A bit of a break

The last few days have been a break from our normal routine, including blogging.  After weathering our extremely frustrating Sunday, the last few days have been full of fun, errands and supply gathering.

We rented a hot car in order to take Cyrus to the Fort Lauderdale airport.  Cyrus flew to Denver on Tuesday to spend a week with Grammy and Grampy and see his beloved friends and cousins- and have a real kid Halloween!  Cyrus flew alone- which was much harder on me than it was on him- he is growing up so quickly... *sigh.

While we have a car and some kid-free time, Tyler and I went to Sailorman, a sail and motor boat surplus store.  It is a warehouse full of discounted boat parts- we dug and dug and dug and found some bargains.  We also spent today driving around Vero Beach, provisioning the boat and finding creative solutions for things like a cockpit table and a more cushioned mattress.
The cockpit table is going to be a post all by itself- I am so amazed with Tyler's ability to visualize a mechanical system, know what parts will be necessary, and create something.  We will probably make one more trip to Home Depot, however, by the end of it all, Tyler will have created a $50 solution for a $350 cockpit table.
Back to work tomorrow!  Much to do- Install a new mast navigation light, clean the boat, figure out the diesel engine problem, create a V-berth cushion solution, clean the cabin cushions, sand the toe rail, organize the navigation table, organize the quarter berth....all before happy hour of course!

Images from our recent cruise down the ICW:

A regatta we passed

Cyrus and Tyler project planning on the bow

Our island anchorage

Cocoa Beach anchorage

A draw bridge- I still love calling the bridge

Whew...that was hard

I try not to whine about hardships when I blog. I fully understand the privileges we are afforded and respect how hard everyone else is working- trying to balance a career and childcare etc., so when I complain- it's fo' real.
Today was ***** rough.  It started out leaving our lovely island dockage, having to use our deep-cycle batteries to start the engine instead of just the staring battery- not good...must check that.  We tested our auto-pilot an hour into our cruise and determined that it was broken as well- a disappointment- but it may be fix-able yet!  Keeping a stiff upper-lip, we continued toward Vero Beach- where we thought we'd moor for the night and motor south on Monday, then rent a car and drive Cyrus to the Fort Lauderdale airport to visit Grammy and Grampy and Maddie and Brooke and Zeno and Zahara and maybe even Leah in Denver for the next 7 days.
Navigating to the Vero Beach city marina involves a left turn across the ICW to another channel.  All day, we'd been passed by gigantic motor boats (throwing large wakes) and passing rather closely in a narrow channel.  About 100 yards from our harrowing left turn across the ICW and the large motor-yachts, the diesel engine of Mirage began to change pitch and choke and then die....in the middle of a channel- sure to run-aground on either side and gigantic luxury yachts screaming by ....the engine simply died.  We quickly dropped an anchor and attempted some repairs- meaning Tyler had an idea of what was wrong and I just stood there and made sure he felt better.  We were able to limp (engine would run and sputter-then Tyler would squeeze the fuel pump bulb and the engine would run again....IN THE MIDDLE OF A CHANNEL)  to the Vero Beach marina and hook to a mooring (an anchored buoy).
All good! we thought...  we decided to get a slip for the night so we went to the office and asked for a slip and a clean out (pump-out of the sewage holding tank).
For some reason, the marina clean-out would not suck the ***t from our boat.. Another item to address tomorrow.  After that, when we attempted to connect to shore power with our cord,  no power was available... and its probably our cord....so no electricity tonight.
We then tried to walk from the marina to Vero Beach for beer (after the unsuccessful attempt at Malabar) and ended up with a lecture about leaving Zander outside a restaurant from an over-zealous humane society employee (who was tanked by the way).
I was ready to punch someone when I found a local mini-mart establishment that boasted fine wine and cigars, beer food etc.  I am not kidding that Ode to Joy was playing when I entered the store.  After that, we were able to find a restaurant that would allow Zander to hang out with us while we ate and then took a cab home....

Tyler and I are currently fantasizing about selling the boat and moving to Peru.

Everything will be ok...I still would rather stay on the boat than in a hotel.

