Ready for a New Sailing Season

After spending 3 weeks scrubbing mildew,polishing teak and redecorating the entire main cabin of our sailboat I am finished. When we bought Adventuress I thought she was the most beautiful boat I had ever seen, the decorating was fantastic,(so I thought)the color choices we just what I would have picked. After living on her for 10 months I found out I could not live with many of the choices the previous owner had chosen. The decor was 28 yrs old and needed a new face. . .I checked many home & boat decorating sights but ran into many problems, home sights are geared for just that a home with different dimensions, most boating sights are for Yachts and Power boats. I did not want to change the image of a sailboat even though it is our home bottom line is it's a boat! I added grain sack curtains in a light and dark sand tone, throw rugs are brown with shells and a light sand/ brown mixture. The side by side quarter cabins are also neutral and will be kept that way to look more spacious. Thanks to the Boat Galley I was able to update the galley area which should make cooking and clean up an easier chore. Our children gave us a fantastic boat grill for Christmas which we are excited to try out this Summer. I still find it hard to believe we moved on to a sailboat with a child with what little knowledge we had for such a life.The positive side to all of this is we got to know our boat/home by trial and error and would do the same thing all over again.It's not for everyone and I find this out each time someone new comes aboard and says," I could never live on here, it's beautiful but I could not do it". My reply is: "When it's not your Dream you can't picture this life" I named this Blog Simpleliving-3 mainly because it is just that. . .3 people learning together the simple life of boat living. 3 new batteries will be installed next week along with other things that I won't even pretend I know, but are needed to enjoy a season of sailing. The next process will be pulling the boat this Sumer for 2 weeks to clean and paint the bottom, then strip the teak around the deck and make her look just as beautiful out side. Next year will be new ports, hatches and flooring in the main cabin. . much like a home there is always something new to upgrade. Adventuress will be our home for many years to come with many changes along the way. . .One thing I do know for sure is we are Living our Dream not just Dreaming it, no matter where we sail or don't. . .we own a sailboat after 36 years of ups and downs. . . My next learning step is posting pictures . . .

Winter Work

The Winter has come and leaving quicker than we expected, with so much work to still be done on Adventuress Spring will be here before we know it. I am tending to the main cabin while Papa works on moving the batteries and other men things. My job was to strip the boat, and that meant everything off and stored in this storage unit we call an apt. I have scoured every inch of the boat and thrown so much away due to mildew. I did not realise there was so much work tending to a sailboat. .I thought I had said Goodbye to deep cleaning. Adventuress is a Live Aboard boat, there are so many hidden cubbies that I did not know about until cushions were removed, these will be good for long cruises where provisions need to be stored. There is not only a full pantry and linen closet on board but 2 spice cabinets along with a full bar(very important). Under the kids berth there is fantastic storage for toys, as I have learned a necessity when traveling with kids. Living on Adventuress was one way for us to learn what made her tick, the various noises and problems that were facing us. . .and we did. We moved on cold turkey and survived . . .as I have said, "When it is your dream you don't mind discomfort". The dilemma I am facing now is cleaning cushions, new curtains on the ports, runners or short rugs, bedding. . .etc. . .. The first year I used what the previous and one time owner had left, now it's time for me to make it ours and show our personality. Keeping in mind when Papa retires next year we will start taking off to sunnier places always making Maryland/Delaware our summer home. Ava will be Boat Schooled, (Papa is a part time teacher) along with anyone of our other grand children that come along. Thanks to so many boating sites, The Boat Galley, Living Like a Pirate. . .etc. I have gained much needed knowledge on boat life. Papa is taking the course to get his Captains License now, life will change for us once he graduates on May 5th. We look forward to moving back on Adventuress in May, along with moving to a new Winter apt. at the same time. My message here is. . .material things that used to be so important to me have taken a side seat( not back because I still like clothes and shoes) to what God has given us in Nature . . . Life is Not a Dress Rehearsal. . .Live it Now!

Time to work on the boat and my body

Moving on to a 30 yr old sailboat was easy. . .updating a 30 yr old sailboat is about as easy as transforming your land body into a boat body.There is only so much you can do with what you are given to work with. My job on the boat is the interior, it needs to be a cozy home and functional, my body needs to functional also. . . I am tired of a different body muscle hurting each week. You don't realise the smaller spaces and small stairways take a toll on your muscles. I am going to be starting with a bare boat as far as cushions, everything except boating needs are off the boat and in this little apt. for the Winter. I will be searching every site I can for decorating tips and merchandise. My goal by June is to have a new interior on the boat as well as a body free of aches and pains. . .

