Neighbours

Everybody needs good neighbours!
Although our plan is to one day get off the dock for now we are tied up.  That doesn't mean we can't make the most of it though.  We have some really great times and great people all around us in Dockyard.  Yesterday I reflected on this as we played before dinner.
We got home and Jacob was still asleep in the pumpkin seat in the car so Marley and I decided that a picnic snack on the grass while mummy washed the car was in order.  (OK Mummy may have decided!)
We parked on the lawn in front of our gate and laid out our blanket (which I always keep in the back of the car) I ran Marley and Jacob down to the boat (she insisted on staying on the dock with him) while I quickly got together grapes, crackers and cheese.  We set up camp next to the car and I washed as Jacob slept and Marley snacked.  This was much to the amusement of the tourists walking by who asked for directions back to the ferry, and to the cruise ship workers who have taken up fishing at our gate.
As in all good car washing you must first rinse... 1 bucket of water, then wash.... 2 buckets.... and then rinse again....3 buckets! That's all fine if your hose reaches your car, or the tap is next to your car but I had to keep running back down to the dock to fill my bucket.  I also had to carry Jacob in the car seat and get Marley to follow along all three times.  (I couldn't exactly leave them there having a picnic even though I was only feet away!) Marley has her stubborn trait which meant I had to keep waiting for her to finish "just one more grape", or "last three crackers"! We got the car cleaned and Jacob woke up just at the end.
We packed up and headed back to the boat where Marley saw her toy box still on the dock from the last time we went out and attempted to wash the boat.  She insisted on playing and since we still had an hour before dinner I allowed.  We pulled everything out and enjoyed our time playing on the dock.

Our neighbours probably have no need to read this blog as they are an intricate part of this.  As we picnicked on the grass Henry- Jacobs new boat buddy arrived home from the ferry.  Tom, Marley's biggest fan also arrived back from the ferry and stopped by to play a little and our closest neighbour gave me great inspiration to not only wash my car but our boat as well.  He has begun wiping everything down and putting up his old canvas and bimini from last year.  Marley also made a point of letting our newest neighbours know that leaving trash behind is not acceptable either.  She gasped as we went up the ramp on one of our bucket trips as there was trash in the water and exclaimed for all to hear "the trash in the water is VERY BAD, it will kill all the fish especially plastics bags for turtles, this is VERY BAD mummy!". I guess the summer season has begun; cheers to longer days and more outside activities!