First Time Axle Lock Use

In case you didn't know, this past weekend the skies dumped about 30 inches of snow in my driveway, and the street I live on.  This snow was a dry, fluffy, lightweight snow. 


A lot of folks gave me grief for shoveling our driveway. They said, "You have a Jeep! You don't need to shovel." 

Yes, I am sure I could have just barreled through the snow with the Jeep, but we have friends who visit, who don't have Jeeps. Plus, knowing what this amount of snow does when packed down, it was in our best interest to shovel it, instead of packing it down by driving over it. As the temps rise in the day the snow starts to melt, then freezes at night making for an icy mess. 

I did have to try to see if my Jeep Wrangler Rubicon could attempt the many, many inches of snow in the road. I made several attempts at the snow. My first attempt was Saturday while it was still snowing. As you can tell by the video I was super cautious.                                     Snow 1st Attempt Video 

I took to the snow like I was rock crawling. I was also very nervous of getting stuck in the middle of the street while it was still snowing. Who knew when a plow would come through. 




The snow was very dry and lightweight. Any weight on the snow would sink straight down. This is just what my Jeep did. 

Once the skies cleared, I tried it again. The snow was a little more dense since it had melted some during the warm, sunny day. Again I was quite cautious, and took it slow. Like before, I was in 4 lo and rocked the Jeep back and forth. 

Snow 2nd Attempt Video

Finally my third attempt, I was still in 4 lo and I had an ah-ha moment - my $10,000 buttons. One of the reasons I traded up for a Rubicon -- My axle lock button. Pressing the bottom of the button once locked the rear axle. Pushing it a second time locked the front. So with a push of the finger they were locked. 

Snow 3rd Attempt Video

The snow was a lot more dense, and not as high. I was able to get a little further, but again got myself stuck. My problem is I am a little too cautious. I was too worried about breaking my Jeep. My husband ended up telling me to get out so he could take over. YIKES!!! Him driving made me even more nervous. He just gunned her. Eventually the front passenger tire hit the pavement from where there was shoveled path. This allowed for momentum for the Jeep to barrel through the snow. 

Even though I wasn't able to push through the snow myself I

am not embarrassed or feel inadequate. I am a cautious person by nature and always will be. My rig costs a lot of money and I don't have a money tree in my backyard to make repairs. 


Earlier in the storm there was a red Jeep on TV that burned up his transmission by trying to plow through the snow. I did not want that to be me. 



In my book it is okay to be cautious and slow. There was no emergency, and I didn't need to go anywhere. I feel good about my attempts. I am happy with the fact I was able to test out my axle lock button to see how it works and how it feels driving. Each time I will become more and more experienced and be a better driver in the long run.   

           - Simple Living! - Enjoying Life! - The Jeep Momma Way -

Mom duties vs. Jeep Fun

When I first started my Jeep blog, I was going through a mid life identity struggle. I am a stay at home mom and about three years ago I began to struggle with myself and my happiness. My two boys are getting older and don't depend on "mommy care" as much. With both of them at school, and not needing me like when they were younger, I began to wonder what was next for myself. 

My career in television news was over, and it has been 15 years since I was in the business. A business that has changed dramatically over time with the advancement of technology. Plus, the hours were not something I wanted to manage with my family commitment still my number one priority. 

As I began to blog, the process of self discovery unfolded. I uncovered long lost passions, and discovered a new passion. Combining all these passions, I found a balance of happiness. My passion for my Jeep, writing and photography combined with the joy of my mommy role has balanced me out. 

Now comes the balance of "me time" vs "mommy time". Another struggle I face each day. If I could, I would be out on the trails every weekend, but that would be selfish. My kids are involved in many things they enjoy such as basketball, soccer, and Scouts. As a family we work

towards a happy equal balance, so everyone gets to participate in the things they love. It is a great teaching moment to show my boys how to self-sacrifice, and to take turns doing the things we each enjoy. They also have come to understand it's okay to go out and do things we love without each other knowing at the end of the day we will be together. 

With basketball in full swing it is my turn to wait. The good news is my youngest has decided to take a sports season off which means I should be able to hit the trails a lot more come this Spring. 




                - Simple Living! - Enjoying Life! - The Jeep Momma Way -

Peanut Butter Didn't Work

Last May while in the process of waxing my Jeep - YES, I waxed my Jeep and will again - I got some wax on my plastic fenders. 

I went to the Jeep forums for help on how to remove the wax. There were several suggestions I tried as you can see in my  May Blog Post .

The last one I tried was using peanut butter. At first it looked like it removed the wax. Well, it didn't. I noticed the other day the wax magically reappeared. Note: No squirrels tried to eat my fenders. 




So I went searching for suggestions again. There were several more I received. Back to Black Heavy Duty Trim Cleaner, Fluid film, and Dawn dish soap.








I decided to go with the Dawn dish soap. It was a bust. The wax is still there. Now I wonder if maybe it was just too cold or I didn't scrub enough. 

