P is for Puppy...

... I really want a puppy. When I say that, everyone tells me why I shouldn't get one. Here are some of their reasons:
You live in an apartment so you can't have a dog.
You and Alma both work, so you won't be able to take care of it when you're gone all day.
Having a dog is like having a baby - you two aren't ready for that yet.
Dogs are expensive.
Dogs need room to run around and you don't have a yard.

I think all of these reasons are exceedingly lame. Here is my response to each of them:
Our apartment lets us have small pets, and I don't want a big dog, so it would be fine.
I don't go to work until 9 and Alma gets home at 2, which means puppy would only be alone 5 hours a day, and we could just keep it in the kitchen while we were gone. It would be a-okay.
Everyone talks about how having a baby brings a couple closer together - shouldn't we want that for ourselves? This way, we wouldn't have to go through the hassle of pregnancy.
A little dog doesn't eat that much, and wouldn't be anything we couldn't afford.
A little dog doesn't need that much room to run, and I would take it for walks every day. Promise. At least most days. And it could run around our apartment.

I would take any dog:

Either of these two adorable little aussiepoos would be great.

Or this darling puffball of a Maltese.

And this beautiful labradoodle would be fab.

I'm sure I've convinced all of you that Alma and I could handle a little baby puppy to give our love to. The only problem is that all of these arguments have failed to work on my husband. Got any advice? Cause I really need a puppy.

S is for Slumdog Millionaire...

... So I did it. I watched Slumdog Millionaire. I know, I know, how could I? It's rated R, right? Haven't you only watched only one other rated R movie in your life?! (And don't think I'm going to tell you what movie that was - it was a total waste)

In case you haven't heard, Slumdog Millionaire's been getting a ton of buzz. I mean, it's been nominated for like, a kajillion awards, including an Oscar for best picture. Normally, this wouldn't sway my no rated-R stance, but when I looked up why it was rated R, I discovered it was for four instances of the F-word and not much else.

Now don't think that the F-word doesn't bother me. It does. I wince every time I hear it. But I really wanted to see this movie. And my mom watched Erin Brokovitch and it was way more language than that (that's right, I just threw my own mother under the bus as an excuse to see the movie - see how desperately I wanted to see this thing?). And it doesn't help that Alma has no problem watching rated R movies.

So we watched it. And guess what - it shouldn't have been rated R. I caught maybe two or three instances of the F-bomb, and Alma picked up on none of them. It was no worse than most PG-13 movies, and a lot better than some. And it was GOOD. Really good. Two thumbs way, way up, as Roger and Ebert would say.

If you've been debating whether this one is worth watching, stop it. Go see it. Now. It's that good.

P is for PS...

Upside down b ... is for PS...

PS. I love food

C is for KonstantKaseofKonfuzzled...

Sometimes, being married is like speaking English to a non-English speaking Japanese man/woman/kid/baby/cat/dog/turtle/hamster/gold fish; they look back at you like you are crazy, but pretty, but crazy, but in love, still crazy, sometimes, maybe.

Last night/pillow talking...

Me (the Japanese man speaking sign language): Sweetie, I love you, goodnight.
Lexi (attempting to pillow talk in French): C U.
Me (konfuzzled): Why do you want me to leave, you sick of me, I can move more to the left, look I'm not touching you, I'm not touching you, I'm really tired don't make me sleep on the couch, it's cold out there, and it's scary.
Lexi: What?
Me: Seriously, it's cold.
Lexi: Non, je te dit, "You too."
Me: Huh? U2 (remembering that she is in love with Bono, but konfuzzled.)
Me: They are coming out with a new album in March. Great band. Do you want me to turn on some music right now? U2?
Lexi: What? I'm tired. Nevermind. Night. (thinking... he better not touch me, what's wrong with him, seriously what's wrong with him.)
Me: (thinking, pondering... she just yelled "night" in a library voice, but I know that yell, I know better than to peep another whisper, I cherish my life too much to breathe.)

S is for more Snow...

... I do not like this weather we're currently having. I do not like the snow, and I do not like the cold. But I have to admit that it sure does make campus look pretty. This was the view from my office today:

R is for Recipe...

... I have wanted to start a food/cooking blog for a long time now. Food is one of my great passions. I love cooking it, reading about it, looking at it, and trying new dishes and restaurants. There are some pretty amazing food blogs out there, which I read at least a few times a week. I'm not quite ready to start my own food blog, mostly because I haven't even decided on a name, much less a design, but I thought it might be fun to post a recipe once a week. I usually make a big meal on Sundays, so look for the latest recipe either Sunday or Monday.

