Boating with Kids

[MUpde]

The wife and I are talking about having kids.

We've had our 'Bu for about 3 years and make it to the lake 2-3 times a month when it's warm. For those of you that have had kids while owning a boat, did you find that you went to the lake less? Even now it's getting harder and harder to make time to get out; just with our busy schedules. I can only imagine trying to do it with a little bundle of joy. I not considering selling the boat as once the kids are older, I'm sure they'll enjoy going on lake trips, I just wondering how often you get out with a baby/todler.

[chrisallenhogs]

We make it out on weekends only. We have managed to put 48 hours on the boat since April. We used to go every weeknight with our old boat before we had kids. There is just no way to make it out there now during the week. Early bedtimes.

[wedge88]

Honestly the first year after the baby was a little difficult just because they cannot be out in the sun long. We have a 20 month old this season and we have 118 hours on the boat. We do not live close to a lake either. We just plan long weekends and weekly getaways. To see my daughter get so excited to go in the boat makes it all worth it. When we do go we are out from dusk till dawn and swim more often but I look back before we had kids and it doesn't seem like we had near the fun. Just wait till they are old enough to start watersports.

Kids change your life but definitely for the better in every aspect. (This will change when they hit the teenage years)

[thethrillofspeed]

It is drastically more difficult to get to the lake! I have a one and a three year old, the amount of stuff you have to bring for them is amazing....milk, diapers, porta pottie, blankets, lifevests, snacks, etc. But we do make it to the lake about twice a month. I see a lot of my friends who just throw in the towel after having kids, my wife and I just bite the bullet and make it happen. They do seem to take naps on the boat pretty good. I think the killer is when we are camping and the boat is in the water, the lake is pure glass and by the time we have everything ready the glass is gone...boy that sucks!

[bigD]

I used my boat almost every week sometimes 2-3 times a week the first 2 years, A lot of adult only trips and some with my teenage Son and his friends.

When the baby came along I had my boat out 3 or 4 times that first summer. it may aswell be a pontoon boat or fishing for another year or 2.

When we have the little guy now 2.5yrs we might bring one other couple for a subdued cruise around the lake and home waaay before dark. it's a little much with a few guys and their wake gear in and out of the boat NO loud tunes keeping the whole day pretty tame and ( for a couple more months)bringing diapers. I'd just rather sit on the house boat and swim around with the family on those days. It will be awhile before the Boy gets on a wakeboard and brings his own iPod and says turn it up and HIT IT!

[rugger]

My kids are 2, 6, and 8. We go all the time. Less than 2-3 years is harder because they still need naps, etc., but still manageable. My kids push to go just as much as we do so it's nice. Bringing more stuff is a chore for the little ones, but it's better than staying home!

[Mike00LXI]

My son has been on the water since he was 6 weeks old and we average 2-3 weekends a month. Of course we have a houseboat so it's a different story since we don't have to haul all the gear back and forth. We just keep a second set of everything at the lake. He's 2 now and almost every day he asks me...Daddy..we go to the houseboat? We go Wakeboarding! and he throws both of his hands up in the air. It's priceless.

[Molarbu]

Kids make it even better. Last night my 3 year old was up on the sundeck dancing to some song and she started framing her face Madonna style and cracked us up! You'll still need to make time for yourselves even with kids. It will slow down at first, but you'll figure out how to work them into the activities you want to do. Boating is the best family pasttime in my opinion.

[h20sportsbum]

You will notice a decline in your boating for sure, but it is up to you as to how much you want to slow down. My son was born in August and the wife and I were still going to the lake up until about mid august (with him being born on the 23rd). And his first boating trip was 6 weeks later. He was great slept the whole time. He will be 2 this coming August and honestly we go out less because of other reasons then kids, and that is with a new 4 month old as well. She was also out her first time when she was about 6 weeks as well. The last time we went out the boy actually went on the tube with me as well. That was awesome. needless to say you will have more fun when you do go out.

[scout1ton]

We had our daughter on the water @ about 8 weeks old and she has been my litte water girl every since. She loves the water and is always asking to go to the lake so she can ski and tube. Yes you have to take alot more gear, that is why we moved from the Nautiqe to the Sunsetter. She started skiing when she was 2 and I just let her off from the swim deck. Most of the time just short runs, but a couple of times she went about a mile. She wanted to stop. She got in got a drink of water said "I need some energy daddy, can I go again". Just made my heart glow..... Got her back on and she went for another 1/2 mile. On an average we haven't slowed down at all since she has blessed our lives, she is now 4 yr. Good luck and hope it all works out good. Heres a pic of my little water girl.....

[Malibusteve]

I bought my VTX last August. At the time, my kids were 3yrs old and 8 months old. We have put about 75 hrs on our boat (mostly since May). Almost all of those hours included my kids. It's definitely harder and takes more planning and gear, but if you love it and them enough, you'll make it work. Biggest secret I can tell you is to let your kids get a good nap before you hit the lake even if it means waiting until later in the day to go. You'll be glad you did. Also, the life jacket thing really takes a couple of trips for them to get accustomed to it.

