Week eight was sure a pretty one! So pretty, in fact, that I finally sucked it up and bought myself another $2 digi layout template…the Project Life Squared Away Template 1. I had a crazy stash of images from our sail on President’s Day (Monday of week 8) — so I definitely wanted to make sure I squeezed in as many photos as possible.
Oh and this week was one for the record books seeing as it was my *very last* week of regular work! Can you say early retirement??? Boy, did it feel amazing leaving work that Friday afternoon and knowing that Jereme and I will be traveling and living life on our watch for the next year or so. 🙂
WEEK 8 SPREAD:
WEEK 8 LEFT SIDE:
WEEK 8 RIGHT SIDE:
*products used: lots of ali edwards brushes (my favorite); pictures+words No. 5 photo templates from Paislee Press; hello my name is journaling cards from Paislee Press, and LOTS of things from the Jade digital PL kit. (I get zero kickbacks from any of these links, just fyi.)
*project life is a memory-keeping system + lifestyle. In 2014, i’m creating a digital spread for every week of the year and printing a final bound book at the end of twenty-fourteen. You can view all of my project life posts here.
>>Thanks for visiting LAHOWIND sailing blog! We’d love for you to get to know us and follow our story as we attempt to navigate a whole new world of sailing, as we cruise the Bahamas + Caribbean.
…Learn more about us and our sailing + cruising adventures.
Posted in Project Life, Sailing BlogTags: 2014, Bahamas, Caribbean, Cruising, Digital, LahoWind, Project Life, Sailboat, Sailing Blog, Week 8, Young Couple
1. I have this minor, okay fine MAJOR, concern that we won’t be able to find cheese while sailing. Yes, I’m a crazy cheese lunatic. So no cheese = major problem.
I am confident however that we will be able to purchase cheese at most of the bigger more populated islands, but what about all the tiny remote ones? Any chance we’ll find decent cheese at those small local markets?
2. Luckily, I ran to World Market the other day (for something unrelated) and found an assortment of different types of *non-refrigerated* cheese. In block form — and not the laughing cow stuff either. ^^These^^ small blocks of vacuum-sealed cheese are good through early 2015 unless opened. …So I bought 10 blocks. Obviously. 😉 And yes, I realize these are not straight from France or anything, but the checkout girl at WM promised me they were good.
3. Ugh. ^^These^^ solar panels. They are my nemesis! And I am going to complain about them (not the product itself, just the install process) until we finish this stinking project and have loads of glorious power to run lots of fun things on our boat. Like our refrigerator. For cheese.
4. Did I mention that we just decided we now need to add-on to our existing bimini stainless steel support structure to accommodate our new panels? We were under the impression that we would not need to build any new supports. It’s always something, isn’t it?
5. In case you missed it yesterday over on Facebook (but you shouldn’t miss anything really — just make sure to “like” us at >>Facebook.com/lahowind<< for all the latest and greatest!!!), Jereme went and trimmed down his raging beard. I kinda loved his beard, but he had just about enough of it — having to pick food particles out at every meal and all. That thing was better than velcro! It became a chore to simply try and enjoy a bowl of cereal…much less a plate of ribs or something messy. So for now, Jer’s beard is nicely trimmed and I’m sure it may make a return appearance one day down the road. 🙂
6. So, it took Jereme and I a whopping 15 minutes (maybe more like 20) last night to figure out how the heck to open our new Lifeproof iPad Case. Someone might want to tell the Lifeproof folks not to stash the instructions *inside* the locked case. (Just an fyi — we will being using the iPad (with GPS and now a few awesome navigation apps) as our primary chart plotter.)
7. I just have to quickly mention daylight savings. How great is it when it stays light so much later??? I love it! That is all.
Happy Tuesday! xo.
>>Thanks for visiting LAHOWIND sailing blog! We’d love for you to get to know us and follow our story as we attempt to navigate a whole new world of sailing.
…Learn more about us and our sailing adventures.
I seriously hope this is the last time we give an “update” on the status of our never-ending boat projects. Because, GUESS WHAT??? They are finally ending!
Almost. 😉
^^this guy has successfully completed nearly 60 boat projects! insane.^^ (Side note: If you are reading this post on a mobile device, you might not see all the colored hyperlinks below — for some reason the formatting is not carrying over on mobiles right now. bizarre.)
You might recall >>our original list all the way back in June<< just a month after we had sailed the boat down from St. Pete. Boy, we have come a long long way since that original list.
Then, there was our first update in October, to when we *really* starting making progress just this January, and our most recent update in early February, here.
There were projects we crossed off the list and then they somehow got added back on for a “redo/fix.” Gotta love when that happens. Not! And quite a few “pop-up” projects we added on as well. Our original list contained about 40 items, but somehow our January update had made its way to over 60! Geez louise!
There were some super stinky projects, a few dirty projects, lots of difficult + time-consuming projects, and even a few crazy simple projects. But we tackled them all! And learned lots of new skills along the way. Like how to maintain our diesel engine and how to re-bed chainplates (boy, do we love butyl tape!).
