Family Circus
Wild Oaks Family Farm, Shenandoah Valley, Plymouth, CA
Wednesday, June 25, 2014
Sunday, June 22, 2014
Our New Home has Arrived!
Well after a long journey of 30+ days of motor sailing up the west coast our new boat has finally arrived. The kids are so excited to go see her. It took them much longer to get here because of their delay with the hurricane outside of Mexico. This caused them to have to change course and travel along the coast line instead of sailing out to sea and then cut back in to the bay. Going up the coast is known to be one of the most miserable cruising tracts known in the pacific because of the fight with wind and current all the way up. It makes for a very hobby horse and slow ride.
Thank you so much to Tony and Pete for sticking with it and making the trek back home.
We will get to take the kids to see the boat sometime this week after the guys are able to recoup from such a long journey.
I can't believe we are almost living on our boat... Of course I am imagining the Serene environment of the calm waters, cool kids and mimosa's in the morning... and then I wake up from my dream and am envisioning all 4 kids fighting over swinging on the lines, chasing each other around and around the deck, yelling and screaming and us needing to find a way to get their energy burned creatively. There will obviously be a good adjusting period that we will need to go through along with an anchorage far enough away from other boats where the Family Circus doesn't get a reputation as that boat nobody wants to anchor next too. Actually maybe thats not such a bad thing.:@)
Thank you so much to Tony and Pete for sticking with it and making the trek back home.
We will get to take the kids to see the boat sometime this week after the guys are able to recoup from such a long journey.
I can't believe we are almost living on our boat... Of course I am imagining the Serene environment of the calm waters, cool kids and mimosa's in the morning... and then I wake up from my dream and am envisioning all 4 kids fighting over swinging on the lines, chasing each other around and around the deck, yelling and screaming and us needing to find a way to get their energy burned creatively. There will obviously be a good adjusting period that we will need to go through along with an anchorage far enough away from other boats where the Family Circus doesn't get a reputation as that boat nobody wants to anchor next too. Actually maybe thats not such a bad thing.:@)
Sunday, June 1, 2014
Everything seems to be falling into place
Wow!
That is all I can say for the last few weeks... I can finally say that we are definitely closer to our departure date in September. In the last 2 weeks we signed the purchase agreement for our new boat, signed the lease agreement to rent our house and signed the sale agreement on our old boat... It has been very exciting with all of the pressure of getting these few items accomplished. I can finally say with confidence that I believe we will actually pull this off.
With Chris passing all of his 6 tests to get his Captains License in one night... Holy Cow! I knew my husband was amazing but... Holy Cow! This usually is done over a few months if not longer... We are scheduled to take our Wilderness Survival First Aide Course this coming weekend and then the boat should be here within a few weeks after that. I really can't believe how fast time is flying right now and when they say time runs out quickly when you are planning a trip like this they aren't kidding.
We are now waiting for our new boat to arrive with much anticipation, and good thoughts for Pete and Tony in their sails coming north... With the weather patterns being a little funky right now they have been able to make their way up the coast from Nicaragua to Mexico. With our spot on board we are able to see them making their way. When they push a button on the spot it sends a signal to us via email telling us they are okay and then charts it on a map for us to see where they are. I guess its not as accurate as I thought at all times, since I know for a fact you can't sail a boat on land.... at least we can still see their progress. It is nice to be on this end of it so we can understand what friends and family will see when we are out and about and send a signal back to them.
Once the boat is here then it is a good look over to see what needs to be done to get her blue water ready again to turn around and go back out... We believe we need to haul her out and give her a good bottom paint, check the rigging, have the engines tuned up and purchase a few sails... We also need to really practiced sailing her. She is a new boat for us with new systems and reefing techniques (reducing the sail area for strong winds so you don't take your mast down) are critical for us all to get down prior to leaving. They say until you have reefed in 30 knot winds in pitch black soaking wet naked... you haven't really reefed a main sail in a storm.. Okay maybe not the naked part for us but I can just picture the chaos of trying to get the sails reefed before the 50 knot winds come... usually within a 5 minute span. Talk about a fire drill. We will need to really go thru all of the safety procedures with all the kids on board and make sure everyone knows what to do. We also need to add netting down the sides of the boat and make sure we are set with jack lines to tie onto while we are sailing. Yes! When we are out there it will be mandatory for all of us to be in life jackets and tethered to the jack lines so no one can fall over.
School is wrapping up and it is bitter sweet for me. Although I am really excited about our new adventure, the routine of school, activities, little trips up north and to shasta are a norm and a safety net... I often think, okay what will our life be like today a year from now and where will we be? It is hard to know how everyone will feel about changing our routines so dramatically and pulling them away from all that they have known for their whole life.
