On board 11/04/06 with the "Family of the Cruise" New post..finally!!4/16 [Archive] - The DIS Discussion Forums

Suzy Mouse

11-15-2006, 09:30 PM

...more of that in a few posts....

To start my report (this being my first one ever...I'm extremely nervous) I need to fill everyone in on some background info. I promise the good stuff will follow later.

This trip was booked while we were on last year's New Jersey Week's cruise. We booked for a family of 4 in an outside stateroom with a porthole.

Fast forward 4 months later. As some of you know on March 22nd of this year I lost my mother in a tragic accident. Fortunately for my family my dad survived and remains to be our gift from god. (Search previous posts of mine for details) My parents had the 11 night Southern Caribbean Disney cruise booked in Sept. Dad obviously had to cancel the trip but we begged him to join us on ours. After much pleading he decided to come aboard with us.

So therefore our cast of characters were...

DH (40)
Me (37)
DD (11)
DS (7)
Granddee (68)

Shortly after he changed his plans I contacted the Disney Cruise line...thank you Theresa for the support on this one (and so much more!!)!!!...I wrote them a letter explaining the situation and asked if they could provide some extra tlc and attention for him.

A few weeks later I was checking his reservation for him to make sure they received his final payment and I noticed his room was changed. I quickly check my reservation and noticed that DCL had moved our rooms together with an adjoining door and verandas! I was amazed at how fast the DCL worked to help us out. Originally we were on separate floors at opposite ends of the ship. Obviously we were ecstatic with this news!!

mmouse37

11-15-2006, 09:54 PM

Hey there.....I was also on the 11/4/06 cruise.....had a great time!!! We were a group of 20 with friends and some family. Can't wait to hear more of your report....so sorry to hear about your mom...

Suzy Mouse

11-15-2006, 09:58 PM

More background info (yes I'm a talker too!)

When my mom passed away we were discussing signs that we were looking for to know Mom was around. Mine was that she would send me my long lost (12 years) friend, Rachel. I thought for sure Rachel would have seen my maiden name in the paper and find me. No such luck. One day in April I was listening to WPLJ on the radio and they said they were finding lost loved ones. All I had to do was contact the radio station. After a while I decided to send in my letter. I think it was the last day they were accepting them. Fast forward to June 12. My dh calls me and asked me if I hired a private investigator from PLJ. Obviously I didn't tell him I did this....so I had to explain what I did. I spoke to the investigator the next day and they told me they thought they had found her but she wasn't returning their calls. If it was her I would hear from the radio station. June 29 the radio station dj Rocky Allen calls and asks me to tell them about Rachel. I told them the story and they told me to hold on. All of a sudden, I hear them say "Rachel, we have Suzanne on the line!!!" AHHH!!! There she was right there on the other end of the line. :Pinkbounc after all these years. Weird thing about this was that it was aired on the radio the next day...which just happened to be my birthday! Yes..Mom was finding a way to wish me a happy birthday and gave me an incredible present.
Thanks Mom!!

Why am I telling you this in my report? I guess I could have left it out but it's a great story to share. And another sign like this came from Mom to my daughter.

Rebecca became friends with a girl on the cruise last year. Unfortunately we left the ship with only a picture, a name and a town ...no phone number or email address. After searching around we couldn't find anything. During this summer(7 months after the cruise) my daughter was sad and said that she hadn't had any dreams of Grammee (my mom) and that she was missing her. I told her that Grammee is always with her and that just because she hadn't dreamed of her doesn't mean she's not here. That day I did my normal "dis" routine I had become accustomed to....surfing our cruise meet. I decided to find some friends for Rebecca so that she could email them and get to know them before the trip. I saw that love2travel's daughter was around the same age and I wrote to her. It turned out that her daughter's name was Rebecca too and she lived in Burlington NJ. Wait a second!!! That was the name and the town of the girl we had met on the last cruise. After going back and forth a bit and emailing a picture of the 2 of them I had from last year....we had finally found our lost friend!! Rebecca was sure Grammee sent Rebecca to her. She was crying she was so happy!It was unbelieveable that after almost a year we were finally able to get the girls together for an afternoon lunch! I don't think I've ever seen my daughter happier!

Sorry for talking so much....but I do believe in signs and I do believe that people remain with you in whatever way they can.

More signs to follow through my report.

love2travel

11-15-2006, 10:09 PM

Suzanne, I am so glad you shared this story with everyone!! You know, we've talked about it before, I definately believe in signs.

mmouse37

11-15-2006, 10:36 PM

I listen to Rocky Allen everynight on my way home from work and I heard your story...it was just great!!! I am a big believer in signs....and in things that "can't be explained" but just happen!!!

But we had two "incidents" on this cruise worthy to mention.....the first was in Key West when my father and my brother-in-law did the Kyack Tour in key West. Remember how windy it was that day....so much that they cancelled two other excursions but kept the Kyack one going.

Well....the wind was so fierce on the excursion that people were being blown all around...my father who has run about 30 marathons and used to jump out of airplanes for fun said he was scared for his life....by brother in law who is retired NYPD Emergency Service also said it was one of the toughest days he has had...for every foot paddled forward....if you lifted the paddle out of the water you were blown 10 feet back. People were worried that they would be literally blown away from the rest of the group. It was hairy.

People were finally towed back to the excursion boat and one man, after getting up the ladder to the boat said he did not feel well and toppled over. The poor man died...they believe of a heart attack. My father said it was horrible. I remember all afternoon the ship was announcing the name of a woman to report to the guest service desk and I am assuming that it was his family member. I also heard the family disembarked in Key West to tend to arrangements for the man. I know the shore excursion desk wanted to talk to all the people on the excursion to find out what happened.

