Two Little Boys: February 2012

Gampa and the Whiffen men are big ice fishers. Two weeks ago, they organized an ice fishing trip, and I crashed the party. Hands down, it was one of the most fun excursions of my life. We all gathered at Gampa's house around 9:00 in the morning. Little did I know how much preparation went into this event. Gampa has a huge box full of supplies, a huge sled to carry more supplies, a stove, card table, chairs, and even his own auger! Very impressive.

The Whiffen boys (Connor and Sam) played hockey most of the morning. They were so sweet with Gabe, who wanted to play "ice golf", too. Uncle Doug drilled all of the ice holes, Gampa cooked all of the yummy sausages, and Uncle Jim, Uncle Bob, and Uncle Colin played cards and hockey throughout the morning.

We didn't catch any fish that day. I guess when they do catch fish, they let them go anyway. It was amazing to me to watch them put forth all of this effort (getting the supplies together, getting them onto the ice, drilling the holes, setting the fish traps, etc.) all to just see if the fish would bite. Fascinating. And fun.

Our boys loved ice fishing. They loved being with Gampa, their dad, their uncles, cousins, and Auntie Carole, who stopped by for a visit on the ice. Gabe loved holding the hockey sticks and learning to hit the puck. Zach loved taking rides in their sled and eating potato chips and other junk food. When we had to leave, neither of the boys wanted to go. Simply put, it was a magical day. I won't forget it.