[malibu or die]

My sons first word was boat.

My son was born in Oct. and i talked my wife in to buying a new boat 4mos later. We put more than 100hrs first summer, and by the end of this summer mabe more. My son is just about 2yrs now And tells me boat dad, and points to the garage. Our boat is garaged allways so it is alot of work to get it all around but the lake is across the street. we have so much fun on the water, and when its time to call it a day my son throws a fit. Best family past time by far.

[Chef23]

I am spoiled because we moved to a lake when my kids were 5 and 6 so we are out 4-6 days a week since then. My kids are now 9 and 10 and my youngest absolutely loves it. My daughter isn't as into it but she still is out on the water at least 3-5 times a week.

Unfortunately we have a short season though. My son skied in April this year but then the weather stunk until late May and he didn't ski much until then. Once September rolls around hockey kicks off and we ski a little less.

I can see it being tough with small kids. We used to bring our little ones to the beach but that was a little easier because we could set up an umbrella and keep them out of the sun and get them naps.

[malibubarfootr]

I dont have any kids but I am glad this question was posted. Its really encouraging to hear everyone say how much their kids add to the experience!

[Bill_AirJunky]

No kids here. Married about 6 yrs & we could go either way, but it's about too late as we're both in our 40s now.

I can't begin to count how many riding friends we never see in the summer because they have kids now. My neighbors have 2 young kids & a Prostar sitting in the garage still winterized. A lot of people say they will keep getting out in the boat. But the reality is that it's much more difficult & most people just don't do it.

[jayjoans]

The only reason we own a boat is because we have kids. We bought our first boat when our youngest was 2 and our oldest was 12 (4 total). I learned early on that the key to the teenage years was to make sure the kids were at MY house doing the cool stuff, not at somebody else's house. Between dirt bikes, go carts, paintball, jet skis, wakeboarding, hot tubbing and Xbox, my kids had no reason to go anywhere else. Matter of fact, we helped raise a good number of now 21 yr. olds that still drop by and tell us how their life is going even when our older two are off at college.

Sorry, that was not a very good reply to your question. My wife and I always tried for once a week in the summertime, but we never wanted to force the kids to go to the lake. We knew that they would resent the boat if they felt they didn't have a choice. The 2 yr. old still remembers fondly the trips out in our original Centurion, her comment at the time was to point at the boat and say "that red boat makes me go to sleep", which it always did within minutes of getting underway. Just as important to us now is the time that just my wife and I spend on the boat without any kids. At least twice a year, usually the maiden voyage and the final voyage, just my wife and I go out for the day, find a cove, drop the anchor and turn on the XM and just chill. That alone would be worth boat ownership to us.

If you're not at the lake with your child, you're likely doing something just as important and rewarding with her/him, like just being there.

[FIC]

My sons grew up on the lake and have been in watersports since they were little , we had every birthday party on the water. We became members of the Tampa Bay Water Ski Show team when they were 6 and 10 , and unlike most sports where they couldnt be on the same team , in waterskiing they competed together, having won many awards they are now 18 and 22 , both have skied professionally at Cypress Gardens and Texas Sea world and continue to ski while going through colledge and senior year at high school, I dont know of to many sports that can bring a family this close , we as a family and my sons and their girl friends are on the water every chance we get. I hope all of you on the water have many happy memories , injoy them while you can they grow up fast.

[wedge88]

It all goes back to the old saying, "A Family that Boats together, Stays together." We have been taking Family vacations to the lake for over 20 years and I have never missed one trip. That is what I hope to get from kids, that in 20 years they will look as forward to lake trips as we did. But as mentioned above you want the kids to feel like it is their choice because as soon as they think they have to, it is not cool anymore.

[wakeup]

I can give you first hand newborn experience since we just had our first child, a boy on July 19th!! A new child is well worth it! It is truly a miracle happening right before your eyes! What an experience! You will not even miss going out on the water. I can still think back to when my wife told me we were pregnant. I would not trade this for the world.

But I must admit for the foreseeable future, I would not see using our boat much until perhaps we get past the 7-8 week stuff. The every 2-3 hour demand from the child right now, plus the wife not feeling like boating will slow things down for a while. Plus it's pretty hot here. But we have a good support system and I'm planning to go solo this Saturday morning with a neighbor.

Now when he gets a little older, I see using a boat with him all the time!!

Also I just remembered our doctor recommended my wife not be on boats running across wakes, etc. late in the pregnancy, so keep that in mind.

[aoblak]

My youngest son just turned 4 yesterday and he has been on the boat since he was a day old. We use that boat as much as we can (at least every weekend). The hardest part is once the birthday parties and sporting events are going on but you need to remain flexable, a boat is a great thing for kids to grow up with.

