The 4th of July was a sunny and warm day so Dad, Hubby and I headed into the woods at 7am to paint T3 and beat the heat.  We carried down paint, ladders, rollers, another trail camera and some rags.  I was excited to see what deer sign were around since this is the same spot that I shot my deer last year.

We needed a weed-wacker to blaze trail! I was so happy that I was dressed the way that I was: jeans, rubber boots, sweatshirt… and enough deet to (hopefully) kill all bugs that came in contact with me.

I snapped a few before shots and then grabbed a gallon of paint and climbed the ladder.  My job was to paint as much of the outside as I could reach then paint the inside – specifically what the rain may hit – and then paint the outside and my sunporch.  I also needed to make sure that I did not paint myself into a corner or miss one spot that only I could have reached.  Luckily, I had had my strong coffee!

Before the paint job

Hubby helping to nail on a couple more braces

As I painted, I envisioned deer walking by or watching us.  I thought about which lane I would want to shoot a deer from and how things looked from a spot where I would be sitting.  I also realized that there will be a lot more opportunities to see the deer walking by and that I would need to up my game and my attention to movement.  In my treeseat, there were limited spots where deer would be seen and I did not have to move too much to keep track of them.  Now, there are about 7 different possible points where I could see movement.  I am not good shooting quickly; if there is a deer walking through, I will need to see him crossing one opening and be ready when he walks into the second.  I can not (currently) see him in one shooting lane and make a shot almost instantly.  Dad can.  I can not.

But, I have until October 31 to get mentally prepared!

T3 stained and ready to go

T3 blending into its surroundings.