A Tall, Tall, Truthful, Tale.

Once upon time there was a wife who spent too much time looking at DIY web sites. She found a magical inexpensive version of a bed she wanted and waited until her prince charming was finished fighting all of the dragons (a.k.a.- fellowship and oral boards) to ask him if would be willing to help HER build this bed. OF course he said that he would love to be at her service and got to work. Thus the adventure began of the ANA WHITE farmhouse bed.

Okay, so John had to tweak the measurements, and chisel and stain and on and on and on...But we love it. HE did such a great job. HE did ALL of the work! I sanded a bit and my mother in law even got in on the work when she was here visiting. But all of the brains behind this beauty was in the head of the husband. So proud of him. Half way through this project and after many "uh-oh's" we realized that maybe this was a big 1st time project... BUT I THINK IT IS AWESOME.

Last night John got a call that he would have the day off today.. so of course like a sweet wife at 9:30pm, I suggested that we see if the bed could be put together. After an "easy" 3 hours.. it was all done! :-)

NOW the Funny-ish part. IT IS SO TALL! John did everything wonderfully. The bed springs fit in nicely, the frame fits in the head board (after much chiseling and sanding) and the bed is super sturdy.... but here is where we learned a valuable lesson. MEASURE THE DEPTH OF YOUR MATTRESS! Holy cow is this this tall! ANYWAY, I blame myself for picking out the mattress... not John. He was a little disappointed but I think it looks great. Enjoy the photos!

Bringing it into the room..and out.. and back in again- it is not light!

I thought I should at least do something!

Proud John.

Front Sight

Where do I begin? This was an amazing trip and experience. We were in Las Vegas for 6 days. 5 of those days were long 9 hour (1/2 in class room, 1/2 on the range) days of learning all about how to use and defend yourself with a hand gun.The first day, I cried because I had a nervous husband and a gun in my hand! But after some good marriage communication and a long prayer, everything went smoothly. Through this course, I have learned how my gun will and WILL NOT go off. I have learned how to fix types 1,2, and 3, malfunctions of gun and how to do it quickly as if it were to happen during a gun fight. I learned how to load a gun, how to check if a gun is loaded, and the rules of gun safety. (all of those might seem basic but even those who are RESPONSIBLE around guns go over the basics. Guns don't kill people, People kill people.)

I know how to go through out my house safely and check rooms if I feel the need to so.

I know how to shoot my gun at night with a flash light in hand. I know how to deal with a hostage situation and how to shoot with one hand (3 different ways) if I need to (i.e. if there is a child behind me or in

hand.)

I had to learn where to shoot on the body, how many times to shoot, and what to do after wards. They taught us how to act in the court room, how to act IF you had to get arrested, and the mind set of when and why you would shoot your gun. One of the main things that I remember learning was if you can get out of the situation with out using your gun, do that first. Ultimately, if you must use your gun, you want to make sure it is worth it. Am I happy to be alive and is worth loosing my job, my pride, worth going to jail? At the end of the day, you want to go home.

I learned how to conceal my weapon and how to get it to quickly from concealment if needed.

Over all, I feel 100% safer in my house (which already had two guns) knowing how to use and when to use it if I needed to do so. I HIGHLY recommend this class for anyone who has a gun in the house. We are going back again.

The instructors were amazing! They were not conceited at all (even though they deserve to be). They wanted to teach and make sure that everyone there learned how to be safe and protect themselves.

John and I had a little one on one competition. We both lost because we shot the hostage! YIKES! But don't worry, we got better.. see...

It was so fun to do this with John because I saw him grow and he saw me become more confident with a weapon were before I was scared to be around them. It was over our anniversary and I don't regret it at all! :-)

My romantic husband....

I can not believe it has almost been two years of being married to my best friend!  CRAZY!  Last year we went to Florida to celebrate our 1st Anniversary.  It was a lot of fun getting so sun burned with a rash and getting sick.  Ahh...romance! 

Well get ready for this year!  John saved up his vacation and is able to take off from May 7- 17th.  WOW!  So we are going on vacation from May 7th-13th.....to Nevada........Vegas you ask?  Not exactly.  Have you ever heard of the romantic dessert destination location of Pahrump?

  OOOO, AHHHH! PAHRUMP!!???  

Are we going to a spa retreat in the oasis?  Are we hiking on the skirts of romantic Death Valley? Are we staying in Pahrump because hotels are cheaper there than on the strip?  NO, NO, and NO.

We are partaking in a luxurious 4 day defensive handgun course with Front Sight Institute. Ohh la la-- I know. 

 

That's right folks, I will be celebrating the bonds of HOLY Matrimony holding a 9mm side by side with my husband.  There is nothing that says L-O-V-E like pretending to be in a hostage situation in your own home.  I think I even get to carry a fake baby around!  

