We had our first solo family sailing trip. Yep! Everyone came. All the kids including Mermaid. After a 3 hour drive to Tom's River, NJ (yeesh!) we finally got our boat and hit the water. Torpedo hated the idea from the get go, Sparkle was inclined to be bored and Mermaid was just along for the ride. The rest of us had at least done the classes previously.
It was a new boat, new waters and 3 new sailors, so there was a bit of mayhem (and screaming from a very scared Torpedo). We dropped one sail-tie in the water straight off, ran into one of the channel posts trying to recover it and then lost Angelfish's hat into the water. It was a freebee from a conference, so we decided to let it sink to the bottom.
After the initial turmoil, we regained our bearings, remembered some of what we had learned in our class and managed to make our way up and down the river without running into anyone/thing, not running aground and keeping all the O's in the boat. BL (Bottom Line): we ended successfully!
Post-sailing allowed time to throw rocks of various and sundry sizes into the water from the pier, a chance to use the bathroom and eat, then over to the ocean for an hour or two of watching the sun set behind us and watching the moon rise in front of us. Truly glorious.
Some bad traffic on the way home. We arrived at 11:30pm (12 hours round-trip) but we did it! Gosh darn it. And we're proud of it.
Outcome: Sparkle changed her mind and decided sailing wasn't boring at all, but rather liked it. Torpedo decided screaming his head off wasn't helping him or anyone else around him and settled into it gradually, and Mermaid managed to stay upright in the boat thanks to her "Bumbo" seat. Star, Angelfish & Tangerine managed the sails beautifully and My Hero got some much needed skipper practice time. (Tangerine even managed trimming the sails while nursing! Amazing.) We left with 2 adults, 5 kids and we returned with 2 adults, 5 kids. Success! Ahoy matey!
2 comments:
"Ahoy! Ahoy! I sail!...I just let the ship do the work. That's my secret...I wonder what I'll take up next." Thank you, "What About Bob?"
You guys are so cool--even if the travel was beastly and the Eli was loud. Eli looks so big! And Lily was just chillin'! Not much else she could do in a Bumbo AND a life-jacket, I guess. I'm so proud of you guys for trying new things together! I love the pics.
And I love the photo-shoot below. So cool to know how to do a braid. Karina will be pleased to know that I've recently learned to paint nails without completely coating the entire finger--or toe--in nail polish. It's still not perfect, but maybe she won't ask me if Tommy painted my nails next time. (Right now my fingernails are HOT pink!) I want to learn how to braid next time I see you guys!
sounds and looks like so much fun....I wished so much that we could have done this with you.
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