It was time to take care of some “land life” duties so we spend a few days at our house in Amherst. Those duties included laundry (lots of laundry), paying bills, reading the large pile of mail, seeing the kids (both human and canine), and of the utmost importance – restocking the wine supply for the boat. Carl very carefully wrapped each bottle individually in bubble wrap. Now all we have to do is get the 4 large canvas bags and 1 box (containing over 30 bottles of that wonderful beverage) onto the boat safely.

After a few days of taking care of the duties we spent a wonderful Sunday dinner with our daughters, son-in-law and 3 grandchildren (of the canine type). After much debate, menu reading, web surfing and going back and forth we finally settled on a smorgasbord of appetizers from Whole Foods – cheese, crackers, fruit, nuts, chips, roasted chicken, onion rings, and a very sweet raspberry tart – oh my! We left with our stomachs full and our hearts fuller. Time spent with family is so very important for health, happiness and harmony. With everything going on in the world today it was nice to spend a few hours just talking about past family adventures, doggy antics, sailing stories, wine recommendations, ideas for the website and of course upcoming plans for the rest of the summer.

Although we will miss all the family while we are on-board, in truth we are happy to be back. Our shiny new mooring ball looks perfect and of course we get to return to some of our favorite things – Sailing, reading books and drinking wine. Unless we are putting air in the dinghy or fixing something.