Profile
Blog
Photos
Videos
This is not a 'what have we been doing' blog. This is a reflection on our new life. As I write this ellen and anna are sitting at the table in the cockpit making purple paint out of blue and red, john is making pasta, and I am indulging in a bit of pondering. It seems odd to me now that it was at all a big decision to leave Prestwick and sell up to come and live on a boat. It seems even odder that living on a boat seemed like such a different thing to do - that it seemed exotic and adventurous.Our boat feels like the home it is now, life has very little routine as such, but a pace which varies with our needs. Sometimes the girls stay up till 10.30 and have fun at the fair, or play with other kids. Sometimes they get catch up nights and go to bed at 8.30. This apparent irregularity feels quite regular by now and the girls certainly don't seem to be shaken up by lack of routine. There are plenty of other boundaries that stay in place!Having John around full time has been fantastic. I seem to have so much more space in my days, time to do things like this, time to read, sew curtains, occasionally do yoga or chi-kung, time to do boat jobs (they are not all johns jobs!) without keeping the kids entertained at the same time. My life seems to be more varied, less rushed, and infinitely more flexible than it used to be.There is not much exotic really - this stretch of Spanish coast has been quite uninspiring - apart from Cartagena which we all really liked, the towns and villages we have visited have been very 'britished' and the scenery has been fairly average - sometimes still covered for miles in the giant plastic greenhouses which seem to make so much money round here.We all miss friends from Prestwick (and the surrounding areas!!!) and family of course.And that will probably not change. And we all miss bruce hugely (me and john most I think!)We have met plenty of people on the way already who we have got on well with, and a few with children (we have decided to have a policy of always making detours or delays for extra days of kiddy company) who the girls have got on really well with.Ellen and Anna have adapted incredibly well to boat life so far (from what I can tell!). The boat is home for them now - they have their toys and books - and enough pink chiffon to dress up any other girls we meet. They enjoy going in the dingy - Ellen seems quite interested in various bits of sailing, and Anna is getting confident with all the boats movements and noises. They rarely seem to be bored - and ask for school work (sometimes just colouring, sometimes something a bit more structured), games, books, puzzles, painting and other toys as and when they want them. There are no swimming lessons, Montessori, or any other groups or activities to go to, but there are markets, cooking and shopping, beaches, and other boats to go to.All in all I would say that we are all very happy and settling in. We are still obviously learning at quite a rate about the boat, anchoring, marinas, days at sea, how far and fast we go, and many other things, but we always said the first year would be a steep learning curve.Time for pondering has finished!
- comments