Father's Day Gift Idea for the Fishing Enthusiast

If there were a prize awarded to the most difficult person to buy for, my husband would win in a heartbeat. I saw so many "Father's Day Gift Ideas" floating around the Internet in the weeks leading up to the holiday, and not one of them fit the bill for my favorite guy.

See, the problem with Andi is that he buys everything he wants before I have the chance to give it to him. He's a man of instant gratification. Most dads wear clothing and other favorites until there's no life left in them, but not Andi. Chances are, he's moved onto the next best thing. I'm not necessarily complaining as he keeps me outfitted with the latest and greatest as well but come holiday-time, he can be difficult to buy for.

Andi's taken interest in fishing recently, so I decided to make "fishing" my Father's Day theme this year. First, I did what I do best: craft something special for him. Tory and I made a Happy Father's Day banner to hang at the lake cabin as decoration. I printed this free printable from Pinterest (seriously, what did moms do before Pinterest existed?!) and mounted the circle banner to cut-out pieces of construction paper fish to tie in with the theme. This was a nice activity for Tory to practice her cutting skills while I sat idly by and silenced my inner voice of perfectionism.

I also whipped up some chalkboard art at the cabin featuring this cute little saying I found online: "DAD -- a son's first HERO -- a daughter's first LOVE." Kind-of cheesy, but so true. I thought it was perfect for Father's Day.

Then Tory, Aden and I made a handprint craft for Andi featuring a fishing poem I found online. Handprint crafts are next to impossible with toddlers, so I ended up tracing Aden's hand on a different sheet of paper, then re-drawing his print onto the fishing poem. His love/tolerance for crafting isn't as strong as Tory and I's, unfortunately. (And since it might be difficult to read the text in the photo, I'll type it out here as well):

"Daddy, it's my greatest wish that my little hands will catch big fish. That'll I'll be there fishing with you, I know you'll teach me just what to do. You'll show me how to bait my hook, when we fish the lake and brook. And, how to find the fishing hole; the way to cast my fishing pole. Daddy, I know you're dreaming too, of the special times I spend with you." -- Author Unknown

For Andi's Father's Day gift, I picked up a styrofoam cooler from a local convenience store and filled it with fishing-related items. Contents of the cooler included: a bottle of Four Roses bourbon (which has nothing to do with fishing, but I know Andi likes it), a Tervis tumbler, Swedish fish and gummy worms candies, dried fruit, a fish-shaped stainless steel bar of soap that eliminates odors left on hands, a floatable minnow scoop to replace the one Aden chucked into the lake a few weeks ago, liquid fish attractant and a fishing utility tool. I printed this adorable free printable I found online that reads "O-fish-ally the Best Dad" and mounted it to the outside of the styrofoam fishing cooler. (It's also the place I originally saw this idea for a Father's Day gift).

Andi seemed pleased with his gift, and I hope he'll be able to use all the items I selected especially for him. Only 362 more days to think of something to buy him for Father's Day 2016!