Happy Thanksgiving!

From our family to yours we hope you have a joyful and blessed holiday. May your plate be full and your cup run over. May you overdose on turkey and gravy. May you remember that you are not alone and are very appreciated. Thank you for being you!

You go gunnie! Burglar gets a treat!

Local burglar took home more than he planned on. I had been posting my Weerd inspired "Gun Death" posts but here in Vegas and surrounding areas gun running is a very lucrative business. So more often than not I can find a dumb arsed criminal using an illegal gun. Yeah laws didn't stop them but they also don't deserve my blog space. Then I saw this headline.

Son checks father's home, shoots burglar who escapes.

 

 Love it!!! 

A son checking on his father's home in the northern valley interrupted a burglary and shot and wounded the burglar Monday night, Las Vegas police said.
The incident occurred at 6:19 p.m. at a home on the 6600 block of North Tenaya Way, near Ann Road, said Lt. Hans Walters.
Walters said the son checked on his father's home and saw signs of a burglary. The father was away.
The son saw the burglar who had a flashlight and possibly a weapon. He shot the intruder once in the leg.
Walters said the suspect fled, leaving a blood trail. As of 8:30 p.m., police were searching the nearby desert area for a suspect.
Walters said the man who shot the intruder appeared to be within his legal rights to do so.

So nice when a stupid SOB gets to take home a special treat for his trouble. Add that the dessert is not a fun place to bleed and I am sure he will be caught quickly.

Being thankful is so important.

I know all of us are feeling the hit of this economy. Gas is high, food is rising. Our government sucks. Their idea of balancing a budget is is ludicrous.

However this is the time of year we celebrate Thanksgiving. A time to give thanks for the bounty in our lives. I truly believe that if we look past this depressing drudge we all have bounty to be thankful for. Traditionally it was the harvest we celebrated and the coming together of two peoples. It has since evolved into a time to remember all we are thankful for. I am so incredibly thankful for our readers and the amazing men and women I call friends because of this blog. You guys are so great at giving feed back and answering questions. You all entertain me and inform me with your amazing blogs. I have learned so much from you. I have included a lot of that knowledge in the new book that I think (or at least hope) you will enjoy.

I am also so thankful this season for my husband and children and the life we share. We have a clean and well kept roof over our head and good food in our belly. We are all healthy. My FMS sucks sure but in the big picture there are far worse things to have. We are clothed. We have the ability to help those we love. We are blessed that I can be home with our babies. My husband has a steady job. Life is pretty good right now and I try to be thankful for that every day.

Please remember that even though it may feel grim and bleak there is still much to be thankful for and overjoyed over. If you need a visual just pull out your favorite gun! ;)

Do you actually own your home? Do I?

So Nevada has been one of the hardest hit states in the country for foreclosure. After the discovery of the robo-signing and fraudulent foreclosures came out the big story here was that new owners may now not actually own their homes. A reporter recently wanted to see how prevalent this actually was and went to a local lawyer who works to help owners stay in their home and has been dealing with other owners facing the hassles of not actually owning their homes. His discovery - 9 out of 10 people who have bought a foreclosed home are facing the issue of not actually owning it. In fact he had the lawyer he was interviewing check on his home and in five minutes she found issues proving he was one of those people.

I am terrified now. We had a title company who supposedly made sure the title was clear when we bought a house owned by Countrywide who was bought out by BOA. This means someone could sue BOA for the house back. OR when we are ready to sell we won't be able to because we don't actually own the house. WTF? So far no one seems to have any clear idea what to do in this situation. Do we get our money back and clear out? Does BOA need to pay some damages to us and the previous owner? How do you fix this?We bought in good faith.

Hubby says that if the previous owner still legally holds title and pushes to take the house then we sue the ever loving heck out of BOA. BUT he wants to wait and see. I am more of the mind to want it fixed now. I am not liking this at all.

The Big 60.......

Followers that is!! Welcome to the new readers. Modern Day Redneck you made the lucky number!! Thanks all who have clicked our button. I want you to know I look at every followers profile and follow them in return. I am just not always great about updating our roll. Yeah I know..... BAD LILA!! Thanks for the reading. We love it and getting input and comments. We try very hard to respond to comments and have a dialogue with those who read us.

(Oh and now that Maggy is posting feel free to rummage through the food posts of times past and demand some new food porn. I know I want something yummy!!)

The lost art of the recurve bow.

