and baby makes 6!

We are feeling the pull of summer here. The days are consistently warm now, and in spite of old man winter trying one last time to lay his hand on us at the coast, the sun is out and bathing suits, baggies and tanks have taken over our town. With the warmth and gorgeous weather [...]

I sing to your spirit…………………..we have named her. Enjoy. Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

What I love about these pictures is how comfortable my kids look on the boat.   They are relaxed and at home on the water. It is their playground.  How cool is that?

….at least for about 5 minutes. That is about all my perfectionist husband could take of going round and round in circles. I cannot believe the fat roll I am exhibiting here. Happiness makes the gut grow larger, right?  Reminder to do more sit ups!

What would a gorgeous sunrise on the deck of your boat be without a warm cup of cappuccino in hand? Yes, I swear. I figured out how to make a fantastic cup of steaming espresso loveliness on a boat. I am a freak of gigantic proportion. As Bill was rowing the dog to shore for [...]

Some dogs just never figure out being on a boat. They are afraid of the water. They don’t get their balance. The unfamiliar surroundings paralyze them with fear. And they never figure out how to potty on a boat. This last issue can be the deciding factor on whether a dog will ever acclimate to [...]

To get back and forth to the island, we rowed the dinghy. I use the term “we” loosely. It is more like “I” sat in the back of the dinghy sipping coffee, while watching “we” row it. I had the best seat in the house. Um, yeah. Flex, relax, flex, relax. I may have even [...]

There are two ways to cook on a boat. With a gimbaled propane stove inside, or with a propane grill out on the deck. We have not purchased a grill yet for the boat, as they cost as much as a nice backyard grill, so that leaves us with the stove inside for now. Obviously [...]

The sun sets, you put your camera away, and after a bit of cabin time, you ready the kids for bed. Tired does not describe the way you feel. It is more like your brain is shutting down, and you need to sleep to stop it from dying. There is really nothing like sleeping on [...]

After dropping anchor and checking out our surroundings, I went below and organized the mess that was the cabin. Last summer we went from living in a 2100sq ft house to a 300sq ft 5th wheel. It was really interesting to see that how one felt about the confines of space was relative to the [...]

Lordy, the prep time for a trip on the water is unreal…well, at least it is for me. Bill threw some cutoffs, hats, and bathing suits into a bag for himself and the boys and was READY. Woot. Let’s go! Me? I had the task of planning food for 6 people without the ability to [...]

We loaded the boat with supplies, and took off to find our own slice of paradise. And find it we did……. We anchored in the cove of this little island and spent the weekend. I will be posting about our little cruise during the week.  For now, here is a shot of our boat at [...]

I mean, paleeeease.  I do believe he showed more interest in the top of his Fresca can than all the sunshine, blue water, white sails against a gorgeous sky and dolphins……..we are killing him. Right?  Mean, mean parents.

The other day Quinn decided that since the water was warming up so much, it was time to be towed behind the boat again. As hot as it was on the deck, I was still doubting the ability of his skinny little self being able to tolerate the cold water. Needless to say, after a [...]

Bill and I were sitting in our room yesterday, talking randomly, and I said. “You know what I can’t wait for?” And he replied “A warm beach” without missing a beat. Those were the exact words floating in my head. Sometimes it is a bit spooky how much we know each other. There seems to [...]

The compass that is. One more thing a child can learn on a boat.

Dingos know to always wear a US Coast Guard approved PFD (personal floatation device) while sailing.

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com ….and some rare footage of Quinn waxing philosophical. Please folks, ignore my amazingly high pitched, annoying voice. Lord, do I really sound like that?

…and a very curious dolphin.

My son took this photo of me. It is a rare instance when I am in a picture, as I am always the one behind the lens. Bill doesn’t like to take photos. He lives in the moment, as it should be. Me? I like to document things. I want my kids to pour over [...]

Little Miss Mimi is not one for heading below deck when out sailing. She wants to be right where the action is. She frequently tries to take the helm from Bill, and does not appear to be afraid of hanging on the foredeck (the front of the boat….when Bill and I crewed on racing boats, [...]

My life is never boring. Well, sometimes it is, but Bill always comes in and shakes things up a bit. I had in my head the numbers 2009 as the year we would sail offshore and expand our exploration of the Gulf coast to include Florida and Mexico. I targeted May 2009 as the goal [...]

One Garmin 440 GPS Chartplotter The man is in heaven. Now our navigation station is essentially complete. We can find our way through any waters in the US, Virgin Island, Bahamas, Alaska and Hawaii. Mia, our onboard navigator, thinks it is soooo cool, and will enhance her knowledge of celestial navigation quite well. Now if [...]

A dress, the ever present pink shoes, and sequins…..never forget the importance of sequins on a sailboat.

Lots of wind and enjoying things from a different angle.

Have I ever told you how much I love Texas? Well, I do. I love that I can wear a bathing suit in November. I love that I can wear a bathing suit in November on a boat. I love that I can wear a bathing suit in November and sweat on said boat….because it [...]

” Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” Mark Twain Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

We took the boat out. We motored, as the winds were way, way to strong to hoist sails. I will be posting some video later, if I can get it to upload…grrrr. For now, a couple of shots…and of course, the rest are up at Flickr so click through one of the pics to see [...]

Remember when I told you that I thought we would have a clear title and maybe a boat this week? Well, the title was cleared through the FDIC, but when they sent the documents (which was supposed to be by overnight but the clown sent it by snail mail….so tack on 5 more days to [...]

Here we sit…waiting. Still. For the release of lien on the boat. The owners are leaving for Mexico on Thursday, and will do something called a dry closing. Meaning they will leave the keys and title at the funding company, sign all the paper work, and the $$ will be deposited into their account when [...]

Remember how I told you that buying a boat is stressful? If you could measure stress on a scale of 0-10 with 10 being the highest, I would be at around a 448……. Part of the process involves a title search. With a boat, the lender searches on the state level, and on the national [...]

Well, just got word that the survey is complete. All checked out well with the Dehler. Some minor stuff that needs to be repaired, but the bottom of the boat looked good, the motor was great, and everything seemed sound. It was a wet and cold sail. Heavy rain followed them to the boat yard, [...]