Hope everyone is enjoying themselves whereever they are!  Here’s a quick look at the highlights of the Moondance crew this past year:

Christmas at Exuma Park

Moondance and Onward at Staniel Cay for New Years

Many Sundowner parties on the beach

Fun with my new underwater camera

Watching the race up close!

Fun hikes with Mike and Angie (and Joe who is taking the picture!)

Our favorite boat guests, Rick and Eva

New friends–a bit surly…

My Happy Place

Traveling the waterway

Skip leaves on Lady of Lorien…made it to Bermuda and bailed out…LOL makes it home to the UK safely after a rough trip

Easy summer Chesapeake Bay cruising

We drive to Florida and bring Mom back for a visit (here with my sister and her daughters.)

Bailey enjoys the good life

Alan loves crabs! I got to spend more time with my brother than I can remember since we were kids.

With my brother and sister in Sanibel. We were ‘there for each other’ as our mother always instructed us

Skip’s guitar shrinks (nah, it’s his new ukelele!)

Jen and Bill enjoy steamed crabs

We survive Hurricane Irene (but our only tree doesn’t)

My Mom dies unexpectedly, leaving a huge hole in my heart

Fabulous aspen colors in Colorado

Jen starts her own speech therapy practice in Denver

And too many more happy memories to post!!

We had some laughs going through old pictures and documents.  Why did she keep holiday card mailing lists going back to 1967?  tax returns from 1950?  the 1972 Cosmopolitan magazine with the infamous nude centerfold of Bert Reynolds????

We cleaned out a box of stuff that my Dad must have packed up from his desk at work. It sat in the garage for the past 20 years. This gives you an idea of how my Dad felt about work!

Young, happy smiles

My parents paid $6.30 in taxes in 1950!

We found some relics in the kitchen–items that we remembered using since childhood. Judy took the rolling-pin and Alan the grater. Guess I’m stuck with the ladle!

This collection of items were most likely pilfered from restaurants. We always cringed when Mom would say “This looks like a nice knife” and would stash it in her purse. The last time I visited her I asked her “What kind of example were you setting for us??!!”

These old leather baby shoes belonged to my Dad and his sister–saved for close to 80 years!

Alan had fun going through the old records, most of which he’s taking home. His all-time favorite was Herb Alperts’s Whipped Cream album. Somehow, I don’t think the music was the main attraction! This table was in our house on Campfield road–a 70′s classic!

I posed with my 6th grade photo. Besides the wrinkles, I look the same!!

We also found 2 winning scratch-off lottery tickets in Mom’s purse. With her winnings we bought $14 worth of power ball tickets. Alas, no luck, but it would have been ironic if we won!

My brother took some great photos of items we found and he also blogged about our experience (www.cogdogblog.com)  

Some special musings on his blog:

Dad was a bricklayer - One of the best he’s written

Mom’s Friends give local cookie love - about the memorial service

Left on Mom’s table - about our brother David

Dear Photos at Mom’s house - photos that transcend time

After days of cleaning out the house and taking care of business we took a break and went to the beach on Sanibel Island where we returned a bucketful of seashells collected over the 20 years our mother lived here.

Release of the seashells

 

Returned to the sea for future treasure collectors
(I’m not sure these were from the gulf so someone may be surprised to find an Altantic shell on the gulf coast!)

Alan, Judy and I on Sanibel Island

Mom told each of us how much she wanted us to “be there for each other”. I think she would have been proud to see us handling this difficult time.

On the way home we stopped for dinner at Grandma Dot’s restaurant  at the marina on Sanibel. We had gone there the last time we stayed on Sanibel with Mom. It was as good as we remembered. Delicious local seafood and the best home-made key lime pie!

Alan enjoying stone crab claws — I don’t think he’s met a crab he didn’t like!

Sisters!

Me and Skip No, it’s not the Bahamas but it is very nice!

We shared her clown collection (yikes!) with her friends and neighbors.  We baked chocolate chip cookies in her kitchen.  Mom was known as the ‘cookie lady’!

