My wife and I are both novices with 2 children 7 and 11 years old looking to learn to sale, tow a tube for the kids and maybe throw out a line in to fish.
You and yours are the target market for the X and M motorsailors. The admiral will like that the head is enclosed, with a door, and it's big enough to stand up in (the head and the rest of the main saloon). The kids will like that it can tow a tube or wakeboard (too slow for skis, though) and even beach it, and you'll like that it can get back to port in front of a storm in a hurry, it's plenty stable (beyond the intial tenderness), and with the relatively small sail plan, not too much screaming from the crew from excessive heeling.
I've heard all the stuff about MacGregors, including and especially the motorsailors, but I really don't care. I sold a 34 foot dock queen that I really liked for this boat, primarily so I could trailer to other places that would be a major trip (for me, with limited time) to get to by water, or just plain impossible (Finger Lakes, and maybe Florida next winter) to take a large keelboat to. That, and my younger son taught himself to wakeboard behind it. He used to go below decks in the last boat and go to sleep. Now he asks to go out boating, which was a major part of the decision to get this boat, and he won't be around much in the summers in a few years so I wanted to modify my boating to be more inclusive. I can also haul it from its slip and have it in the Erie Canal for a martini cruise with friends in no time. :dance:
As a sailboat, it's slower than most it's size, and as a powerboat, well folks say it's not so good, but I've never owned a powerboat other than an interest in a big trawler, but that's a different animal anyway. But it sails well enough to have fun sailing, so I'm fine with it. If I wanted a racer, I'd have bought a racer. If I wanted a ski boat, that's what I would have bought. I went into this boat with my eyes wide open.
It's light enough to tow behind my AWD Highlander with 5 kip tow rating (factory tow package), as the water ballast is left in the lake. It's a big boat behind that little tow beast, but it's very light for its size, which of course was the whole idea, and it's road legal in all states on all roads.
In a few years I'll try something else. Maybe a cat or trimaran (speaking of fast sailers). Or just keep it. We'll see. Right now I'm in planning more improvements (dual spare tire carrier fabrication, for instance) for longer distance travel this summer, and with luck, to Florida for the winter early next year. Couldn't do that with my last boat.