I'm On a Boat (Well, I Was...)

I returned today from our week long Mexican Riviera cruise that I mentioned to you in this post. Overall, we had a great time, although it definitely had its ups and downs (i.e. we were running from a hurricane, so our ports of call and excursions got all flipped around; Carnival ships are slightly too large and crowded for my liking; it's difficult to communicate and keep track of a big party without the use of cell phones; Cabo and PV were SUPER hot and humid; some of the entertainment was inappropriate; etc.). I could write about all the "ups" but it would take much to long, so I'll leave you with a highlight or two from each day.

Side note: I determined at the beginning of this summer that it would be epic; so, I've been keeping a journal of three highlights per day to document this epic summer. I'll share a few of those (and some pictures) with you here. To see all of my pictures, visit my Facebook albums here and here!

Here are some highlights of the trip:

July 17:
1. We got upgraded from a dumpy van (that we didn't fit in) to a HUGE party bus to drive us down to Long Beach!

2. I was also excited to hang out with my brother and Polly who I hadn't seen in quite some time.

(I'm drinking Diet Coke)

July 18:

1. We celebrated my grandparents' 60th wedding anniversary at a special steak house on board. We arranged to have a cake brought out to them.

July 19:

1. I got my hair braided in Cabo (I was super excited to not have to worry about doing my hair for the rest of the trip).

2. Mom and I discovered the "family" comedy shows on the ship and we really enjoyed some good clean comedy!

July 20:

1. As I looked out the window in the morning, I was SO excited to catch my first glimpse of Puerto Vallarta (I spent a week there last summer and fell in love with it!).

2. We got to spend the day with Krystal and Kasey (our friends from our last cruise) on a Tequila factory tour! 

(notice the shine? that's nasty humidity for you!)

3. We got to spend the evening sitting on Grandma and Grandpa's huge balcony watching an amazing lightening show (thanks to Hurricane Dora). 

July 21:

1. We got to swim with the dolphins back in Cabo!! For all the pictures, visit the FB album. I got to do this last summer too and it's seriously an incredible experience! 

2. That evening we watched the sunset in Cabo from our grandparents' balcony. Beautiful! 

July 22: 

1. This was a full day at sea, so we enjoyed watching some of the gameshow type entertainment. There was a couple's game and an older Asian couple who had been married for 59 years were totally the stars of the show. They were hilarious and became instant stars on the boat. I hadn't laughed so hard in a long time. I had to take a picture with them on our last night. 

2. We spent quite a bit of time in the piano bar and we enjoyed getting to know the piano player, Brian. 

July 23:

1. Mom, Scotty, Polly, and I spent (the cold) morning playing mini golf on the top deck. Polly won, Mama lost, but we all had lots of fun!

2. Scott wore an AMAZING shirt to dinner--recognize these people? 

(That's a picture of Scott, myself, and our cousin Mason on Scott's shirt from our Hawaii trip back when I was about eight or so)

3. After the main evening show, Mom and I hung out with Krystal and Kelly and some other friends we had met and danced and took random photographs. 

 Yup, we had to plank. 

We had a BLAST last night, and we were super sad to say goodbye....

Well, folks, that's the trip in a (long) nutshell. We definitely made some good memories and we're all looking forward to what the trip in two more years will bring. We can't break tradition now... 

It's a Small World After All...

I am going on vacation again....I know, rough life, huh?!? And no, I'm not going to Disneyland as the title of this post may suggest. I am going on a cruise to Mexico with my mom, my mom's parents, aunt and uncle, cousin and wife, and brother and future sister-in-law  his girlfriend. We traditionally take a family trip every other year. I won't complain. :)

So, why the lame song (It's a Small World After All) that's now stuck in my head, you ask? Let me take you back a couple of years...

Two years ago, the fam and I boarded a Princess Cruise ship to Alaska. This had been a place on the bucket list, so I was quite excited. Being as it was a trip to Alaska on a smaller cruise line, there were not many young people on the boat ship. My brother, cousin, and I almost instantly met and befriended the few people that were our age on the cruise. We met two wonderful sisters, Kasey and Krystal and their grandparents and a guy named Bob and his family. The six of us basically hung out the entire trip and we had a blast.

(Krystal and Kasey--aren't they just great?!?)

We were sad to say goodbye at the end of the last cruise, but we kept in touch over the last couple of years. We've even visited each other a bit. So here, my friends, is where the world is about to shrink...

Krystal texted me a couple days before I left for Europe. It went something like this:

K: Hey girl! Are you guys going on a cruise this summer?

Me: Yup!! In July!!! You going on any??

K: Me, Grandma, and Sis are too in July! :)

Me: No way! Which one???

K: A 7 day Mexico cruise with Carnival. What about you?

Me: No way!!! We're doing the same one!! What date?????

K: HAHAHA are you serious? I think we go out of LA on the 17th

Me: OMG!!!!!! SO do we!!!!!!! NO WAY!!!!!!!!

K: WHAT!!!!!! are you serious??????????

Me: I can't believe this!!! I'm so excited!!!!

As you can see, the girls and their grandma will be joining us on this cruise as well. I am so stinkin' excited to see them again and make more cruise memories. We certainly do have a small world. Too bad Bob couldn't join us--he has a wedding to go to this weekend. Perhaps two years from now we'll all be together again. 

For now, there may be a bit more of this happening this week... 

I must say bon voyage to myself and my family and farewell to you all for now. I'll be back with lots of stories and pictures upon my return. For now, scroll down the blog and enjoy all the posts about my European adventures! 

Adios!