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5 Comments Posted on October 4, 2014October 5, 2014 car reviews, funny, Nostalgia, parenting, People, Storytelling, Uncategorized

2014 Lexus GX 460 Family Friendly Review/Grandma’s Great Escape!

So last weekend I broke my Grandma out of the nursing home without anyone knowing it, then I pushed her in her wheelchair a mile down the road while she wore a “seatbelt” we made from a rolled up blanket…

Wait, actually, that’s probably not the best way to start this story. Let me try again.

The last time my Grandma had seen her younger brother Bob was back in the summer of 1987, back when I was six years old, when we took a family vacation road trip to Buffalo, New York where my Grandma and my mom are from.

That was 27 years ago…

But then randomly this year, my great-Uncle Bob decided that he wanted to visit my Grandma (his sister) by train with his girlfriend (he’s never been in a plane and he’s only left the state of New York once).

So I decided it would definitely be worth the 2 and a half hour drive from Nashville where we live, to my hometown in Alabama; taking my own family (my wife Jill and my son Jack) to witness this great reunion- 27 years in the making!

And to make things even more fun, we were able to review the 2014 Lexus GX 460 in the process. Which, for the record, was my personal favorite out of all the many Lexus vehicles I have reviewed within the past year.

The way it drove reminded me of the Toyota Tacoma, my favorite Toyota vehicle, which I reviewed on my 33^rd birthday back in April.

My wife Jill appreciated was how spacious the 2014 Lexus GX 460 is. We had to transport some of our son’s toys to my parents’ house; as we are in the process of building a new house (as I recently wrote about when I reviewed the 2014 Lexus GS 450h) and needed a place to store some things.

Meanwhile, my son Jack loved the stadium seating in the back because he could see everything that I could from the driver’s seat. Also, it has a 3^rdrow seat from can fold up from the very back.

He convinced us to let him sit in the very back for the entire round trip! Not to mention, to and from school a few days as well.

I was surprised at how easy it was to hear Jack and Jill all the way back there. (I’m sure many educated people at Lexus have labored countless hours over making sure the sound carries that well!)

The visibility from the driver’s seat also greatly impressed me as well. I can’t remember the last time I drove a vehicle with better visibility than the 2014 Lexus GX 460.

So we arrived at my Grandma’s nursing home and along with my dad’s help, were able to lift my Grandma from her wheelchair to the car.

In the process, I also “re-met” my great-Uncle Bob while there, who of course didn’t recognize me as a grown adult. As we talked, I learned from him that it was nearly 100 years ago, in 1923, that his own parents moved to New York from Michoacán, in southern Mexico; though he nor my Grandma ever really spoke Spanish.

The whole family met as a whole back at my sister’s house, just a mile away from the nursing home.

First, we celebrated by brother-in-law (who apparently happens to look a lot like me) turning 30 years old.

Then we headed outside to the “jumpy castle” as Jack and his cousin Calla burned off extra energy they mysteriously gained from not having to take a nap that day.

And of course, we checked out the storm shelter, which has sort of become the routine when we visit.

Next we had a plant-based (vegan) lunch, prepared by my sister…

Followed by an instantly made-up game of “bean bag bumper cars”…

That’s about the time we got a call from the nursing home. Turns out, none of us even thought to actually sign my grandma out. And coincidentally, no one working there noticed us wheeling her out the front door!

The workers were so glad to hear that we had Grandma with us instead of, I guess, her somehow escaping (?) on her own.

However, by that time she was ready to get back to her home. The thing was, she was afraid to be lifted back up into a vehicle for the 0.925 miles back.

We did what every all-American family would have done in the same situation:

My sister and her husband rolled up a large blanket, then I MacGyvered it into a home-made seatbelt. And now this particular photo collage begins to make more sense…

After all, despite it only being about a mile away, the journey was all hills.

Fortunately, my daily routine of mountain biking during my lunch break had conditioned my body to be able to get my Grandma to her destination in less than 15 minutes. She even got to catch a glimpse of the County Fair a few blocks away.

Before we left the next morning, we made sure to snap a few pictures of our family.

Since my brother-in-law/look-alike turned 30 recently, and until Jack turns 4 next month, it means that we are living in a time when my wife and I are both 33, my sister and her husband are both 30, and their daughter Calla and our son Jack are both 3.

So we figured we should take an official picture of this cool “3-30-33” moment.

And that just goes to show that anytime my family gets together, it’s never “normal.”

But it is fun.

If you were entertained by this story, then be on the look-out what happened after we drove back to Nashville to see a Dierks Bentley concert that my wife won tickets for!