Scary Clowns
This pair belonged to Judy and I. They were made close to 50 years ago by our grandmother’s sister. Somehow, we had to part with them…

A beautiful memorial service was held at the temple my mother attended and volunteered for many years.  I was overwhelmed by the outpouring of love for her and the funny stories about her bossing people around in the kitchen, her love of butterflies and how much she touched everyone’s lives.  There was a huge showing of neighbors and friends who had such wonderful memories and stories.

Mom’s friends enjoying cookies in the kitchen at Temple Judea where, at one time, Mom ruled!

 

Mom’s dear friend Rhonda smiles with her cookie

 

The plaque honoring Mom at the Temple

 

Mom’s wonderful neighbors, Ron and Jonathan, have been so helpful. We even got to see their amazing Halloween decorations!

The house and car are ready to sell.  We’re just waiting for the legal process to wrap up.  The process hasn’t been too difficult although I’m very frustrated with all the extra effort I have to make with businesses to close her accounts.  A majority of them need call backs because they don’t do what they said they would do!!

We’re missing our boat and heading south with all of our friends.  I’m keeping track of Kanau, Onward and Comocean!  As a minor consolation, we attended the Fort Myers boat show today.  It was mostly motor boats and fishing stuff, of course, but we did get on a nice new Mainship trawler and a lovely Grand Banks fast trawler.  As we were sheepishly looking at what we normally call a ‘melted cheese boat’ we struck up a conversation with another sailing couple who were just as curious as we were about the boats that normally fly past us.

Visiting the Fort Myers boat show

Skip checks out the camper on pontoons!

Interior of a ‘cheese’ boat

Fort Myers Boat Show — not a stick in sight!

We’ll be here another week and then heading up to Georgia for Thanksgiving!

We visited the Annapolis sailboat show for the first time in 3 years.  The past 2 years, we were already heading south by this time.  (Also, no more room on the boat for purchases!)

We decided to volunteer at the boat show since we really didn’t have anything better to do and were happy to get free admission tickets.  We manned the National Sailing Hall of Fame booth for a 2 hour stint on Friday and Sunday.  The weather was absolutely gorgeous–warm and sunny. 

Sandbagger at the NSHOF

Handing out literature

It was fun meeting people and telling them about the NSHOF.  We saw lots of folks that we knew and I finally got to meet Chris and Janet (s/v Brilliant Star) who followed my blog and are now starting out on their cruising adventure.

Janet and Chris

On Friday, we met Al and Arlene (Blue Heaven) for lunch.  It was fun getting caught up since we last saw them at Staniel Cay on New Years.  We were happily surprised to see Elliott and Ina (Windfall), our former Sabre friends who now live in New Bern.  Dinner with them on Friday was a great chance to exchange seas stories.  We also caught up with Joe (Onward), of course. 

I didn’t go on a single boat.  It was too much trouble to take my shoes off.  Elliott had a funny story to tell because someone took his shoes and left a similar pair only they were a size larger!

What did we buy?  I found new boat shoes and some nice stemless wine glasses.  We both got new light-weight rain jackets and we sprung for a really nice new pair of binoculars.  Ours were so old and the technology has greatly improved.  My most exciting purchase was a set of ‘marriage savers’–wireless headsets that we can use when anchoring, docking or picking up a mooring.  I sure hope they help!  I get so frustrated when Skip is at the helm and I’m trying to do something and all he can say is ‘I can’t hear you’.

Saturday night we rafted up with Flicka (AKA Calypso), Comocean and Walkabout in Clements Creek.  What a blast!  Great food and company.  JoAnne on Walkabout is taking her boat to the Exumas this year so we exchanged a lot of information.  Comocean is spending the winter in Charleston.

Rafted in Clements Creek

How Big??!

Cuban Pork Tenderloins on the barbie

A moonlight serenade

Phyllis, Bob and Rick

JoAnne and Dave

Eva (or is it Tanya?)

