WONDERful Cruise TR- 4 night July 26, 2009 MORE PICS THAN WRITING... TR FINISHED

[princess22]

I’m finally starting our TR from our July 26, 4 night WONDERful Cruise! Hope you enjoy!

Cast:

Me, Stacey, 26. I’m a third grade teacher

Ryan: Fiance at the time of the cruise! Now my DH!!!! Ryan is in his last year of medical school!

Addison: Our DD2. Addison loves being outside and swimming!

Day 1- July 26, 2009

We were all too excited to sleep the night before, even Addison. We put her to bed around 8:00 and I don’t think she fell asleep until past 11:00. Ryan and I were up until 3:30 or so. I had to finish a lot of wedding stuff before we left and pack because I tend to procrastinate. I was surprised when 6:45 rolled around and she was in our room waking us up! No need for my 7:00 alarm. She was so excited to go on the Mickey Boat! Here is Addison waiting to leave.

We finished packing the last of our things and were on the road by 8:00. We stopped at McDonald’s for breakfast and Wal Mart to pick up my book because my Wal Mart was out of stock. I wasn’t sure if I would actually have time to read it, but you never know!
Addison fell asleep in the car and as we got closer we woke her up to see the Mickey Boat.

We got to the port around 10:00 and were told the parking lot wasn’t open yet but we could pull up and unload our stuff. A guy came over to our trunk and took out our ONE suitcase and asked if that was it. Yes sir it is! My goal was to pack as light as possible and get all of our stuff in one suitcase. My dad would be proud!
While Ryan parked the car, Addison and I called my mom. I think Addison was too excited to talk and she just sat in her stroller staring at the ship.

It felt like it was taking Ryan FOREVER to park the car. I called to see if he was on his way back and when he finally arrived I was like “Great, it took you so long we’re going to get like a 4 or 5 boarding card.” I knew I wouldn’t mind if we did because I have heard the boarding process goes by fast, but still, I wanted a low number…
We went through the security check point, Addison told everyone she was going on the Mickey Boat. Her excitement made me even more excited! When we went to check in, look at what we got…

YAY!!! I got a 2. I was so excited. Check in was easy and afterward we just chilled, watched Cinderella, and took turns taking Addison to look around the terminal. During this time we got to meet the Big Cheese himself. Perfect timing if I might say, we were 2nd or 3rd in line!

After what seemed like a short wait, they started boarding. It was kind of annoying because a bunch of people with three’s and fours were blocking the way so we had to push our way through. After we finally made our way up there we walked through the Mickey Ears and I couldn’t stop smiling. We stopped for our family boarding photo and then walked across on to the most WONDERful ship ever!

Up Next: Our first magical afternoon and evening on board!

 

[princess22]

As we walked across the gang plank the cast member asked us our family name and Addison’s name. Then came the most magical moment “Please welcome Princess Addison and family. Once again, I found myself grinning from ear to ear. We were finally here!!!
We went to Parrot Cay and enjoyed a delicious lunch. Addison had spaghetti and meatballs but I think she was too excited to eat. Ryan and I enjoyed our lunches and we finished it off with some ice cream. Addison picked off the marshmallows and sprinkles and left her ice cream. I decided since we are on vacation, I’m not going to be too picky about what she eats. Besides, I know my daughter, and I knew she would eat plenty of grapes and watermelon anyway!
After lunch we went to the Oceaneer’s Club to show Addison and see if she would like it in there. She is only 2 but is potty trained and goes to day care, so we thought we would giver her a trial run. She loved the slide and we couldn’t get her off.
After about 15 minutes we finally dragged her out.

We walked around deck 9 while we waited for the rooms to open.

At 1:30 we headed to our room and our suitcase arrived a couple minutes after we did. We also had our Castaway Club bag on our bed. It is now my favorite bag and I use it all the time!!

I quickly unpacked our suitcase and Ryan and Addison put on their swimwear and off to the Mickey pool we went. Addison liked the Mickey pool but I think she liked the splash zone even more!

We let her play for a while and then decided to go get ready for the lifeboat drill. Our station was in Animator’s Palate and Addison was NOT a happy camper. It was hard keeping her occupied for 20 minutes and I was glad when it was finally over.

