Prep for next weekend....

So next weekend is gun season here.  I got an antler less deer tag for the first time.    I thought it might be a good idea to go climb up in the deer stand before it is 4:30 in the morning and I have to be stealthy quiet.  So Joe and I headed out early this morning (not as early as it will be next Saturday morning) to do a test run. 

 

So here I am  in the tree.  You can't tell in the picture, but that is a good 18 feet up in the air.  Believe me, it felt a whole lot more like 50 feet.  In the distractions of the morning, I failed to get a picture of the steps headed up to the stand.  You can kind of see the tops of them to the left of me in the picture.

Here is a close up.  (It almost took Joe as long to get the camera figured out as it did me climbing the tree for the first time.  Haha...just kidding....sort of.)  If you look really close you can see the "tracks of my tears".  Wow...there were some tears shed heading up that thing the first time.  And there may have been some sobbing as I worked my way down.  It took me more than a couple of tries to work up the courage to get it climbed and seated.  I stayed up there for awhile....had Joe walk around to where my shooting range was...and took a couple of pictures.

  

This is the view from my stand.  I am told it is quite pretty as the sun comes up.  I was trying to enjoy it, but he SWAYING TREE kept distracting me for some reason.  So I came down from the tree.  We walked over to Joe's stand which is about 100 yards from mine.  Then we came back to mine and I went up and down it like a pro.  I knew if I went up and down it once without dying that I would be fine.  And I was.  I should be fine next weekend.  Which is why we set up this:

 

Yep, a blind.  Seriously, I am planning on hunting from the tree stand, but if it is really windy or rainy, I am not climbing the tree.  And a final picture.....

This is my handsome hunting guide.  At this particular moment he is explaining to me how I want to make sure I unzip the screen of the blind when I shoot or the entire blind could go up in flames.  Good to know....I didn't want to interrupt and let him know I had already figured that out.  He was in his guide mode.  And what a great guide he is.  I wouldn't want to be 100 yards away from anyone else next week.

Bow Season

Yes, it is indeed deer bow season here in middle America.  Joe took last week off and his dad came out so they could spend some time in the woods.  After a pouring rain on Tuesday and Wednesday, the weather was absolutely gorgeous.  I guess the deer thought so too, as they were really  moving around the end of the week.  (and you didn't need to be hunting to realize this....I am afraid several cars hit some too.)  They went with our friend Rick and they all three had great success.

Here is Joe with his nice 10 point

All three of the guys with their beautiful bucks.

Speech

Ashley competed for her second year in speech this fall.  She had districts a couple of weeks ago and this past Friday evening was her state competition.  Last year she just performed a solo.  This year she stretched herself and performed with a team improv group and did a duet.  At districts her team received a 1st place and duet a 2nd.  This past Friday she received a 1st place score for both of her performances.  I have included a video of both of her district performances.  Enjoy!

The above is her duet performance.  Below is her improv team.  Her improv team had to perform a series of "games" and then were scored for overall performance.