These are a few of my favorite things….

It’s back to school time again, and I am taking a page from the famous Staples commercial that is set to the tune “It’s the most wonderful time of the year”. Even though these lists of favorite things usually come out before the holiday season to offer gift ideas for those hard to buy for people, or really cool stuff you want for yourself, as I get set for another year of carpools and school events, my year gets going in September and I can’t start my year without my favorite things.

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After I built my first AR 15, I wanted to spend as much time as I could at the range. However being a busy full time mom I have limited time to engage in personal activities so I wear my beautiful custom bullet charm necklace by Julia Teeples of the Smoking Bullet to help me dream about my next range visit. My charm was created using the bottom of a .223 casing fired from my new rifle, it’s small and great for every day wear. In addition to custom work, Julia has some wonderful pieces on her website created from a variety of bullet casings. I love my necklace and when I am stuck in traffic or at homedoing laundry it is a special reminder of another one of my favorite things (which didn’t make this particular list). TheSmokingBullet.com has pieces starting at $25.

If I had to pick one item to top my favorite things list it would definitely be my next item – the Spyderco Delica 4 knife — mine is purple. It’s become like my Blackberry, I cannot leave the house without it. It is very sturdy and lightweight, I can barely feel that I have it clipped in my front pocket. The blade is 2 7/8 inches long and easily opens one handed using the 13mm hole and then locks back for use. I use mine for anything from opening the boxes UPS has left on my porch from my various internet shopping adventures to pulling out cartridges stuck in the ejection port of my gun. My husband initially balked at me carrying the knife, but now he is constantly asking me if I have it on me. As I have small children at home, I leave it on the top of my dresser at night but I find myself patting down my pockets before I leave the house each day to make sure I have it with me. Available at knifecenter.com for $57.95.

Honestly, I wasn’t really sure about my next favorite thing when I first bought it but the lipstick case pepper spray turned out to be a great little tool to have in my pocket or purse. I was carrying a typical black key chain size OC pepper spray. It certainly was capable of getting the job done but it was clunky and unsightly for someone like me who takes care with my accessories. Enter the lipstick pepper spray. It’s small and inconspicuous, even for someone who rarely wears lipstick, because the bad guys don’t know that. The spray has a range of ten feet and some brands will leave a marker on the suspect as well for identification. If you feel like you are being followed, just pull it out for a quick “touch up” and catch your attacker by surprise. My case has some bling on it in the form of a glitter heart which definitely makes it anything but typical or mundane. It can be purchased at amazon.com with the glitter heart for
$4.94. Other styles are also available.

I don’t know why it took me so long to purchase my Hogue HandAll Pistol Grip for my Glock but I am very glad I did. After taking a tactical pistol class, I found my hand was torn up from the constant holstering of my gun, so I decided to try a Hogue grip. It’s soft and cushioned which allows a closer, sturdier grip on the gun for me, especially helpful because I have small hands. It also makes shooting
one handed more comfortable. It went on with some effort — please be sure to double check that the gun is unloaded before attempting to install the grip — but it hasn’t come off since. I am all about comfort so this grip fits right in with my lifestyle. It comes in pink too if you also feel like making a statement at the range. Find it on amazon.com for $10.95 in three colors.

Ask anyone and you will find I am a huge Under Armour (UA) fan. In fact, I am not too embarrassed to say I could probably fund the budget of a small country with what I have spent on my UA wardrobe. They have some great products in their women’s line and my absolute favorite item is the RBI Women’s UA hat in black which I bought for shooting. I like it because it made from a light weight material and has a scaled down brim. This makes it perfect for blocking the shower of cartridges coming from the port to my left at the range but it doesn’t block my view of my own targets with a heavy shadow from the brim. I found myself reaching for it even when I wasn’t going shooting so I bought a few more to rotate. And it looks cute too, my younger sister is always trying to steal it from me whenever we go out together. Available at sportsunlimitedinc.com or cabelas.com starting at $13.88.

