Nate, I agree with Skeeter. the fact that you watched them for sometime before shooting is probably playing a big part in your emotions.
I love to watch deer. However, I decide pretty quickly if it is a deer I am going to shoot or not. I don' t think that you are getting soft at all though.
I do think that this is the part of " hunting" that the non-hunters and anti' s get confused over. To most hunters the actual " kill" is not what we are there for in the first place. Sure, there are " trophy" hunters and there are " meat" hunters, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with either!
Our main purpose, unless we are starving though, is conservation. Population control, that will benifit the species and all wildlife in the long run.
So, don' t feel bad about ANY legal animal that you kill! I' m a little leery of people who don' t have any emotion and just enjoy the " killing" aspect of hunting!