How I became a boater

6/21/15
Hello All,
New to blogging, thought I'd give it a try...

I have a retirement plan. Sell our house, buy a big boat down south somewhere, and live on it full time. This boat will be a sail boat. I have no idea of how to sail but luckily my husband does. This blog will be about how we got started and will hopefully last at least until I reach my end goal- about 15 years from now.

I have always loved nautical things. My family would travel by car to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina every year and stay at a place along the ocean. I remember going into souvenir shops and leaving with things that reminded me of the ocean. My family never had boats, never owned property by the water, and always did things on land.

My husband, on the other hand, has a father who restores boats, lives on a wooden sail boat,

and practically never leaves his marina. His experiences included sailing races, surfing, and beach bon fires. (Couldn't find an actual family photo of a beach bonfire but you get the idea.)

Fast forward many years...we marry and live in NJ. While NJ is a great place, we weren't near any affordable boating opportunities.

2007- We decide to sell the NJ house and move to upstate NY where my family lives. I am interviewing for a teaching position and get asked the question, "where do you see yourself in 5 years". My answer is that I would be teaching at this school and that I would be a boater. One year later, a friend of my husband's shows him the world of boating on the river. The next weekend we are boat shopping. We are very impulsive (hint, my family snowmobiling blog coming this winter).  We know we want to start with a power boat and would like one big enough for our family of 4. We go to a few places and find this Bayliner 210 with a cuddy cabin.

2008- It is the perfect starter boat. At this point, we have 1 child. The boat is on a trailer so we are able to tow it anywhere. Luckily, my husband is a natural at towing things and can maneuver very well. He is also very good at putting the boat in the water and getting it back on the trailer. For those of you who have ever witnessed the boat launch, it can be quite entertaining as long as its not your own boat. The same goes for trying to anchor a boat but I save that for a later entry.