Car Review Stats:

2014 Lexus 9700A GX 460 5-DR SUV

4.6 liter V8, 301 horsepower

17 mpg average, 15 city, 20 highway

as shown: $55,505.00

See all 4 posts on the 2014 Lexus 9700A GX 460 5-DR SUV:

2014 Lexus GX 460 Family Friendly Review/Grandma’s Great Escape!

2014 Lexus GX 460 Family Friendly Review/Downtown Nashville

Folding Down/Up The 3rd Seats Of The 2014 Lexus GX 460

Syncing Up Your Phone/Using Driver Assist In The 2014 Lexus GX 460

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Leave a comment Posted on October 1, 2014October 1, 2014 car reviews, reviews, Uncategorized

Folding Down/Up The 3rd Seats Of The 2014 Lexus GX 460

Third row seats in SUVs are so hot right now! And chances are, if you’re reading this, you’ve recently purchased a 2014 Lexus GX 460; or you’re leasing or renting one.

Even though it would have been much more practical for my son to have sat in the 2nd row seat for the past week, which included a 5 hour round trip road trip, he liked the very back better.

He was able to have a place for his sippy cup, blanket, vintage Transformer toy from my own childhood, and his favorite stuffed animal which he clothed in his own underwear.

Now, let’s get to what you came for. In just a few simple picture collages, I hope to show you that it’s actually pretty simple to fold up and down the 3rd row seats of the 2014 Lexus GX 460.

The 1st step is to unlock the back door using your remote. Then pull the door handle open, on the left side of the license plate. Once you swing out the back door from left to right, you’ll see some interesting things.

On the door itself are two panels, which after you open them, you’ll discover a roadside tool set on the left and a 1st aid kit on the right.

Turn facing the front of the vehicle and on the right interior side you will see a convenient power outlet; AC 120 V, 100W. That’s the kind you need for your electronics!

If you face your left, you will discover a secret compartment to hide and store whatever you can imagine; whether it be rare golden coins lifted from the Titanic (I won’t ask how you got them), or simply just tickets to the upcoming Dave Matthews Band concert.

Oh yeah, the seats. Let’s learn how to fold them up and down now.

Pull the lower handle you see on the back of the seat. What that does is automatically pulls in the base of the seat in front you. See my “action shot” below.

Now you want to pull up the ribbon handle which allows you to fold in the head rest.

To actually fold the seat down, left up the latch on the back shoulder, then push the seat down until it becomes the floor.

Follow those same steps for the other 3rd row seat and you’re done. Your view should look like the upper left corner shot in the collage below.

So now, real quick, let me show you how to fold the seats back up:

Just lift up the “back shoulder latch” and push the seat up, while standing next the vehicle with the back passenger door open.

Now you need to pull out the base of the seat again by pulling a tray right underneath the seat base. And don’t forget about those head rests!

While it may have taken 2 minutes and 13 seconds for you to read and process this information, I’m confident that once you do it a few times, you’ll be able to fold the 3rd row seats up and down in less than 30 seconds.

Hopefully this is now officially the most entertaining review of how to fold down and up the 3rd row seats of a 2014 Lexus GX 460 that exists on the Internet!

That’s sort of what I was going for, at least… Thanks for reading!

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Leave a comment Posted on October 1, 2014 car reviews, reviews, Uncategorized

Syncing Up Your Phone/Using Driver Assist In The 2014 Lexus GX 460

You found it! This is the post where you can quickly and easily learn how to use Driver Assist, as well as sync up your phone in the 2014 Lexus GX 460.

Seriously, there currently is no other post on the Internet that caters to such a specific and targeted demographic.

That makes you special for finding this. Now that you’re here, let’s get to work.

To sync your phone, press “home,” then on the phone symbol. Meanwhile on your phone, pull up the equivalent of “settings and tools.” Find “bluetooth menu” then select “add new device.”

(Keep in mind that all phones are a bit different, but I hope to serve as a decent guide for you today.)

Keep on eye on the panel screen of the vehicle, making sure you select “ok” and “add” once the phone and vehicle begin discovering each other…

You’ll know for sure everything is complete once you see on your phone that the Lexus GX appears on your “bluetooth menu.” From there, the next time you use your phone, the conversation will automatically happen over the vehicle’s stereo speakers.

Now let’s talk about Driver Assist. I love it because, call me lazy, but I’d rather not have to look up and find the address of my destination.

So instead, I just press the “nav” button, then “dest.” on the screen. From there, I press “Destination Assist” and then a friendly person starts talking to me over the stereo speakers, asks me where I want to go, then uploads the route to the GPS.

Then I press “mark” and “go” and “ok.”

Alright, you’re all set. Thanks for finding and trusting me with teaching you this today. You never know when I might come in handy again…

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Leave a comment Posted on October 1, 2014October 1, 2014 funny, parenting, Uncategorized

Dear Jack: Daddy, You’re Too Small And You’re A Bad Boy!

3 years, 10 months.

Dear Jack,

Sunday night, randomly during the middle of dinner, after a very busy, non-stop, adventurous weekend with Mommy and me, you turned to me and made a proclamation:

“Daddy, you’re too small and you’re a bad boy!”

