Pfeifferhorn Trip (Well, Almost)

Greg and I went up into Little Cottonwood Canyon in Utah this weekend to go backpacking up to a mountain called the Pfeifferhorn. Round trip, we probably walked about 10 miles, but it was a very steep 10 miles. We had SO much fun! We started in the canyon right below Snowbird Ski Resort and walked around one ridge and then straight up through another one until we reached Red Pine Lake (which was beautiful, as you'll see in the pictures). Then we hiked even further up to Upper Red Pine Lake, which was at the base of this steep and huge mountain we had to climb up, and that is even before we got to the base of the Pfeifferhorn. Once we summited the first huge mountain (which was probably about 1000 feet high from where we camped), we had to walk across this ridge of giant boulders with gigantic cliffs on each side (the ridge was probably only about 10 feet wide so you can imagine how scary it was). Once you make it across the death ridge, the Pfeifferhorn is right in front of you and it is HUGE (to say the least). It looks like it is just straight up, and it is about 1300 feet high from the ridge (which is already super high itself). Long story short, I just couldn't do it. I was just too overwhelmed by the cliffs and looking at the mountain in front of me. I just stopped and told Greg I couldn't handle it and that I was super freaked out. Luckily Greg had already done this trip with his dad last summer, so he was very understanding of how I was feeling (I felt like I was going to die; I am VERY afraid of heights), and we turned around to go back down the first mountain and back to where we had camped. It wasn't a cake walk, let me just say. In total, from the bottom of the canyon where we started to where we climbed and then had to turn around, it was about 4000 feet that we summited (that's in about 5 miles). It was a tough hike (especially with backpacks) but it was DEFINITELY worth it.

One day, I will get to the top of the Pfeifferhorn. That is my goal.

Until then, you can enjoy the pictures we took while on our trip. We took about a million.

It was gorgeous. So green. And the weather was nice and cool.

Our first view of the canyon from up high. You can see the road just barely down at the bottom.

The trail took us right next to this beautiful river. 

Greg thought this picture was kind of dumb because I made him lean on the tree, but I think it's cute!

I'm glad we got this picture of this butterfly. It was huge!

Another view of the other side of the canyon. We were getting pretty high up by this point.

Some pretty flowers on the trail.

There's the road in the canyon. At the bottom of the canyon is the Salt Lake Valley.

We found another spot where the trail took us right next to the river. Gorgeous.

You can barely see us, but we are in this picture!

Since it was such a steep hike, I took quite a few breaks because I was so worn out. Greg pointed out that every time I stopped, I would try to get the subject off of how I was stopping because I was tired and I would say something like, "Look how beautiful those flowers are!" or "Wow, this shade is really nice." In this picture, I saw the rocks in the background and wanted to take a picture (my "reason" for stopping to take a break).

We found some snow on the trail. Who would've thought? It's been like 90 degrees here every day!

Finally! We made it to Red Pine Lake. Didn't I tell you how gorgeous it was? (Notice the gigantic mountain in the background as well. The next morning, we summited that baby)

On our way up to Upper Red Pine Lake.

That is one tough pine tree.

Gorgeous view. You can see part of Red Pine Lake down there.

And that's what we had to climb up to get to the upper lake.

Got our tent all set up!

There were TONS of rocks up there. Greg kept making the comment that "the mountains are falling apart." They really looked like it. (To the left in the background of this picture is where we had to summit the next morning)

Mountains surrounded us while we camped. It was amazing.

The sunset.

The very next morning, this is what we woke up to. And yes, we hiked all the way to the top of it.

The view of the valley from a little ways up the mountain.

About half way up.

Even though this picture is hideous, it's the only one we took at the top of the mountain, so it'll have to do.

Look at how amazing this is!

This is the view of the other side of the mountain. I'm pretty sure you can see Mount Timpanogos in the  background. Utah Valley is just over those mountains (in fact, we could see where Lehi and American Fork were).

This is the view of Mount Pfeifferhorn from the top of the mountain we just summited. It looks nuts, right?

This one isn't my picture, but I found it on the internet so I could show you how intense this thing is. On the left, there's the ridge that you have to walk along (about 10 feet wide) and then you can see just how steep and crazy these cliffs were. You can't see it here, but on the other side of the ridge, there were just as crazy cliffs as the ones shown here. Then, notice how steep the actually Pfeifferhorn is. It's crazy. I couldn't do it this time. But one day I will.

This one shows more of how the ridge looks. The cliffs are crazy too.

Greg found some really pretty flowers while we were up there.

This is a view of the mountain we summited. Steep huh? I had these terrible running shoes on that were SUPER slippery. I blame those shoes for part of the reason for why I didn't get to the top of the Pfeifferhorn.

Another view of the mountain.

I just love this picture. On the left, I was 12 years old. My dad took me backpacking in the High Sierras in California. On the right, I am 20 years old. Now my husband gets to take me on backpacking trips :]

And these were our nasty legs and feet after the trip when we got home. 

