Hopscotch

Hey Everybody! Internet has been hit or miss lately. We've just been playing Island Hopscotch for awhile. Zig-zagging our way down the Exumas. (A chain of islands in Bahamas). It's so beautiful here.

 

We're here!

We are currently in Staniel Cay, Exumas. Slowly making our way to Georgetown.

Scott goes diving as much as possible. It's become an obsession. The weather has not cooperated lately but today's a good day so maybe we'll get some fresh dinner. We haven't seen much lobster this year. We dove a couple caves the other day. It was too rough to take pictures but they were really cool.

I need to keep this short because we're heading to town early before the weather shifts yet again. The grocery boat came in yesterday so I want to hit the grocery store before all the fresh veggies are gone.

Best grocery store in town!

I'll just share some pics. Things have been running well on the boat (knock on some wood please). We absolutely love our new dinghy motor. It's FAST.

 

Osprey nest

 

One beautiful sunset after another

 

We met a couple the other day who had the prettiest boat I've ever seen. (On the inside). On the outside it looks like a giant tug boat....only painted & cared for with meticulous effort. Not a smudge on it. The inside is amazing. What makes it really special is that Laura, the 1st mate, did ALL the design & woodwork herself....from scratch. When they bought the boat it was completely gutted.

The bathroom

 

Staircase to master suite. Again...all the wood work done by Laura....

 

 

WHAAAATTTT??!

 

The amazing engine room. There are 3 grown men sitting very comfortably in there. Includes washer & dryer too!

 

 

She even has a bathtub!!

Ahhhh...the luxury of a bathtub....feel blessed if you have one!

Exuma coastline facing the Atlantic.

Hope. All is well. Miss & love everybody.

Michelle, Scott & Jib.

Xxxooo

Noah

P.S. I want to take a moment to remember my companion of 16 yrs. When our sailing life was becoming a reality, I knew I would have to find a home for Noah. Scott & Noah never got along anyway & I knew Noah would never adapt to the boat at that age. Luckily, my good friend Julie Olson adopted Noah. She always looked after him when I traveled over the years & they always got along. Which is saying something cuz' Noah only liked a select few people. :) Noah passed away on Monday. He would have been 20 years old in March. Thank You Olson family for loving him & giving him such a great home for his last few years. I will never forget that act of kindness. And Thank you Noah. For being my good buddy for so many years.

R.I.P. Noah Bear. I've loved you for 1/2 my life. And I will forever. See you someday buddy.

 

 

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Wherever The Wind Takes Us...

So we're walking down the beach & turn around to see a HUGE squall moved in.....rut roh...gonna get wet

It's been an interesting 2 weeks. We've been in Rock Sound waiting on our new dinghy motor, which arrived today! Woo hoo! It's like getting a new car!

Scott coming home with our new outboard motor...

 

Scott coming home with our new outboard....15hp 2 stroke Yamaha....SWEET!!

So far...we like it. However, we have to do all these "trial runs" getting the engine used to being used. The engines are so picky....everything has to be "just right". The oil to gas ratio, opening her to full speed...only after cajoling her for several days...it's all spelled out in the manual. It's a 2 stroke. Not even allowed or made in the USA but is VERY popular in every other country. And all our friends/everyone in the sailing community say it is superior to anything in the USA. Hope so.

My spoon

So, I love doing dishes on the new platform but sometimes I drop stuff & have to go get it...

Made some yummy pretzel bread...

Onions & peppers...

Basil, oregano, & mint...

Scott & Jib jerry juggin' some free water in Rock Sound.

Home Sweet Home.

We are heading out tomorrow for a new Island chain...the Exumas. Can't wait. They are really beautiful.

Yum.

 

Geez.....amazing!

 

Love & miss you all. Internet may be sketchy for a little while....will post pics on Facebook when I can't blog.

Xxxooo Michelle, Scott & Jib

 

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Happy New Year!

 

My friend posted this on FB...love it

Wowza! Another year...poof! Time goes by so fast. We are currently in Rock Sound, Eleuthera..Bahamas. It's pretty here & they have an awesome grocery store. We are sorta stuck here for about a week cuz' our outboard (dinghy motor) is kaputz. This is our 4th year of cruising the Bahamas & each year we have had trouble with dinghy motors. Grrr.... This time it's the propeller. Some ball bearing or something...I don't know. Anyway, the motor only functions if it's at idle speed. Which is SLOW. We decided to just surrender & we bought a new motor. It's a big deal cuz' they are really expensive. We already sold our other motor for more than we paid for it so we're getting a brand new (our current motor is a 2006) 15hp 2 stroke yamaha for $1600. (Its a $2500 engine but minus the $900 we got for the old engine...) Pretty much a steal...

 

I hate outboards.

It's been a great year. We are so blessed & not a day goes by that I don't realize that. Enjoy some pics from the journey....

Yum.

 

Junkanoo!!!!

 

The ultimate pirate ship

 

 

Watch out for the goats!

 

Jelly fish

Lobster man!

 

 

Lo

 

Look close....see our pet hermit crab....he's so cute.

Love & miss everybody!

Love, Michelle, Scott & Jib

 

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Merry Christmas!

My rosemary Christmas tree didn't actually make it to Christmas Day. :(

Merry Christmas everybody!! We are still in Hatchet Bay, Eleuthera . We went to a great mass this morning & then to a little cruiser's potluck. Scott made a yummy lobster pasta dish. Tonight is Chistmas Junkanoo. Have to hurry cuz we need to go play with Jib for awhile before we have to leave him alone on the boat again.there are too many aggressive dogs in Hatchet bay this year to bring him to shore. He hates it here. We're leaving tomorrow for a place called Governor's Harbor. It's only about 20 miles away.

 

Scott's new favorite sport. Surfing behind the dinghy.

We found a surfboard floating in Marsh Harbor. When nobody claimed it (I made several announcements on the radio) we decided finders keepers. It was in pretty rough shape. Scott did some fiberglass work on it & is so far having a blast with his new toy.

Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas. Love & miss you all so much this time of the year.

God Bless

Xxxxxoooo

 

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