Iron Will arrives

This was an awesome week for us - Iron Will arrived in Airlie Beach.  The lovely previous owners sailed her up from Gladstone over the last week - and it sounds like the passage was a bit bumpy and lumpy at times!  Matt caught a bus down to Mackay on Sunday night and stayed on board, while the other family moved into a hotel for a few days.  I was very jealous of Matt and wished I had organised things so I could be there too! The two boys sailed her up to Airlie Beach on Monday.  I asked for some pics of their passage ... bittersweet!

I could NOT concentrate on work all day Monday, and as soon as the bell went at the end of school the girls and I raced down to the marina.

We picked up our cardkeys at the marina office and filled in some paperwork.   Matt had been texting me to update on where they were as they got closer and when they were due in, at about 4pm, so we knew we had time to get down to the pontoon and take their lines.  I really wanted to, it seemed symbolic.  The marina office were very helpful but a bit confused that I didn't want a dockhand to help when they arrived, and asked at least twice!

Tilly and Sasha were very excited about the whole thing, and were delighted to spot the two masts moving towards us.  They "guided" them in, showing them our berth.  It was awesome to see the boat come in and take the lines.  The kids couldn't wait to get on board and instantly started exploring their cabin, choosing bunks and practicing hopping in and out the forehatch.  Us grownups clinked glasses with some homemade lemoncello and filled in the ownership paperwork.  Iron Will was now officially our boat!

Before we left the boat for the night, Tilly hugged me and said, "I love our boat mum.  Can we go sailing right now?", which of course filled me with a balloon of happiness.

We've been down after school since and Matt has spent some time fettling on his days off.  The last family generously left SO much stuff on board - spares, tools, flares, charts, pilot books, wet weather gear, TV, laptop, even towels and bedding, that we have a lot of sorting out to do.  We've decided to spend this Saturday night on board and start making some lists.  Even though we have a lot to do, being on the boat fills me with contentment.