So I have been having trouble helping Santa figure out what to get Bug for Christmas. The kid got her rifle last year and she is a crack shot. Problem is that Santa wanted a gun to last all her life so it is a bit heavy for her little 9-year-old self. So I have been thinking about a weapon more suited to her. We could go with a little light weight rifle or a pellet gun but then it hit me. What about a bow? And not even a compound bow but a recurve? I think she would have a ball with a bow. Not a flimsy one either but a decently made one. So now I am super excited. I am thinking of something with a little less oomph and the sucky cup tips for Monkey but this could be a lot of fun!! What are your thoughts on the recurve?

Where has Maggie been?

Hello everyone! It's Maggie! I've been MIA for quite a while, so some of you may not even know who I am! I took a bit of a break but I'm hoping to be back on a more semi-permanent basis again. I'm grateful Gracie and Lila have helped the blog grow so much in my absence!

For those of you who do remember me, I had another child and have been enjoying my time as a new mom, and sadly this blog (and most of my survivalist tendencies) have taken a back seat. I've also blown through just about all my stored and saved food and supplies, and realized how ill-prepared for anything I am at the moment.

Although I'm now in a postage stamp size apartment, I'm hoping to start slowly but surely rebuilding our stock; be it food, supplies or money. I hope you will bear with me.

-Maggie

Venison roast

Last night I cooked up a venison roast in the crock pot. I am going to need a better way to season it, but it was still so good that I never got a picture of it to post. It got eaten too fast! My only complaint was that the worcestershire sauce was too strong for the veggies I cooked along with the roast. I might have to marinade the meat first and then add some lighter seasoning when I cook it. Any ideas? suggestions? What is your favorite venison recipe?

The dollar (breakfast) steaks are what made me want to hunt deer this year. I have very fond memories of deer steak for breakfast on Christmas morning. My mother would make biscuits and gravy and dollar steaks so that we could spend the rest of the day just hanging out as a family. We never had a big Christmas dinner, but we ate like kings for breakfast.

I am considering tanning the deer hides but am a little intimidated. I tried tanning a coyote hide once and I think I could have done it but Hubby got tired of it hanging around in the garage and tossed it. I think the buckskin would be a little easier than trying to tan a fur. Am I crazy for trying this?

Veteran's Day!

Today is such a special day. My life is filled with soldiers both active and retired. Some of my amazing blog friends fall into this category but in my personal life as well I see the beauty and strength that fills a soldiers life daily, even when he or she hangs up the dog tags. My grandfather served as did my uncle. My grandfather never spoke of his service to me. In fact the only time I can remember him ever discussing his experiences in the Navy was to my cousin for a school project. He took her into his office, closed the door, and talked about it with her but said his talking of it would not leave the room. My uncle was Air Force and went to the Academy. He was a pilot and carried that into civilian life to a career with United. I never heard his thoughts as well. I find that commendable. To me a true hero does not flaunt their deeds because to them they aren't heroic deeds. They are deeds that were done to defend their country and the people they love. It was a job and an honor. They don't look for praise. The memories often hurt even as they fill with pride. They do what needs doing and then they come home and they put everything they can into loving their families and their country. I currently have a couple friends serving. The author of our brother blog is on deployment now. My nephew is stationed in Germany. A couple of my best friends are military wives and they show me that today is not only about the warriors that defend us but the families that support them. To all the people that I care about who serve or have served, THANK YOU!! Your sacrifice makes this blog possible, it makes my life possible and nothing I can say or do will ever convey the depth of my gratitude.

Erasing scent in a tracking situation.

Okay. So I created a problem. I can solve it using paranormal means if I want because those elements are in the book but I want to do it in a more survivalist way. The crime Samantha is solving in Jackson WY is that 3 girls have gone missing. Each on different days doing different things but in the same general area around a lake near town. Part of why Sam was called to investigate was because the tracking dogs can track the scent for so long and then it is as if the children vanish into thin air. No more scent. No clothes recovered. I can get creative and go all paranormal if I want. After all Sam is a shapeshifter and one family has a father who is psychic. Out there is acceptable in my world. BUT I really do want to have survival stuff in the book. So thoughts? Ideas? All girls will be found alive at the end but captive.

NaNo has me going batty!

