family Caribbean cruise 2018

The flight there was long and complicated with two layovers. But the kids did great! Z climbed all over Daddy for the first flight and then slept through the next two. The girls spent their time reading books, drawing, playing with pipe cleaners and finally settled in for a movie. Plus a very expensive but necessary trip to Wendys in the McCarren Airport and we made it to Texas!

We got our rental car, picked up Grammy and Papa and started the drive to Galveston. We stopped at Manny’s based on good reviews and an insatiable craving for Mexican food. It was fantastic. Z devoured everything in front of him and the girls loved it. I loved listening to them practice their Spanish on our servers after being told they could order anything they wanted, as long as it was in Spanish.

And eventually we drove into Galveston, already marveling at the gorgeous houses and incredible architecture. We arrived at the hotel late, with only one child still awake and settled everyone in for the night.

The next morning the girls explored our hotel, but its hard to say who was most excited (the girls or Grammy) about the Texas shaped waffles being served at the hotel’s breakfast. Originally we planned to spend the day at Moody Garden’s. And I still think it would have been an amazing day! But it was also a lot more expensive than we thought so we went in search of other options. We didn’t learn until later the girls could have gotten in free with their most recent straight A report cards and adult discounts are available at the Chick Fila nearby. Next time.

We started our adventure with a scavenger hunt. It was an interactive guided tour we did on our phones through Island Treasure hunts. We learned a little history and got to see details we otherwise would have missed. I loved it and the girls were doing great but only made it about halfway through before getting distracted. So we toured the pirate museum (The kids loved it and we did learn some fun pirate history but it’s a little cheesy). And then visited one of our favorite finds of the day, the confectionary! We timed it so we could watch an actual taffy pull and it was SO much. The girls crowded around the railing watching the candy maker stretch and loop and feed the taffy into the machine. He frequently tossed taffy pieces to the crowd and was so friendly as he answered all the girls questions. He told the girls they could keep any taffy they could reach from the pieces that fell on the floor and they each came away with their hands full! And then we bought plenty more of course. To make the day even better, the flavor of the day being made was Grammy’s favorite—banana! And the candymaker gave us a huge chunk at the end!

We picked up sandwiches to eat at the park while Z took a nap and then drove around town in search of the tree sculptures.  A hurricane in 2008 destroyed the once beautiful canopy of trees shading this picturesque city. Many of those trees have since been carved and decorate the neighborhoods, often something meaningful to the family that lives there.  We printed some maps off the internet and found many of them on a leisurely drive through the neighborhood.  Sadly we missed touring the Moody Mansion (another item for our next trip) so we did a little shopping and spent the evening lounging in our hotel, ordering pizza and watching a movie.

Sunday, after more Texas waffles for breakfast, we began our cruise! We did some exploring, lots of eating, and the girls dove right into the water despite the gray skies. The girls had a blast in kids club and immediately made new friends. And all of us loved our dinner experience with four course meals. Especially L gain quick appreciation for the chance to try new foods and order lots of different things. (her favorite for the week would quickly become tenderloin with a béarnaise sauce!) A devoured her weight in shrimp cocktail, E ate alfredo pasta and sherbert ice cream every night and Z spent most dinners stealing Papa’s pina colada and making a huge mess of anything offered to him. (he mostly lived on French fries, ice cream cones and asparagus all week.) We told the kids each night they tried something new, they could order two desserts! After dinner, A and E went right back to kids club but L joined us for the evening entertainment and was loved the show, especially the aerial silks.

Monday started early. We surprised the girls with breakfast reservations at the DreamWorks character breakfast where we had amazing food and they got to meet Po, from Kung Fu Panda and Puss in Boot from Shrek! Po especially was a bit hit with my panda loving E. And Puss was so animated he charmed them all.  Even little Z, was shy and a bit bewildered at first but by the end of the week, was squealing and cooing and so excited with each character meet and greet.  After that we took the girls ice skating! The rink wasn’t large, but the perfect size for us. A especially took it quickly and had such a blast. Then the rest of the day was spent at kids club, on the waterslides, eating food and the discovery of the 24 hour ice cream machine. It was also our first formal night and the girls were gorgeous in their white dresses. I was so excited to see my little Z looking so handsome in his white shirt, black suspenders and bow tie. But when Papa and my smokin hot husband donned bow ties to match, I fully melted! We got some fantastic family pictures (and made friends with one photographer in particularly who especially loved Z and got some amazing portraits for us).

