only a few months late, but back in August we were able to make it over to the Western Idaho Fair, and what fun we had! Terry's parents were recognized as farmers in Idaho, that's the only reason we went, they had FREE tickets! We really enjoyed walking through the "petting zoo." However, some of these animals didn't seem like they should have been touched.

Yak

Miniature Cow. It was full grown!

Scottish Highlander

Zebu - African "cow." He was HUGE. I'm sure no cage could really contain him.

 

This was Terry's FAVORITE! We would call it a Water Buffalo, however Terrys tell me this is incorrect. It's real name is "Karibao."  Since Terry went on his mission to the Philippines, he has convinced himself he is a true Filippino (if you couldn't tell by his red hair!) He said this one is much much smaller than the ones in the Philippines though.

  I would also like to point out that on this sign they spelled Philippines wrong. 

 Here we have a shark, well, a few of them. I'm still trying to see where sharks fit in at a fair but, hey! It was entertaining!

 

 Of course I had to add a picture of this guy! He was such a good boy and loves anything outside, so the fair was just perfect for him!

A Rooster... A Dinosaur... No! A Baby!

Oliver's little personality is starting to blossom. He smiles when he is happy, squeals with delight, has a serious face (very serious face), and every now and then lets out one of these.....

 poor phone video, sorry!

We are still unsure what this noise exactly is. Grandma Jensen says it's a rooster while Terry says it's a dinosaur. What we do know is that he makes it quite frequently and it always gets a chuckle out of someone!

Making an Old House a New Home

We have been living in our house for a little over a year now and we have made a few changes. We thought we would share! Here are some before and after pictures.

First you should know that the previous owners loved GREEN!

Stoves Before:

 After! No more Green!

 Green carpet? In the kitchen!

If you look to the top right corner of this picture, there used to be a sliding glass door in the MIDDLE of our house. Anyone know what that would be for??? That was the first thing we removed.

Yes, that's a shovel. We're farmers! Would you expect anything less??

 And now...

I hated our countertops.

 This was actually in the mudroom... 

 But now they look like this!

These were just a few modification we have made with a ton more to come! Next project is to update those awful cupboards, paint the doors, and kitchen table.

Just Keep Swimming

Oliver seems to LOVE the bathtub, so we thought we would take him swimming. Grandma and Grandpa Walton are lucky enough to have a swimming pool!

If you didn't know it we are farmers... Therefore we must sport our sign: The Farmer's Tan

Thinking about liking the pool...

Still thinking...

Decision made.

And look who gets to calm him down!

Swimming with Oliver was unsuccessful. Maybe we'll try in a few more weeks!

A Chubby Boy

Oliver had his two month appointment this week.

He weighs 14 pounds 9 ounces (95th percentile)

and is 22 inches long (30th percentile).

 Basically we were told he is a short chubby baby

But as healthy as they come!

Pain In The Neck...

... And hip! This week Oliver went to the chiropractor. Who knew a baby would need to see one of these guys?! Apparently, it was caused by his "traumatic birth." Poor kid had to have his hip and neck put back in. 

Now he:
Lies flat on his back, before he would curve his back to one side
Moves his head to both sides
Lifts his head up when he is on his tummy
Sleeps much better
Doesn't projectile spit up, there were never big enough burp rags when that happened
No longer scowls all of the time
Smiles and talks so much more!

After seeing the chiropractor the change in this little boy has been like night and day. We now have a happy baby!

I'm Too Sexy For My Shirt

 

 

Megan Walker with M. Walker Photography took newborn pictures of our naked little boy. These were a few of our favorites! Thanks Megan!

Oh, those hiccups

When I was pregnant with Oliver he had the hiccups aaaallll the time. In the middle of the night, during the day, at my doctor appointments, and even at the hospital when I was in labor! Now that he's here, he still gets those dang hiccups. As if being a new parent isn't hard enough, we have to deal with this little factor that can ruin everything! He normally gets the hiccups in the middle of the night right after he eats. Of course, he eats about 3 times throughout the night, and right as we get him to fall asleep the hiccups hit and he's WIDE awake for the next 30 minutes, at least. Yes, they last that long! These hiccups seem to be pretty aggressive too. Maybe, they aren't but hey, this is baby number one for us so we think they are! I was able to catch them on video, but it was just on my phone so you can't hear the little squeak that comes along with those hiccups. We;ll work on getting a better video up!

Our Little Oliver

We finally have our little boy! Oliver Lee Walton was born on May 8, at approximately 4 pm. He weighed in at 7 lbs 15 oz  and was 20 inches long. 

His first photo!

 We had quite the time actually getting him here though... so here is our story!

First off, we decided to induce that morning. We headed in and got to the hospital at about 7:30 in the morning as directed by our Doc. Well, he of course didn't show up until about 9:00. Typical. We really do actually love our doctor! We finally get things rolling shortly there after and expected to be in labor for the entire day. Fortunately for us, or so we thought at the time, this baby was ready to come! I was dilated to a 6 by noon, and as our doctor was checking me he said he felt a little hand! We thought that was pretty cool, but then my water broke (while he was still checking me...) At that point my doctor told us that our little boy had actually grabbed his finger! Never expected that one, huh?

After all of that, I got my epidural, call me what you will, but those things are AMAZING! Totally recommend it to anyone. About an hour later, the nurse comes in to check me again. But this time she says that she doesn't think it's a hand she is feeling, but instead she thinks it's a foot! At this point Terry and I look at each other like, "This nurse is insane, how did we get stuck with her??" She immediately calls our doctor and much to our surprise... it IS a foot. Imagine this, our baby was trying to come out with his head, hand, and foot all at the same time! This is where it gets exciting. 

Our doctor then goes and calls a specialist. This specialist had never heard anything like it! Aren't specialist supposed to see every unusual case in the book?! Yeah, that's what we thought too. The specialist basically left our doctor with a, "Good luck" and that was it. Our doctor was able to manipulate his foot back up into my belly, but then his umbilical cord slipped! Every time I had a contraction, Oliver's head would push against his umbilical cord which caused his heart rate to drop, and would stop his body from getting what it needed from my body. 

"C-section" had already been thrown around a few times, so when I told my doctor to do whatever he thought was the safest, he looked at me and said we needed to go to the operating room. By this time, Terry was pretty frantic and I was doing everything I could not to cry. When we got to the operating room, they were poking and pinching me to make sure I couldn't feel anything, but of course, I had what they call a "window" where it didn't go completely numb. Our anesthesiologist told me later that he had never seen or heard of anything like it. We were just an extremely weird case apparently! They ended up having to put me completely out, so then they had to to get the baby out as fast as they could, it took them 3 minutes. We went in just in time, because he was blue when he came out. He is healthy now however, and that is all that really matters!

Even though, it wasn't our ideal delivery, or even close to any kind of delivery we would have expected, we couldn't be more happy with our little boy. We can tell from the way he was born that we have a lot on our hands with this little guy!