We had one last trip before school started...the four of us went on a 5 day cruise! It was the Carnival Triumph and had two stops at Progresso/Chichen Itza and Cozumel, Mexico. I was so excited because Wayne had never been on a cruise. Nathan and Charlotte were excited too, but Nathan worried about it. He always worries about natural disasters like floods, tornadoes, thunderstorms, etc... We spent TONS of time reassuring Nathan that even though we were going to be on a boat on the water, it was completely safe. He worried about a shark biting into the boat or snorkeling where sharks were. He even worried that a whale might swim by and hit the boat with its tail and make us sink. It took us a while to make him really understand just how big the boat was and how safe it was (this is an important part of the story later on).
We left two days after Nathan's birthday. Our plan was to get up early and drive to Galveston where we would board the boat that afternoon. We wanted to get there early so that we would have plenty of time to stop on the way and just take our time. We left right on time and didn't have any problems until we got to the Houston area. Earlier in the trip, Charlotte slept a lot of the way. Then she started saying that her stomach was hurting. At one of our stops, we got some chips and used the restroom. I was thinking she was probably just hungry. Once we got into Houston, she said her tummy was still hurting. We said we would be there soon. I was actually driving at this point. All of a sudden, I hear Nathan say, "Charlotte is throwing up!" Nathan is squirming, trying to get as far away from her as possible. And Wayne is turned around trying to help her, while I am trying to get over and exit as soon as I can. One thing I forgot to mention was that we were in Wayne's car...Wayne's squeaky clean Lexus. Luckily I got over quickly and pulled into the the first place I could (not really paying attention to what it was exactly). I got Charlotte out quickly and took her dress off, trying not to get anything on me or on her anymore than it already was. We were all scrambling around trying to figure out how to best clean everything up when this woman (wearing all black) came over and offered us a package of baby wipes. I was so grateful! I thought I had just pulled into a business parking lot. Then I started seeing more cars pulling in, parking, and people getting out who were wearing black. We had been so focused on Charlotte that we didn't realize we had pulled into a funeral home...and a funeral was scheduled! Mourners were arriving! We finally got her cleaned up and clothes changed and headed back on our way. The funny thing was that Charlotte was in the best mood afterwards. Looking back on it, she was so quiet beforehand because she didn't feel good. She was just car sick though.
When we finally made it to Galveston, Wayne stopped at a gas station so I could get her some Dramamine if she needed it and also some laundry detergent so I could wash her clothes on the boat. We made it in plenty of time, but that would be MISHAP #1.
Once we boarded the boat, Nathan and Charlotte were so excited! Our room was ready so we looked around a bit and then went to the room to check it out. I was so happy that I (and Helen) had talked Wayne into getting us a room with a balcony. It made such a difference to have the extra room.
That evening, we walked around and explored the ship. We had our first meal in the main dining room and played putt putt! One cool thing they had on the ship that Nathan loved, was photo backdrops where you could get your picture taken. It was so funny to me how Nathan wanted to take pictures at these spots all the time. Some had props and some were just back drops.
Day 2 was a sea day. We got up, put our bathing suits on, and headed to breakfast. One thing there was no shortage of on the boat was food! We did eat a lot but I also felt like we got a lot of exercise and that I wouldn't gain much. WRONG! I gained 5 pounds! But the food was really good! We went to the main dining room for dinner each night. But there was also a huge buffet that was set up for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Plus a 24 hr made to order pizza place, a burger bar, sandwich bar, and taco bar. Nathan and Charlotte's favorite thing was the 24 hr ice cream machine. I don't know how many ice cream cones we had. Maybe that had something to do with my extra pounds! So we ate breakfast and then hung out at the pool. There were 3 pools on the ship and a huge water slide. The pool area was always very lively with lots of poolside entertainment. This is where MISHAP #2 happened. We were enjoying the pool when it started to get cloudy. Nathan is looking at all the clouds and asks if there is going to be a storm. Every time it looks stormy at home, he asks if there is going to be a tornado. I've said "No" so many times that it's just an automatic response now. He and Wayne were actually in line for the the water slide when it started to rain. No big deal, it will pass over soon. But then it started to thunder and lightning so Wayne and Nathan came down and we were getting ready to go inside when we saw something at the back of the ship. Wayne spotted it first...it was a tornado! When Wayne said that, I really thought he was kidding, but then I saw it too. It was at the back of the boat over the water and you could see it perfectly. We saw it coming from the sky all the way down to the water. It was crazy! Wayne gets the camera and starts heading for the back of the ship while I'm getting our stuff together to follow him. When Nathan sees it, he is scared to death. I'm thinking that this is the coolest thing I've ever seen and not really worried about it being dangerous. I was pretty much dragging Nathan with me telling him we may never see anything like this again. And he is yelling at me, saying he doesn't want to see anything like this again and please can we go inside. It is just so crazy to me that he is so worried about disastrous things happening, and we always tell him not to worry and that those things don't usually happen where we live...and then here we are looking at a tornado...on a huge ship...in the water...with sharks...and poor little Nathan is about to have a heart attack. It was the coolest thing ever. When we finally went inside, Nathan was so happy.