We should have a few more good weeks on the boat before we tuck her away for the winter. I’m sad that we’re not heading south but with all the stuff I need to do to settle my mother’s affairs, I’m glad that we decided to stay home.

I must end with a photo of Bailey (he’s the real star of the blog!!)

Bailey loves his sheepie. The newest one is lambchop!

Mirror Lake

Mike and Angie have a cabin in the mountains near Fairplay (over 9000 ft). The last time I saw them was when they left the dock in Hampton, VA for the ocean crossing!

They took us on a scenic drive up to Independence Pass. At peak season for Aspen trees, it was breathtaking.

What a great time. We really missed Angie’s cooking and Mike’s G&T’s!

Aspen groves painted yellow

Coming down to Denver, we stayed with Jen and Bill and our Granddog Jackson. It’s all about baseball playoff season here. Not the Rockies, they’re big Yankees fans (oy!)

They take us out to the best places for food. Pronto for pizza, Lucile’s for brunch and Jerusalem for gyros. Even just hanging out on the porch with margaritas is a great time here!

We took a day trip to see the Garden of the Gods near Colorado Springs. It’s a national historic site with spectacular jutting red rocks. You can also watch all of the rock climbers and wonder why anyone would want to do that!

We’re heading home tomorrow and looking forward to attending the Annapolis boat show for the first time in 3 years. Look for us at the National Sailing hall of fame — we’re volunteering on Friday and Sunday!

(This is my first attempt at blogging on the iPad. It’s a little challenging but I hope it publishes okay)

Mom at 81 and 17 (photo by my brother cogdogblog.com)

Thank goodness she made all of her own funeral arrangements.  It only took one call to put them into motion and I’m glad that all of her wishes could be addressed as she wanted them.  My brother was in the middle of his cross-country road trip, somewhere near Montreal.  He drove straight to Baltimore the next day.  Since we didn’t have power at home, he met us on the boat. 

Everything was fine after all of the work to get ready for hurricane Irene.  Our only tree in our front yard split and we lost power.  The boat was fine except for a few wet cushions.

We lost our only tree in the front yard

After the burial service and sitting shiva one night I  was glad to escape to the boat for Labor Day weekend.  The annual Sabre Club crab feast was the perfect way to direct my thoughts away from being sad.  It was comforting being around all of our caring friends.  We had a great sail coming back to Annapolis–at least until reaching Bloody Point.

My little brother enjoys sailing

Rick and Eva’s new boat, a Sabre402, flies past everyone

My brother and I flew to Ft. Myers to start settling our mother’s affairs.  It was strange to be in her house without her there but also comforting to be so close to her presence.  Her neighbors and friends from her synagogue were so helpful.  They were as stunned as we were to lose her so suddenly.

When we visited her bank and safe deposit box we found some crazy stuff in there. She saved my first tooth (yuck!). She also had the letters from the infamous grilled cheese incident. My brother blogged about it–

We found Mom’s last jigsaw puzzle laid out like she just walked away. She had a printout of Alan’s post about our brother David nearby. She must have been reminiscing.  She also had my Dad’s photo close by on the table.

My brother, Alan, has a large community of friends on the web.  They organized a cookie day in honor of our mother.  She was known as the ‘cookielady’.  She would bake a batch of cookies every Sunday and divide them up into little bags.  Everywhere she went–the bank, doctor’s offices, Publix, etc.  she would give them cookies.  They all knew her and loved the special attention.

The cookie day was a big hit.  People all over the world baked cookies and handed them out to strangers.  They posted pictures and stories at http://storify.com/cogdog/cookielove

My mother also loved butterflies. She thought they represented people who have died. Now, when I see 2 butterflies together, I will always think of my parents.

Butterfly Pin Collection

We’re back on the boat now–enjoying a peaceful day in Clements Creek.  I’m relaxing and decompressing after making it through the worst 2 weeks of my life.  My next blog post will be more upbeat–I promise!!

