Ugh ...

I just want to officially state on record that I WILL be paying or bribing someone to wrap my Christmas gifts next year because this:

is just not attractive. Bah Humbug.

Tear ...

I think I'm behaving like an "I act like my dog is a human" person today.

I understand my dog is a dog and she doesn't have all of the same needs a human child would, but I'm still a little sad to have to leave my puppy child home next week while Jay and I go on vacation to Oregon.

We found her the best possible people to stay with (Mike and Nikki you are GEMS) but ... how could I not feel bad leaving this sweet little face at home?

Oh My Mona

I could make excuses for not blogging but ... I was just lazy. Moving on.


For a while I've been saving these pictures, fully intending to post about the absolute insanity that is my husband's home town. When Jay and I were dating, he would tell me stories about high school and the "creative" ways they came up with to pass the time due to the lack of things to do in Mona. I thought he was kidding about how tiny this place is.


... he wasn't.


We took a trip out so I could have the "grand tour." It took us about 10 minutes to hit all the high points.


As we exited the freeway, we were greeted by this:









How could I not get excited about a trip that starts with a sign displaying Majestic Mt Nebo? We then drove by the post offices, both new and old. The old building, I don't have a picture of (basically a little one room house that the city used). The new one though ... what a beauty ... and so spacious!

Next we checked out the fire station (also new):

We finished our journey with a stop at the gas station to pick up a refreshing beverage. I, again, though Jay was kidding when he said he would get me a Wild Cherry Pepsi "if they have it." Gas stations in the "big city" of Pleasant Grove where I had lived most recently have every option of beverage and car snack available. Drinks in varying sizes and flavors, fountain and bottle, endless selections of sunflower seeds, jerkey and chips. So when we pulled up to this:

I was a little shocked. I started to believe that Jay was perhaps not kidding and I might have to settle for the root beer that I had considered as a second choice. Too bad Brittany ... Coke, Pepsi (they DID have both diet and regular), Sprite and water are your options in Mona.

I was a little irritated that we made the trip for a diet coke and view of a 20 square foot post office until I saw something so ancient, I would have sworn I hit my head and went back in time:

Yep, old school gas pumps, my friends. People in Mona don't need credit card slots, audio ads playing on digital screens, car wash options or even multiple levels of fuel. They enjoy the chats they have with the gas station owners as they come outside with a screw driver to turn the dial on the gas pump back to zero and take double the hard earned cash that would be paid in an average size city for the base quality fuel available.

That sight made the whole trip worth it. Does it really get any better? No wonder people live in small towns. My eyes have been opened.