Stewart Falls

In the beginning of August, Airin and I decided to go hike to Stewart Falls, which is up Provo Canyon. We started hiking about noon, which made it pretty toasty. But it was definitely worth it.

I had hiked this before, about twelve or thirteen years ago. It was one of my first activities as a young scout. 

The trail head is pretty close to BYU's Aspen Grove and it sounded like the Grove was having a pretty bumpin' party when we arrived.

The trail is a pretty easy hike, which is partly why it is a pretty well-known and well-hiked trail. There are a few areas where it gets kinda steep, but otherwise, it meanders it's way through the alpine forest to the falls. It would have been nice to have a little more shade on the trail though. Because Aspen Grove was so close, we kept seeing groups of kids with a few councilors, like some EFY program for kids (EFK-Especially For Kids?), going to the falls and coming from the falls. When we arrived at the falls, some of the kids were running through the water.

I wanted to explore the falls a bit and climb around a little. But then I remembered hearing about a 22 year-old BYU student who tried climbing around there in July, and fell 70 feet to his death. That pretty much ended any curiosity about hiking around the falls.

It turned out to be a great hike and I'm glad we have a nice camera to capture the scenic views of Utah. Here are a few of the awesome pictures we took.

Ah, the falls.

So beautiful!

Running under the water was very appealing.

Cool water to soak the feet in.

I love the wispy clouds.

Saying 'goodbye' to Summer

My calendar tells me it is August, but I am pretty sure it should still be May. What happened to the summer?! This seems to happen every year. School gets out in the Spring and that usually means freedom. I have so much to look forward to: my birthday, spending time with family and friends (who I've neglected during the school year), going on the annual hike of Timpanogos, camping, family reunions, barbeques, fireworks, swimming, sun, and stargazing, just to name a few of my favorite summer activities.

One of my favorite Summer traditions: Hiking Mt. Timpanogos.

But there seems to be a feeling in the air that life is moving onward. Even though it is hot outside, commercials on TV indicate back to school sales are happening at every store. (Be sure to stock up on your denim jeans, new sneakers and pencils and notebooks!) People are taking their last few days of vacation of the summer and gearing up for another season of hard work. And this feeling is bittersweet.

It is sweet because I am looking forward to starting the newest chapter in my life- my last semester of college (at least for now...). This summer for me has been the laziest summer since probably 2004.  I work at my internship 15-20 hours a week and usually spend the rest of the time relaxing and taking it (relatively) easy.  It will be nice to stretch my mind again and get closer to graduating.

Besides cooler weather, saying goodbye to the summer means football. It is my favorite sport and I can't get enough of it when fall comes. I know Airin is dreading this time of year because I get a little distracted on Saturdays. But it sure is sweet!

One of my favorite Summer vacations with my family from 2010. Such great memories!

The bitter part for me is the fact that most of those fun things I look forward to for summer can't continue into the fall and winter. It also means that people become busy again and life continues on the cycle. So many new memories are made and relationships strengthened that it is hard to say goodbye to them because chances are they won't happen again.

But I find it a beautiful thing. I am grateful that there is change. It keeps things fresh and new. I'm glad I live in a state that experiences all four seasons. For me, it gives new meaning and purpose to every season and time of the year. And for that, I'm grateful we get to say 'goodbye' to the Summer. Because in nine short months, we'll get to welcome it back again!

Had a great time this Summer in NY/DC with the Bresocks.

[Games] With Friends

Nothing like having all vowels, including four O's!

I love the game Words With Friends. Ever heard of it? With it available on all Apple iOS devices, Android devices and even Facebook, I imagine most people have. For those who don't know what it is, it is a knock-off of Scrabble. Build words, score points, and play on double and triple word and letter squares. Then wait until your opponent has gone and play again.

 But there is one thing I cannot stand about it: cheating. There are apps and websites that allow players to just plug in your letters and it spits out the best word that is worth the most points. How is part of fair game play? Take any other board game and think about it. When is it ever ok to cheat? Someone once played the word "hangdogs" on me. First of all, what on earth is that, and second, there is no possible way they came up with that on their own.