My father was told by Disney that Disney checked with the vendor of the excursion that morning and the vendor said it was still a go.

The next incident involved one of our group....my friend's father who was on the cruise with us was informed on Tuesday in Grand Cayman that his brother had passed away back in Scotland so he had to disembark in Grand Cayman and fly home to Newark and then on to Scotland.....so it was a bit of a downer the first two days.

Other than those things the cruise was really great...I was worried about all the "things that were going wrong" that many people mentioned lately on the boards but we found things to be great....loved the new Ariel view screen...I thought it really enhanced the deck parties and loved the late night movies up on deck.

Did not care for the new Navigator and I thought they really shrunk down the size of the All Hands on Deck Cheese platter.

The food in the dining rooms was great...did not have a bad meal all week! Liked the new Goofy Galley and the new Pinocchio's Pizza...

Our friend's son and I were picked for first Mickey Mania game show in Studio Sea....were were the Red Mickey Team and were in first place for awhile but lost on the image scramble part of the show.....still we had a good time!!!

SweetSpot

11-16-2006, 06:55 AM

Mmouse: My son and daughter were in the first Mickey Mania and were the one's who won at the end of the game with the scramble. I think beating us time and again in Disney Scene It gave him an edge. I think that is one of the highlights of the cruise to him, he never can win at anything and he finally did.

Seeing the picture in your post I think we saw you many times around the ship and didn't know it. It's a shame so many DISers didn't get a chance to meet.

jsfein

11-16-2006, 08:49 AM

Alright Sweetspot and MJ, ready for this!!!! My son and I were the Green Goofy's in that event. We finished a close second to Sweetspot's son and daughter. I was ready to crack them over the head during the scramble. I was convinced their screen was posting the answers they were getting them so fast.

That's 3 DIS-ers in the game. I wonder if the 4th set of contestants were also DIS-ers.

jsfein

11-16-2006, 08:52 AM

The poor man died...they believe of a heart attack. My father said it was horrible. I remember all afternoon the ship was announcing the name of a woman to report to the guest service desk and I am assuming that it was his family member.

I don't want to hijack Sue's trip report thread, but I had no idea that this had occurred on our sailing. How unfortunate. We also heard the announcement of the woman's name Sunday afternoon and I remember commenting to my wife that there must be a real emergency if Disney was broadcasting her name over the loudspeakers.

Suzy Mouse

11-16-2006, 09:29 AM

My father saw a crew member (white suit) with a Chile name tag. He told them what happened during his excursion in Chile and the man told him what happened in Key West. Awful!! My heart, thoughts and prayers continue to go with that family. The CM also told Dad that 2 men were removed from the cruise due to inappropriate behavior. We have no idea what happened but later heard these men where creating a scene at a bar.

When we were in Grand Cayman we saw a couple get off with their suitcases. I wonder if they were your friend's father?

LITTLEKID58

11-16-2006, 09:49 AM

Waiting for the rest of the report.. you are doing great

Liz

lindaso

11-16-2006, 10:10 AM

Wow...it's amazing that all this can go on around you without having any idea. Sue...great report so far. I'm glad we finally got to meet right at the very end. I know that Stephanie found Rebecca but I really didn't get the chance for adult socializing. I spent the week pretty overwhelmed.

I would have loved to sit and talk about "signs". My mom died 16 years ago and I'm a strong believer and have gotten messages of my own.

Looking forward to reading the rest.

DisneyZell

11-16-2006, 11:19 AM

Keep it going Suzy...I, too belive in signs. I lost my Mom right before 9/11 happened...and am constantly looking for signs from her. I'm a firm believer that I have recieved a few...and frankly that's all that matters. I'm happy you met back up with your friend from old...that is a fantastic sign. I look forward to reading the rest of your report.

pklein09

11-16-2006, 11:50 AM

popcorn::

...more popcorn.....it's amazing all the stuff that happens on the same cruise....can't wait to hear more....

--Michelle

Suzy Mouse

11-16-2006, 12:17 PM

Mom gave me her pair of garnet earrings a year or 2 ago. I wore them in June and that was the last time I saw them. Obviously I've been hysterical over the fact that they were gone as I searched everywhere for them.

We got to Mr. Bees where we parked our car and headed to the airport. Realizing that I no longer needed my cell phone I went to put it into the side pocket of the Castaway Club Bag I received last year. Inside the pocket was a box..yes!! a jewelry box. I knew immediately what was waiting inside for me to see. I opened it up and was hysterically laughing and crying. My garnet earrings were there!! I knew that she wanted to come along and make sure we had a safe and enjoyable trip. Needless to say Dad was quite emotional when he saw that I found them.

Our first flight was extremely late and we didn't think we would ever make the connecting flight. What would happen to our luggage??? We ran to catch our connecting flight. PHEW...made it!! They had to hold the plane for the late arrival.

We finally got to the hotel in the airport at Orlando International. After getting the kids to bed and getting myself ready to hit the sheets I started to get into bed. I looked at the clock and saw that the time 1:11. THe 1's on the clock (11:11 or 1:11) are huge sings for me as well as my mother would always make a big deal when it was that time on the clock.

Good night Mom and thanks for the safe flight!

DisneyZell

11-16-2006, 12:30 PM

Holy cow! I got chills (and that doesn't happen often). Do you remember putting them in there? or was that a complete surprise???

pklein09

11-16-2006, 03:06 PM

I got tears in my eyes and chills down my back SuzyMouse. Wow!

