The Slip n' Slide

During the first week in August my ward did a slip n' slide that was awesome!  I don't know the exact dimensions, but it was BIG.  We had a great time on it, plus we made snow cones as an added bonus.  I didn't take too many pictures because I was busy having fun.  But here are a few just to give you an idea.

Like I said, it was BIG

Noel looks like he got thrown in a dishwasher

He hit the grass and didn't stop...

The slide was what summer is all about, a chance to have fun and feel like a young kid again.  It was impossible to resist going down,  and while the water was cold, we didn't notice one bit, the adrenaline took care of that.  It's now my plan to do something like this every summer for as long as I can.  Come join me for the next one!

The Boating Season

A few summers ago my grandparents sold their boat, leaving me with no options for getting out and slashing the wake...  But this summer I weaseled my way onto a new boat and soon made a good enough impression to continually receive an invite.  These are a few pictures of the friends and myself getting a little water logged!  There are mostly pictures of me, this is because I've never had any good pictures of me on a wakeboard,  Thank you to Alisha Weiss for getting the shots of me!

Dick Baldwin, owner and captain

Alisha got up for her first time!

Jess figured it out too

Check out that form

I love this shot

There goes Jess

We even got brother Baldwin out there!

Madison Wood, Jeff Treft and Maren Nilsen (now it's Treft!)

Show off...

Hopefully next year I can get out on the lake a few more times and really start to improve my skills,  Until then, I'll live up the snowboarding season!

Fourth of July Hike

This year for the Independence Day, Noel and Sean invited me to hike to Flag rock with them.  I had this vision of arriving at the same time the F-16's flew by on their route to various parades, so I accepted their invitation.  The hike was a great morning jaunt and while a cloudless day would have been perfect, the overcast sky kept the temperature down, which I couldn't complain about.  Well as it turns out, the F-16's weren't flying low over the valley, they were still there, but way higher than expected and it wasn't worth it to take a picture of them.  It was still cool to be sitting at Flag rock celebrating our independence, and I was more than happy to be there.  Next year I plan on doing the same...

Havasupai

It finally happened, I knew this day would come, but I didn't expect it till the end of August.  I took a backpacking trip without theBRIGADE...  Everything turned out fine, but I felt a little out of place without Jeff and Jake backing me up.  The trip took place July 6th through the 10th and it was a blast.  Here are some pictures to help tell the story.

That's me!

And this is Maren

Havasu Falls

Rock Falls

New Navajo Falls

Mooney Falls

Beaver Falls

Tayler Belnap flipping out!

The storm that turned to a flash flood

The pups reward, jerky!

It's hard for me to think of a place I've been that has more beauty than Havasupai.  Granted everywhere has it's own kind of beauty, but this canyon oasis is truly remarkable.  Hopefully I can make it back there in the next couple of years, but next time I want theBrigade with me!

theBREAKDOWN

So theBRIGADE has begun to branch out with our backpacking and now we're gonna talk about what equipment we like to use.  Take a minute and check out theBREAKDOWN, our new product review blog.  Be sure to tell us what you think, and let us know if you have any questions about a product, even if we don't own it, we'll check it out and write up a review!

Manti Pageant Trip

With the reorganization of the young single adult program in the church, I've now received the calling of activities committee co-chair.  Luckily a few activities were already scheduled, so I just had to get the fine details worked out.  The first activity was a trip to Manti to see the Mormon Miracle Pageant.  The trip was a huge success and we had a giant number of singles show up, without anyone getting lost.  I didn't take any pictures of the actual production because I was transfixed on the story, but I did get some pretty cool shots of the temple!

If you haven't ever seen the pageant I highly recommend it.  Once is enough, but it's definitely good to see.  Make sure to check it out next year!

Marriage Mayhem

On the ninth of June, Tim got married.  For this joyous occasion I was asked to be a groomsman, which I gladly accepted, knowing that Jake and Dylan would be joining me in the festivities.  The day came and we gathered at the Salt Lake temple to see Tim and Tay emerge as husband and wife, destined to drive each other insane.  A picture was taken, then a few more, and eventually we made our way to a luncheon in their honor.  The reception wouldn't be taking place till the next day, so that was the end of our fun for the afternoon, but we had a few plans to take care of before Friday...

So then came friday, the weekend, a time for devious wedding pranks, good food, and more pictures.  Jake and I went to the mall during lunch to find some new ties for the groomsmen.  Specifically fish ties, more specifically a nice king salmon.  Unfortunately we weren't able to find any, so instead we chose some wonderfully horrific slim neon green ties with black stripes, perfect!  Phase one ready to execute!

Next came helping to set up the reception.  I didn't get there till most of the stuff was ready to go, but I helped a little, then Tim and the rest of the group went off the change into their formal wear, and us groomsmen got our chance to begin phase two.  We quickly ran off to the store to stock up on Oreos, toilet paper, Saran Wrap, jelly donuts, and window paint.  Let the games begin!

The reception started and we walked in sporting our new ties.  Tim gave us a rather odd look, but he didn't make us take them off (good thing, as we'd burned our others!)  We celebrated our success by taking more pictures with the photographer, that's just how sneaky we are!  Next came the trashing of the truck!

Jake, Dylan, Brandon, Ben and myself, thinking outside the box

Like any good group of groomsmen, we were up to the task at hand, and more than excited to perform.  we gathered around and began to unleash mayhem!  Soon the truck had turned into a marriage-mobile!  We stood back and admired our handiwork, then returned to the party, in a single file, totally non-conspicuous line.  No one suspected a thing, except of course, Tim's mom,  NOTHING gets past her...

Tim and Tay stayed for a few more hours and then went out to be greeted by our surprise.  At this time we also had a little pyrotechnic display to send it over the top.  Mission accomplished!