I am sorry I am hermitish right now. I am trying to do this NaNo thing and so it has all my writing focus. I am at 15,591 words so far and exhausted. The kiddos only give me so much time in the day to write so i mostly have to do it after Monkey is in bead so it has meant late nights for me which is leading to some tired Lila. I need sleep, lol. I will surface sometime I promise and pay attention to all your wonderful blogs and comment on them. Right now I am buried in a kidnapper in Jackson Hole in 2042.

I started the book!! It's goes like this......Apocalypse and stuff!

Okay Shepard and anyone else. I am sure I will be posting more weird questions as i write this book through the month. So Basic info:

So this is my Post-apocalyptic Paranormal Crime series start. EMP hit in 2014 takes out much of the developed world and stops the response to an asteroid strike. Asteroid hits later that year in the pacific causing an 800 ft wave and destroying the west coast and making the ring of fire erupt. Normally quiet volcanoes went nuts. World population drops under a billion. Half left are paranormal and given a magical boost by the EMP so now are having a harder time hiding. It is now 2042 when the book starts. Samantha Jackson was born the year of the End Times (2014) and is a shape shifter. Her parents died the same year. She had to figure out her magic on her own and with her best friend. Best friend Will died when they were 18 but remains with her as a ghost and helps her in her job with the NIS. The continent is now United North America and one country. Law is pretty loose. You either live in communities or go it alone. If you are in a community then the leaders are the law and are judge jury and executioners. NIS comes in when community leaders face crimes they need help with or a crime spans multiple communities. They also can enforce sentences if needed. No one knows Sam shifts shape but Will and his sister's family and an ex she thought was the one. She uses that to do her job. There is a lot of survival stuff in the books plus paranormal stuff and crime solving. This is the basic info because i am behind due to Hubby and Monkey being sick last night. I still have over 2000 words to do tonight. I can answer questions though, in fact it will help me build the world. North helped a ton already! :) Please also let me know what you think of the first chapter. Thanks guys!!!

 

First Chapter!!

Chapter 1

     The large cat ran through the young forest, her body stretching long and lean as she let her muscles work. She leapt over the volcanic rocks with ease and twisted through the small trees as if they were hardly even there. Every breath was a new burst of energy, of passion, as she drunk in the twilight.

     The sounds of the coming night were a comforting song and helped to relax her even more, every flutter of wing and cricket chirp was a reminder that the world was always a growing and thriving place. Her tawny coat seemed to gleam from an inner glow as her ears twitched to absorb the hoot of the owl and the slide of the leaves through the air.

     The sensitive pads of her feet hit the mossy forest floor with a silent shock through her golden legs. The cougar stopped quietly and let the air move around her. She knew a herd of Elk was close and would be about to bed down for the night. She had been tracking them for hours by their scent and knew the herd was a large one.

     Suddenly the sensitive dark ears heard the sound she had been searching for. A quiet crack and rustle as the herd shifted to rest. Slowly the cougar dropped her head and let the camouflaged pack draped around her neck drop to the ground. Then the lean muscled body shifted and turned, four legs turned to a pair of shapely pale legs and two well toned arms and where the cougar had stood a woman remained.

     Samantha Jackson took a deep breath to steady her nerves. The calm of the run seemed to have fled along with the tawny body. She had been changing shapes for over fifteen years of her twenty-eight year life and still it left her feeling awkward at times and unsure of herself even with the added strength and heightened senses. Not for the first time she wished someone had been around to guide her through all of this stuff but fate had dealt her a different hand.

     She reached into the pack and pulled her hunting clothes from their specially seal bag, grateful she was so careful to scent lock all of her gear before she made a trek into the eastern Cascades outside of Yakima, Washington.

     Sam felt her confidence return and grow as she pulled on the familiar clothes and tied her soft handmade elk-skin boots to her feet. She chose everything she used to hunt with extreme care and attention to detail and her clothes were just the start. The boots were soft as butter and let her move just as silently in human form as she had as the cougar. The soft light pants and long sleeved shirt were worn from years of use and hand-me-down age but the camouflaged pattern was perfect for the fall changes surrounding her and helped make the job of tracking the herd easier for her in human form.

     Next she pulled her rifle pieces from the pack. The .308 gleamed in the dimming sunlight. Every inch of the dark collapsible stock looked like it had been lovingly caressed. The black steel bull barrel was a gorgeous 18 inches and she quickly assembled the gun to avoid losing her shot.

She removed the scope caps and remembered that she really needed to find a way to pay Jason back for it. Any scopes were hard to find these days. Add that he had managed to find one of such good quality and hardly even used and it made the gift all the more precious. Sam vowed to herself to bring down her elk just to have some meat to share with her cranky partner in crime solving.

