My chic lodge (For Larissa)

When I met Tim, I fell hard and fast... in love as well as in to country living!

Well O.K., I did live on a farm for about two years when I was really little, but all I remember about that is a big mean rooster who chased me until my dad butchered him.  As a result, falling in love with a country boy was a big leap of faith.  And it didn't take long for me to figure out that in order to actually spend time with the man of my dreams, I would have to learn to hunt.

My first hunting trip was across his dad's meadow to the huge carpeted and heated deer stand Tim and his dad built. JUST MY STYLE! We tip-toed past the buffalo (yes, buffalo) to the stand and settled in for an exciting deer hunting adventure.
Four hours and a nap later, there were no deer to be seen.
Turns out raising buffalo and keeping deer on your land do not necessarily go hand in hand.  But, I will never forget the feeling of comraderie and adventure sitting in that stand.

Fast forward a few years and even more hours of spotting that hundreth doe, that millionth fawn, and many, many small bucks, and I was beginning to think hunting was for the birds.  Makes a good visual, right?
Until I spotted that first nice buck!  I was in our deer stand behind our house on the river with my husband.  We were whispering (just like those guys on the hunting shows, mind you) and a broad 5 by 5 buck came out of the island on the river.  Holy Buck!!!  I quickly positioned my rifle while my husband whispered orders at me.  "Hold your rifle against your shoulder... aim just behind his front leg... DON'T MISS!!!".

I missed.

"$#@*!"

Are you kidding me?  Years of sitting in those stands while I would rather be shopping and I miss?!?!
My ego was bruised, right along with my shoulder.

Since that fateful day, I have wondered how many high maintenance girls would have just given up and gone back to full time shopping.  I bet quite a few... but not this one!

Fast forward a few more years and I am in the deer stand with my father-in-law.  We aren't in that glorious tree stand of his though because we still have buffalo!  We are in that same stand behind our house where I missed that buck.  So my father-in-law and me are whispering (just like those guys on the hunting shows, mind you) and the morning is slipping away quickly because he is telling me about how screwed up the world is:)  I am just about to throw in the towel, when Mike whispers with great enthusiasm, "BUCK!".  Now how he spotted that buck is beyond me because that 5 by 7 buck was standing perfectly still in tall weeds about 40 yards away.  I can guarantee you that had I been hunting alone that day, I wouldn't have seen him in a million years.  My heart is pounding and visions of missing that first buck are floating through my brain.  I hold my breath, aim my rifle, and "BOOM!".  Oh my gosh!  Did I shoot?  Did Mike shoot?  Where's the deer?!
So I yell, "Did you shoot, MIke?!" 
He said, "No I didn't shoot-you shot!!!" 
"I did?!?!"
"Damn right you did!!!"
"Where is he?!?!"
"He's right there!"
"Is he dead?!"
"Yes!  He's deader than $%!&!"
"Woo Hoo!", I yelled.

WHAT A RUSH!!!  Mike told me later on he thought I might just jump right out of that deer stand.  He also said that had I not shot in a few more seconds, he was going to! 

From that day forward, I was hooked!  I went from High Maintenance Huntress Wanna Be to High Maintenance Huntress!!

I have harvested more bucks, an elk, and a turkey since that day and Tim has harvested many deer, elk, turkey, wild boars, and I could go on and on.  As a result, I have a house that a friend of mine, Larissa Schuele coined, "The Chic Hunting Lodge".  It is a cool mix of hunting trophies and high maintenance decor, if I do say so myself!

Thanks, Larissa, for the blog suggestion, and stay tuned for more hunting adventures!  Trust me, you will not be disappointed!