First Cruise of 2016 - Richmond to Sausalito

8-June-2016
Location:  Sausalito, CA

We took our first cruise of the season on June 2nd.  It was only 9 nm, from Richmond, CA to Sausalito, CA, but it feels good to be back out on the water.  We are currently docked at Schoonmaker Marina, doing maintenance on the engines before heading north for the summer season.

View of the Golden Gate bridge as we cruise to Sausalito

We had a busy winter season with our Austin house project, visiting family, traveling and exploring the San Francisco Bay Area.  Here are a few of the highlights:

Dec 2015/Jan 2016:  After closing on the sale of the "project house" in Austin and getting bids from contractors, we took a break and spent the holidays at Sweetpea Farm in Alabama.  The kids and grandkids came to visit between Christmas and New Year's and we did lots of fun things as you can see in the pictures below.

Muddle puddle jumping.
After all the rain, it was a pleasure to be outside playing in the sun.
I think Pearl, the black lab on the right side of the photo, enjoyed
playing in the mud and water more than anyone.

Bubby (Benjamin), Ben, Cat and Maggie on the front porch swing.

Maggie and Cat.

Heather throwing a stick for Pearl.

Our neighbors came over for a play date, Playdoh and fire trucks on the front porch.
Judy Weant with her granddaughter Paisley and Maggie.

Ben and Bubby.

January 2016:  Back in Austin, we got started on the project house.  The electricians and plumbers both started the first week in January followed by the siding and window company.  Ben and his friend Rocky agreed to replace the fence so they got busy with the tear down, post hole digging and reinstallation.  We decided to move the kitchen/garage wall three feet into the garage to make more kitchen space.  After a long wait, we finally got the drawings from the structural engineer and submitted our permit application to City of Austin.  Our plumber recommended a framer to install the structural beams and frame the new wall.  They did a good job so we used them for several other projects, including replacement of termite damaged studs and headers in the master bedroom and garage.  The roofing company replaced the roof and we ordered kitchen and bathroom cabinets from Lowe's.  The siding and window installation got completed along with exterior painting.  The HVAC company removed the old unit and duct work and began installation of the new ducts.  The drywall guys started their work.

Unloading shingles for the new roof.

Plumbing relocation work kitchen/garage.

Plumbing work master bathroom

Ben and Rocky with the post hole digger.

New wall between kitchen and garage.

Replacing termite damaged studs in the master bedroom.

Outside the kitchen prior to replacement of the window and siding.

The last window being installed.

The City of Austin permitting process took longer than we expected and at the end of January we were still waiting for our permits to be issued.  We took a break and headed to Sweetpea Farm for a change of scenery.

February 2016:  My mom joined us for a weekend of relaxation and project work at the farm.  Our project was to build two brick walkways between the cabin and the barn; one to the porch and one to the mud room.

Before:  walkway from the barn to the mud room.

Before:  walkway from the barn to the porch.

Louise (Mom) loading bricks.

Dave removing rocks.

Finished with our walkway project, we headed back to Austin, via Biloxi.  We finally got our permits from the City first week of February.  Mom and I spent the week waiting for the inspector and getting quotes on granite for the kitchen.  We met up with my friend Sheila in La Grange and spent a day catching up and exploring the shops.  The landscapers finished the bulk of their work, installing new sod, gravel, trees and bushes.  Mom flew back to CA and work continued on the project house.  The first two weeks of the month we made very slow progress but at the end of the month things picked up.  We got a temporary electric hook-up installed so that the electrician could begin rewiring the house.  The plumbers had to chase a leak in the drain line under the slab but finally found it and got everything to hold.  We got the hardwood floors installed and the kitchen cabinets delivered and installed.  One of the corner cabinets was busted up so we lost several weeks of progress waiting for a replacement.

New electrical panel wiring.

Installing the last insulation batt

Hardwood floors being installed.

Drywall installation.

Kitchen cabinet installation.

Landscaping front yard.

Trellis installation back yard.

March 2016:  Dave and I took a break in early March and traveled up to Freedom, New Hampshire to visit Pete and Cathy (Dave's brother and sister-in-law) and Julie (Dave's sister).  We spent the week enjoying the outdoors and the snow.  We hiked every day, told stories and toured the local area.

Hiking with Pete and Cathy.

Looking over the river.

Pete, Julie and Dave.

On our return back to Austin, we focused on finishing up our project.  Drywall and interior painting, electrical work, plumbing, etc.  Our replacement cabinet finally showed up so we got it installed followed by the granite installation.  The tile work in the bathrooms and kitchen was completed along with the plumbing.