She quietly slid her already loaded magazine in place and placed a round in the chamber, careful to muffle the sound as best she could. On nimble feet Samantha crept forward and let her senses take over. She reveled in the feeling of freedom she felt as she stalked her prey.

She had spent countless weeks in the mountains and the forest with her best friend Will through the hard years of their childhood. Every time she felt suffocated by the curious or disapproving looks of the other children at the orphanage or her skin felt prickly and tight from a buildup of magic they would camp out for a while and let their feet take them all over. They had discovered long forgotten lakes and cabins. They had stomped over volcanic crags and ashen waste out of sheer curiosity. Neither had been old enough to see the eruptions of Mt. Rainer and Mt. St. Helens in 2015 that had put all past North American eruptions to shame but the evidence was there to be examined and looked over. Of course both were smart enough to keep their distance. The mountains still made their presence known by sending up smoke and fire occasionally.

As the memories crossed her mind she felt the ground tremble and cursed her luck. A sudden flurry of activity in front of her made her stifle a curse and leap for a nearby rock. Sam shook her head as she realized she had let daydreaming overtake her common sense and she had stumbled almost over the herd.

In front of her a dozen large auburn elk moved and shifted restlessly. The light was almost gone now and they were ready for sleep but the rumble of the earth had made their adrenaline rush and tightened their sense of fear. Sam knew the meat would be a bit gamey now because of the added rush of hormones but knew she and Jason would benefit from the meat and winter was not long off now.

She knelt on her chosen perch and waited with baited breath. Patience was something she knew well. She let the moments fly by even though the light was becoming even less with each breath. One of the perks of being able to shift shapes was a lot of added body strength and her senses were amazingly heightened, so much so that she had learned to ignore them when in the company of other normal people.

Finally the sun fully set and the herd quieted enough that she felt confident in taking her shot. She was close enough that she didn’t even bother with the scope but instead looked through the gun’s original sights beneath the raised scope mount. She found the large bull and quickly guessed him to be easily 800 pounds. He was massive and so beautiful, his hide thick with fall growth. She could already taste the meat. Sam sent a silent thanks to the elk as her way of paying tribute to the life she was taking and then with a light squeeze she pulled the trigger.

The bull dropped before the retort of her gun had even finished its echo. The cows jumped to their feet and scattered in confusion and fear. Even without being in her cougar form Sam could smell their terror and hated that they had been caused such grief. Luckily there were many grand bulls looking for mates for the fall rut and she took comfort in knowing they would not be without a male for long.

Sam broke her gun down and used her keen eyesight to quickly gather two thick long branches and pulled her knife from the pack on her back. She shaved off all the knobs and smaller branches until she had two long thick poles. Then she bound them together at their strongest ends with a thick braided twine she had made last winter. Once that was done she found two more heavy branches and repeated the cleaning and binding until she was left with a large A-shaped frame with double cross pieces.

Pulling a thick treated hide from her pack Sam secured it over the frame so that she was left with a sturdy travois to pull her elk home on. Then she bent to the task of field dressing her bull. The dark was no deterrent due to her keen eyesight and she let her mind wander to the case she and Jason had just solved as her body fell into the very familiar rhythm of skinning and cutting.

The National Investigative Service director, Levi Walsh, had sent them to upper Manitoba where a United North America Army training base was being plagued by a killer. Someone was taking young trainees on night runs and brutally killing them. The weird part had been that all of their blood was missing and these men and women were extremely strong and very well trained. They should have been able to deal with any attacker easily.

Sam and Jason had become used to weird crap. Jason had been with NIS since its birth eighteen years ago and Samantha had been recruited five years ago for her photographic memory and quick mind. Her strength and ability to outshoot most men was a huge bonus.

This case was weirder than any that they had seen. The lack of blood coupled with the extreme brutality of the bodies was a conundrum neither had been quick to understand. It had taken Sam secretly going off in the form of a moose to discover that they were dealing with a 500 year old vampire.

Paranormal stuff was slowly coming out as the years had passed after the End Times and more and more humanity was learning that all the scary things they had written and dreamed of had a basis in fact. This vampire was desperate. She, which explained the predominantly male victims, was nearing the end of her life and was desperate to avoid death and the fiery damnation she thought awaited so she figured bumping off a bunch of prime Army guys might be just the ticket. Their blood had to be the strongest right?

