i heart sailing

We finally got to exhale this season with Naia. I remember when we reached that time with Zach. He was about the same age Naia is now, about 4, and Doug and I looked at each other and said, "Hey, we don't have to have one eyeball on him 24/7 anymore to keep him safe. He has a head on his shoulders, he knows the rules and routines, we can exhale and look the other way now."

It's not that we're helicopter parents, quite the polar opposite. However living on a boat and sailing on a boat with little kids requires super powers of supervision. And of course it doesn't mean we're not supervising now... it just means we can exhale and look the other way every now and again.

And you know what happened in the midst of all of this. I remembered something amazing. I love to sail.

Weird right? Not so much though. You would not believe the number of people (sadly especially women) who cruise and live aboard but hate to sail, don't know how to sail, or are extremely nervous and unsettled by sailing. People get into this lifestyle for many reasons. Many are following the dream of a spouse, some are in it for the travel, some are trying to check something off the bucket list before it's too late, some are trying to prove how different they are, some just like the idea of living outside the mainstream, and so on.

But I started this whole crazy journey and lifestyle way back when because I actually like to sail. And this season I finally found that part of me again.

It started earlier in the summer when a local captain and friend (check out her web site here, she is a fabulous captain and instructor for anyone looking to learn http://www.shesailsu.com/ ) invited me to sail with her and some other women in a regatta this summer. Racing is how I really got into sailing back in my early 20's and it's something I have missed a lot. And as we were out there I realized that although I do love this alternative lifestyle, and the travel, and the community, and the closeness to nature and each other, I also love to just sail. Sailing a small monohull around in circles on a hot day, going nowhere, but just sailing for the fun of it, yes! It was so good, and I was so grateful she gave me the opportunity to rediscover that joy again.

And as we were out sailing this month, going nowhere in particular, it hit me again. The hard parts are coming to a close. I am no longer chief baby holder, toddler chaser, and food prep machine. They can handle themselves now. Not completely, but enough so that I can enjoy the sailing part of sailing, instead of just feeling like I am chasing and soothing kids in a wobbly home.

Big boat, small boat, my boat, someone else's boat, going somewhere special, or going around the buoys... it totally doesn't matter. It just feels good being out there.

Pippi and Sherlock

A long time ago we used to throw Halloween parties. Big, joyful gatherings for the kids to go wild and savor this holiday that is so purely for little people.  And then I had an October baby. 

So now I am just grateful that other people love Halloween as much as I do, so that the kids can enjoy this time without me having to exert any effort.

We carved the flock of pumpkins that landed on our boat. Zach lined them up along the dock so that they could be on display for anyone strolling by.

 

Zach decided to be classic Sherlock Holmes this year and Naia wanted to be Pippi Longstocking. 

(Sherlock dropped his pipe overboard.)

And when the big night came, we had more than the usual amount of kids boat trick-or-treating. Aside from the neighborhood kids, there were some passing through kid boats and some land based friends of boat kids who joined in making it a mighty herd stomping up the docks. 

Zach was blissed out with his friends collecting sweets and treats. Naia was... overwhelmed. "Too many big kids!", she declared. "And nobody is following the rules! They can't run on the dock." It was just too much for her. 

And she was under the weather to start with, so she only lasted about 20 minutes. My girl who has a huge sweet tooth suddenly had no interest in candy and chocolate, she just wanted to come home, have a mama made pumpkin chocolate chip muffin and cuddle.

It was a happy Halloween.

we have a pumpkin problem

Hello. I am here today to talk about our pumpkin problem. You see, we have an absolutely ridiculous amount of pumpkins, especially for people who live on a sailboat. The kids LOVE pumpkins, in a deep, unnatural way. And I will admit I have a thing for them too. And this is the time of year when everywhere we go someone is handing us an orange, lumpy sphere of happiness. Every fall festival or homeschool outing or trip to get groceries somehow results in another pumpkin. The orange rascals are everywhere.

And so when we want to go sailing, we end up with a scene like this.

And that's not even all of them... sigh.

We made the grave mistake a week or so ago of heading out on a rough evening sail with all of the pumpkins in tow. One of the huge heavy ones went flying across the cockpit and nearly clobbered poor Naia. From then on I told Zach is was his job to get them all off the boat before we cast off. Well, almost all. Big Bertha stayed because honestly I think she weighs more than Zach does. She is the white gorda gourd under the fairy house in this photo...

Zach saw this set up at a local farm, and said, "Oh mommy can we build something like that on the boat?" Nooooooooooooooooo!

Some will be carved, some are just adorning the boat au naturel, some will become candles, and some I am giving away to unsuspecting visitors. Hello, welcome aboard! Can I offer you a pumpkin or a glass of wine or maybe a pumpkin?

And with each pumpkin acquisition of course comes the gratuitous pumpkin photos that every parent in America takes this time of year.

So, anyone have some pumpkin recipes they want to share ;)

Four

My wee girl is now four years old. She's spunky, sharp as a tack, loving, fierce, and curious. I love how she plays with insects, sings and sings, and talks the day away making up little stories. Oh the stories that go and go. Any two things become her characters, safety pins, crayons, grains of rice, they all get assigned roles and talk to each other quite dramatically. And the blurred line between make believe and reality always shows when she narrates herself through everyday activities.

"Mommy where are my shoes, I asked?"

"I don't want any carrots, I declared walking away from the table."

Her birthday was full of heavy rain and dark clouds, but my little sunshine didn't care a bit. She had everything she requested, just mommy, dada, brother, and chocolate cake, perhaps not in that order. We played, read stories, ate her favorite foods (black beans and more black beans), and watched a movie.

Doug carved out a fairy house from a pumpkin the night before that was waiting for her in the morning. I saw one just like it on Pinterest and left him to make it happen. He did a fabulous job, way better than I would have managed. And she was over the moon thrilled!

And Zach came  up with the idea of taking cicada wings (yeah we did just happen to have some laying around) and covering them in glitter and tape and leaving them out for her as fairy wings.

Once the rain stopped, we went for a little walk.

And we asked her what she wanted to do. "Mommy, I want to see something I have never seen before!" I love that idea! With only a couple of hours of daylight left, we bailed out the dinghy and hopped in for a ride into town to watch the Sailboat Show breakdown. So many boats moving around to oooh and ahhh at,. It was a mini adventure, just like her.

Happy Birthday Naia!

Is it time now?

She knows the date, recites it dutifully when strangers ask. October 13. But time and dates and months are totally abstract to a 3 year old. What's not abstract are the signs in nature around us. She knows the change means it's coming. She opened the door this week and looked out across the creek at the trees on the far shore.

"The leaves are changing color! The leaves are colors now, they're turning red and orange and yellow. Is it my happy birthday now?"

Soon, baby girl, it's coming so soon.