Sick Day

I would like to clarify here that when your child is sick and you are 'off' with them this does not mean you 'have the day off'. In some cases this may actually be more work than your regular 9 to 5. Today Jacob woke in the early hours of the morning with the most raging fever. So much so that he had come to sleep with us but then I had to put him back in his own bed in the middle of the morning because our bed was getting like an inferno. As boys go his flu symptoms turned quickly into 'man flu' and all he wanted were his mommy's cuddles. So I stayed home with him for today as he was so unhappy and inconsolable.

This had its pros and cons. I love every extra chance I get to spend with my children. Everyone who knows me knows I would much rather be a S.A.H.M. and my year off with Jacob is something I will cherrish forever. I also was selfishly excited about the chance to have a 'catch up' day at home and organize and put away a few of the things I never got around to over the Christmas break. With a sick mamma's boy however this is almost impossible. While we did get 3 loads of laundry, 2 sink fulls of dishes, and a little tidying completed I fear that the boat actually looks more of a mess than before the day started and there is no evidence of my 'day off'.

What mostly ended up happening was lots of movie watching, story book reading, endless cuddles and stroking of his back. He also had one potty accident, wasted a bowl of Cheerios and milk, a cheese sandwich, a banana, countless cups of milk and water, spilled one cup of water all over the couch, and finished a box of wipes all by 3:00pm. While he napped I was able to put away the few loads of laundry he had helped me with and selfishly checked Pinterest for a longer period of time than I had given myself but then after her school finished we added Marley to the mix. This ended up adding another movie, 4 more stories, locking ourselves out of the head, and a great big poo surprise from Jacob.

Locking ourselves out of the head was probably the funniest event of the day. Our working head is attached to the now kids room but also has an access through the engine room. There is a tiny lock on the side of the handle that I now know if switched open will lock the door from the inside. I'm not sure how the locked got switched but when I laid Jacob down for a little rest while I helped Marley with her homework the door shut and locked. When I went to check on Jacob as I usually do I went to open that door to let a little light in rather than turning on the main and bright lights in their room. I knew we had a problem when the handle nearly fell off. I calmed him and went back out to Malrey pondering what my next move would be. Mark was going to be late. Marley would need to use the bathroom before bed. I walked back in and tugged on the handle a bit but quickly figured out what had happened. I called Mark and let him know our predicament. And for the same reason I instantly panicked because he wasn't home; he quickly found us a solution. But if that didn't work I was to call him back and he would come home. I let Marley know while she was finishing her homework that I had a very important and special job for her to do when she had finished. Her response was "oh no what now? Not again!". I'm not sure what previous job she had been refering to but I was worried now that she wouldn't agree to help me out. Of course by this time just like when you were a kid playing hide-and-go-seek the urge to pee came suddenly. She finishd her math and I made a big production about a secret task she must accomplish before she began her writing homework. This got her interest. I took her to the engine room door and explained the problem. She, like Mark, instantly saw our plan of action. I demonstrated how to crawl through the engine room being careful not to pull any wires or knock any hoses. I unlocked the hatch that enters into the shower and away she went. One step in she promptly came back out asking to undress. There she was in her undershirt and underpants saving the day by crawling into the bathroom to unlock the door. I went around and stood on the other side of the bathroom door in the kids room. I heard her come through but then she stopped. She then exclaimed "I need to use the toilet!". I waited patiently while she finished her buisness then opened the door gracfully to let her frazzled anxious mother in. Oh this child!!! Mark's child for sure!

Marlena the hero busy at work on the ferry with her homework. She makes me so proud to be her mommy!

Mid way through the day Mark stopped by and reminded me that he would be working late tonight but that I was probably ok as I would have 'caught up on all my sleep'. He nearly got a ball of wet towels thrown at him and quickly disapeared back to work. The notion that a sick day is a day off is long gone once you have little ones to care for. But I wouldn't trade days like today home with them for any sleeping till noon days of the past ever.

 

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Fitting Five

Before you start to freak out NO WE ARE NOT PREGNANT! LOL But we do have a great big 5 year old now! Marlena celebrated her 5th Birthday on Friday January 3rd. We really can not believe it.

