Trip to the Big City

The country mouse returned to the Big City this past weekend after a long absence. And after enjoying the conveniences and opportunities the Big City afforded her, she returned to a speck on the map called home.

Sitting on the couch that night, she admitted to her husband that she missed the Big City. Uh oh. He wondered where the conversation would lead, and how all this Big City talk even started.

Um... here's how.

Saturday I drove to Bountiful, Utah to finalize our wedding album. (FINALLY!)

I had to double check the images, pick an album style, pick a leather for the book and decide on cover image and wording. Yes, it took all of 20 minutes to do. Something I probably could have done on the phone, but...whatever. It's done now. Besides, it gave me an opportunity to get away to the BIG CITY!

Of course that opportunity equals shopping and dining! And it just so happened that one of my favorite restaurants was around the corner from the photo studio.



Mmmm...I love me some Chipotle. The first time I ate there was in Denver. Then when I moved to Fort Worth, I couldn't get enough! It didn't help that the eatery was on my way home from work. I love Chipotle SO MUCH that Kade and I almost had our wedding dinner there. Hey, they were offering us free food for 60 people! (They wanted free word of mouth advertising because they are new to the SLC Valley.) But we decided that we should opt for something a little classier, that would guarantee seating for the whole wedding party.

Then I hit up the following locations.









Oh, and all the shopping made me hungry, so of course I had to stop in Brigham City on my way home for the best hamburger in the world at Maddox! Not stopping at Maddox on your home from Utah, is like not stopping at Taco Bandito while you're visiting Burley. It's just not right.



Not a super-long trip, but long enough to get the I-Wanna-Live-In-The-Big-City juices flowing again.

For the past 10 years, I HAVE lived in fairly (or quasi) Big Cities. When Kade and discussed marriage, where we would live was a HUGE topic. I had a house in Boise. He was living in Oakley. Um, yeah, Oakley. A place I SWORE I would never end up after graduating H.S. (Long story, some of you might know.) Life is funny. Because 10 years after I said that, after living in Logan, Billings, Denver, Fort Worth and Boise, I was right back where I started. FRICKIN' BURLEY, IDAHO! The Lord truly does have a great sense of humor.

So, where would Kade and I live? He voted Burley, I was leaning towards Boise. I had to sit down and really think about things. Actually, all I had to do was prioritize. And once I started telling myself the truth, my worst fear came true. I was actually happiest in Small Town, USA. Could it really be true?!

I decided that all I really need in life to be happy is my husband, my family, shelter, food (which I can make myself, thank you very much!) and fresh air. Oh, and a mountain view atop a horse with my dog at my side.

But every once in a while, I need to indulge in what the rest of the world has to offer. I should get to eat in a fancy restaurant with my husband, I should get to see a Broadway play with my mom, I should get to visit an art gallery with a friend, I should get to see world class athletes in motion, and I should get to go shopping for a day.

Thank goodness the Big City is a short drive or airplane ride away.

I thank my parents for giving me strong roots, letting my wings grow and encouraging me to fly. I hope that my children will have to same opportunity to leave the cozy nest of home, and experience the wonders the world has to offer. They need an education outside of potato field walls, and some culture outside of the local Barber shop quartet!

So yes, I will always take the opportunity to visit the Big City. But the country will always draw me back.

In the words of the Dixie Chicks (and one of my favorite songs, "Cowboy Take Me Away") here's why:

I wanna walk and not run
I wanna skip and not fall
I wanna look at the horizon
And not see a building standing tall

I wanna sleep on the hard ground
In the comfort of your arms
On a pillow of bluebonnets
In a blanket made of stars


I will forever and always be a country mouse. It's the way I grew up, it's the way I live now, and it's the way I want to raise my own children.

Plain and simple.