Tree video

This is a video from a recent deer hunt Dave went on with Brad. Don't worry Jen...nothing dies.

Recent Photos

We finally got a good amount of snow and were able to get out and have some fun with it. Along with the fun comes work. The driveway needed a serious overhaul last night. As you can see, Emily does all the work and I just try to look busy with a shovel in my hand. The other photo is of Heather, Adam, and Brad's birthday celebration. We played games and ate cheesecake. Did you know one piece of Dulce de leche cheesecake has over 1100 calories? Seriously!!!

Thanksgiving Holiday Activities

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! We spent the holiday with friends. Emily made two pies; sour cream apple and pumpkin and I made deviled eggs. There was plenty of food to go around. The turkey was a little "well-done" for various reasons. Did you know peanut oil can reach temperatures above 500 degrees in less that five minutes? Most of the turkey was actually pretty good and so was the company.

We spent the other part of the long weekend just mooching around and building our gingerbread house. We were extremely pleased with how the project turned out.

Thursday Night Drive-in

Thursday night was our drive-in Primary activity. The kids all made cars for the activity and parked in the gym while a video (Meet the Robinsons) played on the big screen. The gym was taped up to look like a parking lot and we served hot dogs and carrots (two of the biggest choking hazards for kids) and later we gave them popcorn and candy (two of the best health foods). Although we didn't actually sit in our police car, it got some use and abuse and was thrashed by the end of the night.

Fifteen and one

It was a 15 duck day. It seems strange to be disappointed, and yet we were. Chad and I have become accustomed to getting 20 ducks almost every time we go out. The day wasn't a success until we came across a nice fat grouse on the way back. My apologies to Jen for subjecting her to yet another photo of a dead bird. This is the last one of the season I promise. -Dave

Harlequin madness

These are the new ticket out at scoter point. These old mallard decoys have been painted to resemble scoters (and perhaps harlequin) and will hopefully be the key to lock up flock after flock of ducks.

Foggy Morning...

Below are a few photos Dave took at the harbor on his way to work. The harbor looks really neat when the fog sets in around all of the boats.

SNOW!!!

Snow has finally decided to fall on rainy Juneau. We'll take snow over rain any day! Dave was able to get out and enjoy some of the fluffy white stuff while working. Below are a few photos of eagles that were perched near the Mendenhall Glacier Visitors Center where he was working this morning.

Duck Soup

Duck soup, duck stew, duck salad, duck kabobs, fried duck, smoked duck, duck sauce, duck muffins, duck cookies, duck cake, candied duck etc. This is our menu for about the month or so. Emily and I went out hunting with Chad today and boy did we nail 'em. We got 20 ducks. If you look closely, you'll only see 19 ducks. Why? It seems as though the eagles are hungrier than we are this time of year. The last duck was snatched by an eagle right off the water! It was awesome!

We arrived a little early. As you can see, the tide has not exposed the point yet.
Once the point was exposed, we could get into shooting range of all the flying ducks.

Emily even took a few cracks at it. Seems as though we should practice shooting trap........
Our success at the end of the day!

Happy Halloween!

Attention: The following photos should be viewed with caution as they may be scary and creepy to some small children and infants (Jack). These are photos from our most recent Family Home Evening activity: pumpkin carving! Without any bias, please cast your vote on which pumpkin you like better. There just happens to be a hot fudge sundae riding on it. PS Vote for Dave....

Another Duck Day

Today was a good day on the water. It was a -4.3 tide and the ducks were really flying. Chad and I got 13 ducks in an hour. Our shooting wasn't bad either.

Boston Caramel Apples

This is what people without kids do on Saturday nights. They watch Red Sox games and make caramel apples. Take special note of Emily's new haircut. Cute eh?

Columbus Discovers America

It's a good thing Columbus discovered America (even though he didn't really discover it) because it is a federal holiday which allows federal employees, such as myself, to go goat hunting rather than work. Emily was not as lucky since the state does not recognize a holiday to celebrate Columbus' achievement.

It was a long hike up to this new spot on Monday but the view was spectacular at the top and we couldn't have picked a better day for a hike. However, there wasn't a living thing anywhere near the top because the snow level is down around 2500 feet already. Looks like the high-country goat season is all but over.

Ducks

It's not unheard of to shoot two boxes of shells in a couple hours. Today was a little slow but Chad and I did have one small group of surf scoters come close to the point and we got a couple; a drake and a hen. The drakes have interesting beak coloration. We are somewhat limited on when we can hunt as the point is only exposed during a low tide.