I'm finally getting around to posting pictures from our cruise ... Clearly I have decision making issues because I couldn't narrow down the pictures to include. So, beware: lots of photos (not to mention text) in this post.
Our trip began very early with a 6am flight. That means we were up at 4am to load the kids in the car, park in the long-term lot, shuttle to the terminal, etc., etc. The kids were truly amazing. Of course they never fell back asleep, but they rolled their carry-ons through the airport, sat through the 2 1/2 hour flight to Houston with no problem, and only asked "are we to the cruise ship yet?" about 25 times during the 90 minute drive from Houston to Port Galveston. We met up with my parents in Houston and made the drive to the ship with them, so having Bobbie and Grandpa around helped as well!
Of course technology and lots of snacks helped keep them occupied, too.
This was our first Disney trip, so I wasn't sure what to expect. I had heard that now matter which Disney venue (cruise, parks, etc.), the experience is simply magical. This was certainly true for our trip. The minute we walked onboard, they announced "The Disney Magic welcomes the Holbert and Platt families!". We were like celebrities.
True to my nature however, I did do a lot of reading prior to our trip, mostly on personal blogs about tips and what to expect on the ship. There was a lot of great advice, including the fact that the stateroom doors are magnetic, so guests often bring door decorations to hang up with magnents. My kids were all over this - we spent one afternoon coloring and creating art for our door. The pictures were pretty helpful in finding our room, since the hallways are loooong and each door looks the same!
So after boarding the ship and settling in, we explored and generally kept busy until our 8:15pm dinner. Keep in mind that was 9:15pm Eastern time, and we had all been awake since 4am that morning. Whew. Thankfully dinner was exciting and fun, and kept the kids entertained most of the time.
Warner's Mickey ice cream, which he got for dessert nearly every night (after eating a cheeseburger nearly every night as well - the kid was in heaven).
Maren did great through most of dinner, but this is what happened about halfway through. She did so great. Just ran out of steam.
Each night we were surprised with a new towel creation in our room, accompanied by chocolates, before bedtime. This is Warner's sorcerer's hat.
During our three days at sea, we were generally at the pool for the majority of the day. There was a water slide for kids only that we were afraid Maren wouldn't be able to ride. Kids were supposed to be four years old and 38 inches tall. Maren met the height requirement, but of course won't be four until July. So, being the responsible parents we are, we instructed her to tell the lifeguard on duty that she's four if asked. Thankfully they never asked and Maren rode the slide more times than I could count. However it was wildly entertaining to "practice" with her:
Me: Maren, how old are you?
Maren: Three.
Me: How old are you if you're riding the water slide?
Maren: Four.
Me: Good girl.
We're not fit to be parents.
There were of course a million other activities on board to keep us entertained during our days at sea. One of which was a movie theater running recent and even current movies. We only caught one movie (Frankenweenie - very bizarre) but it was fun.
The characters were all over the ship, and organized into "character appearances" throughout the day for people who didn't mind standing in line for an hour to get their picture taken. We were not enthusiastic about spending our vacation waiting in line for pictures, so thankfully one morning was a character breakfast. It was really wonderful, actually: each character came to our table throughout the meal, and we got to meet them, take pictures, etc. No lines, no waiting. Wonderful.
Maren was so excited to see Minnie. I think she was starstruck.
Our servers also made us napkin hats to wear. Who doesn't love a napkin hat?
Outside of the character breakfast, our favorite spot to eat in the morning was on the top deck, at the back of the boat. A wonderful view with wonderful food ...
There were two themed nights for dinner: formal night (or "fancy night" for the kids) and pirate night.
Of course Maren wore her princess tiara and plastic high heel shoes. It was precious to see all the other little princesses doing the same thing.
Warner looked awfully prince-like in his tie and sport coat.
We ended up seeing Pluto and Snow White that night, which made the night even more special.
Pirate night was equally as fun. Warner got some pirate gear including a special sword and Mickey pirate ears. The kids both got their faces painted at the kids club, and everyone got a pirate bandana at dinner.
All of us doing our best "argh":
Our first of two stops was at Grand Cayman.
This is where we did our dolphin swim. To say it was an amazing experience would be a huge understatement. We also got to visit a turtle farm across the street, which was pretty neat too.
The turtles were HUGE. It was actually a turtle farm, so there were tanks full of turtles at varying ages, including babies. We even got to get in one of the tanks to swim with and hold the turtles.
So, then there was the dolphin swim. Amazing.
The dolphins were under the water, pushing Kevin across the pool by putting their noses on his feet.
The only bummer about the trip was our second seating for dinner. The kids were so incredibly tired at the end of each day, so unfortunately dinner ended like this one night:
She literally spent the entire dinner this way one night - about 45 minutes. At least she was quiet. :)
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