Trail Cam Pics

Here's a glimpse of what has been lurking around one of the bait sites. In the 1st picture did you notice the second deer in the upper right corner?

Gabe is a monkey. You can count on finding him climbing on an available ladder, bench, 4 wheeler or anything climbable for that matter. Last night I found him at the top of this ladder propped up to the side of Grandpa Byron's house. He's always into something.

And for good measure, here's a picture of Madi.

Pup Recurve - a boys dream

If anybody is interested in a pup recurve, they can be purchased here.

The actions I used were found here: http://coffeeteaphotography.blogspot.com/. They are free and the instructions are fairly easy to follow.

Photoshop Actions

I've finally braved actions. It took me some to get them loaded into PSE. I'm not always the sharpest tool in the shed, but I figured it out. (The first picture is the original, the second the edited version.) My dad had broken a sprinkler pipe a couple of weeks ago when he was fixing a crack in the foundation of his house. Today, Gabe was helping him fill the hole back in with dirt.

Little Archer

Gabe loves to shoot bows, especially with his dad. This pup bow is the perfect size for him. Although he needs some arrows that fit the bow. He is so funny; when he is shooting, he claims his name is Robin Hood or Byron Ferguson. He totally cracks me up. If he isn't shooting bows, he's carrying a sword or a 'fighter'. A 'fighter' is just another name for a sword, I think. If he wants a bow, and doesn't have his real bows handy, he improvises with a clothes hanger.

Pay it Forward w/ Disclaimer

Here's how this game works-the first 3 people to leave a comment on this post will receive, at some point during the next couple of months, a handmade gift from me. What it will be and when it will arrive is a total surprise! The catch is that you must participate as well. Before you leave your comment, write up a pay it forward post on your blog to keep the fun going (or be lazy and copy and paste like I did). Then come back, let me know you're going to play (comment) and sit back and anticipate the arrival of your gift! Remember, only the first three get a gift, so you have to be super fast!This will be fun! I am excited to see what comes out of it ... HURRY, this will be fun! ps. Lori, I haven't forgotten about you. I'm re-posting to see if anyone else out there wants to participate.

Gabe

What a personality. MOST of the time Gabe is happy and busy doing goofy things. But, with no notice he can throw a tantrum that doesn't make any sense. It can be so frustrating. I love the kid to pieces. His face just says it all.

Yesterday I had to take him to the doctor for an ear infection. I was anticipating a horrible experience. When he was about a year old he had his ears cleaned out and since then when a doctor tries to look into his ears, he screams. I was surprised at how well he was this time. When I went to pick him up at my moms, he said: " oh, hi mom - it's time to go to the doctor to fix my ear". He told the receptionist what he was there for and was happy and cooperative the entire time. I almost fell off my chair laughing at the kid during the exam. The doctor felt his abdomen and Gabe said "no my ear"; the doctor listened to his heart and Gabe said " no my ear"; the doctor listened to his lungs and Gabe said "no my ear"; and when the doctor looked at his good ear, Gabe said " no this ear, not this ear, this ear". It was so dang cute and funny. When we left he told everyone the doctor fixed my ear.

Last night we went for a short hike - we went along with Mike to 'feed the bears'. It was incredibly windy, I'm talking up to 50 mph gusts, and a little chilly. Once we got into the trees, it wasn't too bad and we had a good time. This trail isn't too far from the cabin, so we stopped on by. It won't be too long before we can spend the day or weekend there. We pulled off the road and walked into the cabin. For now, there's still too much snow making it too difficult to get to the outhouse for necessary business. So far, no break-ins.

Waiting in Anticipation

12 weeks is sure taking it's sweet time. It's been nearly four weeks since we went to see the Bowyer in Rupert and placed our order. For what? Long bows. Mike and I both ordered custom long bows and I am eager to get mine. Unfortunately. it takes time to make them, especially since so many others are ahead of us on the list. Nonetheless I can't wait for it to be finished. The woods I chose are Osage for limb lamination and Paduak for my riser. The acrylic on my limbs will be clear so you can see the wood grain. I'm hoping it will be as pretty as I picture in my mind.

OSAGE Comes from all over the Southern U.S. Has many local names such as "bodart," "bodark," "hedge," "hedge apple," "horse apple," "bois de arc", and probably others I've never heard of! Very hard and heavy wood that has been used forever in selfbows. Color varies from bright yellow to deep orange, tends to darken with age.

PADUAK Comes from West Africa. Bright orange-red, often with dark stripes.

Madi

I'm not quite sure why, but Madi's memory always takes me by surprise.

Yesterday she asks if we can go to one my friends house that has the scary swings. She wanted to try them out again and thought that since now she was bigger, the swings wouldn't be as scary. It took me a while to catch on. I had to ask her questions about the house she was remembering, because of course I had no idea what she was talking about. I asked her how many kids my friend had and what the kids names were. A year ago my friend Sherelle took Madi and Gabe's pictures. Madi remembered the swings and the beautiful tulip garden and their grandma's house. I couldn't believe the details she had remembered, she is amazing.

Madi and Gabe both like tomato soup as long as you have a plate of cubed cheese for them to add on their own. They eat about half cheese and half soup, but it's quick and easy.