Christmas Eve

We celebrated Christmas Eve by giving ourselves the gift of a dock slip for the night! I feel so pampered to use as much electricity as I want to when we are "plugged in" at the dock. We were almost out of water so it was reassuring to fill all 200 gallons again. We pay by the foot at a dock, and additional to have electricity. For our 40-foot boat, this was over $100 for one night. Anchoring is free, so we will just stay for this one night.

After getting settled, we strung L.E.D. Christmas lights on our boat!
This helped my homesickness, and several other boaters stopped by to let us know how much they enjoyed them as well.




Later, we walked into town for dinner.

After the girls went to sleep, I started wrapping their little presents, and we have them gathered in the salon, waiting for them in the morning. Thank you to those of you who sent small things along the way!

This experience has strengthened my concept of our intact little family. Here we are, floating in the compact unit, the 4 of us brought together, and learning how to live both on water and on land. It is a privilege to have this time to connect in deeper ways, especially at this important time in our girls' lives. Each day, we wake up and spend the entire day together. Now, miles and miles away from friends and family on this important holiday, away from our usual traditions that steady us, we rely on each other even more.

What is Christmas without snow, the company of extended family and friends, Grandma Crago's turkey recipe, Omi's wonderful holiday cookies, or a decorated tree? I still feel a longing for those things, but at the same time, I realize that maybe this separation has happened for a reason.