Building shelves in the master bedroom.

Kitchen granite installation.

April 2016:  We were hoping to have the project house finished by the end of March but didn't make our deadline.  My cousin Lydia got married in Ormond Beach, Florida on April 2nd.  Dave, my mom, my brother Kevin and I all went to the wedding.  Thursday night before the wedding my Uncle Max, Aunt Darlene and Cousin Morgan all came to have dinner with us at our rental house near the beach. Friday was rehearsal and a rehearsal cook-out on the beach.  Saturday afternoon was the wedding followed by the reception.  Sunday we went to visit Max and Darlene in Crescent City.  Max gave us a tour of their property and we played some cards.  Monday we all met at De Leon Springs State Park for pancake breakfast and a hike.

Ormond Beach:  Uncle Max, Cousin Lydia, Richard, Aunt Darlene

Max's ducks.

De Leon Springs State Park:  Darlene, Morgan, Louise, B, Kevin, Max

Tuesday Kevin flew back to California.  Dave, Mom and I dropped him off in Orlando and then we went to the Merritt Island Wild Life Refuge to look for alligators. We found some!

Mom left for California on Wednesday and Dave and I drove to Sweetpea Farm for a few days before returning to Austin to finish the project house.

Next to a huge tree that fell across the road in a storm.

Dave's new deer stand.

Refinishing the mud room entry door.

Preparing for deer season.

We called for the final inspection of the project house on April 15th.  We passed!  There were a few minor punch list items to complete, along with clean-up, so we spent the weekend and Monday/ Tuesday finishing up the details.  By the end of the week, we had the house on the market.  Our realtor held an open house on Sunday and by Monday we had multiple offers to consider.  Here are a few before and after pictures.

Kitchen Before

Kitchen After

Hall bathroom Before

Hall bathroom After

Backyard Before

Backyard After

Work Crew Before (Derek, Chris, Hedy)

Work Crew After (Hedy, Chris, Derek)

On Wednesday, April 20th we flew from Austin back to the boat in California.  We spent a few days up in Colusa visiting my mom and brother and then started our spring chores to get the boat ready for cruising season.

May 2016:  We have been enjoying our time in northern California and have been doing some travelling and exploring.  I bought a kayak and gear and have been paddling around the marina and the nearby shoreline.

We spent a week in Sonoma County with day trips to Point Reyes, the Jack London State Park and a few wineries.

Tulle elk near Point Reyes

California quail near Point Reyes.

We spent a week in the Reno / South Lake Tahoe area and did some gambling and some hiking.

Overlooking Cascade Lake with Lake Tahoe in the background.

The week before Memorial Day, we went up to Mariposa and Yosemite National Park.  We spent our first day there white water rafting on the Merced River.

Getting suited up for our rafting adventure.

Lunch break on the beach.

View of the raft in front of us.

Rae, our guide.

The next two days we spent hiking the Yosemite Valley and Glacier Point.

We spent Memorial Day weekend in Colusa visiting my Mom and brother, then came back down to Richmond to get ready to move the boat to Sausalito.

We hope to be done with maintenance in the next week or so and then will watch for a good weather window for our trip north.

Until next time...

NYC, Wine Country, Project House, Farm

One last blog before the end of the year.  We have been busy traveling and doing projects.

One of the things on my Mom's bucket list was to go to New York City.  Mid-October, my mom, her friend Barbara from Colusa, her friend Marilyn from Ellendale, ND and I traveled to NYC for a week of touring.  We arrived on Saturday night and settled into our hotel, The New Yorker  www.newyorkerhotel.com.  Sunday morning, Jacques, one of Barbara's former students, cooked breakfast for us at his art studio.

Jacques, Barbara, Marilyn and Louise at Jacques' art studio

After breakfast we went on a walking tour of Manhattan with stops at Times Square, the library, and Grand Central Station.

Marilyn, Louise and Barbara - Times Square

Barbara and Marilyn - The New York public library

Sunday night, we joined up with our tour group, Road Scholar.  The overview of our trip can be found at their website https://www.roadscholar.org/n/program/summary.aspx?id=1-1OQXQ

We signed in, picked up our paperwork and then went to supper at the Tick Tock Diner.  After supper, we went back to the meeting room, did some introductions and then listened to a lecture about the five boroughs of NYC.  After the lecture we walked to the Empire State Building and rode up to the top for a view of the city.