What I miss most

We have been in the apartment now for 7 weeks part time getting ready to make it full time until April. . .what I miss most about living aboard is the night music. . . the water lapping against the hull and the gentle rocking, the gorgeous stars on a clear night and the approaching electric storm while relaxing in the cockpit. The Simple Life is an understatement. . .Life is actually suspended. . . it became an every night ritual to walk down the dock lit only by the moon light and our Chilean minor head lights and a stray Swan or Goose walking along with you. Cooking bacon as a Seagull watched closely through your port window. The Simple meals which I did not appreciate until Winter left us and the grills came to life. We honestly feel as if we have let Adventuress down and abandoned her, what she does not realise is the Face Lift we are going to give her over the Winter months. Since Feb. we have had very little pressure, even after buying 2 of the best pumps you can get, gel coat wearing thin on the deck, Teak needing to be sanded and recoated, Sails needing cleaned, lines needing to be replaced. . .and on and on. . . . No different than a house.

What I missed about Land Living was a hot bath. . of all the things there were to miss that was #1, #2 was exercise. . .when we first moved on the boat I tripped as I was walking down the dock, cracked 2 ribs and sprained my wrist ( made the daily action of boarding the boat and exiting a little difficult). I started feeling aches and pains in muscles that I had not used in quite a while, walking up many stairs became painful, I became breathless after walking 800 ft to the shower house. Now I am sore from muscles that thought I had forgotten about them, , ,now I am walking at the least 7 miles a day to get in shape for the next sailing season.

As hard as I try I can not get the Simple Living Life back while living on land, so I will enjoy my bubble baths and long walks and pray for a Snowy Winter. . .

To all who have followed my Blog and did not make it to the boat this past season let's hope the next 6 months go by fast. . . Happy Holidays to All!

Looking Back

The time has now arrived to end the play time on Adventuress and start taking care of her, for this past yr. I have said she was a 40 ft. sailboat, come to find out she is 45 ft. To some that does not make a difference but now that we have hauling her out of the water, cleaning ,stripping and painting her facing us those 5 ft. make all the difference in cost and work.

Last year when we bought her she looked Beautiful. . .after a Winter of 3 snow2 storms, 4 60 mph wind storms and 2 storms of 40 mph she has taken a beating. The teak needs to be stripped and re done every couple months, we have not done that either. . .the sails need to be cleaned. . we have not done that. . . the teak floors in the main cabin need to be replaced, the berth mattresses need to be cleaned and aired. . . on and on and on. . .Which explains another reason for the apt. Our weekends come Winter will be spent working inside, Spring outside.

The 3 of us consider Adventuress our home and she will be again come Spring. Looking back I remember the gorgeous Sunrises, drinking morning coffee on the bow and thinking Life does not get any better than this, watching a Sunset knowing what I woulod wake up to the next morning.

Many people have asked how we adjusted to such small living quarters, Kevin answered that saying"When it has been your Dream for 36 yrs. you don't think about that you just do it" and we did. Even now as we are in the apartment  Ava asks"When are we going home"?

There were down times also but as soon as you came top side they were forgotten. You also have to like your partner, arguments don't go away in small quarters, there is no private space and all work is shared. Big adjustments for us however we survived.

In Oct. 2013 we will set sail for somewhere South, these next 2 yrs will be spent redoing the boat for such a voyage. We won't be out to set any records just sail and enjoy the Beauty god has given us. So until Spring I will end this Blog. . .

Peace & Love to All

coming to an end

  I am writing this blog from the apartment we rented in Newark, De. we have been working very hard to make this place Home. The one thing the 3 of us realise is as hard as we try Adventuress is our Home and we will miss her. We have only 6 more weeks of boat living before we become weekenders like the rest of the boat owners at the marina we call home. We will move into the apartment on August 28th with Ava starting her new school on the 29th. We will then go to the boat the moment Ava is out of school on Friday's and stay until Sunday early evening.

The experience has been one that has us looking forward to working on the boat through the Winter fixing things that have needed it long before we bought her and things to improve her. I look back now on the days the boat was under the dock as well as the days the dock was under water both of which we could not depart the boat. The days of high winds where we stayed in our berths, the ft. of snow and more, ice,sleet etc. Walking down the dock to the warm bath house to take showers, filling the water tank in freezing cold weather, putting our freezer goods on the cabin top since our freezer compartment holds a 7 lb bag of ice and nothing more. We survived !

