Rex Kwondo in Training

So for Christmas my parents got me Taekwondo lessons. I made it to yellow belt and then came to the realization that my older bros could still beat the tar out of me. But you have to admit I look pretty tough in this picture. The funny thing is I used to wear a bandana a few years back and everyone said I looked like Johnny from the Karate Kid. Once again - the Power Ranger power stance. Obviously my legs got larger from delivering the newspapers in the snow.

Trust Me, You'll be Fine

I can't tell you how much of an advantage having older brothers and sisters is. You learn right off that life isn't fair. All I remember from this picture is that this supersweet windbreaker was supposed to keep me safe from the bees when I went to storm and pillage their nest for honey. And my older sibling I'm sure is giving me the confidence and encouragement to man the task.

Early Years - Oklahoma Grapplin'

I wanted to put on some great memories of my early years. Plus Clint, my older bro has given me a hard time saying that 75% of my blogs are about food and the other 90% I am practically naked.
SO here is the story behind this picture. I go to a "wrastlin" tournament with my dad and 2 older bros, Lance and Clint, to watch. We show up and Big Russ, my pa, looks at he brackets and sees that there are only 3 other kids in my weight class which makes sense b/c at 3 or 4 years old who puts their kid through that kind of torture? Anyways so he calls up my mom and says, "Get Josh's wrestlin' shoes down here. There's only 3 kids in his weight class. All he has to do is beat one and he gets a trophy." So I think I got worked pretty good, but pa or Lance or Clint gave me the advice I needed to medal. "Go out there and growl." So I go out and growl at this kid who's dad probably threw him on the mat. Sure enough it worked. He started crying. I took the forfeit and went home with a trophy. Yee haw!
This pic is of Clint getting me psyched for my match. That is my Power Ranger power stance.

Cancun

Whit and I went to Cancun in October of '07. What a blast! It was just so relaxing. The food was great and we got all the specialty drinks we could handle. And for me that was lot. We swam with the dolphins and had them push us like Superman through the water. good times.

NYC

Rob Meyers (fellow Ohioan Class of 1999, now runs for Reebok), Andy Baddely (a Brit and 8th at 2007 World Championships in 1500, New Balance guy and 2 time roommate), and me at the Hudson Hotel in NYC after racing at the New Balance Games. Small rooms and as an American straight guy, I was part of the minority.

HAVASUPAI. If you have not been there, you should go before you die. And you'll probably need to do it within the next few years while you still have your health. It's a 10 mile hike in and 10 miles out. You can have some mules carry your gear for a price. No trash bins. No open flames. Carry out what you carry in. Whit and I would have been okay but I thought I would starve so we packed way too much food. Hiking in was a bear, but after eating 30lbs of food in three days, hiking out was easy. This place is a paradise at the bottom of the Grand Canyon. Cliff jumping, beautiful hikes, rope swings, lazy rivers. It was great vacation!

According to one of my teammates, "Being last years NCAA champion is no longer a fluke." On June 24th, I claimed the title of USA National Champion as well. It really was surreal. So now I get to represent the USA at the Pan Am Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and at the World Championships in Osaka, Japan.

April 27 2007- B.S. in microbio.

8 years after graduating from High School, I finally made it through my undergrad at BYU! Here's me with my mom and dad and wife.

The Luckiest Guy

So I really am the luckiest guy in the world. Whit is great. She says, "If you wash that dirty, white hat of yours, I'll make you any dessert you want." Sounded like a good deal to me. So that's what I ordered. A triple chocolate layered mousse cake. It was delicious.

CLEVELAND...You've got to be tough!

So this is what happens when you play intramural dodgeball. I ran up to the half-court line and threw that ball as hard as I could. Well if you cross the line you're out. In an effort to stop myself asap, I got this little diddy. The rowdy fans, our wives, said it looked like i pulled a break-dace move out there. Needless to say that ball was like a laser, and I was out.
Here's some more tough Clevelanders. My buddies Pat (Mr. Clean) and Matt came out to ski the greatest snow on earth. We went out to dinner and gave them a little tour of Temple Square.

Manly Cooking Aprons

Sonny the brother-in-law, Eric the father-in-law, and myself wearing our new aprons that Whitney made as Christmas gifts. As you can tell, Sonny and I have a rivalry between our BYU and University of Utah Alma Maters. Obviously Dad, being a professor of geology at BYU, is a BYU fan, but the dinosaur apron was a perfect fit. Both Dad and I were relieved BYU beat U of U this year in football. That's why our grins are that much wider than Sonny's!

Burritos as Big as Babies

Here's what you get when you order the Macho Grande at Cafe Pierpont. It's $14, and basically all you can eat. It really is the size of a newborn. I ate over half of it but had no desire to eat it all considering I'd be content with the leftovers for the next two days.

A Day at Utah Lake

Jake invited Whit and I to Utah Lake for a day. We did some wake surfing, wake boarding, and tubing. Wake surfing was a new experience. Even though Utah Lake is filled with green gunk and I face planted in about 6 inches of lake bottom mudd, I still loved it. This little pic is of Jake and I doin a little dance for the ladies.

Whit and I headed up to the hot springs in Spanish Fork. The hot springs were great and I caught a 4 foot bull snake! Some of these things were so hot they scalded my foot when I stepped into them! The guys from left to right are Bowen, Warren, & Jacob (a.k.a. Swede)