It is Sunday at 7:30AM. We are docked in Beaufort, NC. Everyone else is sleeping. I didn’t sleep well at all last night (or the night before, or the night before…) and am kicking myself for not taking a Benadryl before I went to bed. I was so tired last night that I figured there was no earthly way I wouldn’t be able to sleep. And yet, look at me go, defying the odds! ***facepalm***

We left yesterday. Finally left. Captain Jeremy showed up at our boat around 12:30AM and we turned off Star Wars: The Force Awakens from our projector to greet him. He’s a quiet, super flexible, unassuming guy. We like him.

We woke up and slowly started checking the boat—lines, rigging, oil, engine, the little pieces that hold all of the rigging together that each have special names that I don’t know—we checked those, too. We said goodbye to our neighbors, took a few pics and then casted off. I was at the helm and undocked from our slip, then docked at the fuel station a few slips away and then undocked to pull out of our marina and get underway. Captain Jeremy helped but I was proud of myself. Docking is very outside of my comfort zone. I had practiced throwing lines and tying fenders the day before and was planning to be on the bow when we departed. Steve suggested I get as much practice docking as possible while Jeremy is here. Luckily, my husband is smart enough to suggest that the morning of departure instead of the night before so I don’t have as much time to get nervous. :-)

The wind was blowing in our faces at about 20 knots for most of the day. It was cold but way better than I had expected it to be a month or so ago. It didn’t rain like it was supposed to. Today the base wind speed is predicted to be a crazy 35 knots with rain so we’re staying put for the day.

Steve, Jeremy and I were on deck for most of the journey, with the exception of when I took a nap on the couch. Sid was playing video games with his friends and Addie was making paper roses after watching a video on how to make them. The kids would come up on deck every now and then to take in the scenery and hang out. We saw dolphins at several points so that was a boost! Dolphins on Day 1. Not bad.

Lunchtime in the cockpit. Hold onto those Doritos! Captain Jeremy told us that Neptune has sticky fingers and likes to grab things. :-)

We motored for just over seven hours yesterday and arrived at the dock around 5:45pm. The kids got a taste of what it feels like when the boat moves. Layla was rocking more yesterday than she has in many months. Didn’t seem to bother Sid and Addie was enjoying it, laughing and further dramatizing the movements. I made hot chocolate and ended up getting most of it in the thermos. Bonus.

When we arrived, it was getting dark. I was going to dock, but with the strong wind and strong current, Jeremy said that this one was going to be tricky and he was going to need to feel it out for himself. So…I stood by and watched. I was equal parts relieved and nervous, thinking “what would happen if he wasn’t here? I guess Steve would dock…?” Figuring out how to find our temporary slip in a new marina is a complete mystery to me. I hope I’ll get a better handle on that in the next few days…

We were “caught” by some friendly new neighbors as we docked and all went very smoothly. Sid and Addie wrapped up their art projects at the table (they were doing art together!) and we all went ashore for dinner—time to celebrate. We had a quiet dinner with Captain Jeremy and then returned to the boat for some guitar serenading from Jeremy, art (Addie) and NY Times games (Sid). We turned in around 9:30. Steve and I slept with the kids again but I think the sleeping arrangements will likely change tonight.

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Log: Things that broke (or we discovered aren’t working yesterday) that we need to address:

1) Bow thruster - we JUST (!) had looked at last week to make sure it worked—argh! Hopefully it’s just a low battery.

2) Man overboard pole - Steve accidentally fell into it when he was untying our starboard stern line. I was a bit miffed with him—breaking things is my job. :-)

3) Navionics - The above two items are important, but Navionics is our navigation system. We’re okay—we had the Navionics app on my phone and Jeremy’s phone, and we have paper charts and a GPS, but we thought we had the ipad set up to run this program smoothly. Nope.

4) Our electric power cord - not hooking up to the dock properly. Who knows?

This log constitutes the brand new projects for today. Oh yeah, and I hope the oven is working so I can heat up the lasagna I made the other day before it spoils. That said, Jeremy just woke up a few minutes ago and ate the leftovers from his burger last night that he knowingly didn’t refrigerate so I’m thinking he has a pretty strong stomach. (He warned us with a smile last night that he would do this. His ability to just make do is inspiring.)

So how are we actually doing? My stomach is a bit less knotted than it was when I first woke up. Still had too many thoughts last night. If I’m awake, my brain is racing these days. Two nights ago I was ultimately able to logic my way through: “Okay, Holl, what are you actually afraid of?” Let’s go through and address them one-by-one…” I felt better after that two nights ago, but last night I just kept running the tape of “what have we done” in my mind. If we went home now….if we keep doing this…if we went home…if we keep doing this…pros and cons, pros and cons…. Years ago, Addie adopted my favorite, beloved stuffed animal from when I was a kid (“Dog Dog”) and it is one of the many lovies she brought on this adventure with us. She put him on my pillow a few nights ago to welcome me to sleep in her room with her (So sweet, right?). Last night, Dog Dog was right next to me as I was tossing and turning. Was strangely comforting.

*sigh* I’m 100% certain that the lack of sleep for the last few weeks is a heavy factor in my negative thinking. That said, the thoughts are still very real.

Phew! That wind is howling and it just gusted so hard that it knocked my tea thermos onto the ground and made a loud “CLANG!” Sheesh! Tomorrow the weather is supposed to be beautiful sailing weather and we are planning to go offshore. Fingers crossed.

Time to enjoy the day (sudden realization: oh right…and work on projects). Self-talk: We live on a boat (how exciting!). We are in a cute little seaside town that in a normal life would be a super fun place to visit. Let’s make the most of this. And now to figure out breakfast…..

PS - Thank God we didn’t try to move this boat today….that wind is nuts!

2/16/25

2/14/25 - Pre-Departure Ramblings