We will begin our sailing season this coming Sat. when family come to visit, because of so many unexpected repairs we are getting a late start. We will take the boat out from now on until we pull the boat in mid Oct. for cleaning and painting.  As we left the boat tonight with our laundry and over night bags we waved Good Night to Adventuress and our 2 cats until we return Tuesday to finish the first year of our adventure.

9 months and learning new things

We have lived on a sailboat for 9 months now, every day that goes by I realise I did not know as much about sailboats as I thought I did. We have made it through a beautiful Fall and a very unusual Winter with  rain,sleet, highwinds and many snow falls. As an adult we are used to these conditions. . . however with a 5 yr old they get to be cumbersome. We named Ava, Pippi after Pippi Longstocking. She is a clone to her, very agile when it comes to manuevering around the boat, things that terrified me she handled with ease.

Survival, was on top of our list, then came the every day challenge of getting Ava 50 miles to school  when conditions were no where alike  between the 2 places. We don't share the same radio stations here on the Sassafras River as in Denton, in fact  our stations are for Baltimore and Philly. I am thankful all of that is behind us now.

Heat was an issue at first, we used an onboard heating system that was water heated and cooled, when the water temp got below 45 degrees we had to find another safe method of keeping warm. We bought a big ceramic heater and used warming blankets on the bunks, it was so cozy it caused another problem . . we did not want to leave our cabins!

Christmas came, it was a fun time on the boat and at the marina, we were the only ones living here so it was much like our own private island. Once we went below on the boat we had not a clue as to what was going on topside, except when the high winds came and they did. One memorable day was when they hit close to 60 miles an hour, we could not leave our bunks and prayed, a tornado was passing through. Christmas brought our daughter home from sunny LA., she endured 10 days in a 450 sq. ft  space and did very well. We also got rooms for family at the Hampton Inn so there was swimming and comfort for visiting grand children.

With the rest of the Winter yet to come we had over a ft. of snow while Papa was in Texas saying his last good byes to his dad who had also been a sailor as well as many other trades.Ava and I managed to keep the snow off the biminy and hatches, we left it on the cabin top for insulation in the main cabin. As we kept our meals simple life was simple as long as we did not have to walk 800 ft to the bath house or parking lot. Ava and I did not leave the boat for 3 full days and ate what we had stored and used very little water since we only have a 100 gallon water tank. We played many old pirate games and watched what we could get on the TV.

TV, another issue. . we only have an antennea (sp) so programs were at the mercy of the gods. We have a battery operated HD flat screen TV, we got this so that we would still have tv when we are out cruising. You have to stand in one spot to see the screen clearly, so it's been used mainly for sound. Ava did without Disney & Nick under protest. My soaps came in clear every day. . thank goodness.

What we weren't prepared for was the tides and how much they ruled our lives, there were days when we could not get off the boat because the water was over the dodk, in fact there was no dock and just as many days we were under the dock, these were the most difficult times rushing Ava to school when we could safely exit the boat, her school was not as cooperative and did not excuse these tardies or absences. I had seriously thought of home schooling her but decided against it for social reasons.

Spring arrived and our spirits lightened, we started to take layers off and saw the extra inches 2 of us had added ( I will not mention names as to not incriminate the parties involved). This made for less space in the main cabin, we clearly did ot live on nuts and berries!

Up to date. . . School has ended, the boat is turned around, sails on, water hoses splitting, water pressure pump breaking, humans at the marina, etc. . . we have found out there is nothing the 3 of us can't handle. We have a sign on the boat Papa had made. . . WE MAY NOT HAVE IT ALL TOGETHER. . . . BUT TOGETHER WE HAVE IT ALL!

We are looking forward to a great sailing season with many friends and family aboard. We rented an apt. in Newark ,DE that we are starting to put together for vistors to stay since the boat does not accomadate over night guests comfortably. It is 20 min. from the boat. Come August we will stay there during the week while Ava attends school(which is .05 miles from the apt.) then come to the boat on weekends until Oct. when the boat will be pulled for cleaning,painting and repairs getting ready for our adventure in the Fall of 2013. Bahamas will be our first destination, Ava will be home schooled, I will be thin,tan and. . .oops drifted off there. . . As life will have it we never know what is around the corner for us so we have learned to take it as it comes.

I am Thankful to everyone Family and Friends who have followed our Adventure so far.

Fair Winds!