It is pretty obvious when someone cheats. Absolutely ridiculous words are played at every turn. Some words that have been played against me are things like "glouts", "dhole" and "covin". Even as I type those words, the spell check alerts me they are not spelled correctly with the colorful red line underneath them.

I know you may be thinking, "So Mark, how are we supposed to get better if we don't look up words?" Pick up a dictionary. Look up words to play, don't just let a program do it for you. Pay attention to words in books and other places. Or just don't play at all.

This is probably coming out as being more bitter than it should. Call me a gaming purist if you'd like. There just shouldn't be a place for cheating in any aspect of any game. That takes the fun out of it.

Words With Friends is not the only game like that I play. I also enjoy other "With Friends" games, like Scramble, Hanging and Chess. They are all really fun to play, especially when I need to take a break from studying, escape a boring class, or just play when I'm in the same room as my opponent.

If you're reading this and would like to play either Airin or myself, our user names are MarkusAuralius and AirBaron22, respectively. Go ahead and add us! I promise I'll play you back.

My highest score for one word.

Am I being ridiculous? Is it too petty to pick on the word unscramblers? What do you think? Leave your comments.

The Temple

I have always enjoyed seeing temples. I even sang at the dedication of the Mount Timpanogos Temple, when the open house was going on in 1996. I am truly grateful for the knowledge we have as Latter-day Saints concerning the family and the saving ordinances that take place therein.

I was lucky enough to have a temple in my mission. After receiving my own endowment and going in the MTC, I had only been through a session three times by the time I made it to Michigan. In my third area, and almost 11 months into my mission, I finally had a chance to go again. I was so grateful to be able to have that experience. I had forgotten most of what was taught there, so it was a huge refresher for me. The rest of the day, all I could think about was that "nothing else matters". Not sports, not technology, not even ice cream. For me, it helped remind me that all the secular things we all take for granted won't last beyond this life.

With my companion, Elder Bolke. Detroit, Michigan temple. 2007

So for me, a Utahn, it is a great opportunity and blessing to live so very close to so many temples. For the people in Michigan, before their temple was built [1999] (and the Chicago temple was built [1985]), the closest temple was in Washington, D.C. Many of the older members would tell us the ward trips they would go on: renting a bus, driving the ten hours there and doing as much temple work collectively as they could before making the ten hour return trip. This was a meaningful sacrifice for them, but also a supernal blessing.

In roughly two hours, I could drive to 11 temples here in Utah. Give it a few more years and that number will increase at least three.

Last weekend, Airin and I had the opportunity to witness the sealing of a good friend to his wife in the Manti temple. After we checked into the temple, I promptly placed both Airin's recommend and mine in my front shirt pocket. But as we were walking out an hour later, the recommends could not be found anywhere. The front desk hadn't seen them turned in and I couldn't figure out where I had lost them. It was a sickening feeling. As I pulled out my wallet to pay for something later that day, I immediately noticed that my wallet was missing the recommend that was normally there and it honestly felt like a credit card was missing. Thankfully, we were able to get new ones the next day. 

The moral of the story (and this somewhat preachy blog post) is that as members of the church, I think we sometimes take the opportunity to be Saviors on Mount Zion (Obadiah 1:21) for granted. I am speaking to myself more than anyone, and realize that we are entrusted with a sacred responsibility: the responsibility to link our families to each other, all the way back to Adam and Eve.

With my brother, Lane, right after I came home from my mission. 2008

Cardston, Alberta Temple 2010

With the family at the Newport Beach, California temple. 2010

With my sweetheart, Airin. 2011

I Scream for Ice Cream

Enjoying a "Mark" serving size of ice cream. (1/2 cup my eye!)

Ever since I can remember, I've LOVED ice cream. Just ask my family. I always had the biggest helping when we'd eat it for our family desserts. I don't know what it was, but I've always been hooked. For me, ice cream = happiness.

I think it was fitting that I got a job at a grocery store and assigned to the Frozen Foods Department. I worked there for six months before my mission and 18 months after I came home. I would stock ice cream each day; watching for the next "big" sale. I think I alerted my friends and family when we'd have a sweet deal coming. I'd even buy a half gallon of ice cream and eat it on my break for dinner sometimes. It was too tasty to pass up. (Anyone who knows me has seen what ice cream has done to my midsection...)

