Updated on October 28, 2021
Summer 2021
In addition to a long list of repairs and upgrades to be completed by October, we were excited to have special visitors. We signed Zoe up for dinghy sailing lessons in late June and Ellie for “mini-mariners” sailing camp of mid-July. Additionally, Elena was going back to Russia to visit family, especially granddaughter Lisa, from June 17th to end of July. All good stuff!!
My daughter Jamie (and coincidentally Zoe and Ellie’s mom) decided (and I concurred) that having both girls together was a good idea so they could keep each other company.
What all this meant was that I was going to have two young ladies, ages 9 and 6, for 10 days without help. Three meals a day plus snacks. Swimming and bike riding on demand. The finale was going to be a fireworks show on July 4th, getting SOPHIA underway to get the best view. This was going to be a challenging couple of weeks.
I needed to get a lot of extra stuff off the boat. I emptied closets and lockers, put the contents in boxes, and stored it all in a rented storage locker (all without Elena’s permission, which might get interesting upon her return).
When Zoe and Ellie came on board on June 27th, they brought enough stuff to refill those closets and lockers, plus water toys and bikes. Sailing camp started on the 28th and we quickly got into a routine. Up at 8am, breakfast at 9am, fix a lunch for Zoe, departure for the sailing camp at 9:30 for a start time of 10am. Ellie and I then went to the pool for a 45-minute swim (the pool was closed for “adult swim” at 10:45). Ellie and I then went off to do errands, laundry, shopping, and sometimes a nap and sometimes another swim. At 3pm we picked up Zoe, went to the pool for another 45 minutes (another adult swim at 3:45) and then ice cream. Dinner was around 6pm and bedtime was 10pm, if they lasted that long. The schoolwork that their mother had sent along was not touched, much to Zoe and Ellie’s relief.
Breakfast was generally fresh baked biscuits and sausage with a little fruit. I tried eggs, but they were never even touched, so I gave up quickly on that battle.
(Kailyn from the good ship QUINN has her back to the camera)
Friday, the last day of sailing camp, was “pirates’ day”. We decided to go all the way and went to Annapolis on Wednesday for store-bought party costume plus something off of Amazon just in case. It was money well spent as Zoe got the “best dressed pirate award” and, as a result, her team won the overall points contest for sailing camp. Not that all that makes much of a difference, but it made Zoe happy. I was just happy that she learned to discern jib from mainsail, halyard from sheet, and tacking from gybing.
Dad (Manny) showed up at 5pm on July 4th (Jamie had gotten a spider bite and decided not to join us). We got SOPHIA underway to anchor out for the fireworks show, with Zoe taking Elena’s place on the bow with headphones to help guide the bow around.
The wind was not heavy, but it was enough and from the exact direction to give me the maximum challenge to get out of the slip. I tried to back out but ended up not being able to steer in a straight line enough to get out. Forced to turn around in a tight spot we went forward and then reverse more time than I care to count until we were able to work ourselves around with Zoe having to push us off the pilings a couple of times.
Zoe’s shipmate at sailing camp was Kaylin from the sailing vessel QUINN. We spotted QUINN at anchor and found a spot to anchor next to them. Using headsets, I turned the helm over to Zoe so I could prepare the anchor for dropping. Guiding Zoe in with “right, right, left, slow down, more speed, right, left” instructions we eased next to QUINN and dropped the anchor in a near perfect position.
We had about three hours before the fireworks. QUINN had lowered her dinghy into the water and of course that caused just a hint of envy onboard SOPHIA. So, with a little encouragement, I agreed to lower our dinghy and then we lowered Zoe into the dinghy. I was not prepared to put the motor on the dinghy, but QUINN’s captain (Kaylin’s dad) came alongside with Kaylin and offered to take Zoe and Ellie for a ride which we gladly accepted. After all the fun was over, we got all the girls safely back on board as well as the dinghy.
We had corndogs for dinner. The fireworks were grand, enjoyed by all. We had a choice of going back into the slip in the dark with all the “crazies” or remaining at anchor for the evening and going back in the morning. We decided on the later. Everyone seemed to sleep well with Ellie even taking a shower on board (she likes her showers ashore).
After breakfast, we moved back into the slip with Zoe steering the boat halfway back to the marina. We began the process of getting all the girls’ stuff off the boat (we were not totally successful, as I found out several days later) and they shoved off for Richmond at 2pm, leaving me alone.
The quiet on the boat was spooky. Except for a couple of days solo-sailing on the last leg of our cruise, I was truly alone for the first time in months and would be for at least a couple of weeks. I had enjoyed having the girls on board immensely .