Cape May, NJ

Cape May, NJ

It is now October 10th!
18 days and counting in Cape May...but....the engine is ready to go! Thank you Rudy! Our wonderful mechanic. We can head south!
We feel like race horses at the starting gate!
"Bang!"
Ahhhh, False start...The weather is blowing snot and here we sit.
Maybe tomorrow????


Well, we are taking the good with the bad. This shot was taken soon after my backward "flip onto our ladder. Luckily no apparent broken bones! After this little mishap, two questions come to mind...1) to carry or not to carry bulky red laundry bag down ladders and 2) to wear rings or to not wear rings!
The lovely laundry bag drawstring caught around my most favorite ring as I tossed the bag overboard. Of course I was already standing at the top of the ladder. At the same moment, I was proudly thinking to myself, "Good job Kirsten for using your brains...it is much safer for you to throw this down than to try to carry this heavy, squishy bag..." I guess I was wrong!
I now sport a very swollen, purle/black lower leg with a few unsitely gashes. Ahhh well, I was never much of a beauty queen...!


You guessed it...a giraffe.


A beautiful Bongo


Lion "Yoga"

Our skin hasn't gotton this "leathery" from the sun yet!

Maddie feeding goats at the Cape May Zoo.

Well it's now October 8th and we are still here at Utsch's Marina. We have found that our old prop will not work with the new engine. Yes, you guessed it! It means ordering new parts and waiting...also means the new shaft needs a new Keyhole made and shaft trimmed (not to mention 2 more hauls out of the water)! This repower has been a good test of our patience. Poor Steve! We are chaulking this up to a good learning experience! Friends at Morris Yachts and the staff here at Utsch's have been great with lending advice and a helping hand when we've needed it. Thank you to everyone.

We were offered a vehicle today by Pete (the Utsch's Marina Store Manager)to go to the Cape May Zoo! Thank you Pete! He must have noticed Mama going a bit stir crazy!

We have made Noodle a safe play area on the boat so she can spend the day free from her cage, except of course when Steve has the engine compartment open! We just have to be very careful of where we place our feet!


Noodle was given to us by a wonderful lady named Deborah right here in Cape May.
It was obvious Noodles was well cared for. She loves to be snuggled and is beginning to explore and play with the toys the girls picked out for her on our recent trip to the pet store.


Noodle has settled in to the girls and the new "digs" on Hook pretty quickly. She got a clean bill of health with the Vet and a quick rabies shot, Ouch! and was deemed good to go!

What is the usual pet for sailors? A Parrot you say?...Nope! A Ferret! (not really...)

Introducing "Noodle!"

When we asked the girls what they would think of a new member of the family, Emma's eyes got really big and she looked at me and said, "Mom, are you pregnant!"

Not quite! It was the "furry" addition we were talking about.

The adventures of Mrs. Noodle begins!

Our homeschool "digs" in the laundry house.

It was nice that we had Wi-Fi here to research and connect with family and friends.

I must say after 16 days and counting we are getting used to having a shower every day again!

Free showers here!

Here she comes! We're getting back in the water today!

10/05/09 Hope she'll float again! We were able to get a fresh coat of paint on the hull and wash the sides down before gettting splashed...

One of the girls past-times here at Utsch's.

Great day for flying a kite
We've had significant winds the entire time here...Another tropical storm is on the move again. It may be the 8th of October before pointing the nose south...

She may be a pretty penny but she is "pretty"

Hard at work...

Hook "on the hard" to remove the old shaft. Unfortunately, the old one was 6 inches too short!

It appears new engines are not as large as the old ones...we just hope the prop will work with it.

If not it will mean another haul out and more money!!!

The engine compartment a-new!

Here comes the Grey Goose! Kids picked its name already!

Attempting to "Skype"

Miles and miles of beach....
The structure in the photo is an old foundation to a Life Saving Station from years ago.


Cape May State Park Beach
6-10 foot rollers! No swimming today (but they still got wet...of course!)


We were so fortunate to catch the Monarch Butterfly in mid migration. Cape May is one of their regular stops on route to Mexico. Migration for Monarchs begin in August and will complete in Mexico in November. Migration back to the North begins in late March. These Monarchs will live from 5-7 months during the Fall/Winter but in the summer months, they live only 2-6 weeks as the warm climates allow for breeding. It is actually the great great grandchildren of the migrating Monarch that will do the next migration in August of the next year. Amazing!

Turns out that Cape May is a world known bird watching area as it is the resting grounds for many migrating birds...

View from top of Lighthouse.

Extremely windy day. The kids had to hold on to me as not to be blown over at the top!

Thankfully they had you caged in at the top...

199 steps to the top!

You can do it Maddie! Keep going!

One day while Steve continued to work on our re-power project the girls spent the day at Cape May State Park. It is a nice park with a working Lighthouse tour, boardwalks, a small museum and of course a big beautiful beach to play on.

Skee Ball!


The Jersey Shore! Arcades Galore!


Our 2 mile walk (or scooter...) into town.



Now...where does this go???
Captain Steve doubling as Hook's Grease Monkey!
Looks like 30 years was enough for the Green Monster...



Our "Jolly Green Monster" not so jolly anymore. What a mess!


Who said there was no swimming pool here???


Maddie figuring it all out. (Note the one piece bathing suit is now a bikini...we had to cut it in half! She keeps growing....)


OK...so it wasn't all work....



Utsch's Marina, giving Hook a scrub down inside and out...she needed it



Deck Hands at work, earning their keep....

September 22-October 11, 2009
Cape May, New Jersey