Fighting the wife to go fish/hunt.

[toenail]

I had a buddy from the UP call
me up. Says, "hay Toenail, the
steelhead are stacked up in the
river down here eh, how about
comin on down for some dynamite
action",
I says, "I'll be on my way
shortly, buddy".
This was years ago.
I say to my girlfriend, "theres
fish in the river in michigan and
i'll be gone for a 3 or 4 days".
She says, "No your not".
......Silence...................
"If you go to Michigan, I won't
be here when you get back".
Let me tell you, ultimatums suck
big time.
And I landed lots of fish, too.

TonyS

[upnorth]

I don't remember fishing a whole lot while the kids were really little. When my son got older, about 4, he turned into one of my fishing buddies, that was great with the wife and could go fishing at will. My wife and daughter liked to fish too but on a much more limited basis.

Now the kids are gone, the wife likes to fish, at least in nice weather. That and she works every other weekend so I have those weekends to myself.

Make fishing and other outdoor sports a family thing and you will have time in the outdoors and time with your family that really means something (aka known as quality time).

Biggest thing is enjoy those kids, they grow up waaaaay too fast.

[Fisher Dave]

Im one of the lucky ones ...

My significant other tells me to go whenever I like, for as long as I want, she has no problem being with the kid. I just be sure to do nice things on occasion to help keep things the same.

It upsets her more to have an unsuccessful fishing/hunting trip than it does to have me fish/hunt all the time... go figure.

[Guest]

I must be the luckiest man alive ! I married a southren gal 37 years ago and we both grew up with our children. Our family loves the outdoors and what the old man up stairs gave to us to behold. Even though both of our children are on their own and our family has gotten bigger (daughter-in -law and grandchild) we still get togeather once a year for a week of family fishing outing to the lake or river of there choise. Thats how I get cool points with my wife !! Sounds like a WIN WIN situation to me !!!!!!!

[zappy]

I'm pretty lucky in that my wife likes to fish, especially when the weather is nice. Now we have two kids (ages 9 and 5) so I only get to go out fishing about 1/4 of the time that I could pre-kids. However, since it is a family event, we can have four poles out (instead of just one) so the overall fish intake works about to be the same! So hang in there...retirement is only 20 years away!

Thinking back to when I was a kid, fishing was about the only thing my dad and I did together...and those are memories I certainly cherish now.

A agree with Walleye Preditor. When kids are in the boat, bring toys and treats to keep them busy. Encourage the use of rod holders since kids can't seem to pay attention more than a few minutes.

[This message has been edited by zappy (edited 10-26-2003).]

[Ben Trod]

I always tell my wife that I am out trying to put food on our table. But if you tell her that, don't mention how many deer you passed on that day. I did that only once.
Good luck my friend.

[MNice]

With all due respect, read the "empty boat seat" thread and count your blessings. Most of us have kids and adjust our lives to do the best thing for them. Be patient, your time will come.

[IFallsRon]

Excellent point, MNice. Appreciate what you have now, your time will come.

I bring the family just about everywhere. Started with a baby in a carseat in the boat and tent. I know when they've had enough and I get my time, too.

One of the compromises is that the payment for the next new boat hops on the school bus every morning on their way to Catholic school. My kids are getting a solid educational base while their public school friends endure the system locked in fixing social problems.

[Animal]

What are you thinking?

You are just getting started. Soon there will be soccer, baseball, basketball, school events, church activities, etc., etc. Raising kids is just plain time consuming. You are just going to have to lower your expectations for awhile.

When my kids were at home my fishing was limited to 1/2 days on weekends and one or two longer trips per year. After the kids were 3 and older I took them with me. We went to Canada, camped in the BWCA and Voyagures. The wife always enjoyed her time alone when I would take the kids on those trips. She had no problem when I wanted to take an occasional long weekend or a week. I also helped out day by day. When they were teenagers and wouldn't be caught dead with me, I got to go with my buddies more often.

Now I'm an empty nesterand I can fish & hunt anytime I want except there are these twin grandaughters that keep showing up a couple times a week. So I guess I'll be camping and fishing and giving there mom and dad a couple days of R&R.

Animal