Faith in humanity

We motored through the ICW today, passing the Kennedy Space Center and completing our journey (during daylight hours) in the spoils (man-made islands) just South of Malabar, FL.  Surveying the island,  (one of about seven?), we assumed that the people already on the island were in a group and would be unhappy with our presence.  (Cyrus was just happy to see kids that might play with him- way better than his naggy parents).   As we arrived, however, we were greeted by several friendly people- especially Bruce, the self- proclaimed care taker of that particular island (maybe .5 mile in circumference?).  Turned out that
Bruce, a member of the Malibar Mariners, who have adopted the island, was a seasoned sailor and happy to share stories of adventure and advice on anchoring...for better or worse.
We pulled in to our Malabar island anchorage needing ice and.....beer (need?  yes.. need).  Bruce was happy to share stories and, after a questioning period, rum and cokes.  Tyler attempted to dingy to shore for ice and beer, however, fate would say no and Bruce ended up saving the day.
I am sure that Bruce and I would not agree about many things- religious and political, however, the only thing that mattered when we pulled up was that we shared a love of the water and the island.  Bruce happily shared his fire pit, home-made salsa and alcohol, and all for a bit of conversation.  I wish we were all more like Bruce, happy to share what we have without condition and welcoming to all who come.

Let's not do that again soon...

Today was a relatively uneventful cruise from Mosquito Lagoon to Coconut Beach- the relatively comes from a few moments of terror weaved in between long stretches of driving at 5 knots (I can run faster 5 than 3 knots...not long... but its possible).  First thrilling moment- entering the Titusville marina, only to be greeted by a local who thought it would be entertaining to maneuver his sailboat within 10 feet of ours to say "welcome to Florida."  Needless to say, if that's the welcome- I'm leaving.
The final thrilling moment was a 40 minute cruise up the ICW to Coconut Beach in the dark.  Of you've ever put up a tent in the dark, you understand how a simple task can turn into a cluster in low light.  We chose an anchorage close to other moorings and were a bit worried about drifting into other boats or into the channel all night.  On the up-side, we gained valuable experience and know that we want to make sure we anchor in good lighting for some time to come.

And the real adventure begins...

At 10:30 this morning, we left the Seven Seas Marina- our home for the past 5 weeks.  We said our good-byes to Dieter and Karin,

And set out south on the Intracoastal Waterway.  This first part of our journey is honestly not that sexy.  We motored the entire day because of the unpredictability of the winds on the ICW and the skinny channel.  Today's journey was a bit like driving all day- but still way cooler because I could make coffee and meals and Cyrus and Zander could move around....and we are on a boat!

We navigated our way in to Mosquito Lagoon using our iPad- with a cool navigation app- iNavX, our iPhone with an app that marks marinas, anchorages local knowledge and hazzards- all from user input, and a GPS...a little much for the ICW- but hey, we're noobs.... And we did it! 

Our current anchorage:

It is a bit chilly, maybe 70 degrees- I know, that's shorts weather in CO- and the wind is blowing 15 mph...but it's so peaceful.  Possibly because this one didn't quite make it through anchoring-

Tyler and I made a toast to our successful day and probably what will be a long night...is the anchor holding? What was that? Is the wind changing direction?

Now we just need Zander to understand that this is just as good as grass.

 
 
 

 
 

 

We're going...we're staying......we're going....we're staying

After much deliberation- we decided to stay in the marina one more night.  We head south in the morning!  The winds should be favorable!

Our route down the ICW tomorrow- the last note says that we may get further than Mosquito Lagoon.. we shall see

A few pictures

As our time at the Seven Seas Marina comes to a close, Cyrus and I thought we would include some pictures of our surroundings.

Our dingy next to our dock- Panta Rhei (Dieter and Karin's boat) in the background

Our dock

Cutest child in the United States

The walk from the dock to Pat's Cafe (below)

 A few interior shots of Pat's Cafe- Cyrus loves the pancakes and bacon (the pancakes come with a Fruit Loop smiley face)

 My tree climber...

 And the beach....yes- those are cars on the beach... and driving lanes

Big Ben

What to do at the end of a long, hot, frustrating Monday?

Build lego Big Ben of course!

 
 

While you're down there...

A curious behavior develops as a result of the tight living quarters on a boat: assigned multitasking. I will illustrate: if you are in the cockpit and a family member is in the cabin (downstairs), you first ask them to hand you a... New beer, screwdriver (the tool- we're not that bad yet), key to the boat, plastic bag... before you get up and get if yourself.  This is partly laziness (more so when asking for a beer), but mostly  because it really is easier for the family member in the cabin to grab something on their way up through the one person companionway than for both family members to do an awkward stop and wait/maneuver dance to get past each other- this happens enough just getting to the head and fixing breakfast.  

The assigned multitasking also takes other forms.  If you're going to shower in the marina shower, you might as well do a load of laundry.  If you're going on a run, take the dog and return a movie.

