We come down the dock at our marina near St. Petersburg, FL and turn the heads of the tenants nearby without even trying. My husband and I juggle a cooler, the Survival Bag of Snacks, and 5 stuffed animals, while our elementary-aged sons carry on two different conversations simultaneously. Our youngest son darts out ahead of us, the first to arrive in front of our sailboat, Salema, a Pearson 31-2. In a voice that rivals an intercom system, he announces across the quietude of the marina: “DADDY! The boat has BIRD POOP ON IT AGAIN!!!” I wonder: can sailors in Cancun hear us?
My husband and I were both avid sailors pre-kids and we vowed that we’d keep sailing after we had a family. When we announced the news we were expecting our first child, sailing friends joked that we were growing our own crew. But what does it look like to cultivate sailors from scratch? While we awaited the birth of our first child, I suspect we had a vision of our future selves that tipped towards the idyllic- sailing along on a beautiful day, the children happily practicing their knots in the cockpit, or perhaps shining up the brass fixtures while they sang child-friendly versions of sea shanties? While we quickly realized that sailing with a kid wasn’t as easy as we envisioned, we did discover that sailing with babies wasn’t half bad. Although they come with so.much.gear, they don’t move around much, and they look adorable in onesies with little sailboat prints. Plus, the gentle swaying of the boat lulls even the most reluctant sleeper into an afternoon nap.
The toddler stage was a bit more interesting. The docile babe evolved into the headstrong toddler with an obsession for scaling the steep companionway steps during the most inopportune times. Whereas a toddler leashed to a parent in the mall can draw derisive stares, tethering your kid to the binnacle looks right salty and nautical.
Toddlers are challenging sailing companions, however, they are also all sorts of adorable. Stuffed into their little life jackets, they can be kept reasonably happy on the boat with goldfish crackers, sippy cups of milk, and plenty of helm time.
The days of sippy cups and naps have evolved to big kids who can drain a sports drink in 10 seconds and hang out by themselves on the bow. As I write this entry, we now have an 11 year old and an 8 year old. This blog is a chance to be a bit more purposeful in documenting our time sailing as a family and hopefully a chance to show others it is possible to sail with kids and live to tell about it. I’m proud we’ve sailed with our children as much as we have, despite the challenges. We aren’t that perfect family practicing our bowlines and singing sea shanties, but we are growing our own crew, one sailing adventure at a time.
Sailing Salema 