Sailing with the Sandersons!

We were able to take Ian, Krista, and Forest out for a quick jaunt on Prudence this weekend. Luckily, we had clear skies and beautiful late-afternoon winter light. We had just about no wind by the time we headed out, although the water was a bit sloppy still from a breeze that had briefly kicked up a couple hours before. But we motored around a little bit, making sure to say hello to the seals snoozing on the "seal buoy," until we found a little patch of wind that we could sail in for about twenty minutes or so. I'm really glad that Ian, Krista, and Forest were able to check out Prudence a little bit and that we were able to share some of the things that we love with them. Now next time we need to make sure to spot some dolphins! Forest was anxious to take the helm, and he made a fine Captain indeed.


On a side note, Levi annihilated an entire package of Trader Joe's seaweed snacks along the journey. It was kind of disturbing yet intriguing. I suppose they must be good for him, and they were certainly a fitting snack for the occasion.

A Sailing Adventure

We got to take everyone out for a sail one afternoon, although we had pretty cold, grey weather. We had our usual Prudence luck, though, and saw a bunch of dolphins, which was exciting for the kids (well, probably for all of us)--we even saw a couple of baby dolphins! Unsurprisingly, Parker and Josie both eventually fell asleep! All of the kids were great little sailors, Chiara included--she was so sweet and mellow the whole time.

Sailing With the Prindles

The "other" Prindle family--Nate, Lisa, and Alex--joined us for a fun-filled Saturday aboard Prudence this weekend. We lucked out with just perfect weather for a family day out--warm, sunny, clear, and just the right amount of wind to move along nicely while keeping the boat flat enough for everyone to lounge around up on deck while we were underway. This was Lisa's first time aboard a sailboat, so we wanted to make sure that she left with some good memories! True to form, Prudence took us right through a nice big pod of dolphins on their way to feed, so we all had that moment of excitement as we watched them all swim right past the bow of the boat. After sailing out and back for about two hours, we anchored in the harbor and enjoyed some snacks, music, swimming for the brave, and a dinghy ride for the boys. We tied the dinghy on back and Parker and Alex sat back there munching on pistachios for a while :) All in all, it was a perfect day, just the kind of thing that we were hoping to do with our family aboard Prudence. 

Sunset Sail

We finished off yet another lovely summer weekend with a sunset cruise. Now that we've had the boat for about a month and a half, we've been out sailing in a variety of conditions, and on this evening we got to practice sailing with no wind :) There really wasn't a lick of wind, and while I always thought it would be nice not to heel too much, it turns out that sailing without wind can be kind of frustrating and uncomfortable in its own ways! This was a beautiful evening, though, and we went out as far as we could manage while munching on chips and salsa, then turned back for the harbor just as the sun was going down. Parker pulled his usual "crash out asleep on the boat" routine, and even stayed asleep the whole way home, into his bed, until he woke up twelve hours later rested and refreshed :)

We're On a Boat

Some of our fun times on Prudence this weekend.

First Day Sailing

Today was our first time taking Prudence out for a sail. We were hoping for light winds so as to not feel too overwhelmed our first time--besides the fact that sailing with two small children can be tricky, we're still getting acquainted with Prudence. So we wanted to feel safe and to just have fun. We actually could have used a little more wind than we had, but the sun was out and we found ourselves surrounded by a "pile" of dolphins (Jared's word)! It was really exciting and felt like the best luck for our first day out. We were hoping that Parker would like the boat and the sailing experience, so a close encounter with a hundred or so dolphins certainly didn't hurt! The video is a little hectic, but that's to be expected in these circumstances :)

Introducing...Prudence

Believe it or not (sometimes it's hard to believe it ourselves), we are the new owners of a 1980 Cal 2-27 sailboat--named Prudence! We are always looking at boats big and small, and the Cal 2-27 is one that we've had our eye on in the past; Jared found this one listed for sale right here in the Oceanside Harbor, and it looked like it was in really nice condition. It's always been a dream of ours to have a boat at a slip in a harbor, and we've also dreamt about moving up to a bigger sailboat to get more experience and to learn more. We also have fantasies of having family fun on the boat with both boys--Catalina trips? The weather has been beautiful, and the beginning of summer feels like a great time to be outside and to be on the water. We are still figuring out the boat and getting comfortable with everything, but so far so good. I think Jared has been on the boat the last seven days out of seven :)

Weekend update.

On Saturday we dropped off both kids at Mimi's house and rushed over to Seaforth in Mission Bay to rent a "real" boat. Well not to belittle our wonderful "Lil P" but we did want to try out something bigger. We rented a Catalina 250 (25') and took it out of the harbor on what turned out to be a perfect sailing day. The wind was between 5-10 kts and the sun was out the whole time. We both got to share sailing duties and felt comfortable quickly. After our 2 hrs messing around we sailed downwind right into a smooth landing at the dock. Easy...fun...might do it again with family? Any takers?


Then on Sunday evening we made a dinner and brought it to the cliffs on the beach in Carlsbad. Despite a cold wind we all had fun. Well, Levi slept through it all but the rest of us enjoyed a cold dinner and a cold breazy view.


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Levi's First Sailing Adventure

We finally got the whole family out on Lil' P in Mission Bay last week. It was windier than we would have linked for this occasion, but we kept the jib down in the interest of comfort and took it really easy the whole time. Parker lasted about ten minutes before he went down below to sleep for the rest of the sail, and Levi followed suit soon after! May this be the beginning of many family sailing adventures to come.

Prindle Pirates

Jared and Parker went sailing by themselves yesterday, and it was a great success. From what I hear, Parker was a very able First Mate, even helping with the jib sheets during a few tacks. They sailed out to the pier and back, and got caught in the rain--but I'm told that they sang pirate songs to keep their spirits high, although they never did find that treasure. Next time.