On an even larger scale, Tyler gave a perfect demonstration of this concept in his work today.  He had to fix a cracked sewage plumbing pipe- while he was down there and the interior of the boat was upside-down and everything was uncovered, he replaced all the sewage pipe (3 total), cleaned the valves and checked the seacock- all things he had wanted to do at some point, but necessity through the tasks together in a nice, albeit stinky and grimy, project.  

Unlike the trip up the mast, this project was highly productive and Tyler is now sleeping soundly knowing that at least one system is almost all new again.  

I am very lucky and grateful that Tyler understands mechanical systems so well.  So, I will continue to  happily hand him a new beer when I'm closer to the cooler and the companionway.

How boat things go

I climbed the mast today.  Maybe I should say I was hoisted up the mast today.  All the way to the tippy top using   a bosun's chair. Nowadays, a bosun's chair is made of tough nylon with lots of ways to be securely fastened in. Traditional chairs were more like a wood plank swing- I'm glad we were able to borrow a tricked out modern day seat!

That said, at the top of the mast, I was tasked with removing to old- I'm not really sure what happened to it- anchor light:

And replace it with the new- albeit cheaper- light:

There are some obvious differences between these two lights- the problem is that I did not know of all of these differences until I came to the top of the mast, removed the original and sat there- up there- wondering how to get the new light where the old light used to be- and that's the way of boats.  Especially when you're a first time boat owner in a new boat.  You never quite know what each project is going to bring.  So I went to the top of the mast and really accomplished nothing useful. Video of the mast climb is coming. 

Me with a go pro on my head

Updated photo from the top of the mast

Happy Birthday Tyler!

Great day- ended with Legos and a dinner out... Tyler is now officially pushing 40.
 
 

It's Biketoberfest!

And I don't mean road bikes.  More like 150,000 Harleys in Daytona Beach.

I'm sure this weekend and it's longer cousin- Bike Week, in March-do a great deal for the Daytona Beach economy.  When the bikes are not here, it's just old people and a small number of tourists.  Many store fronts are vacant on the Daytona Beach strip.  So- welcome bikers... I'm not sure what they do besides ride up and down the A1A (beach road)... But I don't have a Harley, so I will only have to guess.

Unrelated pics-

Our neighbor, Dieter (with his GoPro on his head)- he took Tyler to St. Augustine today... On his Harley.. Not related to Biketoberfest..

 Tyler in the cockpit - taken from the companionway (the front door)

 

How's school going?

When we decided to go on this adventure, one of the obvious choices we made was to homeschool our son.  Cyrus was very excited to have me as his teacher...this summer...before we started lessons. 

I have a great deal of resources: an entire year of lessons from his teacher- including mimeo stacks (like power points), all the CO and Common Core standards to reference, quite a few fun skill practicing apps and a cool subscription to an i-magazine. So far, however, Cyrus and I have struggled to find the best learning situation on the boat...ie- when it's time to really do lessons- it's not pretty--like first year teaching not pretty.  Many times Cyrus will refuse to work or avoid it- I think he even did the laundry once to avoid doing a spelling lesson with me.  Unlike a first year teacher, however, I do not blame my child for this issue- I blame the teacher.

Cyrus is a true active learner.  He does NOT do well with "sit and do" type lessons.   So, we've almost stopped them altogether. In the last few days, Tyler and I have decided to engage Cyrus more in working on the boat- in real activities as part if his school work.  So far he has helped install a light, change the position of a VHF radio, uninstall an antenna and broken hardware and wash the boat. 

He still reads with me and does math and projects for science, however, trying to make homeschooling on a boat like going to school is...well...silly.  Children have a brilliant way of showing you how they need to learn.  I'm sure by the end of our adventure, Cyrus will be able to add and subtract fluently within 100, spell because correctly, articulate how a barnacle interacts with its environment to survive, and read and talk about a story.  He may also be able to use the right tools to solve a problem and he'll have the confidence that only comes from doing real work. 

If not...he's young for his grade-level- he can just do it over....

Just kidding grandpa...

Tight Quarters

 

 

Sunken boat adventure

We sailed to 2 hurricane wrecks on the ICW today.  It was our first time anchoring off the ICW- which is akin to pulling off a highway and parking.  I stayed with the boat and Tyler and Cyrus rowed to and explored the wrecks in the dingy. 

I will repost with more pics of the wrecks- but the trip was well worth the effort. 

Cyrus was convinced that he could push the boats back into the water and take one for himself.  *He really wants his own boat- an ongoing discussion and struggle for us right now. After seeing a giant hole in each boat, however, he changed his mind. 

I held down the fort on the anchored boat- which was terrifying for the first 15 minutes and then very relaxing.