Ryan took our life vests back to our cabin while Addison and I went to stake out a spot for the Adventure’s Away party. We went up to deck 10 and found a nice table and patiently waited for the fun to begin! We all loved the party, and I will admit, I shed a tear or two when we counted down and heard the horn. With the wonderful atmosphere and seeing the excitement in Addison’s eyes when all the characters came out, by the time the horn went off I think all of the emotions just got to me. Trust me though, this wouldn’t be the last time I cried.
You can totally tell she is already tired!!

[

After the horn we grabbed some fruit and went down to deck 4 to watch us pull out. My parents and grandparents had drove over to wave us off. Normally we go to Jetty Park to watch the cruise ships leave, but they decided to stand at the side of some other restaurant. We could barely see them, so they hopped in their car and drove down a bit further.
We stayed on deck 4 until we passed Jetty Park and made our way out to sea. It was a beautiful sight waving goodbye to the shores of Florida.

We made our way to our room and had Addison lay down and watch Donald Duck cartoons while we got ready for the show. Addison was really tired and grumpy because she hadn’t had a nap yet, so I wasn’t sure if she was going to make it through the show and dinner. However, she LOVED the show and got very excited to see some of her favorite characters. And this is where I cried for the second time, but still not the last. I loved watching her react to the show and get excited when she saw someone she knew, especially Mickey.
After the show we went to dinner at Triton’s where we met our serving team. Herbert was our server and he is Filipino so he hit it off right away with Ryan. Our assistant server was Roland and he was from India. Addison loved him because he would quack like Donald Duck every time he walked by her. She would turn around and quack back at him and then quack at Ryan and me. I also have to say that the fries that come with the kids meals are Delicious! I think I ate Addison’s every night because she didn’t eat them. I was a bad DISer and didn’t take pictures. I tried so hard to remember.

After dinner we went back to our room and found this waiting for us.

It had been a long day for all of us and Addison was exhausted since she didn’t have a nap. So, we all went to bed dreaming of our days on the Mickey Boat that were to come. Coming up: Go to Nassau or lay around the pool??

 

[not_Joanna_eggs]

YAY you started your TR

Addison is such a cutie! Can't wait for more!

 

[princess22]

YAY you started your TR

Addison is such a cutie! Can't wait for more!

Yay!!! I have a reader!!! I'll go as fast as I can. I never realized how much work a TR is!!!!

 

[star2500]

Subscribing

We leave Nov 29th for our 4 night Bahama Cruise We will be at the GF for 3 nights prior to the cruise....I just booked it all yesterday and I'm soooo excited.

Can't wait to hear about your trip!

 

[princess22]

Subscribing

We leave Nov 29th for our 4 night Bahama Cruise We will be at the GF for 3 nights prior to the cruise....I just booked it all yesterday and I'm soooo excited.

Can't wait to hear about your trip!

OMG! I'm so excited for you! Also a bit jealous. I think all three of us are ready to go back!!!

 

[LLLBelle]

It sounds like so much fun. Addison is adorable! Can't wait to read more.

 

[star2500]

OMG! I'm so excited for you! Also a bit jealous. I think all three of us are ready to go back!!!

Thanks

This last minute trip in the sense of last minute booking a cruise is a little overwhelming but fun! I just can't imagine booking and waiting over a year for it lol. We were able to get the rooms we wanted 1 Nav. Ver. cabin and one Cat 11 cabin for teens. By the looks of your pictures you looked like you had a wonderful trip!

 

[MagicMe]

Addison is adorable and it sure looked like she was enjoying herself!!!

 

[princess22]

It sounds like so much fun. Addison is adorable! Can't wait to read more.

Thank you! I will try to post more tonight or tomorrow. Hopefully I can get a move on this because after this part it's back over to the wedding board for my wedding and honeymoon report!!!

Thanks

This last minute trip in the sense of last minute booking a cruise is a little overwhelming but fun! I just can't imagine booking and waiting over a year for it lol. We were able to get the rooms we wanted 1 Nav. Ver. cabin and one Cat 11 cabin for teens. By the looks of your pictures you looked like you had a wonderful trip!

