You are never going to believe this!

Oh yeah - that's my girl!  The kids had the privilege to hunt at the Double A Ranch owned by the Archer family down in Uvalde this past week. What an amazing experience!  The facilities are gorgeous and the Archer family, their ranch management team and Jason and Jessica Reeves made this an experience we will always remember.

Our trip in pictures:

As soon as we arrived, the kids hit the target range to make sure the guns were sighted in.

Amanda sighted in and after a few practice shots, walked away with a bulls eye.

Brandon was right on, which is pretty typical for him. :)

This boy ain't afraid to wear pink ear muffs...

The safari truck is how we began the hunt and we were hunting axis deer.  So much fun!!

First on the truck waiting for everyone else to load.  She was ready to go hunt!

It was cold riding up on top with the wind blowing, so we were bundled while the truck moved.  You can't hesitate when trying to shoot axis deer - it required a quick aim and a quick shot.  During all the trips, we only had one decent shot and it was at about 300 yards.

We came up on a herd of axis but they ran off into the bush....

...so Jessica and Amanda tried to stalk them...unfortunately the deer were too quick.

The plan for our trip was to hunt axis and white tail deer.  There was a specific nine point buck that they wanted Amanda to shoot.  After two safari style hunts on Thursday looking for the oh-so-elusive axis deer, we were preparing to head to the deer stands that evening.  As we turned the corner in truck, we came upon this big boy:

He was not at all bothered by us watching him. This was not the nine point we were after, but rather a ten point that typically hung out with him.  While we were stopped watching him, Brad and Nicole Archer pulled up next to us, and with their permission, Amanda took aim and shot him. 

Amanda gave Brad a big hug for letting her shoot that deer! 

I think, if possible, we were all just as excited, if not more excited, than Amanda was!

Can you find the buck?

A bird's eye view as we kept an eye on where the buck went.  He didn't run far.

Brandon was very proud of Amanda and this deer. 

 Amanda, Jessica and Jason - who is more excited?

 At this point, Brandon was going to try to shoot that nine point, so Jessica, Brandon and I headed to the stand while everyone else made their way back to the barn to take care of Amanda's buck.  As we sat and waited, aside from a great time to visit and fellowship, we had plenty to keep us from getting bored:

It's been a long time since I have seen a covey of quail!

As the sun set and the moon rose high above the ranch, we left the stand without a deer, but we knew we had one more chance in the morning.  They never saw the nine point buck, but Brandon shot a doe.

My Grace Academy peeps should appreciate this picture.  Thursday night was Crazy Hat night! 

After an amazing dinner of home made gumbo, we ended the day with a campfire, laughter and riddles.  It was a relaxing, humorous and unforgettable way to close out the day.

This is known as the Lodge.  It has a meeting room along with several 'hotel style' rooms, all with their own theme.

Amanda was allowed to choose which room we would stay in....

....and she went with the room that smelled like cedar and had a hunting theme!  Surprised me!

This beautiful home burned down in the forties and when the Archers bought the land, all that was left standing was the outside concrete walls.  Over a three year period, the Archers patiently and painstakingly remodeled the home into a beautiful tribute to the past.

Day two was Valentines Day so we all wore red shirts while we hunted.  Breakfast was heart shaped waffles and fresh fruit.

I got kicked out of the top bench once Jason and Jessica's friends arrived.  For some reason, Megan and Collin, who both help Jessica and Jason with their TPW youth hunts, are much more fun than Mom.  (And they don't have a camera!)

But I still got my pictures!

I'd like to introduce you to the camp buck.  He acts like he doesn't have a care in the world and is very comfortable just hanging around the buildings. 

The turkeys also enjoyed hanging around as well!

The newest addition to our Team Watson family, Allyn and Susan Archer....

.....and Jason and Jessica Reeves. 

People come into your lives for a reason.  The weekend was full of fellowship, sharing and encouragement.  Jason was our main contact in the scheduling and planning of this past weekend.  As we have spoken over the past few weeks, even months, a connection was made between our families and after a fabulous weekend together, we look forward to our next meeting.

The people we have had the privilege to meet and spend time with over this last year has molded and shaped our journey in a way that only God could be in control of.   While Amanda shot an amazing buck, Brandon a doe and we had a blast at attempting to hunt axis deer, this trip was so much more than just a hunting trip.  We made new friendships and beautiful memories, and for that, we are thankful.

James 1:17
 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.