In all honesty, I think it will be very educational and fun.  We had some friends do it last year and they loved it.  

So instead of dressing up a cute little dress this year, I will be putting on my holster with magazines, flashlight (oh yes, for the night shoot), and of course...my gun.  

But don't worry, I still get to put on sunscreen and work on my .....arm tan.  

PS- never type in "Girls with Guns" to try and find a picture for your blog.  Not appropriate.

More ice storm fun

Here are a few pictures of our ice storm.... I also hope you enjoy the video of John and coconut.  He went to the grocery store with me and I never know what we will leave with.. this time, it was a coconut.  So what do you do when you are iced in.... I guess play with a coconut.

 As you can see, it went as planned.  

We did get some milk out the next time around...can't seem to load the video.   Did you know that Coconut  milk is gross warm... and a little less gross cold?

P90X preview

So here is absolutely ridiculous video of John and me.... (more ridiculous of me)  working out on day 14.  Everyday we move the furniture out of the way and make our dog sit on the couch while we dance around.  I enjoy days when we could do the workout together.  Most of the time, I do it while John is at work and he does it whenever he can.  Some days, we  have to do it separately because we have only one set of weights.  

The program is good and I will explain more about it in the 30 day update.  (They tell us to take pictures every 30 days).

Day 14 is called Kenpo X  which is like kickboxing and karate combined. This is my least favorite day because, well- I can't do it right. 

Here is Tony Horton who leads all the videos.... John likes him because he reminds him of a good friend of his.....Crazy.   

Okay... I can't believe I am posting this.....

  Oh goodness!  What makes the video even more silly, is that we turned the music off so it would not be so loud in this video... 

There is music on the P90X video, but John likes to use his own music.  There is option to turn P90x music off and just hear the work out cues... pretty cool...except when you are making a personal video like this one.   Enjoy laughing at us!

Planet Earth

John and I have been enjoying watching the show Planet Earth. We record it...or DVR it every Sunday night when it comes on the Discovery Channel. We find ourselves turning out the lights, turning up the volume and loosing ourselves in awesome panoramic views of places I will never go. We sometimes look at each other and ask, "Are we still cool because we are watching this and actually learning something?" We say yes, but I think we are okay with knowing that this question no longer matters in life.
----This is what non-cool people say.---

Anyway, if you have not seen it, it is worth watching. It reminds me of how creative my God is. How many random creatures can He create to live in a cave...in sulfuric acid....some with no with no eyes???  Crazy!

Has anyone seen any episodes?  Which is your favorite? 

I've been replaced.

What can I do?  I mean, he is cuter.  He is sweeter....a better listener, sometimes he smells better, he is always happy when I am home.  I feel safe with him,he is obedient, he does what I tell him...sometimes.  I guess I can handle being replaced.

Diesel has replaced me with my Husband.

two of my favorite boys......

Sleeping on the couch on a Friday night.  It's perfect.

John is having such a hard rotation that our weekend nights are the same as the week nights.... early.  But at least he comes to the couch so I can "hang out" with him.  :-)

A hiking we WENT!

We finally made it hiking this year. I wanted it to be a little earlier in the year so that we could catch the trees in peak color change, but it was still PRETTY. I obviously said this word a gazillion times on the ride there and during the hike because my sweet husband made fun of me.

"Preeeeeety" "WOW, PREEEETY!" "ORANGE, PRETTY!" "Look John! PRETTY"!"

And yes, Diesel did great in his shoes. At first he was walking crazy, but we think that he was so excited by the new surroundings that he forgot about them. He had so much fun sniffing and eating everything! We enjoyed the two hour car ride home with a sleeping dog.

Voting Day Drama

I am proud to say that I voted! I even got a cute little sticker that says so. But oh what a morning. Here is some advice to all those who have never voted before ...... CHECK YOUR PRECINCT!!!!!

John was so excited that his boss let him come in late today so that he could vote. Late being 6:30am. So we got to our designated building and waited in a line of about 50 people. Of course, the church was not open yet, so as we stood in line for 20 min, the line grew longer and longer and longer. But no worries, we were "in the front." As we walked down a very narrow hallway, we noticed people passing us and getting into other lines... their precinct lines. So we asked a man that was helping which precinct were in, and he said, "Where do you live? Oh? You should be in the correct line." We were in the Town branch line.... 6:05a.

So I thought and pondered what it said on the little sheet of paper in my car. White berry? That sounds familiar. Town branch? That sounds familiar too? Stallion? Sure?

Of course they all sound familiar- THEY ARE ALL STREETS IN OUR SUBDIVISION!

So we decided to ask the guy again to look it up.

