Following my Florida hunter into the woods -- being an outdoors Florida hunting widow

My husband is an avid Florida hunter. And it seems as if it's always hunting season. Or that he's preparing for hunting season. I used to think he dreamt of me at night. I know better now. He dreams of Florida deer or Florida hogs or Florida turkeys. On the off-Florida hunting seasons, he scouts out his area, planning where he should mount his tree stand.

I learned early on in our relationship that if I wanted to spend time with my husband, I needed to adapt to his way of life. That meant going into the Florida woods to help him set up tree stands or scout the Florida Wildlife Mangement Area where he managed to score a quota hunt permit. When he first suggested this idea, I was a city girl trying to impress her Florida country boyfriend. I didn't want him to know I was petrified of snakes. The idea of me going into a place where a snake could cross my path or bite me when I tried to go to the bathrooom just made my insides shake like the leaves on the trees that harbored these scaly creatures. But I went -- I guess that proves how much in love I really was. I tried not to let him see how I shuffled my feet with every step, my eyes peeled on his boots so I could step in the exact same spot. Yes, I followed behind him, but only because I knew he knew where to walk to avoid icky woods creatures like snakes and spiders.

I also stayed in his Florida hunting camp with him. It was either that or stay home all weekend alone. That sounded like less fun than hanging out in a tent while he hunted. I was so green I didn't know how to turn on a lantern. I felt pretty silly waiting in a dark tent until he came out of the woods to shed light on this new lifestyle I was learning.

But I've met plenty of women at the Florida hunting campground who were as avid a Florida hunter as their spouse. I even met women who met their husbands while hunting. These women can handle a muzzleloader and bow just as well, if not better, than their spouses.

I want to hear from you other Florida hunter widows. Do you follow your spouse in the woods or do you stay home when he goes hunting? And do you stay in camp or get your gun and try hunting your own animal?

Let me know -- I need lots of ideas.