Tonight was "Elegant Night" so we had to dress up a little. Nathan and Charlotte liked that. They were so cute! We had a great dinner and then walked around a bit and went to a comedy show. This was when MISHAP #3 happened. Because it was elegant night and everyone was dressed up, everyone was also taking lots of pictures. We were in the main lobby area of boat where there were two huge staircases on either side. We needed to go up to get to the comedy club but it was so crowded because everyone was using it as a back drop for pictures! We pushed our way through and made it to the top. And then Wayne looked at me and said, "where's Nathan?" My heart dropped. He wasn't behind me. I stayed calm though and went back to the top of the staircase. I looked and looked and finally spotted him at the bottom of the stairs. I yelled for him and when he saw me, you could tell he was so relieved. He was being too nice, trying not to bump into anyone or get in any one's picture. I told him just to push through. Once I gave him permission, he bulldozed his way up. We got up to the top, went over to Wayne...and then I said, "Where is Charlotte?!" Now I panicked! Wayne held Nathan's hand while I frantically started looking around I knew if I didn't see her in the next 60 seconds, I was going to go crazy! Finally, I saw her in one of the restaurants that was right off of the staircase. She was talking to one of the waitresses. When I saw her, I called her name and just ran to her and thanked the lady. Charlotte was sad but so happy to see me. I hugged and hugged her. She told us that when she couldn't find us, she saw the lady in the restaurant and went up to her to tell her she was lost. We were so relieved everything turned out ok and then we told her how proud of her we were. I've always told her that if she ever gets lost or needs help, to find a mommy or a lady to help her. She said she remembered that. From that point on, our hands were pretty much glued to their hands!
When we got back to our room at the end of the night, we couldn't wait to watch the tornado video that Wayne filmed. We played it back and we see the camera bouncing around and here Wayne talking about the water spout. You hear Nathan begging to go inside, and you see the walk to the back of the ship. You also hear all of us talking about how cool this thing is. But do you actually see the tornado? Nope. It briefly, and I mean BRIEFLY makes an appearance at the edge of the screen. Wayne totally missed it. We were all so mad at him, but in a funny way. He said there was such a glare on the screen since we were outside that it was hard to tell what he was filming but he THOUGHT he had gotten it. I guess everyone is going to have to take our word for it!
This was our first excursion day. We docked in Progresso and then we were going to go on an excursion to Chichen Itza to see the Mayan ruins. This was an excursion we booked through the cruise ship so we were on a tight schedule. They told us to meet in the Rome ballroom at 7:30 am and that we would disembark around 8:00 am. We got up early, had a quick breakfast and then headed to the ballroom. Since this was our first time to get off the boat, Wayne checked, double checked, and triple checked that he had everything we were supposed to have: room keys, passports, and tickets for excursion. They went on and on about how every single person, kids included, had to have their room key to get on and off the boat. This was their way of keeping track of everyone. They also made a huge deal about how the boat is on a strict schedule. You have to be on time to the excursions and on time getting back on the boat. If not, they WILL leave you! And this excursion wasn't just an easy going one 20 minutes away. It was a 2 1/2 hour bus ride to the ruins. So we are in the ballroom waiting for our group to get called to get off and head to the buses. There were 3 huge buses for us. While waiting, I realized that I had forgotten an extra bottle of sunscreen that I meant to get. So Wayne gave me his wallet which had the keys in it and told me to hurry, but we were really close to our room so I was there and back in about 5 minutes. A big joke on the ship was how many people don't know their room numbers. Well, Wayne made sure that we all had our room numbers memorized. We practiced over and over and everyone knew it, including Nathan and Charlotte. Back in the ballroom, we waited a few more minutes and then our group was finally called. We walked out of the ballroom to the roped off staircase and went down two flights of stairs to the gangway. While in line at the gangway, Wayne got out his wallet and then looked at me in horror. "Where is the 4th key?! Did you leave it in the room?!" I thought OH BLEEP! Panicked, I told him to give me one of the keys and I'll run back to the room super fast. This time I decided to take the elevator to the 7th floor since we were further down than where we were when I went back to get the sunscreen. I got off the elevator and was ready to sprint to my room and then my mind just