I have to end this list with a very inexpensive item that I actually made myself — my paracord bracelet. Paracord was originally used in suspension lines of military parachutes in World War II but paratroopers found it useful for many other tasks in the field. It is often woven into a bracelet worn with special significance to military service members and is available in a host of colors. It has become somewhat of a fashion statement outside the military as well. The usefulness of carrying around up to ten feet of paracord is not diminished however by the proliferation of people wearing them. For anyone who likes to carry as much gear as they can to always be prepared, a paracord bracelet should be standard attire. I can’t even list the many uses of paracord here but a simple internet search will tell you how strong and useful this cute little bracelet can be. It could truly save a life when combined with the knowledge of an educated, savvy and fashionable person wearing it. Buy one at survivalstraps.com or fashion one yourself using instructions from instructables.com.

Summer is coming to an end. Remember to be safe and keep your mp3 player loaded up with 365 gun songs (shootingdivas.com/the-ultimate-list-of-gun-shooting-and-bullet-songs#) for the traffic filled roads ahead!

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I’m always so excited when I get to pick up a new gun. I look at my new purchase in awe thinking, “Wow, this is MINE”. This time the newest member of the family was a Mossberg 510 mini shotgun. It’s my first shotgun and it will be perfect for me and to teach my kids with as well. As I look at it, all I can think about is taking it to the range, but it’s about ten o’clock at night now and the range won’t be open until 10 am tomorrow.

It’s exactly this feeling that I want to see other female firearms owners experience. What I have seen after taking women to the range and speaking with others is that some women have a tendency to hold back on how they feel about owning and shooting guns (at least in this part of the USA). It’s almost like they feel they don’t have the right to really own one or a place in that world — I don’t know why, but I imagine that it has something to do with shooting not being a “feminine” activity. That it’s not OK to express an interest in things that are loud and make really big holes in the target. But after speaking with the women who have come shooting with me, I learned they quickly realize how empowering and fun it can be, too.

The days of the quiet, polite female who takes a back seat in a man’s world are long since gone, but society’s stereotypes die hard and there are still those who might view certain sports and activities as masculine. I wasn’t raised this way, in fact, in my family all the kids were treated equally regardless of gender. My brother took his turn washing the dishes and cooking dinner, and my sisters and I put in our time mowing the lawn and helping my father with projects in the garage. My parents always told my four sisters and me that we could do anything we wanted, and they stood behind us all the way. I never would have thought I couldn’t own, handle, or even build guns if I put my mind to it and wanted it badly enough. It took me a while to realize that not everyone is as fortunate as we were.

I find it interesting to read about strong women who stand out and do things that are not considered “ladylike”. For example, on July 4th, I read the story of Sonya Thomas, who at 5 feet and 105 pounds has become a competitive eating champion. She gets up in front of crowds of spectators and beats her male competitors time and time again, often to the jeers of the audience and sometimes with a barrage of garbage raining down on her. Say what you will about the gross out factor of competitive eating, the fact that Sonya walked into a stadium full of Philly fans to compete in the 2005 Wing Bowl where she was touted by the crowd as the “feminist villain” shows that she has a confidence that is admirable. This past July 4th she won the annual Nathan’s hotdog eating contest in the newly created women’s division.

And then you have someone like Bonnie, a 70 year old grandmother who found a man had broken into her New Hampshire home undressed, and was sitting at her kitchen table eating a meal from her refrigerator. She was rightly concerned about the safety of her grandson asleep upstairs and grabbed a bat and starting beating the man until he left the house. Bonnie told the media, “I don’t want anyone to ever think they can hurt my family and get away with it. You have got to take care of yourself,” she says, “You’re not weak, be strong. There’s always a way to protect yourself. Use it.” Exactly. Now that is a woman who has confidence in herself, and it showcases that no one should ever feel the need to hold back when protecting themselves — male or female.

These are two different women, who feel comfortable enough with themselves to act outside what can be considered acceptable for women in our society. They are two women who are not afraid to draw on the confidence they feel inside themselves and do what feels right for them. I understand it can be hard to walk into male dominated environments, like a gun shop or shooting range, especially alone. This is one of the reasons I decided to become a firearms instructor. I enjoy introducing students, and especially women, to the world of firearms.

