Home on the Range

I know....I know....it's been a RIDICULOUSLY long time since I have updated the blog. I was very busy during the month of December living out my worst nightmare:



Yes, my friends. That pretty much sums up how I spent the entire month of December - barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen. I guess the only nightmarish part about it is that I was in the kitchen. But now all the holiday baking (torture) is behind me. Time for a new year and a fresh start.

How does one properly ring in the new year? We really wanted to start ours off with a bang. So, naturally, we made a visit to the local shooting range. Now, if we were at home, this would simply mean stepping outside in our apartment complex parking lot. But since we are spending the holidays with the Hoods, we took a more civilized approach.

Kenta's dad is a BIG gun guy. He loves guns. He's making a gun for Kenta's sister's son - who is fifteen months old. Squirrels don't stand a chance in the Hoods' yard because Kenta's dad stealthily snipes them out of the trees (nevermind they live in a suburban neighborhood). At least once a year, he takes a trip to California just to shoot things. This man knows guns. And I know NOTHING about guns (except that they kill things). Was I a little nervous about my first shooting lesson? Ummmm...yeah. But I soon learned that gun safety, when practiced properly and persistently, can dispel a lot of fear. It was kind of awkward holding the gun at first, but with some good coaching from my dad-in-law, it started to feel pretty good. And I thought I looked pretty intimidating. You don't mess with a gun-toting, pregnant lady.

Exercising my right to bear arms and children, simultaneously (that's Kenta's dad on the right, giving me pointers)

And let me tell you about the hot accessories I was sportin'. Have a look for yourself.


Don't be fooled - that Miss America-esque sash is really a belt full of 100 rounds of .38 Special ammo. Rambo's coolness pales in comparison to mine.

Kenta and I discovered that we actually shot better while wearing the belt. Maybe it was just a psychological thing.

Kenta makes Ted Nugent look tame

I was feeling pretty good about my progress - until Kenta had a turn. He's a sharp-shooter. I guess when you have been shooting guns since AGE FOUR, you can hit a target or two.

The pictures don't tell the whole story, so we've provided a little video entertainment for you. We're at the plinking range shooting a .38 Special. Kenta's dad had a nice scope on it that wasn't working, so I was shooting blind. Basically, we were just shooting the gun because it has this awesome pumping action that you have to do between each shot. The casings fly everywhere and it's totally awesome. As you can see, some of my pumping was pretty weak, so sometimes the casings got stuck. And the fact that I hit the first target was a fluke. I also hit a plastic bottle with the same magazine.


Kendall Shooting from Kenta Hood on Vimeo.

.38 Special: it's not just a great band, it's an AWESOME gun

Unfortunately, we ran out of batteries on the camera so I didn't get video of Kenta's impressive shooting with the .22. He knocked down all of the targets and hit some of them two or three times (rapid fire style) before they fell. I feel safe with a man that can shoot like that.  Here he is witht the .38:

Kenta Shooting from Kenta Hood on Vimeo.

Long live the 2nd Amendment, baby.