ALASTAIR + LALEINIA

You can see how we did with 2013's bucket list here. You can also see our List for 2014 . We brought in the New Year with lots of dancing in the back garden. Connor was the BBQ master and made us some great food! We also played a few games in preparation for the big moment. We celebrated the turn of the year with sparkling apple and hugs all round, and just as our celebration died down, we heard all of the other neighbors start theirs. It didn't quite add up, until we realized that Dad's iPad was about 7 minutes too fast! We all laughed as we packed up and saw a couple of other people's fireworks going off around us.

We finished the year with a very Lion King-esque adventure. We all piled into the minivan and drove through the Cradle of Humankind and over to the Rhino & Lion Nature Reserve. Today’s goals: play with lion cubs and see some bigger animals! As soon as had we entered the park we saw all sorts of antelope with a massive variety of horns and antlers. As we drove further on down the dusty, rocky ‘road,’ we were able to check off animal after animal from our list. We saw some ugly wart hogs fighting in a little watering hole, wildebeest trotting around, cape buffalo grazing, white rhinos with their babies, ostriches, and zebras. We were also lucky enough to see lions, white lions, cheetahs, leopards, white tigers, a giraffe, wild dogs, and a jaguar! The lions were amazing. Either there is no way to describe it, or I am not a good enough writer, but there is nothing like seeing a lion just a few meters away. We actually got to see a very brief mating session, whic

The perfect place to start our South African adventure was Lesedi, a cultural experience that took us through five villages that represented the five different tribes associated with South Africa. We learned a little about the Zulu, Xhosa, Pedi, Basotho, and Ndebele tribes, by walking around small villages and being introduced to some of the people and traditions that they have. Our tour guide, named "Slender," was great, and made us all feel involved in the tour. She had us repeat different tribal words and communicate with the people in each village. We arrived a little early, and spent a bit of time browsing around a colorful market with loads of really cool African trinkets! Laleinia wanted her picture taken with a beautiful little South African girl, who modeled some of the beaded jewelry really well. Alastair had his eye on some African Football paintings and Lain had her eye on everything else! As we walked around the villages, we were taught some o

We arrived in Johannesburg safe and sound late on Christmas day. We pushed back most of the festivities to the 26th, our first Christmas in the Southern Hemisphere! We wish you all a Merry Christmas and hope that it was one to remember!

Our voyage to South Africa started with a long drive to California. We swung by Las Vegas on the way, and were sure to eat at Le Village buffet in the Paris resort. I don't think that we have ever been so full, but it was a lot of fun. We were unanimous in choosing the crepes as the highlight of the buffet, which Lain gave a solid nine out of ten. We also walked around a candy store with some super-sized stuff. Good times!

Laleinia & Alastair's first picture, Fall 2011 Today is the day that we finally left Rexburg. Lain and I both arrived in South-east Idaho in September of 2007, over six years and three months ago, and it is finally time to move on! Today was bitter/sweet for me, since I have been so excited to be finished with my undergraduate degree and leave Rexburg, but I also realized that I changed and benefitted a lot from being in Idaho. This was the place that I got ready for my mission, went to the temple for the first time, met my wife, decided to focus on my education, and gained a whole load of new skills and knowledge. It is crazy to think that I arrived in Rexburg with two suitcases, and now I leave with two different suitcases, a wife, a great photo album, a phone full of wonderful people's phone numbers, a place in a great MBA program, a job, and so much more. I am so much better off from my time in Rexburg. Studying and being a part of BYU-Idaho has been amazing. Of c

Laleinia and I cannot believe how blessed we are. After interviewing last week in New York City, we found out that we were accepted to IESE in Barcelona, Spain! Not only do we feel that the school is the best fit for me, it also happens to be one of the best business schools in the world! In fact, the Economist currently ranks IESE at #5 in their list of top MBA programs. Also, I will be able to earn a bilingual MBA! But wait, it gets better. I have been accepted into the Young Talent Program, which means that I have been pre-admitted to the program that starts in 2016. I will work for the next two years before going off to Spain. This means that we can earn some money and get immigration sorted out before we leave. I was a little worried about leaving the US for an MBA program while still a permanent resident, since immigration is so tedious. But this way, I will get my citizenship before heading off to school! Of course, Laleinia is very happy about it all. It is so

Since taking the GMAT a few months ago, I have been completing applications to business schools. I have been looking for programs that I believe can help me to achieve the life goals that I have, and allow Laleinia and I to live the life that we want for ourselves and our future family. I had interviewed with a number of schools, but I had never flown out to visit a school. This all changed when I flew out to New York City to visit IESE's New York center. IESE is a business school in Barcelona, but has a few campuses throughout the world. I was invited to interview with them in their New York center, and also to attend an assessment day also, where the school can get a better idea of how I would perform if I were admitted. I had a great time with IESE and the other candidates. It was amazing to be with so many smart and talented people, and I would love for more in the future. Manhattan Temple I didn't see too much more of New York while I was there, but I

Spook houses, parties, movies, pumpkins, and costumes...we're Halloween-ed out.  It's time to bring on the most wonderful time of the year! 

