Last week, my husband and I took our oldest daughter hunting with us for the first time. I expected the challenges that come with taking a child hunting for the first time. I didn’t expect to see things from a different perspective!
Taking a Kid Hunting
Back to the basics
We bought her a camo set from Walmart and she was thrilled. She didn’t care about the brand; she was just excited to have her first hunting outfit. On our walk into the woods, we showed her a scrape and came across deer tracks. We taught her about how to walk in and things to look for. We were excited to see signs of turkey too. We showed her the mineral blocks we had out and talked about their purpose. On a personal level, this was exactly what my daughter has been needing – one-on-one attention from mom and dad while baby sister was being cared for by a grandparent, and being in the outdoors together was just an added bonus.
I really should upgrade our shooting house
Walking up to the shooting house she turned and whispered “Mommy, it’s beautiful” and my heart could have melted right then and there… this feeling was very short-lived though because as soon as she climbed up in our old worn out shooting house, she said, “This is not at all what I was expecting.” Slightly confused, I asked her what she expected it to look like. Her response “Gold windows, carpet, and maybe at least a couch.” I quickly realized my girl had thought we’d be hunting from an actual house and she was horrified at the sight before us. I laughed a lot. I’m thankful for what we have but I should at least make sure she can see out of it next time.
Sitting still and quiet really is hard
It’s difficult for an adult so of course it’s hard for a child to be still and quiet. I packed what I thought would be quiet items for her to play with and she still found ways to make noises. We usually have the worst chairs in our hunting houses but I think upgrading for comfort would be worth it.
Disappointments are inevitable
I didn’t really need a reminder of this but it was a good lesson for my daughter. She got impatient towards the end of our hunt and was ready to go home. Her dad and I explained to her that we would be going soon but educated her on deer patterns and how they like to hang out on the edge of our green field until right at dark. As we were climbing down, sure enough, we spooked a doe who was right on the edge of the field. I couldn’t see well enough to take an ethical shot anyways so it was time to climb down but my girl was so excited and disappointed that we didn’t harvest anything. This was a good opportunity to teach her about some of the disappointments in hunting.
Reflection is important
On our walk out we talked about what she had seen and learned. We also got the opportunity to witness the clearest most beautiful night sky and stars. She says she will see about hunting again but it made me think of the expectations I set for myself each time I go out there. Of course, I’m not expecting a gold window, comfy couch to sit on, but a nice buck every now and then would be good.
My daughter says she thinks she may come back again after these upgrades are made, but it really just depends on how she feels that day.
