Whether she’s gliding across the Mediterranean on a yacht or lolling down a lazy river on a floatie, Captain Sandy Yawn’s love of water is near limitless.
Just this week, the star of Bravo’s “Below Deck” and her wife Leah Rae Yawn grabbed their swimsuits on a whim and scampered over to Nocatee’s Spray water park for some spontaneous frolic.
“The water slides,” Yawn said giddily when asked about some of her community’s best attributes.
Speaking to The Citizen at the swarmed grand opening of her spouse’s “Skin By Leah” aesthetics lab in Ponte Vedra Beach, Yawn said her affinity for the area is only deepening with time.
The Florida native — who signed copies of her book “Be the Calm or Be the Storm” for hundreds of admirers at the event — first considered moving to St. Johns County to be close to relatives, including her sister.
She and Leah Rae explored several areas before settling on The Vista development in Nocatee’s Twenty Mile.
While Yawn enjoys skittering across the globe while on the clock, she appreciates less strenuous travel when on the homefront. There’s no need to jump in a skiff to grab milk and eggs.
“The fact it’s its own town, so I don’t have to go very far to get groceries,” she said.
The couple’s beginnings in the area, of course, were choppy. Their builder abandoned their home project — along with more than a dozen others — after running aground financially.
But that collective adversity, she said, has now forged a uniquely unified enclave.
“I love the Vista,” she said. “Because after everything that happened to us, it brought our neighbors together. So I think I live in the best neighborhood because we have the best neighbors.”
Yawn also cited Florida’s diversity — and of course its beaches — in helping the couple make their final decision to settle in the Sunshine State.
But the renowned skipper did mention one area Nocatee could improve upon.
“I’d like better restaurants,” she said with a smile.