Well it has been a busier than expected six months since our last travel update in April. We have now been married two and a half years, crazy how time flies when you are having fun. As you can see, our most recent travels took us to the East Coast, as we road-tripped during the summer. Six thousand miles well spent! Over the next six months, we are planning to add some new and exciting places to our map! Already, after only two and a half years of marriage, we have seen more of the world than most people do in a lifetime. But we have no plans of slowing down! Catch up with up in six months time to see where we have been!

Autumn is our favorite time of the year. Nothing beats the colorful leaves, the crunching under your boots, and the cup of hot cocoa held in your hands. We decided to take a trip up to Jackson Hole to enjoy the beautiful weather. Our friends have never been, so we made a group date out of it! The drive up was picturesque, so we took a few snapshots here and there. From listening to fall-inspired music, a few good laughs, authentic Mexican food, and window shopping, it was all too perfect! 

After consulting this year's all important Bucket List , we decided it was time to roll up our sleeves and get muddy! Man vs. Mud in Cache Valley, UT was our chance. We headed down there early in the morning and got ready for our unorthodox 5K. Standing at the starting line (which actually was a slip and slide), the announcer read off the team names, which included things like Skid Marks, Moms-and-Morons, Clear as Mud, Dirty Dames and the Gross Gents, Four Score and Seven Blisters Ago, and of course, our team, the Dirty Boosh. For whatever reason, we both got a little nervous at the starting line, probably for fear of the unknown, or something like that. As the race went on and on, we got dirtier and dirtier, kind of clean, then dirty again. We were able to make a video as we went around, make sure you watch it, but there are a few things we need to express. Man vs. Mud brought smiles to our faces. It isn't easy to run in mud. Sometimes it is easier to try and

You probably recall that we first visited Yellowstone together in 2011. Well, we went back. We basically did the same route as last time (even though variation would have been smarter). Either way, Yellowstone is always a cool place to go. We love the colors of the pits, forest, and all of that. It really is a pretty place. If we ever get really into photography, this would be a great place to come back to. Everything is pretty picturesque, and the photos don't really do it justice. We went with Doug and Emily. It was their first time going so that was cool to be the experts of the group. As usual, Laleinia loved sharing her knowledge with us all. She is really into geology, which is quite odd, but she loves it. I like listening to her explain geothermal activity and other interesting things that have slipped my mind! Enjoy the pictures!

Saturday's come and go. We try to make the most of them in the summer! For this reason, and because it is on our yearly bucket list, we went Canoeing with Doug and Emily. We didn't really plan it out, we just parked one car at Beaver Dick park, drove a little ways to what we hoped was upstream of the same river, and got to work! Some of us jumped off the bridge to get into the water, which was fun. We didn't realize it until now, but the trip was quite the trek! Google taught us that the trip was 9.98 miles, which might not sound too bad downstream, however a great deal of the journey was in pretty much still water! For the most part, the water was crystal clear, and the scenery was beautiful all the way down. Can you spot the Moose in this picture? One of the more exciting parts of the trip was seeing a Moose. Laleinia and Emily hid behind the Canoe for the entire time that the Moose was visible, meanwhile Alastair and Doug were much braver, although held bac

Delicate Arch Part of the genius of the road trip was that we did not really have a plan. As we were on the way back west, we decided that we might as well stop by Arches National Park in Moab, UT, and we are so glad that we did. It reminded me of the Copper Mine in Bingham that we went to last year, which is currently closed due to a landslide. It was just so cool to see incredible rock formations, spread over such a vast area. Balanced Rock We saw the rocks that had been nicknamed Three Gossips, Park Avenue, etc., but our favorite ones were the more iconic Balanced Rock and Delicate Arch. I, Alastair, and Connor hiked up to Delicate Arch and hung around up there for a while. Three Gossips  We climbed on some other rocks around the arch and got some good photographs. It is definitely a place that I would love to go back to. We left right as a storm was beginning, perfect timing! Park Avenue