The anxieties that are running amuck in our house right now and the mood swings are crazy...but I truly feel that as soon as we get on the boat... and they will really understand what they have signed up for. The kids are truly amazing, they have given us their full trust and cooperation in going along with us. I know they don't have a choice but to go with the attitude that they have and the acceptance and excitement, I really give them kuddos. When I was their age... I know I would have given a lot more resistance to be pulled out of school and uprooted from my friends and home, to who knows what for 2 years. Not to mention being stuck on a 400 Square foot space with your family. We are truly blessed.
All the kids are so excited to see the new boat. As soon as it is possible we will begin living aboard so the kids will start to adjust prior to us leaving... I think the human body/mind can handle a lot of change but with the kids I feel that baby steps are important.
Anyway... I feel so much better right now about all that we are doing and getting prepared for... I know that nothing speaks of experience itself and we will be getting much more of that a long the way but in terms of preparation we are definitely checking off the boxes on all out lists and then going back and doing it again. There are just so many :@) Maybe we are in the eye of the storm and I know more chaos is to come but right now I am enjoying a little repreive and slowing things down just a little. Maybe even eat some bon bons and fall asleep watching Ellen.... Hmmmmm
That is all I can say for the last few weeks... I can finally say that we are definitely closer to our departure date in September. In the last 2 weeks we signed the purchase agreement for our new boat, signed the lease agreement to rent our house and signed the sale agreement on our old boat... It has been very exciting with all of the pressure of getting these few items accomplished. I can finally say with confidence that I believe we will actually pull this off.
With Chris passing all of his 6 tests to get his Captains License in one night... Holy Cow! I knew my husband was amazing but... Holy Cow! This usually is done over a few months if not longer... We are scheduled to take our Wilderness Survival First Aide Course this coming weekend and then the boat should be here within a few weeks after that. I really can't believe how fast time is flying right now and when they say time runs out quickly when you are planning a trip like this they aren't kidding.
We are now waiting for our new boat to arrive with much anticipation, and good thoughts for Pete and Tony in their sails coming north... With the weather patterns being a little funky right now they have been able to make their way up the coast from Nicaragua to Mexico. With our spot on board we are able to see them making their way. When they push a button on the spot it sends a signal to us via email telling us they are okay and then charts it on a map for us to see where they are. I guess its not as accurate as I thought at all times, since I know for a fact you can't sail a boat on land.... at least we can still see their progress. It is nice to be on this end of it so we can understand what friends and family will see when we are out and about and send a signal back to them.
Once the boat is here then it is a good look over to see what needs to be done to get her blue water ready again to turn around and go back out... We believe we need to haul her out and give her a good bottom paint, check the rigging, have the engines tuned up and purchase a few sails... We also need to really practiced sailing her. She is a new boat for us with new systems and reefing techniques (reducing the sail area for strong winds so you don't take your mast down) are critical for us all to get down prior to leaving. They say until you have reefed in 30 knot winds in pitch black soaking wet naked... you haven't really reefed a main sail in a storm.. Okay maybe not the naked part for us but I can just picture the chaos of trying to get the sails reefed before the 50 knot winds come... usually within a 5 minute span. Talk about a fire drill. We will need to really go thru all of the safety procedures with all the kids on board and make sure everyone knows what to do. We also need to add netting down the sides of the boat and make sure we are set with jack lines to tie onto while we are sailing. Yes! When we are out there it will be mandatory for all of us to be in life jackets and tethered to the jack lines so no one can fall over.
School is wrapping up and it is bitter sweet for me. Although I am really excited about our new adventure, the routine of school, activities, little trips up north and to shasta are a norm and a safety net... I often think, okay what will our life be like today a year from now and where will we be? It is hard to know how everyone will feel about changing our routines so dramatically and pulling them away from all that they have known for their whole life.
The anxieties that are running amuck in our house right now and the mood swings are crazy...but I truly feel that as soon as we get on the boat... and they will really understand what they have signed up for. The kids are truly amazing, they have given us their full trust and cooperation in going along with us. I know they don't have a choice but to go with the attitude that they have and the acceptance and excitement, I really give them kuddos. When I was their age... I know I would have given a lot more resistance to be pulled out of school and uprooted from my friends and home, to who knows what for 2 years. Not to mention being stuck on a 400 Square foot space with your family. We are truly blessed.
All the kids are so excited to see the new boat. As soon as it is possible we will begin living aboard so the kids will start to adjust prior to us leaving... I think the human body/mind can handle a lot of change but with the kids I feel that baby steps are important.
Anyway... I feel so much better right now about all that we are doing and getting prepared for... I know that nothing speaks of experience itself and we will be getting much more of that a long the way but in terms of preparation we are definitely checking off the boxes on all out lists and then going back and doing it again. There are just so many :@) Maybe we are in the eye of the storm and I know more chaos is to come but right now I am enjoying a little repreive and slowing things down just a little. Maybe even eat some bon bons and fall asleep watching Ellen.... Hmmmmm
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