Yesterday I was craving Mexican, so I made chicken enchiladas, beans, and Mexican fried rice. It is one of the easiest meals to make.

I grew up on Mexican food. My mom is from Mexico, which, although it doesn't exactly make me full-blooded Mexican, it does mean that I've inherited some great Mexican recipes and traditions. I can always tell if a Mexican restaurant is serving "the real stuff." If any of you live in the area, The Red Iguana Mexican restaurant in Salt Lake City is the best Mexican in the state. Seriously, go there. You won't be disappointed.

Hope you enjoy the meal as much as we did. I usually pair this with a green salad and limeade (another Mexican favorite). Feel free to post any questions in the comment box and I'll try to answer them as soon as possible. Bon Apetit!

Beans:
A staple of the Mexican diet is beans, either black or pinto. I prefer pinto, but I've found that most Americans prefer black. You can make this recipe using either.

• Scoop out as many beans as you'd like and rinse. Two cups usually makes about four cups of beans.
• Put the rinsed beans in a crock pot and fill with water. You can add a quartered onion at this point, or not. It adds a bit of flavor, but it's not necessary.
• Set the crock pot on low and leave to cook for at least 12 hours. I usually leave it overnight and throughout the day until I'm ready to eat them. If you need them faster, you can cut the time in half by setting the crock pot on high. My sister and I always say, the longer you cook them, the better they are. If you're using pinto beans, they will get redder in color the longer they cook.
• Finally, add salt to taste before eating. Just pour it into the crock pot and then mix in. It usually takes more salt than you expect, but add it gradually so as not to over salt. My aunt once said she thought beans tasted like dirt, and I largely expect it's because they weren't salted. So don't skip this step just to cut back on sodium.

Mexican Fried Rice:
I've never liked the fried rice you get at Mexican restaurants that has bits of carrots and peas in it. Carrots and peas go fine Chinese fried rice, but not Mexican. This is the way my mom always makes it with tomatoes and onions.

Ingredients:
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 tomato, diced
1 1/2 cups white rice
Knorr Tomato Chicken Bouillon Base (you can buy this from any grocery store in the hispanic food section. I got mine at Wal-Mart)
Olive Oil
3 c. Water

• Heat olive oil in frying pan on medium heat (a couple swirls around the pan should be plenty)
• Add rice and fry, stirring often, until most of the rice has turned golden in color
• Add onions, stir fry a few minutes longer
• Add tomatoes, stir fry one minute longer
• Add water and bouillion base. I add the base to taste, but I would imagine it's about 1/4 of a cup, give or take a few tablespoons depending on how strong a flavor you like.
• Let rice simmer on low until all water is absorbed and rice is soft, usually about 20 minutes
• Enjoy!

Chicken Enchiladas:
I'll be the first to tell you that chicken enchiladas, with a sour cream based sauce, are not, and never will be, authentic Mexican food. They are most definitely an American invention. That said, they certainly are good! I make them when I'm not in the mood to go through the long process of making real enchilada sauce (a post for another day!)

Ingredients:
1 can green chile enchilada sauce (I prefer Hatch's brand)
1 4 oz. can diced green chiles
1/2 can cream of chicken soup
8 oz. sour cream
2 cups of monterey jack cheese
8-10 tortillas
4 chicken breasts (1 lb), boiled and shredded
1 packet taco seasoning + water called for on packet
Olive oil

• Mix together enchilada sauce, chiles, sour cream, and cream of chicken soup. Pour 3/4 cup into bottom of 9x13 pan, set the rest aside
  
• Heat olive oil in frying pan on medium heat, then add shredded chicken. Fry chicken until heated through and slightly browned
• Add taco seasoning and water, let simmer until water is gone.
  
• Add 3/4 cup of cheese and mix with chicken until melted. Remove from heat.
• Separate chicken equally and put into tortillas. Roll up each tortilla and set into pan w/ sauce in the bottom
• Pour remaining sauce over the top. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top of sauce
• Bake at 35o degrees for 20-25 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bubbly.
• Let cool and enjoy!

C is for Couches...

