Mother's Day...

Several years ago if someone asked me if I wanted to have children I would say "I'm not sure." Then I met my wonderful husband and he wanted children. As our relationship and love grew, I realized I wanted to have children with him.  Well That dream came true on May 31, 2009, when I gave birth to our son.

Becoming an mom was the greatest experience of my life. Yes, I'm tired, don't get to go to the bathroom by myself, or get much time at all to myself anymore. Every sacrifice I have made is all worth it when I hear "Mommy" or have those little arms are wrapped around my neck for a big bear hug.

This year's weather was not very cooperative for any of the outdoor family activities we enjoy. So I took the opportunity to catch up on some sleep by taking a nap while my son did; after we went to purchase the rest of the sprouts for our garden,  flowers for my flower bed and a great family lunch with my mother-in-law and sister-in-law's family. 

As I look forward to future Mother's Days and the adventures we will embark on, I smile. I want make sure that we get outside and enjoy our family time. Teach G to embrace, respect and relish the beauty the outdoors. Things I would like to do on future Mother's Days are: 3D archery shoots; hikes; canoeing; fishing; and enjoying the scenery.

Lastly, I would like to thank my Mom for all the sacrifices she made for me and teaching me how to be a good wife.  I truly appreciate and understand why you did it. And thank you for being an amazing Grandma. 

The Beauty of the Woods

This weekend as I sat in the woods waiting to see a turkey, I was reminded of how beautiful being in the really is. Then I got to thinking about how beautiful the woods are all year round. 

During the cold gloomy days of winter it is easy to forget to see the beauty around you. But as I sat in the woods this past weekend, I was memorized by all the green. The newness that Spring holds. Spring is a beautiful time with all the new growth; leaves, grass, and flowers.

Winter shooting fun

I was having fun shooting my new gun on this winter afternoon, but it was really cold.

1st Spring turkey hunt of the year

I know this picture is not a great picture of the new new green in the woods. But here is a better one.

Spring hunting

Summer shooting practice

Everything is lush and green during the summer. I love warm summer days! We shoot our bows almost every evening in the summer. Then we either shoot our guns, fish or go boating on the weekends.

Then I started thinking about my favorite time of year and how beautiful it is during deer season. I love fall and all it's splendor. I have always loved fall, even before I became a huntress.

early fall archery season

These last pictures are what I dream of when I dream of fall.

And some day I will hunt in the fall in a place that looks like this....

Refocusing...

As in the comment I left on my post about Goals for 2013, I have not kept up with my goals. Work, life, and laziness got in my way. So now it is time to re-evaluate my goals and refocus.

So my original goals for 2013 were:

*Being the best wife, mother and friend I can be.

*Taking care of myself.

*Being outside more.

*Practice Practice my archery shooting. 

*Fishing.

*Learn more about guns.

*Blog more.

*Harvest more game.

*Improve 3D scores.

Let's start with what I have been working on.  I am trying to be more patient with my family. But I can still work on that and being a better friend. Now that the weather has turned nicer here in Northwest PA, I am outside everyday.  I am working on my tan too. :)  With the warmer weather I have been shooting my bow almost everyday. We have had two 3D shoots at our archery club this year and I shot all of them. My scores for the 2nd shoot were better than my first. I did take a hiatus from blogging but I'm getting back in the groove now.

Now for the goals I have not quite reached. I still need to make more time to call my friends and be even more patient with my family. If I would get into a regular workout pattern, I think I would have more energy and patience to be my best. So I have not been taking care of myself. I have not fished yet this year. Learning more about guns is still on my list. Currently it is Spring Gobbler in PA so I am working on harvesting a turkey.

First I feel I need to pair down my goals a bit. Then I can really start to refocus and get somewhere with my goals. So here are my paired down goals for the rest of 2013:

*Actively be more patient with my family.

*Figure out a plan to take better care of myself and lose some weight.

*Continue to practice shooting my bow and get some practice with shoot my guns also.

*Once our boat gets docked for the summer, get out and start fishing again!

*Actually purchase the book Shoot and read it.

*Keep blogging.

Being a full time working women, mom, wife and hunter do not leave a whole lot of time for other things. But I realize that I need a few other things in my life to make me the best that I can be at all of the above. So tonight when I get home I am focusing on making decorations for a friends baby shower, shoot my bow if I have time, snuggle with my lil man while reading him a story, and then snuggle with my hubby while watching the hockey game tonight!

Have a great night.

