"The sea, once it casts its spell, holds one in
its net of wonder forever."—Jacques Cousteau

May 31 - Memorial Day

We headed out around 11:30 with no destination in mind. We knew Kenneth and Earline were at their place at Magnolia Beach, so we headed that way. It was a beautiful day, not too hot for South Texas on Memorial Day.

When we reached the beach we were surprised we could get in so close. We haven’t attached the dinghy to the boat yet so Kenneth swam out to the boat and I swam in to see Earline. We visited on the beach for awhile and then swam back to the boat. Brandie and her family had been swimming at our house, but decided they wanted to come see the boat too. Everyone swam out to the boat. (I think we need to get the dinghy ready to go!)

We took everyone for a ride…the kids had a great time playing in the cabin and steering the boat. Brent and Kenneth were elected to swim ashore to get the cars and meet us at the dock in Port Lavaca. We had a wonderful day with everyone on board.

Brandy, Jenna, and Emma
Family on board


May 28 - Sunset over Matagorda Bay

 

May 27 - Sunset Moonrise Cruise

We wanted to take the boat out for a sunset/moonrise cruise, but a little band of thunderstorms kept us at the dock. The little disturbance was just off shore and prevented us from seeing the moon come up on the horizon.

We sat on the fly bridge and enjoyed what we could see of the sunset and the full moon when it did come up over the clouds. Not exactly what we had planned, but it was still nice to be on the boat.

Our view of the sunset
The moonrise from the dock
The Pearl at dusk

May 16 – Family Cruise

It was a beautiful day...it won’t be long before it gets hot. We took a short trip out in the bay with Daddy. Eric and Courtney met us out in the water in their boat. It gave me a chance to get a few pictures of the boat from a different view. It was fun getting to visit with them, but we missed Kyle and Brytanie. Can’t wait till we can all go together.

Daddy and Stan
Eric and Courtney
A few feathered friends

May 6 – On the Hook

We spent our first night on the hook (anchored out). It wasn’t under the best conditions, but we will appreciate the nicer weather the next time. We knew the wind would be blowing all night, so we picked a place with as much protection as we could find. We anchored off of Alamo Beach, just 4 ½ miles from home. We had no problem setting the hook, then we enjoyed happy hour and started dinner. We had to start the generator to finish cooking…the wind was just blowing through the cabin a little too much. It made it hard to keep the burners lit.  After dinner we watched the sunset and enjoyed watching all the pelicans.

Our TV reception isn’t very good around here with the antenna, so we watched a movie and then went to bed. The wind blew hard all night (20 knots), but we really slept pretty well. The wind woke us up several times, but the anchors held and our first night out was a success.

Sunset
Sunrise
Nautical Landings

May 1 - First Sunset Cruise

Earline and Kenneth were in town and joined us on the boat for a visit and then a short cruise on Lavaca Bay. It was a wonderful evening. They enjoyed driving the boat and relaxing and we enjoyed their company.
Earline at the helm
Kenneth and Earline enjoying the boat
The first photo of us on the boat