Oh, and I always forget about the weekday water skiers that love to circle the anchorage at high speeds.  It’s a real dilemma–do you anchor on the weekends when it’s really crowded and there’s a speed limit or suffer the wakes on a quiet week night?  At least they turn in at dark!

Whaaat’s Up?

According to the weather forecast there wasn’t supposed to be much wind but we had a perfect beam reach all the way to Swan Point the next day.  It’s another favorite spot–very quiet during the week but bustling with weekend crabbers jockeying for space on the weekends.  We hung out all day Friday and enjoyed the peace until storms started brewing in the evening.  I was glued to the radar on my phone watching the storms develop over Baltimore and travel north and east.  We dodged most of them except for one that went directly overhead.

Skip tries out his new Uke! Great sound and boat-sized!!

Nasty Storm

We waited until the storm passed to grill some excellent burgers from Fresh Market.  They have bacon and cheese mixed in with the meat–yummy!

On Saturday morning we moseyed over to Osprey Point marina where the Chesapeake Bay Sabre Association was gathering.  They have wonderful floating docks, pool and restaurant.  Eventually, 9 boats came in and we all noshed on light appetizers and drinks by the pool before getting cleaned up for dinner at the restaurant.  The crab cakes and steak (Skip’s choice) were delicious.  Even more enjoyable was the conversations with our friends in the club. 

Diane tries to bribe Bailey with a special cheese treat

He woofed it down! Now he won’t bark at Diane any more–ha ha!!

Sunday’s weather prediction was pretty dire with strong storms and winds predicted.  Everyone had to get back early but we decided to stay rather than get chased into harbor by the storms.  What a good decision for us as we sat below and watched the sky darken and wind pick up.  I think we saw over 40 knots of wind coming sideways with rain and hail.  Everything was drenched and some hatches leaked from places we never imagined!  I think this was the worst storm since that night anchored off the Alligator/Pungo canal (which I’d rather forget!!)

Another nasty storm

After the storm passed,  people started popping out of their boats.  The power went out so our plans to go out to dinner with Norman and Nancy (True Loev) were switched to plan B.  We joined them on their boat for a lovely dinner of salad, pasta and wine along with the usual array of sea stories!

The next morning was clear and breezy.   After a leisurely breakfast on True Loev we decided to shove off before the north wind blew all of the water out of Swan Creek.   It was a lovely sail back to Annapolis using just the jib.  We scrapped the original plan to go up the Severn River since the wind was on the nose and settled for a beautiful evening in Annapolis harbor.

A beautiful sail back across the Bay

We had a nice breakfast at Chick and Ruth’s and will pack up and head home today.  Our plans for next week are up in the air as we watch the track of hurricane Irene.  We’re thinking about all of the nice people in the Bahamas and hope they are okay…

The summer has flown by.  We spent a very nice week sailing in July until it got too hot and we scampered home.  The Sabre club rendezvous at the Sailing Emporium in Rock Hall was a blast.   We kept our first boat there over 15 years ago and the marina is still one of the best on the Bay.

The Sabre Club crowd

Watching the sun set in Rock Hall

Sailen Whalen and Eagle tack with us up the Chester River

Afterwards, a few boats headed up the Chester river for the week.  Unfortunately, by Tuesday it started to really heat up so everyone decided to bag the week in favor of air conditioning. 

It was so hot, even Bailey went swimming!

Skip’s daughter Jen and her husband Bill flew into Baltimore that week for a visit.  After the hot, dry weather in Denver, the oppressive heat and humidity of Baltimore in July was quite a change for them.  We all agreed that it was a good move to go to plan B instead of sailing.  We visited the aquarium and the Visionary Art museum in Baltimore.  We also enjoyed one of Skip’s all time favorites, the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum near Dulles airport.  If you haven’t been there, it’s a ‘must see’.  They have all the stuff that they can’t display in the museum on the Mall; including the Blackbird spy plane, a Concorde, the Enola Gay and an entire space shuttle all under one roof.

