an update.

Apologies for the radio silence. This season has slipped away from us and as a result, we will NOT be in the Caribbean come November. Interlude spent the winter in storage where she was supposed to have her chainplates replaced and unfortunately, that didn't happen until June. Our mistake was in not working on her all winter while she was indoors. We have several significant projects that still need to happen before we can cast off and we did not do them. Oops! Having a baby is time consuming, you know? This fall and winter, we will not make the same mistake. 

Projects we still need/want to complete:

• Fix leaks over the butterfly hatch, v-berth and quarter berth
• Replace some of the lights for LEDs. We did several this season, or rather Josh did, but there are a few more to go. This will help lower battery consumption in addition to the frequency of which the bulbs will need to be replaced.
• Replace the head. This one is a biggie. We had plans to have my brother help do this while visiting but time got away from us.
• Put lights and outlets in the cockpit. The lights will be LED but at this point we are trying to figure where to mount them. On the cabin top? On one of the bars of the dodger/bimini? To be determined.
• Reconfigure storage situation in the lazarette
• Possibly rebed the port lights
• Convert the galley hand pump to a foot pump. Hopefully freshwater but we are toying with the idea of doing it as a seawater one.
• Replace v-berth mattress
• Account for all the engine spare parts
• Repair a few tiny areas on the canvas on the dodger/bimini
• Potentially replace the running rigging
• Convert flat sheets into fitted ones for the quaterberth
• Configure storage for long term cruising. This one is a toughie. I kind of need to wait until Josh has used all of his allotted storage to work on space for canned and dry goods and we need to take a good hard look at exactly how many clothes items and toiletries we realistically need. 

That's all I can think of now. I'll update as we go. Or hopefully, cross them off?

ours at last.

Meet Interlude, the newest member of our family. She's a 1983 Union Cutter (more on cutters in an upcoming post) with gorgeous lines, a full keel and almost all the upgrades necessary for a long-term cruising lifestyle. You guys, finding a boat as well outfitted, well cared for and well loved as this boat in our price range on Lake Michigan is a one-in-a-million kind of scenario. We feel like we've hit the jackpot.

We handed over a check on Friday morning and spent the rest of the day AND the entire weekend cleaning, organizing, exploring and enjoying her. Several trips were made to Menards for all sorts of supplies and by the end of each day we were exhausted but exhilarated by the progress made in getting her in tip top shape.

Sunday afternoon we rewarded ourselves with spin around the lake on her for the first time, just the two of us. She has a wheel instead of a tiller, which will take some getting used to and some kinks need to be worked out with the sail plan and ground and tackle on her deck, but overall, she's a dream. We can NOT wait to take her on a longer journey (hopefully up to Racine, WI on Friday). 

If you're interested in the more technical aspects of Interlude, I'll be posting all the specifics under the "our boat" tab at the top of the blog.