Being married to Airin has been a great experience. We have so many things in common,  and yet so many things we disagree completely on. Thankfully, we both agree on the same flavor of ice cream: mint chocolate chip. (It's also good when you add other delectable things, like brownies or Oreos. It's so versatile.)

 This love affair with mint ice cream has led us to many brands and restaurants in search of the best tasting scoops. Unfortunately, most mint ice cream is not minty enough for us. We like things minty! I know some people don't like as strong of a flavor, which is most likely why companies make mint ice cream with a weaker vs. stronger flavoring. 

How can you go wrong with mint chocolate chip?

Growing up, my family would sometimes make homemade ice cream. We had a small machine that churned cream and sugar into a delicious treat. There were a few problems with the ice cream: the first is that it was sometimes too soupy- the mix wasn't frozen enough. The second problem was that I got sick of regular vanilla. So I decided to take some of my mom's peppermint essential oil and put a few drops in there, you know, to spice it up. Fortunately for me, it made it just as minty as I like. Unfortunately, it became too minty for the rest of my family to enjoy. I ended up eating most of that batch. They still give me a hard time about it!

Anyway, life is just too short to not eat ice cream. I know I need to watch what I eat, but sometimes I a craving for ice cream is something that's hard to say no too. It is my vice. If it were listed as part of the "no's" of the Word of Wisdom, I'd be in trouble!

And thus, our quest continues. We will be on the lookout for the best tasting, most satisfying mint ice cream we can find. If you know of one that knocks your socks off, let us know!

Lane, Jackson and myself enjoying some ice cream.

So Happy!

Yesterday was a big day on my timeline. Yesterday, Mark and I have been married for an entire year! The time has just flown by. Though, at times it seems as if we have been married forever and that I have never known life without my best friend. I am excited to spend the rest of eternity with Mark LeBaron. I love him, and I'm looking forward to all the future has in store for us.

Happy Anniversary Mark!

We're here for RSL

Oh what a night!

I'm still recovering from what I would call an RSL hangover. No, I didn't consume any alcohol last night, but there is something about the atmosphere at Rio Tinto Stadium that was intoxicating.

It started off with preparations to sing Oh Canada and The Star Spangled Banner with my four brothers and my Dad. We arrived a few hours before the game started to do a sound check. Because of security reasons, we had to stay on the side line, which was amazing. Coaches and players from RSL came in and out of the locker room and warmed up right next to us. It was a cool experience to be so close to Kyle Beckerman, Javier Morales and all the other players as they walked right in front of us.

In addition to singing and getting into the game free, RSL gave us each a jersey with the number 12 (for 2012) and LeBaron on the back. If we were to buy them ourselves, they'd be $99.95 each, before taxes.  Not a bad deal!

Staying warmed up on the sideline right before we sang.

Our excitement continued to grow as the stadium began to fill up. We had over 40 friends and family who came to support us and watch the game. The only negative thing was that it was pretty cold on the sideline. The day wasn't very warm to begin with and we were in the shade with a chilly breeze blowing by. But it was worth it.

When our time came, we marched on the field and sung it in front of 17,623 fans like the 100 other times we had practiced it. I think it sounded fantastic, aside from a few flat notes by me...

Here is the link to us singing:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyPM0FyPlOw


After being escorted to our seats, we enjoyed a fantastic soccer match with our families and friends. To top it off, Real won 3-2, in a stoppage-time goal, securing three points in the standings. It was a fantastic night.

Beyond the freebies and the experience, it was awesome to just spend that much time with my family. For us to come together and unite is something I will cherish for a long time. Music has blessed my life and kept my family close. I'm grateful to also have my little brother Sterling sing with us as well. He refused to sing with us for a long time, but finally came around to it. (I'm sure my Mother is more happy than I am)

All in all, it was a night never to forget. Next up, I think we'll try to sing for the Utah Jazz and maybe a few other sports teams around the state.

Lots of fans

Amazing sunset

Celebration after a goal

For more photos, go here.