I feel so blessed to have so many wonderful memories. Growing up in Michigan we had the best time. Memories of sailing and most of all hanging out with friends who are still friends to this day (thank you social media)!

Memories of sailing are precious to me. A few times we sailed through Canada taking several weeks. My memories of those times are the white bakery boxes with the best blueberry pie ever, Dentyne gum (remember it? Is it still around? The cinnamon gum?) and a little red purse that I had to carry my Dentyne in, ha ha. I’m thinking that little purse came from a small shop in Tobermory – Ontario, Canada – at least that’s what my brain thinks. I remember a floating dock (Tobermory?) and being very sick with a high fever and my parents asking someone at a gas station nearby if they could pay them to use their car, or how to get a car to get me to a hospital (see, I can always make things exciting, right?) – from what I remember, the man told us to take his car. Wow. Such kindness. We shot to a hospital that was more like a pole barn, but was truly a medical place. This wasn’t near a big city by any means. I received a shot in the hind end with an antibiotic and on the ride back to the boat I was feeling so much better that I could stop for an ice cream! #crisisaverted

When we were sailing, my sister and I were probably “down below” (inside the sailboat) just as much as we were in the cockpit (outside). My parents raced sailboats, and we would be in the V berth (sleeping area near front of boat), where, as they changed sails they would shove the others down the hatch and we would grab and pull as fast as we could, at least it felt like we were helping, ha ha. Often times the sails were wet, it was a blast. We would usually stop at a marine store (Gasso’s?) on the way to the boat and we could pick out a snack (I would get Tidbits, which were cheese crackers that were so wonderful, in a little box, the size of animal crackers) and take a peek inside the tank of minnows! Funny, the things that stick with you, right?

I can remember my Mom, standing right where she is in this image, passing us a paper plate with cheese and crackers and other snacks. #somuchfun

This image is an oldie – my Mom on our sailboat. She looks like such a movie star! I want to take a minute to say HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MOM! You’re the best Mom I could ask for (and you still look like a movie star!) I can’t wait to see you again (#damncovid👹) – until then… we have FaceTime, text, and phone calls. Thank God. 🙏

Has anyone thought about how living through this pandemic would be without our WIFI, without FaceTime or Zoom? Without the ability to send images that make the world feel so much better than it currently is. We are so fortunate to have these tools. ☀️ #thinkingonthebrightside ☀️

Enjoy your birthday Mom! We love you so much! xo, us 🥳🙋‍♀️🙋‍♂️🐾🙏❤️

✍️ Until tomorrow…