Races, Floods, & Midget Wrestling!

So, here is the past few days in a nutshell...

This past Saturday, I ran the Pier to Pier 5k down in Wrightsville Beach. Interesting would be the word I would use to describe it. I had no idea it was going to be ON the beach! HAHA! My calves are still sore! The scenery was beautiful though!

And then things started to get interesting....

Some awesome friends (Amanda & Ray) and I went out for dinner at Yosake. If you are ever in Wilmington, try them! Their Happy Hour sushi menu is AWESOME!

Then we drove back up to Jacksonville for the crazy part of the night.... Midget Wrestling! Yes, I didn't say it wrong... Midget Wrestling! We saw a sign for it a few weeks ago and decided we should go for the "experience". It was funny at first - the performers all had different acts: one tried for the redneck thing and another was trying to act like a rapper... They had the walk out music and talked smack to each other... It was interesting to say the least, but we ended up excusing ourselves when it started getting really weird... Let's just put it this way... I don't think the ring girls (if that is what you want to call the "ladies", a term used lightly in this event, wandering around in fishnets and leather boots and stilettos) are supposed to "wrestle" each other in the ring... It was fun to go that one time, but it will never be repeated... hahaha!

 

The next day, we took our dogs to the new dog park on base. I think Kiwi is in love! I might actually start doing agility training with her - she really seemed to like the obstacles. She also loves playing with Amanda and Ray's puppy, Shadow. They had a blast!

 

This brings us to Monday - they day was I was going to tell you all of the above... but I was kind of sidetracked... BY THE WHOLE FIRST FLOOR FLOODING!!! Yes... flooding completely! The toilet in the downstairs flooded out the whole first floor! It was horrible!! Gross! Yuck! Eww! Without fail, it has to be right before I am suppose to walk out the door, right?

So, one emergency phone call to maintenance later, and my house in filled with industrial water vacuums, dehumidifiers. disinfectant and air fresheners... The maintenance guys were awesome! I was going to cancel my plans for the night, and they told me not to worry about it - they would handle it! Awesome! That worked perfectly for me because I was on the edge of tears watching water swirl around the floor - Luckily, I had take the rugs up that morning to brush them out and vacuum them in the garage! Wow! There was a guardian angel looking out for me today! That would have been a disaster!

So,  I went and had dinner with two beautiful ladies: the soon-to-be mama Lori Walker and the soon-to-be Mrs. Fuzi, Jenna Geraci! We went to a great Italian restaurant in Mayfaire called Osteria Cicchetti - amazing! Girls' night out!

To add to my happiness, I came home to a cleaned house (thanks AMCC) - yes, the dehumidifiers are still here, but everything was cleaned up and disinfected! I was so worried that it was going to be a hot mess! We still lost some stuff, but nothing that cannot be replaced! :) Staying positive!

And here we are... It is Tuesday... I promise to fill you in more later as long as there are no more floods... :)

XOXO,

Ashley

Here's a toast to the host...

Over they years, Zeb and I have been blessed with many friends near and far. Many of those who are far from us but close at heart are from our times at respective Academies. Knowing the jobs they hold are dangerous is usually in the backs of all of our minds until it hits close to home.

This past weekend, I am deeply sadden to say we lost a classmate and friend from the P-School (Class of '04), Victoria "Tori" Pinckney (formerly Tori Castro). At the P-School, she was the glue that held our team together. She always smiled. She always knew how to make someone's day better. Tori was Tori. An amazing woman, friend, officer, wife, and mother. She met her husband, Rich, at P-School, and the match couldn't have been more perfect. They have a handsome little man, Gabriel. I can't begin to tell you how much Tori will be missed. I can't believe she is gone. I always looked forward to seeing her posts about Gabriel pop up on my FB wall. We have been blessed to know her and call her a friend.

So, raise your glasses tonight to one of the best - one that was taken far too soon. Remember, freedom is not free. God bless you, Tori! We love you! Sometimes, God takes his angels home early... Here's a toast...

 

 "High Flight"

 Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth
 And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
 Sunward I’ve climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
 of sun-split clouds, — and done a hundred things
 You have not dreamed of — wheeled and soared and swung
 High in the sunlit silence. Hov’ring there,
 I’ve chased the shouting wind along, and flung
 My eager craft through footless halls of air....

