Halloween - Queens and Fairies

So far we've been able to avoid trick or treating, but the fall carnival at the school was a good reason to get costumed up.

"Moozeys"

Smoothies. Mom's technique for secretly feeding them whatever she wants. The  kids just taste blueberries.

The Rut Continues

First Light Buck

Who needs turkey when there is fresh venison heart available? I shot this Thanksgiving eve buck at first light and was back in the office by 9:30am. I snuck into the middle of a muskeg in the dark and settled in to wait for daylight. Right at first shooting light I felt a tickle in my throat. I couldn't suppress the cough. The buck must have thought I was another buck grunting because a few minutes later he materialized just 20 yards away. I thought that cough had ruined my morning. I was particularly pleased with the tracking job. There was only a scant blood trail and this buck was intent on weaving a mystery for me prior to expiring. I was very thankful when I came upon him, very dead. I am turning this entire buck into jerky. Yum.

Home Improvement #2 "Autumn's Room"

Autumn helping seal floor boards

1/4" ACX plywood ripped to 4" boards

Getting started

Kilzing the floor

I always had willing helpers

But sometimes Dad needed to work alone

Starting the pattern

Floorboards in, baseboards next

Safety first

Walls and floor painted

Amy adds the pink

Closet organizer going in

Finished room

Closet still needs trimmed out, but functional

Autumn trying out the new digs

Replacing the carpets in all the bedrooms has been the next big project. Autumn's room was first. The floor replacement morphed into a total re-do. The floor boards were made out of 1/4 plywood. Amy designed the paint scheme. We still need to install new trim around the doors and window, someday tackle the popcorn ceiling (whoever thought that was a good idea? ), and Amy wants to do some more decorating but for now the girls seem to be enjoying their "new" room. Next project: master bedroom floors.

Right Place, Right Time

Roadside Buck

Sometimes around here you just have to be in the right place at the right time. I shot this buck yesterday afternoon. I wasn't hunting, but I did have the rifle in the truck just in case. I'm not an accomplished road hunter so it was a bit of a comedy as I screeched to a halt on the side of the road, turned the truck inside out looking for bullets and then piled out hoping he was still standing there. The rut makes bucks do some dumb things. Why else would he be standing alongside a main road, in the middle of the day, during hunting season? Looking for love in all the wrong places. He almost snapped out of it in time and attempted a hasty retreat, but I made a nice off-handed shot as he slipped through the brush to secure him. It was an arduous 50 yard drag back to the road. It isn't always this easy (actually I don't think it's ever been that easy), but heck I'll take a gimme every once in a while. What makes this buck a real subsistence buck is that I gave the whole thing to a neighbor in trade for a steady supply of farm fresh organic eggs. Win win for everyone involved. Well, except for the buck.

Autumn's First Buck

Autumn with deer 11-4-2012

Autumn has always wanted to go hunting with me. This last weekend she finally got her chance. She was so excited to go and spent a lot of time getting all her warm clothes organized. The day arrived. The wind was fierce and the rain was pelting down, but we stuck with the plan. With copious snacks and full-body rainsuit she was ready to hit the woods. Fifteen minutes into the drive from home, "Daddy, why haven't we gotten a deer yet." Well it didn't take me long to figure out seeing, let alone killing a deer was going to be problematic. She's not big enough yet to safely navigate the terrain so I carried her a lot or pushed her down old logging roads in the stroller. She tried but frequently forgot about being quiet. The deer call she had been practicing with sounded more like a duck call. And when she tripped and skinned her hand, I thought we might have to abort the mission. But she toughed it out and despite the lack of actual hunting, we had a great day afield together.  Later in the day, "Daddy, I really, really want to get a deer." I had been very hopeful to get one as well. I wanted her to have the experience of seeing the kill and all that goes with it. As we slowly road hunted our way out of the woods we spied this little buck on the side of the road. "Daddy! A deer!" So I shot it. Autumn was absolutely thrilled. "Daddy, it's so beautiful." We got to track it together and I showed her how to gut it and named all the parts and what they did. She loved poking things with her stick. When we got home she was out in the garage with me skinning. There was no squeamishness on her part, she got right in there with me. So not the biggest deer I've ever killed, but I think I may have solidified a great hunting partner for years to come.

Autumn's First Poem

And all the birds sang up in the high northeast
and they were loved in the spring and the summer