We did a pretty good job of estimating the cost of each project (although several ended up costing a bit more $ than expected, while a few actually came in cheaper as well). We did an average job in estimating the time it would take to complete each item. Who knew installing all new port lights would take 3+ weeks?
And after all of these crazy projects, we still cannot decently fold either of our sails. Sad, but true.
^^we need to wrap up these projects so we can do a helluva lot more of this.^^ ^^and see a lot more of this…just preferably in the BAHAMAS!^^ Well, it has been a TON of hard work, lots and lots of research and self-teaching, but we have *finally* whittled down the list to basically only 4 remaining projects…
- Replace (the other) spreader light. *already replaced one and just need to get back up the mast, which might just be happening as we speak.
- Replace our wind vane. *just need to get back up the mast on this one too, and like I said — might be happening right now!
- Replace topping lift sheaves. *finally found where we could order legit sheaves for our specific brand of boom. They have been ordered and this should be a very very simple fix.
- Install battery bank, solar panels, charge controller, and inverter. *in process. and not fun at all. ugh.
#4 on ^^that list^^ is a doozy!!! We would gladly pay someone to do this for us, but we just can’t find anyone with the expertise AND a willingness to do so here locally in Southwest Florida. (If you know the perfect person to help, let us know.) So, like almost everything else, we are doing it ourselves.
Through all of this insane amount of work and boat prep, Jereme has persevered. I still do not have a clue as to how the heck he manages to figure everything out. And ALWAYS takes his time and makes sure each project is done correctly. For that, I am so very grateful.
So now, our current “to-do list” mostly consists of prep-type items we need to complete before actually setting sail for the long term. We are in the process of selling one of our Jeeps (lots of interest from our Craigslist post and a pending sale happening today also! yay!); updating cell phone service plans for international calling; provisioning the boat with adequate food/supplies; planning our first few stops in the Keys and western Bahamas; and getting ready to get this show on the road!
We are so super close, I can hardly believe it! 🙂 I keep saying “1 week,” but this time we might actually mean it.
Bahamas, here we come!!!
>>Thanks for visiting LAHOWIND sailing blog! We’d love for you to get to know us and follow our story as we attempt to navigate a whole new world of sailing.
…Learn more about us and our sailing adventures.
“When life gives you lemons, sell them to buy wine.” “When in doubt, drink more wine.” “Wine is win with an ‘e’ on the end!”
Okay, okay. You get the where this post is headed. 😉
And, funny enough, Jereme and I are honestly bigger beer drinkers, but we’ve recently taken a liking to wine spritzers as ridiculous as that sounds. You know, your finest $4 Trader Joe’s Green Fin White Table Wine (btw it’s amazing — thank you Aubri for introducing me way back when) mixed with a little Sprite or some other delicious fizzy beverage? I’m pretty sure it’s this “retired life” of ours that’s getting the best of us, lol. 🙂
Plus, who says wine glasses can’t serve double duty and also hold margaritas? Am I right or am I right?!
Back in August, ya’ll might remember >>this fun little shin-dig<< we threw on our boat with our friends Heather+Jesse and Denise+Ryan. It was our very first sailboat dinner party! And super fun, I might add.
Well, leave it to our fabulous friends to give us the most perfect accoutrement for the boat…a must-have really…shatterproof wine glasses by Govino! And customized with our boat’s name “LAHO!” So perfect, right???
Immediately after that weekend, I told Jereme I just HAD to do a blog post about these awesome glasses. Every cruiser, or boater for that matter, needs a set. So, I had these grand plans to snap some nice photos of our new wine glasses in action and then write a great blog post about these new additions to the boat, but it took me a mere six months to do so. Lol! Better late than never!
But not surprisingly, Commuter Cruiser, had long ago beaten me to it. Because they’re just that awesome and always have all the good info. 🙂
^^Side note… Guess who got their acrylics removed this week (after what feels like a lifetime)? Feels pretty awesome, even though my natural nails are tissue paper thin.^^
Anyhow, >>here’s where you can order these awesome plastic (but nicer) shatterproof glasses, CUSTOM IMPRINTED!<<
And I should add a little disclaimer…they are NOT dishwasher safe! But hey, we don’t care because we don’t have a dishwasher on our sailboat!
Thank you Heather + Jesse! You better come visit us somewhere fun in the Caribbean. You know, so we can use the glasses. 😉
>>Thanks for visiting LAHOWIND sailing blog! We’d love for you to get to know us and follow our story as we attempt to navigate a whole new world of sailing.
…Learn more about us and our sailing adventures.
I swear one day SOON we will have so much more to share than silly boat projects. I am anxiously awaiting the opportunity to start photographing gorgeous islands, white sand beaches, and crystal clear turquoise water! Gah! I can hardly wait.
