Derby Day

Ari is really enjoying Cub Scouts!  Last Saturday he participated in his first Pine Wood Derby.  He and Keenan spent quite a few hours getting his car ready even though they kept the design pretty simple.  Youtube was a great resource!  I wasn't planning on staying for the whole event, but it turned out to be pretty fun and exciting.  Boys from 1st-5th grade from our school were matched up randomly by a computer system.  Each car was raced 4 times getting 1 run on each of the lanes.  Thanks to the computer system, the heats were decided down to the 1000th of a second - which in some cases was necessary!  The Tiger Cubs (1st graders) did amazingly well for their first derby.  One scout earned 3rd place overall for his design and another boy earned a track speed record and 4th place overall!  Ari made it to the grand finale and placed 3rd among the Tiger Cubs based on his times!  He and Keenan are already planning next year's design!

*Update on the cruise photos - after having my SD card looked at, it looks like we won't be recovering any pictures.  They said it would be a "Stage 3 recovery" requiring a clean room, etc. and running about $500  :(  I'm still waiting to hear back from Disney to see if they've found the one professional picture of all of us with Mickey I requested.  Finger's crossed!

The Happiest Place on Water

In my previous post I eluded to a Christmas surprise we had planned.  My parents celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary on December 2nd and for the past year we have been planning a Disney Cruise to celebrate!  My parents, sister, Keenan and I all knew what was going on, but decided to keep it from the kids to a) keep our sanity over the many months and b) to make it a fun surprise for Christmas morning.  In retrospect, the surprise was much more exciting for me than the kids.  They're not huge Disney buffs nor do they know what a vacation is (our trips involve either visiting family or friends or camping) let alone a cruise.  It was still fun watching them unravel the clues and seeing them discover exactly what was in store for them.

I had a blast lining up all their "clues."  I found some Mickey and friends wrapping paper that I, ahem, I mean Santa used to wrap even the smallest of gifts.  Their stockings included chocolate covered Mickey pretzels and one of their gifts was a Mickey coloring book and their own Mickey or Minnie ornament for future Christmas memories.  It all went right over their heads.  At 10 am a prearranged Mickey phone call came through announcing the news.  Some mild excitement ensued.  Oh well.  I tried.

On the 26th we drove back to Keenan's aunt and uncle's house north of Houston (the same aunt and uncle we spent Thanksgiving with) to cut our drive time in half.  On the morning of the 27th we got up early and took off for Galveston to meet up with my parents and sister and board our cruise!  Our sweet, sweet neighbors were just as excited as we were and made us some awesome shirts.

*Note #1:  Sadly, my camera's memory card died on the last day of our cruise.  I kept my phone in the safe while on the boat.  The following pictures are compiled from my phone (before & after the cruise), my sister's camera and my Dad's phone.  I'm hopeful we'll be able to recover the rest soon!

*Note #2:  This is long!  Fair warning :)

Documenting our last (hopefully) road trip in our rockin' 1999 Camry CE.  

It's getting pretty tight in there!

Go Team Roach!

The check-in process was surprisingly smooth and we used our waiting time to get the kids checked in for access to their child-care areas.  Once on the boat we had lunch.  We asked the waiter for some ketchup for the kids' corn dogs and were immediately impressed as he skillfully poured some onto a plate in the shape of either Mickey or Pluto!  The attention to detail on a Disney cruise is simply amazing!  We had originally planned to take advantage of the pools while we waited to cast-off, but it was quite chilly.  Instead, we explored the boat, attended the mandatory life-boat drill and unpacked.  Oh!  We also attended the cast-off deck party where Keira turned into a dancing machine!  So fun!

A large-scale gingerbread house in the lounge!

Our first dinner experience was in the Animator's Palate.  Everything was decked out in black and white and made to look like an artists' sketches.  We met our servers, JoJo and Rita, who would be with us every dinner of the cruise.  When the kids received their food, JoJo set to work cutting it all into bite-sized pieces for each kiddo.  A vacation indeed!  Near the end of our meal, we were surprised by a show which involved all the wait staff and Mickey dressed in his Fantasia clothes dancing up and down the aisles of the restaurant.  Asher was beside himself with excitement (one of the pictures I'm mourning from my camera)!  The other two were intrigued, but took much longer to process.

After dinner was a Broadway-style show entitled "The Golden Mickeys."  I thought it was fun and liked it better than the other show we watched.  By the time all that was through, it was 10pm and we were all exhausted.  I'd love to say we all slept well, but I know Ari and I didn't.  The water was very choppy with 5-8ft waves.  The rocking was very disconcerting to me.  Ari was in my sister's room and ended up in bed with her at 4am because of his concerns.  It got better the further south we went and the way back wasn't nearly as bad.  I did, however, feel like I was on the boat for a good 2-3 days after!

Our first full day on the boat was at sea so we were able to take full advantage of all the ship's amenities.  After breakfast, we hit the pool.  The kids didn't seem to mind it was still a little chilly (the pools are heated) and Keira was our brave one venturing down the water slide first then again and again.  We had our first opportunity to meet a character with Donald scheduled near the pool that morning.  It was worth the wait in line when Asher gave him the biggest hug and was smiling from ear to ear.

