New Traditions...

My sister called the other day and surprised me by asking if I would like to start a new family tradition.  I was all ears.  They wanted to know if we would like to come out for the opening of pheasant season.  Taking the girls pheasant hunting sounded like great fun, so we said yes, packed up the dog and headed across South Dakota.  We were amazed at what a big deal pheasant hunting is at the Eastern end of the state.  We saw thousands of hunters.


We got to their farm close to noon.  The girls had their orange vests and were ready to hunt, so out the door we went. 

The littlest hunter and I followed in the all terrain stroller with the camera.  The girls were so much fun.  They laughed, talked, and we all enjoyed the world around us.   

 Right off of the bat pheasants were all over the place.  Uncle Kelly had a bird down before we knew it.  The girls were so excited.  That is until the bird started flapping around.  That little crowd dispersed quickly.   We got everything back under control and took the prize photo of the hunting party and their quarry.

After a lot of hiking and no more
birds, we headed back to the house for a wonderful meal.  My sister is an awesome cook.  Their house is filled with laughter. 

We headed out again for another round of hunting.  It was a little cooler out so the girls wore their special hunting hats.

The baby had to stay home.  Maybe next year she will be ready to come along.  She wasn't too upset.  With three sisters any alone time with Mom is pretty special. 

The next day Tyler came along.  We drove around and found lots of great hunting areas.  While the guys waited, the girls, Ella, and I bird dogged the thick areas looking for more birds.  There were no more pheasants, but these two little birds kept things lively.

 

 

The girls were great hunting partners.  Even without any birds they made the hunt exciting and an adventure.  

Sunday night the sun set on a new tradition.  One filled with hunting, eating, some rousing games of Uno, balloon volleyball, horseback riding, chores, and laughter.  Lots of laughter.  It was a great time.  The girls enjoyed their first pheasant hunt and couldn't wait to take the tail feathers to show and tell.  It was great having some time with my sister and her family.  They were great hosts and such a fun loving group.  It was a wonderful start to a family tradition.