Finding our Boat!

We had a whirlwind trip to Florida recently and are happy to report that we found our boat (exact model)!

Kids went to visit their grandparents again, so Jared and I could concentrate on finding our boat (and celebrate our 15th wedding anniversary). We flew out around noon on Thursday (plane was delayed due to crew not showing up) and were expected to land around 8pm that evening. Didn't land until around 11pm, due to our flight being diverted for a medical emergency.

On the runway in Salt Lake City, Utah. Waiting to resume our trip and watching the snow fall.

After landing in Fort Lauderdale, we grabbed our bags and proceeded to locate the shuttle to the rental car station. That line was LONG! No way were we going to spend another hour in line, so we decided to walk to the rental car facility instead. It was not that far, probably around a 7 minute walk. Ha! We were the only ones there! Turns out we beat the shuttles and crowds of people. It was a super fast check-out, like 2 minutes tops and we were in our car and on the way to the hotel.

After checking in to the hotel, we realized that we still hadn't had dinner, so feeling a bit like college students, we set out around midnight in search of food. The hotel clerk recommended a pizza place (what else would be open at midnight?), so  back to the car we went. Yep, our anniversary dinner was pizza, but hey, next year we'll celebrate on our boat, so it's ok. =)

Hours later, we were back up, checked out of the hotel, and heading out to meet Andy, the broker we were scheduled to meet (Clive, our broker, had set everything up in advance). We were in an area known as the Isles of Venice, and it was just beautiful! Save for the birds dropping seeds on our heads. You'll see their "artwork" in our video (next post).

 
 Andy is a super cool guy and showed us A LOT of boats! After checking out the ones in 'Venice', we headed over to his main office at the Fort Lauderdale Marine Center and saw even more (after stopping for coffee on the way).

It was awesome to have this opportunity and walk through so many different catamarans. We made notes on the storage and ventilation, layout and overall feel. We thought we would like the Lagoon 420, but for our family, it would be a tight fit. We walked on L440s, L450s, and even a L52 which was huge! Andy took us over to the boat yard and we saw a couple other cats that were on the hard, which was cool because we could check out the bottoms, as well.

Saw a few other different types of cats, but we fell in love with Lagoon and the homey-like feel it gave us. After walking all over and through these boats, it was time for lunch and to review our notes.

We ended up eating along the beach and walked along for awhile. It was super windy, but a few people were out in the water. Fun to see a guy kite surfing! Definitely want to try that someday. We checked in to a different hotel (figured we might as well stay in different areas while we were here) that was along the ICW (intercoastal waterway). Man, let me just say that the mega-yachts were all in town and some were bigger than our house! I am not joking! The Miami Boat Show is in a few weeks, so I guess they were all coming in for that. They are HUGE! We got a room with a pool view and ICW view. This would provide for some interesting entertainment later that evening.

 I had this feeling about one particular L440, so we called Andy and headed back to that boat later that evening. Again, thanks to Andy for taking the time to meet us back there. His phone was constantly going off, but he ignored it in order to answer our questions. After taking more video and photos, we headed back to the hotel and find someplace for dinner.

We ended up eating along the waterfront and then walking for awhile afterwards. Still could not believe the size of these yachts! Some were in excess of 60 feet up from the water! As we got ready for bed, we noticed a lot of noise coming up from the pool area. Turns out the guys we had seen at dinner getting plastered, were still at it and now had decided that jumping into the pool fully clothed would be fun. Grabbing other people and tossing them in, even more so. Then, they proceeded to dance for the dinner guests down there and put on quite a show. They'll probably end up on YouTube and regretting their decisions after recovering from major hangovers.

The next morning, we got a quick breakfast (bagels and coffee because we slept in), and met Mark, another broker Clive had set us up with. He showed us a FP Lipari and a FP Helia 44. We were not impressed with the Lipari. The layout was not conducive to our family at all. It definitely did not have that open feel that he Lagoons have, so we passed on this boat and headed to Lighthouse Point, to check-out the Helia.

