Thank God Christmas is over!!

Just had to get that out. I’m not saying that I don’t enjoy the festivities, I do, but once their done Amy and I can start planning for the next year. Particularly the continuation of our sailing education, planned boat projects back home, and day dreaming of future sailing adventures.

This morning I booked our next sailing course(s). Two years ago when we started on our sailing adventure, we flew to Texas to take ASA 101 and after a particularly interesting time (Amy breaking the tiller of our small sailing class room and the death of our instructor’s pet rat), we fell in love with sailing and returned to Iowa and bought our first boat. We will be heading back to the same school in Kemah, Texas (www.lets-go-sailing.net) and be completing our ASA 103 (basic costal cruising) and 104 (bareboat chartering) classes. Our new sailing class room will be a 36 ft. S/V. Amy's first question....."There’s no tiller, right?" This class also includes our first charter, on the same 36' boat on the last day. Will try to get family and friends to come experience it with us. At the time of writing this post, Amy was unaware that the boat we will be sailing for class is our own “Mary O”. The first boat we slept on, and is pictured above with Amy showing off her captain pose.

But that isn't till late March. In the mean we have a lot of boat maintenance to do this spring. This is evidence when your neighbor (our local sailing Guru, Karl) comes over and tells you, "We have work to do." Our laundry list of chores includes new bottom paint for the boat, bright work (re-varnishing all the outside teak), new ignition for the boat, reworking the bilge pump so that it lays flat and works, and replacing the bilge blower. Sounds like a lot but we are not splashing the boat till May when the weather is better.

As far as dreaming of future sailing adventures, we will be deciding whether or not to sell our vessel (Clair de lun) and moving up to a larger vessel (our final vessel while we are Midwest bound). Also, Amy and I will begin working on our education through reading Sailing Blogs (okay mainly Me), and planning to fly to Puerto Rico for a week of sailing through the Spanish Virgin Islands. The first charter, mentioned above will go a long way to ensure that we are able to complete this plan.

One last note, We will be moving our boat from the slip that we occupied all last year (the end of middle open dock that was in the channel and subject to all severe weather) to the most protected spot at Buck Creek Marina on lake Rathbun. We hope our friends will contact us and come sailing this year.

Fair winds and keep looking for updates. This year is going to be exciting.


**I would like to say a special thanks to some Sailblog friends that we have mirrored our progress from. The husband and wife crew of Picaroon, who are from England and currently sailing the Caribbean waters and are live aboards.