We fueled up manually over taking Kaleo through the marina station to save some cash in prep for our 1st solo sail around Galveston Bay. To date we’ve had the company (and security) of friends and family aboard so we’re looking forward to our new mini adventure.
Archive for the Category »Cruising «
Tuesday, November 24th, 2009 / Christie & Matt
Category: Cruising, Maintenance, Sailing
Leave a Comment
Tuesday, November 24th, 2009 / Christie & Matt
No, we’re not smuggling hot captains across Galveston Bay. Today I walked up into the cockpit to find Matt down in the port side lazarette changing the zincs in the engine (prevents the sea water from corroding the cooling system). Just when I’m convinced he’s contorted himself into every nook & cranny of our boat, he always seems to find new places to explore. I love this face!
Category: Cruising, Inspiration, Sailing
Leave a Comment
Sunday, November 22nd, 2009 / Christie & Matt
Our original single-basin sink in the galley.
A little caulking romance.
Casey brought me to meet up with Matt while he was working on the new sink install. Looks like he found Kaleo to be pretty relaxing amidst the minor construction. 
The original single-basin sink in our galley was too shallow & small for any real dishwashing so we went on the search for the right double-basin. After months of research & an exhaustive search for an affordable option, we finally found one on eBay that fit the bill.
After a few weekends more than planned Matt got the old one removed, the counter cut out & the new one in place. In between all that, he managed to add fresh and salt water spigots (for greater water conservation), a new sprayer faucet, and plumbed all the necessary hoses. A now we have a fully functioning sink and an experience Matt hopes to only do once.
Category: Cruising, Galley, Plumbing, Refit
Leave a Comment
Saturday, October 10th, 2009 / Christie & Matt
It’s official. Today marks the LEAST amount of money we’ve spent at West Marine to date. That’s right, the decimal is in the right place … we spend a whopping $0.39 on 4 fasteners for the shower install.
Category: Cruising, Head, Plumbing, Refit
Leave a Comment
Saturday, October 10th, 2009 / Christie & Matt
We spent the weekend getting a few new parts installed for liveaboard necessities. For some reason the former owner removed the shower system, but no worries Matt was able to install a more space and water efficient design that works perfectly for us.
Category: Cruising, Head, Plumbing, Refit
Leave a Comment
Sunday, August 16th, 2009 / Christie & Matt
We’re standing on a cusp right now, looking forward to the journey of a lifetime.
And we desire to start that life a little different than some. Our dream is to take some time to experience the world, to slow down, reset our expectations of things to come and enjoy the world that God created.
Someday soon our plan is to, at least for a while, cast off the lines in search of adventure and sail about the world. The ultimate goal is to change our perspectives forever. This cruising lifestyle, as it’s called, is not a permanent vacation, nor an escape from our lives, nor running away. Rather, it is running (or sailing) toward the life we want to define for ourselves, creating the environment that will build our bond for a lifetime together.
We have certainly heard plenty of reasons not to but as one fellow cruiser put it: “The best reason ‘not to’ is because you will be forced to face the unknown. You will meet challenges that you may not be able to solve with the skills you have already learned.” You may only overcome some circumstances with ingenuity, perseverance, and the grace of God.
Through the joys and challenges of sailing about the world in our modest little house we will be forced to solve problems in ways that draw us closer together, see people’s lives wholly different than our own, and interact with a world full of people that most never folks never know exist.
Our own desires are not the only driver for this lifestyle, as we would like to help and serve the people we meet and share experiences with along the way. The ultimate calling of this service will be to show and share the life-changing message of Jesus.
Plus lounging on a few pristine white sand beaches will be nice :)
For more details about our plans and follow our progress return here.
“There are two options in a person’s life — reflection and action. One is an opportunity to think about it, the other an opportunity to live it.”
Category: Cruising, Inspiration, Sailing
2 Comments
Monday, August 10th, 2009 / Christie & Matt
Sailors are a social bunch. More than that, they have a sense of camaraderie and duty to look out for and support one another. People often trade boat cards like these to help keep track of others you meet along your voyages. We ordered these online free, plus about $6 in shipping from Vistaprint.
