Whew! Who knew traveling with two preschoolers could be so exhausting! We went on a Disney adventure last week and I think we are finally (we have been home for five days) starting to feel caught up on sleep!
It was a wonderful trip, though, so I will start this blog detailing what we did and get some photos up!
We arrived in FL on Saturday morning and were picked up in Ft. Lauderdale by Paul and Bea, Ryan's dad and stepmom. They rented a van, so we had ample storage space for both kids and luggage! When we arrived at their house, we threw our swimsuits on and headed out to the pool. It was so windy that all the FL folks though we were crazy, but the sun was just warm enough to justify a swim. The wind almost blew the kids away, but it burned some energy. Paul suggested a trip to ChuckeeCheese for dinner. It was so overrun with children when we dropped by, though, that we told the kids there was a private party and opted for pizza and bedtime instead!
We boarded the boat on Sunday around 2. On the gangway, a man named Zoltan pulled mickey mouse pictures out of the kid's ears. (Zolton was the name of our wiener dog growing up and he was a favorite in our house). I took the name as a sign that it was going to be a great vacation!
The ship is beautiful and decorated so that you feel like you are in a big castle. The customer service from every single staff member is amazing. They always smile and greet you and they go out of their way to make sure that your vacation is memorable.
We spent the first night exploring, after naps, that is. We watched the boat as it set sail from Miami and we partied with the rest of the guests and were welcomed to the boat by Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, Donald and Daisy. Goofy was there too! We met the servers who would be with us throughout the trip and they (Bibianna (Spain) and Joe (Thailand)) would quickly become some of our favorites! One thing we missed out on was signing Annalee up for the princess meet and greets. Note to anyone going on a Disney adventure: get signed up for the big events as soon as you get on the boat. We were able to meet Cinderella and Rapunzel at late night meet and greets, but the ones during the day were booked solid and we never even saw the princesses from Frozen. As she is only three, though, I don't think Anna took too much offense in our lack of cruise knowledge.
We cruised, swam, ate ice cream and hung out together for much of the rest of the trip. Our day excursion in Cozumel was to a beach with a dolphin tour, so we were able to swim with the dolphins! And, since we signed up when we got there, we were invited to swim with the manatees too. They are funny, gentle creatures with such rough skin. Comparing them to the dolphins we got to touch was like night and day. Jack was having none of it and sat on the side of the dock mostly. Annalee loved the dolphins and begrudgingly fed the manatees small bits of lettuce. I have had a love for dolphins ever since I was little, so this little excursion, whether Ryan knew it or not when he decided to book it, checked a little box off my bucket list!
The lines for character meet and greets were a bit long, and by the end of the trip, we learned to send one parent down to wait while the other played so we weren't all standing around too long. Annalee was really into meeting her character friends and would stand in line for just about anyone. Jack was a bit more picky, though he was a champ when it came to Captain America and stood for nearly an hour to meet his favorite guy!
The day off the ship on Disney Island was probably my favorite day of the whole trip. We got off the ship early and found a spot on the beach where we camped out most of the day. We got to the big slide before the crowd and both kids went down like superstars. Each only wanted to do it once, as they are not huge fans of saltwater and they got a mouth full of it at the bottom. They love sand, though! As we were at the beach early, there were some stingrays swimming around and Jack nearly stepped on one. When he realized how close he was to the creature, he ran as fast as he could from the water...though he did this when he saw a fish too, so I think he just doesn't quite know what to do with swimming creatures! Back to the sand, though. They played and built sand castles and buried their legs and just played some more. I think our next adventure will be going to a beach for an extended period of time.
From our stateroom to the food, to the character greets to the port excursions, we made so many memories on this trip and we are so fortunate to be able to take time away from work and school to travel. I am sure we will be doing much more traveling in the future with the kids, and I hope we are able to have a great an experience with those vacations as we did with this Disney Cruise.
We were able to visit at the beginning of the trip and at the end with Ryan's dad and step-mom Bea! It was so wonderful being able to spend some time with them and see their new place. They live in a beautiful spot on the bay near the ocean just north of Miami.
It has taken me so long to publish this blog post that I am not sure I have covered the whole trip, but thought I should get it out here! I hope everyone reading is having a wonderful winter! Hopefully Spring will be here soon. Now for some photos!
