Raising Young Children at Sea

living on the scene it sounds like a life of adventure and fun but for one family who found themselves stranded in the middle of the Pacific Ocean with a sick child their family adventure turned into a national flashpoint and they aren't alone there are others living their lives away from the safety of the shores ABC's Rina 9 and hops on board with one set of aquatic parents and kids on deck this might look like a fun family vacation but below decks severely cramped quarters for this family of five but it's time for Carl and Carly's any bony kid job ten months ago sold everything they had to live at sea with their three young children we always sat down and said this is not really the way we want to raise our kids are you ready and so this plan was not pretty much for us it's it's kind of more for them they've stopped their boat with everything food tools even duct tape seen a lot of movies like weird MacGyver saves everything with duct tape yeah I've got it Carly Carly say they're prepared for whatever mother nature sends their way at arm's reach jugs of suntan lotion a trauma ward style medical kit and a state-of-the-art communication system since I'm gonna be helping you sell this you don't happen to have cruise control to you yes we do that's where we're gonna be going today okay all right you're saying mother nature can do fierce fierce things I mean yeah we live on the water but it used to say we're any worse from people who live in New Orleans for the Hurricanes or Kansas for the tornadoes many question why families like theirs choose to live at sea with their young kids especially after another family's harrowing ordeal ignited a fierce national debate over parenting at sea so many questions this morning George this rescue was as harrowing as they come high seas howling winds a disabled sailboat and a sick baby girl Erik and Charlotte Kauffman decided across the Pacific Ocean with their two young daughters but 900 miles off the coast of Mexico their youngest got sick with the fever and a rash as they told ABC's to Celia Vega our youngest our earlier I got second day ten and then she starts to act lethargic and these when the symptoms start to compile and your baby no longer acts the way that they normally act that's when you need to you know do something it got worse they say when their satellite phone stopped working at that point we had no ability any longer to talk to our physician or to the Coast Guard physician our daughter wasn't getting any better with what was prescribed for her and that's when we that's when we realized that we had entered a very very bad spot the Coffman's eventually made it aboard a Navy warship they were forced to sink and abandon their boat the rebel heart the rescue operation cost six hundred thousand dollars the word that kept coming up about your trip was the word reckless yeah what do you say to that irresponsible to analyze yeah yeah I mean we disagree I think you know you said it earlier that people I think they were reading the news and making this 10 second snap judgment and they just assumed we grabbed a six-pack and hopped in a sailboat and like let's go to South Pacific yeah we're both experienced sailors we've raised our daughters on a sailboat we're very prepared still many of accused Coffman's of being selfish and irresponsible parents vis a knee bow knees my heart went out to them they lost everything they lost their own it's just like your house burning down in my mind they did everything right because they got their kids to safety are they irresponsible I wouldn't say they're irresponsible they just does anybody say living at sea is anything but a life of danger or of luxury family budgets vary depending on lifestyle but range from two to five thousand dollars a month and as for safety I wouldn't do it if I didn't think it was safe we have netting all the way around our gates are always locked it's pretty much a gigantic playpen I don't think very many mom's we consider sailboat a gigantic playpen why do you think so I mean to be it is I feel safe on this boat and I think the kids feel safe if you come up here put your life jacket on the kids reluctantly wear life jackets on the main deck and are tethered to the boat with the harness when the family hits the high seas I don't care if you don't want to put it on and below deck their living space might seem cramped but it's well designed the dining room doubles as the living room they've got storage underneath the banquettes and there's a master suite and each of the girls do have their own room albeit a small one and all over the boat is engineered with an eye towards safety and I like how much of your house is already baby proofed locks yes everything has great latches you don't want your your cups and plates flying out every bunk has netting including the improvised crib for their newborn and it's called a lead cloth leak lock and when it comes to bath time the kids bathed in a little bucket in the shower stall are there any comforts of home that you really miss oh a bath tub a bath tub mm-hmm especially when I was pregnant I was like I would just die for a bath right now you know your ABCs Oh life at sea means Karl and Carly are responsible for teaching their children their oldest is ready to learn how to read and write it's not different to homeschooling on on land is it on a boat and while there have been many adjustments some routines never change this is as chaotic as any home with toddlers trying to get them bathed teeth vitamins and bed it's the greatest thing that I get to spend all day with them and it's the hardest thing that I get to spend all day with them and despite the challenges they have no regrets okay I don't want to be that person that looks back and just says that I've just worked and become a slave to the system and I want to live and we know we'll be judged but that's okay because we know in our heart we're doing what we think right I'm Rina nine and for nightline off the coast of the Bahamas

Channel: ABC News

Views: 1,696,690

Keywords: Child (Literature Subject), Children, Sea, Boat, Sailing, Sail, Family, Lifestyle, Reena Ninan, Nightline, ABC, ABCNews, News, US

Id: -5Tbz5azRNY

Length: 6min 57sec (417 seconds)

Published: Fri Jul 11 2014