Goose Hunting.... and a little Brock

I wanted to start this post with a little happier topic than the killing of innocent geese.... so some pictures of Brock! Brock and I went to Bellevue Square last week to pick up our holiday portraits and do some final shopping. The mall has a children's play area on the third floor that we have never ventured up to before... until now! Pretty soon Brock will be out there running or climbing on all of the things like the other kids, but he was very content with watching them and crawling around. Two little girls came over and asked "Is he a baby?" and "What's his name?"... so he's getting the older women hitting on him now. :)

But he was very content to play with the things that spun on the wall instead of climbing through the tunnels. 

When Brent did return from his goose hunting, Brock cozied up on his lap for his last bottle of the night. :) 

"I'll just put my feet up here and use you as a leg rest, Dad!"

And now on to the killing of numerous Branta canadensis.... Canadian geese to you and me. So again, if killing animals makes you squirmish.... stop reading now. 

Brent woke up at 2am Saturday morning to drive out to the same area he hunted ducks. This time he went with his boss Bill! So yay, he was able to have some male-bonding over shooting things. They had to be out there way early to set up over 100 decoys in the field and then hunker down in the pit - a hole in the ground with wooden doors that they open to ambush the geese. The guide explained to them they have to start shooting them when they're on the ground and not in the air, otherwise the geese will remember where they were and not return. Interesting that their memory is better in the air. (So they're really shooting at them when they start to fly away)

Brent and Bill waiting in the pit

 And here you have their haul - three ducks and fifteen geese between them.

Brent loved it. He wants to go back after the new year. Oh, and we're having goose for dinner tonight.... I'll let you know how that goes.