It was a wonderful trip, though, so I will start this blog detailing what we did and get some photos up!
We arrived in FL on Saturday morning and were picked up in Ft. Lauderdale by Paul and Bea, Ryan's dad and stepmom. They rented a van, so we had ample storage space for both kids and luggage! When we arrived at their house, we threw our swimsuits on and headed out to the pool. It was so windy that all the FL folks though we were crazy, but the sun was just warm enough to justify a swim. The wind almost blew the kids away, but it burned some energy. Paul suggested a trip to ChuckeeCheese for dinner. It was so overrun with children when we dropped by, though, that we told the kids there was a private party and opted for pizza and bedtime instead!
We boarded the boat on Sunday around 2. On the gangway, a man named Zoltan pulled mickey mouse pictures out of the kid's ears. (Zolton was the name of our wiener dog growing up and he was a favorite in our house). I took the name as a sign that it was going to be a great vacation!
The ship is beautiful and decorated so that you feel like you are in a big castle. The customer service from every single staff member is amazing. They always smile and greet you and they go out of their way to make sure that your vacation is memorable.
We spent the first night exploring, after naps, that is. We watched the boat as it set sail from Miami and we partied with the rest of the guests and were welcomed to the boat by Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, Donald and Daisy. Goofy was there too! We met the servers who would be with us throughout the trip and they (Bibianna (Spain) and Joe (Thailand)) would quickly become some of our favorites! One thing we missed out on was signing Annalee up for the princess meet and greets. Note to anyone going on a Disney adventure: get signed up for the big events as soon as you get on the boat. We were able to meet Cinderella and Rapunzel at late night meet and greets, but the ones during the day were booked solid and we never even saw the princesses from Frozen. As she is only three, though, I don't think Anna took too much offense in our lack of cruise knowledge.
We cruised, swam, ate ice cream and hung out together for much of the rest of the trip. Our day excursion in Cozumel was to a beach with a dolphin tour, so we were able to swim with the dolphins! And, since we signed up when we got there, we were invited to swim with the manatees too. They are funny, gentle creatures with such rough skin. Comparing them to the dolphins we got to touch was like night and day. Jack was having none of it and sat on the side of the dock mostly. Annalee loved the dolphins and begrudgingly fed the manatees small bits of lettuce. I have had a love for dolphins ever since I was little, so this little excursion, whether Ryan knew it or not when he decided to book it, checked a little box off my bucket list!
The lines for character meet and greets were a bit long, and by the end of the trip, we learned to send one parent down to wait while the other played so we weren't all standing around too long. Annalee was really into meeting her character friends and would stand in line for just about anyone. Jack was a bit more picky, though he was a champ when it came to Captain America and stood for nearly an hour to meet his favorite guy!
The day off the ship on Disney Island was probably my favorite day of the whole trip. We got off the ship early and found a spot on the beach where we camped out most of the day. We got to the big slide before the crowd and both kids went down like superstars. Each only wanted to do it once, as they are not huge fans of saltwater and they got a mouth full of it at the bottom. They love sand, though! As we were at the beach early, there were some stingrays swimming around and Jack nearly stepped on one. When he realized how close he was to the creature, he ran as fast as he could from the water...though he did this when he saw a fish too, so I think he just doesn't quite know what to do with swimming creatures! Back to the sand, though. They played and built sand castles and buried their legs and just played some more. I think our next adventure will be going to a beach for an extended period of time.
From our stateroom to the food, to the character greets to the port excursions, we made so many memories on this trip and we are so fortunate to be able to take time away from work and school to travel. I am sure we will be doing much more traveling in the future with the kids, and I hope we are able to have a great an experience with those vacations as we did with this Disney Cruise.
We were able to visit at the beginning of the trip and at the end with Ryan's dad and step-mom Bea! It was so wonderful being able to spend some time with them and see their new place. They live in a beautiful spot on the bay near the ocean just north of Miami.
It has taken me so long to publish this blog post that I am not sure I have covered the whole trip, but thought I should get it out here! I hope everyone reading is having a wonderful winter! Hopefully Spring will be here soon. Now for some photos!
