At our home, deer hunting is a holiday. Weeks of preparation are involved. The licenses have to be bought, the hunting videos watched and rewatched (training children to be quiet and whisper), snacks are purchased, gear is aired out, rifles sighted in, extra ammo bought and packed, last year's stories have to be remembered, relatives are called, beds are prepared for relatives, and finally the thermoses are filled with coffee or hot cocoa. It's 5:00 am on opening morning and the hunt begins. We have many hunters who hunt our property, which means many stories at 5:30 pm. The excitement fills the air; the kids are giddy all day wondering what's happening out in the woods. We lean over the back of the couch, peering through the window, trying to spot any glimpses of blaze orange in the thick poplar. Lee gets out his walkie talkie and tunes into different channels trying to listen in as hunters talk to one another on their walkie talkies. He hears only a few scratchy words.
It's been a good hunt. I shot a small doe. DH shot a 6 point buck and two does. Grace was lucky enough to be with him for the 2nd doe. She tracked the deer to a spot 100 yards from where it was shot. Here in Wisconsin there is a push to get 10 year olds out hunting (within arms reach of an adult). That means Grace could hunt next year if the law gets passed. Lee is out hunting with daddy today. They left about 1 1/2 hours ago, hopefully they get a deer. This year plenty of tags are available due to us being in a herd control zone. We'd like to put 6 deer in our freezer this year and then give a couple to some friends in need. My father-in-law has given up hunting due to his lack of mobility, so we like to stock his freezer with meat. We have so much for which to be thankful.