I know what you mean about booking last minute. We booked this cruise 3 weeks before it! We left for the cruise the sunday before our wedding. So we got back the thursday and got married the Saturday. It was a crazy three weeks between the cruise and the wedding and the honeymoon but totally worth it!

Addison is adorable and it sure looked like she was enjoying herself!!!

Thank you!!!! She had a blast! She cried when we left!

 

[pinkcow]

Oh my gosh is Addison a cutie! Can't wait to read more!

 

[not_Joanna_eggs]

Thank you! I will try to post more tonight or tomorrow. Hopefully I can get a move on this because after this part it's back over to the wedding board for my wedding and honeymoon report!!!

Umm.... yes it does... so let's get a cracking on this TR missy.... we want the wedding report


Just a question.... is that a regular inside cabin? It's ginormous! I so need to get my butt on a Disney Cruise... but DF said no more cruises until the wedding... but thats 5 months away - meanie! (I'm not addicted I swear )

 

[princess22]

Oh my gosh is Addison a cutie! Can't wait to read more!

Thank you! Thanks for coming over to read!

Umm.... yes it does... so let's get a cracking on this TR missy.... we want the wedding report


Just a question.... is that a regular inside cabin? It's ginormous! I so need to get my butt on a Disney Cruise... but DF said no more cruises until the wedding... but thats 5 months away - meanie! (I'm not addicted I swear )

It's okay to admit your addicted. I admit it. My name is Stacey and I'm a cruise-aholic. And I'm proud of it!

I'm dying to go on another one. My mom just booked to go on the Carnival Glory this Saturday. Darn work, or I would of gone! She got an awesome deal! Ready for another disney cruise! And YES that is the inside! IT is HUGE! Plenty of room!!!!!!

It is my goal to have the cruise part finished this weekend at the latest! I have every intention to finish soon!

 

[malibustacey]

oh yay Stace your TR!

I love the photo of Ryan in the lifejacket...!!

Addison is such a sweetie! I bet it was the most fascinating trip ever for her!

I know what you mean when big things happen and it brings tears to your eyes... hehe! i am always doing it! It must have felt so amazing knowing she was in her element on her mickey boat! hehe!

 

[disneygirlsx3]

Ryan took our life vests back to our cabin while Addison and I went to stake out a spot for the Adventure’s Away party. We went up to deck 10 and found a nice table and patiently waited for the fun to begin! We all loved the party, and I will admit, I shed a tear or two when we counted down and heard the horn. With the wonderful atmosphere and seeing the excitement in Addison’s eyes when all the characters came out, by the time the horn went off I think all of the emotions just got to me. Trust me though, this wouldn’t be the last time I cried.
We made our way to our room and had Addison lay down and watch Donald Duck cartoons while we got ready for the show. Addison was really tired and grumpy because she hadn’t had a nap yet, so I wasn’t sure if she was going to make it through the show and dinner. However, she LOVED the show and got very excited to see some of her favorite characters. And this is where I cried for the second time, but still not the last. I loved watching her react to the show and get excited when she saw someone she knew, especially Mickey.
After the show we went to dinner at Triton’s where we met our serving team. Herbert was our server and he is Filipino so he hit it off right away with Ryan. Our assistant server was Roland and he was from India. Addison loved him because he would quack like Donald Duck every time he walked by her. She would turn around and quack back at him and then quack at Ryan and me.

Congrats to you and your beautiful family. You looked amazing in your wedding dress.

I have become teary-eyed now that I have kids too. I think that is the best thing about being a mom just that smile and the way they view the world pulls at those heartstrings.

If I'm understanding correctly you had late-seating for dinner!? I'm doing this also with a 4 yr old and a 17 month old at the time of travel. So I'm interested on how this worked for your family (was Addison able to cope with it)? Where there other kids in the dining room also? I'm getting nervous that it just might be dinner then straight to bed.

I hope that you are adjusting back to reality nicely since your cruise, wedding and honeymoon. Any more cruises planned as of yet?

 

[princess22]

oh yay Stace your TR!

I love the photo of Ryan in the lifejacket...!!

Addison is such a sweetie! I bet it was the most fascinating trip ever for her!

I know what you mean when big things happen and it brings tears to your eyes... hehe! i am always doing it! It must have felt so amazing knowing she was in her element on her mickey boat! hehe!