Monday, we all got subway passes and then rode the subway up to St. Patrick's Cathedral and Radio City music hall where we took a guided tour.

St. Patrick's Cathedral

Wall Paper at Radio City Music Hall

Radio City Music Hall Staircase Mural

Supper was at a Chinese restaurant near our hotel.  After supper we listened to a lecture about the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.  Tuesday morning we rode the subway down to the Battery and then caught the ferry to Liberty Island.  We spent the morning touring the museum at the base of the statue and walking around the out.  After lunch, we rode the ferry to Ellis Island and toured the immigration station there.

A replica of the torch

B and Louise at Statue of Liberty

After Ellis Island, we walked to the 9-11 memorial.  Back to the hotel and then supper at a nearby Greek Restaurant.  After supper, we rode the subway to the Chelsea District and walked the High Line Park and through Chelsea market.  Somebody in the group clocked our miles walked at over 12 so we were ready for our bunks at the end of the day.

Wednesday morning we toured Broadway and the theater district followed by a picnic lunch outside at Bryant Park.  Wednesday afternoon was free time so we opted for a guided walk through Harlem.  The four of us went to an Italian restaurant near the theater district for supper and then went to see "Beautiful - the Carole King Story".  We all enjoyed the show and were able to sing along to most of the music.

Thursday we walked through Central Park and spent the day at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  After Thursday night supper, we took a walking tour of Greenwich Village.  Friday was the last day of the tour.  We checked out of the hotel and flew back to California.

After all of that traveling, Dave and I decided we needed a break so we spent a few days in Sonoma County touring wine country and visiting friends.

B near a butterfly garden at a winery

Dave enjoying a glass of wine

Touring a vineyard with friends Greg and Chris

The first two weeks of November B attended a Captain's Course in Alameda as the final step in applying for her 100-ton Captain's license.  The course included rules of the road, navigation, charting, weather, knot-tying, boat handling, safety, etc.  The last day of class was a series of tests.  The first was rules of the road, followed by navigation/charting, then deck general, then navigation general and finally towing.  If you are interested in the Captain's Course, here is a link to Maritime Institute, based in San Diego  maritimeinstitute.com  I passed all of the tests and spent the weekend preparing my paperwork to submit to the US Coast Guard for my license.  Last time I checked, they were in the process of reviewing my application.

We moved the boat from Oakland to Richmond on Friday afternoon November 13th. 

The Bay Bridge with the San Francisco skyline in the background

Mary, Scott, Nathan and Sara came to visit us in Richmond on Saturday afternoon.  We had lunch and then stopped to visit the Rosie the Riveter monument.

Scott, Mary, Sara and B at the Rosie the Riveter Monument

We spent the rest of the weekend winterizing the boat.  On Monday we headed for Colusa.  Tuesday we went to the casino for senior day and then did a few chores at my mom's house.  Wednesday morning, my brother Kevin drove us to the Sacramento and we flew to Austin.

We decided to buy a fixer-upper in Austin, right across the street from Ben, Cat and the grandkids.  A hoarder lived in the house so it is in pretty bad shape.  So, our project for the winter is to fix it up.  We spent three weeks in Austin doing demolition and getting quotes for the remodel.  The pictures here will give you an idea of the scope of the project.  Everything in the house needs to be replaced with the exception of the studs and the slab.  But... it has good bones and will be a nice place once we finish.  We'll post more pictures as we make progress.

Derek, Chris and Heather suited up and ready to do demo.

Dave and Derek - finished with popcorn and linoleum removal
in the back bedroom.

B taking a break on the back patio

Removal of the attic insulation batts

B removing the popcorn in the kitchen

Kitchen demo

Tree removal

We did have some fun over the long Thanksgiving weekend.  We took the grandkids, Maggie and Benjamin, to the luminarium and then had a huge Thanksgiving feast on Saturday.

Exterior view of the Luminarium

Heather, Derek and Maggie inside the blue room.

Ben and Cat walking with Benjamin

Cat, Ben, Maggie and Benjamin inside the red room

Sheila and Joe at our temporary rental house
in Austin, ready for our Thanksgiving feast.

Mid-December we decided we had accomplished as much as we could on the project house before the holidays and headed to Sweet Pea Farm in Alabama.  Of course, we stopped at the casinos in Coushatta and Biloxi along the way, but no luck.  Since we arrived here, we have been doing farm chores, getting ready for hunting and unlaxing.

B and Puddy enjoying the fire.

Dave sitting in a tree stand

That's it for 2015.  Happy Holidays to all and see you next year.