A Fun Purchase!

"Never spend your money before you have it."- Thomas Jefferson

We've been carefully saving our nickels, dimes, birthday money, and Christmas cash,  for months and months and we finally had enough money to make our big purchase!

This weekend we bought a brand new shotgun!!!!

It's a Semi-automatic 12 Gauge Remington 1100 Sporting Shotgun with a 28" barrel and an interchangeable choke. We can't wait to use it!

The wood on the stock is gorgeous!

I think that working hard to save up money for things makes you appreciate them more.

For quite some time, we've wanted to get a shotgun of good quality that could be passed down to our kids or grand-kids one day, and  we did a lot of research before making our purchase. There are many newer models out there, and we considered many other brands, but in the end, we decided to stick with a classic gun that has a history of great performance.

My Grandpa bought his 1100 in 1965 when they were still new on the market. He traded a pistol for his shotgun, and he still has it to this day.

My dad has owned a Remington 1100 since 1969, and he bought it new for $165.00.  Wow! Times have changed! For the last 43 years it has just been a great all-around shotgun for him. When he was 15 years old he worked at the local Rod and Gun Club, and Remington supplied several 1100's  for them to loan out to people shooting trap and skeet.  Remington's only stipulation was that they were not allowed to clean the guns, and they had to keep track of how many rounds went through them. The 1100's were new and they wanted to see how well they held up.  By the time my dad left, those guns had over 12,000 rounds shot through them with no malfunctions and no cleanings.  That's over 480 boxes of shells!

The same year he bought his shotgun, my dad used it to become the Colorado State Junior Skeet Champion. He and my grandpa were also the Colorado State Father/Son Skeet Champions of the year. They both shot their Remington 1100's.

I grew up in a family of avid sportsmen, and I have fond memories of many Saturdays spent at the shooting range. My brother and I would have friendly shooting competitions with our cousins under the watchful eyes of my dad, grandpa, and uncles.  We put up paper targets and shot rifles and muzzle loaders while my grandpa looked to see where each shot hit the target with a pair of binoculars. Then we'd line up and shoot pistols at tin cans and closer targets. The winner had bragging rights and got to keep the paper target for proof.

I distinctly remember my dad and grandpa gently telling me to "squeeeeeze the trigger" so I didn't jerk it and miss the target when I was a young girl. Those were important lessons!

But my favorite competitions have always involved shooting clay pigeons with shotguns.  Often times, my dad sits in the back of the truck with a clay pigeon thrower and we shoot away until we run out of either shells or clays. It's great family fun!

Now that our kids are getting older, we'd love to pass on the love of shooting sports with them as well.  My dad passed down his 20 gauge shotgun to our son this Christmas, and our boy was so excited with his new gun that he had tears in his eyes.

 My husband also has a shotgun passed down from his dad.  Add our new gun to the mix and we have enough for several people to hunt together without having to share guns. In addition to hunting birds, our kids can't wait to try their hand at 4-H shooting sports.


We hope to have many years of enjoyment with our new shotgun!


Nell