Ooh-la-la Red.  Gorgeous!

This color stopped me in my tracks.  I’ll take mine in pink, please.

The wood detail is amazing.  Obviously your creativity can run wild.

Speaking of detail – wow!  that roof is amazing!

The amount of rigging on these tall ships is amazing. Could you imagine being in charge of all of this?

Of course I’m going to include a picture of two of my beautiful grandchildren! 🙂 Meet Cordelia the gymnast and Christopher the soccer phenom.

Volunteers helped hoist the main sail. The little slice of blue with the windblown hair is yours truly.

A total of six tall ships were out on the water. Here’s a glimpse of the other five from the deck of ours, along with several local sailboats out to watch the festivities.

So much fun out on the water. The mock cannonball fight was a blast and a matter of pride for each crew and their guests.  Our cannon was puny but our ship was fast.

Today I’m recapping a couple of our fun September outings.  As part of my husband’s “birthday month” we visited the Wavecrest Woodies car show in Encinitas, CA.

I’m more likely to swoon over a bag than a car (unless it’s a new one for me) but these were truly amazing.  Their owners did some incredible restoration work, especially considering some of the “before” pictures.  The finish on the wood work of these cars was living-room worthy.  And when they say “woodie” they mean it.  A major component of the car is wood.  It may rest on a metal frame, and the front of the body may also be metal, but the backs are wood.  the windows slide in wood frames.  The roofs are wood.  The interiors are wood.  I was so impressed.

The birthday month continues. . . We’ve always wanted to see the tall ships, but they festival in Dana Point always hits the weekend before a major tax deadline.  This year I decided to enjoy life and break away for the day.  So worth it!

SoCal was experiencing an oppressive heat weave that weekend, so much so that I was long for the desert and it’s drier triple digit temps.  But it was a completely different story once we were out on the water.  I’d have to say it was close to perfect.

A total of six tall ships sailed around Dana Point, chasing and being chased in a mock cannonball fight.  Our ship was a replica of the circa 1850 yacht that first beat Great Britain in the race now known as the America’s Cup.  It was so quick and so smooth.

Watching the crew work from such a close vantage point was fantastic.  It’s definitely something to experience.  We were fortunate to be on the first ship out and the last ship in, so we were a good three hours on the water.  I loved every minute!

Thanks so much for sharing this experience with us.  I hope you have a wonderful weekend!