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Get a 20GA and have hubby take you out to the skeet/clay range. I had a buddy (recently died), Army Lt. Col. (ret) who started out clays with a 12 but latter on got a Baretta 20 and he loved it. Light weight and recoil. Most of the ladies at the club at least start out with 20's before trying out the 12's. I think you'll like it.

I went through having to buy my wife a suitable weapon for the house just a few years ago.

I'm an incurable 7.62 NATO bigot, and try as I might, I could NOT find any 7.62s that she liked. I was going for the DSA SA-58 carbine, but she said, "TOO HEAVY"! The specs on the SA-58 .243 weren't enough to make a difference in weight, so we didn't even look at that one.

We looked at some Egyptian, and Romanian AKs, but she took one look and turned her nose up because of the OBVIOUS flaws in workmanship.

We borrowed a Remington 870 from a friend, and took it out with a couple of boxes of low brass 7 1/2s and she had a BLAST!....thought it was terrific!

I was going to get the 870...put a shorty stock on it...pistol grip...shorter bbl... and she asked me about hitting targets a 300 yards as she had done with my .243.

Errr...I said, "Sweetie...this thing is good for about 100 feet with the right ammo." She replied, "HUMPH! Well that's NOT much good is it?!" She was also put out that it only held a "tube full" of shells....and that it was time consuming to reload IF you ran out.

Sheesh! She's already got a Walther PPK/S that she's VERY proficient with, and she has an older S&W .38 as well. So we were in the process of looking at AR carbines. She REALLY liked the "shorty" ARs. They're small, easy to use....LOTS of ammo in a 30 round mag, and QUICK to reload! PLUS, you can pop targets at a couple of hundred yards!

We were getting ready to buy TWO of the shorties when my buddy at the shop talked us into the regular A-2s. She tried it out, and decided it's weight and balance was acceptable. Although since that time, my 10 year old now owns one, and he put a stubby stock on his, and my wife REALLY likes that! It takes a full 4 inches off the pull length. I've read that a LOT of women, and smaller people use these stubby stocks on ARs.

I'm not sure where you live. We're fairly rural, so the ARs were "sufficient". I'm not a big 5.56mm fan, but to quote my buddy down at the shop... "If 18 yr old Army girls can use it, ANYBODY can use it.".

...ah well....just my .02. :-)

That's all very well and good, But I believe she was talking about scatter guns which is why I suggested the 20.

BTW usmom, while I mentioned that my friend had a Baretta 20, I failed to mention that it was an auto loader. Double barrels are fine and all, but considering that you describe yourself as "petite", go with the auto. over/unders typically have heavier barrels which requires a longer reach and upper body strength to hold on target, especially repeatedly on the range where you'll tire quicker. With the auto, the center of gravity is moved rearward towards your upper body, and helps mitigate that problem.

On more thing regarding the Baretta, it's a beautiful weapon, but like most things from Italy or Germany, it's over engineered. My friend loved shooting it but hated cleaning it. Complicated, intricate design.

My Browning "Golden Clay's" auto on the other hand is; beautiful in its simplicity, and that design makes it easy to clean too.

Can't go wrong with a Browning (IMHO)