A Trip to the States

     Before we left Missouri in search of our boat 3 yrs ago, we promised our neighbors we'd attend their final annual Family Reunion in 2014, no matter where we were!  Who knew we'd be in Georgetown, Bahamas after so many changes in our sailing plans!  
     Sadly, just one of us could go, since Miss Liberty can't fly commercially...especially in July!   Daren volunteered to watch her on the boat, so I flew out of Georgetown on July 9-13th.   A whirlwind trip indeed!  Good friends Don and Cheryl picked me up in Kansas City about 7 pm and drove the 2.5 hours back to their house in Warsaw, after dinner at a wonderful Italian restaurant that even had gluten-free pasta!  
      We had a wonderful visit!  I'd forgotten how beautiful Missouri is in the summertime....SO green!   Cheryl drove me around the next day, and I stocked up on gluten-free foods from Wal-mart.  The weather was perfect and it was fun to see the library ladies and neighbors from our Flying Dogs Farm days!  I even got a real haircut in town!   Friday night, Don took Cheryl and me to see a fun movie in Sedalia, Jersey Boys, about Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons!   Afterwards, we stopped at a real Dairy Queen for sundaes!  It was such a nostalgic and memorable evening, I felt like I was back in high school!!  
       The reunion in Fristoe on Saturday was great fun, too!  Lots of terrific food, friends, and entertainment!   Cindy and Jeff have 3 new horses, and gave rides to the kids.  I even sat on one and didn't get thrown off!   Daren posted the pictures to prove it!
      The next day, Sunday, I had to fly back home, and Don and Cheryl took me to Springfield Saturday night, where we got to see daughter Holley and stayed at Cheryl's Dad's house.   The visit was over so fast, it was like a blink in time!   But I'm so glad I got to go!  
       Daren had to go back to work in Modesto on July 15, so we had just one day together before he left for 2 weeks.  I'm SO glad we have these iPads to communicate with Face Time!  He's on his way home and will be back tomorrow for 2 weeks.  Hooray!  Libby is ecstatic!   It's too bad we didn't figure this out 2 yrs ago!  Oh well, no regrets!   We had a good time there, as well.  

Thank God and Garmin we're Here! Georgetown, Exumas!

    We left Nassau Harbour Club Saturday morning, after a wonderful evening with our neighbor John, on Hanco, a lovely Hatteras, the night before, at Señor Frog's!  We had a great 40 mile sail over to Shroud Cay,  part of the Exumas Land and Sea Park, with moorings.  How nice not to bother anchoring or worry about dragging or damaging coral.   Sunday, we had a nice run to Black Point, on Great Guana Cay.   But Monday was the last and longest day to Georgetown, going straight into the wind and tacking every 2 hours for 12 1/2 hours to Monument Beach.  We couldn't have come in at night if not for the Garmin ap on our iPad!!  Truly impressive technology that shows exactly where you are and where the rocks are...where to zig and zag!

     Tuesday, July 1st, we went another mile to Gaviota Bay, where we finally caught up to Sue and Al's boat, Wind Dancer.   We had a great lunch at Chat and Chill with Sue, right in front of our boats.  Sue and I took a water taxi across the harbour to the Government Dock, where she showed me around town to Exuma Market and Batelco, where I signed up for internet service.  Nicki couldn't've been nicer, and we loved the sign on the wall that said "Treat others as you would like to be treated!"  If only everyone lived by this paraphrase of the Golden Rule!   I love this country!

      We were hoping to see Al tomorrow, for 4th of July, but he was just admitted to a Houston hospital for at least 10 days, because of a MRSA infection in his arm!  The doctors thought he'd been bitten by a brown recluse spider, but this is actually worse!  Please pray for his complete and speedy healing!  

      We are signed up for a month on this mooring, and it's really a great spot.  Libby loves the beautiful beach and jungle trail at the end that leads to Sand Dollar Beach, although there are no sand dollars, just picnic tables, which are a nice touch!    

      Hope you have a wonderful Independence Day tomorrow!  Bahamian Independence Day is July 10th, so I hope that means fireworks!