Greg and I had a BLAST. We cannot wait until we go on another trip like this. Maybe next time we go up there, I'll be able to summit Mount Pfeifferhorn. Until then, I guess I'm just a little too afraid of heights! 

Camping Trip With The Livingston's!

About a week ago, Greg and I went on a really fun camping trip with his family (except Jocelyn and Chris- they are still in Florida unfortunately). It was so much fun! We went up to the Uinta's and camped at Mirror Lake. It was a short trip, so we just stayed the night one night and then got up the next morning and hiked to another beautiful lake. I LOVE camping. It's one of my favorite things to do. We fished a lot, ate s'mores and a delicious pork dinner mixed with onions and yams in a dutch oven, and just had a great time being with each other.

The night we were at Mirror Lake, Greg caught a fish for us to eat. Lauren wanted to eat one of the eyeballs (according to her bucket list). She actually did it. It was disgusting. But I was pretty impressed that she really did it! I think she just about gagged. Later on, Greg and I were laughing a ton as we went to bed. Well, actually, I was laughing a ton. I pretty much was hogging the entire tent and Greg was smooshed up against the side. It was so funny. Probably not that funny to everyone else because I was being pretty loud while everyone was trying to sleep. But it was so funny to me!

Here's just a part of Mirror Lake, where we camped. It was beautiful. And mosquito infested. But it was still great!

What a stud. That's my husband right there.

Here's some of us getting ready for our hike in the morning up to Wall Lake.

And here is the gorgeous Wall Lake! To the left, there were some pretty sweet rocks to jump off into the lake, but the lake was FREEZING, so we didn't end up doing it.

Cute Sammy. He loves to fish!

The girls (Alisa went right up to the lake and started fishing as soon as we got there).

Once again, my handsome hubby.

Shaun and his new girlfriend Susie. She's really cool and super nice. It was fun to have her come along on the trip.

So, here is a picture of one of the ten fish Greg caught that day. I was so jealous and really frustrated. I ended up catching one fish. Greg's just a natural I guess. It was fun though, even if it was super frustrating. Greg and I walked down this creek and fished all along it. It was beautiful.

My fish was micro, but Greg's was decent. At first it was hard for me to pick up the fish because I was a little bit grossed out (as shown in this picture) but I eventually got over it and gutted it a few minutes later with Greg's help.

Notice the fish are kissing in this picture. How romantic.

We had a ton of fun! I'm really glad we got to go on this little quick trip with Greg's family. It was kind of a spur of the moment trip, but it was definitely worth it!

Alisa is a HIGH SCHOOL Graduate!

So, a couple of weeks ago, we had the privilege of attending Alisa's high school graduation, hence the name of this blog post. It was so exciting for her to finally be done with those dang high school years and move onto a new chapter of her life. She will be attending BYU Idaho in the Winter, which is awesome because that's where Greg and I met! I know she is going to love it up there.

At every single graduation I go to (which really hasn't been THAT many), I always take way too many pictures during the actual graduation itself, and not enough afterwards with like family and friends. This graduation was no different. And unfortunately, my camera died right after the graduation and before I could even think to start taking pictures of Alisa and the family. But, good news is I know Lance took a lot of pictures, so it's all good. Here are some of the pictures I did end up taking.

You know how at high school graduations it's a mad dash to see who can get the best seat on the uncomfortable bleachers so you can sit there for 2 hours in the blazing sun? Well, Greg, Shaun, Lauren, and I didn't get in on that race. Instead, we got there a little bit late and ended up sitting on the grass next to the bleachers, comfortably shaded by a huge tree. I'd say we were the lucky ones.

I just love Park City High School's colors. I think it looked really good as the grads walked out onto the field.

They read out the graduates' names and they stood in this long line to get their picture taken. Alisa's in the middle of this picture (if it wasn't obvious enough).

I thought this was a cool picture I took, even though it's not the best quality. And Alisa's hair is kind of on her face (sorry to point that out). But other than that, it's pretty sweet, with the PC in the corner and all.

 There's everyone who decided to sit on the hard bleachers the entire time. I'm sure their butts were not too happy after sitting there for a while.

She's so cute! And so excited to finally be done with high school!

This was super cool when all the grads threw their hats up. I don't think we did that at my graduation. I wish we would've because it looks awesome!

Sisters! 

And this is where my camera died.

Anyways, it was a lot of fun celebrating Alisa's big day with her. I'm so proud of her and the hard work she has put in to finishing her high school years and getting that diploma! Congrats Lisa!

Truly an Inspiration!

Today, my Marriage and Family teacher, Brother Brooks, told our class an amazing story of doing the right thing while going through hardships. It has truly inspired me, and I want to share it.

