Tweaking the Trailer: Kitchen Edition

With Meric home from deployment and spring underway, we are starting to "tweak" the trailer again. Here are a few things we have done to the kitchen.

I actually did this one a while ago. With limited drawer space there isn't a lot of room to store hot pads. Also hot pads need to be within reaching distance of the oven. The answer was simple.

I placed a couple of hooks on the side of the cabinet next to the oven. Now the hot pads are stored out of the way but are also easily accessible.

Another thing we did was add a backsplash. The area around the oven always had an unfinished look to me. It needed a backsplash.

There are many options for lovely tile backsplashes but tile is heavy. In a trailer weight is very important and tile is not a justifiable reason to add extra weight. One day while Meric and I were at Lowes we ran across a product call Fasade. It is a very light weight sheet that you can use as a backsplash.

 It is very easy to apply and we accomplished the job in under an hour. I love the look of it. The oven space feels more finished now.

One thing I love about our trailer is the kitchen cabinet space. We have fairly deep tall cabinet. Lots of storage space especially for a trailer. The problem with the tall cabinets is the shelves aren't well spaced. They are too tall and that leads to wasted space. Wasted space is something you definitely don't want to have in a trailer.

Adding shelves was the answer, we just needed to figure out how we wanted to do it. We looked into several options but hadn't decided on the best way to do it. Then one day we were walking through Costco and we saw a wire shelving rack.

The dimensions of the shelves were exactly the dimensions of our cabinets. With a little creative cutting we were able to easily place the shelves at the height we wanted and maximize our kitchen storage.

We have several more "tweaks" we are working on. We will keep you updated.

Happy Birthday Meric!

What do you do when you turn 31? Go go-karting! Meric took Friday off so that we could enjoy an extra long weekend for his birthday. We went go-karting at Kart Kounrty in Shepardsville. They have the longest go-kart track in the world at 1.5 miles long. They also have mini golf and bumper boat and a huge arcade. We just went go-karting though because it was spring break and a beautiful day so the place was absolutely packed. We figure we will have to make another trip there later this summer... after school starts again.

On Meric's actual birthday he went to breakfast with some of the guys at the campground. On weekends during the season a group of guys likes to go to breakfast on Saturday. Meric has quickly become part of that group. When he got back from breakfast, Meric had a big heavy wrapped gift waiting for him. I got him a Lodge cast iron BBQ and some seasonings. It is a great little BBQ that should work well for just the two of us.

In the afternoon we went shooting. We did a little skeet shooting (300 rounds) and then broke out the hand guns for some target practice. It was a lot of fun and I even hit a couple things I was aiming at. 

 

All in all I think Meric enjoyed his birthday.

Our Weekend Away

Last weekend Meric and I went to Nashville for a mini vacation. 

  

 We left Friday night and headed to the Gaylord Opryland Resort.

Nice place for lunch

 It is an unbelievable hotel!

It is like 3 hotels with a giant convention center attached.

 

 There are 3 pools, a gym and a spa.

 

It also has several restaurants and shops inside.

Great steak restaurant!

 

It was so nice to have a weekend away.

 

It was also nice is have our room and food expenses covered by someone else. Our vacation was part of the Strong Bonds program. The military chaplains have a program designed to help strengthen marriages.

One of the indoor waterfalls

View from behind the waterfall

For a few hours everyday we sat in a class that gave us tips and advice on how to communicate better and resolve issues we might have. It was a great class and only lasted a short time everyday so we were able to enjoy the rest of our time in Nashville.

 It was a great weekend!

It is days like this...

When Meric and I first decided to move into a 5th wheel trailer, I was excited but really didn't know what to expect. It has been almost 2 years and I can honestly say I love it!

 

This past weekend I REALLY loved living at a campground. With winter in full swing the days have been dark and the air cold. But this last weekend for once the sun came out.

 

Meric and I decided to roast hot dogs over a campfire for lunch and just sit outside and enjoy the day. It was about as close to perfect as you could get.

Christmas Craziness: The Bad Part

So here is the bad news. When Meric and I left to spend a week with his family we left the dogs at my parents house. They have stayed there before and my mom and everyone are familiar with them and their unique personalities.

The day we were going to head back to Spokane I got a frantic call from my mom. Apparently that morning Emmy had had enough of us being gone and took it out on Lucy. She started a fight with Lucy and with Jasper in the way, Lucy had been hurt. Lucy has a lot of loose skin and Emmy had torn a good sized hole in her armpit. They took Lucy to the vet and it was decided that with antibiotics and a daily cleaning the wound would eventually heal on its own. Also since she is getting older and the location of the wound she would need to be knocked out for the surgery.

That night Meric and I got back to my mom's house and took a look at the wound ourselves. It was a lot worse than I thought it would be, larger and deeper. I was worried about how long it would actually take to heal and it getting infected because it was so deep. Also we had to start travelling back to Kentucky in a week. We decided to take her back to the vet and have them stitch it up.

Lucy handled the surgery well. She had several sutures in her armpit and a couple of tubes for drainage purposes. To help protect the sutures and absorb the draining, Lucy wore a T-shirt for the next week. (It was a good thing my mom hadn't take her pile of clothes to Goodwill yet.)

The night before we left Meric and I removed her drainage tubes. We then started the trip to Arizona. Since she couldn't jump we let Lucy ride in the cab of the truck. At our first stop we let the other dogs in the cab too since the temperature outside was getting down to 8 degrees.

She handled the trip well and by the time we reached Arizona I was a lot more relaxed about letting her jump and play. We even took the dogs to the dog park and let Lucy really run for the first time since the incident. She got some funny looks for wearing a Tshirt but she had fun and did well. (To my surprise so did Emmy, who usually picks fights at dog parks.) Lucy also loved my 3 nieces and they loved her. Alyce, the oldest, called Lucy her "friend that wears a shirt".

