GW is a very good friend of mine and one the best hunters and callers I know. We have hunted together for almost 10 years now. So it is very personally satisfying and unbelievable at the same time that things would come together in such a fashion.
I will let him tell the rest
I bought a ring and was planning on proposing some time between Thanksgiving and Christmas. However time was flying by and I had not had a chance to ask her yet. My goal was to propose somewhere out in the duck blind( for those of you that don't know she is as avid a duck hunter as I am). On the night prior to our hunt I buried the ring in the inner Velcro pocket of my chest waders. I was doing it the next day for sure. That morning was especially cold (about 17 degrees). Tiff and I were in Eastern Washington hunting it was sunny and gorgeous out. We were half way thru our limit and a flock of about 15 mallards flew in our face...there were two drakes (males for the non hunters) I took one shot and she took one shot, both fell... my dog retrieved her bird and her dog retrieved my bird...My dog Jake had brought her drake to me and I saw it was banned ( to this point Tiff in her 12 years hunting had never shot a banded bird). The first words out of my mouth were nice shoot honey. My knees and hands are now shaking knowing that this is the ideal time to propose. As I walk to the blind I hear Tiff yell out "honey, you got a banded bird!" (again for the non hunters, it's a big deal to get a banded bird about 1 in 400, so you do the math what are the chances of two drakes in one flock ). In all my planning of an ideal proposal it had entered my mind of how awesome it would be to ask on a really special day of hunting even the day she shoot her first band. Did I think it was happening on this particular morning well no but I am the luckiest guy in the world. ..... We walked away with two beautiful banded birds and I couldn't have dreamt of a better way for us to get engaged! So, we are having the two birds mounted with the bands and I've attached the picture that will accompany the mount.
Here's to Duck Hunting!
Jason
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