As with the holidays, birthdays are another emotional roller coaster for me. From the moment Marlena was born I knew she was one of the most special things in the world. And therefore every year on her birthday I remind her how incredible she is and in the process remind myself of the incredible way she came into this world. Just to recap because everyone loves a good baby story :) Marlena was a surprise pregnancy; I was working on my masters degree in London and Mark was home in Bermuda working and living on our first boat 'The Stone Rose'. Distance made our hearts grow fonder for sure and as a result my masters program was cut a year short with the surprise of a baby girl on her way.

We bought a new boat 'Alibi' and moved our little home into Dockyard (previously we had lived out on the mooring). Marlena would be the first niece and grandbaby to both sets of grandparents and aunt and uncles, and the first baby for most of our groups of friends. She was special from the start; full of firsts. Our due date was January 9th and through my pregancy I was warned about babies coming both early and late and I should be prepared for a Christmas or New Years baby and being on the front page of the paper. I was having none of it. Christmas passed and then on New Years Eve we made plans with friends to stay over at a hotel and ring in the new year (determined not to have the first baby of the year). That night she 'dropped' and her entry to the world began; but I was not going anywhere knowing full well it could still be another week before she came. We spent New Years Day back at home on Alibi resting and watching movies and then on January 2nd at 8:30 in the morning I woke Mark up with my bags packed and contractions timed to a regular 10mins apart.

We were nervous being first time parents so off we headed to the hospital. I was in early stages of labour but they told me it would be better to labour at home where I would be more comfortable and to come back when my waters broke. Little did they know that a 40ft boat was much less than comfortable at this stage in the game so we went to Mark's mums house just down the road from the hospital where I laboured away until we couldn't take it anymore.

Once admitted back into the hospital our family and friends anxiously awaited the first Brookes-Goodwin baby. My brother who was visiting from Canada bought flowers and sat in the maternity ward waiting room patiently, anxious to meet his niece. He was so excited he would get to meet her as he was scheduled out the next day.

Proud Parents of Marlena Rose Goodwin Jan. 3rd 2009

Marlena took her dear sweet time we saw two shift changes of nurses and my poor brother ended up going home for the evening unsure what was going on. At 9:37am the next day Marlena entered the world and we became the proudest parents of a sweet 7lb baby girl. Everyone was able to come and visit her in the hospital that day; Mark's sister, my brother, his parents, my parents, countless friends, even Mark's brother Adam who was on the container ship the "Oleander'. It arrived that afternoon and as soon as he was in port he ran from front street to the hospital, up the flight of stairs to meet his first niece. I will never forget when he held her for the first time and a bead of sweat was running down his face. He quickly told Mark to take the baby and I was certain he was about to drop her; he then explained he didn't want to get sweat on her. I believe that from that moment on the two of them were connected in a way we have no way of understanding in this world. Their connection was not one that is explained easily. He was and still is in death very special to her and i'm so glad he had the opportunity to know her even for a short time. There are so many ways that their one relationship make her so special; if you are into numerology the fact that she was born on the 3rd and he was taken from this world on the 3rd, if you believe in signs; her first favorite animal was a ladybug and after Adam died Marley and Pa were playing in the bushes and found a ladybug bracelet that we had never seen before perhaps sent by Adam.... it goes on and on.

Marlena at her Nursery Graduation 2013

 

Now this beautiful baby girl is a great big 5. After so many 'firsts' 5 seems to place her in a new stage of life. Perhaps it is because it is 'school age' but seemingly 5 signifies she is no longer a baby but instead in the begining stages of becoming an independent woman. It is empowering to watch but at the same time heartbreaking. She continues to amaze me the way she is learning to read, solve math problems- today alone she counted to 264 all on her own! She is learning to sail her Opti, cook and bake, tie her shoes, her writing is incredible and every chance she gets she wants to write something down. As she grows she is also looking for her independence which can be scary. She will climb aboard on her own, wake up and dress herself and entertain herself until we are up too, and she is forever finding ways to get what she needs like climbing up into the galley to open the fridge or unlocking my phone to call Grammy. She has started to say things like 'I want to live in a house', 'I want my own room', 'I want a new baby brother or sister'. All things that Mark and I take turns discussing with her and trying to figure out where her true intensions lie. For now it seems these are just statements identifying her differences to her friend's homes. We are happy and comfortable on the boat but as long as she continues to grow and we talk about her wants and needs a time will come where my little baby is going to need more space. For now though we can fit 'five' just perfectly.