... We haven't had anything to sit on or eat on in our apartment since we moved in. I've been on KSL.com looking at the classifieds constantly, trying to find some couches that are in good condition and aren't too expensive. I found a couple prospective ones, but before either Alma and I could go look at them, they were sold. The good ones go in less than a few hours. So last weekend, after much complaining and begging, I finally got Alma to promise me that we would go look at couches. We went to the RC Willey scratch-and-dent outlet Friday night and sitting there waiting for us was a beautiful leather and microfiber couch and love seat set for only $510! We looked them over, sat on them, messed around with the cushions and the pillows, watched some other people express interest in them, and finally decided to buy them before it was too late. We're now the proud owners of two lovely sofas. They're a bit bigger than we had planned on, but it was worth it for the price and for how much I like them. They were a pretty big pain to get into a third floor apartment, though. A big thanks to Gary and Crystal for their huge help with moving them in. We couldn't have done it without you.

H is for Haircut ...

... About three weeks ago I got a haircut. I cut blunt bangs straight across, and then cut my hair short and blunt all the way around. It was very edgy and European. I liked at first, and then I really liked it, and then I decided I didn't want to look quite so edgy all the time. So I went back to my hairstylist (Courtney Little of Serenity Day Spa & Salon) and we put some layers in it and did a bit of an A-line. I like it much better now. I think it still maintained the European look, but is toned down just a bit. This pic's not so great of me, but here's what it looks like. Hope you don't think it's too terrible.

H is for Homepage...

... I've gotten a lot of questions, so I'm just going to announce it to everyone.

Yes, that's my grinning mug on the BYU homepage. And for those of you who can't figure it out, I'm holding skis behind me. It's not that clear.

I guess this is what you get when you work with both the BYU photographer and the BYU webmaster.

See the original here.

M is for Month ...

... Alma and I have been married for one month today! This was our conversation yesterday as we were driving to the grocery store:

Alma: Do you think we're gonna make it?

Alexis: Yeah, I do. We've made it a month, so I think that means we're gonna be okay. It's been getting better every day.

Alma: I think so too.

So don't worry people. Things are going swimmingly in the Jean household.

L is for Lost ...

... The Lost season premiere is this Wednesday. I haven't watched Lost before; Alma watches it every season. Which means that I have been trying to watch all 4 previous seasons in the past week so that I will be caught up for the big show Wednesday night. I have to admit, it's addictive. All I want to do is watch Lost. I'm even starting to dream about the characters.

There are 22 episodes in a season, each 42 minutes long. That's 3696 minutes, or about 62 hours, worth of television. I finished season one last night. Only 2772 minutes to go.

If you're wondering why my apartment is still full of boxes and my clothes are all still in suitcases after over two weeks since moving, this is why. I'm too busy watching Lost.

H is for Honeymoon...

... We honeymooned in Kauai for five days before the reception in Hawaii, and then spent a week on Oahu sightseeing and spending a little bit of time with Alma's family. I'd never been to Hawaii, so it was so fun to see where Alma grew up and to experience that part of his life.

Hawaii was beautiful! People say Kauai is the prettiest island, but I think Oahu is just as beautiful, just in a different way. The snorkeling, however, was much better on Kauai. Kauai is this tiny island with one highway that takes about 45 minutes to drive from end to end. We were able to go all over the island and see everything in about five days. It's very country and laid back. A great place to go to just lie on the beach, eat, and relax. We did, however, go on a very long, 4 hour, 8 mile hike in Waimea Canyone on Kauai. And we kayaked and hiked to a very pretty waterfall, Sacred Falls.

Oahu, on the other hand, has a lot more going on. There was tons of stuff to see and do. By the end of everyday, Alma and I were exhausted from sightseeing. We went to Hanauma Bay, Pearl Harbor, the Aloha Stadium Swap Meet, the Dole Plantation, the Polynesian Cultural Center, everywhere! My favorite was the shrimp shacks on the North shore. They were so delicious! I can't wait to go back and eat some more.

Of course, I have to talk about the food in Hawaii, since food is one of my great passions. It took a little bit of getting used to, since mostly it's just meat and rice, but it was delicious! I find myself craving it now, but there's hardly any good Hawaiian restaurants in Provo. My favorites were the banana pancakes, saimin, kalbi, and of course, the mac salad. Alma's mom's musubi was pretty great too. Who knew spam, egg and rice could be so good?

Our first morning on the island, we went to Wailua Falls, which is supposedly higher then Niagra Falls. Alma took pictures of me, and I took pictures of him. It's hard w/o a third person.

Here we're at the lookout point at the Kilauea Lighthouse. We ended up seeing a humpback whale splashing around in the ocean behind us and a monk seal sunbathing on the beach.

Waimea Canyon outlook. They call this the Grand Canyon of Hawaii. It was gorgeous!

