Surgery

There is a first for everything, and this past week I crossed one of those things off my list: having surgery. Surgery isn't one of those things anyone really wants done, but sometimes it just happens.

The surgery to removed a pilonidal cyst. What is a pilonidal cyst? Trust me, you don't want to google it. Just trust this description if you really want to know.

Last December, I started having a lot of pain in my tailbone region. It hurt to sit, walk, and even sleep. The pain grew for a few days until moving was almost unbearable. We went to a clinic where I was diagnosed with the cyst. 

There is some debate among doctors as to how a pilonidal cyst develops. Some say it is present when a baby is born, and some say it is developed through in-grow hair. The cyst is usually under the skin and is connected to things known as pits, that are on the surface of the skin. The cyst becomes infected and then it drains out of the pits. And that is what happened with me in December.

Excision is the only way to prevent it from getting infected again. Thus, I had surgery to remove this cyst and the pits.  

Are you grossed out yet? No worries, I won't show any pictures of it. But here are a few pictures we took.

Me before surgery. I was incredibly nervous.

My beautiful nurse-wife, who was so good to me during the recovery.

Sleeping after the surgery.

Trying to get comfortable after the surgery. It wasn't easy.

I have missed two things while recovering. One, I couldn't sleep on my back; and two, I couldn't take a shower. Gratefully, things are getting better. I hope to be able to work out in the next two weeks and return to sleeping on my back again. I am grateful for my health and hope my visits to the hospital from here on out are few and far between.

Through it all, Airin has been the best friend and nurse I could ever ask for. Airin took such good care of me. Taking care of people is who she is, and I'm one lucky guy. 

More Winter Sporting

Yesterday: tubing at Soldier's Hollow with some of my side of the family.
It was lots of fun. Apparently it had rained the day/night before, so the runs were super slick. Which made for some good times. My mom and my sister were going so fast they flew into the fence at the end of the run. I wasn't prepared with my camera for that event, so sadly there are no pictures of that one.
But here are some others. See...sometimes we do get out and do things. Haha.

Some of the clan: Grandma, Uncle Blake, Riley, Mom, Aunt Carolina, Brandon, and Maximo (my cousin) in front.

I believe this was just after the aforementioned fence disaster.

Blake and Maximo. After one run, Maximo had had enough of snow in the face.

I know this is a blurry picture, but everyone (except for Grandma because she was taking the picture) is in it. Hard to come by these days.

Ice Skating

On Saturday, Mark and I got out of the house and did something fun! We went ice skating. We went ice skating last year at Seven Peaks. This year we went to the Gallivan Center for a two reasons. First, we live in Salt Lake. Second, because Mark is interning at the Gallivan Center he scored some sweet passes to ice skate for free. I'm all about the free stuff.

The rink at the Gallivan Center is pretty small, but it has a special charm to it. It's outdoor with Christmas lights still wrapped around the trees, which just makes it much more magical than an indoor rink.

At first when I got on the ice, I was regretting the decision we made to go ice skating. Like most of us do every year, right? But I got my feet under me and had a good time for a few hours with Mark and some of our friends and family.

Below are some pictures for proof. Enjoy!

The magical lights!

Mark giving directions over the phone. And a view of the rink before it got dark.

Sterling. And his sweet Real scarf we got him for Christmas.

The rink, in the dark, with the lights.

Us with Danny and Elayna. Ignore "Teen Girl Squad" in the background successfully crashing our photo. Lame teenagers.

 

National Anthem

I am truly grateful to have been born in the United States. I have been very blessed throughout my life in so many aspects. I love living here. Celebrating The 4th of July is one of my favorite holidays, and evokes many profound and humbling thoughts and feelings. The national anthem of the United States is no different.

Through many years of band and choir, the opportunity to sing the anthem at different events has been fantastic. To me, it has been a great way of showing how much I love this great country. 