After swimming we all cleaned up and prepared to part ways for a couple of hours.  I had reserved us a table at the adult only restaurant for brunch so the big kids went to the Oceaneer's Club while poor Asher had to go to the nursery.  He was one month shy of being allowed in the big kid's area.  He still had fun as proved by the packet of artwork and photos they gave us at the end of our trip.  Brunch was amazing and a true treat.  My parents noted it was the first meal we had all had together alone since the kids have come along.  We definitely need to make a point of doing it more often!  At the end of the meal our waiter brought a plate that had "Happy 40th Anniversary" written out in different sauces.  It really made my parents feel extra special.

Now I'm at a loss as to what we did that afternoon.  I'm sure it was fun, though!  That night was formal night for dinner.  Mickey was scheduled to be in the lobby when our meal was over so we made sure to be in line as soon as possible.  We were able to get a group shot with the whole family which, again, is on my camera.  I've put in a request for Disney's photo service to see if they still have the digital file they took for us (they always take a picture at the character meetings, but you don't have to purchase them).  My dad at least captured this one while we were waiting.

The show that night was "Toy Story - The Musical."  I had such high-hopes for this one and the kids were most excited about it.  A little too cheesey for my tastes, but it did keep the kids' attention.  After a full day and another late night we all slept much better!

Day 3 - Cozumel!  When we woke up that morning our ship was already docked at the pier and we were allowed off as early as 8am.  We opted to take our time with a leisurely breakfast on the deck overlooking this view.  The water was such a beautiful turquoise color and the warm sun felt wonderful after two cloudy, cool days.  In Cozumel we shopped and walked around until the kids started complaining.  A pit stop at a restaurant for chips, salsa, cokes and margaritas (for the adults) perked everyone up for the walk back to the ship.

We were back on board a few hours before the all aboard time so we hit the pool.  It was a much better day - warm, sunny and less crowded.  Dinner that night had a pirate theme.  I knew this ahead of time and had stocked up on a few things, but Disney also provided pirate bandannas when we got to our table.  We made time to meet Captain Jack Sparrow before dinner, but he was no Johnny Depp!  ;)  The waitstaff presented my parents with a special dessert, anniversary pins and a song after dinner.  Another special detail.  There was a pirate deck party that night that started at 9:30 with fireworks at 10:30, but we didn't join the fun.  The kids were tired, so we decided it'd be best to get them to bed early.  My parents and I took advantage of the showing of "Saving Mr. Banks" in the big theater.  Great movie!

Our last full day on the ship was back at sea, cloudy, gray and cool once again.  The kids were interested in a lava experiment they were offering in the Oceaneer's Lab which kept them entertained for a couple of hours.  The rest of us and Asher sipped some coffee and tried to stay out of the cool breeze.  For the afternoon we wanted to catch the showing of "Frozen" in 3D.  With the cooler weather everyone else had the same idea.  We got some of the last seats!  It was cute and a relaxing way to spend the afternoon.  The boys (minus Asher) missed the first half as they decided to catch the magic show first.  Ari loved it!  That reminds me, the waitstaff all seemed to know a trick or two.  After the first night, Ari would have magic wars with our waiter.  I think Jojo was quite impressed!

At dinner that night we bid farewell to Jojo and Rita.  After 4 nights, they were our new friends.  The kids had them sign their autograph books and we snapped a few pic's.  Keenan and Ari sneaked off to catch "Thor" in 3D while the rest of us hit the family dance party then went back to the rooms to pack (we had to have any "checked" bags outside our room by 10:30 that night).  We were honored to ride the elevator with the Captain of the ship.  He got off with us for an autograph and picture and chatted for a few minutes.  Every staff member from the Captain to the cleaning crew went out of their way to make you feel special.  Disney magic at it's finest!

The morning of the 31st we had to be at breakfast at 7am with our carry-on bags.  We were off the ship by 8:30.  It was a very organized process!  Unfortunately, the travel arrangement for my parents and sister wasn't scheduled until 10:30.  They made you stand outside the terminal and it was cold.  After contacting their driver they headed for the nearest Starbucks.  We loaded into our car and headed to Houston.  My parents and sister weren't scheduled to fly home until the 1st and we had all booked a hotel stay to spend New Year's Eve together.  

Knowing we were way early to check into the hotel, we stopped at NASA for some quick pic's, but didn't go inside.  We also stopped at the local HEB and stocked up on snacks for the day.  The hotel luckily let us check in early.  We napped, watched movies, played cards games and just hung out.  We toasted some beer and went to bed by 9.  Party animals!

Yup, that's my finger too!

The drive home from Houston was quick and easy.  The kids were exhausted and fell asleep for the first half.

Our first family vacation was a success!  We all had a great time!  While I know Disney magic played a big part, the magic of all of us spending time together will long be remembered, pictures or not.  Happy 40th Anniversary to my parents.  Your marriage is a blessing to us all!

Happy New Year!