Bring on the Dogs! That’s What Everyone Remembers.

Hi guys, it’s me, Captain.  Mom is super lazy so she’s making me do the blog today. NOT!

Please can I write? I have things to say!

Actually, I begged to write this one because I think mom’s stuff is kinda boring and we need to change it up. Plus when we stop and talk to people they often say, “Oh I remember Captain!” Mom laughs because she says everyone remembers me but not her.  Perhaps she needs to wiggle her tail more?!

So it’s been months and months since I’ve had a chance to tell you what is going on for me.  Since my last blog, we have been to five different countries: Turks and Caicos, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Aruba and Bonaire.

Playtime and shade = happiness!

I really liked Turks and Caicos because we stayed mostly at South Side Marina and I was allowed to get off and on the boat anytime I wanted – well almost! And there was another dog that lived there and we played lots and lots.

Walking at Puerto Bahia, Samana

The Dominican Republic was great because mom took me for a lot of long walks and we found a waterfall that I could play in during our walks.  That waterfall was super special because it didn’t have any salt in it and I could drink the water!  I wish whoever puts the salt in all the oceans would stop because I really want to drink that water!

One surprise was going back to Puerto Rico.  Puerto Rico is the place where we first moved onto LIB and it was kinda fun to be back in a familiar place. Dad was riding bikes and mom got to play some tennis. I had long walks and made some new people friends and really liked hanging out at the pool with Frank and MG.

But my people are strange. One afternoon we went to the pool and we were super chill and talking about some hikes we were going to do. Then Frank got on his computer and suddenly everything changed!

Palmas del Mar before Maria. Taken from the top of the mast the night before we fled.

He and MG started taking about somebody named Maria and weather and category 4 or 5 or something and next thing I knew we are in full pack and go mode! Within 15 hours we had picked up and left Puerto Rico and were sailing to Bonaire.

Later I figured out there was another one of those hurricane things headed toward our marina, so we had to skedaddle.

LIB moored in Bonaire.

So since September we have been hanging out in the ABC Islands. It’s really pretty here and sooo many people from the cruise ships stop to pet me and tell me how much they miss their dogs.  They should just bring them along! I sure am glad MG and Frank have brought me on our boat.

My boys have come to visit two times since I last wrote! Once was in the Turks and Caicos and then they came to Bonaire for Christmas. Wow wee it is so fun when they are here. Hunter sneaks me treats sometimes (don’t tell!) and Clayton’s ear rubs are so good that I groan with happiness. I just can’t help it!

Mom hasn’t been taking as many pictures of me lately, so I don’t have very many to show, but here are a few I like.

Few shells makes for great runs! (Turks and Caicos)

Without a doubt, running on soft sand is my favorite thing to do! Especially since there haven’t been any goats to herd in a looooong time. After I run, I cool off in the ocean and make sure my fur is really wet, then I roll around in the sand!

Feels as good as rolling in grass!

MG thinks I do this just to get messy, but really this is how I scratch all those places I can’t quite reach.  You should try it. I’m sure you would start sand scratching on a regular basis!

UGH! The rinse cycle before getting in the dinghy.

The one thing I don’t like is that before we go back to the boat, Frank dunks me in the water and washes away as much of the sand as he can. Boy, I just don’t understand why he ruins a good sand scratch like that.

It’s been a long while since we have found creeks and stuff to explore in the dinghy. I really miss zipping along and seeing fish and turtles right next to the dinghy.

Instead of Swamp People, maybe we could be Dinghy Dervishes? 

We look kinda crazy when we go on these dinghy explorations but we all laugh a lot… even when we get in water so shallow that my people have to get out and walk us to deeper water. (I just stay in the dinghy and make sure they go the right way!)

I count two in and one getting out….

Over the last few months we have had lots of new friends come out on LIB with us.  One day we had 15 kids from Bonaire out for the afternoon.  Can you say busy?! Phew, that is a lot of kids to keep on the boat.  When we stopped for snacks and a swim, those kids were jumping from all over the boat and I had a hard time keeping count of them all. It was good my humans helped too!

After all the kids were back on board and we were underway again, I went down to mom and dad’s room and took a nap. Hoowee, that was a tiring day. But super fun!  And now almost every time we go to shore for a walk, I see one of the kids or somebody yells my name from a passing car to say hello.

I think I am a pretty good advocate for boat dogs!

Speaking of going to shore, that is the one little thing I’m not so keen about here in Bonaire.  There are a LOT of dogs here and pretty much all of them bark and snarl from behind their fences. It’s a little distracting when I’m on a “business trip.”

I jump right in when it’s time to go to shore!

Here’s a picture of me and Frank swimming to shore for a walk.  Mom does this too, but she is the one who takes most of the pictures.

Pretty adorbs, aren’t I?

MG and I participated in a Santa Hat Walk around Christmas.  We got to walk places we had never been and there were lots of other people walking who petted me.  I was the only dog that went on the walk.  Gosh, I’m sure glad my people like to take me with them!  Anyway, I won an award for being cute.  MG says if I were a human I would be really conceited because everyone tells me I’m cute or pretty…. Why does she think I hold my tail so high? Duh!

So that’s pretty much the news around here for now.  Except I know mom and dad are up to something right now because they keep mentioning this boat called an HH55. I took a peak on mom’s computer and I saw some pictures of it.  At first I couldn’t really tell it was a boat, but now it’s coming along.  From what I can tell, they want to use this boat to go exploring even farther away from the U.S.  As long as I get to go with them, I’m down for this whole new boat gig.  Here’s a picture I found on mom’s computer that shows the boat is actually beginning to look like a catamaran now.

Deck and coachroof bonding completed.

I have two questions about this new boat. 1. Will I still be able to look into the cold drawers? 2. What are we going to name it?  If you have any ideas for a name, please post a comment below, ok?  I bet I would get a lot of extra treats if I manage to come up with a cool new boat name. (Dad kinda wants to keep a song title name, but mom wants something lighthearted relating to exploring or speed. How do you reconcile that?)

Oops, gotta run.  Yesterday I made a new friend, Dave, who likes to paddle board and he said he would take me with him.  Pretty sure I just spotted Dave coming my way!

I hope your day includes some excellent sniffs!

Tail wags and licks,

Captain.