vHUNTING continued from page 16 Lexi shared her recent hunting experience with me. “At first, I had my target on a different doe. I was in position and Mom had the binoculars and told me that there’s a bigger doe near.” Lexi had to move to another spot in the blind to get sighted in on the larger doe. “That deer started sniffing around the area a little,” Lexi continued, “and then, she made the perfect pose, and KABOOM!” Lexi said with a beaming smile. She laughed and said, “I was just shaking so much. But I think Mom was shaking more.” We all laughed and Cheri said that one of the most fun things about deer hunting is seeing the look on Lexi’s face. Though the family also gets together for camping, mushroom hunting and family vacations, they anticipate most the upcoming year of deer hunting. Charlotte explained that she’s always anxious to get started when the season begins. “It’s fun to see who gets the first deer. You hear shots all over, but you end up being wrong when you guess who got one,” she explained. Many of them said it’s the camaraderie that they look forward to, spending time with the family and making memories. Even the youngest enjoy just getting together, as Lexi commented. Charlotte laughed as she said, “If you don’t have fun it’s your own fault.” Some of them see the hunting excursions as a way to de-stress, an opportunity to get away from work, phones and technology and enjoy some of nature’s peacefulness. A light-hearted crew, they often play tricks on each other, sometimes putting frightening Halloween masks inside each other’s deer stands to be discovered during the early morning v hours. They laughed as they told me stories about what happens when you get caught sleeping in your deer stand, like getting teased the following year with your face plastered on a t-shirt. Everyone admits to falling asleep in their stands, except Charlotte and Lexi. Perhaps they just haven’t been caught yet? The ladies at the table said that their deer hunts have become so much of a family event that if you miss it you almost regret it. If you miss a hunt, your regular spot at the dinner table might be replaced with a mop head dressed in clothing in your place. As I look around to the see several clusters gathered together and laughing, it’s no doubt that one wouldn’t want to miss a family get-together. At the time of writing this article, Charlotte, Keely, Lexi, Sharon and Cheri have gotten their deer so far. Though several of them are still searching for their perfect trophy deer during this year’s nine-day deer season, these lucky five are already singing the Pinkleman theme song Lexi invented. Little Lexi, several years ago when she was barely able to talk, stood on the back of the tailgate and loudly sang “Got a deer, got a deeeeeeere,” whenever someone brought home their trophy that season. The song stuck and became a tradition. With a tradition twenty years strong, the Pinkleman family shows no sign of slowing down. As soon as this family gets done sharing experiences and stories after deer season this year, they’ll already be planning their next adventure, and I can already tell it will be a blast. vBy Julie Eickhoff HERVOICEvJANUARY/FEBRUARY 2016v17 v v