Brides, Blessings, and Burgers

We have had a crazy couple of weeks, and now we finally have a chance to catch our breath, so I guess it is time to update our blog.

Some of you Utahns have commented that you felt a dark presence in your state last month. (I believe Mike and Rebecca would refer to it as "a disturbance in the force.") It is true that I was in Utah very briefly, along with Jen and Dallin, to attend Jen's brother's wedding. We were in Utah for about 48 hours, which gave us just enough time to go to the wedding, have dinner with my family, and get stuck in a miserable blizzard that reminded us of why we live in a more hospitable locale. We had a great time, but we do wish that we had been able to see more of you all.

When Dallin is being fussy, we let him chill with the 'Pod

Just a week after we got back we had my Dad out for Dallin's blessing. Grandpa was inundated with cards and story requests from the girls, but he was a great sport about it all and we had a wonderful weekend with him out here. We took him to a few museums and a great burger joint (5 Guys - better than In N' Out - hands down). It was great to have him there for the blessing. He has been there for the blessing of all four of our children, and it is a relief to me to have him next to me.


The group from Dallin's blessing: Uncle Steve, Uncle Tony, Grandpa Walker, Me,my good friend Adam (ruining the picture with his U of U tie, and "grandpa" Olsen.


Now we are excited for spring to start! Warm weather, March Madness, the NBA playoffs, the Masters, the Nats new stadium, and graduation are just around the corner. (Can you tell where my focus is?) Let the Games begin!

"TANK" You Very Much

I could write something here, but, in reality, this entry is just a gratuitous post of pictures of Dallin. He is now three weeks old and has already started to put on weight. He does not yet sleep through the night, but he is a ton of fun to snuggle with when he wakes up, so we have not been too upset about it. Here is our boy:

Dallin Joseph Walker

He is here!!! We are so excited that Dallin has finally joined our family. He was born yesterday, January 17th. Jen and I went into the hospital at about 7:30 in the morning and he was born about 2:30 in the afternoon. Jen had a difficult time as her epidural only took on her right side (which has been a trend for her) and she was basically feeling everything on that side as she progressed from a "4" to an "8+" in the span of about 15 minutes. All I can say is that I find my wife to be amazing, and a little scary (which I like). She was so tough, ("... she may be skinny, but she's strong. Her second baby come out sideways and she didn't scream or nothing..."). To try to alleviate Jen's pain, the nurses gave her some more medicine shortly before delivery which had the dual effect of making her feel sick and "out of it." It was several hours after delivery before she started to feel better.

Today, Jen and Dallin are both doing well. He has been sleepy for most of the day, but he has had a few bright-eyed moments that we have really enjoyed. At birth he was 7 lbs 12 oz and 20.5 inches long. Not too shabby! He looks like a long lean basketball player. He has lots of curly black hair that his big sisters are anxious to style for him. Jen and I think that he has a future in Republican presidential politics because he is puffy and twitchy like John McCain and throws temper tantrums like Ron Paul when he doesn't get his way.



Most fun of all has been watching Emmy react to her new little brother. She is very excited to have a baby to play with. (She has not yet figured out that her days as the center of attention are over) She is so sweet to him, though she has a difficult time containing her enthusiasm and often ends up squealing loudly in his ear or jabbing at his soft spot. I think it is good for him. Without older brothers, Emily is our best resource for toughening this kid up for pee-wee football.


Overall, everyone is doing well. We are so excited to add some testosterone to the family, and we feel very blessed that Jen and Dallin are both in good condition. Another entry to the long list of things for which we are thankful.

The Holidays: A Recap

Now that the holidays are over, it is time to recap the wonderful time that we had. The biggest event for us was Becky's birthday and baptism. We invited some of her friends to Charles E' Fromage (Chuck E Cheese), for a birthday party, and then on the Saturday after Christmas she was baptized and confirmed. Grammy Walker gave a great talk about the Holy Ghost, and Uncle Tony talked about baptism. Becky did great with all of it; she even endured the freezing cold water in the font!



The girls had a great Christmas. JJ received the Leapster she asked for, and has not put it down since. It was fun to watch Emmy get into Christmas this year. Once she figured out that there were toys inside all the wrapped presents she attacked them with the gusto of a hobo on a bologna sandwich. It was a great day.



We enjoyed having Mom and Beth out here for a few days, but it felt way too short. While we love Virginia, we do miss our families. Particularly at times like this. It was great to have a few people here for the baptism.




All told, we had a wonderful Christmas break and hope all of you did as well.

BYU in the SEC?

There has been a lot of talk about BYU moving conferences to the PAC-10, or, more likely, the WAC. (This all due to the fact that the Mountain West Commissioner Craig Thompson runs the conference like a delusional Iranian political leader) However, after seeing the final AP poll I think the Cougars could do far better. The poll showed:

12. Tennessee
13. Florida
14. BYU (Rise and shout!)
15. Auburn


BYU is surrounded by some of the heavyweights of the SEC. Clearly, the AP thinks this is where BYU belongs, and who are we to disagree with the omnipotence of the AP? I think we could fare at least as well as Ohio State does against the SEC. I understand that it would be difficult to square BYU's location in Utah with the South East Conference geographical designation. To solve this problem, we could move the BYU football facilities to Monticello, at least then BYU would be playing in the South East corner of Utah. I know this is a stretch, but if BYU were in the SEC, then I could watch BYU football on TV. Whatever it takes, right?

Finals: Update

I finished my finals on December 21. (Woo-hoo!!! 4 whole days to enjoy the Christmas season without the pressure of finals.) I know that those of you with real jobs probably had less time than this, but I still feel justified in my rant. My last final was the one which I was most nervous about - Structuring Venture Capital and Entrepreneurial Transactions from Professor Ginsburg. (No, not that Ginsburg...the husband of that Ginsburg) This class is regarded as one of the more difficult classes because it is a mix of corporate, tax, securities, bankruptcy and business law. I expected that this test would work me over, but it didn't. Which is why I am so nervous about what my grade will be. I can't escape the nagging feeling that I missed the whole point of the test and that is why it was not as difficult as anticipated. Unfortunately, I have to wait a few more weeks before grades are posted. I guess at that time I will give my third and final post regarding finals to let everyone know if I will be graduating in May or not. (Amy is offering 2:1 odds on not)

Finals: Academia's Solution to Christmas Cheer

This year, for some reason, I am acutely aware of the impact finals have on my ability to enjoy the Holiday Season. Maybe it is because finals are stretching further into the month of December this year, or maybe it is because this is my last round of winter finals and I have begun to envision a life without school. Either way, I cannot wait to be done. The effects of finals hit me last Saturday when we were at the Ward Christmas Party. Jen was on the stage reading "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" to Becky and JJ as part of the program. (They all did great!) I was in the back wrestling Emily and I found myself thinking "A 338(h)(10) election creates asset purchase treatment for a stock sale". This is sick!!! I suspect that all across the country there are students who are similarly unable to focus on Christmas because they are forced to focus on filling their minds with facts, figures and rules for their upcoming finals. People everywhere are bemoaning the destruction of Christmas, and I think that finals play a part in that. Therefore, I propose that Universities everywhere cease this attack on Christmas and forgo winter finals in an effort to restore the trifecta of Christmas meaning - Presents, Food, and Football - to its rightful place in the forefront of our minds!!!! (This post would be longer, but I need to get back to studying for my last final.)