Photo's Trip 3

This one is for Mom - Mt. Baker

Nick took a swim at Shallow Bay. Water was 59 degrees!

Rowing the doggies to shore! (Shallow Bay)

Catching some rays (Shallow Bay)

Roxy trying to take a nap

This one is for the woman who asked for more photo's! :)

We were eating breakfast and Roxy was looking in on us. Thought this was too cute!

At our Home Port - Movie night!

Things to be grateful for....

We are mid-trip right now, currently at the Semiahmoo Marina looking at a slip for my folks to potentially lease. I'll give a full update of our current trip at a later date, but wanted to write about some of the things that I am grateful for.

How this all started... Everyday, I am stating something that I am grateful for! Yesterday after a shower, my mom said "Now I know why Oprah started a gratitude journal!" So, I thought I'd jot down a few things that I am grateful for that I had previously taken advantage of! :) Some of this may be TMI (too much information), but I'm going to share because it is the truth!

In no particular order....

Things I'm Grateful For:

1. Showers!!!!! - At home, everyday and sometimes twice a day I took advantage of this luxury! I had no idea how important it was until I have had to go without! Most days I now shower via baby wipes! When we are at a marina I am so grateful to have the opportunity to get a "real" shower!

2. An unlimited supply of WATER! - Something that I only sort of thought about at home, having grown up in Southern CA. On the boat we only have a limited supply of water when we go out, so we have to be VERY careful how we use the water - hence the lack of real showers. :)

3. Toilet Seat Covers! - When you are a female and are frequenting public toilets/outhouses, when you get to a location that has toilet seat covers, it totally makes your day!

4. Ability to get food at any time - When on a trip, the only food you have is the food you remembered to bring. If you forgot something, you are out of luck....if you run out of something too bad!

5. Dumpsters - What you bring on the boat, stays on the boat. All of the trash that you make, goes along for the ride. We have to be VERY careful how much extra trash we produce on our excursions. Mom and I have found a way to reduce trash, but it is still a challenge!

6. Washing Machines - At home, anytime I want to wash something I do! On the boat, I can only wash clothes when we are at a town. Let's just say...I have gotten used to wearing my clothes for three days! Never thought that would happen! :)

7. Space - Oh, to have space! 4 people on a 44ft (living space) boat, isn't a lot of space! We have to be very creative when storing our stuff. Hence my gratefulness for washing machines.

8. My King size BED!!!! - Nick, Roxy, and I share the bow of the boat. A small triangular bunk that holds all of our shit and us!

9. My Bedroom - Because we are in a bunk at the bow of the boat, it is a small space that we literally crawl into. At night I have to get up to go to the bathroom at least two times, and let me tell you...crawling out and back into the bunk is no easy task! :)

10. Tying up to a dock - Roxy and Boots (my parents dog) are on the trip with us. Every time they have to go to the bathroom, we have to take them to shore. When we are tied up to a mooring buoy at a state park, we have to row to shore to take the dogs to go to the bathroom. Some mornings and some nights, it is that LAST thing I want to do!

Now don't read this the wrong way! I am so grateful for this opportunity! I will take all of the negatives any day to have this opportunity! I just thought I'd put this out there so that those who are thinking we are living a luxurious life, know that there are some sides of this lifestyle that aren't for everyone. It looks real good on the outside, but don't be fooled...we pay a small price to see the sun rise and set on the water everyday! :)

Round Two - Photos

Walking the dogs at FridayHarbor

John & Louise at TurnIsland

Lounging on the boat at Turn Island

One of the many trips to shore with Roxy (Turn Island)

Amazing sunset that mom missed because she wouldn't get out of bed! (Turn Island)

Nick taking Boots & Roxy to shore (Turn Island)

Wonder if he feels the draft coming through his sock???

Happy Captain!!! (Turn Island)

Nick, Natalie, & Roxy (Jones Island)

Boots, Mom, & Natalie (Jones Island)

Boots - Rough life!

