Hello and welcome to the Murphey Family blog which will chronicle our exciting high seas adventure (and antics) aboard Colette, our home away for home for the next year!

Many of you reading this post are likely family and friends who already know us and know some about this grand adventure we have decided to undertake.  A few, and perhaps a growing number, will be people we meet along the way or the welcome stranger who happens to hear of our family story and opts to vicariously tag along!  So, this first post is going to give you all a little insight into the Murphey family and the journey that led us to where we are today.  Some people have asked if they can share our blog, and we say, “Yes!” If our journey can entertain, enlighten or just bring a smile to your face, we are all for it!
So…let’s begin…shall we?

Who are the Murphey Family and how did this all come about…?
I’m so glad you asked!  We like to think of ourselves as the American family next door with a few tweaks here and there!  We are a Houston based brood of five and we put Christ first in our hearts and all we do. Brett, my husband, is a dentist and we have three wonderful and lively children ages eight, nine and eleven. Brett and I have been happily married for fifteen years.  When he and I first met, he told me that he wanted to show me the world!  Of course, I thought he was just trying to sweet talk me BUT, I’ll admit, I might have been wrong!  Fortunately, it didn’t take me long to realize that he truly was and is the man of my dreams.  In six months, we were engaged and another six we were married!  Saying “yes” to him was one of the best decisions I ever made.  And, if I ever forget that for a second, he is always more than happy to remind me! Now don’t let me sound too sappy. We all know marriage is a rollercoaster!  With the help of God, counsel and never giving up- our marriage is better than ever and we are an example of choosing a commitment even when times are hard.

Brett and I love to travel and laugh and have fun

Our 3 kids! Ellie 11, Brett Aaron 9 and Corbin 8

Like most everyone we know, our lives were always set on high speed 24/7.  Brett was constantly busy with work and me always running around with a long To Do list.  With constant demands revolving around home, work, kids, school and social obligations, we rarely took a moment to breathe.  Then, in October of 2018, my father passed away from a brain tumor.  My world stopped turning.  Suddenly, all those obligations we had, seemed to matter so little.  All we wanted was just a little more time with this wonderful man who my children affectionately called “Sugar Cookie.”  It was the perfect nickname for someone who loved unconditionally and did the best he could to sweeten the lives of everyone around him.  If you’ve ever lost someone who is an essential part of your world, you can certainly empathize with how we felt.  We leaned on God and we examined our lives.  We decided to inventory what mattered most and what was secondary or mattered least.  It was in those reflective mo ments that we decided we wanted fewer work and social obligations and more family memories.  We embraced the fact that we only have one life to live and that time is so very fleeting.  Before our eyes, our children were growing up so quickly and we knew we truly needed to cease every moment.

Our last picture with Sugar Cookie before he was diagnosed with a brain tumor.

We have always been a family that loves travel, adventure and the outdoors.  We especially enjoy open water, boating and the lake life. By chance, we happened to stumble upon a YouTube channel titled Sailing Zatara and the seed of inspiration was planted.  The channel follows the Whitaker family as they sail around the world and we give them credit for providing the inspiration for our adventure.  In February of 2019, Brett and I traveled to Miami for the International Boat Show.  We loved having the chance to meet up with the Zatara crew (also fellow Texans) and tell them in person how much we appreciate them. We fell in love with a  Lagoon 630 Catamaran that eventually we were able to find, purchase and named Colette.

Meeting the Z crew at the Miami Boat Show 2019!

We found our dream boat! A Lagoon 630!

From that moment on, nearly every minute has been spent preparing for this voyage.  We purged and donated the contents of our Woodlands home and placed it on the market in July of 2019.  We prepared to homeschool the kids.  My husband hired a new dentist to work with the amazing office staff we already have in place.  We scrambled and prayed and packed and made 100s of phone calls to finalize everything that needed to be done for this adventure to be and run smoothly.  There was a learning curve but somehow, we’ve managed though the grace of God to get it all done.

On October 8, 2019 the adventure began as we departed the United States for Bordeaux, France where we officially moved onto the boat!  The Lagoon factory is stationed in Bordeaux so we were able to fit in a Lagoon factory tour! We met our boat captain, Dal, and enjoyed a few days exploring the area and making final preparations.  Now we will set sail for the Canary Islands of Spain with stops along the way!

We are excited!  We are happy!  We are blessed!  I will do my best to update this blog as often as possible. WiFi can sometimes be a challenged but where there is a will there is a way!  You can also follow our IG channel @cruisingcolette (I post daily stories) and our You Tube channel or my fb page Crystal Fischnar Murphey.

Lagoon 630 M/Y Colette (M/Y stands for motor yacht) We stopped and anchored here for lunch outside of Vigo, Spain!

In upcoming posts, I hope to tell you all about the Colette, our home away from home, and Captain Dal. Throughout the voyage, we will share videos and posts about ports and sites we visit along the way.  We will also share with you our insights on what it is like to live fulltime on a boat as it sails around the globe.  If you have questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out and I’ll do my best to include your question in an upcoming blog post.
Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers!  We will be in touch soon with more details about this wonderful adventure we are on!
Love & Hugs,