Sunset in the Swamp

I know that many of my blog entries this time of year involve a firearm. This could give you the impression that I am a hunter. The truth is I am not a member of the NRA, nor am I a very good shot. However, I married a hunter. And not just an average hunter...I married Jon Loye. This is a man who spent most of last summer designing and building the blind you see in the pictures. While average hunters were paging through the Cabela's catalog to pick out a blind; Jon was out in the swamp cutting grass, dragging it home, drying it on our deck, and assembling it into a blind. The average hunter was buying the latest mechanical duck decoys; Jon was spending hours practicing and perfecting his duck call. He is a true hunter and in my opinion, a dying breed. He believes that a good hunter is a conservationist and an environmentalist. He believes the animals should have a fair chance. He hunts on foot and in canoe, rather than on ATVs. He follows the law and curses the hunters who are shooting 5 minutes after sundown. He's a true sportsmen who's taught me everything I know about the sport.

The 3rd generation...we start 'em young at Edward Jones!

Coming up on Dancing With The Stars

Grouse hunting comes to an end

As you can see from the Hunting Tally on the right, Jon and I had a pretty good grouse season. Nothing can beat a walk in the woods with your sweetheart, the best grouse dog around, and the changing leaves. Grouse hunting has become a great way for us to enjoy the Fall together. Thankfully, Jon still takes me along even though I miss most of the birds and have a way of getting overly excited when we jump a bird. Here are some pictures of the weekend up at Jon's cabin near Grand Rapids, Minnesota.

Girl's Weekend 2008

The Hovgaard/Hudson women continued the tradition of girl time while the men in our lives duck hunted. This year we had a new addition to the party - Felicity Grace. She made the weekend so interesting! My back was sore from walking her all over the place. You parents out there might remember the stage where crawling is boring but walking while holding the fingers of some poor bent over adult is lots of fun. We visited the pumpkin patch and the mall. We even successfully had dinner at a restaurant with Felicity. Most of all we enjoyed each-others company and reconnected as family and friends. I look forward to next year.

Inner thoughts

Its been awhile since I've blogged. It seems that there has been a lot going on yet I haven't been in the mood to write. The stock market has been interesting of late. My clients are (rightfully) nervous and the conversations I'm having with them can be emotionally draining. Still, it's in times like these that my advice is so valuable to them and I know that in the long-run all of this will make me a better financial advisor and probably a stronger person as well. Another thing I've been struggling with is an irregular heartbeat that I've had for quite awhile but suddenly it has decided to rear its ugly head on a more regular basis. I'm finally going to be able to see the cardiologist this week. I hope to learn that it is benign and all my worrying has been for nothing. If it turns out to be harmless, then it will mainly be a mental battle to convince myself that nothing dangerous is happening when my heart acts up. I'm confident I can manage it. I look forward to my consultation and getting more definitive answers. A blessing came this weekend when I spontaneous read a book I had heard about called Tree Spirited Woman. It is written by a Minnesota author and was just the sort of medicine I needed. Meanwhile, I've been wishing my life were as simple as Aspen's.