 

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Post Christmas Port View

The holiday season continues to be a battle of highs and lows for me. It is now a complicated mixture of favorite memories and exciting 'firsts' with the kids as well as depressing reminders of those no longer with us and years and moments passing by almost so fast they are forgotten.

Blew Horizon lit up for Christmas

I actually kind of hate the holidays. I love the idea of them but really they just make me an emotional wreck. This year no different than the last ones; just another heartache with the passing of my friend and collegue Karen Raynor who was an incredible role model to me as my deputy principal at the middle school I teach.

Her passing happened the first day of the holiday break and really heightend all the loss and sadness I already feel around this time of year. She was a wonderful confidant and a great inspiration to me. Actually one of the people who inspired this very blog. You have no idea how many times I sat in her office giving renditions of my life and the antics that seem to happen to me on a daily basis. She was always telling me "you need to have a TV crew following you around with this stuff; or at the least record it". We laughed all the time about how the Kardashian's would be like watching "reruns of America's Funniest Home Videos" compared to my life! When she got sick with cancer two years ago and was not at school as often for our little chats I would write her my stories in e-mails and send her links to the blog. She was a faithful follower and a great supporter of my tales. I miss her terribly already.

As well as the loss there are all the 'events' of Christmas and when you have kids those multiply. There was actually one year that Mark got phsycially ill from eating too much "Christmas Dinner" as we had so many "dinners" to visit that year. Once Marley and Jacob came along that intensified as each family wants their turn with the grandkids. It is overwhelming. We are getting better at managing the holidays and the events surrounding Christmas. This year actually had ALL of Christmas Day to ourselves. The funny thing was we were not prepared for that at all and by the end of the day even became bored of eachothers company! The highlight though was taking the kids for their first bike ride and then Mark taking Jacob and Marlena in the Opti for a sail around Dockyard. We also got a very cool swing for the boom for Christmas that entertained the kids on the dock for quite a bit of the day. On the Saturday we did end up having a little get together on the dock and on our boat for friends and family who were home visiting for the holidays and while it ended up only being our usual crew of visitors "all the way to Dockyard" it did allow me to get a little bit festive on the boat with food and drinks! These things all together did make for a very relaxing and 'family' Christmas day so I really can't complain.

Living on a boat also ads different challenges to the Christmas season. First of all our house is never on the list for Christmas dinner. There is just no way anyone is cooking a turkey with all the fixings in our tiny galley and even if we managed the feast between the BBQ and the two burners there is no where to put everyone, plus a tree, and presents. So thats out meaning we have to travel to everyone else. We have no problem doing that however from Dockyard to the east end of the island all holiday can get very tedious. Sure its only 40 mins or so; however its a long 40 mins with all the holiday drivers and its 40 mins one way just to come all the way back another 40 mins! In the past we have taken the 'house' to town or even off Flatts which is again in the eastern end of the island. Moving the boat is weather dependant especially as we still do not have an engine in her. This makes planning stressful too because I can not tell any member of my family exactly what our plans are until just days before Christmas. If its calm we will bring the boat; where exactly I dont know; it depends on the weather. If the weather makes up we will be driving; what time; I don't know we may need to do something with the boat. So we are always 'late' and letting people down because our plans are literally up in the air depending on the wind! Then prsents. The dreaded presents. I love the excitement of the presents under the tree and Santa coming down the chimney but it does get a bit much. I hate the feeling of being obligated to buy someone something or put them on your 'list' because you have always gotten for one another or they got you something. Also where exaclty am I expected to pack, hide, wrap, and stock all these gifts? I have one spot behind our couch that fits a few small items but this year I mostly resorted to my classroom at school (which is not safe for trendy Chrismtas items!) and the trunk of my car. There is also the task of getting all the gifts to the right people all over the holidays. Well I failed miserably at that this year. Half our family didn't get the right gifts they were supposed to get and I still have 3 gifts sitting on the boat for people I didn't get to and I don't know how many in my car!