Tuesday was spent at Cozumel Mexico. A and E begged to stay in kids club while the rest of us went ashore. We had no plan (not the best decision as it gave us a rough start to our exploration) but eventually husband, L and I explored town a bit. We got some drinks and watched some locals in a street performance. We bought lots of vanilla (my ultimate goal for the day) and Z had a blast hanging with Papa and Grammy in the port plaza people watching and exploring. (for anyone ever looking for vanilla, the best price was actually in the port at the rum cake shop. Plus they had clear vanilla that I need for fondant. So next time I can skip the hour of price shopping and go right there!) That evening we attended the ice show and were blown away with the caliber of performance. Such talent!

Wednesday took us to Grand Cayman. We left the ship and at the advice of a local, wandered down to a little cove for some snorkeling. The girls were disappointed it wasn’t a sandy beach but quickly got excited about snorkeling instead. L jumped in and in minutes, found herself inches from a nearly 4 foot long sea bass. She shrieked, jumped out of the water and refused to go back in. E last about 2 minutes longer. But A swam and snorkeled for an hour with Papa and Daddy. L and E found tide pools to play in. Grammy, Z and I lounged around watching and exploring and eventually Z jumped into the water too, swimming and splashing and generally being adorable. He didn’t even make it back to the ship before he was asleep in the stroller. The girls picked out souvenirs (A picked a pearl necklace, L and E picked stuffed animals) and then back to the ship for another wonderful perfect with dinner, family pictures, kids club and playing cards.

Thursday we docked in Falmouth Jamaica where we had arranged for husband and I to take the girls on an adventure while Papa and Grammy spent the day with Z.  Room service brought us an early breakfast (Z later discovered our leftover chocolate doughnuts and thoroughly enjoyed himself) and we found our tour guide. A bus took us the hour ride to Dunn River’s Fall while the guide pointed out things along our drive and explained the culture, language and history. A was especially animated, making lots of comments and answering every question with an accented “yes mon!” A tour guide led us to the bottom of the fall (where the girls begged to stay and play on the sandy beach), our group of 25ish people joined hands to make a long train and began our ascent. We climbed up the smooth limestone boulders with the river racing down around us. It was beautiful and challenging and so fun. Our tour guide was a ton of fun, laughing and teasing and showing us where we could jump in or slide down the rocks. L led the way, connected to a 13 year old boy in front of her (oh boy) who was fortunately a really good kid from our ship on vacation with his family and helped her navigate her way while Husband and I led A and E. The climb was no problem for A but she did get cold easily. I worried it might be too challenging for E but she bounced around like a billy goat, giggling and having a blast. After the falls, we drove to the Green Grotto Caves where a particularly gifted tour guide took us through the caves weaving stories of pirates and explorers and animals. The girls especially loved the wishing well and seeing a snake. We shared some jerked chicken on our way back to the boat where we immediately dove back into the pool.  Meanwhile, Grammy, Papa and Z had explored the port a bit and did some shopping. Best of all, Papa and Z had new matching shirts for dinner!

Friday was a sea day, spent in the water. The girls bounced from pools, waterslides and even tried out the flow rider. E and I had some much needed down time with Z while he napped and Daddy went surfing on the flowrider.  That evening the girls wore their new striped dressed and we watched the DreamWorks parade with Z lunging and calling and cooing the whole time! He particularly loved Alex the lion and King Julien. We feasted on lobster and other delectable foods before our usual leisurely and idyllic evening.

On Saturday we woke to a cold front, with gray skies and cold temps. So the girls went ice skating, Z and I slowly started packing (mostly playing, cause he’s just too cute to resist). It was a wonderfully lazy day with plenty of time to play and relax. The girls had a blast in kids club and attended the last night pj party, decorating pillow cases and watching the emoji movie. We went with Grammy and Papa to the on ship musical, Saturday Night Fever. We didn’t get to stay for quite the whole thing but were impressed with the talented performers. We gathered up the kids from kids club and did our usual routine. I snuggled Z to sleep in our room while Daddy did journals with the girls in Papa and Grammy’s room. They were all sad it was our last night and are already looking forward to the next trip.

