SVJoli: Becoming a Live-Aboard Cruiser

I'm back! My friend Paul encouraged me to get back to my blog and get it up to date. He reminded me that I haven't made an entry since March 2018 (a year ago already!!!), so here goes.
Back when Bryan and I were first married, when we lived in Toledo, Ohio and were getting ready to buy our first home, we thought about buying a sailboat to live on. A friend of mine at work lived on a powerboat year-round with her husband and she invited us to visit them to see what the live-aboard lifestyle was all about. She suggested we pick a cold day in January or February so that we could appreciate what it takes to live on a boat in Ohio in winter. They docked near downtown Toledo and their marina installed a bubbler at their dock so that they didn't get iced in; however, they had to trudge down a sometimes icy dock to use the facilities and they hauled fresh water to the boat in jugs every couple of days. We went to visit on a very cold day and found their boat to be very comfortable and cozy but decided we weren't ready to be live-aboards. Instead, we bought an 18-foot Interlake which we actively raced for several years and a "land-based home".

Interlake (Bryan's brother) sailing on Sandusky Bay out of Sandusky Sailing Club

Fast-forward many years, two kids, a bigger boat (a Schock 35 - still into the racing sailboat mode but also great for cruising western Lake Erie), a move to Port Clinton, OH and lots of time with kids' swim team and junior sailing activities and the cruising/live-aboard bug bit us again. We decided to take a year off from work and go cruising with the kids. We began looking for a 42' to 50' boat by doing a lot of research on the Internet. In February of 2002, we went to Torresen Marine in Muskegon, Michigan, to look at a Derektor 50 but were also intrigued by a C&C 61, Triumph, that was for sale. The broker, being the smart man that he was, showed us Triumph first. She had been on the hard for over a year and really needed a lot of work but I loved her at first sight. After seeing Triumph, the Derektor just didn't compare. We also made a trip to Newport, RI to look at a boat but ended up making an offer on Triumph by that April, 2002. After two years of refit work, we sold our house and moved onto the boat with our kids, who were 11 and 14 years old at the time. Long story, short; we came really close to reaching the live-aboard cruiser dream, but did not. That fall, it was back to land-based living.
Fast-forward many more years in which we enjoyed cruising Lake Erie plus a couple races on Joli (ex-Triumph) and supporting Sandusky Junior Sailors race team, and we have returned to the dream! As of December 1, 2018, I am officially retired! This is one step closer to becoming live-aboard cruisers. We feel so fortunate that I am able to retire early and Bryan will retire by May 1 next year. I have worked with some great people over my 34 years with the same company and I really appreciate that, too. Below are some photos from the retirement party.