Dear Ford F250 Driver

Some days I wish I could send this letter to all big truck drivers on the road.

Dear Ford F250 Driver,

Please pay attention while you drive. Dont assume that because you get 3 miles a gallon that you should run me off the road. I know my car is small, but to be fair it is white and it does contrast nicely with the road- you can see me, dont pretend you can't. Please get off your cellphone, there is no one in your contact list so important that you need to talk to that you should endanger my life. See those red lights, yeah they apply to you to, fyi so do the stop signs, lane markers/lines and medians. Just because you can drive on the grass doesnt mean you should. Oh yeah, and when you see me waiting patiently in line at the gas pump- you probably shouldnt cut, I know I cant do anything about it but come on, once we get into the store you wont have your giant truck to protect you- think about that as i grab the last of whatever item you needed, i probably have two at home but this is how us compact car drivers get our revenge. I know you can see my car, dont pretend you can't.

Thanks,

Concerned in Texas

Giant Spaceship Walmart

I love walmart- I know it is a bit mullet in a trailer park of me, but I do. There are those people out there that think that wally world aka walmart is out to exploit the little guy, ruin small town american, and sell cheap junk- I am not one of those people. I like buying my shampoo with my fabric, picture frames, groceries, and plants all while getting my oil changed. I am a fan. The other day I went to what can only be described as the best walmart on earth. Apparently there are varying degrees of walmart, there are the normal ones all of us go to, the lame neighborhood market, the ridiculous walmart minus food, and what I can only describe as the BEST WALMART EVER!

I looked up walmart on wikipedia to see what this wonderful new concept was and was greeted by this helpful blurb, "In March 2006, Walmart sought to appeal to a more affluent demographic. The company launched a new Supercenter concept in Plano, Texas, intended to compete against stores seen as more upscale and appealing, such as Target.[35][36] The new store has wood floors, wider aisles, a sushi bar, a coffee/sandwich shop with free Wi-Fi Internet access, and more expensive beers, wines, electronics, and other goods. The exterior has a hunter green background behind the Wal-Mart letters, similar to Wal-Mart Neighborhood Markets, instead of the blue previously used at its supercenters."

It just so happens that this "more affluent" wally world is less than a mile from where I work. The other day I needed to stop in and pick something up on my lunchbreak, usually I would go to target since there is one right by my work, but i had to go to walmart for this particular item. I looked up the nearest location (which was so close and i didnt even know it), got in the car (dragged a few coworkers along), and headed for what i assumed was going to be a regular walmart adventure- i was so wrong. This was the BEST walmart ever. It wasnt like walmart at all, it was like a spaceship of reasonably priced items, with nice music, good smells, and so much stuff i didnt even attempt to explore- to sum it up, it was awesome. So next time someone asks why come visit dallas, this is what I am going to tell them- come visit dallas/plano to see the most amazing walmart ever, it is worth the trip- trust me.

To all those people out there that have honest to goodness moral objections to walmart, I applaud you, I have objections to swearing, we should all have principles, i dont happen to agree with yours but whatever pay more for junk elsewhere (we all know you are going to buy it). To all those people out there that dislike walmart because it is "lame", "trashy", "ugh the man", shut up and get over yourself, we all know you secretly shop there when you think no one is looking.

Dear Self...

Do you ever wish you knew back in the day what you know now? Sometimes I do. Sometiems I wish I could go slap my BYU freshman self and tell her to get out bed, get dressed, and get to class on time. The past few weeks I have been hearing quite a few references to this idea and it got me thinking. I would like to show up to my lovely DT room and tell my freshman self the following:

Dear Self

get out of bed, you are paying to go to school, not to sleep, get out of bed and get what you paid for. Go to bed early, get a job where they pay you to work normal hours. Study. Choose a major you like, not just one you think will rile up the relatives. Call home at least once a week, sometimes they are irritating, but some day you will miss them. Enjoy this time, some day when you leave the comfort of the Y you will miss it. Make new friends, leave your comfort zone. Wear something besides black. Don't waste your time dating one boy, make friends, avoid the preemies, they seem safe but they just want the packages. Learn to get along with your roommates, you will keep in touch with some of them for years. learn to love the experience, forget that provo is like a foreign country, embrace it and join it.

Good luck

What do you wish you could tell your freshman selves? My sister leaves for happy valley next fall and i keep wondering, what should I tell her? I cant go back and slap my freshman self but can "inform" em, what should i tell her, what do you wish your freshman self knew?

What Not to Wear Where Are You?

