Okay, so now we're officially boat owners! Beautiful, isn't she? This is For Us at her winter home at Harborage Yacht Club in Stuart, FL. Thanks to the folks at Kadey Krogen Yachts (referred to hereafter as KKY), we were able to get a seasonal membership at this incredible club. Better yet, many other Krogen owners winter here, so there was instant comraderie!
What a thrill to board our girl for the first time as owners! Never mind that the saloon was strewn with the countless boxes we had shipped down to her. Again, the KKY folks stepped up to the plate by allowing the boxes to be sent to their office. Not only did they accept a flurry of shipments, but they brought the boxes to For Us as well! Poor boat, she must have been wondering what the fuss was all about.
Our first day aboard was sheer confusion! The myriad of folks we had lined up to do "stuff" showed up during different points of the day. At one point, the boat looked like one of those casino boats (albeit on a very much smaller scale) with people coming and going. The electronics people were in the pilothouse, the carpenter was in the saloon, Tom was in the engine room and I was in the master (and only) stateroom calmly trying to get sheets onto the bed. Our girl hadn't seen this much activity since she was commissioned, I'm sure! That night we got to finally catch our breath and enjoy a few minutes together. Over dinner, we toasted everyone that had brought us to this wonderful point in our lives.
The next day was filled with much excitement! Our old friends were coming from Sarasota to spend the weekend. When my friend asked how many "bedrooms" we had on board, I recommended that she stay at the nearby hotel (do I know my friends or what?). On Saturday, we had the denaming of the boat scheduled. My husband appeared like a preacher with a script in his hand, all solemn. He cautioned me that from that point on, we were never again to mention our girl's former name (sorry, can't say it). Once the denaming occurred, we were free to call the folks who were going to put the new name on the boat. While waiting for them to arrive, I dashed to the wine store to get 2 (very nice) bottles of champagne for the occasion. After closely supervising the application of the name, it was time to pop the cork and get down to business. On the bow I went with champagne in hand. The cork popped and a shower of golden champagne cascaded onto For Us (with me trying to catch any stray drops on my tongue). Shortly after christening For Us, it was down to the saloon with our friends, the folks who did the art work and some folks from across the dock to drink more champagne! This trip will be remembered for a very long time!
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