Round Two

After a break from sailing we decided to head out for Memorial Day weekend. We boarded the boat on Thursday evening after a 4 hour wait for the ferry. Thankfully we had packed food and beverages for our long haul so we were prepared to kill time.

Friday morning we headed to Friday Harbor to run some errands and eat lunch. We stayed at the dock for the allotted 4 hours and decided to head to Turn Island to stay the night. As we were tying up to the mooring buoy at Turn Island, my mom recognized the boat moored next to us. It was Louise & John's boat! We got our dingy off the boat and were getting ready to head over to their boat. Then we spotted them coming around the corner of the island in two row boats. After waving and yelling Hello, they headed our direction...they were just as shocked to see us as we were them!

After a visit with John & Louise we decided to stayed Friday night at Turn Island. We couldn't wait until morning to explore the island. On Saturday we walked around the island, and made a few trips to shore to allow the dogs to run around. We decided that we were having so much fun that we would stay Saturday night as well.

We lucked out with nice weather on Sunday and played on the island some more. The boys blew up my folks kayak and went exploring around the area. Mom and I had to laugh at the boys as they couldn't make it all the way around the island due to the current, but John & Louise had no problem in their individual row boats!

After a day filled with fun in the sun and a few cocktails mom and I took the dogs to shore in the evening and were sitting on the beach enjoying the sun. As we were basking in the evening sun we watched Max start to take off the sail covers, and run the Jib line. We were sitting on shore thinking there is NO WAY we are going sailing! Next thing we know, Nick is up on deck hollering and waving for us to come back to the boat. Mom and I had a good laugh, and contemplated ignoring them but thought we had better follow the Captains rules. We quickly gathered the dogs and started rowing back to the boat. Once we got to the boat we prepped everything for sailing, put our life vests on, and waited for our orders. Dad said "Good job, everyone made it back to the boat, and prepped the boat to sail in less than 20 minutes. A successful drill!" What! It was just a drill! We could hardly believe it! So, we got another good laugh for the day and called it a night.

Monday we decided that we would head over to Jones Island for a night or two. We pulled in and totally lucked out! Just as we were getting ready to grab a mooring buoy three boats left the dock! So, we switched direction and tied up to the dock. We hung out for the day, going for hikes, and taking the dogs for walks. In the evening the Sheriff came by to give "free" safety inspections to all of the boats tied up to the dock. Thankfully the inspection was painless and we passed. We got a kick out of watching the other boats get inspected and irritated that their boats weren't up to snuff. As the sun was beginning to go down, Nick and I went for a kayaking trip around the west side of the island to watch the sun go down. Unfortunately Nick didn't bring the camera so I don't have pictures to show, but it was the most amazingly beautiful sight. We must have been out for an hour or so and saw only two boats! We saw two dolphins, lots of jelly fish, two deer grazing, and my parents! Yes, my parents had walked to the other side of the island so we ran into them as well. :) That kayaking trip is one of my most favorite memories with Nick. The view was totally incredible!!! I can't even begin to put into words how amazing it was.

Tuesday morning we slept in and decided to stay another day/night at Jones Island. We thought we might get rained on as the weather report predicted rain. Wrong! Around noon we got a couple of sprinkles...just enough time to get the tarps up and the weather cleared again. We spent the day going on a couple of hikes and watching the drama at the dock. Sometimes there is more dock drama than the Real Housewives! People are so particular about their space on the dock that they become inconsiderate of others. It is funny to watch the drama!

Wednesday morning (today) we got up and decided to head back to Orcas to take showers, and supply up to go out again. The weather report predicted rain today but we haven't seen it yet.... We will be on Orcas for the remainder of the day today and tomorrow and then head out for another adventure. So far round two has been a thousand times better than round one! We are thoroughly enjoying the incredible scenery, beautiful sunny weather, and adventures that each day brings. Even Roxy has adjusted better on round two! If things continue to go this well, we are going to have an awesome summer! :)