Once Sam had found the what and who it had taken some ghostly help and some maneuvering to get Jason on the same track and then it was hunting time. NIS rules were clear; under the new laws the community leader decided the fate of the offender and death was deemed the sentence in this case. So Sam and Jason had to figure out how to kill a vampire. Neither had ever seen one let alone tried to kill one so it was an interesting couple days of trial and error.

Garlic was useless. Crosses were laughable. Even tracking the chick was difficult and Samantha was an expert their but the thing could fly. Finally they had found it in a cave off of the major river about five miles from the base and Sam had the impulsive idea to set it on fire. They made some torches and cornered the vamp and in a bang and a puff the thing and turned to dust. Sam still wasn’t sure if it was the wood or the fire hitting the vamp that had done the trick but she was far to happy with the outcome to complain.

Being an NIS agent was so different that being a cop used to be. Not only did they solve crime but if the community they were tasked with helping needed aid in the sentencing aspect they did that as well. Courts with jury’s were a thing of the past. Now the community leaders made the choices of guilt and innocence. They pretty much had too. It was either they make the choices or no choices were made. There just wasn’t a big enough population anywhere to support large scale law anymore.

Sam was jerked away from her thoughts about the case and the way life was before her birth by a familiar voice at her shoulder. “Are you done yet?”

“For hell’s sake, Will. What are you doing here?”

William Mark appeared beside her and swept his honey colored hair out of his eyes. You would think he would have figured out how to change his look but being dead hadn’t made cutting his hair easy. He was permanently stuck at eighteen. His thick hair had been in his eyes the day he had smacked into the tree on an impulsive skiing trip and so it remained.

“I’ve been here a while. I like watching you work.”

Sam laughed, “You’re just lucky you can’t be of any physical help.”

He managed to look a bit embarrassed as he sat down on a nearby rock. “I wish I could help. I kind of miss this part of things.”

Sam looked at the elk laid out beside her and the neat packages she had made of meet and other useful bits. “Oh please. You always hated the blood.”

“Well yeah but the stalking was pretty cool.”

She stifled an eye roll. “Okay then, glad we are being honest. Ready to tell me why you’re really here?”

“I was worried about you.”

“Worried?” She knew the surprise was evident on her face, even in the moonlight.

“This last case was a bit out there. I mean vampires existing? Who knew?”

She felt a bit wistful, “I bet my family knew, I bet they knew all about this magical paranormal junk.”

“Samantha we don’t know anything about them except that they didn’t survive the asteroid hit and the volcanic explosions that followed. Hell, you were lucky to be found.”

“I know Will.” Sam looked down at the bundles and made sure she had removed everything she could from the elk that they could use before she left it for the other meat eaters. “I just know I could do my job better if I knew more about this stuff but I have no idea who to ask. It’s not like being paranormal is accepted and liked. People all over are hiding their truth because of the fear and the law allows for execution if the community leaders deem someone a threat. I hide my own truth from pretty much everyone. I get it. I just hate not understanding this stuff.”

He reached out a sympathetic hand and for a brief moment she imagined she could feel the touch on her cheek. “Sam I know not having the answers drives you nuts but you are good at your job and at finding answers. You will figure all of this stuff out.”

“I hope so. I don’t need any more cases like that last one to screw with my head.”

“Well I guess we can hope this next one is a bit more normal?” Will asked, hopefully.

 “Normal and NIS cases are a bit of an oxymoron Will. I figure the most I can hope for is less paranormal.”

Now what!?

Once the deer was skinned and hung, Hubby and I stood back, took a good long look.......and panicked. WTH do we do now!? Some quick searches online and a few phone calls to my dad later, we decided not to let it hang for more than a day, the weather was just too warm. The back straps were easy, we knew what we wanted to do with them. We got them cut out, cut up and wrapped as breakfast steaks. Betcha can't guess what we are having for breakfast on Christmas morning!

But what to do with the rest of the meat? Back to the internet. We found some mildly useful information that of course was totally opposite of someone else's opinion. We got frustrated and just started cutting. A few hours later Hubby called his friend and he offered to come over and show us how to cut the roasts and steaks. Whew. Now all we have to do is buy some suet and grind up some deer burger.

Quick!! Answer a gun question!

488 words in to the book. My opening is of my girl hunting. She is shooting a .308. Give me the perfect .308 rifle for a 5"4' chick who is an excellent hunter with no physical limitations but that she can carry easily in a pack.