For the drive home Lucy rode in the back of the truck with out any problems. Jumping in and out at that point was no problem. As soon as we got home Meric and I removed her sutures. Also she no longer has to wear a shirt.

Lucy has actually healed a lot better than I was expecting. She will have a scar but once her hair grows back you will not be able to tell. We really do love Emmy but there are times we wished we hadn't picked her up off the street. Also Emmy and Lucy love each other and made up after we got Lucy home from the vet. We love visiting family but next time I think we will go in the summer and bring our house. It would be a lot easier on the dogs and nice for Meric and I too.

Christmas Craziness: The Good Part

The Christmas season was a little crazy this year. I had been looking forward to it for months because I knew Meric would be home to celebrate with me. It was also because we would be spending Christmas and New Years with our family.

One of the things I enjoy about the holiday season in Kentucky is the Christmas lights. In E'town there is a park with a lake that has a large drive through light display every year from Thanksgiving until New Years. Meric and I went through it last year and I was definitely looking forward to it again. There is also another drive through light display in Louisville except this one is in a large underground cavern. A few days before we left for Christmas Meric, Kelli and I went with the Smith family (campground owners) to see this light show.

It was pretty cool and there were tons of lights. If you are ever in Kentucky during Christmas I would definitely recommend checking out these displays.

Definitely a Kentucky Christmas light display



Eagerly waiting to open presents

On December 17th we started the long drive to Spokane. It actually wasn't too bad of a trip. Other than almost leaving Kelli at a rest stop in Illinois and hitting a little snow/fog in South Dakota and Lookout Pass, the trip went smooth and we made it to Spokane in only 2 days.
 

Meric and I stayed in Spokane for a couple days before we headed on to Ridgefield, WA to spend a week with his family. It was December 21st so we got there just in time for their "End of the World"/Christmas party. The rest of the week we had a lot of fun hanging out with family (especially the nieces and nephew), playing games, and doing Christmas. It has been a couple of years since we were with family for Christmas so it was nice to share in the festivities. 



They bonded quickly once Meric showed Connor our truck

After the week with Meric's family we headed back to Spokane to spend a week with my family. We had a lot of fun hanging out with my family and got to spend New Years with them. New Year's Eve is a fun night with my family and I am so glad we got to be there. Meric and I also met up with one of the guys he was deployed with who was also spending the holiday in the area. Meric and I had a great dinner with him and his wife and discovered a resturaunt we had never been to before. It is called The Wild Sage and it features local ingredients in all of their recipes. Everything was delicious and I would recommend it to anyone.



Deric's girls were fascinated with my braces

While we were at Meric's parents house we spoke to Meric's brother Deric. He lives near Tucson, AZ and wasn't able to make it home for Christmas. It had been a long time since we had see him or his family so Meric and I decided to take a few extra days and drive down to see him. I am so glad we decided to go to Arizona. First of all we got to spend 2 1/2 days with Deric, his wife and their 3 girls. We had so much fun! Second I have never been to Arizona and really enjoyed seeing the area. Third driving that far south made the 2 day drive home a lot warmer.

After the 2 day drive Meric and I arrived home. Mike (one of the owners) had made sure that our trailer was all ready for us. He pulled out our slides, turned on the heat, cleared the antifreeze out of the pipes, made sure the water heater was on, and started a fire for us. It was so nice after such a long trip to come home and have it all ready for us. That nice we sat by the fire and enjoyed some hot dogs for dinner.

It was a very long trip but it was a nice one. We drove through 18 states and spent about 90 hours driving. It was so great to be able to see so much family and spend time with them all. The best part is we got to meet a couple nieces and a nephew we had never met before. We also got to spend time with them all and get to know them a little better. I love being an aunt!

The Reason for the Season: My thoughts on Christmas this year

"Tis the season to be jolly..."

I love the Christmas season! This year I am particularly excited. I have been looking forward to Christmas for 2 main reasons.

1. Meric would be home from deployment.

 2. We are going home to spend the holidays with family.

It has been almost 2 years since I have been home and I am really excited to see family and friends again. I am so excited I broke out the Christmas music at Halloween. (No worries I celebrated Halloween too.)

Now that it is actually the Christmas season, I have had a few thoughts about different things I have seen or heard. I have seen several postings and pictures on facebook saying things like "Keep Christ in Christmas" or "It is Merry Christmas, not Happy Holidays" and things like that. 

With the world the way it is Christmas break has become winter break and the work Christmas party has become a holiday party. You hear more and more happy holidays  and less merry Christmas for fear of offending someone. But seriously why would someone saying "Merry Christmas" offend you? I would not be offended in the least if someone said "Happy Hanukkah" to me.

That being said why should I expect someone to accept my "Merry Christmas" if I am not willing to accept their "Happy Holiday"? Christmas is a holiday after all. And why should I be offended if someone doesn't "keep Christ in Christmas"? Is there any religion that believes Christ was actually born on Christmas? Besides a lot of Christmas traditions were adapted from pagan traditions. (I am not saying Christmas is a pagan holiday but look up the origins of Christmas sometime.) 

Christmas should be a time of giving not judging. It should be a time when we are a little more tolerant of our fellow man. A time to unite in love and not focus on our differences. I am not going to stop believing what I believe because it might offend someone and I won't be offended if you don't believe the same as me.

So whether you say "Merry Christmas" or "Happy Holidays" read Luke 2 or T'was the Night before Christmas, I hope that you enjoy this time of year. And I wish you the Merriest of Christmases!