Saturday, September 17, 2011


We never expected this to be so hard


Jeff was so exhausted by the time we cast off our lines that he needed a quick nap en route.  
 Destination Pelicans Cove, Santa Cruz Island Sept. 17, 2011








We were completely unprepared for the stress and anxiety that we felt leading up to our departure.  After all, this is something that we wanted to do, had planned for two years, physically worked toward for the last year and now that the final month arrived we were experiencing a huge amount of stress. 

         
 I (Julie) often broke into tears when talking to the boys, my parents and close friends about our departure and plans.  The reality of leaving those so dear to us behind was incredibly hard.  I was also surprised by how attached I had become to our home and the comfortable life we were enjoying.
Finally we had time to relax and fully experience living in Ventura and now we were leaving.  Does this make sense?











Pictures from Jeff’s retirement Party 
aboard the Scarlett Belle in the Channel
Islands Marina.
Hosted by Connie our dear friend, 
and Jeff’s long time office manager.
Thank you so much Connie, Al, Tim, Nada 
and the entire staff and all of our guests.


As our departure day neared our "to-do" list grew.  It was so tempting to keep pushing back our date one more week or maybe next year.
We just kept working through each task one at a time and little by little things came together.


Jeanne and I sewing sun shades
for the Buena Vida.
Thanks Jeanne.
Will we ever get this all packed
into a 42 foot Sailboat



We were bolstered by the encouragement from our friends and with the support of each other we continued packing the boat and preparing our home 10 hours a day until it was time to leave.  
Well, not quiet 10 hours a day.  We were blessed with many invitations to dinner with friends and
family as an opportunity to say “good bye”.  The thoughtfulness of our friends has truly touched us 
and we can not express enough how much the kind words and loving gestures have meant to us.












Our Last Supper at the Ventura Yacht Club with great friends.
                                                                        Hasta Luego Amigos





3 comments:

  1. Good job on the blog Julie. Have a safe passage to Mexico. We miss you around here. Hope to catch up with you soon!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Enjoyed your new pictures. Looks like you have having the time of your lives. Happy Thanksgiving!

    ReplyDelete