Cookies, crafts and fun!

While Nana and Grandpa were here, we did some other fun stuff as well!  First, Nana brought some cookies and the kids got to decorate them with her.  Fun was had by all!  (and lots of frosting was eaten!)

 We also decided to make some owls as well, so here are the kids enjoying craft time and showing off the finished product!

 and we can't forget the walks that Grandpa took the kids on!  They felt pretty special!

Three Generations in the Field Together!

Opening day started out perfect with Clint, Bill, Dane and I headed out to the property to see if we could find a doe for Bill.  Well, after belly-crawling out to the edge and watching two little bucks for a bit, this beautiful doe appeared and Bill made a great shot and had filled his doe permit the very first morning!

 Then we headed out to some other land in the area.  After unsuccessfully stalking some whitetails for a bit, we decided to set up on some mule deer that were just dropping into one of the coulees.  In the process, we bumped this beautiful buck.  Despite high winds and a long distance (337 yards!) Clint made an amazing shot on this monster.  Not only did it have nice horns, it was by far the biggest bodied whitetail we have taken.  Congrats to my hubby on harvesting a really nice deer!

 Dane did really well throughout both hunts.  He hiked well, kept quiet most of the time and thought his Dad's deer was pretty awesome!

 It was so cool that we had the three generations of Houstons out in the field sharing a tradition that they have enjoyed for years!  Not to mention I was fortunate enough to tag along and enjoy the day with them!

Brock's First Deer (written by Clint)

Brock and I headed up to some property North of Great Falls for the two day youth deer season.  Brock has worked hard to become a good marksman.  It didn't come easy for me and it hasn't come easy for him.  Brock has come a long ways with his shooting and I hoped this year he was prepared to take his first deer.    We arrived at the hunting area and hiked about fore or five miles through the coulees and canyons along the river. We saw some deer, some were close, some were too close, and some were too far.  We returned to camp, and we were both tired  and ready for a nap.  We set up the camp at about 2:00 pm made a late lunch and Brock took a quick cat nap.  I woke Brock up and got him ready for the second round, the evening hunt.  We went to a large alfalfa field where both mule deer and whitetails were feeding.  Upon our arrival, we saw four whitetails in the field feeding.   The conditions were poor, it was warm and, dry with swirling wind.  Our bad luck continued and just as we were about to get into range, the deer smelled us,  (that is my excuse) and evacuated from the field.  About a half an hour later, they came back out saw us, and ran all the way around us and left for good.  One look at Brock and I could see he was crushed.  It was only our first day, but we had numerous encounters, and just had not been able to put it all together.  As we were stewing in despair and defeat, I looked up and saw a deer walking towards us.  It was a lone whitetail, with no idea it was walking into the danger zone.  The deer was walking strait towards us, and I told Brock if he was ready, shoot the deer in his chest.   Brock did fabulous, at the shot the deer stumbled, turned and ran back into the river bottom. It was a tense few minutes, We didn't find any blood after tracking the deer to the river bottom.  Once at the river bottom the deer had to go down a steep slope.  I found ample blood, which raised our hopes, and Brock followed the sign to the deer, his first. Brock will remember this deer for the rest of his life, as I remember mine, and my father remembers his.  It is a rite of passage, I couldn't be more proud of him or happier for him.  I helped  Brock field dress his deer, not a trophy by television standards, but by far the biggest little buck of his life.  Congrats Brock! I love you.  As Brock packed his own deer out to the truck on his back in the fading light Canada geese were flying low over our heads to land in the river for the night.  Coyotes were howling, and a hunter was born.  

 We worked hard, hiking all day and looking for deer.  Finally, it all came together and we found a deer in the right spot. Brock did great and made a wonderful shot on a nice little spike. 

Congratulations Brock!!! 

 Here is Brock with a little war paint.  I am so happy for him!

and Brock even packed out his own deer!!!! :)

Autumn Leaves

Yesterday Daddy raked up the leaves into a big pile...  need I say more?

A good day!

Today we headed out to find some pheasants.  To do that, we always want to make sure we have everything!

Waterbottles? Check! Diapers, wipes? Check! Backpack? Check! Lots of snacks, cold weather gear, warm weather gear, boots, etc, etc, etc! Check, Check, and Check!!!!  Woo hoo, ready to go!

Beautiful, awesome dog, rarin' to go? Check!

 Pheasants?  Check!

 Sounds like we have got everything, right? Oh wait, what about the shotguns?  

Honey, did you put them in the truck?  (big long dramatic pause, then I start laughing)  Clint then starts laughing and we decide to go for a nice walk!  So, all of us went for a nice walk in the grass!  

Then we went for a drive and got to see some cool stuff!  

These were a group of whitetails that ran through a field full of geese.  When the geese all started to fly it looked really cool!

 As we got closer we realized that they were four bucks and two were actually pretty nice critters!

 and before we knew it they were heading over the hill!!!!  

 While we were out we realized that the northern birds are starting to move in...  these are the first snow geese we have seen this year.

 and there were all kinds of beautiful ducks!  Mallards...

Pintails

 and Canada Geese!

Despite the fact that we forgot the shotguns we still had a great day!!!

Jump shooting some ducks

For those who always think that we have fun with our kids...  is there any way that we can keep them on that side of the fence???? :)

 Today it turned out that I was a better sherpa instead of being behind the gun...  We did switch after Clint shot one duck, but I missed my one and only opportunity!  Oh well, it still was a lot of fun out there!

 Then we went to the River Property and Clint shot this beautiful pheasant...  Nice work honey!

Last fishing trip of the year

Well we lucked out and made it out on Holter one more time before the cold days of fall settle in.  Last Sunday was a beautiful day to be on the water, and the fish were biting so that made it even better!  Clint is an amazing fisherman!  He does such a great job helping us be successful and catch fish.  I tend to do more kid wrangling, but that seems to be getting a little easier as the kids get a little older.  That is how our teamwork keeps us out there!  We have learned to work together and most of the time it is a lot of fun!  Sometimes there are moments in which I fantasize about giving my children to the unsuspecting couple floating by on the quiet pontoon boat! :)

Kimber looking sweet and enjoying the trip!  

 Dane is quite the netting pro these days!  This was a really big fish and he did it all by himself!  

 What a beauty!!!!  Rarely do the pictures do it justice, but this was a beautiful large trout and Clint did a wonderful job landing it!  

 The bighorn sheep were hanging out by the water so we were able to get some pictures of the ewes and lambs.

 I loved the color on this one!  Isn't it beautiful?!?!?!