The Helia was located on a private dock area next to a very colorful house, rainbow dock, and just rainbow everything, down to the hammock. The artist had gone to town on their property! Beautiful artwork though. Check out this dog and pony show:

The Helia is a gorgeous boat, but there are some qualities missing for us. While it definitely felt open and spacious, the sharp corners and lack of 4 cabins was a 'no' for us. Sharp corners at sea is NOT a good idea, especially for kids. The front was totally open, no lifelines at all (yes, we are going to install the kid-webbing around the entire boat, but still). The large bap between the helm and the winches/lines was a negative. We also needed 4 cabins, and while there is a tiny little berth beyond the shower, that would not work for a kid room at all (the broker was trying to convince us of putting Cadence in that tiny space). Nope.

Pretty boat, though.

We called Andy again, because we wanted to see a L440 one last time. After seeing so many boats, we had to go back and solidify our decision. Jared was already sold, but I really wanted to sit and picture where everything would go. We measured, lifted up all floor boards (counting the storage spaces we could use), inspected the engine rooms, and discussed plans for modifications. After another hour or so it was final: the Lagoon 440 is our next home!

We emailed Clive with the news and will be talking to him in a couple of days. Now, we just have to find the EXACT Lagoon 440 we are buying. We would love to start our adventure over in Europe, but inspecting boats over there would incur more cost. We've also heard the boats are not in the greatest condition, so we'd have to really hunt around. It can be done though, so we are hopeful (boats are less expensive there). Buying in the U.S. or Caribbean would be easier, but also change our route plans. However, no matter where we end up buying our boat, it will be awesome! We will finally be starting our dream of sailing around the world with our family!

Cat Lady

An old friend of mine and I had a joke that if she didn't end up married, she would probably live as a cat lady, with lots of cats. I called her the other day and we laughed that I actually will be a cat lady, of a different kind, of course. =)

Case in point: dragging my family out of our warm and cozy home into a huge crazy storm to go look at a catamaran that had just tied up at the marina. No joke, the news called this storm an "atmospheric river", with two weeks of just rain!

It all started from a friend's post on Facebook this afternoon. She was out for a walk and snapped a photo of the impending storm with the marina in the background. Normally, one scrolls leisurely past all those posts on the news-feed, however, I stopped for one reason, which was naturally to see if I could spot our boat, The Soggy Dollar, in the pic. It was then, I noticed the distinguishable hulls of a catamaran. "Jared", I called out, "Let's go down to the boat. There's a cat tied up the next dock over".

"Sure, we need to get out of the house anyway", was his reply.  Note: he'd been home all day with the kids while I had a meeting at the aquarium, so he was very happy to go for a drive, even if it meant braving the storm.

We dragged the kids from the house, and yes, they complained all the way from the couch where they were comfy watching a movie, to the car. Sunny, our pup, heard the word "boat" and ran to the door. She loves sailing and knows that "boat" means fun out on the water.

Off we went and bundled up against the wind and light sprinkles. We checked on our boat as well, just to make sure things were all ship-shape. She was just dandy as ever, chillin' in her slip. Sunny made for the steps to board the boat, and did not seem happy with me when I called her back. This dog seriously loves to sail. In all good time, sweet pup!

We walked to the end of our dock and there was the behemoth catamaran. Seriously, this thing was about 20 feet tall! It turned out to be a commercial power-cat and not the sailing cat I was hoping for. Oh well. Now one might question my initial excitement. Why care so much about going to see a catamaran? The plain and simple fact that there are hardly ANY cats on the West coast. There are a couple up in the bay area and then a couple more down south, that's it. Not many opportunities for boat shopping or even taking one out for a sail.

Since we are in the market for a catamaran, any opportunity to check one out is golden. We are counting down the days until we go to Florida for a few full days of boat shopping, where there are plenty of catamarans around. A few more days and we are off!