Skip, Jen and Bill at the Visionary Art Museum

Of course we had to see a baseball game (they’re avid baseball fans.)  The good news was that we had great seats.  Bad news: it was the second hottest starting temperature in 15 years–over 100 degrees!  It wasn’t a great game (the Orioles lost as usual) but we did enjoy the dawgs and premium-priced beer. 

Before they headed back out west we had to eat some steamed crabs.  For non-Baltimorians, they really love crabs.  It cooled off enough by Monday for us to sit outside at Cantler’s and do some picking!

Crabs–Yum!

I learned a lot from Jen and Bill about my new iPhone (which I LOVE!)  The 3 of us were constantly comparing notes while Skip complained about his lack of a smart phone. 

Did I mention that I love my iPhone?  I’m truly addicted.  I’m currently stumped at Angry Birds but I just discovered Plant vs Zombies which is hilarious.  Let me know if you want to play Scrabble or Words with Friends.  I could never get anyone to play Scrabble with me so this is perfect.  Growing up, my brother and I played a lot and we were ruthless.  Maybe that’s why no one would play with me…

While home I spent a lot of time getting my sewing room in order.  My machine was in the shop for over a month but now it works perfectly.  I cleaned out my fabrics and craft supplies of lots of old stuff.  Got rid of bags of fabric and craft doodads on freecycle.  What a great concept!

I just finished my first quilting project which is really a ‘practice’ quilt.  I haven’t done anything in a while so I needed to practice the techniques. 

Practice quilt- using fabrics I’ve collected over the years

I also pieced another quilt using the Androsia fabric that I found in the Bahamas.  This one is ready to quilt (hence the safety pins.)

Bahamas quilt

Other than that, I’m enjoying seeing friends, hanging out with my sister, cooking and being home.  We have some longer boat trips planned for when the weather gets cooler.  In case you didn’t hear, we’re not going south this winter.  We want to go to New England next summer and it’s too hard to get home and leave again so soon.  Now we’ll see what else there is to do in retirement!

• River Dunes Marina near Oriental, NC — They offered $1 per foot with floating docks, steam showers, beautiful pool and courtesy car
• Wrightsville Beach – I love the anchorage near the bridge and it’s a short ride to the dinghy dock and only 1 block from the beach
• St. James Plantation – Just past Southport…$.75 per foot, nice restaurant.
• Charleston – Incredible restaurants!  Great city for walking around.
• Thunderbolt- Great seafood restaurant and ship’s chandlery nearby.  You can buy fresh shrimp right off the boats!
• Cumberland Island–The most beautiful spot on the ICW.  Walking trails, ruins, pristine beaches and lots of wildlife.
• St. Augustine – We stay at Camachee Cove where they’re always friendly and accommodating.  We use their courtesy car to shop and tour.
• Vero Beach – It’s so easy to stay here.  The moorings are well-protected and cheap.  Free bus service!

Best New Places in the Bahamas:

• Sampson Cay – We stayed in the marina before when the weather was bad but this year we anchored outside of the marina many times.  They have the easiest access for fuel/water, ship’s store, good restaurant and free trash (make sure you separate your recyclables)
• Compass Cay – We anchored nearby and took the dinghies in.  They charge a dinghy landing fee if you only come ashore and don’t eat at the restaurant.  Plan to come in for lunch and take a hike around the island.  You can also pet the sharks!
• Emerald Bay – We stayed in the marina so we could meet up with friends flying in.  While it’s true that it’s very surgey there with a NE wind, it wasn’t terrible.  For $1 per foot (no electricity) you get free laundry, great cruiser’s lounge, liquor/grocery/ATM within walking distance.  You can visit the Sandal’s beach and have lunch by the pool at the resort next door (too bad they won’t let you use the pool–bad cruisers spoiled it for all of us.)