Another small step taken this week was the purchase and creation of our website, SVKaleo.com. It cost a little less than $10/yr and will house our blog, information about Kaleo, our current location, sailing resources, what to expect when coming aboard, and photo albums. But for now, it just links to our blog as we develop other content.
Category: Cruising, Resources, Sailing
One Comment
Sunday, July 12th, 2009 / Christie & Matt
I inflated the dinghy in the garage this afternoon to see what this little boat is all about. The dinghy is the like the car is to a house. It is our means of getting to shore from the boat when we are at anchor. Kaleo has a draft (in water depth) of 5′ 6″ so she can’t pull up to the shore unless there is a slip. In fact, in our slip she sits in the mud at low-tide.
So the dinghy will be our means of getting around the neighborhood when we are our cruising. The one that came with the boat is a West Marine 8-footer. The decision I am trying to make is, hard or rigid-inflatable dinghy?
We are going to take the dinghy back down to the boat and give it a try for a few months. No doubt this decision, like so many in cruising will involve lots of research, lots of differing opinions and ultimately just going with whatever works out.
Category: Cruising, Dinghy, Refit
Leave a Comment
Saturday, March 14th, 2009 / Christie & Matt
With all the buzz about buying our little ship and moving her to the new marina, we forgot to mention that we picked a name for her: Kaleo (ka-lay-o) which is a Greek word from the New Testament. It has a few meanings depending on the context of the verse but overall it means there is a sense of privilege that is bestowed on believers who were once far away, who are now given a new status in the Lord. There is also a sense of mission. This isn’t a list; it’s a responsibility of carrying out a life of service that is contrasted to the ways of the world. It is also a sense of permanency. Once a believer is called, there is a sense of completion by the hand of God.
Here are a few verses that support the above write-up from our pastor, Chris McGregor.
- “To call to a Participation in the Privileges of the Gospel” – Romans 8:30, 9:24; 1 Cor 1:9, 7:18
- “And those he predestined, he also called; and those he called, he also justified; and those he justified, he glorified.” – Romans 8:30
- “even us, whom he has called, not only from the Jews but also from the Gentiles?” – Romans 9:24
- “God is faithful, by whom you were called into fellowship with his son, Jesus Christ our Lord.” – 1 Cor 1:9
Category: Cruising, Inspiration, Sailing
Leave a Comment
Thursday, February 19th, 2009 / Christie & Matt
This blog has been part of the “cruising plan” almost as long as the plan has existed. But my reasons for not creating it have been tied to my fears of failure. I didn’t create this blog because I was fearful that it would hold me accountable to the dream. With the help of my lovely bride-to-be I have slowly gotten over that fear. And the dream took its first big step today …
The owners of a beautiful sailboat have accepted our offer! We now begin the dance of survey, sea trial, insurance and who knows what else! I am planning to start making more regular updates so please stay tuned.
Category: Boat Shopping, Cruising, Inspiration
Leave a Comment
Tuesday, June 17th, 2008 / Christie & Matt
We woke up to our last morning aboard Thalia today and with heavy hearts we dingied ashore to return to land life. What a treat it has been to share this experience and we are so grateful to Lisa & Kirk for their generous hospitality, enlightening conversation & patience with our endless questions about their incredible lifestyle.
Spent the afternoon in D.C. walking the National Mall & Memorial Parks.
Meandered through the Smithsonian & caught a 3-D IMAX show
At just about the farthest walking point from where we parked, we got caught in a pretty rough thunderstorm. With a mix of running, walking to catch our breath, & laughing at the ridiculousness of it all – we returned to the car soaked like wet puppy dogs. Changed clothes, stopped for dinner, headed to the airport & slept like babies the entire flight home.
Category: Chesapeake Bay, Cruising, Friends, Inspiration, Sailing
Leave a Comment
Sunday, June 15th, 2008 / Christie & Matt
We spent the day exploring the “sailboat capital of the world”, downtown Annapolis with Kirk and Lisa. We strolled through the local shops, made our way past “Ego Alley” and they treated us to lunch at McGarvey’s along the city dock. We lounged on deck this evening with a stack of “TravelTopics” questions, learned more about each other, enjoyed the conversation and read as the sun set.