It was one of those times when I just froze, in order to keep from laughing at the absurdity of your unprovoked “insult” to me. I didn’t want to encourage your behavior by allowing you to see me smiling.

I recognize that you’re not yourself when you’re that tired and hungry. While Mommy and I did have to verbally explain to you that that’s not how you talk to me or her, I have to admit I can’t legitimately count statements like that as “bad behavior.”

As I hope will be reflected in my upcoming interview in Nashville’s The Tennessean, I recognize there are 3 main reasons why you “act up.” You’re either tired, hungry, or in need of attention.

There has yet to be a reason for you “getting in trouble” other than those 3 things.

I feel that as your Daddy, it’s up to me to help provide for those needs. It’s my job to make sure you get your naps and bedtime in according to your schedule, to give you food when you’re hungry (even though you yourself don’t realize you’re hungry), and to interact with you when you’re needing conversation.

In other words, you never just come out and say, “I’m hungry” or “I’m tired” or “I want someone to pay attention to me.”

Instead, you “misbehave.”

And I can relate: When I’m tired, hungry, and for lack of a better phrase, “in need of attention,” I’m the same way.

But going back to what you told me, I’m still cracking up that you randomly informed me that I’m too small and a bad boy.

Mommy suggested that your insult was based on reoccurring storylines from Thomas & Friends episodes where, so often, the plot line revolves around one of the trains being too small to pull the freight.

As for the “bad boy” part, I think that’s you referencing other boys at school who get in trouble on a regular basis.

So, I’m too small and I’m a bad boy.

Not bad for an insult from a nearly 4 year-old.

Love,

Daddy

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1 Comment Posted on September 30, 2014October 1, 2014 Health, Uncategorized, vegan

Dairy And Egg Free Testimonials: James Hardy’s Asthma- Week 1

By now, you’ve probably already read my own testimonial as well as my 1^st recruit Ben Wilder’s in Dairy & Egg Free Testimonials: Introduction Featuring Ben Wilder.

Today I want to introduce another one of my “human science experiments,” named James Hardy (pictured below).

What I am trying to accomplish with him particularly is to show that even if you’re not full vegan like I am, there are still so many benefits of cutting out dairy and eggs alone.

James has agreed to send me regular updates to share with everyone. Here is the 1^st of several of them.

Journal entry date: September 13^th, 2014

My name is James Hardy and I am making a huge change in my diet to better my health. I have had asthma and allergies my entire life and I was told something as simple as a diet change could help me finally be rid of the curse of asthma and allergies.

I was told all I had to do was cut dairy, eggs, and soda for me to finally have the upper hand on my asthma and allergies. This diet change will also be a benefit of my natural body building and power lifting hobby.

The spark that ignited this change was when I had to pay for my inhalers, which are over $400 with insurance. I’d rather pay a bit more on groceries a month than $400 any day.

This was also inspired my friend and colleague Nick Shell who noticed improvements in his health when he became a vegan. I will never go vegan but I will try this diet and see how my health changes.

Diet changes are never easy but after looking at the science behind these changes I can see why these changes are the key. I first cut soda out of my diet. Many people with asthma suffer from acid reflux as well. I was told by my asthma and allergy doctor that asthma and acid reflux almost always go hand and hand. After cutting out soda my acid reflux does still act up but it is almost unnoticeable now.

The next step I did was cut out eggs. This actually isn’t that hard. Eggs are a mucus membrane substance and can cause an increase and thickening of mucus in the human body. By removing eggs from my diet I can thin out the mucus that clogs my bronchial tubes and cause me asthma issues. This will also lower some of the sinus reactions I get from allergies.

The last and by far the hardest diet change is cutting out dairy. So many things I eat have dairy. Desserts, cheese, butter, milk and all protein supplements are based on milk and eggs. Milk has been proven to thicken mucus.

Studies show it has no effects on creating more but the thickening is the issue that hurts my asthma and allergies. The fat in milk is not a mucus, but the stuff that comes out with the milk is. There are far more worse things in milk other than mucus you need to be worried about.

I will track my health, weightlifting performance, asthma and allergies as I make this change and see how they change with it.

We’ll check back with James soon. As you can see, his journal entry was from a few weeks ago, meaning I can publish his 2nd and 3rd entry dates sooner than a week from now.

Please feel free to share your testimonial as well! Leave a comment sharing your “100% dairy/egg free testimonial.” I may even be interested in featuring you in an upcoming “Dairy & Egg Free Testimonials”. I am looking for people who are as passionate as I am about showing the link between eggs/dairy and mucus/sinus/allergies.

My email is nickshell1983@hotmail.com.

I want to make it public knowledge that “cheese makes you sneeze.” In other words, consuming dairy and eggs is the reason why people have mucus that is any other color than clear.

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