Happy New Year 2020 !!

Happy New Year 2020 to all of our boating friends out there.  Jennifer and I hope that all of you had a Merry Christmas and a safe New Year’s Eve.

Now that the Christmas holidays and the boat parades are behind us, it’s time to look towards a new year of fun on the water.

It’ll be springtime before you know it, and the warm days of summer 2020 won’t be far behind.

But first, one more recap from the boating year past . . .

Christmas Boat Parades:

Once again, the 2019 Christmas boat parades did not disappoint. Both the Merritt Island Christmas Boat Parade and the Lake Conway Christmas Boat Parades were a hit for all of the boaters that participated this year.

Check out this video from the Saturday night Lake Conway Christmas boat parade.    Btw, that’s us with the Christmas dolphin in the front.

We had a blast bouncing from one Christmas party to another throughout the month of December. But most importantly, we were able to enjoy the company of our family and good friends.

Hopefully, all of you had a similar experience during the holiday season. And maybe you weren’t able to participate in a parade this year or maybe you never even left the dock.

But, if you did spend the season with family and good friends, then be very thankful for that.

Remember, there will always be another boat parade around the corner.

The “Old’ Year:

For us, 2019 was a mixed bag of highs and lows.

Jennifer and I have been working to make our lives “smaller” over the last few years in our effort to move onto a trawler.

Things that were taking up space but weren’t being used got sold or given away. We cut our expenses down as far as possible, and we were living comfortably in a very small 2-bedroom condo on the ICW.

But last year, just as we began to wrap up our business of 24 years in Orlando, our lives changed drastically.

2019 began with great sadness when my mom passed away in February. Along with the pain of losing her, we were thrown into the messy process called “probate”.

We always knew that my parent’s home in Melbourne, FL would  be ours one day, but we never imagined that my mom would leave us so soon.

Now we had to make a decision. Sell the house and continue with our dream of cruising full-time, or keep the house and rethink our plans.

So . . .  now we’re back in a full-size home.  Yardwork, pool maintenance, crazy utility expenses, and 3 rooms (not to mention the garage) that are PACKED to the ceiling with stuff.

So much for staying “small”.

Losing my mom was hard and not a great way to start the year, but 2019 also had it’s share of highlights.

The Good Stuff:

Jennifer and I were able to spend time aboard some beautiful boats and we made some new friends at the 2019 Staurt TrawlerFest in March.

Most of our summer months were spent moving into the house and handling other things in our lives, but we did manage to squeeze in some fun out on the boat.

In August, we visited Fort Myers Beach and Sanibel Island with our good friends Kim and Tony.

Since Jennifer and Kim have the same birthday, we always try to go somewhere together and celebrate.

While the weather wasn’t the best, the girls were able to do some shelling and we all had a great time exploring the area and enjoying the nightlife.

 

In September, we found ourselves in the path of Hurricane Dorian and began to prepare for the worst. Fortunately, luck was on our side and we were spared any major damage.  Our friends to the east in the Bahamas were not so lucky.

Then our boating stopped temporarily due to trailer repairs. But by Oct-Nov we were back on the water and looking forward to the holidays and boat parades.

2020 / The “New” Year:

Our blogsite has always been about recreational boating (and sometimes the beach), and we intend to keep posting about all of our favorite Florida things.

Our goal has always been to get aboard a slow-cruising trawler of our own, and move around the pristine waters of Florida and far beyond.

After this past year, we were forced to look at things much differently. Our big plans may have to wait a little longer, but our goals are still the same.

We want to continue to post to you guys about the places we visit and our experiences along the way.

Jennifer and I will continue to search for the perfect trawler for us. One that meets our needs and our budget, and we won’t stop until our dream becomes our reality.

Plus, we’re pretty happy with the boat that we do have. We’ve done plenty of cool stuff and been to lots of places in our trailerable boat.

Our plans for  this year include bluewater fishing, ICW cruising, sandbar partying, spoil island camping, and much more.

The boat is ready. The trailer is ready. And we are definitely ready!!

Btw . . . TrawlerFest Stuart 2020 is coming. This year’s dates are March 5-7, 2020.  Get more info @ TrawlerFest Stuart, Florida 2020

Thank You:

Jennifer and I want to say “thank you” to all of you that take the time to visit our blogsite and read our posts.

We especially want to thank our subscribers and those of you that reach out to us though emails and social media.  It means alot to us.

If you haven’t already, please subscribe below and leave us a comment.

“See You On the Water!”