The Big Leagues

The Lehmitz Lovers finished their winter round of sports this past week. The Utah Jazz of South Jordan suffered a defeat in overtime. With two minutes left to go in the game, one of the opposing team's key players committed a double foul with Andrew Jenkins. The ref was persuaded by the opposing team that their was no foul. If a foul would have been called, the outcome of the game would have been drastically different. The opposing team would have had to play with a man down, giving the Utah Jazz the advantage. Alas, games are not won on "would have's" we were sorry to see the season end on a bad call.

As for Tiffani's Relief Society basketball team, they made it to the championship region game. Although Tiffani felt like a star strutting onto the court when the announcer called her name, her legs were a bit jiggly from the nine mile run that morning. Earlier exercise must have influenced her performance. The Cherry Hill stake was ahead of Park for the first half of the game, but after they started taking outside shots, the other team quickly caught up. The Relief Society basketball team walked away with a second-place title, losing by five points. The Park stake was so proud of their victory, they cut down the nets. I guess church ball is the big leagues now-a-days.

Religious Outings

Saturday night was the Young Women General Broadcast. Since I am an advisor in Beehives, I figured it was my duty, nay obligation, to go. Our ward was fortunate enough to receive tickets to go to the Conference Center. So I headed down to Salt Lake with my little sisters and my mom to be spiritually fed while Will set out with our friends, Jack and Sausha, to the Festival of Colors at the Hindu temple in Spanish Fork. I can really only tell you about my end of the story, and hopefully the pictures will tell you about Will's adventures.


This is a small portion of the crowd that came out to celebrate the arrival of Spring.
Jack was a little appalled that Will chose to desecrate his Utah Jazz t-shirt by wearing it to the festival.

The colored chalk dissipates in a cloudy haze after the crowd exhuberantly throws it in the air.
Colored Will (this is not a racial term, it's quite literal.)
A couple of rainbow children.
I could have taken a picture with Will like this if I was there.

Although I missed the festivities, the Young Women General Broadcast did not let me down. I loved seeing all the sisters pour into the Conference Center to hear the words of the President Monson and the Young Women General Presidency. I came away with a resolve to be a better person by living more virtuously. President Monson encouraged the young women to have courage in three areas: courage to refrain from judging others, courage to live a chaste and virtuous life, and courage to stand for righteousness and truth. The General Presidency challenged all young women to do three things every day: say their prayers morning and night, read the Book of Mormon for at least five minutes, and to smile. I really loved President Monson's challenge to refrain from judging others. Sometimes passing judgment is just a simple as not saying something to change the conversation when others are gossipping. I'm grateful for those little reminders to be more Christlike. Hooray for the gospel!

Touched This

Will and Tif ended their dramatic racquetball career with a resounding defeat. They put up a noble fight against Dowman and Willmore, losing the first set 14 to 15 and the second set 11 to 15. They battled bad-attitudes as well as wicked backhands. The male opponent struggled to put on a happy face when the Lehmi'tz's were ahead. Despite the nasty glares, and under-the-breath comments, Will and Tiffani managed to have a good time and were pleased with their performance.
As far as basketball goes, the Jazz walked away with another victory under their belts, winning their last game by a margin of 16 points, with no subs. Elder's Quorum basketball finished their first regional game this last Saturday and are continuing on in the tournament, and Tiffani's Relief Society team won a double-header this past Friday. Thursday's game will determine if they will go into the Region tournament as first or second seed.
Will and Tiffani are saddened to report a loss for their soccer team, 3-1. After their goalie was taken down by an opposing player, the ref awarded a pk to the other team, resulting in a non-deserving point. Nonetheless, the 99th ward's standings were affected by this loss and the team will be playing in the upcoming tournament.

Can't Touch This

I figured that I had better write about our sports activities while we are still in the limelight. The couple featured above is BYU's most threatening up-and-coming amateur racquetball players. With their deadly kill shots and devilish backhands, they are a lethal combination. Records indicate that the Lehmitz Lovers have only suffered one defeat thus far and are headed for the championship round. Tonight's match was a hard-fought battle. In the second set, Tiffani Lehmitz returned a line-drive serve, solidly connecting with the ball, but ignominiously rolling her ankle. Despite the injury, Tiffani hobbled through the next match and the Lehmitz Lovers finished the tie-breaking set, winning by a solid seven points. Updates will be forthcoming regarding the championship.

Will Lehmitz, featured above, is also on of the star players of the Utah Jazz of BYU intramurals. He's campaigning for "The Sixth Man of the Year" award with his phenomenal game-changing performance coming off the bench. Recently the Jazz have terminated Lindy Lou, (name has been changed to protect the actual identity) the "Team Mom" and rumor has it that Tiffani Lehmitz is being considered for the position.

The Jazz are 3-1 with their most notable victory occurring this past Saturday. With a 79-29 blowout against the T-Wolves. Their star line-up is featured below. For more in depth coverage, see their facebook website, the Utah Jazz of BYU Intramurals, for a game-by-game analysis.

Top Row: Andrew Jenkins, Brad Norman, Bryson McCleary, Mike Williams

Bottom Row: Will Lehmitz, Marc Harrison, Devin Knight Barrett

Along with racquetball, Will and Tiffani are also playing on a soccer team. Currently the 99th Ward's standing are two wins and one tie. The rest of the season looks promising as their last game resulted in a 6-0 victory.