Fairy_Tale_Bride

11-17-2006, 01:29 AM

This is such a touching report and I am also getting chills up and down my legs and arms reading this. Thank you so much for sharing your story. It really makes me think about how precious life really is and my relationship with my own Mom. I'm glad you are able to share stories here with your fellow DIS'ers about your family and let us all get to know them as you do. Have a magical day! :wizard:

Suzy Mouse

11-17-2006, 10:08 AM

The time came Saturday morning to head downstairs to get the bus to Port Canaveral. FInally the time is here!! Rebecca insisted on being the first ones on the bus. She had to have that front seat...first one on first one off! Bless her little heart she did it. When the group was called she didn't let anyone in front of her. At one point when we were outside a 13 year old boy tried to pass her on the left but she kicked it up a notch and left him in the dust. (Hint to all...if you're the first one on the elevator you're the last one off...luckily she knew this!)

By now my Dad has a new friend in his life and we convinced her to come along with us. At first she thought it would make it difficult for us...but after much thought she decided to join us (greatest thing for Dad!...definitely helped make his trip better. Mom definitely would be happy for him and smiling down.)

(*Side note here....years ago we used to dress alike. I stopped doing that because I figured the kids were getting older now and wouldn't want to do that. Mom had bought us the matching beach Mickey outfits a last year but we never wore them. Rebecca decided she wanted to wear them this year so that we could have Grammee with us. So we did.)

There's that point when you're heading to the ship that you go over the bridge and just as you reach the top the ship comes in view. You can see it a million times in pictures but there's nothing like seeing it in person. Beautiful!!! :love:

We get off of the bus and head into the building. #6 we're handed. Last year we were #2 when we arrived at the same time. So I guess people are getting there earlier. As we climbed up the escalator my daughters first sight was a bright orange shirt. Rebecca and her family were there!! She ran over to her and the hugs began! :grouphug: Teresa came over to me in line. It was so good to see her again! She pulled out a bag and gave it to me. A present? For me? Why? I opened it up and pulled out an angel pin. One with my mother's birthstone on it. How could she possibly remember?! Well that's the type of person she is. Beautiful! princess: She wanted me to have Mom with me through the trip. Thank you again Teresa! :wave:

After we check in we head over to Teresa and family. Finally get to meet the DH. For some reason I thought he was going to be a quiet man...for some reason I was wrong! Funny guy whose mouth helped me gain the attention of a few people a couple of times through the trip. Hi Ken :wave2: They introduce us to cheysdad (Mike) and his dw Cathe and their daughter Cheyenne. Another beautiful family we were fortunate to hang out with throughout the trip :woohoo: I guess I'm not good about guessing what people are going to be like. I was totally wrong about Ken...just as I was TOTALLY off about Mike. (He's the "perv" in my title....way off!! :blush: ...maybe he'll come here and explain why....

We finally head onto the ship :banana: and head down to change our dining rotation...no problems!!! Then we head up to Topsiders to grab our first meal onboard. FOOD!!! Then came the problem...we ran into a family that we were friendly with. They proceed to tell me that the husband complained to DCL about their website and that everytime they went on-line there was a problem. Plus they complained about the room they got. Didn't understand this since it was what they wanted. He demanded the get a free upgrade because of the problems they encountered and because he was traveling with our family. He figured he would drop our name and benefit from anything perks that came our way. The wife figured I knew of this already because on their ressies it said traveling with the "Suzy Mouse" family. SHe thought that it said that on mine. It didn't. How could a person do that??? Anything I requested from DCL was for Dad to make him comfortable. At the time of the changing of our plans his friend wasn't coming. I didn't even want anything for us!! I was mortified and completely embarrassed!! :sad2: I took care of this later....

We headed to the great big Dis meet....those who were there know how sarcastic I'm being. Hint for all....make a specific meeting spot before you leave for your cruise....and don't pick a loud spot!! We did get to meet some wonderful people...and eventually met some more along the way. Ken did try extremely hard to get the recognition....he got us a shoutout on the microphone....but don't know who heard. And then he took a lime green mickey head (who gave that to us??) and attempted to use it to get recognition. The best one was...and I've mentioned this in other posts....was Ken going up to a woman in a lime green bathing suit (or was it a shirt :confused3 ) and asked her if she was a diser....gotta love the response you get when you ask a person if they are a diser and they have no clue as to what you're talking about!

***Another tip...people other that disers wear lime green!!

I'll be back later with more!!

A solution to the problem and a letter comes our way!!

pklein09

11-17-2006, 01:58 PM

Then came the problem...we ran into a family that we were friendly with. They proceed to tell me that the husband complained to DCL about their website and that everytime they went on-line there was a problem. Plus they complained about the room they got. Didn't understand this since it was what they wanted. He demanded the get a free upgrade because of the problems they encountered and because he was traveling with our family. He figured he would drop our name and benefit from anything perks that came our way. The wife figured I knew of this already because on their ressies it said traveling with the "Suzy Mouse" family. SHe thought that it said that on mine. It didn't. How could a person do that??? Anything I requested from DCL was for Dad to make him comfortable. At the time of the changing of our plans his friend wasn't coming. I didn't even want anything for us!! I was mortified and completely embarrassed!! :sad2: I took care of this later....

How RUDE!!!

and I can't wait to hear how you took care of it.....