Venison for me!

The day started off cold and crisp....ok, maybe more freezing and dark, but I have to make this sound good. I gently shook the kids awake (screamed GET UP) and got them dressed and ready for our adventure. They had been doing this for a few days now and were not at all thrilled at the prospect of yet another early pre-dawn morning. We stopped and bought them some donuts to help ease their pain (and of course keep their mouths full so they would stop complaining).

Once we arrived at our destination, a mere two miles from town, we bundled them up in blankets and coats....and left them in the truck. We had already tried taking them with us. (Did you know that a herd of deer will scatter and run when a nine yr old and a ten yr old are throwing rocks at them?)

We hiked up the small hill, keeping the truck in sight, and watched a lone doe race down the hill towards us and the small stream at the bottom. We lost sight of her at the bottom and stalked up a little bit closer to see if the rest of the herd was down there. They weren't. Sooo...time to walk the ridge and watch both sides. Nothing. Back to the truck to check on the kids. We came up over the rise and....THERE THEY WERE! They spotted us and THERE THEY WENT!

We got the thumbs up from the boys in the truck and followed the deer up over the rise to our right. We watched them settle down into the trees for the day. After watching for a while, I asked Hubby if he went and got the four wheeler and rode it along the tree line, if he thought it would get them up and moving again. It was worth a shot. (pun intended) Apparently these deer aren't at all concerned by a motorized machine buzzing by within a few feet. We went up and around the other side to see if we could get a shot. Two does jumped up and bounded away. I went over to the left where there would be some cover for me to sneak up on the rest of the herd and there he was. Just standing there looking at me. Less than a hundred feet away. I motioned for Hubby to stay back and dropped into a crouch. Hubby looked at me and asked "What?" as casually strolled up. He took one look at the buck, looked back and me and yelled "GET DOWN!" Yup, the deer was gone.

We went back to check on the kids and then decided to follow the deer into the next little valley. Off we went. We parked the four wheeler and hiked up to the grove of trees where we thought they were. Sure enough we again saw the little buck from earlier. Hubby took aim and took a shot. Deer turned and looked at us so he took another shot. The little guy took off but Hubby thought he had hit him. Just then a truck headed up the road in the direction of the kids. Hubby went to check on them while I looked for his deer. As I was looking, I almost ran right into the rest of the herd. I pulled up the gun and was watching them through the scope to see if that little buck was still with them.

What I saw next made me freeze in my tracks. There he was. The King of the Forest. (desert, whatever.) He looked just like Bambi's father. I decided we could look for the little buck later. I backed up into the trees and got the bipod legs on the gun adjusted. I crept out from behind the tree and got him in my sights. He had his head behind a tree and I didn't dare take the shot just in case he had traded places with a doe. I knew it was him and I had a perfect shot, but I wanted to see the rack with my own eyes before pulling the trigger. He stepped out from behind the tree and turned his butt to me. Yeah, that's not going to happen. He finally turned broadside and gave me the perfect shot. I got the gun up, got him in my sights and attempted to calm my racing heart. I took a few deep, ragged breaths and pulled the trigger. I missed. He turned his head and just looked at me. I racked the bolt back and......NOOOOOO. I had to reload. Luckily, Hubby had left the rest of the bullets with me. I carefully took them out of my pocket and got three bullets loaded into the gun. I raised the gun, got the big guy in my sights, and........Hubby came up over the rise right in front of the King and he headed for the hills. I took a few shots when he stopped but he was too far out for my limited shooting skills and he was gone. sob. We watched the rest of the herd come to a stop at the bottom of the valley and sure enough the little buck Hubby thought he had shot was with them. As much as I wanted the King, I was more interested in meat for the freezer. So, with sadness in my heart, I set my sights on the spike and pulled the trigger. The does scattered but we couldn't see the spike. One doe stayed close to where he had been and continued to sniff the ground and act very nervous. I stayed on the hill to watch the herd and to guide him to the spot where we had last seen the spike. Hubby got onto the four wheeler and headed down the hill. Sure enough, I got him right in the neck. Not a perfect shot, but it put him down before he knew what had happened.

I hiked down and helped load him onto the front rack of the four wheeler. We headed down the road and watched the kids faces as we pulled up with it. They were pretty excited. Especially because they got to watch (and help) field dress it.

So now my hunt is finished and I can sleep in while Hubby gets to go look for the King. Fair trade? Maybe.