Flying Solo

Mitchell was able to solo the T-6 this week, something we both have been looking forward too for a long while now! For those of you that don't know what this means, he was able to fly the plane he has been training in for the past few weeks on his own without an IP (instructor pilot). It's a pretty big deal and I was so glad that I got to go see it happen! It was a VERY windy day which reminded me very much of our time spent in Colorado, but despite the bad weather Mitchell did fantastic! He was only up in the air for about 15 minutes due to the winds, but he didn't crash and the plane came back in one piece meaning he did well and passed ;) It was a very exciting event and here are some photos I took while out on the flight line yesterday...

Right before he soloed!

About to taxi

Right after take off!

Some of the other T-6's

All done!

The tank

Needless to say..he didn't make it back to the flight room ;)

If you don't know about the tank, it's an UPT tradition. After you solo, if members of your flight can catch you on your way back to the flight room from the plane they throw you into the tank of let's say "less than sanitary" water. If you do make it back to the flight room however, everyone in the flight has to buy you beer. In all actuality very few people are lucky enough to make it back to the flight room without being caught :)

I hope everyone enjoyed the photos as much as I enjoyed being there and getting to experience Mitchell flying solo! I will post again soon with another crafty thing the hubs is making once it's done! 

Love,

The Etheridges   

So proud of the hubs!!

Carolina Style Weekend

This past weekend was rather eventful around the Etheridge house for once! Mitchell purchased a smoker last weekend and had been itching all week to use it once he had some free time. So, on Saturday he so graciously smoked us a rack of ribs and a pork shoulder. Let me just say, it was some of the best BBQ I've ever had! He also made a homemade Carolina inspired BBQ sauce and that was phenomenal as well. I think it's safe to say we will be smoking meat A LOT in near future. Our next task is to try some beef brisket and get a little Texas style BBQ going on ;) We also have enough pork to last use the next year probably...

Putting the rub on the shoulder before
 heading to the smoker!
Yup, that's 10 lbs of pork right there...

On the smoker!

Literally the best ribs I've ever had!

Mitchell also made a picnic table this weekend for our late Valentines Day present to one another! He had been really wanting to build something new so we thought this would be a perfect addition to our backyard with summer and warmer weather coming up. All in all it wasn't that expensive and we decided to paint it a rather pretty yellow to compliment the chairs and pots we already had! 

Before being painted 

The painted table in the backyard! 

Winston was a lot of help ;)

All in all it was a very busy but fun weekend. I've really learned to love the weekends even more now that Mitchell has started his 12 hour day work weeks. It's nice to unwind after a hectic week and really spend some time with one another. UPT is still going really well for the hubs and he is loving flying! He should be soloing (aka flying by himself) within the next week or so, so that's a milestone we are both excited about!

For those of you wondering about my exciting life here in Del Rio there isn't really anything too new to report. I start school back tomorrow (ick) after a very nice week long spring break! I've been busy spending time with some of my favorite ladies here at Laughlin and am also in an amazing bible study once a week! I am truly blessed to be surrounded by such amazing people here while we are in Del Rio and I can't wait to see what else God has in store for both Mitchell and I :)

I hope everyone has had a perfectly wonderful weekend! 

Love,

The Etheridges

Dollar Days

Mitchell had his dollar ride yesterday (aka his very first flight in the T-6) and it went wonderfully! He had a total blast and his IP (instructor pilot) said he did a fantastic job! I could not be more proud of him :) Although the 12 hour days are exhausting, he's having a really great time flying and getting up the plane finally.

Before/After Mitchell's Dollar Ride

*Shout out to Harrison for the pictures ;)

Lazy Days

This past weekend was one of those weekends where we simply and honestly did absolutely nothing productive. And to be honest, it was wonderful! The weather here has been down right nasty so it was nice to stay home and enjoy each others company and hang out with our little furball. I did however try a new desert concoction I've been meaning to attempt for ages. This particular recipe has been floating around Pintrest for ages now and I had actually tried some at a Christmas party for my work. Here it is....

Cheesecake Filled Strawberries 

Ingredients:
-1 lb large strawberries
-8 oz. cream cheese, softened (can use 1/3 less fat)
-3-4 tbsp powdered sugar (4 tbsp for a sweeter filling)
-1 tsp vanilla extract
-graham cracker crumbs

Directions:
1. Rinse strawberries and cut around the top of the strawberry. Remove the top and clean out with a paring knife, if necessary (some may already be hollow inside). Prep all strawberries and set aside.
2. In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla until creamy. Add cream cheese mix to a piping bag or ziploc with the corner snipped off. Fill strawberries with cheesecake mixture. Once strawberries are filled, dip the top in graham cracker crumbs. If not serving immediately, refrigerate until serving.