I think I will put up with the wax for now, until it warms up. Maybe I will just decide to rip those plastic fenders of and get new ones. 

           - Simple Living! - Enjoying Life! - The Jeep Momma Way -

Jeep Tips

On the Jeep Talk Show podcast the other week, I was sharing my SpiderWebShade install with my co-hosts Tony and Josh. I mentioned how one Jeeper stores blankets in between his shade and the soft top. Josh said this is a cool Jeep Tip. So was born my Jeep Tips page. 



One of my favorite tips is the Jeep Badge of Honor app. Although I haven't been able to use it yet, I can't wait to try it out on my next off-roading trip.  

Once you download this app to your phone you can begin to earn badges when you hit the trails. Unfortunately, there are only a specific set of trails you can wheel that will earn you the badges. 

Luckily for me, there are three at Rausch Creek Off Road Park, which is where I wheel. So the next time I head up there, I will be wheeling trail 11 which is a green trail. Then I will hit Crawler's Ridge which is a blue trail. I can't wait!

My Jeep Tips page will consist of cool Jeep Tips. So please share your Jeep Tips with me! Here are some other Jeep tips I found online. 

51 Cheap Tips and Tricks - 4 Wheeler Network 

10 Best Tips for a New Jeep Owner - Morris 4 X 4 

6 Best Tips for New Jeep Owners -  Jeep Blog 

1st Time Off-roading Tips - Jeeping-The Fun Times Guide

- Simple Living! - Enjoying Life! - The Jeep Momma Way -

CB Mounted

Christmas of 2014 one of my many Jeep gifts was a Cobra 25 LTD Classic CB radio. I installed it shortly after.... kind of.

I just wasn't sure where I wanted to put my CB. There is not a whole lot of wiggle room in the Jeep Wrangler. I have used my CB on several off-roading trips, but it sits in my passenger seat. I don't have it hard wired either, since I wasn't quite sure where I wanted it. So I just plug it into the "cigarette Lighter". 

You know... I just realized, my Jeep doesn't have an ash tray nor the cigarette lighter. How things change. Anyway back to my CB...

While perusing the Jeep forums, I ran across a fellow Jeeper who installed their CB using the Rugged Ridge CB mount. I liked the look of this mount and purchased it. It was super easy to install, and the CB is not in anyone's way. It mounts right above the rear-view mirror, and has a holder for the mic. 

First... I removed the center portion of the plastic windshield frame. This was easy. I just needed to gently pull down until the clips released. 

Then... I removed the center footman loop. Once the footman loop was removed, I attached the mount. Then added the footman loop over the mount. I used the factory Torx screws to install the mount.

I decided to add to holes to the mount in the center for a more secure mount for my CB, since it is a bigger CB. My only complaint is my CB is a little long. Maybe some day I'll trade it for a smaller one. 

The exciting part about this was I got to use my new drill I bought as part of one of my 50 Before 50 goals. I actually got to drill holes instead of just using it as a screwdriver. Can you believe I made it almost 50 years and never ever drilled a hole.

Now I need to wait for the weather to warm up so I can finish the wiring. It is way to cold out there, even my rear windows are still not zippered back on because it is too cold to go outside to zipper them back on.

Hopefully today will warm up to 40 so I can get my window back onto my Jeep. 

                   - Simple Living! -  Enjoying Life! - The Jeep Momma Way -

50 Before 50: Checking More Off

2016 is here! I rung in the new year with a shot of tequila instead of champagne. I am not sure if that is good luck or not, but time will tell. Now that the new year has begun, I have about 31 weeks until my big Five-Oh. I have exactly 31 items left on my 50 Before 50 list. 
I completed some of them over the Christmas break like watching my first Ted talk - Do Schools kill creativity? I just searched most popular Ted talk, and there is was - the top one. I will be checking out the others as the year goes on. 

I also started my own indoor herb garden. The first two plants I got are Rosemary and Oregano - yeah the Oregano doesn't look to good right now. This is a work in progress, as I want a few more herbs. I am not sure how this one will pan out because I am definitely not a green thumb.

I also bought a lottery ticket. This is not the first time I bought one. I remember back during my Angel Numbers phase -- which is actually still with me I am just not as vocal about it -- I bought a ticket at the 7 Eleven on 9 Eleven and some other significant number day which I don't recall right now. Unfortunately... I didn't win. So maybe 2nd time's a charm or maybe it's 3rd times a charm. Anyway, fingers are crossed. 

I am also really excited because I booked my plane ticket for my next trip with my sister and niece. We will be heading to Boston in the spring for a trip up to Maine. During that trip I will be able to check off some items including #7 and #9. 

So far so good... although I am not sure I will be able to get my first item checked off this list. I might have to add that to my bucket list. As a mom of two boys, I still stay pretty busy, but someday I will get my story down on paper. I have some of that story down and the rest just waits in my head ready to share. 

                      - Simple Living! -  Enjoying Life! - The Jeep Momma Way -