At the time I finished up this post, the storm is hitting us full force! Raindrops pounding, wind howling... grateful for the rain, as our poor state needs it desperately! And the kids are back on the couch resuming their movie. ;)

Boat Traffic

I was discussing ocean passages with my dad when he expressed concern about how we will be all alone at sea. I know for a fact that there are thousands of boats out there, not necessarily will they be on our exact route, however, they are indeed out there. This screenshot from a marine traffic website proves this (keep in mind that this is zoomed way out, so a lot of the icons disappear):

That's A LOT of vessel traffic! Of course, I know that this is not exact timing, however, it just goes to show that there will be more than just our vessel out there while on a passage. So dad, and all of our family and friends, we will not be alone! =)

Boat Shopping in Florida

Yep, we are once again hopping on a plane and heading out to view as many boats as possible. This time, our destination is Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. There just aren't many catamarans on the West Coast. None, actually at the moment. So, off to the East Coast it is. Our broker, Clive, is amazing and is compiling a list of boats to view. We are specifically looking at Lagoons and Leopards in the 40-45 foot range.

This timing also happens to fall on our 15th wedding anniversary, so what better way to celebrate? The kids are heading back to their grandparents for the duration of our trip. J and I will have a visit and then head on out. While we know they'd have fun on the plane and for parts of the trip, we just know after the 4th or 5th boat, they would tire of it and be bored. Plus, we are on a mission! To find the exact model of cat that will best fit our family. 

We've rented a car to be prepared to drive around as needed and of course, do a little exploring along the way. Any sightseeing suggestions? Send them our way! =)

The Boat Box

Yikes, time is flying by way too quickly! We are officially on Christmas break and most of our free time is spent working on the house. I'm taking a little break this afternoon to work on the blog.

As I clean up from the holidays, I am setting aside piles to go back into storage, donate, and one for the boat. I have been thinking ahead to future holidays and wondering just what to bring to decorate the boat with. There isn't much out there on this topic, so I am just going with my gut and what I think will work in a much smaller space. Some LED lights, a few decorations, and ornaments, but I figure we will just make do with what we have, as well as create new decorations depending on where we are. That will be all part of the adventure!

Santa brought a huge stack of board games and card games for the boat. These are definitely going into the boat pile. The kids' Christmas Elf, Christopher, will for sure find his way to where we are (I have promised the kids he would find us). One of my favorite finds were these Glow in the Dark Playing Cards

Thus, a few "Boat Boxes", large plastic totes, have joined our household and I am slowly filling them with things to bring on board. Home school curriculum, small surprises, decorations, and whatever else I think we might need are making their way into these totes. Of course, the kids are also "helping" with this endeavor, so I have to be sure and check through the contents before I pack the tote and stick it in storage (we have a "to go on the boat" area in there).

What items did you pack on board for the various holidays?

Pirates and a U-Haul

Black Friday is typically a day for people who love to shop to get their fix. Well, not for us. We usually stay away from the chaos and instead, chose to go visit some sailing friends up north for a pirate adventure. If you are a Pirates of the Caribbean fan, you will understand. The Lady Washington was used in the first film (Curse of the Black Pearl) and starred as the HMS Interceptor.
We met up with the crew from s/v Odyle and toured the ship. Here are a few pics from the tour:

Afterwards, we let the kids play for a bit on the beach before heading off to pick up the U-Haul to bring home our Black Friday purchases. Yep, you read that right. We bought so much that we needed a U-Haul. Now before you start picturing TVs and the like, it was actually for all the insulation for the house. As we purchased over 30 bags, we needed something a bit larger to transport it back home.

Jared and Zach took off for Home Depot way up near San Francisco (this stuff isn't carried locally, unfortunately) while Matt, Cadence, and I headed for home. The plan was for Jared to drop off the insulation at the house and return the U-Haul that evening. Due to traffic, he didn't get back until 9pm, so we ended up making the return early in the AM.

The rest of the weekend was spent installing insulation to prepare for inspection on Monday. Talk about pressure! We passed with flying colors and could finally schedule the drywall installers (we did everything ourselves last time and decided paying a crew to do it this time was well worth it).

We are hoping to wrap up construction on this addition by February. Just in time to enjoy it for a few months before we sell it. We love this house, but unless we win the lottery between now and June, we need the money for the boat purchase and cruising kitty.