And then Sunday brought us home. Such a fantastic trip.

Holiday Highlights 2017

November is a big blur of school, lessons, weekend nutcracker rehearsals, teaching at the gym, cake orders and a fabulous Thanksgiving weekend.

We spent Thanksgiving with family, mostly at my parents’ house. We arrived early to help ready the house for lots of guests. And because we had a special errand on the way. We picked up my kid sister from the airport! A week before we were able to arrange her flight home and were so thrilled to have that time with her. We picked her up and went to dinner (sushi of course). We stopped at a store on the way home and ended up engaging several strangers into our game of marco polo, including the employees on the PA system. We arrived late but the kids were up early the next morning and dove right into the toys, especially loving Grammy’s new Barbie house. I loved getting to help Grammy organize and wrap presents, trying to decide what shopping was left and especially getting to catch up with my sister. Since my other siblings weren’t available til Friday, we got to have two Thanksgivings. On Thursday, we left my parents for awhile and we joined the aunties from husband’s side of the family for delicious food, hanging out with cousins and even more delicious pie. I love this wonderful family I married into and am so grateful when we get to spend time with them. The little girls disappeared to play in the basement, Husband I took turns chasing Z and getting to chat and catch up with these exceptional people.

On Friday all my siblings arrived. Husband smoked a turkey while Grammy and I cooked up lots of yummy favorites to go with it. L immediately disappeared with her cousin twin and the younger girls eagerly shared the new Barbie house. Z mostly destroyed stuff and ate everything in sight. We did a little black Friday shopping on Friday and Saturday but the big hit of the weekend was taking all the kids to see Coco at the movie theatre. Great movie and the kids loved it (and the copious amounts of popcorn). Meanwhile, the men took the boys hunting and husband got his elk! And then Saturday night we hurried home so we could spend Sunday in our own ward.

December swept in with all the wonderful busyness of the holiday season, right from the start. Each week was school and lessons and extra practices, each weekend packed with something fun and exciting!

The first weekend was Cottages for Children. L and E both preformed with their dance teams, their first performance of the season! The girls had decided rather spontaneously that they wanted to participate in the gingerbread festival and we worked quickly to create our candy cane train! We donated it to the Cottages for Children where it won 2^nd place in the children’s division and was auctioned off for an impressive amount to be donated to the children’s justice center. The festival is incredible and the girls were in awe, wandering around admiring all the creations. That night was also the Christmas party for my work. We arrived a little late but just in time for dinner. We ended up sitting with couples I didn’t know very well, including the gym owner, and had a great time getting to know them! We also had our ward Christmas party, a Saturday morning breakfast, more nutcracker rehearsals, cut our Christmas tree and my very favorite holiday event, Cori Connors’ Christmas concert! Her music and stories are so inspiring and I’m continually in awe of her talent and how she just glows as a performer and as a person. I’m so blessed to know her personally and love our auntie so much.

Weekend 2 took Husband and I south to his company’s production facility (we alternate locations every year). We started with a tour of the factory and then had a great evening at the party. Wed had a delicious meal catered while we spent some time catching up. Then husband led the evening with introductions, a quick review and a vision forward. They raffled off gift cards and we did a white elephant exchange and company pictures. On Saturday, after duet practice, nutcracker rehearsal and primary program practice, we got to attend the nutcracker tea party! L was acting in it, while sister and several friends came as guests. We ate so many delicious treats (and got to take plenty home) while we listened to the story of the nutcracker. Various characters came in to perform and serve desserts (including the mice cupcakes I made and donated). It was so much fun and they already can’t wait for next year. And then we finished off the evening with a pizza movie night. Sunday was the primary program! The girls did great reciting their parts and I was so proud of the kids singing so well, especially when we have only had a few months together. The sign language wasn’t as clear as I hoped but they did much better with the bells than they had in rehearsal and the older kids preformed the trios so well. The spirit was strong and I completely bawled through all of Gethsemane. The one and only real “hiccup” happened in my own row. I went to take a drink from my ice cold plastic water bottle between songs. Z rushed over to beg for a drink. He grabbed the bottle and squeezed! The water shot up like a volcano and all over my lap. While I was in shock, he was thrilled and tried to do it again as I desperately tried to stop him. With half the bottle now in my lap, my mom threw her scarf over the water to soak it up and unfortunately pushed all that ice cold water through the fabric of my skirt, a second shock of water soaking more layers. The good news is my skirt was black so when I stood up, two minutes later to lead another song, only my own and the row behind us were desperately trying to stifle laughter as water dripped down my legs. Good times.

