Finally Aboard And Making It Home

Well it seems unbelievable that we have actually been living on the boat now for 9 days!  This past month has been a whirlwind of projects between wrapping up projects in the house (and everything breaking last minute - fridge, faucets....) and prepping the boat for us to live aboard.  I feel like I've been in a daze this past week, decompressing and adjusting all at the same time.  Luckily, other than trying to find places for the many many bags of belongings we brought down, it has been pretty seamless.
The first night down, I see it as my "Initiation night".  One of our classic Pacific Northwest storms was rolling through, it packed a bit of a punch though with winds up to 90kmph and sustained high winds ALL night long.  After a long day of packing and cleaning, I couldn't wait to just lie down and pass out, unfortunately  Mother Nature had other plans for me.  The boat was rocking and rolling all night long.  The winds would press the boat on its side and then drop, the fenders constantly squeaked as they protested taking on the weight of the boat as it forced itself over and over onto our neighbors boat.  I thought maybe after a bit it would quiet down, but no such luck, this baby was gonna go all night long!  The boys on the other hand slept like a rock.  G did wake up at one point, I watched him silently waiting to see what he was checking....he got closer and closer.  "Are you awake?"  Yesss....  "Oh good, your were freaking me out for a second, I thought you were sleeping with your eyes open!"  I wish I could have kept my eye on things as I slept, I guess that's a skill I will acquire as I become an old salt.  Needless to say, it was a difficult  putting in a full day of cleaning and packing at the house on zero sleep.  Emotions were labile to say the least.  Breaking down Logan's crib and packing away his room did make me stop for a minute. With a tear in my eye, my heart hoping we were making the right decision for him and us as a family.   At that moment it all finally seemed real.  Previously I had just been going from one task to the next, crossing things off the to-do list.  But now as I saw my little boys life as he new it was about to change, and I had to believe in what my heart has been saying all along, it is going to be a wonderful adventure.

Logan has taken on his new life with gusto, his first night as he quickly scrambled up the steps up into his room, he turned around with a huge grin and shouted "WOW"!  It is  my little mountain goats heaven as he can reach everything.  We are slowly learning what we can and cannot climb on or touch.  He's also learned how to let himself out of his crib, it at least keeps him from rolling out of bed while sleeping.  Guess we're moving to the concept of a toddler bed whether we like it or not!  He loves all the walks we go on now.  He has his little loop down pat, kissing all his favorite wood carvings as we go along.  Mastering the stairs as we go up and down and up and down over and over again.  He has been such a little trooper, never skipping a beat and embracing each moment, each new experience with grace and excitement.  He definitely could teach me a thing or two!

The stove is working beautifully and so is the fridge. I feel so lucky to have hot water as well.  It does amaze me though how much water we go through.  I think we emptied our tanks after a day and a half (and I thought I was being conservative!) and used much more drinking water than I thought we would too.  I have lots to learn, but am enjoying the process.

Here is a peek into our first week:

Logan's room in v-berth

My caveman lighting his first fire on the stove!

Celebrating our first dinner

SUPER MOON

Checking in with Eagleman on our evening walk

Loves brushing his teeth now that he can stare at himself and make funny faces in the mirror.  Crazy hair = shinier teeth

Parking lot puddles create hours of entertainment

Checking out the beach, honing his goaty abilities... those logs are slippery when wet.

It's Coming Together!!

The count down continues, and the days are slipping by so fast now.  So many projects to do and so little time.  There is nothing more rewarding though when you see a project finally coming to an end. Though there is still the last bits to do on all of these projects I thought I'd post an update.  Gordon has done such a amazing job. It seems surreal at times that this is actually finally happening!

I know the picture of the head may not seem super impressive but believe me if you look back at the old pictures they are.  I no longer feel like I am in a grungy gas station bathroom or could catch some obscure disease.  With all the caulking and old stains, no matter how much you cleaned it just looked, well gross.  But now!!!  Oh my, it's just breathtaking when I walk in there!  SO CLEAN (*can you see me smiling* ).  Sorry the doors are missing, they are at the house drying.
I also found some adorable Wall Decals that I thought we could put up so it doesn't seem so sterile and gives Logan something to play with (you can close off the area to the actual head and it leaves a small play area).  I'm in love with the Baby Elephant Chalkboard, now that he is starting to draw, and chalk wipes away much easier than markers!  Anyway I digress.... onto the rest of the projects.

Head floor, Hazmat suit no longer required.

So Shiny & Clean, Yay!

Port side head

To the left is our custom made cutting board (which is attached to the lid of the fridge) made by our wonderful friend Jim!  G also found a new piece of formica to match the existing counter tops.  The lid still needs to be mounted, but all of G's measurements were perfect and it has turned out beautifully.  So much more space than the old design, and super organized to boot!

New Dickinson 3 burner stove and custom made cutting board!

Custom made fridge (we've even got ICE CUBES) Everything fits Just So!

The house is a work in progress, it's all the little things - emptying the file cabinets, boxing up the millions of pictures I seem to have stashed EVERYWHERE, unpacking (for the first time) and repacking boxes from the last move.  Through it all I realize I have a bit of a problem, I hoard things..... books, beads, craft supplies, fabric, did I mention books. Getting one of those Kindle's is looking better and better after hauling multiple boxes of books to the garage.  I just can't bear to part with them (and I do read them again) .... ok I'll stop trying to justify.