In the meantime, we are wrapping up our very last few boat projects so we can actually get going on this boat of ours. One of the final projects on our list before we set sail was hauling out the boat so we could replace our transducer and replace a broken seacock (that we broke back in October, but waited until now to replace…nice, right?).
About two weeks ago, we got our name on the waiting list over at Molly’s Marine here in Naples. Molly’s is just a quick and easy two-minute jump up the way from the Naples City Dock off Naples Bay. Last Tuesday, we motored over in the afternoon for our scheduled haul out.
Aside from the (boat) traffic jam at the entrance of Molly’s (thanks massive power boaters for your manners in letting us come in, NOT!), all went super smooth. Jereme has definitely become a pro at maneuvering this boat of ours.
We watched the team at Molly’s carefully haul out our baby (and luckily, we had just recently organized all of our original boat manuals and had our “strap location diagram” on hand for quick reference).
We started with the transducer replacement first.
Let me back up just a hair. The transducer is what senses the depth under the boat, using sonar, and sends a signal to the instrument up in the cockpit. Our existing depth instrument still works; however, the screen is basically a very old 1-inch-tall, black and white screen that is located too far away from the helm to really see much. (And our other two instruments on the boat — wind and boat speed — do not work.) So, we decided to purchase new depth and wind instruments, and remove the speed one altogether. Unfortunately, there are no “new” depth screens available on the market these days that will work with our existing transducer (which was only compatible with our old Datamarine instruments), so we had to replace the transducer. Hence, the haul out. (Our new Ray Marine (formerly Tacktick) wind instrument is wireless.)
Back to the replacement.
In this particular boat yard, boat owner’s are not allowed to do their own work. It’s not a “DIY” kind of yard. So, we brought in an electrician to help us with the transducer replacement (however in the future we would most definitely do this project ourselves because of how ridiculously easy this job was).
Our electrical guy, Rob hammered out the old transducer. And our new transducer was the exact same size as the old one, so it was literally a super easy switch out. No fiberglass work needed. Jereme has been working since on routing the necessary wires through the boat and building a panel for our new instruments (blog post coming soon!).
^^Interestingly enough, just earlier that same morning our boat had gotten a bottom cleaning at the dock, so we were interested to see how good of a job it really was, if you know what I mean.^^
We also used the haul out as an opportunity to visually check our sacrificial zinc anode on the propellor shaft, and immediately noted the need for a fresh replacement before setting sail. Based on the looks of things…we added that to the mix while we were at Molly’s. Needless to say, we have a new zinc anode now.
The seacock replacement was a little bit harder than the transducer replacement since the old bolt pattern on the seacock was different than the new one. At the end of the day, it required some fiberglass work to fill our old bolt holes.
After the seacock was replaced, Jereme made sure to ask for our old Groco one back so that he could take it apart to figure out how it works since we have at least five more of these on our boat (such the engineer! always thinking). We’re working on a separate blog post about these original Groco seacocks, particularly how they work and even more importantly how they can fail to help others out in the future.
^^And why not use the haul out as an opportunity for a close-up photo of our cool wood nameplates. 😉 You can read about how we chose the name “LAHO” here. It’s super special to us.^^
Now that the haul out is complete, we only have one or two more things to finish on the boat before we are ready to leave!!!
>>Thanks for visiting LAHOWIND sailing blog! We’d love for you to get to know us and follow our story as we attempt to navigate a whole new world of sailing, as we cruise the Bahamas and Caribbean.
…Learn more about us and our sailing and cruising adventures.
Posted in Boat Projects, Sailing BlogTags: Bahamas, Boat Yard, Caribbean, Cruising, Haul out, LahoWind, Replace Fix Seacock, Replace Transducer, Sailboat, Sailboat Haulout, Sailing Blog
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Beautiful photos! You definitely have a consistent brand over here 🙂 Have you considered doing mini photography tutorials on this site? You could speak to your niches photography + sailing! We just got a Canon Rebel, and we have the whole Adobe suite. I’m so overwhelmed by the thought of learning it all!
Thanks so much Breezy! YOUR photos are SO gorgeous! I would love to know what equipment you were shooting with before if you just got the Rebel. Don’t change a thing! I’ve never really considered tutorials, but I would love sneaking those into my blog posts. Hmmm…something to consider for sure. 🙂 -Kim
Aw shucks, thanks! We don’t have any photos from the Rebel up yet. All the current photos are from whatever we could get our hands on. Mostly iPhones and a Fuji film point and shoot digital camera. The film photos with the light leak are from a 70s era 35mm Minolta (Granpa let us raid his camera collection). I would totally keep up with a weekly/monthly mini tutorial if you decide to do one!
Hi. What kit did you use for the large 4×6 journaling cards? I looked in my Jade kit and can’t find them. Your pages are stunning and your photos are as well. Thank you!!
Hi Sabrina! You’re right, they are not from the Jade kit. I forgot I used those from the Coral kit. Thanks for the kind words! -Kim
Looking good you guys! I am a little bummed to see Jereme shaved his beard off though. I am glad you got a good record of of it! xo