Hunting for Thanksgiving

By Jason

This was such a memorable Thanksgiving. First of all, I have to give thanks to the Gordon family for inviting us to spend the holiday with them. They have land just south of Sterling City, TX where they have a cabin and lots of deer. The Gordon's were so generous to invite us and let us spend several days with them. They have given my family and me so much to be thanksful for. Jeff invited me out several years ago where I was able to shoot my first deer. Now, Braden has been able to shoot his first deer there, too. In fact, he shot it out of the same deer stand where I got my first several years ago. I even took Landry out one evening. She got bored fairly quick, though.

For our Thanksgiving meal, we had steak and baked potatoes. Don't get me wrong, I like turkey and dressing, but steak and potatoes it's not. Other than hunting, we enjoyed great food, fellowship, and fun. Jeff has a Jeep and we rode all over the place. Tripp absolutely loved riding in the Jeep. That was all he wanted to do. We played Farkle, 42, and drank coffee by the fire. Jen and I spent a beautiful evening together Wednesday night looking at the stars under a blanket. There were many shooting stars that were big and bright, deep in the heart of Texas. Tripp came out, of course, and we told him to look at the stars. He quickly asked if Jesus turned them all on. How cool is that? Anyway, there was no television or computer, and phone service was spotty, at best. We loved being unplugged for a few days. It was good for the heart, soul, family, and friendships.

This was Braden's first attempt at a deer, but with his small caliber rifle and buck fever, he only clipped him. I guess I figured that might happen and I was ready. So technically, this is my deer, but we're sharing the credit.

This is Braden's first official deer. It took two shots, but Braden took him down. It was so cold that morning and we had to wipe the frost off the glass just to see. We both thought it was worth it, though. I can't tell you how excited I was to be with my son when he shot his first deer.

Before Braden shot his first deer, he shot his first Javalina. There was a group of four that came into the feeder we were watching and they ran off the deer. We took 'em out. Braden made a great shot on a piglet and we really hooted and hollered over this hunt. Totally unexpected. This really boosted his confidence.

Here we are in the Jeep. Little man Tripp is in the front with me all bundled up in his yellow coat. He wants us to get a Jeep.