Thistle

11-17-2006, 05:58 PM

Ack, don't leave us hanging!

cheysdad

11-17-2006, 10:05 PM

Ok so I am the perv, no no not really but only in Sue's mind. You see we only have one daughter (10 years old) and I thought that I would use these boards to find her a cruise mate or two. What could be better than having some free time in the quiet cove pool. It seems like most people that post on these boards other than Jason and I are woman. So a few months ago I post that my daughter is looking for some 10 year olds to hang out with. I guess that Sue was being very careful with that post. To be honest when I did post it I thought that it might be a concern. Then we met Suzy Mouse and her family at the port and we went on to have tons of fun together.

Great report so far Sue. We miss you guys! Thanks for calling Cathe today, I can't tell you how happy she was to hear from you. Thanks again.

Michael

Suzy Mouse

11-17-2006, 11:00 PM

Thank you Mike for coming out to tell the story. You did a better job than I could have! (Don't you like how I cleaned it up a bit!!)

I'm glad my call made Cathe happy. I've been thinking of her all week but especially today. ENjoy your weekend!

Suzy Mouse

11-17-2006, 11:34 PM

Between the boat drill and getting ready for dinner fluffy white robes and slippers were delivered to Dad's and our rooms. Compliments of the concierge. Of course there's a note attached to the robe that if we love them so much and want to keep them there is a $72 charge. In other words don't think of taking them home. I didn't think this applied to the slippers. Who would want to wear them after us? So of course those made their way into our suitcases. We loved wearing the robes out on the veranda in the morning and then again at night. It became part of our daily routine. :cloud9:

Rewind a bit....for those Castaway Club members you know that you return to the DCL with a gift awaiting you in your cabin. We were thrilled to see our bag sitting on our bed fill with cups, lotion, netted bags and a neat container of wipes. Dad was upset because his was missing. Instead he found an envelope sitting on his bed. Inside were 2 week passes to the Rainforest compliments of DCL. See my dad focuses on the negative...you all know the parent that wonders why there's a "C" on your report card when the rest of the spaces are filled with "A's"??? :confused3 I told him that Disney was giving him a gift to help him have a relaxing time. Probably because of the letter I had sent them. I thought "How perfect is that?" They are amazing!! He also had a fruit platter waiting for him when he first entered the room.

Needless to say he was disappointed that he didn't get the measly bag. I told him I would gladly exchange our bag for the Rainforest coupons. He didn't feel the need to do that.

Later on that evening we return to the cabins after dinner. Yes a bag was delivered to his room. Not a Castaway Club member bag..a different one. A beautiful Disney Cruise bag filled with a large captain Mickey, GOofy, sand toys, coloring books, a Captain Mickey hat, a mug filled with pins, a clock and a picture frame. OK Dad you better shut up now!!! Needless to say he was overwhelmed with emotions and speechless. You done good Disney. If only I knew how to shut him up that way!

I thought "perfect"! That's all that I would want for him plus. He was being given the royal treatment and had already gone over anything that I expected. Nope that wasn't enough!

The letter is coming soon...I promise!!!

I went downstairs and asked to speak to the head of guest services. I told her about the friends who were traveling with us and asked that if there was any connection on the computers that we were traveling together to clear that up. I only did this because I was so upset that they used our name and situation to benefit themselves. She said it would be taken care of.

SUNDAY....The Letter

Before dinner we returned to the room to find a plate with the silver lid on it. I didn't order room service! Disney did! Sitting on the plate were delicious appetizers. On the bed sat an envelope. We opened it wondering what it could be.

Dear "Suzy Mouse" Family,

***CONGRATULATIONS****

:) You have been chosen to by my Magical Family of the cruise! :)

As my Magical Family, you will receive personalized service from me, along with a few extra surprises!

I want to wish you a Magical cruise and hope that we can create magical moments that you will always remember. Please don't hesitate to call me if there is anything that you might need during your cruise.....

Hope you had a great day in Key West!

Jay
Magical Family Host

Was this really happening???? Does something like this happen. I pride myself in knowing the little things that go on on the ship...but I had never heard about the Family of the Cruise. :wizard:

More magical things were coming our way??? Wasn't there enough done for us already???? :blush:

Isn't it amazing how fast those overwhelming emotions hit you when you least expect it. Now Disney really did it!! Now they shut ME up!!!

DisVillainFan

11-17-2006, 11:47 PM

Now see I knew you guys were Magical already, Disney just made it official with the letter..Ken :wizard: :wizard:

Fairy_Tale_Bride

11-17-2006, 11:58 PM

Wow! How wonderful! I can't wait to read more Magical Family! :wizard:

jsfein

11-18-2006, 07:39 AM

You have us (Karen too even though she won't admit she's been on DIS) reading your TR on the edge of our seat. Can't wait to hear more.

jrose529

11-18-2006, 11:25 AM

What a wonderful TR! I'm so sorry about the loss of your mother. I lost my mom four years ago and I get signs from her all the time.

I hope the rest of your cruise was as magical as the begining! :wizard:

Thistle

11-19-2006, 11:25 AM

First thing I did this morning (well, after the coffee) was come and see if you had written more on your TR. Gosh, doncha just love it when Disney does something like this!

*sitting on her seat like a proper young lady, waiting for more, please*

Suzy Mouse

11-19-2006, 02:51 PM

Sorry to leave you hanging....plus I have to let you hang some more. I through a surprise birthday party for my hubby last night and I'm recouping a bit. Now I'm heading off to the soccer fields to be a good Mommy and cheer on her son :cheer2: !

I'll be back later.

Thistle

11-19-2006, 08:02 PM

*evil stare*

msaseifert

11-19-2006, 10:28 PM

:dance3: Can't wait to read more............