Tiffani's Relief Society basketball team's record is prodigious as well, with six wins and one loss they are headed into the Stake tournament tomorrow. Will is also playing on the Elder's Quorum basketball team. He is their leading scorer, dropping eggs in the basket as if it were Easter time.

During the off-hours, Tiffani is training for the St. George marathon in the fall. Hopefully the recent ankle injury won't hinder any upcoming runs, matches, or games.

California, California, Here We Come

This last week Tif and I headed out to sunny San Diego, together with our friends Jack and Sausha Christensen. Since Jack's dad was nice enough to let us use his hybrid Toyota, we proudly adopted the name Team Prius for our traveling expedition. For me, the trip was like a journey through a fairy tale fantasy land, since it had been around 14 years since my last visit to California. And I took it all in...

I had my first experience with In-n-Out Burger in St. George. Mighty fine cookin'. If Jack would have had his way, we would have eaten there for every meal, but the ladyfolk's wisdom prevailed on that issue. Las Vegas is quite an interesting city, very shiny anyway. Nevada sure is ugly though (at least that part of I-15). After Vegas, we stopped in Primm to fill up on gas. Maybe it's just me, but Terrible's just doesn't seem like the best name for your hotel/casino; but what do I know. I took over driving from there, and navigated the busier freeways in California until we reached our destination--San Diego.
Luckily our friends the Wankier's had gotten some free time share and allowed us to stay with them, which I suppose was a little for comfy than the back seat. I'll have to figure out when the next time-share meeting is to see if we can get some wining-and-dining treatment to try and get us to buy a vacation package.
Unfortunately, the reason we were in California was for my mission president, Jim Weipert's funeral. He passed away after a four month struggle against an advanced lymphatic cancer. It was wonderful to see so many of his missionaries at his funeral and to realize how loved and respected he was as a man. I know that he was definitely powerful influence on my life. He helped me to understand my locus of control--that is, helped me to realize that with the Lord's help, all things are possible if I put forth my greatest effort. He also taught us about accountability and getting things done, no matter what. No hay excusas. President Weipert was a spiritual icon for so many of us missionaries on a personal level and he will be missed. But, he also taught us to be spiritually self-reliant, and so even now that he is gone, we can all continue moving forward in the work that he was so dedicated to. His wife, Sister Weipert was such an example as well, a true stalwart considering her situation. I'm glad we could be there to attend the funeral and support the Weipert family.
But, what better way to get over the sadness of a funeral than to enjoy the 75 degree weather on the beach. It was awesome. We played in the waves, laid in the sand, chased the gulls, and even built a sandcastle. It wasn't just any sandcastle either. It was an architectual masterpiece, a diorama of the feudal ages. We also got to visit with Grandma Sally and Aunt LeAnn, Tiffani's relatives that are vacationing as snowbirds for the winter. Unfortunately, the day only last so long, and soon dusk came and we went home. Featured below, we have Jack and Sausha, Captains of Team Prius, then the Lehmitz's in their beach togas, and finally, the ocean at sunset.
We headed out Sunday morning, stopping for Church in San Bernandino. It was a splendid trip, and I must say, California is quite beautiful. What I really liked about San Diego were the green hills that rolled on for miles. And even though San Diego is a large metropolitan area, the hills give it a smaller, more intimate feel. The weather and the sights were great--I hope we can head back soon.
The drive back seemed to take forever, but traveling with Jack and Sausha was quite enjoyable. We've already decided that our children will get married so we can continue our friendship forever,
But, I can't finish this post without giving a shout out to Beaver, Utah. We stopped there to get gas and so that Jack could show us his grandparents house where he created so many of his childhood memories. We got to create some of our own, however, when we stopped for dinner at the local Wendy's. I call it the incestuous Wendy's, because most of the workers looked like products of an inbred relationship. One guy imparticular was kind of creepy, having his head shaved except his greasy ponytail poking out the back. It took like 20 minutes to get our food (there were only like 3 customers in the store). And lastly, as we went to leave, we got to witness an employee wrestling match right outside the men's bathroom. If you ask me, not the ideal place to be on the floor, much less when you're working. But hey, we're in Beaver, and when in Beaver...
So that was our California adventure. It was super.

Snowshoeing Photo Shoot

Being unemployed has its perks. It's not often that I get to go snowshoeing with two of my best Badger buds. I am thrilled that Christine and Elise are nearby. Christine has become my running buddy and Elise encourages me to work on my gourmet cooking skills. (Today we attempted pumpkin rolls. Needless to say, they weren't worthy of a blog post. Will termed it, "a baking disaster.)

Back to the adventure . . . it was an overcast Friday morning. Three girls were just aching to see the mountains and this is a travelogue of their journey.

This is base camp, Mount Timpanogos trailhead. Destination: Stewart Falls. Actual course: Somewhere along that mountain yonder. (Good thing we never found Stewart Falls. I learned today from Elise that we would have crossed two avalanche zones to get there.)

We had an individual photo shoot at the amphiteater. Surprisingly, snowshoes grip rock walls pretty well. Elise looks stunning in her hot-pink snowcap.

Christine is sporting a side ponytail so she wouldn't "look like a boy". Secret: She was wearing boys snowpants. Elise and I are just too good at looking tough. The hoods are intimidating, I know.

Even though it just looks like we took pictures, we fit in a fair amount of snowshoeing. I got to hear all of Elise's love confessions, and relive my days of being single. Hooray for friends!