I think I want to be a taxidermist.

"I think I wanna be a taxidermist."

Once Lance gets an idea in his head, he's obsessed! The Rookie, as you so affectionally know him, has an undeniable talent for making every new hobby sound like the best money making scheme of the century. We've went through raising homing pigeons, wood carving, building benches, making signs, making pine tar, starting fires, studying edible plants, you name it- he's probably gotten into it at one point or another. Every time he began with something new, similar words left his lips.

   While each endeavor he embarked on did not make us millionaires, it certainly brought us together closer. I may have never held a pigeon in my hands or helped design a bench on my own but I am thankful to be apart of this interesting life we have together and to share every experience we have shared. In any case, as it turns out, he was not far off. I knew the next few days were going to be interesting. He received help from a couple taxidermists within the area who were kind enough to show him pointers or give advice. I'm sure you are not surprised with how difficult it was to find someone to help, taxidermy is an incredibly secretive industry. But with that advice and countless amount of hours of independent research he produced his first mount, Teena, a beaver followed by his second, an otter, Sir Bobby Charles.

  It wasn't until later we learned that you couldn't actually sell mounts in Louisiana. You can only provide the service to mount the hide, not actually sell it. After having invested the little bit of money we did have into these two mounts, we were slightly discouraged.  It was then that one of the taxidermist suggested he learn how to tan the hides and do euro mounts, as it was quicker and more profitable. However it was riskier. But, with great risk comes great reward as they say. Thus began the journey of paying trappers and butchers for spare animal parts that we could practice on.

  There's nothing quite like the smell of maceration in the morning as I tried to drink my coffee on the porch reminding myself, this one will make us money or the endless days of sweeping up fine coarse salt from my husbands shoes or multiple sets of little feet that followed those boots, back in and out of the house. Nothing says bonding quite like freezing in a slicker suit while pressure washing the flesh off of hides in the middle of a very humid Louisiana winter, while your husband splits and turns right along side you. Then, again, nothing says "grateful" like the feeling you get when your first cow hide pays for Christmas on a particularly financially rough year (thanks Darla!).

  It was August of 2019, after we had our fourth son, that we decided to create an LLC with a bonus check he made from his chip vending job. He quit his job about a year later, allowing us to make twice what he made as a vendor. Then about a year after that he started giving private lessons. Well that's our story, four years and another kid later, and I can count on one hand how many times lance has taken a sick day. Grateful he stopped doing euro mounts though!