This past weekend, I gathered my talented brothers and dad and drug them up to Sandy. We auditioned to sing at a Real Salt Lake game this coming season. Although we won't know the results from the audition until next month, it was a great opportunity. Not only did we prepare and sing "The Star Spangled Banner", but also "O Canada". Major League Soccer (MLS) has three Canadian teams, who will play Real here in Salt Lake.

The Canadian National Anthem has significance in the LeBaron family because my grandfather, Owen, was born in Canada. I have many relatives who live in Canada, and we have visited them four times during reunions in British Columbia and Alberta. I feel a kinship to Canada and have fond memories of our visits to the country up north.

One particular reunion in 2002 took place over the week of the 4th of July. It was a neat experience to sing the their national anthem with them, and to hear our Canadian cousins sing our national anthem with us. It was my first time I remember hearing the Canadian National Anthem. Ever since then, I vowed to learn it. That goal is now a reality, and I have to say, I love the anthem. It has a beautiful melody and the arrangement we sang has gorgeous harmony.

Spending time practicing and performing this song with my brothers has been time well spent. But it has also helped me appreciate my connection to Canada. I just hope we get to sing at least one of the Anthems this coming season, in front of 20,000 soccer fans!

Some of my family on our latest trip across the border. (2010)

An audio recording of our audition is available for listening at the following website:

http://ia600808.us.archive.org/28/items/AnthemAudition/AnthemAudition.m4a

Internship

Oh, the glory and glamor of being an intern.

Ok, it really is not that bad. I actually enjoy it. During the Christmas break, I was accepted to work for the Mayor's Office of Salt Lake. After showing up, I got assigned to intern at the Gallivan Center in downtown Salt Lake. The Gallivan Center is a nice outdoor venue that hosts concerts and movies during the summer, ice skating during the winter, and many other activities with food, fun and music.

I will be organizing different events, coordinating vendors, and find sponsors for the upcoming season (Washing my coworkers cars and making coffee runs may be on the list). This work will take me out of my comfort zone, but will be important for my resume and improve me professionally.

Regardless, I am excited to be a part of something so enjoyable. Is event planning part of my future? Perhaps. I guess I'll decide at the end of the internship, after it is all said and done.

The Gallivan Center Stage

The Ice Rink

Oh, and currently Occupy Salt Lake City is camping out near the Gallivan Center... But hopefully they will be gone soon.

Occupy Salt Lake

This is Special

I saw this floating around Facebook (thanks Stephanie!) and I thought it would nice to share with those who read this blog. This young man is inspirational and certainly wise beyond his years.

What's in a name?

 

The LeBaron Family

From a young age, girls will sign their name with the last name of the a boy they like. Admittedly, I did that with a few girls I liked, adding my last name to theirs to see if it fit. How could it not fit with such a fantastic name as LeBaron? The name just screams character.

I wonder what Airin thought the first time she thought about us getting married: two blonde haired, blue eyed, freckled friends. Just one little thing... we'd be Mark and Airin LeBaron. I have to admit, I laughed pretty hard the first time I thought about the possibility. She's been a great sport about it.

When children come into our lives, it will be a joy to name those cute little kids (especially if they look like Airin). I've already come up with a number of names, although Airin doesn't like them that much. I not quite sure why though. For our two boys, we'll name them Deron Aaron and Theron Aaron LeBaron. For our three girls, Maren Airin, Karen Airin and Sharon Airin LeBaron. I see nothing wrong with this plan. But Airin objects wholeheartedly. At least I get to bless them in church and have the final say on their names.

It has been said LeBaron's are known for good and Ervil. For those that don't get this reference, just google it. Definitely nothing to joke about, but we all have relatives we wish we weren't related to. But family is family. And I have a great family. I am so grateful to be part of the LeBaron family. No family is perfect, but they are definitely perfect for me. I am very blessed!

Did I miss a good name to pair with LeBaron? Let me know. I'm sure Airin would love to hear more names that rhyme just like hers!