Ta Da!

I got a new job.

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY.

I start March 12th and I'm so excited. I'll still be working at BYU which is good for us, but I'll get to be closer to main campus, work with more students, and have new, and more responsibilities.

I know this is going to be great. It is such a blessing, and it didn't come until after I had learned a thing or two about accepting the Lord's will (not changing it) and about hope.

I made a serious shift in what I was asking for, and I think it finally hit the mark. I know timing and the job have a lot to do with it. I think this particular job is just the best for me out of all the great jobs I've interviewed for.

I guess it shouldn't be a surprise because God does answer prayers; even if he says NO for a really long time, eventually something will work out in the end.

My dad shared this quote with me which I put on my computer at work. I read it every day and it has really helped me a lot. 

“It isn't as bad as you sometimes think it is. It all works out. Don't worry. I say that to myself every morning. It all works out in the end. Put your trust in God, and move forward with faith and confidence in the future. The Lord will not forsake us. He will not forsake us. If we will put our trust in Him, if we will pray to Him, if we will live worthy of His blessings, He will hear our prayers.”
― Gordon B. Hinckley

Yay for yet a new chapter in our lives!

Recipe of the Week: Roasted Red Pepper Pasta...or Pizza!

(original recipe from Two Peas & Their Pod)

This was so so so so scrumptious, and surprisingly easy to make.  You get to roast your own red peppers too, which is AW-esome.

Roasted Red Pepper Pasta

• 3 large red bell peppers
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 small onion,chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 (8 oz.) cans tomato sauce
• 1.5 Tbsp basil
• 1 1/2 - 2 tsp oregano 
• 2-3 Tbsp Parmesan cheese (freshly grated, or just the stuff you buy to put on spaghetti)
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1. Roast red peppers over gas flame, under the broiler, or on the grill. Roast for about 10 minutes, or until peppers are completely black. Place peppers in a paper bag to allow to sweat. Peel the charred skins from the peppers and remove the seeds. Chop the peppers and set aside.

2. In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and sauté for 2-3 minutes, or until softened. Stir in garlic, red peppers, and tomato sauce. Cook for 10 minutes over medium-low heat. Add  basil, oregano, salt and pepper.

3. Purée the sauce using an immersion blender or transfer the sauce to a blender or food processor and puree until smooth with some texture remaining. Add parmesan cheese, and more spices if necessary and pulse it a few times in the blender.

Serve over pasta, or....put it on a delicious chicken pizza. Mmmmmmmm mmmmmmmmm.

Here's the sauce...it's so red and beautiful.

Over pasta. Oops, how'd that pen/highlighter get in there? Well, you caught me: I'm not much of a photographer.

Wow. This was so good. We used the extra roasted red pepper sauce a couple days later and decided we liked it better as pizza sauce.  The pizza has saute'ed onions, mozzarella cheese and chicken, and of course made with my brother's famous pizza crust....there's nothing better.

Leggings: Pants, or Not?

BYU made this poster a couple years ago. It hung in the Wilkinson Student Center for awhile, and now I think it's by the Honor Code Office.

If you signed your name to an honor code, promising that you would keep your hemlines to the knee...then you shouldn't be surprised or make a big deal when someone calls you out for going back on your word.  If you don't like it, go to a different school and give someone else who is willing to abide by the honor code a chance to come to BYU. We all signed the code at BYU, yet it's Taboo to bring up violations unless you work in the testing center. Even then, with the recent skinny jeans fiasco at BYU-Idaho, I would guess even the monitoring from the testing center might die down a bit.

 If you claim that leggings are pants and therefore the "dress" you're wearing is a shirt, then I hope you don't wear that kind of outfit to church---last I checked it isn't appropriate for women to wear pants to church. If you're wearing your leggings as leggings or tights, then just make sure your hemline is long enough and you're square. Seems easy to me.

My sister made a good point: maybe we could just paint our legs and say we're wearing pants or leggings so our hemline doesn't matter. Right?

I'm not saying the kid should have written that infamous note, but I'm just saying I think it was brave. I think it would be cool if more people who are actually in a position to give reminders about the honor code, did.

In my opinion, leggings are not pants.  If they are pants, then they should be able to be treated as pants in all situations. If they are pants, then all kinds of pants (jeans, work pants, casual pants) should be able to be replaced by leggings and worn without a second thought.  I can't imagine wearing a shirt tucked into your leggings they way you might tuck a shirt in to a pair of jeans or casual pants.  That would just be scary.

So, that's my opinion.

What's yours?  Use the poll on the right side of my blog to give me your vote! The votes are anonymous, so I won't know (or care) if you disagree with me.  I don't care what you wear--unless you are violating a code you signed your own name to. Then I start to care.