A note from Cyrus

From his quarter berth:

What has been the best part of the adventure so far?

Hmm- looking at the sunken boats (see other blog post). 

What has been the worst part?

Nothin- (we could all learn from him in this respect)

What do you miss the most about Denver?

Grandma, Grandma, Zeno, Zahara, Maddie, Brooke and the Wii.

What are you looking forward to?

Diving and catching my own food

What's the most important thing you've learned?

Always tie your boat to a piling and always follow the wind when you're sailing (don't beat to weather).

What else would you like tell everyone?

I have a dingy and I can row it and sailboats also have motors.  
 

Jack-o-lantern time

On a boat?  Yes

This early in October? Why not

These are the best picks I could get tonight... 

 

 

Reading from Paulo Coelho

http://paulocoelhoblog.com/2013/07/10/those-who-were-never-defeated/

A powerful reading no matter where you are on your journey.

Neighbors

We were invited to share snacks and sangria with our neighbors, Deiter and Karin, on their boat, the Panta Rei.  They are a German and Swiss couple who have been sailing and traveling for 20 years.  Their generosity and friendliness has been very nice at the marina and we hope to see them throughout our travels.  

In addition, our other neighbor, Lilly, gave us a beautiful print of a picture she took of Cyrus.

I'm not sure if the image translates well as a picture of a picture, but it was very touching to have someone else see beauty and energy in Cyrus.

 

See? it's not all that bad

After all the drama from last night, I'm happy to report that we have normal water again- including a new additional water bladder and functioning shower (and drain) in the head.

The super boat engine mechanic came and said we simply need new engine mounts- fingers crossed that does the trick. And-

As luck would have it... The mobile septic holding tank cleanout guy pulled up in the marina today to pull his boat out and fix it over night- he'll do a clean out of our tank tomorrow for $5 just because he's here.  He doesn't really do that for boats like ours- total karma payback.  I will continue to tip 20+% and pick up every nail I see on the ground. 

And finally, late tonight, the winds have died down and the waves are calm... 

Gut Check

According to the international laws of parenting, no child shall ever have a high fever or choking cough or extreme vomiting during nice weather or normal human hours.  

And so goes the boat.

We had a terrific day- navigated the bus system fairly successfully (aside from ending up on wrong side of a fence and ditch- but the correct street!) went to the planetarium and chocolate factory (again!) and made it back to the boat wet from rain, but happy.  

Ty and I then inspected the sewage tank because it looked full again even though it shouldn't be very full- sorry for the detail here- we use the marina toilets 90% of the time.  After some discussion, we determined that the tank should be cleaned out again and the head (boat potty) would be closed until we do so.  Normally this is not a huge issue- aside from having to walk to a bathroom in the middle of the night.  Our engine is out of commission, however, so we don't know when a sewage tank clean out is really going to happen.  On top of that, it is raining and extremely windy and I watched a zombie movie 2 nights ago...so I'm not really excited about the 3am per breaks.

Actually the sewage tank issue is now the third large system to be down- all at the same time: engine, water and sewer.  We've been doing dishes with a garden hose (made for drinking water) fitted with a water filter- trust me, it's way more fun than it sounds.  The water tank should be up and runnjng tomorrow. 

We have no motor until later this week...maybe ...and now no bathroom.  Our spirits are a bit dampened to say the least- at least Tyler and I feel that way-Cyrus still thinks the boat is awesome.

I pouted for a little bit and went to finish a load of laundry.  On the way, I did a gut check- did I want to give up for the night and stay in a hotel? No... Did I want to quit and buy a non-floating house? No... 

And so this too shall pass.

**on a side note, after writing this post: While trekking to the bathroom at 3am (with my designated bathroom buddy-Cyrus) I noticed the clouds had cleared somewhat and I could see Orion and the Big Dipper clearly in the Eastern sky.  Making the best of it...

Just being together

Today was a great day. We didn't necessarily get a great deal done on the boat, although an engine mechanic was called, an order was put in for new lifelines and the interior of the boat is clean. Our day ended up just a wonderful day of being a family. Nothing too sexy- we went to the grocery store (which is a walk-we have no car), were stranded at Denny's due to rain, Tyler and Cyrus snuck in some boogie boarding, played Magic after dinner- we were just together. It was superb.

Sunday dingy ride

When our engine is out of alignment and is frustrating the entire family- we like to take our small inflatable boat out for a spin and maybe a glass of wine or beer and steamed shrimp.  This puts things into better perspective. Yes this has already happened more than once.

Even Zander gets to go!

Cyrus at the fish food vending machine