Suzy Mouse

11-26-2006, 12:37 PM

Well you all found out what was waiting for our return to the cabin in the early evening. Now let me tell you what we did the rest of the day...

Last year we mistakingly took the kids to Key West with us. We took them to a place called the "Blonde Giraffe" for some frozen key lime pie dipped in chocolate. Well after that they got cranky and had to return to the ship. This year would be different! We smartened up and left them on the ship (although we did ask if they wanted to come off with us praying that they would decline the offer...prayers answered!)

Dad, Toby, DH and I got off the ship and proceeded to head up towards Duval Street. We looked around a bit. Went into Margaritaville to buy something but left empty handed. We did peak into the bar and saw some crazed Pittsburgh Steeler fans there!!! ;) We spotted the Coach store up the street a bit but for some reason DH saw the bar and went in there instead. He was quite happy to see me come out with only the bag I went in with.

WE decided to head back up towards the ship as we were getting hungry. Yes the Blonde Giraffe was calling for me but my frugalness kicked in and said "we'll be able to get something on the ship"....stupid stupid me!!! :crazy: Man was I craving that frozen key lime pie dipped in chocolate for a long time after that. No need to worry...I"ll be back there in 2 years and will leave the frugalness on the ship!

Right near the ship was a beautiful jewelry store. THey had the most beautiful David Yurman jewelry I had ever seen. Well DH brought his frugalness with him and we walked out empty handed. Of course I didn't think I would actually get anything...we did have a trip to still pay for!

We headed back towards the ship and noticed about 3 or 4 police officers escorting 2 men off of the ship with their luggage. I found out later that they were kicked off the ship for rowdy behavior. Perhaps they got a little too close to Minnie??? I think others heard something about thier behavior at the bar. :confused3

We headed back to the club to pick up the kiddies. Yes, we do miss them after being without them. SO we took them to the pool and just enjoyed the emptiness of the ship!

Dinner was at Parrot Cay later that evening and then we headed down to see Gary Delena's family show. Our son prefered to go to camp so that's where he went...but we were able to see one of our favorite performers. He cracks me up all the time! We found out 3 years ago that he grew up in Sayreville (same as me) Exit 11!! So my parents, at the time, bonded with him because they knew some of the same people. This was the 3rd time I've see Gary so some of his show was repeated. SOme of it was new. Still funny! :rotfl2:

After the show I took my daughter to the High School Musical party crammed into the Promenade Lounge. We danced our hearts our and when they asked for someone to sing Gabriella my daughter was picked. She was so excited!! Hey jsfein (and Karen...if you're reading :wave2: ) we almost had a match!! As we were dancing our hearts out I saw someone that I had seen earlier in the day who looked so familiar to me. I decided to finally say something. It drives my dh crazy when I go up to people who look familiar to me...but he wasn't around and I knew that I knew this person!!

I approached her and she was so nice. I went onto this trip trying to find a fellow diser Amy (who also lived in Sayreville) and thought this might be her.
We tried to figure out how we knew each other. Couldn't figure it out so we dropped it. Towards the end of the party we reconnected and thought some more. FINALLY!!! we figured it out. She was (or is it still is???) my sister-in-law's little sister from college (Rutgers..go RU!!!) The last time I saw her was 11 years ago! I'm so glad we figured it out because it would have driven me nuts!!!

Later I found out that she was jsfein's wife!!! Smaller world...I'll explain that story later.

But that was the end of the day. No Blonde Giraffe, No Coach merchandise, No David Yurman! But my daughter got to be Gabrielle and I got to know who the familiar face was!

Ski-and-Sea

11-26-2006, 01:33 PM

just curious......how old were the guys that got kicked off the ship? College age, older?

Suzy Mouse

11-26-2006, 03:03 PM

I'd say they were in their early 20s. I"m not that good at ages.

Any clue to who they were?

jsfein

11-26-2006, 05:17 PM

No need to worry...I"ll be back there in 2 years and will leave the frugalness on the ship!

When do you plan on returning? We rebooked a fake date with intentions for Jersey Week 2008.

Suzy Mouse

11-26-2006, 06:32 PM

We're looking at Thanksgiving 2008. We booked as far as we could (April 2008)but as soon as the dates open up we're in!

JDBlair

11-26-2006, 09:40 PM

Your TR is great! Thank you for sharing it. I'm really excited for you and can't wait to hear more!

pppiglet

11-26-2006, 11:47 PM

I like your report too. (and you don't keep us hanging too long!)

love2travel

12-03-2006, 07:09 PM

SuzyMouse, where are you???? We are all waiting for you to finish your TR.

Suzy Mouse

12-04-2006, 09:14 PM

It was falling down the page. I didn't think people were reading it..therefore I wasn't rushing. I'll continue shortly!!!

Thanks Teresa!

Bee

12-05-2006, 01:54 AM

I am reading it also!! :rotfl: :banana:

kaceyisme

12-05-2006, 10:38 AM

I've been reading from the start! Can't wait to hear more!

cheysdad

12-05-2006, 12:52 PM

Looks like your fan base is growing, better hurry up.

JDBlair

12-05-2006, 11:07 PM

I'm reading and waiting! It's off to a great start. Can't wait to hear how the rest of your trip goes!!!