[Faceplant409]

The only reason we own a boat is because we have kids. We bought our first boat when our youngest was 2 and our oldest was 12 (4 total). I learned early on that the key to the teenage years was to make sure the kids were at MY house doing the cool stuff, not at somebody else's house. Between dirt bikes, go carts, paintball, jet skis, wakeboarding, hot tubbing and Xbox, my kids had no reason to go anywhere else. Matter of fact, we helped raise a good number of now 21 yr. olds that still drop by and tell us how their life is going even when our older two are off at college.

Sorry, that was not a very good reply to your question. My wife and I always tried for once a week in the summertime, but we never wanted to force the kids to go to the lake. We knew that they would resent the boat if they felt they didn't have a choice. The 2 yr. old still remembers fondly the trips out in our original Centurion, her comment at the time was to point at the boat and say "that red boat makes me go to sleep", which it always did within minutes of getting underway. Just as important to us now is the time that just my wife and I spend on the boat without any kids. At least twice a year, usually the maiden voyage and the final voyage, just my wife and I go out for the day, find a cove, drop the anchor and turn on the XM and just chill. That alone would be worth boat ownership to us.

If you're not at the lake with your child, you're likely doing something just as important and rewarding with her/him, like just being there.

BINGO! My thoughts exactly!

As far as the original question... Before kids we were out for day trips or camping at least 3X per month. The year Caitlin came along we only went out 3 times all summer. It progressively got better. She's 5 now and would go out every weekend if we did not have 10,000,000 other things going.....

Patrick

[Malibudude]

We’ve probably increased our water time since my son was born, roughly 6 weeks after he was born he was on the water. We are gone all the time and he just comes w/ us just ask any of the norcal crew. He is better behaved on the water than anywhere else. He was jumping wake to wake and mt bikng before he was born. He sleeps on the boat, though naptime is just about over for us. He’s a trooper and we have him skiing at 3.5yo and surfing w/ us. So make it a part of the trip and look at ways to include them than it’s so much of an effort. To say my son is a water enthusiast is an understatement.

A couple of months ago we took him to Disneyland he kept up w/ us from 7 am until 12:30 AM when we left the park with no nap. Favorite ride is the Matterhorn…whoo hooo!!

[bobofthenorth]

Just got back from the payphone where we are camped. Picked up a message from my 20 year old who is apparently on his way out here for a few days on the water. All I can say is "make it all about the kids when they are little". Do what they really want to do, not what you want them to want to do and it will come back to you in spades. He's gonna drive 15 hours to get here - spend 2 days with us and then drive 15 hours back to work. How many 20 year olds do you know who will do that to spend time with mom & dad in the summer?

Boats and kids just go together as far as I am concerned. We had a boat before we had kids. We got the Malibu when the oldest was 13. I've had a boat of some sort since I built a kayak in the basement at age 10. Your personal riding/skiing time will turn into wheel time and you'll spend lots of time pulling tubes but eventually you'll get to teach them to board and ski. Eventually you will get to teach them to drive and then you'll have another driver for when you want to ride.

Boat + Kids = Good times

[tomfish]

we went most weekends before kids and some during the week too. When kids came the 97 sunsetter did not get used too much. maybe 3-5 times a summer for about 2-3 years honestly. Now that the kids are 3 and 5 we got an LSV this summer in april and have now put over 65 hrs on the boat since we got it and almost all with the kids. They love the boat and so it is back ON now. We probably could have started back sooner but we were just overwhelmed with two young children..................Kids it is the end or the beginning, you choose!

[95echelon]

I am 25 and have a 1 Year old and a 3.5 Year old. I can put this two ways because i grew up around water.

From the having kids perspective its pretty much hell until you can get them into a real life jacket, those self righting jobbies are like the devil to children (ours anyway). My daughter loves it and my son (in the self righting vest) is just game for the trip from the lake place to the sand bar for swimming. Next year he will be good to go. Until 2 it is VERY hard (discounting the infant stage where they sleep). I am looking forward to teaching skiing next year and doing some light tubing.

From the being a kid perspective i have grown up around boats since day 1. Moving from i/o's to inboards, i can remember going 8 hours a day every weekend wake boarding, my dad used to complain about 200 gallons a weekend but if asked privately i don't think either of us would have traded it for the world. At 12 i could pull him on a dead straight and speed controlled slalom run, in fact i was the only one that could ever drive my pops. My parents are not prideful about many things but i have shown their friends a back roll more times than i could count!

That boat (a 95 echelon) recently came back to the family - my aunt bought it when we moved away ten years ago - and my father and i spent 36 prideful hours wetsanding the gel, and detailing and fixing up the boat. This weekend when i took it down to our lake place for the fourth generation of my family to ride in the boat (my kids) it was unforgettable. Then later in the night with the kids in bed, me on the throttle, and a little bit of glass, 13 years and a couple thousand hours worth of memories came rushing in. Absolutely unforgettable.

Malibu's are a lifetime boat, so what if you store it a year or two? Have some Irish twins and get back on the water already! 25 Years from now THEY will be writing a post like this. I can't thank my dad enough for buying the echelon, it was the coolest toy on the block.