 Up, up the long, delirious, burning blue
 I’ve topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace.
 Where never lark, or even eagle flew —
 And, while with silent, lifting mind I've trod
 The high untrespassed sanctity of space,
 - Put out my hand, and touched the face of God.

~John Gillespie Magee, Jr.

 

XOXO,

Ashley

A girl and her grill...

IT FINALLY STOPPED RAINING!! YAY!! :) So, to celebrate, I decided to grill out! Yes, grill out by myself - as in turn on the gas without blowing the house up, lighting the grill while keeping my eyebrows, and actually cooking food that doesn't give me food poisoning! I did it! Yummy! I made chicken and shrimp (fancy, huh?) - with a little bit of olive oil and LaRue Dillo Dust, they came out perfect! :) Here is the result!

That is is it for the night! 5k tomorrow in Wilmington! Good night!

XOXO,
Ashley

Chevrons & Polka Dots

Busy day today: started setting up the garage for the rest of the CrossFit "gym". It is looking good - pictures to come soon! So, for down time after everything was done, I finished painting my nails. Here are the results! :)

XOXO,
Ashley

Cucumber Bites

Hey y'all!

Tried a new recipe tonight: Cucumber Bites! I saw them on Pinterest (yes, I find everything on there) and had to try them! I didn't follow the recipe exactly because I am out of dill, but they came out delicious! Here it goes!

XOXO,
Ashley

State of mind...

So, what happens when you spend to much time on Pinterest? Craftmania!!! I decided that I needed to start accomplishing the projects I pinned... Here is today's project:

What do you think? On to pick out the next project.... Recommendations?

XOXO,
Ashley

Summer Chicken Salad Recipe

I couldn't help it! I have to share this with y'all! I found the recipe on The Vintage Mother. Just had it for dinner - super yummy! Here is how it went!

Enjoy!

XOXO,
Ashley

This chick is roasted! No, really... Roasted Chickpeas!

Hello Y'all! 
I keep seeing posts for roasted chickpeas all over Pinterest, and I have wanted to try them for a while. So I gave it a shot! I got the basic recipe from Pop Sugar, but mixed my own spices. I am known for my baking, but not my cooking - but I figured since they are roasted in an oven, I could pull it off without starting a fire. Guess what? I was right!! They are freakin' delish! What a great snack - low in fat and calories; high in fiber and protein!

I love it when I find healthy snacks! Try it and fall in love! Now that I am fueled up, I am off to the gym! Keep your eyes open for another yummy recipe tonight - I want to make fresh chicken salad!...

XOXO,
Ashley

Propane & Spray Paint

So, what do the following pictures have in common?

TONS OF FUN! THAT'S WHAT!! So, I took the plastic off the propane, taped up the valve, and started spraying. Here are some of the pictures of the process:

Then the real fun began. I ran to the printer to get a template and grabbed my handy dandy permanent marker and started tracing. Then I filled it in with black paint:

... AND THE FINAL PRODUCT!! A GIANT LEGO HEAD! VICTORY IS MINE!!

Now, to plot the next project!

XOXO,
Ashley

Rhinestones & Rotors?...

You may be asking yourself that very question right now... Why match rhinestones and rotors together? Wanna know why?...

A few days ago, Zeb and I decided we had to find a better way to keep family and friends updated on what we are doing. We decided that a blog would be a great way to keep everyone in the loop! Zeb and I will both be posting on here, either separately (during the deployment) or together once he is back in the good ole USA! We picked Rhinestones & Rotors as the name of our blog since it fits us perfectly. For those of you just catching up on the past few years, Zeb flies the AH-1W Super Cobra (thus the "Rotors" part)for the Marine Corps, and I am running a small business, Southern Grace Boutique, creating wedding bouquets, accessories and other custom creations with a lot of shimmer and shine (thus the "Rhinestones" part). So Rhinestones & Rotors was created!

I plan on posting an assortment of things on here ranging from craft projects and recipes to exciting news and major events. Zeb will fill you in on his posts as well. 

I am actually posting my first project on here tonight! I just finished it and I am really excited to show it to y'all! hehehe... It is childish but AWESOME! 

Thanks for dropping by!

XOXO,
Ashley