Mt. Timp, the 2nd Highest Peak in Utah

WE DID IT!!! Everyone talks about hiking Mt. Timp like it's no big deal...FALSE. It is a lot harder than it seems, especially if you're dumb enough to not go with anyone who's done it before. Brent and I have been wanting to hike Mt. Timp for a long time. We decided one day just to go and do it. We woke up early and were hiking around 6:45. The first part of the hike was amazing. After about an hour in I was beginning to wonder if we were almost there. Little did I know, we still had 4 more hours to the top! We finally made it to the summit where we could see all of Utah County and the shack at the top of the mountain. We knew we were close, well at least we thought we were. We took the wrong trail and ended up at the edge of a cliff. It was a little scary! We were hiking on about 12 inches with a cliff to our side. Then we realized we had accidentally taken the wrong path (the path is not well marked once you're to the summit), so we turned around. After that wrong turn everything else seemed pretty easy! We finally made it to the top!! I was a little nervous at the top because it's only about 6 feet wide with a cliff and steep rocks on both sides. After we ate our lunch at the top, we hiked back down, which took another 4 hours. So 9 hours total! Granted we took breaks to eat snacks on the way up. We were so sore by the time we got back. But, was it worth it? ABSOLUTELY! You have to do it once while you have the chance. I already want to do it again! Here are some pictures of the beautiful hike!

We could finally see the white shack at the top. We knew we were close!

This was about 4 hours in to the hike. See that little tiny shack at the top. That was the destination. So close, yet so far away!! 

At the summit point. Just about an hour away from the top!

We had to make our mark! 

At the tippy top!

Look at the terrain!! We had to cross about a mile of these rocks. Our feet were so sore after!

Such beautiful Fall colors!

O Canada O Canada!

We had an amazing opportunity to be able to visit Brent's parents on their mission in Winnipeg, Canada. We knew this would be the only time we would go since the winters dip down to around -40. And boy oh boy, it was beautiful!! We were able to spend 5 days just relaxing with his parents. It was a great break right before Brent started school. Here are some of the fun things we did...

We went to a zoo with Polar Bears! 

They get so much snow that this river floods every year. We took a boat ride on it, which was super fun!

My cute in-laws. 

Playing cards every night! 

The Mennonite village. This was super neat! 

I don't think you could call it a successful trip with the Parkers unless you see a movie in the theaters. haha 

It was such an amazing trip! We are so proud of Roy and Donna and all the hard work they are doing for the church :)

Surprise Anniversary!

Brent has a way of always surprising me for fun little trips. He does a good job at leading me a different direction. Brent picked me up from work on the Thursday before our anniversary. I got in the car and turned around and there were mountain bikes in the back of the car. I was a little confused! ha Brent told me that we were going up to Park City to go mountain biking and to just get away and enjoy our anniversary. He started driving, and told me he had to go through Salt Lake because it was faster from my work. I completely believed him. Little did I know, he had us scheduled to get a couples massage in Salt Lake. It was amazing!! Afterward, we drove up to Park City and had the best weekend. It was so relaxing. We stayed walking distance from Main Street, which was perfect for all the fun foods that we tried. We love going in the summer because everything is half off. Score!!

Mountain biking was really awesome. We had never done it before, so we bought an all day lift pass, thinking we would do it over and over again. It took us so long to get down the mountain that we only ended up doing it once.

Look how beautiful it was!

Enjoying a delicious meal after our bike ride!

Our very favorite restaurant. Thai food on main street!

That night, we still had our all day lift tickets and we didn't want to waste them. We decided to go for a nice scenic ride up and back down the lift. It started to sprinkle but we didn't think anything of it. We got on the lift, not realizing we were in for the ride of our lives!! About half way up the fog was so dense and surrounding us that we could barely see 10 feet in front of us. It was hailing and lightning like crazy. We were laughing and having fun until we realized that the lightning was getting closer and closer and we were up high in a completely metal lift. No bueno! We started to get really nervous. Finally, we could see the hut at the top. It was the longest 30 minutes of my life. At the top, the guy was screaming over the loudness of the hail to run inside the hut. He told us the lightning was right there and it was extremely dangerous. We ran inside, and waited there for the storm to pass. The guy even had to give us a ride to the bottom in his truck! What a memorable/scary/funny experience that we will never forget! :)

Inside the hut hiding out from the storm! 

Camping!

I don't know how I got this idea in my head, but for the past 2 months I have been BEGGING everyone to go camping with me. I just had this sudden itch and it had to be fulfilled. I think I realized that once we move to Texas, we won't get the same camping experience. I'm trying to do all the amazing Utah things while I can! So, I finally convinced my family to go camping and it was just as amazing as I remembered it. And, I was able to introduce Brent to the best way of camping, since he didn't grow up camping.I love the campfire and making a delicious dinner, the smell in the mountains, the water running by the tent at night, sleeping all together in a tent, waking up at the crack of dawn to watch the sunrise, and making a traditional camping breakfast. I love it all! Here are a few pictures of the best night ever! 

I knew going in to this that the tent was broken, but that's part of the adventure right?! Who cares if it makes you get soaked at 2 in the morning...worth it!! 

The Famous St. Anthony

St. Anthony, Idaho may not be the Big Apple, but it's close enough in our book. This city is where my dad grew up, and I swear, it has not grown a bit since 1950. What other city has stayed the exact same through decades of time? That is why we absolutely love St. A. It is the best kept secret in the nation. My dad lived right on the Snake River, which is our favorite thing to do. We love floating the river and getting out at the sandbar, which has a diving board and a way fun slide. We then float the river down to the powerhouse. Seriously, so much fun. It wouldn't be complete without a 50 cent root beer float from Grant's. 

We love to go up over the 24th of July so we can watch the parade. So great! This year a lady was coming around with a massage chair, and leave it to Brent to ask if she was giving out free massages. She replied "yes" and told him to take a seat. I was a little jealous. It looked heavenly! But I could barely take the pictures because I was laughing so hard. Here Brent is relaxed as could be while the whole float is continuing behind him. He definitely caught everyone's attention! 

Morning walk in the windy Rexburg. 

Funny story with this scene. So, this exact spot, 18 years ago is where my dad took us one day when my mom was speaking at EFY. We sat here as they pulled up with a cow and a man with a gun. My dad, thinking this would be a great experience for the kids, sat us all down on those benches. They pulled the cow in and shot him right on the spot. They then proceeded to cut the cow up. My dad sat there with his jaw dropped to the floor as he then remembered he was the dad and his 3 kids were right next to him. He looked over to find us all with tears coming down our eyes. haha and then "don't tell mom." Of course the first thing Tyson said when we saw our mom, "You won't believe what dad took us to see." haha of course! Such a funny memory to relive here. 

I can hardly wait to meet my grandpa. He sounds like such an amazing man!