Cruise 2013
January was a busy month - I went to Utah the first week for Grandma's 80th birthday party & then I was home just a few days before Tiffany & Justin flew in for our cruise! We went on a 5-day cruise out of Galveston & had 2 stops in Mexico - Progresso & Cozumel. It was the perfect amount of time with the perfect cruise friends (and NO KIDS!)
We got on the boat on Monday, the 19th. It was FREEZING in Houston/Galveston. Probably the coldest it gets here. We were shivering as we got on the boat & it was almost impossible to imagine that it could be warm enough for bathing suits the next day!
Here we are having our first on-board meals. Excited for the coming days!!! And the men were relieved to have gotten a table for just us 4 at dinner - no new friends needed!
We also discovered on-board BINGO that day! We played a few rounds but never won. Boo :(
The next day we stopped in Progresso. Its just a small Mexican town & neither of us had signed up for excursions there so we just took the bus to the local beach. It was fantastic! Tiffany & I got $15 massages on the beach & we just relaxed & enjoyed the scenery & waves.
Here are some shots of the boat & also a Mexican dude passed out in a boat on the beach.
Getting back on the boat we saw some of our fellow ship-mates... drunk as skunks. No.... DRUNKER than skunks. They were probably the most wasted people we had ever seen. One lady fell & I'm sure severely twisted her ankle & in doing so, peed her pants. I was sure one of them was going to go off the pier getting to the boat. We found out later that bars in Progresso were giving away a free shot of tequila with every margarita. Yikes!
The next day was Cozumel. Justin & Tiffany got up early & left for their excursion with the dolphins (which they loved!)
Sam & I took our time & got off the boat later. We wanted to just go to the beach but it was a 20 min taxi ride away. We ended up meeting a couple with the same agenda from our boat & splitting a taxi with them! Sam & I had a great time relaxing on the beach together & finding some shells for the kids. The water was beautiful & there was even some wildlife... peacocks & raccoons!
The water was GORGEOUS in Cozumel. Here's a little video we uploaded for the kids to see:
After the beach & the Dolphins, we met up with T&J for some shopping! We got souvenirs for the kids & of course, knock-off Coach bags for the ladies. I have gotten much better a haggling! It was fun! Getting back on the boat we could see a storm was coming in so it got really windy. What a fun day in Cozumel!
The next day at sea was pretty cold so we just hung out & mostly did indoor stuff. Sam felt a little sea-sick but with the help of some phenergan & a nap, he was good to go by dinner.
One of the best parts of our cruise was, of course, the food. We weren't in love in the buffet (gross) so we tried to eat mostly in the dining room & had some GREAT meals there! The steaks were always fabulous, as was the warm chocolate melting cake. We had a fantastic wait staff that were so good to us. Our friend from Belarus, Aleksander, even brought as a special dessert the last night - creme brulee! YUM! They danced each night & were a lot of fun.
We also LOVED the shows. They did a broadway review & we also saw a Vegas-style magic show that was awesome. One of our favorite activities was going to the karaoke with a live band. None of us participated but it was fun to hear some that did - and the hose (Ty) was hilarious!
We had such a great time. A cruise is perfect because you have very little contact with home so it really helps you to not miss the kids so much & them miss you so much. We were confident they were just fine at home with their grandparents! I'm so glad Tiffany & Justin were able to go with us. Tiffany & I have been best friends for 11 years & knew we'd have a great time but our husbands have never spent much time together. We've always known they'd get along great & it was true! They had a great time together. It was such a relaxing, non-stress trip. A true VACATION! And we can't wait to do it again!
We were brought back to a stark reality when we got a call from Sam's dad (who was picking us up) to tell us something happened to the van on the way down. So the van had to be towed back to Richmond & we waited in the beautiful Galveston weather for a ride from Marianne.
A big THANK-YOU to both of our parents for watching our kids so we could take this much-needed vacation!
We got on the boat on Monday, the 19th. It was FREEZING in Houston/Galveston. Probably the coldest it gets here. We were shivering as we got on the boat & it was almost impossible to imagine that it could be warm enough for bathing suits the next day!
Here we are having our first on-board meals. Excited for the coming days!!! And the men were relieved to have gotten a table for just us 4 at dinner - no new friends needed!
The next day we were at sea... and surprise surprise... it was HOT!
The next day we stopped in Progresso. Its just a small Mexican town & neither of us had signed up for excursions there so we just took the bus to the local beach. It was fantastic! Tiffany & I got $15 massages on the beach & we just relaxed & enjoyed the scenery & waves.
Here are some shots of the boat & also a Mexican dude passed out in a boat on the beach.
Getting back on the boat we saw some of our fellow ship-mates... drunk as skunks. No.... DRUNKER than skunks. They were probably the most wasted people we had ever seen. One lady fell & I'm sure severely twisted her ankle & in doing so, peed her pants. I was sure one of them was going to go off the pier getting to the boat. We found out later that bars in Progresso were giving away a free shot of tequila with every margarita. Yikes!
The next day was Cozumel. Justin & Tiffany got up early & left for their excursion with the dolphins (which they loved!)
Sam & I took our time & got off the boat later. We wanted to just go to the beach but it was a 20 min taxi ride away. We ended up meeting a couple with the same agenda from our boat & splitting a taxi with them! Sam & I had a great time relaxing on the beach together & finding some shells for the kids. The water was beautiful & there was even some wildlife... peacocks & raccoons!
The water was GORGEOUS in Cozumel. Here's a little video we uploaded for the kids to see:
The next day at sea was pretty cold so we just hung out & mostly did indoor stuff. Sam felt a little sea-sick but with the help of some phenergan & a nap, he was good to go by dinner.
One of the best parts of our cruise was, of course, the food. We weren't in love in the buffet (gross) so we tried to eat mostly in the dining room & had some GREAT meals there! The steaks were always fabulous, as was the warm chocolate melting cake. We had a fantastic wait staff that were so good to us. Our friend from Belarus, Aleksander, even brought as a special dessert the last night - creme brulee! YUM! They danced each night & were a lot of fun.
We also LOVED the shows. They did a broadway review & we also saw a Vegas-style magic show that was awesome. One of our favorite activities was going to the karaoke with a live band. None of us participated but it was fun to hear some that did - and the hose (Ty) was hilarious!
We had such a great time. A cruise is perfect because you have very little contact with home so it really helps you to not miss the kids so much & them miss you so much. We were confident they were just fine at home with their grandparents! I'm so glad Tiffany & Justin were able to go with us. Tiffany & I have been best friends for 11 years & knew we'd have a great time but our husbands have never spent much time together. We've always known they'd get along great & it was true! They had a great time together. It was such a relaxing, non-stress trip. A true VACATION! And we can't wait to do it again!
We were brought back to a stark reality when we got a call from Sam's dad (who was picking us up) to tell us something happened to the van on the way down. So the van had to be towed back to Richmond & we waited in the beautiful Galveston weather for a ride from Marianne.
But all is well that end well - T&J got to the airport on time & we got home to some happy kids!
A big THANK-YOU to both of our parents for watching our kids so we could take this much-needed vacation!
Comments