Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yesterday Shawn and I did what happily married couples should do...spent some quality time together.  HOWEVER, we don't do this like normal people.  We don't go to the movies (its 45 miles to the closest theatre that shows 2 movies at a time), and we don't go out to supper without kiddos (again, 45 miles to the closest place with more then 10 items on the menu).  We have to find stuff to do together, minus children, right around where we live.  Since we live in the middle of nowhere and are highly outnumbered by 4-legged critters, the "what to do" answer is obvious.

We went called coyotes together.  Yep....we went an hunted coyotes.  As Jamie so eloquently put in her recap of their calling contest she entered with her husband yesterday, coyotes are a gigantic pain in the ass for all ranchers.  Nothing cute and cuddly about them.  They may start out that way, but I promise, get a  few calves in your yard and they will be everywhere.  They are scavengers and really don't care of the baby is just born, or even DONE being born, in which case, you lose the baby and the momma.

Yep....its time to shoot.

For the people who are thinking "how can you shoot one...they don't get close enough to bother humans...they are scared" blah blah blah.  Please see this picture:

December 13, 2009 - My house.  Yep, they never go near a house....let alone ON their house.

I have had my own issues with a coyote this year, which thankfully had been taken care of a month ago.  While to some people thought the idea of a coyote pacing me as I ran past the pivot was cute, or him sitting on top of the hay bale supervising was adorable, there comes a point when they have to go.  They are predators, end of story. They eat calves.  We also have a mange issue (which is a skin disease that they have which results in loss of hair) which then means they they freeze, starve and THEN, they really get dangerous.  So yep, Wylie yes, I named him had to go. 

Anyway, I love to shoot stuff so hunting is a new passion of mine.  Going out to call coyotes seemed like a great idea.  Then the following conversation happened a few weeks ago:

Shawn: I'm going to take you out next week sometime and TELL you how its gonna happen when we hunt. 

Me: What do you mean? Hmmm....did he really just say TELL, as in, he might be channeling his inner cave man.......

Shawn: You have do to things right, coyotes are not stupid they can smell you, hear you and see you from far away.  This is going to be alot of work.

Me: What do you mean?  I call, they come, I shoot, they die.  That's how its gonna work, right?

Shawn: No.

Apparently, his main concern was in my inability to be quiet.  Like really quiet.  As in keep-your-mouth-closed-don't-even-breath-if-you-can-help-it quiet.  Hmmm....that part could be a bit challenging because I am really good at talking.  BUT however good at talking I am, I am crazy stubborn and once my wonderful father-in-law also started giving me grief about not being able to be quiet, I knew....it was GAME ON.  I was going to find a way to keep quiet even if it killed me.....I may end up thrashing around on the ground trying to bite my tongue off but I would be quiet while that happened.  No way would I would my husband AND his dad be right....not gonna happen! 

So we went...and yes, I was quiet.  Quiet.  Quiet enough that we were able to call in 3 coyotes and get them within 50 yards of us and they never heard me.  To the stupid smart coyote who got away, it was because he saw us Shawn moving.  I was in high gear frozen statue mode (remember that game....I was a champion frozen statue player, who knew it would serve me so well in my adult years).

Calling was fun.  It is a bit frustrating when they are not following my plan of "I call, they come, I shoot, they die" but when they DO play by the rules, its awesome.  Even just sitting on the side of the hill, with the wind blowing in your face, looking and waiting for a coyote to pop up over a hill or out of a ditch is a rush.  Definitely a new favorite hobby of mine!  I'm sure Shawn will be is thrilled.  We have the SAME HOBBIES.  We can spend quality time together all the time.  Just what great marriages are made of.....total commitment too together-ness.

Wonder if Jamie wants to ditch the boys and go call coyotes??  We will only go places that have service wont get lost....you have an iPhone!!!