Anyway, it is all starting to come together, despite an entire month of continuous illness shared between the three of us(cold, stomach flu, pink eye, cold again) and the glorious onset of the terrible two's ( they are SO fun L thought he'd start early!)  G is now off for the next few days and it is the final push to finish up projects and start moving  the last bits out of the house and start moving our carefully selected items onto the boat!

Looking forward to the next post of COMPLETED PROJECTS!!!!!!!!!!

Homemade Baby Wipes

One afternoon at the coffee shop when Logan was just a little bitty thing, another mother overheard me talking with a girlfriend that I was having trouble with Logan's sensitive skin.  Anytime I used wipes, no matter what type, he broke out into a bright red rash on his bum.  She so graciously offered me her recipe to her homemade baby wipes and said they work wonders.  For over a year now we've only used wash clothes and warm water on Logan which has worked wonderfully but now that we're looking to reduce our laundry, it seemed perfect timing that the piece of paper with the magical recipe floated out of one of my baby books.  I had forgotten about it, but it seems it was waiting for the perfect timing.  So yesterday I got out all my ingredients and made my wonderfully earthy homemade baby bum wipes.  So far no rash, no clothes to wash and easy on the budget.

We're also trying a trial run of  "G Diapers"  I'll let you know how it goes, our first day L did have a little pinching redness at the site where the diapers attach.  I'm not sure if I just need to perfect my diapering style or if it will be an ongoing issue, we'll see.

BABY BUM WIPES

Cut paper towel roll into thirds, and put 1/3 roll (cut side down) into an empty wipes container.

Mix: 1 cup water

        1tsp baby soap (liquid)

        1tsp calendula oil

        few drops of lavender oil

        few drops of tea tree oil

Pour over paper towel and then turn container upside down for 10 minutes

Remove center roll and pull wipes from the center

Subtle Hints

I thought is was quite funny when I got the first bright yellow book in the mail from my sister,  figuring it to be a humorous gift as we were ready to embark on our new adventure.  Then I thought it a bit peculiar when the next book showed up in the mail the next day from my Mom. I just shook my head and laughed.....

I had to find out if this was planned or just a coincidence.  Ends up my sister sent me "The WORST-CASE SCENARIO Survival Handbook" in order to prep me for any of the "What are you gonna do when..." questions my Mom was going to ask me.  And my Mom (who is known as our Safety Girl) had  sent me "SURVIVE! ESSENTIAL SKILLS AND TACTICS TO GET YOU OUT ON ANYWHERE-ALIVE" all on her own good conscience!  Between these two, looks like I'll be prepared for anything and everything.  I love my family!!!

Fonzarelli In The Making

At least the "Ehhhh" will come naturally to my little Canadian, now just to teach him the thumbs up and put a little grease in his hair!  His Auntie Brooke gave him his first leather (faux of course)jacket, and it is precious, he absolutely loves it as you can tell by the smile on his face!

First time rockin'  his new jacket, can you feel the excitement!

All Dolled Up 

C'mon Mama, now we've gotta find me a Harley!

The Count Down Begins!

We had finally taken the last of the pictures of the house to put a flyer up in a few selected places to see if we could find a renter for the house.  We had been hoping we'd find someone we knew, but it wasn't looking good. Funny how the universe works.... before we got a chance to put the flyers up, within a few days we got 'the call' from a friend.   She is absolutely perfect (and Logan approved ~ actually I think he's got a huge crush on her) and we know the house will be well taken care of.  What a relief! We've negotiated that we can keep the garage and use it as storage which makes things so much easier for us. The clincher... our move out date is March 15th!!!  To say the least a fire has been lit underneath us and we are on a rampage around here. Boxing, fixing, painting, organizing, tossing and ordering all sorts of stuff.  How did we accumulate so much STUFF!

Logan loved it, JUST his size!

We were very excited though to finally buy our new stove for the boat!  We can even fit a regular cookie tray, and muffin tin inside.  So here it is, our Dickinson 3 burner stove & oven.

We can't wait to get it installed, we're waiting for some additional parts but then we're good to go.  In the meantime G is working on installing the fridge system.  He has almost finished the lid (it turned out beautiful) and we have a friend who has generously offered to make a custom fit cutting board for the top lid. Jim does amazing work and we feel so honored we'll have a piece of his work on our boat.  Slowly but surely it feels like our boat is not just a house but becoming a home.  We've also decided to make the V berth L's area which I think logistically will work better, but I also love the idea of him having his own space.  I've been daydreaming about decorating it and truly making it his own.  I hope we can make a ladder so he can go in and out as he pleases during the day.  I've noticed lately here at the house he really likes "his" room and loves to show it off to anyone who comes over and loves hiding and playing in there.  I also love the idea of somewhere to put all those toys!!

We're so excited to move beyond the planning phase and into action!  To keep from getting too overwhelmed we just take it day by day, but it all seems to be falling into place. We'll keep updating as progress is made!

This Moment ~ "Reads" Along

this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.   This moment via SouleMama