Project List – DO, IN PROGRESS, DONE

Most winters are crammed with boat projects but our little KK39 doesn’t need much more so Al had more free time on his hands.  If you read this blog, you will know that is not a good thing. History tells me that when he has watsonized a boat, it ends up on the “for sale” list.  🙄😳  Ahhh, but I am not really worried about that anymore.  What more could we possibly want than this Kadey Krogen 39??? AND, haven’t we reached an age when fewer projects/work is a good thing??

There is a plus side to a shorter list of boat projects – Our house got some attention this winter. Yeah! Nothing major, just attention.

Other houses benefited from Al’s “spare” time. Adam and Steph decided to finish off a part of their basement. Al served as the mentor/supervisor and taught Adam what to do as they worked together. They did the framing together, Al did the electrical work and the sheetrocking and taping were hired out.

Al decided that Addie needed a special “nook” all her own under the stairs. Designed and built it in our basement and then installed it in their basement. My role is to sew four decorative pillows, Addie chose the fabrics (unicorns, butterflies and jelly fish) but they are on order and will have to wait until July for completion.

The biggest winter project was house hunting with my son Ryan. He and Kerri have lived in a one-bedroom apartment in Forest Hills, NYC for 20 years. The year(s) of COVID pushed them to their limits in that small space.The two children are quickly outgrowing their small bunkbed system in the foyer and they all want to be closer to family here in Connecticut. The timing was about as bad as it could be given the housing market over the past 6 months. Geeze! Unbelievable.  Al and I spent 8 Saturdays house-hunting with them, touring 26 different homes. Al, with his building background and talents, was critical to the long search process. I was critical as the babysitter. I really did enjoy spending time with those two grands every weekend although amusing them in a cold car is not at the top of my list for grandmother time. 

After several discouraging months Ryan and Kerri finally found their new home. I won’t say anymore because I don’t want to jinx anything until the closing is past and they move in. It goes without saying that I am beyond thrilled and happy to soon have both of my sons in Connecticut.

Back to boat projects…….. As any boat owner will tell you, there is always something that needs to be repaired, replaced, or created.

Winter is prime time for Al to sew, repairing canvas and creating new items.

In the past we have used a cooler on the bow deck to hold lines. It worked but was bulky, a little in the way, and the lines often got wet inside. Al decided to custom build his own bow box. This was his most extensive boat project of the winter.

At the end of last season, I began to worry about the state of our interior cushions. Although in reasonably decent condition for 18 years old, several needed repairs. Well, one thought leads to another and before I knew it, I was actually considering having all of the cushions reupholstered. This is not a small undertaking, financially. I tried to convince Al he could do it, because, well, of course he could, but alas, he did not want to spend the entire winter reupholstering 17 separate cushions. After exploring several options and assorted fabrics, I took the plunge and went all in. ULTRALEATHER!! Why the %&@* not? All the new Kadey Krogens have it and our little KK deserves the best. The cushions would need to be replaced sometime in the future so I would rather we enjoy it ourselves than do it for the next owner. Rationalizing? Yeah, maybe. We chose Custom Marine Canvas to do the job. After several meetings and conversations, I trusted that Katie and her crew were the best and that it would be a quality job. She idd offer Al a job if he wanted one.

That brings us up to date for winter and projects. Next is LAUNCHING!