Do you ever have those days where every item of clothing you try on is horrific? I am having one of those weeks. I dont even want to walk by the closet. I realize I am being over dramatic, but at the moment it seems like every article of clothing either was made for a 50 year old woman but somehow ended up at my house (and i am not 50), is too tight in the wrong places, too loose in the wrong places, slightly worn/faded/from 1999, or just plain ugly. Why am I having one of those weeks, last week most of the clothes seemed fine, and I am sure next week they will too, but this week I think my wardrobe has been replaced with that of a 50 year old soccer mom. It's not that I dont want to someday be a 50 year old soccer mom, it's just that I dont want that day to be tomorrow, or the next day, or the next day. Today is one of those days when I want "what not to wear" to kidnap my clothes, fly me to New York, and replace them with clothes that are cute, free, and fit right- oh yeah and I want them to give my hair a makeover. Somehow I think the likelihood of that happening, especially the free part, is pretty slim...

On a slightly related but not so much note i recently bought a pair of jeans for $5, yes that is correct. Oh yeah and I bought a t shirt for $3 (not the best deal ever but hey). Hm... maybe that's is what i hate all of my clothes today.

When did we become those people?

Every Monday morning the people I work with come in and rehash their weekends. A couple of weeks ago it occurred to me (yes it took that long) that my weekend plans never matched with theirs. This has been a new thing for me, in utah we were pretty normal. On the weekends we studied (grad school does that to you), did our laundry, saw friends, went to church, rested, and attended Sunday dinner. In dallas, we do some of the same things, we grocery shop, work on our yard, rest, go to church, and visit with family (via webcam). This isn’t what everyone our age does. At some point we diverged from people in our age group- it might have happened when we got married early, or when we decided to live the lives of BYU grads, whenever it happened I failed to notice. Our utah peers did the same things so it seemed wonderfully normal, but now it is a little “peculiar”. At some point we became “grown ups”. Some days the stark contrast makes me miss Utah terribly, other days, I remember why we came to texas, and that not everything is permanent. Either way, our lovely Utah (and CA) friends and family we miss you tons and tons!

This past Saturday night, while other people our age were off doing, well not sure what they do we were making homemade margarita pizza. For those of you we left behind in Utah that spend your Saturday nights with the West Wing, ticket to ride, and cooking we thought we would pass this along- just in case your Saturday evening is currently blissfully free.

ATK Margarita Pizza

Dough

1 ¾ c. all purpose flour

1 c. cake flour (you HAVE TO use cake flour)

2 t. sugar

1 ½ t. salt

1 ¼ t. instant rapid rise yeast

1 c. warm water

Topping

1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes

¼ c. chopped fresh basil

½ t. sugar

1 garlic clove minced

¼ t. salt

olive oil

1 oz fresh mozzarella cheese cut into chunks

kosher salt

1. both types of flour, sugar, salt, and yeast in a mixer, combine with dough hook. Pour in water, mix until a ball is formed, let dough rest 2 minutes. Turn dough out on lightly floured surface, knead 2 minutes. Form into tight ball, cover with plastic, let rise in a warm place 1.5 hours or until doubled in size.

2. For the topping: pulse diced tomatoes in blender. Transfer to wire mesh strainer, place over bowl, let drain 30 minutes.

3. Adjust over rack to lower middle position, place baking stone in over, heat to 500 degrees. Leave baking stone in over for 30-60 minutes.

4. Break dough into 2 pieces, form into crust. Brush outer ½ inch with olive oil

5. Combine tomatoes, sugar, and garlic, spread over crust

6. Place in oven, cook on baking stone 5 minutes

7. Add cheese, and bake 5 more minutes

8. Remove from oven, sprinkle with basil, salt, and olive oil

9. Repeat with second crust

*do not make this without a baking stone- I did, it was disappointing.

Where have we been?

Lately, I have been getting emails from friends and family inquiring about our whereabouts, as I was driving home I realized this may be because we have been MIA in the blogging world (maybe I just want to believe people read this). So here are the answers to your questions:

Where have Brian and Ashley been? At work, where grown ups go. nothing thrilling to report here EXCEPT Brian recently received his annual performance and review and he got a 1 (the highest ranking)! Way to go Bri!

What have Brian and Ashley been up to? Not much, just working. Exciting news- our garden is out of control at the moment (well our tomatoes arent producing but the plants are giant).

How is having a pet going? AMAZING! Cj is so funny, we still think rescuing her from the pound was the way to go!

Just in case you are still skeptical about CJ we thought you should see this picture, yes she is in a paper sack, and yes she put herself in there, we were just lucky enough to witness it.

Where have we been?