YAY Stace you came over!!! Thanks for all the compliments! I'm determined to finish this cruise part so I can get on with the good stuff... She was definitely in her element on the Mickey Boat. My mom and dad went on a Carnival cruise and we went to pick them up today and she saw the disney cruise and was like "MY MICKEY BOAT!"

Congrats to you and your beautiful family. You looked amazing in your wedding dress.

I have become teary-eyed now that I have kids too. I think that is the best thing about being a mom just that smile and the way they view the world pulls at those heartstrings.

If I'm understanding correctly you had late-seating for dinner!? I'm doing this also with a 4 yr old and a 17 month old at the time of travel. So I'm interested on how this worked for your family (was Addison able to cope with it)? Where there other kids in the dining room also? I'm getting nervous that it just might be dinner then straight to bed.

I hope that you are adjusting back to reality nicely since your cruise, wedding and honeymoon. Any more cruises planned as of yet?

Thank you!!!!

Yup we had the late seating! I was super worried about it also. Especially since addison is normally in bed around 7:00! But I was like, ok, it's vacation, I'm going to make this work! Make sure you give them a nap! The first night was rough because Addison didn't have a nap that day. I also fed her a "snack" (more like dinner) around 4:00-5:00. This helped a lot because this is the time we normally eat. She was normally too excited at dinner to be grumpy. Plus, I think all the servers on the Disney cruise are used to kids and know how to handle them. Our assistant server was AMAZING at keeping Addison calm and occupied! There were other kids, but I did notice a lot of them were older than Addison. There were a few her age though.

I have always had late seating on every cruise I have been on, I can't imagine being ready for dinner at the early seating. I'm sure you will be fine, just be aware of your kids limits during the day.

We are thinking about booking another cruise. We are all having withdrawl symptoms and are dying to go on a Disney one. I put down a deposit on a Princess cruise last time I cruised with them, so I might have to go on Princess before we return to Disney. We were thinking about doing a 7 night on the Magic next October!!!

 

[princess22]

Day 2- Nassau

I was hoping that we would get to sleep in this morning. Between Addison’s napless day and being in an inside cabin, I thought my chances were pretty good. Boy was I wrong. At 7:00 Addison was at the side of the bed rubbing my arm (that’s how she wakes me up). So, we hopped out of bed, excited for a fun-filled day on the Mickey Boat.
We went to Triton’s for breakfast. I had a yummy breakfast. It was called Mermaid Breakfast, or something like that, but it was French toast with caramel. It was delicious!
After breakfast we walked around the ship for a bit and took some pictures. Addison discovered the Minnie in the railing all by herself! I was impressed!

We also ran in to this guy…

I also saw this and though of the DISboards because someone mentioned they always wanted to lay down and take a picture with their head in the circle. I almost did it, but right as I was contemplating it, a family came by so I passed…

Some more pics from our exploring…

Addison started asking to go to the Mickey Pool so her and I went up while Ryan caught up on some e-mails. Once again, she loved the splash zone. Although, she loved Mickey’s ears also. She couldn’t decide and we kept going back and forth between the two.

Now, we had every intention of getting off the ship. Ryan and I have both been to Nassau several times and we aren’t very fond of it. But this was Addison’s first time there and we planned to get off and take her picture. Well, in the end, that didn’t happen. We were content to stay on the ship. Here is our picture of where we were going to go get Addison’s picture…

After playing in the pool we decided it was Addison’s nap time. We were determined to do everything we could to make dinner more enjoyable this night. Step 1- NAP! Ryan took a nap also and I went on deck 4 and read my book! I’m glad I stopped to get it! Although, I could barely keep my eyes open and I think I fell asleep. The chairs on deck 4 are my favorite. It’s so peaceful out there. And the view this day was great…

Two hours later I went back to the room to check on Ryan and Addison and they had just woken up. Perfect timing. We had time to grab a snack/pre-dinner and head to trivia! I am a huge dork and LOVE going to trivia on cruises. No matter what cruise I’m on I drag someone with me, even though I normally don’t win. And alas, I didn’t win today… but stay tuned, because I will have another chance.