Fairy_Tale_Bride

12-05-2006, 11:07 PM

popcorn::

DisVillainFan

12-08-2006, 09:53 PM

YoHOO Susan..oops I mean SuzANNE..Where are you?? Your taking longer than they did to solve the DiVinci Code..grab a cup of coffee :coffee: and lets get rolling..OK. I need some closure here. :hourglass

Disney owl

12-10-2006, 02:16 PM

thanks for sharing

Suzy Mouse

12-12-2006, 12:05 PM

Hey Kenneth/Kenny and other readers

I'll have to postpone my trip report for a while as I'm wrapped up in so many holiday activities. I promise I'll return with more...hopefully I'll remember it!!!
SOOOOOO sorry!

love2travel

12-12-2006, 02:04 PM

SuzyMouse, it was great hearing from you!

Happy Holidays to you and your family!

snelsonbrown

12-12-2006, 02:49 PM

Hello SuzyMouse,
I have often thought about you and how the trip went with your dad - I am so glad to hear that everything went as well as it could go.
Keep in touch ok whenever you have the chance.
Much love always
Shirley

DisVillainFan

12-12-2006, 03:42 PM

Hey, SuzyMouse, just joshin', I'm just happy to hear from you, hope your holiday prep. goes great, and I am looking forward to a post holiday get together. I'm lucky, being a typical husband, to let the DW do most of the shopping, so I get off pretty easy. "E"ed with mike last night we were both missing the tropics. Hope you and yours have a beautiful Holiday and get not only what you want but what you deserve, Tell Howard I said he should spoil you.
Hope you can remember enough to satisfy us all, :confused3 , if not make it up, I'll back ya all the way.
This is for Shirley, thanks for the absolutely fantastic basket/gifts you made up, you and your gang rock :cheer2: .
To all our cruise mates from the 11/04 voyage, for me it truely was Magical on board and I can't wait to repeat. LovYa Guys, Ken ::cop: ::cop:

love2travel

12-29-2006, 04:22 PM

Hey Suzymouse, hope you and your family enjoyed the holidays!! We wish you nothing but the best in 2007!:grouphug:

Now please finish your trip report, we're looking forward to it!!! :)

mruhaak

12-29-2006, 04:41 PM

popcorn::

I'm waiting too...

ejkjmom

12-30-2006, 01:46 AM

Hi Suzymouse, I'm enjoying your trip report:thumbsup2

Just curious about the High School Musical.... my girls love that movie, seen it more time then I can remember....do you think they will still have this in March, as that is when we will be on the MAGIC....

What exactly do they do???

Thistle

12-30-2006, 10:59 AM

I went on a cruise and came back and still no more updates!! I waited the whole cruise just knowing there would be more reports when I got back! :) Just kidding, life does take precident doesn't it. Hope your holidays were fabulous.... and can't wait for more of your report.

We got a little something extra on this trip. The bar staff made us their family of the day and left a bottle of champagne in our room. I guess we were drinking enough they felt we needed a reward! We shared it with everyone on Christmas eve, it was such a nice warm feeling being with everyone.

love2travel

01-10-2007, 01:06 PM

Hello SuzyMouse, Where are you??? We are waiting!!!

Suzy Mouse

01-16-2007, 11:11 AM

Ok..guess I've been away for too long when I can't remember where I left off. I'll be back soon when I have notes in front of me. I realize that I have to tell you about the day I saved a kid's life!! Oh boy...another cliff hanger!!

Hi Suzymouse, I'm enjoying your trip report:thumbsup2

Just curious about the High School Musical.... my girls love that movie, seen it more time then I can remember....do you think they will still have this in March, as that is when we will be on the MAGIC....

What exactly do they do???

I definitely think they'll have this in March. It's cute but I think they need to have a bigger area to do this. The kids were taught some dance moves to "We're all in this together". Then they had picked children to sing the parts of Gabrielle and Troy. They gave out prizes to "the best of" as well. It's been a while so I hope I'm remembering correctly.

Fast story as to why I'm here. My friend, the one my mom sent me for my birthday, was over yesterday and was telling me about her trip. I showed her the dis boards and she was shocked that all of these people were here and that this site actually existed! She loved looking at the pictures and was upset that she missed the opportunity to meet people before the cruise.

Anyway...she left on the 26th on the Magic for a 4 day trip. Her flight was the same day as the cruise...something I don't prefer to do....The flight was originally planned for 9:30. When she got to the airport they informed her that her flight was changed to 11:30..out of NY. Ok she's freaking out thinking that she's going to miss the cruise...but figures they have a chance. Then when they were waiting to take off an announcement came on the speaker that they had to wait an hour before they were taking off. OK...now she knows she's going to miss the cruise. She called Disney and got a mean lady on the phone who was telling her she wasn't going to make it.

She got to Fl at 3:30 and they told her to jump on the bus. She got to the ship in time but her luggage wasn't there. They said it would be there in the am. The next day they told her it would be there by 8:00 am. Well it didn't come until 5:00pm and that's because she complained and complained and the desk manager finally went to get it himself. SOmething about luggage not accompanying the passengers on the ship. They were in Nassau when he got it somehow.

Could you imagine starting your trip this way???I always suggest to go down a day earlier!!! (She couldn't because it was Christmas day)

I'll be back soon!!

love2travel

01-16-2007, 11:44 AM

Welcome back!!!! Can't wait to hear the rest!!!!

love2travel

01-29-2007, 03:57 PM

SuzyMouse, oh SuzyMouse, where did you go??? We are all waiting for you to finish your report!!!

Suzy Mouse

02-10-2007, 12:53 PM

Ok...the PRESSURE is on. As I sit down with love2travel, Chey'sdad and Disvillianfan tomorrow I'm sure I'll be getting in trouble for not posting something here....so thank them for my report today...I hate guilt!!!

so where did I leave off???? MONDAY??? Ah I'm so far behind!!!