"Oh, are you an even number?"

"Yes?"

"Oh, You are White berry." 6:19am- inside the Town branch room to vote, four people a head of us.

End of White berry line- 6:20 am- out in narrow hallway- 50 people a head of us.

I almost cried. In fact, I teared up. John had to leave. I was so sad and upset because in my car, with a piece of old gum stuck on it, was a scrap paper with our building and PRECINCT name.

One hour later, I voted and walked out proud and defeated at the same time. Thankfully, I have a wonderful husband that sent me a text message saying I was wonderful and that he prayed for me.

I plan on going to stand in line with him. Because that is what best friends do.

So check your precinct, you'll never know where you might end up.

Pumpkins and Costumes

Clearly I am behind but I wanted to update everyone one the Halloween happenings at the Drexler abode.

Last weekend we had the Northrip family come over and carve pumpkins. This has been a tradition going on three years now. They did a great job with their pumpkins and I was sad to see them leave our door step.

Let's see what else has been strange and funny at our home? Well, John was invited by a co worker to go to a costume party. We thought it would be fun to go hang and we were encouraged strongly to dress up.

Earlier that week, I dressed up as a doctor for the girls at the dance studio.

I was not about to be a doctor at a Doctor filled party.....unless, I was going as John. That would only mean that John would have to go as me. Then, we could go as "The Drexler's My husband is so confident.... and very funny. By the way.. he did not fight the idea, He thought it was funny.

Pot Sticker Fun

John introduced me to a small edible delight know as the POT STICKER.

When I tried to make them, they turned out VERY soggy but still had great flavor. When John made them they were perfect. We ate about 5-6 each and then we froze the rest for later. Here

is the recipe and some pictures for you to enjoy.

INGREDIENTS
100 (3.5 inch square) round wraps
1 3/4 pounds ground pork - I used a pound of Lean pork- Fatty Pork is better for taste though.
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger root - I bought ground ginger in a bottle
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons thinly sliced green onion
4 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons sesame oil
1 egg, beaten
5 cups finely shredded Chinese cabbage - I used 1/2 of a green cabbage.
1 tablespoon Veg/Canola Oil

1/4 cup water - I used Chicken broth because I had it in the fridge.

DIRECTIONS
In a large bowl, combine the pork, ginger, garlic, green onion, soy sauce, sesame oil, egg and cabbage. Stir until well mixed.
Place 1 heaping teaspoon of pork filling onto each wonton skin. Moisten edges with water and fold edges over to form a triangle shape. Roll edges slightly to seal in filling. Set dumplings aside on a lightly floured surface until ready to cook.

In preheated vegetable oil, cook pot sticker approximately 1 minute per side, until lightly browned. Place water into skillet and reduce heat. Cover and allow pot sticker to steam until the water is gone.

For dipping sauce, we bought a POT STICKER dipping sauce. however, there are several recipes on line.

John did about 8 at a time- turned out great. If you want to freeze them, place them on a cookie sheet covered in wax paper in the freezer overnight. Put them in a Ziploc bad and store.

Fun Fall Weekends

Before we move from Lexington Ky, which I am not sure when that is happening, I have been determined to enjoy the fall weather and the "entertaining" KY venues.

Last weekend, John and I went to the Maker's Mark distillery and to Boyd Orchards. It was a gorgeous day other than it being hot for a fall day in KY.

At the Maker's Mark Distillery, we had the chance to take a free tour of how they make and bottle the bourbon.

This is the process of Fermentation. John thought it would be fun to share this process...I hope you enjoy it.
Wasn't that fun?

John is standing in the room with all the bourbon doing its thing for three years.

After the tour we went to the gift shop to buy our own bottle and had the chance to dip it into the wax ourselves.

John is dipping his bottle in the wax now, my bottle is the one drying there on the table...I did the technique called the "Slam Dunk." (yes, there is technique.)

Now, besides the fact that I do not like bourbon, I was so excited to buy a bottle and dip it into the hot wax. Whoo HOO! It kind of reminded me of being at the Renaissance festival and dipping my hand in the wax.

Afterwards, we drove towards home and stopped at Boyd Orchards. It was about 81 degrees when we got there and it happened to be their Fall Festival. It was crowded and hot and I felt like a little kid who wanted to go home. We picked some apples for baking and eating and found our perfect pumpkin.

Go ahead John, take the Apple!
I think his back braking position is for dramatics.

I hope you enjoy the pictures. This weekend, we are headed to Cumberland Falls for some hiking with our puppy!

By the way- I made a fantastic pumpkin cheesecake with sour cream bourbon topping! I got it off of the Maker's Mark website. It was very yummy. I have no pictures only because I was so excited to eat it.