Here we are getting a “snack”

Stay tuned to hear about our evening…

 

[princess22]

Unfortunately we missed the show this night. I got so caught up in playing trivia, that the time didn’t dawn on me so we weren’t ready in time. Oh well, it gives me a reason to go on the Wonder again…

Tonight we ate dinner in Animator’s Palate. It was a blast. Addison LOVED watching the pictures change. She kept pointing out different stuff. Sorry, I can’t remember what we ate, but I do remember Addison got a Mickey bar for dessert. The lady at the table next to us asked for my camera because she thought Addison was so cute and she wanted to take pictures from her angle! I’m glad she did, because she was cute. Messy, but cute!

This was Addison’s favorite part of dinner…

Our Head Server also delivered a Congratulations cake to our table and wished us luck for our upcoming wedding. Got to love the magic of Disney…

After dinner we walked around the deck and saw a ton of characters. We ran in to Cinderella and she didn’t even have a greeter with her. Addison LOVED running in to her as it is her favorite character. Addison started pointing out all of the other characters to Cinderella. It was cute.

Addison also loved Donald and Daisy and was excited to see them. Every time we met a “fur” character Addison would freak out. She would be fine in line and would act excited, but the moment it was her turn, she would get scared. But, at least she would take a picture with them, she just wouldn’t look at them. She would look at the camera and say cheese and that was that…

After meeting Donald and Daisy we went and got some hot chocolate and then went to bed. We were all excited about Castaway Cay and wanted to wake up early for the big day.


Next Up: Our disaster!!!

 

[princess22]

Day 3- Part 1

We set an alarm and were awaken by Mickey Mouse! I love that!!! Addison loved it also! Addison and I got dressed and were waiting for Ryan to finish getting ready when I heard a HORRIBLE sound! Ryan was freaking out in the bathroom. He comes out as mad as can be and says his contact fell down the drain… um, what!? YUP, down the drain. I called the guest service desk and ask if maintenance can come hoping there is something to do (and hoping it would get Ryan to calm down).
Addison and I were ready for breakfast so we headed up to Beach Blanket to eat while Ryan waits. We ate outside and enjoyed the BEAUTIFUL view.

After breakfast we walked around the outer decks and took a couple pictures before heading back to the room to see how things were going with the contact situation.

We got back to the room and Ryan had no luck. His contact was gone. He used the room phone to call his eye doctor to see if he could order a replacement. If you have been following along we are supposed to get married on the Saturday and the last thing we want is Ryan wearing his glasses on our wedding day. Not just because of the pictures, but because he can barely see with is glasses. I wanted him to SEE all the hard work I had put into our special day.

He got the contacts ordered but had to be transferred to schedule an appt. He was on hold and I told him to hang up and call his dad and ask him to make the appointment so he didn’t run up our bill. Phone calls from the ship are NOT cheap!!! We finally got that taken care of and were able to continue our day.

We finally stepped off the ship and on to my favorite place ever. I love Castaway Cay. Ryan and I went on a double dip cruise for our college graduation and loved Serenity Bay. Now with a daughter in tow, I was sure I was still going to love it just as much. We took lots of pictures on the way and ran in to a lot of characters. Here are a few from our long trek to the beach!!!

You can tell in some of the pics that she was scared of the characters. Stitch cracked me up because when Addison freaked out, he pretended to be scared of her. He grabbed on to the greeter.

I promise we make it to the beach eventually!!!!

 

[princess22]

Day 3 Part 2:

After stopping for lots of pictures, a Nemo ball, and a Nemo bucket we finally made it to the beach. I read a tip on here to keep walking past where everyone stops and go to the end of the beach! GREAT TIP! Even when we left, it was empty on our side. The first half of the beach looked PACKED!

The packed side:

Our side:

Now, Addison loves being outside and she especially loves the beach. We don’t know where she gets this from. It’s definitely not inherited. She could spend all day at the beach playing in the sand and the water. Ryan sat back on a sun lounger sulking about having to wear glasses for the rest of the trip and Addison and I hit the water. Here are some pictures from our time on the beach.

We decided we were hungry and would head up to the BBQ place right after it opened. We also decided we would head back to the ship after lunch. While I’m sure Addison would love to stay all day, we knew she would need a nap because tonight was Pirate Night. So, we packed up and ate a delicious lunch.

Next Part: CRAB races!!!!