Forget Christmas in July

There is one season that is more anticipated than Christmas in our home by fur child and human alike. That season is bird season.  It's a season we know is coming from the weather change and naughty dogs' behavior.

I don't know who gave our Labs a calendar, but these two know when it's coming. They run to the garage every time Mike and I go somewhere because they are afraid they are going to get left behind.  They also start sleeping less and bouncing off walls more.  They run laps in the backyard and stare at every bird noise they here.

This madness started 8 years ago when Mike and I were still living in California. We had come to Utah to visit family just before the Holidays. There was a day during our vacation where Mike took me to see the Great Salt Lake.

It was there that I saw them:  three men and two pre-teen boys climbing into an aluminum boat covered in reeds, pulling two dogs in with them. It was snowing rather hard when they shoved off onto that cold lake.

I watched in awe as this group of men headed on to that cold lake covered in camo and that smile that was plastered on each mans face.  This, I wanted to do this.  I wanted to feel what they felt heading out on to that lake ready for the day and what was in store.

I know now Mike thought I was insane.  Infact he told me so, but I could not be deterred. I wanted this.

Fast forward to the present, we now have 2 amazing hunting dogs (yes a his and a hers) who we love dearly and wouldn't dream of any other hunting companions.  We are now those people that wake up before the sun and head to the freezing lake.

I love those mornings, when it's Mike and I (with Max and Bella) sitting in the reeds, watching the sun rise, and feeling the chill in the air as we silently wait to hear the flapping of wings and the unmistakable quack of tonight's dinner.