Best New Equipment:

• Single Side Band (SSB) radio – It was expensive but worth it.  Allows for  communication when out of range of cell phones and VHF.  Can get text emails, weather forecasts.  Can communicate with Chris Parker for weather routing.
• Cushions – New cabin  and cockpit cushions were worth it!  We got a memory foam layer on the V-berth.  Spring for the ultra-suede–it’s so durable and comfortable–worth it!
• Water pipes – Skip replaced all of the plumbing with PEX.  No more clamps coming loose and emptying a whole tank of water in the bilge.
• Holding tank vent filter – It really works–no more warning those in the cockpit that you’re going to flush!
• Tempering valve for hot water heater - Prevents scalding hot water from coming out of the taps.
• Canon D10 underwater camera – I loved taking underwater photos with this camera.  I also didn’t have to worry as much about keeping it dry when traveling by dinghy.

Best Cheeseburger:

Skip is the official cheeseburger rater for the Bahamas.  He chose the one from Compass Cay as the best this year.  They didn’t have any bacon so we brought our own.  Hopefully, we convinced them that they must have bacon!

Best Snorkeling:

Coral Gardens near Cambridge Cay – Spectacular elk horn coral.  It wasn’t even the best day because it was cloudy and it was still breathtaking.  You need to go when the seas are calm.

Best Drinks:

Dark and Stormy – Dark rum, ginger beer and squeeze of lime

Pineapple rum – either straight up or with tonic.  You can only find it in the Bahamas!

Best Dining:

Taste and Sea – New restaurant in Staniel Cay right on the water.  The Bahamian food was delicious.  Much better service and food than at the STYC.

Santana’s Grill – We found this roadside restaurant on Little Exuma by car.  It was so good, we went back again.  The most amazing lobster tempura over the best peas and rice we’ve tasted.

Bailey’s Favorites:

Beaches – He loves them all!  His favorites are Honeymoon beach on Cambridge Cay and Tababuia beach on Warderick Wells off Emerald Bay.  Both have shade trees and calm waters for wading and swimming.

Barking – Dolphins, birds and pretty much anything that moves!

Motoring across a glassy Bay

Bay water is not like the Bahamas

Watch out for fish traps!

In the morning, we dropped the dinghy and took Bailey to shore where he had the whole beach to himself.  He waded in the water just like in the Bahamas.  Too bad the water isn’t as clear. 

Bailey goes wading again

La Trappe Creek

As I was wandering along the shoreline and thinking about how much fun it was to look for shells in the Bahamas I spotted a piece of seaglass!  I only found 2 more pieces once I started looking.

Chesapeake Bay Sea Glass

It wasn’t too hot so we started working on a few boat projects.  I scraped some barnacles off the waterline.  We tried to schedule a diver to come and clean the bottom but it hasn’t worked out yet.  I also cleaned off the residue from taping and varnishing along the toe rail.  After that, I was hot enough for a swim! 

The good life!

We intended to move on to Oxford in the afternoon but got lazy and decided to stay where we were.  On Tuesday we moved to San Domingo Creek in Broad Creek.  The last time we were there was on our old boat so it’s been over 6 years.  It’s called the ‘back door’ to St. Michaels because a short dinghy ride takes you to a public dock used by watermen.  From there, you are only a few blocks from Talbot St. which is the main drag in St. Michaels.

We had 2 goals: crabs (for me) and ice cream!  The steamed crabs at the Crab Claw were delicious.  The air conditioning made our lunch even more enjoyable.  After ice cream at Justine’s we went back to the boat and tried to stay cool.  Thunderstorms passing north and south of us finally cleared out the hot, sticky air overnight.

Pink glow in San Domingo Creek

We took Bailey ashore in the morning to walk along the nature trail that starts from the little park by the dock.  It wasn’t there the last time we visited San Domingo Creek. After a stroll through the maritime museum and town we returned to the boat for another lazy afternoon.

On Thursday we moved back across the Bay to the Rhode River. Winds were light so I think we may have sailed for 1/2 hour! As on the trip over, we rounded the southern end of Tilghman Island rather than deal with the lift bridge in Knapps Narrows. After all those bridges on the waterway, I don’t mind avoiding the few bridges on the Bay!

