Many will disagree with me, but fishing is GROSS! So when Stephen wanted to go fishing with his big brother Aaron I devised a string on a stick in the hopes of NOT catching anything.
Too bad you can't fool them forever. It didn't take long before Stephen realized everyone but him caught something, and that everyone but him had an actual rod and reel.
So even though it meant upgrading to poking a hook through a wiggling, slimy worm, then catching a fish and trying to disengage the hook from their lips, or worse, their throat, then argue about releasing the fish, or having it for dinner, then losing the argument and having your kitchen stink like..well, dead fish...well, even though it meant all those things, I bought him a nice rod and a tub of fat worms.
And it slowly turned into into relaxing afternoons by the lake with him fishing, and me sitting nearby with a book in one hand, and a wet wipe in the other. (He often needs help getting those worms on the hook- as I may have mentioned, they are very slimy and very wriggly!)
Most of us have access to a body of water with things swimming in it- even if it's just a ditch- so I feel I can recommend this as an excellent hang out time with the kids. They can experience the joy of independence and providing for the family (a very important part of growing up) and you can set a great book loving example by sitting nearby reading a great novel.
And if you don't have access to water, perhaps this is a great place to plug a new group, Of Words And Water. This is a group of writers I have joined forced with, and all have chosen to donate their talents to raising money for Water Aid. It's the perfect win-win. Donors can help out a cause for the sake of helping and not only feel the joy of being a healthy part of the human race, but also be given a gift in return...a book of entertaining short stories donated by these authors. That's a win-win we can all be a part of!
I hope you can start small by simply "Liking" Of Words And Water and soon, after checking out their website and finding you agree with their goal, you can support the effort to provide water for all by donating whatever you choose and receiving an entertaining read in return.
Once you're done checking out Of Words And Water, we'll get back to the bored Kids, and hopefully you'll be heading out for an adventure in fishing!
*Annie Harmon writes children's picture books in both print and ebooks. Her website is HoustonChildrensBooks
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