Category: Chesapeake Bay, Cruising, Friends, Inspiration, Sailing
Leave a Comment
Saturday, June 14th, 2008 / Christie & Matt
Another glorious day of sailing The Chesapeake Bay! We have so much respect and appreciation for Kirk and Lisa “showing us the ropes” (pun intended).
Category: Chesapeake Bay, Cruising, Friends, Inspiration, Sailing
Leave a Comment
Friday, June 13th, 2008 / Christie & Matt
We woke up with daylight, shared morning greetings and breakfast, and even borrowed the dingy to row over to a little island we could see across the way. We spent the rest of the day learning, asking a zillion questions, and listening with intent to our Captain and Admiral :o)
Tonight, we anchored up in the Chester River. We took this pic of the moon looking up through the windows of our state room. A day and eve well spent!
Category: Chesapeake Bay, Cruising, Friends, Inspiration, Sailing
Leave a Comment
Thursday, June 12th, 2008 / Christie & Matt
An amazing beginning to our sailing excursion of the Chesapeake Bay! We started the day with a fun breakfast at Chick & Ruth’s Delly in downtown Annapolis before meeting up with Lisa & Kirk at Weems Creek. We dingied out to tour the beautiful “Thalia” and put away our small amount of gear.
We then all dingied back to shore & headed into town for lunch & to Trader Joe’s to stock up on “provisions”. Once we returned to the boat & settled in, we set the sails & headed out past Thomas Point lighthouse toward our first night’s anchoring near near High Island up the Hrode River.
I particularly enjoyed settling into our “state room” aboard “Thalia”, sharing great conversation and a restful dinner in the salon, and lounging in the cockpit and deck taking in two spectacular shooting stars and seeing the orbiting satellites blazing across the clear night’s sky.
Category: Chesapeake Bay, Cruising, Friends, Inspiration, Sailing
Leave a Comment
Wednesday, June 11th, 2008 / Christie & Matt
Aerial view of Annapolis, Maryland
We flew out with wide-eyes this evening for a vacation of sailing the Chesapeake Bay with our friends Lisa and Kirk. They were incredibly gracious to host and introduce us to their lifestyle living onboard their incredible and quite comfortable sailboat, Thalia.
Category: Chesapeake Bay, Cruising, Friends, Inspiration, Sailing
Leave a Comment
Wednesday, May 28th, 2008 / Christie & Matt
We feel more interested in living aboard with each new sail.
Category: Cruising, Inspiration, Sailing
Leave a Comment
Sunday, January 20th, 2008 / Christie & Matt
If you haven’t already seen it, check out The Bucket List! While it’s always a treat to get wrapped up in Morgan Freeman’s emotiveness and Jack Nicholson’s witty ways, this movie has sparked a pop culture flame that is igniting people to create their own Bucket Lists. A few that top my list are:
- Road trip the U.S.ofA. to fully taste “Americana” – take zillions of quirky photos along the way
- Continue experiencing new cultures and international travel
- Dine between the soil and the sky at the restaurant with no walls at an Outstanding in the Field event
- Learn to (and enjoy) the art of cooking – beyond my specialty of “take-out”
- Swim with dolphins
- Sail the world
- Design my dream home/santuary (could be floating ;o)
- Own a room with a view
- Share a hot air balloon ride with my sweetie
- Marry the man God has planned for me
- Become a mom
- Worry less and live more freely
- Overcome the fear of failure
- See the Northern Lights
- Chillax at The Blue Lagoon in Iceland
- Learn to speak Italian well
- Be able to send my parents on their dream vacation (for as long as they’d like)
- Send Casey to Egypt to see the pyramids and Greece to play in the Mediterranean
- Begin a family tradition and maintain the ones we have
- Read the entire Bible
- Consistently practice yoga
- Achieve and maintain financial freedom
- Find or create a job I love
- Witness something truly majestic
- Kick the bucket gracefully
And you?
Category: Cruising, Inspiration, Sailing
Leave a Comment