So much to catch up on! We certainly hit the ground running upon arriving home just before Halloween. I will do my best to condense the last 3 months since our trip.

The first week we were home we had to trade in my Dad’s old jeep.  The engine blew up and we ended up basically selling it for scrap. She was pretty rusted out as well, but sure did her job on our trip. It was almost like getting to take my Dad along in some ways. I ended up getting a year old 4door Jeep Wrangler 4×4 steel grey.  Put a 3 inch lift and 36 in wheels and tires, plus new exhaust. In a nutshell she’s “BAD ASS”!

Halloween was a blast.  Savannah and i made a “trick or treat box”, one side with gummy bear goo and one side with treats. We stayed up late catching up with the neighbors by fire light in the driveway till the early morning hours.

Savannah continued with her studies full force, along with 2 days a week of music including voice, guitar, performance team, and jam band as lead singer.  They geared up for Holiday performances.

Savannah also was part of a school project and she wrote, edited, and published a book for a writing contest! You can purchase on Amazon, here is the link. http://www.amazon.com/When-World-went-Upside-Down/dp/150539578X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1423747170&sr=8-1&keywords=Savannah+BAus

November and December was mostly time spent with family and friends and enjoying the holiday festivities. We cooked Thanks Giving Dinner here at the house.  My Mom joined us for almost 2 weeks over Christmas and we had a lovely visit and catch up. The weather was not too red hot, so we spent a lot of time organizing my house and getting the yard back into shape after having neglected it for so long! We did manage some beautiful bike rides and sailed one blustery cool day!

Also during Nov/Dec.. i bought a boat, started business, adopted a 4 year old chocolate lab and put together a 55 gal aquarium!

I had picked up the aquarium on clearance before we left on our trip, but thought best that i don’t fill it until we get back. I used rocks we collected from our trip (of course not in “State or National Parks”) and added them to the tank. We are enjoying it very much.  We only bought 2 fish, and noticed a few weeks later that there were little clear sacs attached to the glass.. well those turned into babies! We have watched them grow and thrive over the months, incredible!

Because we had to find our pitbull a home, we/I really missed having that 2nd big dog around. Figured a lab would be much less a liability than a pitbull. (btw.. our pitbull was awesome, he just didn’t like other dogs very much and he isn’t allowed anywhere we go.. :(, but he is doing very well with his new home and mommy!)

We have had to put Wes through heart worm treatment and a few other medical issues.  He has one of the best personalities a dog can have! It was tough to keep him “calm” during the treatment, but he’s through that and we’re able to burn off some of that energy, walking and playing.  He also had his hip broken at some point, and they removed the hip ball, it doesn’t seem to affect him. He is a total bed hog and ridiculous for attention! We have bonded as if we’ve had him since a puppy.  So happy we could save this guy, he’s awesome!

Picked up a 1976 Catalina 27  “Sea Grape” that i am in the process of restoring. Payed hardly nothin’ for her and she is a solid boat.  Very excited to make some adventures happen on her. I’ll make a separate “restore segment” for the boat.  Our good friend Mike Peterson, Jim, and Savannah sailed her from Mobile, AL to Pensacola.  I shuttled them in the car and waited anxiously for their arrival 11hrs later!

Yes i started a small business.. 🙂 “The Living Tea Cup ~ Baus Designs” here is the fb link. https://www.facebook.com/bauslivingdesigns?ref=br_tf   I have a passion for getting my hands in the ground and love flowers and plants of all botanical species!  The Living Tea Cup is vintage containers filled with succulents and airplants.  The containers are sometimes very old and a collectible in their own right. The hunt for these containers has been literally like treasure hunting and so much fun! I have a green house and growing my own plants now as well.  You can check the fb page to see more details, photos and keep up with our business growth!

The new year has rung in a lot of sailing. The Pensacola Yacht Club asked Savannah to be the Opti Jr. Team Capt for Team racing. They spent a good part of the Christmas break practicing and competed in New Orleans late Jan.  Although they did not place in the large regatta they gained much more than winning. These kids practiced their hearts out in very cold, wintery conditions.  They developed friendships on the water that will last for a life time off the water. Also a huge thank you to Coach Bert who volunteered his time coaching while teaching full time, he has a heart of gold!  Here is a video of the team! http://youtu.be/5ELMQrwKpUs?list=UUkavYJ07LNvVtDPQJYv7pkA

A note on New Orleans trip: While Savannah and the team sailed, Jim and took long bike rides through the parks and enjoyed fun evenings with the parents of the kids. We also camped water front side just near the NO Lake Front Airport, that i long ago had logged many landings at! Great view while Jim worked from the RV captain’s chair.

Jim also finally splashed the J80 for some winter regattas.  We have taken along the jrs to race with us, and looking forward to more regattas with these awesome kids!

We recently just returned from another regatta/camping trip this past weekend.  It was the USODA team trials qualifier regatta in St. Petersburg.  Savannah participated in the 2 day clinic prior to the regatta. We camped about 30 minutes away from the yacht club (closest campground there was) which made for some early morning rises, considering Sunday morning was an 0715 harbor start! The regatta was held Sat and Sunday, but the wind did not cooperate and made for some frustrating racing conditions.  Not all fleets were able to race one another with only two races held. Savannah raced mid fleet in results but seemed unfazed and had a great time! Her Dad and i did too.. we enjoyed some awesome running, biking, and dog walking. Also saw and had dinner with some old friends. Note: The campground we stayed at was pretty comical.. the “older” empty nesters seemed SO HAPPY, and i have never seen so MANY little DOGS!!!

Post sailing regatta we hit the road to Crystal River, where we scored  a water front campsite perfect for putting in the paddle boards to explore and see the manatees!  There are several springs near by that the manatees flock to seeking warmer water during the winter. Since we have had a cold season for FL, the manatees were everywhere.

Crystal River spring system is composed of over 40 beautiful and unique springs. Originated in Kings Bay, the springs combine and flow westward approx. 6 miles to enter the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico.  Families of manatees congregate in peaceful herds in the constant 72 degree water of the fabulous crystal clear springs, especially during times of cold weather.  Manatees are considered one of Florida’s true native species and can be viewed throughout the waters of both kings bay and the crystal river. Mature “Sea Cows” have been known to reach lengths of over 13 feet and can weigh over 3000lbs, spending most of their time grazing for food in the coastal areas and the river. Baby manatees can weigh more than 40lbs at birth and will gain up to 700lbs in the first year!

We viewed these gentle giants from our paddle boards. We put in at our campsite and paddled to the springs, and all in and around different springs. They would roll on to their backs and almost be playful with our boards, coming right up to take a big breath.  We saw many mamas and babies. Was truly a magical 9 mile round trip paddle.

If you enjoyed reading about our RV trip, then you may want to pick up Feb’s issue of “Samata” all woman’s paddle magazine. They did a feature story on our trip, using the blog and a number of photos!

I’m sure i’ve left out some things.. but i’ll try and stay up with our crazy living! Have a wonderful day and thanks for reading!