blanked. What is my freaking room number????? I was so panicked and desperate but I could not remember the number at all. I knew there was a 7, 6, 3 in it. Was it 7633 or 7366? It was one of these two. The way the boat is set up is that the elevator is in the middle of the floor and then the rooms are down the whole length of the ship on both sides. The right side is even number rooms and the left side is odd number rooms. Which side do I pick? I finally picked one and just started running hoping it would come to me. I'm also thinking there is no way I'm going to make it if I don't find this room in the next minute. Finally I recognized a room that had a door decoration on it. Two rooms down was 7366...our room! I opened it quickly, saw the other key laying on the dresser, grabbed it, thought what an idiot to have left it there, ran out of the room straight to the elevator and pushed level 1 to get to the gangway. I think I'm going to make it now. When it opens, I run out but there is no gangway, just rooms. I see a maid and ask where everyone is getting off the boat and she says at the front of the ship and points. So I just start running down the hall. I'm running and running and running and and thinking I know I didn't go this far down the hall when I went to my room...or did I? I am so turned around right now. I'm pretty much plowing people down but I don't care. While I'm running down this never ending hall, I'm thinking about how Wayne is going to kill me when we miss this bus. We've already paid for this excursion and he was looking so forward to it. Please Dear God let me find the exit and let me live!!!!!!! Finally I see a roped off staircase and pretty much jumped to the bottom of it where I see Nathan and Charlotte. As soon as Nathan sees me, he yells "Run Mommy!" He has a room key and said that Daddy was outside trying to get the guy to hold the bus. So I give Charlotte the key that I left in the room, I have the key I used to get the lost key, and we check out of the boat. We run down the gangway and see Wayne, and he starts running to the bus. I swear we made it just in the nick of time. Wayne said that two of the buses already left and that he begged this guy to wait 5 more minutes. THANK YOU JESUS!!!!!!! Once we got on the bus, we were all so relieved. That was such a horrible experience.
But once I put it out of my mind, we had a wonderful time. The bus ride was long, 2 1/2 hours, but we stopped halfway there to use the restroom, stretch our legs and shop at a market area. Nathan and Charlotte pretty much slept the whole time. We bought a couple of souvenirs and then got back on the bus where they gave us a sack lunch which was actually really good. Once we got to the ruins, it was so much fun! On the bus, we had a guide who talked a lot of the time, giving us the history of the Mayans and this area of Mexico. At the actual site, he led us on a tour, explaining the pyramids and then we had a couple of hours to explore on our own. It was really hot, but it was so cool to see all of these structures. Nathan held onto my video camera and taped everything. Exploring the ruins was fun, but what Nathan and Charlotte really loved were all of the booths set up that were selling souvenirs. There were these whistle things that people were selling that sounded like animals. Nathan really wanted one. We went to one booth and he said they were $10 each. Wayne explained to Nathan what bargaining and negotiating meant. He said that we would probably walk away from places if they said it was too much but not to worry, he'd get the price down. Daddy is a master negotiator! He actually found this cool panther statue that he liked for his office. Nathan thought it was so neat and wanted Daddy to get it. The original price was $30 and Wayne got them down to $10. We left there with a bag filled with souvenirs! One of their favorite things was a turtle necklace that they each chose. They've worn those almost everyday since we've been back!
We all slept on the way home. Once we got home, we took showers, got dressed, and went to dinner.
These pictures are ones that we posed for in front of one of those backdrops. We didn't buy the picture but I ended up taking a picture of the picture just to have, but that's why the glares are on this picture. I probably would have bought it if Wayne's face wasn't shadowed! It's actually really good of me and would have been good of Wayne too. I was so disappointed that the photographer didn't fix this!
The next day was our beach day in Cozumel. We went to a beach resort called Noche Cocum. It was an all inclusive resort where we had unlimited drinks and food while we were there. It was such a pretty place! This was a beach club that we booked on our own, not through Carnival. It was nice because they only let 100 people in so it's not wild and crazy and over crowded. We got there early, right at 9:00 and we pretty much just spent the whole day relaxing, swimming, eating and drinking. Plus we added some excitement by parasailing, riding a wave runner, and snorkeling.