The girls had their Christmas sing along for the piano program. The girls had been so busy and burned out lately that we probably didn’t practice as much as we should have. L did great. A made a small mistake but her mistakes are so rare that she had trouble getting back into a groove. E also made a small mistake and is so hard on herself that she was pretty upset. But overall, I’m so proud of their talents and the time they have put into it. Not every performance is perfect but overall we had a great night. Except for the small monster who is getting less small and less manageable in quiet settings. Z is so busy and so fast lately, with volumes of charm and personality to go with it. Love him like crazy but he is not a fan of sitting quietly.

And then another busy and festive weekend rolled around: the Nutcracker! L was a soldier and A was a mouse. L took her role very seriously, being well rehearsed and professional. A was a mouse, animated and full of energy. They both performed in the afternoon show, Husband and I came to see just the first act and watch them. Then, we came back for the evening show, which now included E dancing in the preshow to “Let It Snow!” She was adorable! So sweet and happy and so good. I’m so proud of all my girls, they did so well and have worked so hard. We meant to stay for the whole show, the girls really wanted to watch, but they were so tired and Z was getting loud and wiggly. So we went home with our little entourage of dancers, baby Z, Grammy, and now the aunties, a favorite uncle and Grandpa! We ate pizza and celebrated Grandpa’s birthday with cake and ice cream. It was a wonderful day, quickly followed by a wonderful Sunday. The kids in Primary loved my snowball fight activity and we got to spend the evening with Grandma’s side of the family for a Christmas party including dinner and a while elephant exchange. (and then on Monday night, the girls got to dance the nutcracker one more time with a newly added third performance, yay!)

A few days later, winter break began. I got to help out in the class parties (Christmas bingo with m&ms was a huge hit) and hurried to finish several cake orders while the girls spent the first day of their break lounging and playing with friends. Friday we went to Grammy and Papa’s house for our first Christmas Eve. Cousins trickled in and immediately dove into their play. Once everyone arrived we had our nativity experience, acting out the journey to Bethlehem and then shared our Bethlehem dinner together (fish, flatbread, grapes, cheese, nuts, dates and baklava). After dinner we had a family recital with all the kids sharing something they’ve been working on. We heard piano performances, watched them dance, listened to stories, got to see art projects and heard the viola (my niece is amazing!) Even the adults shared, most of us rather spontaneously but very willing. Most of the family spent the night (cousins were so thrilled for the sleepover and actually did really good going to bed when told to) and then we got to celebrate Christmas morning! I made crepes for breakfast and then we gathered in a circle for gifts. All of the grandkids generously got an outfit, book and gift (toy or craft) from Grammy and Papa and were thrilled, eagerly diving back into their play while adults exchanged gifts. I’m so grateful for my wonderful, very creative and brilliant family. (And Grammy knocked it out of the park especially with E’s gift this year: a Barbie panda trainer!)

That evening we took the girls on a special date. We got dressed up, went to dinner (joined by Uncle jojo) and took the girls to see the Forgotten Carols. We’ve been reading the book, finishing it just in time, so they knew the story and had heard the music but there’s nothing quite like seeing it unfold onstage. They were very tired and worn out from our Christmas festivities, so a few rough moments, but mostly a very wonderful and touching evening. I had seen it before, but after reading the book, it was much more meaningful and so glad we got to share that with them.

Christmas Eve was spent in our own home. We attended church and spent the day lounging and cooking. Grammy, Papa, Grandpa and Auntie Lu all came to join. We had smoked turkey, homemade rolls and all sorts of family favorites. The kids made a quick trip to grandpa’s house to decorate his tree while I wrapped gifts. And then we had a sweet bedtime, reading the Christmas story, putting out milk and cookies and cuddling our sweet babies to sleep.