Once women make the decision to go for it and enter the range, I find many are afraid to handle the gun because of a fear they might break it. So they handle it gently, like it’s fragile or irreplaceable. Don’t be afraid to handle your gun roughly ladies! (By this I mean don’t pick it up like you would a newborn infant). A 9mm handgun can withstand twenty five thousand pounds of blow back pressure (psi) when you pull the trigger; believe me, even if you are at the gym every day, you can’t duplicate that kind of power. It’s actually better not to assist or baby your gun when chambering a round. Rack the slide and let it fly forward. Really get to know your firearm, touch everything on it and know how it works! Please be safe though and follow all safe gun handling rules including making sure it’s unloaded first. The gun is just a tool to get the job done, it’s no different than many other tools you will use on a daily basis. And it’s your tool. Whether your goal is to send some rounds down range at a piece of paper for fun or to gain some experience in order to keep a gun for self defense, like any other tool you own, knowing intimately how it works will allow it to work best for you.

It doesn’t matter if you want to shoot in pink earmuffs, or you buy a rifle DuraCoated in a purple camouflage pattern — in fact, bedazzle your gun case if you like, because it only matters how you feel inside about shooting your gun. You are just as capable and probably more responsible, than the guy in the next port. Don’t assume he knows any more than you do. Don’t misunderstand; my goal is only to encourage women to have confidence in their own ability to handle a gun. I have been the recipient of much encouragement and support of male instructors and gun owners.

I look at shooting as my time to relax so I often enjoy shooting alone. It’s at least as good as a visit to the spa. I have to clear my mind and turn off my phone to concentrate on what I am doing, especially if I want to shoot well. But I know that sometimes it’s easier to go with a friend.

My favorite experience was taking a friend to shoot who was sure she just would not be able to do it. Yes, of course she thought it was great that I could but there was no reasoning with her. It was too complicated, too much recoil, too much unfounded fear that she could never protect herself — that it wasn’t her job, her right, her responsibility to do so. After she fired the handguns, and very well I might add, I convinced her to shoot the AR-15. After the first round, she just paused and then looked at me. “Wow,” she said, “that felt great. I can do this. I feel so empowered.” Hello, and welcome to my world. Remember ladies, it’s your gun, don’t be afraid of it. Own it.

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Female-only shooting events of a casual nature can be hard to come by in certain parts of the country. Notwithstanding the ever growing number of women who are becoming educated in using firearms for defense and sport (and are purchasing their own guns) – we can still be a quiet minority in the shooting world. I can count on one hand the number of times I have seen a woman come alone or with a female friend to the range I regularly frequent, rather than with a boyfriend, brother or husband.

Getting the word out and banding together to have a good time sends a great message that we support each other’s commitment and enjoyment in shooting sports for recreation and personal safety.

So it was with pleasure that on Superbowl Sunday I joined a group of gun toting gals who came out to play! With plenty of time to make it home for kickoff, the pregame prep involved making some serious noise. The streets were quiet Sunday morning when the ladies headed indoors for some female only fun.

Hosted by a local range, the ladies event included some coffee and donuts to get the blood moving and then the beginner shooters passed around the Ruger 10/22 rifles and various handguns. The pop pop pops of the small caliber rounds peppered the targets as the women chatted each other up about where they like to shoot, what they like to shoot and what they hope to see for women’s shooting sports in the future.

Ruger 10/22 - A Great Starter Rifle for First-Time Shooters

Due to a smaller number of women shooters in this area of the Northeast and the lack of a women’s shooting club (but not for long!) it is always nice to find a few women who are enthusiastic about their guns and eager to share the thrill of making big holes in the targets. The ammo and the rifles were provided by the range but several women also brought their own firearms. So it was in a friendly atmosphere that they were passed around and everyone who wanted had the chance to try something they wouldn’t have otherwise.

I couldn’t help but think how awesome it was to meet women I would otherwise not have known through a mutual enjoyment of shooting. Stories were told of boyfriends and husbands who refuse to “share” their guns but have no problem sharing their love of driving around to every gun shop in the county on a Saturday afternoon!

When a group of women get together there are no “stupid” questions and no one feels intimidated by the “experience” peering over their shoulders. Even men with the best intentions, and there are certainly plenty who strongly support a female presence in the shooting world, can make a female shooter, especially a new one, feel unconsciously uncomfortable. So every once in awhile it’s great to let your hair down and hang with the girls.

So this group of women let the men buy the beer and chips today – we were still there to watch the game, but not before shaking up the field a bit.

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