After anchoring in the Rhode River we spotted our friends, John and Caroline, motoring around in their new Rosborough 25 pocket cruiser. They tied up and gave us the grand tour of their new boat. It’s a nice little boat that has the advantages of being trailerable and they can keep it on a dock behind their house in the South river. After a lovely dinner, the Lady C broke off to try their first night at anchor.

The Lady C

We headed back to Annapolis on Friday morning. Now we have some projects to work on before we go on the Sabre club northern Bay cruise later this month. The main project is to fix the head and holding tank–leaky, smelly and cranky!!

We had a delightful sailing weekend over Memorial Day.  After so much motoring on our trip north, it’s a relief to head out of Back Creek and put up the sails!  We sailed under the Bay Bridge and all the way to the mouth of the Chester River before turning off to anchor in Swan Creek.  The wind was coming directly from the south and we didn’t feel like tacking.  The next day we met up with Bob and Phyllis (Comocean) and Michael and Julie (Running on MT) near Cacaway Island on Langford Creek.  It’s a beautiful uncrowded spot with plenty of room to anchor. 

Our Sabre Club raft up was on Saturday in Gray’s Inn Creek just a few miles away.  We were joined by 10 other Sabres for the annual wine tasting hosted on Comocean–the newest and largest Sabre in the club.  It didn’t matter that the Catalina club also chose the same location.  There was plenty of room and I think we out-partied them!

The wind on Sunday made for a perfect sail back across the Bay.  Since we had to head up and tack to make it under the bridge we decided to turn off into the Magothy River.  Popular Eagle Cove was chock full of boats enjoying the beautiful holiday weekend.  Since we didn’t want to go back just yet, we decided to anchor out one more night in Mill Creek.  The breeze died and it got very hot as the sun set.  It was a long, sticky night.  We got up at 7am and headed back to our slip.  We were home and comfortably air-conditioned by 10:30am!

Over the next few weeks we drove south on the Tour du Moms, visiting both of our mothers and bringing mine back to Baltimore.  For some fun stops along the way we visited our friends Norm and Jaye near Ashville, NC and the resident Floridians in Port St. Lucie.  I celebrated my birthday and Jim and Sue’s house along with Jim and Binnie, Jack and Sue and we finally caught up with George and Julie (Seaquel).  I couldn’t think of a better way to turn one year older!

The time spent at my mother’s house in Ft. Myers was not much of a vacation.  I wore myself out helping her go through and get rid of stuff.  I’m amazed at what she saved!  I found a diary that I kept during my senior year in high school–how mortifying!  I was glad to confiscate it so no one else could read about my teenage angst.  An interesting discovery were letters that my father wrote to his mother when he was in college.  We did clear out some junk but there’s a lot more to do.  She wouldn’t let me near her china closet full of chachkes and clowns (how scarey is that!!)  It was a long 2 day drive home.  I found driving on I95 much more tedious and boring than the ICW. 

Last weekend, we headed out on Friday night and picked up a mooring in Annapolis to meet up with Joe (Onward) who was passing through on his way north to New England.   We enjoyed a meal at Lemongrass with Joe and his friends Myles and Lorena (Ariel).  It was just like old times…

Saturday night was the annual summer sailstice Margaritaville raft up hosted by Rick and Eva (Calypso).  We got to Crab Creek on the South River first and became the anchor boat for the party.  We were joined by TJ and Mary Pat with 6-month old Liam on board.  Even though Liam was too young to enjoy the Painkillers, he was the life of the party!

Since we weren’t in a big hurry to get home we decided to meet up with Joe again in Annapolis harbor.  After running some errands with him in the dinghy we met up with some of his friends at Eastport Yacht Club.  I was reluctant to go there because I didn’t think we’d know anybody–wrong!  Every time we turned around we saw someone else we knew.  Maybe we’ll think about joining EYC–it was a lot of fun.

I’ll try to keep up with blogging because it’s hard to get caught up!  I also haven’t been taking many pictures…

We’re looking forward to some easy, fun and hot summer sailing!