We hiked through the Alakai Swamp trail to get to the Kilonha outlook. The trail was fierce, but the view from the top was beautiful. We could see the whole island.

The swamp is the highest altitude swamp in the world? Maybe just North America, but Hawaii isn't really North America ...

Kayaking to Sacred Falls ...

... Hiking to Sacred Falls ...

... Swimming in Sacred Falls!

Did you know this is how pineapples grow? Thank you, Dole Plantation, for enlightening me.

Pearl Harbor Memorial

The Samoan village at the Polynesian Cultural Center

R is for Reception, Hawaiian Style...

... The reception in Hawaii was great. Alma and I both thought so. We didn't have to do anything for it but show up. So much easier than the reception in Utah, which was a lot of work, but totally worth it. Alma's mom and sister did all the planning and the reception was beautiful. I met a ton of people whose names I've have already forgotten, but everyone was very warm and friendly. I even got to where a haku (the flower crown on my head) and Alma wore a lei. And it was so fun to wear my dress one more time.

We did, however, arrive to the reception an hour and a half late. Not for the reason you're thinking though. We were supposed to fly in from Kauai that morning, but the night before the entire island of Oahu lost it's power due to a lightning storm. So as you can imagine, the airport was completely backed up. Our flight was delayed two hours, and then our car rental took another hour to pick up, so we finally showed up at the reception at 3:30 instead of 2. Fortunately, the reception didn't actually get started until 2:30, which is when the power came back on in Laie. Somehow, though, Alma's mom had all the food prepared, the cultural hall decorated, and everything ready to go.

My new mother-in-law is a miracle worker. There was NO way she wasn't having that reception.

Us walking into the reception. Everyone was already eating because we were so late.

The happy couple. Isn't the flower arrangement gorgeous?

Cutting the cake that somehow got baked despite the power outage.

My new family

Part of Alma's new family

Us on the Hawaii Temple grounds

W is for Ward...

... So Alma and I have the choice of either going to a married student ward or to a family ward. Initially, we decided married student ward was the way to go. Everyone there would be in our same life situation, they would be our neighbors (the ward is essentially our apt. complex), and we just knew that if we went to the family ward we would get thrown into Primary.

...So we went to the married student ward last Sunday. It was weird. It's like going to a singles ward, but everyone is paired off. In Relief Society, one girl talked about feeling the Spirit while being intimate, and another reminded us that our purpose here on earth was to "replenish the earth" and so we should start having babies ASAP. And to make the experience worse, it was Fast Sunday, so we had the pleasure of listening to some awesome testimonies. One girl testified to how difficult it was to decide to get married while her sister was on a mission cause they had made some pact about having a big double wedding when she got back from her mission and then she met her husband and she just didn't know what to do ... yada, yada, yada.

...So we're gonna scope the family ward out this Sunday. Being thrown into Primary is looking better and better to us.

S is for Snow ...

... and we've had too much of it. In the opening scene of the movie Marley & Me (which everyone should go see!) a blizzard hits on the wedding day of the two main characters. That's exactly what happened on our wedding day, and almost every day since we've been back from Hawaii it's snowed too. To echo Jennifer Aniston's sentiments in the movie, Alma and I need to move to a warmer place. And that's just what we'll do, as soon as I can convince him that Provo is not a great place to live for three more years.

Seriously, all this snow is making me cranky. It ruins everything. I don't even think it's pretty anymore.

H is for Husband, Hawaii, Honeymoon, Haircut ...

... H is for for a lot of things apparently, but mostly for the fact that now I have a husband! Oooh, isn't that fun to say? My husband is picking me up from work in approximately one hour and I can't wait to see him! I'm getting antsy, so work has stopped and messing around on the internet has begun.

As for the other H things, I promise I'll post about those just as soon as I get my pictures uploaded. Be patient (if anyone out their is impatient - doubtful), they're coming.

In the meantime, isn't my husband a handsome man?

P is for Pictures ...

... We got our pictures back from our photography and they are amazing! (At least in my opinion.) Feel free to take a look at his blog post to see a few. If you'd care to look through at least 1000 pics, you can look at our album online. The password is "plowman." Below is just a little teaser.

M is for Married...

... Alma and I finally made it to the altar after almost 6 months of engagement! The day was cold, but perfect. My grandpa sealed us in the Mt. Timpanogos Temple. It was short and simple and powerful and so special. The dinner and reception afterward were everything I could have hoped for and more. Thanks to everyone who helped out to make the day so wonderful! I hope you enjoyed it as much as we did. It was wonderful to share it with so many friends and family.