Ok...brunch was panned for Palos with Toby and Dad. After exercising in the morning (had to get some calories off before loading them on!!) I got breakfast for the kids and brought it back to the room. They ate outside on the veranda...what a treat!!! We dropped the little ones off at camp while we went upstairs for a delicious Palos brunch. Dad and DH we wearing jackets but we noticed that others were getting away with short sleeve button down shirts. One man actually tried to get in wearing dress pants and a tank shirt. He was sent back tohis room to change...but they allowed his wife to enter wearing shorts and a tank???Don't understand that one!!!

It was nice to eat with the adults and not have to worry about the little ones. We stuffed orselves silly with all of the delicacies. I feel it's so worth the small amount of money to dine on the ocean in style!!!

Afterwards, we stuffed ourselves into our bathing suits and grabbed the kids out of the clubs. I actually started to miss them!!!! We went to the pool and just hung out. DD grabbed daddy to enter a contest. It was a dance contest and while I think my hot little number deserved 1st place the crowd rooted on someone they felt deserved it more. Guess they don't have good taste!!!

The water in the pool was extremel wavey and it was fun to capture my son going up and down with the waves (Don't know how to insert pictures...but they're funny!)

It was time for formal night and I love getting dressed up. My hot little number of a dancer donned his tuxedo and I put on my sequent gown. We looked cute!! We did the picture thing and headed for dinner in Lumiere's...a great place for formal night. We selected this night to celebrate our dd's birthday and they brought us a delicious chocolate mousse cake..which we clearly didn't need!!!

Afterwards dd and I headed to the golden Mickey's. She always tries to get there first so that she can be one of the dwarfs in the show. She did it a few years back but has been unsucccessful ever since.

While waiting in line this elderly woman came up to me and started to talk to me. She complimented my gown and stood next to me. When I looked behind me I realized the long line that she was trying to avoid by pretending to know me. How funny was she!!

I sat down in my seat and saved a few. DD was still out there trying to get in the show. Well they started the red carpets and I look up at the screen to see Rona Rivers interviewing my daughter! My dd told her it was her birthday and the entire auditorium started singing happy birthday to her. She didn't get to go on stage..but I think she made out better this way!!!

After the show the kids went back to camp and we headed to the Golden Mickeys After Party with LIVE and Gary DeLena. Gary is hysterical!! I have to admit I was quite nervous sitting near Dis Villian Fan. He is the type of person who loves attention while we tend to shy away from comedians...especially the mister!!! Ken (DVF) behaved himself. phew!!!

After a close call of an evening with the comedian we picked up the kids and headed to the room to call it a night. Tomorrow Grand Caymen calls for us!!

Just a side note for those writing trip reports...digital cameras and personal navigators on hand makes it extremely easier to remember what you did months ago!!!

Hope you enjoyed!!!

(I look forward to seeing my buddies tomorrow!!!!)

love2travel

02-10-2007, 02:05 PM

We looking forward to see you guys too!!! Come on....finish that trip report!!!

plutospup

02-11-2007, 03:31 PM

Thanks for continuing your TR -it's great! We enjoy hearing about your DD11's activities, since our DD will be 11 on our next Magic cruise.

jns

02-11-2007, 11:07 PM

just found this report
looking forward to hearing more

Suzy Mouse

02-13-2007, 02:24 PM

Before I begin I forgot to include in my last installment that We receive a few goodies from gest services. they included: Tickets for "Tea with Wendy" a Castaway package for Castaway Cay, arcade cards for the kids and a dessert tray to snack on in the late afternoon.

Tuesday...Grand Cayman

We decided to hit seven mile beach on our own. We figured after we hit shore we would grab a cab and just head down to the beach. Last year we did the tour and we didn't find the need in doing it again. I wanted the white sand at my feet. Instead I had puddles!!!

As we were tendering over we could see the threatening clouds heading towards us. We decided to brave it and as soon as we stepped down on land the rain came down... in buckets...BIG ONES!!!! We did a little shopping to pass some time. All that gave us were bigger puddles to jump over(or in my son's case INTO!)

We waited a few minutes and debated what to do. Head back to the ship and save the day somewhat or wait and see if the clouds passed and go to the beach. We decided to go back to the ship. As we were tendering back the clouds rolled away and the sun came out. I could sware it was laughing at us!

As we were on the ship we were able to see the beautiful white sand of Seven mile beach. Yes we could have went...but the empty ship at that point was just as welcoming. Next time...I'll have that sand at my feet!

We headed to the pool and the kids hit the Mickey slide. The kids later went to camp and hubby and I hit the adult pool. Mickey and Minnie came strolling around and I was able to get a picture of DH with Minnie for a frame I was making on the cruise. It was DH's 40th birthday and I brought a matte on board and had left it at guest services for the characters to sign. So I needed a specific picture to put in the frame. So when Dh was in his bathing suit and Minnie came strolling around I figured it was the perfect opportunity.
The frame came out perfect and was a huge surprise for him.

In the afternoon, I took my dd to get her hair wrap. Why the girls love to torture themselves like that I'll never understand...it did come out cute though! While she was getting torture DS wanted to go to the arcade to spend his money. Boy does it go quick!

We headed back to the room and napped a little on the veranda. Dad and Toby took the kids to dinner and we headed to Palos for Dinner. We had requested Florencia again because she was so wonderful from brunch. What a sweet lady I love hearing their stories and she shared so much with us.