The area where we docked in Cozumel had a huge shopping area so when we left the beach, we did some more bargain souvenir shopping. Nathan and Charlotte just love all of those stores! There were actually some really nice stores too, but it was all about the kids on this trip. Charlotte found a little leather cross body purse that she loved and even after looking at all of the other stores, she still wanted that purse. Big boy Nathan found a stuffed turtle! At first Wayne said to keep looking at everything else, and that he wasn't going to get him a stuffed animal. But nothing else interested him, and Daddy is a big pushover! He ended up getting Nathan the stuffed animal and he has held onto it ever since!
We ended up not going to the dining room for dinner that night. Instead we ate at the buffet. We were pretty tired and felt like doing something more casual. We had also been promising Nathan and Charlotte that we would take them to the arcade one night so we did that. They (especially Nathan) love to win prizes. And there were several games that had those big claws that you tried to pick something up with it and drop it in the slot. Well, they never work. You just waste your money on them...except when Daddy tries one! I've tried to win something for Nathan a few times and it never works. Wayne has tried it a few times and it always works! It's the craziest thing! Anyway, there was this one claw game that had little rubber ducks in it. This happened to be one where you actually do win each time. But Nathan and Charlotte didn't know that so when Daddy kept getting them duck after duck, they thought he was a god! There was this other claw game with Minecraft stuffed animals. This one was one of the typical machines that only works every 40 tries or something like that. Nathan was just hoping and hoping Wayne would win him one of the stuffed toys, but even though he would get really close, it never happened. One time, he actually had the toy in the claw, was moving it to the slot to drop it in, and then it fell right before it hit the opening. We were all so disappointed!!!!
This was our last day at sea. We woke up and then split up. Charlotte and I went down for breakfast and to the pool. Nathan and Daddy went to workout (which they had done several days in a row) and then met us at the pool. This was a lazy day. We wanted to get everything in one last time. This was also a special day for Charlotte. Earlier in the trip, she had found a necklace and bracelet set in one of the cruise ship stores and told Nathan that she liked it. Nathan ended up telling Wayne that he wanted to use his birthday money to get it for Charlotte. Well, it was $80! But then we found out that they were going to have a sell on this particular brand of jewelry on the last day at sea at 11:30 am. Everything would be 50% off. Nathan found out about that and was so excited! He had his heart set on buying this for his sister which we thought was so sweet. So at 11:15, we headed down to the store. Once we got there, we found a HUGE crowd gathered around this table. When Nathan saw that, he was so worried. There was a countdown going. You could not touch the jewelry until 11:30 on the dot. People were already trying to stake out their piece so that when it was 11:30, they could grab it before anyone else. Nathan desperately looked for Charlotte's necklace and found it! He was so proud of himself and made me get right next to him. His hand was hovering above so that he could grab it as soon as the lady said so. The necklace set that Charlotte picked out was a red, white, and blue, heart pendant and matching bracelet. It was kinda tacky but Charlotte just loved it. In my mind, I was thinking we really didn't have much to worry about. I don't think anyone else is dying to get it! So at 11:29, everyone started counting down the last 30 seconds and when we hit 1, hands started grabbing. Nay Nay showed no mercy and got that box before I could even help him. He was so proud of himself and Charlotte was so happy! We didn't really take the money out of his birthday money account, but he thinks we did. So that night, we went to the dining room for our last meal. Then we went to a magic show, comedy show, and karaoke! We got everything in on our last night!
And then Daddy tried for the Minecraft toy again...and again he got so close but no toy.
This was such a wonderful trip and experience. The four of us just love to be together. We are so lucky that not only do we love to go on trips, we also love to be together. We just have so much fun! It was crazy to get home and then get ready to start school 4 days later, but it was also great to have this to look forward to all summer. I love my family and can't wait for our next adventure. Thank you Wayne for taking us on such great trips!
Oh and on the morning that we disembarked, Wayne made one last desperate try for the Minecraft toy. This little $5 toy is now worth about $25! It would be the perfect end if Wayne would get it...he would go down in history as the coolest dad ever...nope, no such luck. But the dagger to the heart was when we were eating breakfast, we see this family in the booth next to us, and the kid is holding the beloved toy. Wayne tried about 39 times and this other dad probably got it on the first try since Wayne did all of the work beforehand. Those things are such a racket! As we left the restaurant, Wayne and Nathan both looked back longingly at it. So funny.
