I am taking my 3 yro on his first ever hunting trip tomorrow. My question is what do you take to the stand to help keep them occupied. My box stand is far enough away that we can get away with some noise. I plan on taking my laptop to the stand and have a few movies with us so he can watch one until the deer show up.

Funny note, I got a call from the wife last Saturday morning and could hear my son was very upset. I talked to him and asked him what was wrong. His reply in a teary voice "Daddy, I cant believe you forgot to wake me up this morning when you left to go hunting, you FORGOT ME!!!" Kinda made me feel bad, so I told him he could go with me this weekend. He is pumped!! He has been the best little boy ever since, he knows he wont get to go if he mis-behaves.

My son is 3 too, I might take him with me this year but next year for sure. He wants to go but the movie is a good idea.

Crayons, Cars, Action figures and a smokin' hot nanny.

All above and I bought one of them portable DVD player, worth every penny.

the nanny is best bet, if the deer are slow, you'll both be happy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

+1 took my 5yr old best thing you can take make sure you have ear plugs for it.

Seriously, I took my son when he was little and talked to him about being quite, moving slowly and what he could expect. We were great for about an hour or so in the blind. Then we started playing in the dirt, chaseing squirrels and fishing. Great morning.

He has since taken a big pig with a .22 and is ready to take his first deer with his brand new .243. We haven't found the one yet but he's now a fine little hunter. Life is good!

+1

Take him and you will never regret it....

I guess the bigest thing is to focus on him. If you're taking him hunting, then take him huting.

You should focus more on being with him then the hunt. IMO

+1 Don't forget snacks and drinks!! Also a small pillow and blanket becuase he'll probably sleep most of the morning. Great your taking him out!

I did this about 30 years ago, we did alright with nothing but an extra pair of binoculars. Sat him on a stool and told him to watch the feeder and the wheat field. We did it that way for several years.

My 7 and 4 year old go with me as much as possible. We take ALL of the above. DVD player, I-POD, pillow, snacks, crayons, and an extra pair of cheap binoculars (so yours don't get smeared up). I don't like going without them.

I make sure to bring a blanket and a small pillow for them. The portable DVD player works good. But the problem with my son that uses it, is when he wants something(he has the headphones on) he forgets how loud he is talking when he wants to just ask a question or looks up and sees a deer. Might want to expect that to happen for you too. I also bring a small bag of cheerios. They are quite for them to eat and doesn't make much noise and they play with them on the blanket. The blanket keeps their movement quite, warm, and comfortable. If they have to sit in that chair for too long they get antsy and if they can get down on the floor and lay down it's sometimes better and we get to hunt longer.

crayons and coloring books. And dont stay to long , the kiddos have a short attention span

Thanks for all the comments, I pretty much did them all except for the "hot nanny" 330 came very early for him this morning. He stayed awake for the 90 mile trip to the lease. We were not in the stand for 5 minutes and he told me he was tired. I put his pillow on the carpeted floor, he took his jacket off, turned the heater on, (30 degrees this morning) and before I had his blanket on him he was out! He slept for about an hour and missed the first 2 does that came to the feeder, but woke up in time to see them return. He was excited to watch them in his binocs, and he made sure to tell me that they were not "daddy deer" because they didnt have any horns. All in all, it was a good trip to the lease, he is already talking about going with me for a few days while Im on vacation after Thanksgiving.

Now wait until he about 6 years old. Then you can take the nap and let him wake you when it is time to shoot.

Another thing, before you go again if you don't have them, get a set of hearing protectors.

Awesome! Sounds like you have a new hunting buddy.

I have found with mine that comfort and snacks are the highest priorities. Keeping them warm and fed will make the experience much better. One of my kids is happy all day with just a pair of binoculars and the hopes of seeing something. The other one needs something to keep him busy if we are going to sit for an extended period of time.

You will cherish these times even though your hunting may suffer a little.

Thought I would share a few pics. These are cell phone pics, sorry for the pic quality.
Here he is on the floor taking his nap.


Here he is when the does came back to feed. The pain job behind him is his own doings when I was putting in HIS vertical window so he could go and hunt with me and sit in HIS own chair. Notice the carpet goes up high here where his feet are? I tried to think ahead.


And finally here he is watching the does at the other feeder with his binoculars. Cant wait to take him again.

Sportsman, you have an adorable little hunter there.

I love how you made a spot just for him. Is that his own snuff can too? Just kidding of course!

Very cool. I did the same thing with my kids. Just don't plan on staying all day when he is that young.

Why Thanks



LOL, nope, that would be my nasty habbit.

That's awesome. My son is 10 now and I have been taking him with me since he was your son's age. We used to practice talking quiet at the house. I've had a lot of fun hunting with him. There has been times where we've talked too loud and scared deer off, but it was sure fun. During bow season this year, we got in our popup an hour before daylight and about 5 minutes after legal shooting time, he told me he was cold and wanted to go back to camp. As we got out, not 50yards from our feeder was 9 deer walking up to it. I didn't care because I knew if I had made him sit there in the cold he wouldn't want to do it again. It was still a great hunt as far as I'm concerned. He does MUCH better in box stand with the gun. Good times for sure!

One thing I've found...no matter how much stuff I take to the stand my two girls (5 and 2)will fight over one thing. But still love taking them out there.