September 12th, 2008
By Arthur

36 days and counting.   That is how many days we have left until our due date.  I can’t believe that so much time has went by already.  It seems like just yesterday that my wife was waking me up, at all hours of the morning, to tell me the news.  Time sure does fly by fast.

We have attended two of our baby classes.  They have been pretty informative, and also a little slow at times.  I can’t say that I haven’t learned anything though, because I have, but they just tend to drag on a bit and repeat the same things over and over and over.  We only have two more left, and I honestly think those are going to be beneficial.  The one next week we get to take a tour of the hospital, and the week after that is about how to take care of the newborn.  They should be interesting.

We are also at the point where doctor’s visits happen every two weeks.  We have another one next Thursday, and then pretty soon, the visits will be once a week.  I’m happy to report that everything is just as it should be up to this point.  Mom is in good shape, and the baby is in excellent condition as well.

The wife has been a bit uncomfortable as of late.  She isn’t sleeping well, and normal everyday tasks are becoming harder and harder.  I’m sure she is ready for little Abby to be out at this point.  I’m ready for her to arrive as well.

I have been cleaning the house like a mad man.  I know that nesting happens to women, but all of a sudden this last week I have had a crazy urge to clean things.  It isn’t too unusual for me, because I have some slight OCD anyway, but I don’t usually feel a need to straighten or clean like I have been lately.  The bonus of that, though, is that the house looks great.  The baby room is almost complete as well.  Actually, it is complete, but we still want to finish some decorating before we take pictures.  I will share those when it is done.

The other thing we have been doing is contemplating the spelling of Abigail’s name.  We aren’t sure if we want the shortened version to be Abby, or Abbey, or Abbie.  I’m sure we’ll figure that out before she gets here, but for now it is still in committee.

We are definitely in the home stretch of the this baby thing, and the wife and I can not wait for the little one to arrive.  We are excited, happy, scared, and absolutely terrified all at the same time.  It is going to be great though, and we are looking forward to meeting our little Abigail.

Popularity: 14% [?]

September 02nd, 2008
By Arthur

It’s September already.  Fall is just around the corner.   And our early doe season is only a few weeks away.  The bow opener will be here in just 29 days, and little Abigail’s due date is just a few weeks after that.

Where has all the time gone?

Jeff and I have an archery competition this weekend to attend, and the wife has a baby shower.  Jeff and I will be flinging arrows-hoping not to smash them into cinder blocks-and the wife will be opening baby presents.

It is definitely starting to feel like fall in the early morning, and also late at night.  And before I know it it will be time to rake leaves.  Of course those will take a back seat to little Abby and time in my treestand.

I love this time of year, and hopefully my work this week isn’t as bad as I think it is going to be.  Maybe then I can actually put a few more posts together–posts that are a little more structured then this random post.

I am so ready for this Fall.  A ton of exciting stuff is just on the horizon.

Popularity: 14% [?]

August 29th, 2008
By Arthur

Since it is the Friday before the last major holiday of the summer, I figured I would take this time to share a few family things that are going on.  I usually don’t go to in-depth, when it comes to family issues, but these are just too good not to share.

First, is a little baby update.  The wife is just now starting to become slightly uncomfortable.  Her feet are bigger than my sasquatch feet, and you can’t tell where her ankles end and her feet begin.  And before all of you leave comments telling me how cruel I am, just know that we pick on each other all the time, and she isn’t going to be mad about what I just said.

Starting next week we have to do the doctor visits every two weeks.  I can’t believe it is so close already.  But I guess the middle of October isn’t that far away.  We also start our Baby Classes next week as well.  To be honest, I’m not really looking forward to those, but I will be a trooper and do my part.

Other than that everything is going just fine.  Everything is how it is suppose to be and we are looking forward to our new arrival.  We have also decided on a name:  Abigail Michelle.  Just don’t buy anything with that name on it quite yet…..but we can!

The other family thing I wanted to touch on involves a move.  My Aunt, Uncle, Cousin, and his family are all moving back to Michigan this weekend.  We are all looking forward to having them around again, and of course them being up here means that they will get to enjoy Michigan’s great outdoors once again.  They have been gone for quite a few years, so all of us being able to enjoy the outdoors together again, is going to be great.  Sure, they have to leave South Carolina in order to move back up here, but I say that is a small price to pay (no offense Jeff, but Michigan is, and has always been, our home).

Lets just hope that one of them gets a chance to kill a monster buck before Jeff does.

