Amazing how long one week feels when you don't anything you HAVE to do. We have been on a two-part family vacation that has felt like a month, when it was only last Monday we were taking off on our cruise. After all-you-can-eat meals, a hostess to clean our room two times a day and people walking around with drinks at all hours of the day, we decided that cruising is the ultimate lazy-person's vacation. And, we loved every minute of it. We are pretty sure it was the best week of Lucy's short life too.
We did not know what to expect, but Disney does their cruises right. There was the perfect combination of things to keep Lucy busy (and for all ages) and so much for Joe and mr. Joe had some secret double life on the trip - he went out every night and made some friends. He is such a Blandford. I stayed in reading my book. I am such a Muskovich. They had so much planned non-stop for kids - from the pools, to a theatre, to live shows, character meet-and-greets every day and lots of fun events, like Lucy's first tea party. The food was amazing and, since we had two rooms, we put Lucy to bed every night and ordered in from the main restaurants so we could enjoy a nice, longer dinner together. It was so much fun and such a relaxing way to end each night.
We stopped at two ports - Nassau, where we visited the zoo and I did some shopping during naptime, and Castaway Cay, Disney's private and pretty much perfect island. It was a gorgeous island and there was so much to do on it - we could have spent all day there if there wasn't a nap involved in our schedule. And, they thought of everything to accommodate families on the island so it made a day trip seamless - there were even BOB strollers and wagons out for families when you got off the ship.
We had one full day at sea on our way back to Florida, which was just a relaxing day with no plans. The weather wasn't great on the trip - it was either overcast or raining for most of the cruise - so we spent much of the day just exploring the boat and being together as a family. Joe and I did take advantage of the nursery for an hour so we could go to a fancier brunch sans Lucy that afternoon. And, on Friday we headed to Orlando to meet Bill and Chris at Animal Kingdom, for the second part of our trip (separate post soon).
We have so many great memories from the cruise, but a few of our highlights...
...taking it all in the first day
...how much Lucy LOVED being on the balcony
....so much family time
...Castaway Cay
...lots of hours at the kiddie pool
...how much Lucy loved the shows every night. Pretty sure she thinks the characters are real.
...lots of daddy time
....Lucy's first tea party - with apple juice and cookies
....bird kisses
...ice cream!
...wagon rides
...Lucy needing a buffer between her and a giant mouse, dog, etc.
...more smiles
...waving at the flamingos (and pretty much anyone all week!)
We are sad it is over, sad that Lucy will never be in the same stage on another family vacation. We had so much fun listening to her talk, try to say so many new words, try so many new foods and try so many new things over the last week. We feel like she grew so much over just a week and are happy we had so much special time with her.
Next Post: Vacation Part 2 with Nana and Papa