*I added about 4.5 tablespoons of powdered sugar to taste. 

I have a huge sweet tooth though ;)

I also ended up just using a knife to place the filling
in the strawberries. As you can see, the bag
idea didn't turn out perfectly!

As I mentioned earlier the weather here has been rather chilly and very Colorado-like if you ask me! I thought I moved to Texas to get as far away from cold weather as possible?! Apparently not. This morning we woke up to a dense frost on the ground and we even had snow flurries down here in good ole Del Rio.

The truck with the "frost" from last night.

On another note, Mitchell is about to finish up Phase I this week (woot woot) and begin Phase II where he will actually start flying. He is scheduled to hit the flight line on Wednesday and start flying the T-6. He and I are both very excited about him actually getting in the plane and starting this portion of UPT. Although I'm sure we won't LOVE the 12 hour days starting this week, I know it will be well worth the extra time apart.

In other news, Georgia (our cat) is still missing. We have finally come to the conclusion that she has found a nice little home filled with lots of children and other kitties to play with and keep her company :) Or at least that's just what we like to tell ourselves....Winston is not all that upset to be honest.

I am still plugging away at school with thankfully only 1.5 more weeks until my spring break, wooo hooo! I'm also still working at the store down town and taking that one day at a time. 

Winston decided to climb up to get his ball, got
"stuck" 3 feet off the ground , and then
preceded to take a nap....what a goober.

I hope everyone had just as a relaxing weekend as we did!

Love, 

The Etheridges

Yummy Goodness

I know it's been a LONG while since I posted any recipes that Mitchell and I have tried...truth me told we have just been so busy we've just stuck to the same old ones since Christmas! However, I finally had a little time to peruse Pintrest the other day and I found this very simple chicken taco recipe. It is literally the easiest thing you will ever make, besides a bowl of cereal. It was delicious and simple, what more can you ask of a dinner recipe?

We ended up halfing the recipe (except for the taco seasoning part) and it turned out perfectly! We also served it with black beans which was a nice touch. The leftovers even made a few quesadillas for lunch ;)

Crockpot Chicken Tacos

Ingredients:

1 envelope Taco Seasoning
6 pieces Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
1 jar Salsa (16 oz)

Instructions:

Dump everything into a crock pot and give it a little stir to blend the seasoning with the salsa. Cook on high for 4 to 6 hours or on low for 6 to 8 hours. When done, the chicken should shred easily when stirred with a fork.

For tacos, serve the chicken with soft flour tortillas, lettuce, shredded cheese and sour cream. This is very versatile and can be used for enchiladas, nachos, tostadas, etc. 

Just Another Day

Today was actually fairly eventful so I thought I would give you all some pictures and such to look at :) Mitchell and I went out to the Border Patrol shooting range after being invited by our oh-so-sweet neighbors. If I haven't mentioned how awesome they are before, just so you know....they are pretty awesome! We are so blessed to live near some really sweet guys and gals while here at Laughlin. Anyways, it had been ages since either of us had shot Mitchell's guns, so naturally we jumped at the opportunity. Here are some photos...

I think we got him between
the two of us!

Although it's hard to tell from this photo...the Mexican
mountains were extra pretty today!

The Border Patrol Station, about 1/2 mile
away to get across to Mexico.

I think that people often don't realize how close we live to the Mexican border. This last photo really gives you an idea. From our house it took about 20 min to get here and while at the gun range we could have walked to the border in about 10 minutes. Those tiny dots in the middle are the checkpoint station.

We also made some DELICIOUS tortilla soup for dinner! The lovely Mrs. Wanda Schroeder gave me a couple boxes of this delectable stuff for Christmas and it was an instant favorite in the Etheridge household!  I highly recommend it to anyone, although finding it anywhere but online is difficult...

Well, that's really all for now! I hope everyone is having a fantastic weekend so far :)

Love,

The Etheridges

Another Angel

As some of you know Mitchell's sweet grandmother passed away very suddenly this past weekend. Although I did not know her as long as most of the Etheridge clan, I did know her well enough to say that the earth has lost a very special and sweet woman.  I have been visiting his grandparents every summer since Mitchell and I have been together and we were also blessed enough to see them every Christmas as well. Over the past 6 years I got to know Lou and can honestly say that she was one of the kindest and most hospitable people there was. She reminded me my mother in a lot of ways, which is to say she lived every day as a servant and to make everyone around her as happy as possible. Her kind spirit and loving nature were always so welcoming, especially after the passing of my mother. The Lord only knows why he needed her in heaven at this exact time. All I do know, is that her and my mother are sitting up there at this very second chatting away with one another to their hearts content. You will be greatly missed by many grand-mom.