Christmas morning was so fun and full of excitement. Grammy and Papa had spent the night so they didn’t miss a moment. The kids bounded awake, cuddling and begging while everyone else woke up. Their beautiful faces, so full of anticipation and joy and awe, is such a sweet sight. Daddy carried Z down the stairs, he was near dancing with excitement and calling out, trying to figure it all out. The kids dove into their stockings while the adults opened more leisurely. After breakfast, the kids got to open their presents. Upon opening the first, we explained that they would need to look for clues (scrabble tiles) and then use those clues to figure out our family gift. They opened new swimsuits, cover-ups, sandals, outfits, goggles, books and suitcases. Then assembling their clues, they each had a word to spell out. E was pretty quick to spell out “family”. A needed to be given her first two letters to spell out “cruise”. By then, L was catching on and together they figured out “Caribbean”. Instead of toys this year, we did a family Caribbean cruise! The girls were thrilled to hear Papa and Grammy were going with us and that we were leaving in less than two weeks! They spent the rest of the morning bouncing around, so excited and positively glowing about everything, exploring their new things from that morning and from Grammy.

That afternoon we said goodbye to Grammy and Papa and went to Grandpa’s house. We had Christmas dinner with them, roasted duck, artichokes and homemade bagels. We visited the cemetery, read the Christmas story and decorated gingerbread men. The girls were so excited to see their cousins and play dress ups and games.

The next morning Grandpa and Husband and Husband’s brother went hunting (long explanation but the only day they could make it work). So we got a babysitter for the kids (who spent hours playing and having a blast) while my two sister in laws and I went shopping and out to lunch. It was fantastic. I had so much fun with them and all of us found lots of great things and loved being together.

So Wednesday was our Grandpa Christmas, with Grandpa stockings and a gift exchange. Grandpa got all the grandkids good sleeping bags for Christmas and I hope we get to use them as often as we can with him. We spent that afternoon playing in the snow with cousins and that evening, bowling! The five granddaughters, auntie lu and Grandpa, armed with fantastic names and victory dances, had a great time. Grandpa won, followed closely by E. Then we headed down to the valley, briefly exploring the mall and having dinner at a Brazilian steakhouse, always delicious and such a fun novelty. And finally, back to our own home.

But not for long. The next night was a family adventure. We took the girls to see the temple lights, wandering the ground, admiring the nativity and exploring the visitor centers (including the one about the history and building of the temple which I had never seen before). Then we spent the night at a hotel! (Husband needed one more hotel stay for the year to keep his priority status with the company and we were happy to help.) We immediately changed and jumped into the swimming pool, staying as late as we could. I sat in the hot tub while the girls swam. Soon Daddy and Z came to join us and that little fish had such a blast. I love his round tummy and his squeals of excitement and his animated expressions. He is so charming and so fun. The girls adore and dote upon and smother him constantly. And me. Totally guilty as well. (and still, he is 100% daddy’s boy. We joke that I am continually falling further on the list of favorite people. Daddy is his unquestionable #1.) The girls stayed up late watching cartoons in bed and finally slept. But only a little while. Then more cartoons and breakfast before heading home.

Saturday was wonderful. Husband and I joined my parents at the brand new Hale Theatre to see Aida, one of my favorite shows and my parents gave us tickets for Christmas. We had a quick lunch first and then attended the afternoon show. The vocal talent was astounding and the new theatre is simply incredible. After the show, we did a temple session and got home late, kissing babies goodnight. They had a busy day as well playing with the sitter and going on a special adventure with Grandpa and Auntie Lu. They got to go to dinner and then the Ice Castles!

Sunday was New Year’s Eve. After church and church meetings, we had dinner at Grandpa’s house. It’s become a favorite tradition, sometimes new years eve, sometimes new years day or even a day after, but we love to do a crab night. The kids ate great and we all got our fill. And then we celebrated with another holiday tradition, watching the Muppets Christmas Carol.

And our last hurrah for the break was the girls got to have their holiday party with friends. The past two years, we’ve done it the first day of the holiday break but were behind on chores (and cake orders) this year so we decided to do it the end of break. The girls each invited two friends over for a pancake breakfast and games. We played the Christmas bingo, the candy saran wrap game and did a left/right gift exchange story. They had a blast and then spent the rest of the day (and the next day) lounging, unpacking and gearing up for school again. But good news! Only two days of school before our family Caribbean Cruise!