December 25th- Vero Beach FL

The harbor has really filled up. For the first time, we are now rafted with 2 other boats on this mooring. Our new neighbors are a young Canadian couple. Ollie watches their kids and the kids watch Ollie. Evergreen is in the center so we have to board the dinghy over the stern of the boat. Ollie has adapted well. We normally board over the starboard side. Many boats are still waiting for suitable weather for crossing to the Bahamas.

Morning craziness.

Evergreen in the middle. I hope these moorings are strong.

We’ve had a good holiday. Last night we had Christmas Eve dinner on S/V Rhiannon. They prepared a gourmet meal. A good time was had by all.

Today we were inundated with rain. I got Ollie to shore during a lull. Time to celebrate. We opened presents and had Eggs Benedict for breakfast. Lynne made some festive decorations and painted a Christmas tree. For the past few days, plans were being made for a “Christmas Cruisers Pot Luck Dinner”. It seemed like it might be cancelled due to the rain but we had a turkey taking up a big chunk of real estate in the refrigerator. Lynne cooked the turkey in our tiny oven and right about the time it was done, the rain stopped! The dinner was a big hit. Without any coordination, everyone made different plates and desserts. Conversation was good. I ate too much. I was still able to fit one more piece of pumpkin pie before exiting. Ollie had some turkey with his dinner tonight.

Merry Christmas!

Mega rain.

Santas.

Our Christmas tree.