Finally there is the decorating. As you can see we do decorate the boat for the holidays. I think it is in my blood to decorate. I remember my grandmother always decorating for any given holiday; Thanksgiving, Valentines Day, Easter, St. Patricks Day..... My mom is also a big decorator but not in the tacky Halmark way more like the sophisticated Martha Stweart way. I on the other hand am the queen of the Tacky Tinsle Tour! The kids crafts from school, straight up and on the mast or door or whereever the double sided tape will stick, fake Chrismtas tree with mismatched orniments collected in years past. There is a warmth to Christmas lights that I just love and celebrating the holidays with family and friends no matter how I complain or grow anxious about it does leave a warmth in my heart. I am thankful this year for the the beautful things that we have accomplished as a family. It really has been an incredible year for us. You may remember in my last posts as I neared my 30th birthday I set a few goals. Well we didn't make it off the dock quite as much as we would have liked and I started my piolts course but didnt finish but I also ran my first ever half marathon and married my best friend of 13 years. We are now coming on to 3 years on 'Blew Horizon' and life on the boat with babies is GOOD!

 

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Pic test from ipad

feet to head head to feet! Joys of V Berth sleeping with 4!

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Come Back!

Out with the old in with the new for 2014! In the last year since I have posted A LOT has happened. I often get overwhelmed with the idea of restarting the blog. Where do I begin? It would take to long to go back to where I left off and fill in from there. Do I just pick the highlights? But then most of them are not necessarily particular to "babies on boats". Do I took the easy route and just kept putting it off. But for 2014 I have a new goal.... back to blogging!!

As I sit in our saloon (still on Blew Horizon) and the middle fender annoyingly taps on the side of the hull because of the slight breeze blowing through Dockyard I tap away at my new ipad keyboard dock that Mark got me for Christmas and I realize this is just how to get started again. What am I doing right now? Explain from there.

The kids are in bed; Jacob still on his shelf bunk next to our original full walk around bed which has now been converted to a play area and bunk for Marley made out of foam mats and a crib mattress. It took 18 months before I realized that Jacob needed to sleep away from me before I could have a full nights sleep. Literally right after we moved him everyone began sleeping through the night. Recently however he has been a bit of a waker and I think this is because of his new potty skills and his ever looming D-Day of his pacifier. Mark and I continue to threaten him with the idea of getting rid of it all together but as second children go we are 'picking our battles' and probably will not be making a valiant effort to get rid of the 'suck rock' until closer to his 3rd birthday. Judge all you will but when you have a full day of work with 'everyone elses kids' then an insane pick up and drop off schedule getting home to barley make a meal...... on and on... anyway read on for a few months then judge!

Just this week I bought us a post Christmas present of a memory foam topper for our bunk which is the old V-berth where Marlena was originally. It has been cruel and unusual punishment to move from a king size bed 3 years ago in the apt. to a fairly comfortable full size bed on the boat to now mismatched foam cushions making up a V shape with a twin size head and king size base. As well as it being exceptionally uncomfortable both kids in recent months have taken turns bunking with us for various bed wetting, fevering, nightmares, and I just want to be with mommy and daddy reasons.

Speaking of which as I TEST this new ipad blogging app out Jacob has woken asking 'to go to mommy's bed' so off I jet- TEST COMPLETE hope to be back and more frequent in 2014!!!

 

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Back at it

Mercy it has been too long! I got a friendly Facebook reminder from a friend who recently had a baby that it had been quite some time since my last post. I didn't realize it had been this long.
Being back at work has been challenging and I feel our boat life is slightly suffering for it however this week I taught a lesson to my M3 students about a choice of migration; stories of two women one moving to a more rural area to have her baby in hopes her baby would grow up "knowing her roots" and the other contemplating moving back to an urban lifestyle after 11 years out in the bush. Their reaction was typical western world teenager mindset; urban urban! Teachnology!!! But it did give me a chance to do some personal reflection as well.
Why DO we live on a boat?
What are we sacrificing and what are we gaining by doing so?
Is it best for our kids?
I could spend hours writing the answers to these questions from our opinion but instead I'm going to keep writing about our life and experiences and from there I should be able to paint a picture of what our answers would sound like.