Brother Brooks told us about a time on his mission, where he got a new companion. The first day he was with him, my teacher woke up to find his shoes were already shined (something my teacher did himself, and quite often). In addition, he smelled a warm breakfast waiting for him. Brother Brooks said he had never had a warm breakfast in his entire mission, and that he immediately thought very highly of his companion. They were together for 2 months, and every single day, his companion would have shined his shoes for him before he woke up and already have a warm breakfast made for my teacher to come to. Naturally, my teacher thought, "Wow! This companion must have come from such a great family with high values! I thought I knew all the General Authority, but I must've missed one, because this guy's dad must be a General Authority!"

During their time together, however, Brother Brooks learned a lot about this young man who was his companion. The young man was an only child, and the only member of the church in his family. His father was very well off, and had much money. When the young man was 17 years old, he had a couple of friends who were LDS who went to early morning seminary every morning. The young man was so intrigued about why they did this, and wanted to find out what was really going on, so he went with his friends to seminary for a couple of months, and found out the Church was true.

When he went to his father and mother to tell them that he had received a testimony that the Church was true, his father said, "Well, son, we have raised you to be able to make your own decisions and choose the path you wish to follow during your life. We will allow you to get baptized, but just know that we do not support this decision, and we do not agree with you that you have found the true church. Also know this, that if you get baptized, I will take you off of my will." (In his father's will, the young man was to receive a very huge amount of money). The young man said, "Well, dad, I hope that you will see differently and that you won't do that, but I still want to be baptized." So, the boy got baptized, and the very next day, his father took him off of his will.

A couple of years later, the young man turned 19 and was taught that every young man was to serve a mission for the Church. The young man went to his father and mother to tell them that he wanted to go on a mission. The father asked, "Well, what is a mission?" The young man told him that the Church wanted every young man to go on a missions to preach the Gospel and bring others to Christ. The father asked, "Well, what do you receive for going on this mission?" The young man replied, "We don't get any money out of this. In fact, we have to give up all we have and pay for our own missions." The father started to laugh a little bit, and said, "Well, where do you get to go?" The young man said, "We don't get to choose. The President of the Church prays about where we should go, and then tells us where the Lord needs us to go." By this moment, the father was so surprised and laughed as he said, "So, you are so stupid enough to give up your money, your time, your girlfriend, your job, and your family to go on a mission where you have to pay with everything you have to go and you don't get to choose where you get to go?" The young man said he wanted to go. The father then said, "Well, son, we have raised you to make your own decisions, whether we agree with them or not, so you can go. But know this, you will not receive a penny from us. And also, don't come home."

The young man still decided to go on his mission. Before he left, he received a blessing from the bishop of his ward that included these words: "As long as you serve during your mission full-heartedly, with every ounce that you have, every single day, your mission will be the influence on your family for them to join the Church." This young man believed in this blessing with his entire heart, and went out into the mission field, not knowing when or how his parents would come to realize what he already knew about the Gospel.

My teacher explained that after hearing this story, it made complete sense as to why this young missionary was so willing to serve, every single day. He had a light about him, and believed in the power of God. He knew that God would bless his life some time in the future, if not immediately. He sent a letter every single week to his parents, expressing how much love he felt for them and the Gospel of Jesus Christ. His letters went unanswered for the entirety of his mission.

As his mission came to an end, the young man contacted his bishop from his home ward and explained the circumstances of how he could not return home and that he didn't have any money or any job to come home to. The bishop told him that he would gladly take this missionary into his home until he got on his feet. The bishop told him that he would meet him at the airport to pick him up when he returned home.

The young missionary finally went home and got off the plane to go meet the bishop. But the bishop was no where to be found. He went and found a seat in the airport and told himself that the bishop just must be running late and that he would be there. He didn't have a single cent to make any calls or get anything to eat, so he just waited for a while.

Finally, as the young missionary was growing worried, he saw two people walking towards him out of the corner of his eye. It was his father and mother. He felt his heart sink; he felt miserable. He was so appalled that after all of the letters and prayers and everything that had happened, his parents had shown up to the airport just to tell him how much they despised him, and that he really was not welcome home.

The father reached this young missionary, opened his arms, and immediately embraced his son in a warm hug and said, "Son, I am so proud of the mission that you have served. Welcome home. About six months ago, your mother and I started taking the missionary discussions; we were so inspired from your letters. We have decided that we want to be baptized, and we were wondering if on the way home, we could stop by the church and have you baptize us. The bishop is already over there, filling up the font, and there are others from the ward there waiting to celebrate with us." The young missionary said, with tears in his eyes, "Yeah, I think I can do that."

What an amazing story! It brings tears to my eyes because I know that this young man had so much faith in the Lord, and that He would provide and bless his family. I truly know that as we follow God's counsel and do everything that he asks of us, even submitting our will to His, we will be eternally blessed and happier than we could every imagine. It may be tough sometimes to do the things that He asks us to do, but I know that if we desire to please God more than men, we will have the greatest pleasures in life.