Dad brought the kids to see Sorcerer Mickey (his favorite). All trip I was looking for the right picture of the kids that I could use for my holiday cards. I needed something with a string. I thought about Pinocchio but he sang "I've Got NO Strings" so that wasn't good. (My holiday cards said, "The best gifts in life are tied with heart strings" and you needed to pull a string to open it) ok enough of that. When we finally went to go look at the pictures with Mickey I was sooo excited!!! Sorcerer Mickey had a gold string tied around his waist!!! PERFECT!!!!

Gifts today from guest services included a fruit platter and the hidden Mickey challenge.

love2travel

02-13-2007, 03:01 PM

It was so great seeing you guys the other day! I am loving your trip report, please keep going!

love2travel

03-24-2007, 04:21 PM

SuzyMouse, everybody is waiting for you to come back and finish your TR.
PLEASE, PRETTY PLEASE!!!:rotfl2:

DisVillainFan

03-24-2007, 09:13 PM

Suzy who???:confused3

pppiglet

03-24-2007, 11:47 PM

subscribing!

love2travel

04-06-2007, 04:11 PM

Ok, so how many people want SuzyMouse to finish her trip report...I do, I do.
Please come back and finish. :)

DisVillainFan

04-08-2007, 11:07 PM

Ok, so how many people want SuzyMouse to finish her trip report...I do, I do.
Please come back and finish. :)

Where are you Suzy Mouse????::cop: ::cop: Time for the man hunt, OK Suzy Mouse hunt, call out the hounds!!pluto: Nope that won't work.:stitch: :stitch: :stitch: Thats better!!

MagicMe

04-09-2007, 07:26 PM

I'm loving your trip report but you do tend to take a lot of time off in-between installments!!!:lmao:

Five months after a four day cruise and still not finished :confused3

Guess I'll just have to wait.....popcorn::

JDBlair

04-14-2007, 10:22 PM

Ok, so how many people want SuzyMouse to finish her trip report...I do, I do.
Please come back and finish. :)

ME!!!!!!!!!!

LindaBabe

04-15-2007, 11:53 AM

I'm reading too, but rarely post because I'd rather read trip report than scroll through pages of comments - color me cranky ;-) It's a terrific report and I can't wait for more of it!

Suzy Mouse

04-16-2007, 10:35 AM

Well here I go....continuing with Wednesday...Cozumel....well that's where we were supposed to go.

We kept tryinng to figure out what to do once we docked in Cozumel. Everyone we asked gave us different opinions. We asked a friend at guest services and she suggested we take a ferry over to Playa del Carmen. I had always wanted to go there so I was pretty game for it.

We headed off the ship with our drinks, towels, sunscreen and $$$....remind me to tell you to bring extra "just in case". We found our way over to the ferry and purchased our tickets. I think 1 way for for of us was $30. not bad...actually it was probably more now that I think about it. The schedule was extremely difficult to read because it was 2 sided and it seemed that the ferry made trips from each side every 2 hours. Not great!

On the ferry there was a smell that we couldn't escape. My dd started to feel yucky :sick: and I was worrying. My dh kept looking at me with the "What the heck are we thinking doing this" kind of look. I felt that on the inside but didn't let him know it....actually the only way he'll ever know is if he reads this or if our friends tell him...(Keep your mouths shut!!!):rolleyes1

We finally made it there (30 minutes later) :boat: and saw other people with Pluto stickers pluto: on their shirt...so at least there was an excursion going on there from the cruise. We found a quiet beach with some umbrellas and lounge chairs which we proceeded to sit on. A man came over and charged us $20 to use them. My dd has fair skin ad gets headaches easily so we splurged. By now she was feeling better and I think DH was too. It was weird seeing te ship soooooo far away.

We played in the water...tried to divert our ds's (7) attention away from the topless sunbathers :beach: . Come to think of it I had to do that with dh as well :headache: nah...he's not like that! I felt creeped out by the male sunbathers. So I didn't really get up from the chair. I felt much better once they left.

We stayed there for a while and I went to go back to buy return passes. The ferry we traveled across with wasn't returning until much later. So i had to go with another ferry company. I thought I was going to have to buy round trips because it didn't seem like they posted one way prices. So of course I started to panic that 1 the ferry company would dock somewhere farther from our ship and 2 we wouldn't have enough money....remember always bring more than you think you'll need!!

It turned out that we could buy 1 way tickets and we did have enough money...would have made for a great story if we didn't right?? So we packed up and returned to the ship..another long ferry ride...kids fell asleep. We decided to go on top and there were these HUGE bugs which I'm sure would sting us if they felt like it!:scared:

The ferry docked exactly where we wanted it to and we proceeded to go aboard the ship. We grabbed something to eat and rested at the pool.

Headed back to the room and dressed for Pirate Night. pirate: upon our return there was a cheese platter waiting for us from guest services. Now I love dressing up but I have to tell you that I was extremely disappointed that not many people were dressed up! We had fun and we got to see Jack Sparrow...he was great! Took some pictures and headed to dinner...DELICIOUS!!!

After dinner I headed up the the deck 10 to claim my favorite spot for pirate night. DD played with her friends below and had a great time. The show was different than in the past. It was still good just a few changes. I'm curious to see how long they'll continue with it.

After the show we loaded up our plates at the buffet and brought them back to the room. Just a tip...load up on the gold coins and put them in the kids lunches when you return home! We headed out on the veranda and ate some more!!

Long day..time for bed!!
Next up is Thursday...Dh and I separate for the evening...and more goodies come our way.