Ice Fishing...Yay or Nay

It has finally gotten cold enough and staying cold for ice to form on the lakes and be safe to be on. My hubby is ecstatic!  Last winter was so mild in our area, hubby only got to go ice fishing once. He has been able to go twice this year and is hoping to go again this weekend.

Hubby and a few of his buddies go to a couple of tournaments a year. At the end of February there is an ice fishing tournament scheduled at a local lake. I believe this is the only tournament he is planning to go to this year.  The weather has to stay cold for a few more weeks for the lake to be ready for the tournament. Hopefully it will, we need more fish for the freezer. He has asked my brother to come down and join in the fun this year. My brother, Jimmy, is a big fisherman but he doesn't do to much ice fishing. So, Hubby will be even more excited about the tournament if my brother comes down.

 (Hubby's catch from a tournament a few years ago.)

As for me, I like to fish but I really have no desire to go out on a frozen lake to fish. Even if the ice hut is nice and toasty warm, I don't want to be on the ice. I also don't want to be running around on the ice checking all the tip ups. I guess you could say I have a fear of the ice. I don't really have a reason to be scared. I have not had an experience (good or bad) with ice fishing. Ironically, I think fish caught during ice fishing season tastes way better and not as fishy than when the fish is caught during the rest of the year. I think the cold water just makes them taste better. But I am just to scared to go out on the ice. I know that my husband would never be on the ice if it wasn't safe, let alone take me out on ice that was not safe. Hubby used to ask me to go with him and try to entice me with how warm the ice hut will be. Since I have declared several times that I don't want to go, he makes ice fishing a time to hang with his buddies. Along with going to tournaments, hubby and his buddies pack up the ice hut, fishing gear, chairs, buddy heater, venison and the camp stove and the spend the night on the ice fishing. I think that it is great! I get to have a night with G-man or go out with my girlfriends. It's our relax and re-boot time.

So what about G-man. When hubby mentions going fishing of any kind, he is right there asking "can I go with you daddy?"  Hubby does want to take him ice fishing. I don't want to deprive G-man of time with his dad, but I am nervous. And I NEVER want to discourage him from being outside and being a sportsman. I am sure I am just projecting my fear of the ice onto the situation, but I can't help it. Obviously, ice fishing is safe since it has been going on for decades. We have friends that take their children with them when they go ice fishing. So the question is - Do I let G-man go out ice fishing with his dad? I probably will let him, but I will be worried the entire time. This weekend could be the first time that G-man will get to go ice fishing. So I'll comment to let you know how it went and how I did.

If it is could enough where you are, get out and do some ice fishing.
Good luck & be careful.

Bucket list

Do you have a bucket list of hunts? Since I "caught the hunting bug" I have been thinking about what my dream hunt/hunts would be. My ultimate was easy to figure out...

Moose hunt

After that I had to think about. After watching my favorite show on the Outdoor Channel is The Crush, so next on my bucket list would be to hunt mature bucks in Iowa with Lee & Tiffany.

Even though the thought of a bear hunt frighten's me (I'm scared of bears), I would like to shoot one and have a bear rug made. I would like to shoot a cinnamon black bear.

And recently my brother has peaked my interest in goose hunting. I would like to experience what it is like to  lay in the field in a blind and shooting something out of the air. Shooting one after another and even possibly getting more than one goose with one shot. (My brother shot 3 in one shot this winter.)

Recently hog hunting has been on my radar. I have been reading a lot about hog hunts. They intrigue me. So I think I would like to put a hog hunt on my bucket list.

So this is my hunting bucket list. I suspect that it will evolve and grow as I grow and evolve as a huntress.

Game Dinner

Yesterday we had a game dinner and target practice at the archery club. It was a family event so the kids were having fun shoot their bows too.

The adults were doing a little shooting, but mostly help the children shoot better.

There was plenty to eat at our game dinner. There was bluegill fish fry, deep fried turkey, venison bologna, moose meatballs, venison sausage and kraut, and some delish desserts. 

We had a good fellowship and great food. 

I hope to see more members at our summer picnic. I also hope that next years game dinner there will be some new game meat to try.

Thank you everyone for attending.

Sage...the puppy...house training

Our beagle pup is now 5 months old. She is a handful at times. I guess any puppy is at this age.

Sage the CatDog...lol

We are still working on house training. For some reason she likes to do her business under out kitchen table. Then there are the random "hey I have to pee so I'm gonna right here" times. It is getting very frustrating. It has been a while since I had to train a puppy. Our lab was my hubby's before we got married so he took care of all the puppy business.

She is a chewer. And she LOVES to find G-man's toys and chew on them. This morning it was his Spiderman watch that he got at Christmas. That was a meltdown moment for him. So he is learning that he has to be more careful with his toys and make sure to pick up. Mommy & Daddy are learning to be more strict about picking up toys also.

G-man has a love/hate relationship with Sage. He loves her and wants to play with her, pet her, and tug on her. Then he doesn't like her when she plays rough and bites back.  A constant battle in my life now.
 Boys and their puppies.

Recently G-man has talked about how he misses Remi our lab. It was a sad day when Remi died. He was a good dog and we all miss him.

Sage is definitely apart of our family now. 

Goals for 2013

Happy New Year! Sorry for being M.I.A. I'm back and want to write about my life as a wife, mom, friend, hunter, and all around outdoors woman. 2012 was a memorable year. I tried so many new things; I participated in my first Techno Hunt league, started going to 3D shoots, turkey hunted, small game hunted, and killed my first deer. I am looking forward to an even better 2013. My son will be 4 in a few short months, that will mean new and exciting things in my life. And I am looking forward to hunting more deer, turkey and small game with my hubby (and maybe this year my brother will get me out goose hunting.). I'm also excited to see how good of a hunter Sage, our beagle pup, will be.

To help make 2013 a better year I have set some goals for myself and I wanted to share them with you. Feel free to check in on me throughout the year and see how I am doing. Keep me on track.

* Be the best wife,  mother, and friend I can be. That starts with taking better care of myself. Then making sure to make the effort for more quality time with my family and friends.

* The above stated "taking care of myself" entails getting to the gym. I want to try to get to the gym for 2 days of cardio and 2 days of lifting (which is Body Pump class that I am loving).

* Just being outside more. Enjoying all the wonders of the outdoors.

* With that said, I want to get outside to shoot my bow more. Practice Practice. I would like to be over 50lbs by archery season this year! (I was at 47lbs.)

* Get a fishing license and go fishing with my hubby and son. Good quality family time on the water. Maybe even get to fish some with my brother and dad.

* Learn more about guns and hunting. Get out an shoot my guns more, become more comfortable with a gun in my hands. I am ordering the book Shoot by Julie Golob to help me learn more about guns and shooting. Learn how to clean my guns....I know I know...hubby has been doing it for me.

* Blog more often about my life and all things outdoors.

* Harvest more deer this year. I wanna feel that rush again. I would also like to shoot some rabbits, pheasants & turkeys.

* Improve my 3D shoot scores. Note to self, RELAX you have all the time in the world to shoot the target.

So I've got my goals set and now it's time to start making good on all of them. I wish everyone a happy and healthy new year! Enjoy life!