That is pretty much it for family updates.  I hope everyone has a great holiday weekend.

Popularity: 20% [?]

August 15th, 2008
By Arthur

At what age should a child be allowed to hunt?

I know this topic has been covered on multiple blogs ( Kristine’s, NorCal’s, and Terry’s) , as well as by many news organizations in the past week.  All of this coverage, of course, comes from the accidental shooting of a hiker by a 14 yr old boy north of Seattle, Washington on Aug. 2nd.

To be honest, at first I was just going to let this topic go.  I had seen it covered on many different sites, as well as by many different bloggers, and rather than write about it for the 20th time, I thought I would just leave some of my thoughts in the comments sections of these blogs, and move on.  But then I was reading an article over at MSNBC and one of the quotes in the article struck a nerve.  The article overall was pretty fair and balanced-I was honestly surprised by that-but one of the quotes in article really got me.  This quote is from a Mr. Frank Hebert, who had an encounter with someone shooting a rifle while hiking, about a year prior, in the same area where the accidental shooting took place.  Mr. Hebert had this to say, while talking about his encounter last year, and the incident that happened a few weeks back.

The 14-year-old who shot Almli was an experienced hunter who had taken a safety class but still fired his gun when he shouldn’t have, he said.

I can honestly see some truth to this statement, because I definitely agree that the 14 yr. old should not have fired his weapon.  That is pretty obvious, but what bothers me about this statement is the fact that Mr. Hebert would classify any 14 yr. old as “experienced” at anything.

While I believe this story is a complete tragedy, and my heart goes out to the families involved, I would hate to see a knee-jerk reaction based on such things as considering a 14 yr. old kid to be “experienced”.  We have a tendency in this country to react immediately, with legislation and other things, to isolated incidents.

Did the kid make a horrifying mistake?  Sure he did.  Did he not act with sound judgement?  Of course, I think that is obvious.  Do I think their should have been adult supervision?  Yes.  Could an adult have made the same mistake?  Of course they could have.  It has already happened before, and that is my point.  This isn’t just related to kids in the outdoors.  This particular thing could have happened just as easily to an adult.

I just hope, that with all the progress that has been made in the last year-i.e. lowering age limits, enacting apprenticeship programs, etc.-in order to get kids in the outdoors, that such an isolated incident as this doesn’t reverse the positive steps we have made.

I hope that people approach this issue with some common sense, and weigh all the reasons why this particular event took place, before making a decision based just on age.  Anyone could have made this mistake, and while I do think that adult supervision should be required under a certain age, I hope that all under-aged kids who hunt are not condemned, or prevented from having an opportunity to hunt, because of one child’s mistake.

Popularity: 18% [?]

August 14th, 2008
By Arthur

That is probably the most important outdoor intention that I have-to raise my kids in the outdoors. To raise them to appreciate nature, and the beauty of the earth that surrounds them.

It has honestly been my dream for awhile to have my own kids, and be able to share my love of the outdoors with them. I plan on showing them everything I possibly can about the natural world. While hunting and fishing will take a precedence, I also plan on showing them the outdoors by camping, biking, and doing a host of other outdoor activities. As hard as it is to believe, there are other things to do outside besides hunt and fish.

My kids will start early with these activities. I have already looked into finding a backpack that our soon-to-arrive daughter can fit in for some of our outdoor excursions-whether it be scouting for deer, or a simple hike through a nature trail. I think the earlier I can start them off in the outdoors, the better individuals they will become. I think having a love of nature, and being aware of your natural surroundings, can have a deep impact on the soul. I want my kids to be able to experience that, and take it with them into their adult life.

I also think, by introducing them to the outdoors from an early age, that they can learn many life lessons. I can’t think of a better way to teach them patience, discipline, and respect for life and death. Hunting and fishing will definitely teach them those lessons. I think, with them having that immediate connection to nature, that it will teach them to be a positive member of society. It will teach them to appreciate what they have-to appreciate life and everything that comes with it.

While I realize that they may grow up and go a slightly different path then what I’ve put before them, I believe that having them involved with the outside world at an early point in life, will provide them with the necessary tools, self confidence, and respect, that they will need for whatever path they decide to travel down. I hope it includes hunting and fishing, but if it doesn’t, I’m sure that the outdoor experiences they had as a child will help them well into their adult life.

My kids will definitely be raised in the outdoors, and for that I am not ashamed. An outdoor intention that I am sure will be followed through. And I can’t wait for that day to come.

Popularity: 25% [?]