Huntress

When you hear the word "Huntress" what do you think of? Do you think of women hunters? Do you associate huntress with a certain type of women hunters? Or do you think of huntress as a glorified word for women hunters? Do you use the word huntress?

I think Tag Out Girls sum it up nicely with this little photo. 

My definition of a huntress is a woman that truly loves hunting, therefor thinks of her self as a huntress. Huntress is the feminine form of hunter.
I think of my women hunter friends and myself as huntresses!

Fishing Gear

Now that spring has arrived (well mostly arrived). My family is thinking about fishing. We need to restock our freezer with some fresh perch, crappie and pike.

As I mentioned in my last post, I have been purchasing some new fishing gear. And considering purchasing a new tackle box.

I grew up fishing for bass, walleye and pike with my father. But this was not  enough action for me. So I started pan fishing while my dad fished. I soon discovered how fun pan fishing was. I rarely fished for anything else from that point on. Now that I am get excited about fishing again, I keep thinking about the fun of pan fishing and hoping to pass the excitement on to my son.

So I have purchased a few packs of tube jigs, sinker hooks and bobbers. My favorite tube jig has a red body with a chartreuse skirt. So I purchased  a fairly large quantity of the jigs. As fun as pan fishing is, I will also want to give pike fishing some time too. So I will look to purchase some spinner baits, Mepps and other pike lures.

Spinner Bait

Mepps

And this is a pic of the tackle box I am looking at purchasing.

Yes I like to have a little pink in everything I do.

What are your favorite pike or pan fish lures? I would love to hear your suggests and will give them a try.

Time to Fish...

I really have not fished much in the past few years. As a child and teenager, I fished often with my father and brother. This year I am really looking forward to fishing. 

This year is different for me, because of my son. He is more interested in fishing now that he has his own fishing pole and tackle box. G will be 4 in a few weeks, so he understands more than he did last year. I just love being outside with my husband and son and seeing G experience new things. Fishing is the first outdoor activity we will be able to do as a family. It brings back memories of fishing with my dad and my brother as a toddler. We will have to wait a few more years to take him big game hunting. 

My husband went fishing on opening day of trout season (although he was not fishing for trout). I was hoping to get out last Sunday but the weather did not cooperate. It was a bit to chilly to be out on the lake, so we went 4 wheeling instead. This weekend we are so busy. I have a bridal shower, a baby shower and a bachelorette party on Saturday. Sunday is a 3D turkey shoot at our local archery club and our archery league banquet in the afternoon. Did I also mention, Saturday is opening day for Spring Gobbler.

So, I have to put fishing on hold for a few more days. Maybe one night next week or next Sunday we will get to go out.  Since I haven't really fished much in the last few years, my tackle box is empty. So I have been shopping for some new fishing hooks, bobbers, jigs and lures. I think I will shop for a new tackle box also. A soft one that has a shoulder strap, easier to carry.

Have you went fishing this year?
What is your favorite fish to catch?
What is your favorite lure?

My Biggest Challenge

You all know that 2012 was my first hunting season. And that I was hooked from the first morning I spent in the woods waiting for the sun to rise and hearing the turkeys gobbling. I thrive to be a better hunter. I work at shooting my bow and my guns (I shoot my bow the most). I read magazines, blogs, and books to help me learn and grow. However, there is one big challenge for me every time I  go into the woods. It didn't surprise me when I realized I was doing it.

The biggest challenge I'm talking about sitting still while I am in the woods. I have always been a bit of a fidgety person. When I am in meetings I cross my legs, uncross them, cross my legs the other way, and uncross them again. I am less fidgety when sitting in my treestand, but I still struggle. I get into my fanny pack to get my chapstick and then I put it back. I switch the way I am holding my bow or gun. When it got colder, I was adjusting my neck gaiter often, because my hair would get in the way when I turned to scan the field behind me.

Usually the first hour is easy, I get lost in my quiet and beautiful surroundings. Then I realize that I will need to sit still for a few more hours. But I am happy to be out in my treestand and can't wait to see what mother nature lets me see.

During archery season, we mainly hunted in the evenings. So after getting situated in my tree stand, I would play on my phone to pass the time. I would post a status update on Facebook or text with friends to see if they were out in the woods or just play a game. As it got closer to "go time" I would put my phone away. But I still had trouble with actually sitting still. I did get a deer this fall so I guess my fidgeting wasn't that bad.

What has a girl go to do to stop fidgeting all the time?

Do you fidget while you are hunting?

What is your biggest challenge?