So where to start?! Well most significant since I last posted was Mark and Is marriage, yup we did it after 13 years we finally tied the knot! But the events leading up to it are quite humorous so read on.

F'in Dockyard

So here's some catch up posts that I had written on my phone over the summer but never managed to post them... back tracking a bit but thought you'd all enjoy.

"Its 'F-ing' Dockyard Man"

Preface-
I'm using 'F-ing' instead of the real word for my conservative readers but you are going to have to read between the lines on this post. After all, when talking about a marina, marina and ship yard workers and boats its kinda hard not to swear like a sailor. So there's your warning; don't be offended its just the local lingo!

I love living in Dockyard. True our dream is to one day let go of the lines completely and sail the seas but for now Dockyard is the perfect little community. It really is a special place different from the rest of the island. You have a wide social, racial, and economical spectrum of people all living together in this place and co-existing better than fish in the sea!
I've touched briefly on my neighbours and different boat people around but the entire community of Dockyard really is the beez-knees!
This praise and appreciation for my people comes from last weekends antics. Firstly Mark and I never really get out socially much without the kiddies. Not because we don't want to but we love spending time with our children, we are forever busy and we only have a small selective group of family and friends we are comfortable leaving the babies with. We have never actually hired a babysitter before. Its tough; 1)We live ALL THE WAY in Dockyard 2)We live on a boat and 3)We have 2 kids- one of which requires full hands on attention as he is just a baby. This as well as our own reservations towards babysitters narrows down the pool to almost no one. About a year ago we started flirting with the idea of finding a hired babysitter just for some evening date nights. We had one great girl when we were living in the condo and who really helped out when we were loosing the baby, we also have a close family friend who we would be happy with but we feel super guilty about having them ride all the way to Dockyard and then have to ride home so we never really pursued it. Then we thought about another girl who conveniently lives right in Dockyard when she stays with her dad and is very familiar with boats as her dad is also the head of one of the Dockyard shipyards. She also was part of my Sandys 360 swim team so I can speak to her character, at least a little.  It took us a while to slacken the reins but on Fri night we finally asked her to babysit on the boat. The kids were great, we had a wonderful time out at a friend's 30th birthday party and our new babysitter was thrilled to bits.
It was Saturday night that really awakened me to our great little community though. Doug at Westend yachts held himself his annual birthday party and everyone who is anyone in Dockyard was there. There was my little ferry crew; Thom, Jim, and their respective other halves. Biancia and Henry were there with little Eli (Jacobs baby boat buddy!), Doug and all Joanna's girls, Anna, all the Fantasea and tour boat people, Spirit crew, all the restaurant staff from around the area.... Really everyone! Its funny to think of these people outside Dockyard and I realised that's what makes them so special. If we all lived in town there is more space and choice so the high up exempt company folk would be dining at Harbour Front and drinking at Harry's (Suit and Tie venues)where as the boatyard trash (and I mean that in an endearing way as I am in that category) would be grabbing a bite at The Beach or Rosas (lower end restaurants). Because there are only a handful of restaurants and hangout spots we all hang together no matter the box that the outside world may put us in.
I look forward to my morning gossip sessions with the ferry crew, playdates with Jakeys latest neighbour, meeting Sunday in the laundry and chatting about the kids, waving to Audrey and Audrey's mum in the mornings on the way to the ferry, calling out to Sonny as he makes his way home for a break during the day, waving to everyone's boats as the leave and enter the camber, tickles from Aunt Gerri (for Marley and Jacob not me!), chilling with Mac and Captain and catching up about the Spirit, having waiters and waitresses know the names of our kids and understand when they act a little crazy if we eat at a restaurant, hanging with Ana and Mushu, yelling out to Dirty Uncle Smitty, being cat called every morning by Marine and Ports, attempting to impress Dawn by doing my evening run because she's a trainer at Sandys 360.... As we danced and carried on with the party our neighbours commented on us enjoying ourselves and telling us how wonderful our kids are. It was the epitome of family and community and a great way to start off the summer!