On Endings and Beginnings

     Today we said farewell to Brooke and Granny H. as they set off on their air travels to return home to the cold white North. Spending the holidays together on the boat was such a happy and refreshing experience for all. Being able to share some of our sailing experiences with them felt rewarding and let us look at the beauty around us with fresh eyes. Having the family together again reminds me of how important it is to spend time with the people you love and how lucky we all are to have one another. We won't soon forget all the fun had and the places explored while together.

     The end of the holidays and beginning of a new year marks a fresh phase in this trip. Now four months in, we will soon leave the Virgin Islands to explore the leeward and windward islands. I look towards moving on to different destinations as a new goal. There's something in the concept of change and in movement that I find exciting and invigorating. I guess it's part of the constant need to have something interesting to look forward to. I blame the parents for this characteristic restlessness, always taking us to awesome places and involving us in new sports and activities. Blame, and thank them, because this is a characteristic that will always ensure my life doesn't become stagnant or boring.

     Anyways, before I get ahead of myself in the excitement of setting off towards new horizons, first I'd like to officially welcome our newest crew member Jamie on board! The rest of us are so happy and excited to have him with us for the rest of the trip and hope he doesn't get tired of us too quickly! Check out the newest bio on the "Crew" page of the blog for a few snippets of info.

     At this point we will remain in the BVI until later in January to get Jamie his scuba certification and get as much diving in as we can before moving on.

Happy 2012,
Nicole.

The Crew is all Onboard

     This past weekend was the first time all four crew members for the trip down south were onboard Child's Play! Although Jamie will be joining us at Christmas for the remainder of our travels, Mom, Dad, Sarah and I will be the ones making the big trip down to the Caribbean in just a few weeks.

     In honour of finally sailing together this summer and the fact that the trip is blossoming on the horizon, here are some pictures from our weekend sailing in the Thousand Islands with Granny H.

My view for the next 10 months.

My clothes are officially onboard! Ready to go. Now.

Poppers hard at work; a typical sight.

Thanks to all the hard work this summer the boat is starting to feel completely comfy and liveable!

Yay for new winch covers!

     The word of the weekend was definitely Anticipation. With the arrival of August and the completion of all the major jobs on Mor' Childs Play our minds are turning more and more to our departure in early September. So many questions crop up in our minds as we look to the journey ahead. What will the trip be like? What will we see and experience along the way? What problems and challenges will we encounter? And always prominent (at least in my mind) is how will we fare in our first ocean trial?

     Despite any doubts and concerns that exist in our minds, I can honestly say that we will never be more ready for this trip than we are now. Mom and Dad have a thorough knowledge of the boat after all the work they've done on it this summer and have a lot of sailing knowledge and experience. As for Sarah and myself, we will continue to learn about the nuances of sailing and give help wherever we can throughout the trip. It is definitely time to get out there and explore the world a bit more!

As Dad so poignantly stated this weekend, we have a crew of very capable people, and we are bound to learn a lot along the way. Not just about sailing, but about ourselves as individuals and travellers.

Until next time!
Nicole.