Home or the range? That was the question at about 7:30 AM this Saturday morning.
I actually left my child to go to the shooting range this past Saturday. Well, I left two of them at home and took one with me. It was no problem leaving the 12 year old boy with grandma… but the 4 month old was another story. My stomach was in knots. I haven’t been away from him for more than 30 minutes since he’s been born… especially since I’m breastfeeding. I just knew he would wake up the second we drove out of the driveway.
And he did. So grandma said.
You see, Kaden and Daddy got to go last weekend to the range by themselves. It was only fair that Morgan and I got to go this time. We got up really early and tried to be as quiet as we could, so as not to wake the little bumblebee sleeping on mommy’s side of the bed. He was totally unaware that his milk supply was slipping out the garage door.
Morgan was afraid to pick the gun up at first.
So Daddy gave us a quick gun safety lesson. And some nifty ear muffs and safety goggles. Morgan rented shades, so she looked cool.
I didn’t. Which is why you won’t see my picture in this post. And because Daddy took a shot of ME shooting from behind. I swear my butt must have been photoshopped in, because it looked a lot larger than it could be in real life. I told him to delete his pictures and keep his day job. Or else.
After the first shot, Morgan fired a few more times on the 9 millimeter. Then she decided it had too much kick for her. Hey – she’s only 10. Give her a break. My arms got kind-of tired after a while, too.
A nice feller shooting next to us offered to let her borrow his 22 target practice pistol. Both of us shot that one off a few times and liked it much better. It might be a sissy gun, but I’m sure a 22 would still give a robber something to think twice about. I know Morgan’s orange man was definitely dead when she was done with him.
One of the owners of the shooting range asked her, “What did that orange man ever do to you?”
While we were there grandma called twice to let us know that Baby K had figured out we were gone. More specifically that MOMMY was gone. We stayed only an hour, because we had to get home to the little critter.
Even if it was short, we had fun doing something with Daddy. I’m looking forward to having it as one of our extra curricular activities this year. I’m excited that it will be a ‘class’ that Dad will be teaching. I’m also planning to do a little extra-curricular class with a different kind of shooting: photography!
Ignore these photos. They were taken with my iPhone. Silly, lazy me. I ran off and forgot the Canon again.
Morgan was thrilled to show her brother the targets we brought home from the range. Even girls can shoot! He was impressed. Well – the big brother was impressed.
The little brother, not so much. Maybe he’ll come around when he gets a little older. For now he’s only interested in his milk.
(By the way, don’t tell my mother I posted this picture of her. She’ll kill me.)
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My Boaz's Ruth says
Yay. You took Morgan, not the baby. I was a bit concerned when you said you went with one child!
KarenW says
How fun! John took all of us out shooting last fall. Holly couldn't pull the trigger. She was too scared. Oh well, I'm sure we'll go again. Congratulations to Morgan. Great job!!
you gotta wonder says
We've recently added "shooting a firearm" into the list of family activities. We go to the indoor range, though. I'm curious which outdoor range you're using.
I think it is a great experience for the kids. My 15YO has come a long way.
SuperAngel says
cool! I bet Morgan had a great time!
Lookie! it's Chickie! give her a hug from me! Sure miss y'all!
🙂
rural momma says
My kids love to shoot and fortunatly for us, we can do so in our backyard. I think that teaching kids about guns, safety, and how to shoot is important. Guns are not bad, its some of the people that use them.
Anonymous says
Wow, why would your mother kill you for posting that picture? She looks so young – like she could be the baby's mother!
Robin says
All photos of mommies from behind appear much larger than they are. It is a fact (w/o Photoshop).
Sunny says
Your family is beautiful. I just passed the Hunter's Ed class along with my two kids. We need to go target practicing now.
Nikowa@KHA says
That is SO cool! I wish I'd grown up around guns. I'm hyperventilation-ready afraid.
Rusty says
Good job. For various reasons, I just got seriously into shooting this year. My oldest daughter likes shooting a bb gun and she shot a 22 rifle while on vacation last year. I've got a .40 Glock, which is too much for her to try, so I might end up getting either a 22 rifle or pistol for her to learn on. For a beginner, it would probably be safer to start out on the rifle.
Bob Durtschi says
To get a woman's perspective you might want to vist "The Cornered Cat" http://corneredcat.com/ by Kathy Jackson.
She has a lot of good information about
Firearms Safety
Kids and Guns
Choosing Firearms
Gun Care
The Shooting Basics
Teaching Others
Mindset
Legal Concerns
Ethical Questions
Social Considerations
Practical Issues
and more
Bob