New Years Resolution - keep on keepin' on

Work - St. Lucia style

MARVELOUS!! The only word I know that can accurately describe the last month of my life.  I've never witnessed more beauty - beautiful waters, people, cultures, and places in my life!   We set out to sea about a month ago and have managed to visit Atlantis (Bahamas), St. Thomas (Virgin Islands), St. Lucia, Guadeloupe, St. Maarten, Antigua & Barbuda, St. Barths, St. Kitts & Nevis (Caribbean), and we're only half way through January!   So I know it's been awhile since my last post, but believe me when I say this - we do NOT have down time.  We work 18 hour days, squeeze 6-8 hours of sleep in and eat on-the-go.  And although I'd love go into all the grueling details, I'll spare you and jump right to the fun part  (drop of day) and all the amazingness that followed!!! 

                                        Neighbors

We pull into our slip in St. Lucia, and after saying "hey" to our new neighbors and escorting our guests off board, we throw on our swimsuits, stow up the boat, and jump in the hot tube, cocktail in hand.   I swear to God, that particular moment in time - when the guests get off board and you can walk on your heels instead of tip-toe, when you can talk instead of whisper, and when you can drink, laugh (as loud as I laugh),  and blare your music - is 100% the best moment EVER!  

Needless to say, we spent several hours "unwinding" and after a little family bonding (opening our secret Santa gifts, taking pics, drinking & eating way too much), we spent the next 2 days zip lining through the rainforest, cruising the island via tender (thanks boat driver Bobby) jumping off every chance we got, eating, drinking, and soaking up everything St. Lucia had to offer!!

We bought the freshest bananas in the WORLD from a St. Lucian man on a surfboard, swam in water I never knew existed (clear, aqua blue amazingness), and although 90% of the of the crew could’ve stayed in St. Lucia for months, our Captain and first mate decided to wrap up the party and start the journey back to FTL :( 

Bye Bye Paradise

We stopped in the Virgin Islands a few days ago, and spent a day in St. Thomas clearing customs, shopping, and fraternizing with the locals (& some Cakewalk crew - love those guys!!) and got underway at 6am the next morning :(  

We've been at sea for 3 days now, and although it was sad to leave the Caribbean, it's been a comfortable crossing so far...and the closer I get to "home" the more excited I get.  Dougie and Linda are heading to the condo and will be in FL for the majority of Feb and Becca's back in FTL so I'll have some familiar faces to smooch (thank God)!  And although I never though I'd say this, the one thing I'm NOT looking forward to is turning on my cell phone (although talking without the 10 second delay will be quite a treat)...love you Erin, Mom, Becca, Lissy, and Jenna ;-)

So here I am...crossing the Atlantic in January of 2011, and for the first time in 26 years I find myself making a New Years resolution that doesn't involve change.  I'm nearly 3 months into this adventure and as time goes by I'm realizing that everything I said I'd do but didn't, I'm doing!  I'm traveling, meeting new people, taking HUGE steps outside my comfort zone, thinking before I speak, loving and appreciating my friends and family (just like they deserve), and as Dec 31st crept up and the New Years Resolutions started flowing, I was able to take a step back and look at my life...finally, FINALLY, I'm living my life the way it's meant to be lived.  Sure I could stand to lose a few lbs, and I should probably start making my bed on a regular basis, but when it comes to whats important - fulfilled promises to myself - I'm finally on track and I wouldn't change a thing. 


Well that's it for now...love you all & I'll be back in FTL by this time tomorrow :)


xoxoxo,
mE