2nd Anniversary + 2nd Chances = Our 2nd Cruise! 7/20 NEWS!!

[cblack]

Congratulations on finding out you are having a boy! The memories of finding out what gender our baby was are still very clear in my mind and that was 2 1/2 years ago!

 

[pamcarey]

Congratulations on finding out that your baby is a boy! Sounds like you had a great time at Palo.

 

[IceSk8ersMom]

Congratulations! Thank you for sharing your first picture of your son.

Great Report! I am totally subscribing. We are going on a cruise in December. My husband and I will be enjoying the Rasul. I cannot wait.

 

[myolite]

Congratulations on finding out it's a boy!!!

 

[Jennifer48]

Congratulations on the boy!!

I'm glad to hear they made that couple return to change. They don't make them do that in the regular restaurants though and I wish they would. Otherwise, why have a dress code?

to that CM! I can't believe he said that to you!

 

[anetnmike]

Congrats on a baby boy! I've got 2, not babies anymore, but boys love their mommas Obviously he is a little athlete already with all of the motion in there!

I agree with the other poster and am also amazed at what people wear in the dining rooms for dinner

We also love watching movies and snackin late at nite! Room service rocks!

 

[DisneyCruiser83]

Ohhh, I come back from a mini-vacation to find out your excellent news! CONGRATULATIONS!!!
Your night sounds like a great way to start the cruise, I am sure it just gets better from here. I can't wait to read more!

 

[ariel1025]

A boy! Congratulations!

Thank you so much!

SUPER excited for you guys and your baby boy! Congratulations! Nothing like a Mama's boy

Thanks

Congratulations on finding out you are having a boy! The memories of finding out what gender our baby was are still very clear in my mind and that was 2 1/2 years ago!

Thank you! I can't imagine ever forgetting that feeling

Congratulations on finding out that your baby is a boy! Sounds like you had a great time at Palo.

Thanks! We truly did enjoy our meal at Palo

Congratulations! Thank you for sharing your first picture of your son.

Great Report! I am totally subscribing. We are going on a cruise in December. My husband and I will be enjoying the Rasul. I cannot wait.

Thanks Super exciting about your upcoming cruise! Will you be doing a trip reprot?

Congratulations on finding out it's a boy!!!

Thank you!

Congratulations on the boy!!

I'm glad to hear they made that couple return to change. They don't make them do that in the regular restaurants though and I wish they would. Otherwise, why have a dress code?

to that CM! I can't believe he said that to you!

I agree about the dress code. I really enjoy breaking the norm and getting dressed up now and again. But it does take the fun out of it when others don't join in

Congrats on a baby boy! I've got 2, not babies anymore, but boys love their mommas Obviously he is a little athlete already with all of the motion in there!

I agree with the other poster and am also amazed at what people wear in the dining rooms for dinner

We also love watching movies and snackin late at nite! Room service rocks!

Thank you so much Room service quickly became our best friend

Ohhh, I come back from a mini-vacation to find out your excellent news! CONGRATULATIONS!!!
Your night sounds like a great way to start the cruise, I am sure it just gets better from here. I can't wait to read more!

Thank you! Palo definitely was a great way to start the cruise. As much as we look forward to the regular dining rooms, there's something extra special about starting off at Palo

 

[paceyswife]

Congrats on your baby boy... I have two (2 and 5) and they were always quite active throughout the pregnancies and I was on bedrest with both. Hope that you are doing better yourself. What a wonderful time for you and your husband!

 

[Mommy Poppins]

Loving your trip report!

Congrats on your baby boy! As another poster stated, boys love their mommies!

 

[Goldeelox9]

I loved your last TR...I am drawn to TRs with good pictures... Can't wait to hear more!

Congratulations on the Baby Boy!!!

 

[hlrababy]

Yay for a sweet boy!!!!!!!!

 

[ariel1025]

Congrats on your baby boy... I have two (2 and 5) and they were always quite active throughout the pregnancies and I was on bedrest with both. Hope that you are doing better yourself. What a wonderful time for you and your husband!

Thank you!! I am doing better for the most part. After I was released from bed rest from my back injury I returned to work, only to catch Strep Throat from a co-worker and went straight back to bed UGH! Hopefully all the "ickies" are behind me now

Loving your trip report!

Congrats on your baby boy! As another poster stated, boys love their mommies!

Thank you so much

I loved your last TR...I am drawn to TRs with good pictures... Can't wait to hear more!

Congratulations on the Baby Boy!!!

Thanks for jumping in on this TR

Yay for a sweet boy!!!!!!!!

Thank you, thank you!!!

 

[ariel1025]

Monday, May 31, 2010: Castaway Cay Day!

Today we were up and at 'em at the bright and early time of 10:30 a.m.

We knew that we had two stops at Disney's beautiful private island and we knew we wouldn't last outside in the heat all day. So, we figured there wasn't any point in setting a super early alarm clock and rushing off the ship

After waking up we got ready for a fun-filled, relaxing day and slowly made our way off the ship. Since we were up so late there wasn't a line to exit and we were quickly greeted by the warm, beautiful Castaway Cay sunshine!

Today's plan was much like most others on this cruise, walk along and decide what to do along the way

We debated grabbing the tram to Serenity Bay, but both decided we wanted to do something more adventurous than lounge in a hammock or swim around the ocean. So we kept on walking just enjoying the surroundings. Castaway Cay is such a fun and peaceful place to be. The sounds of the music, the kids, the ocean waves .... pure and utter bliss!

After walking for a while we saw it ... we had discussed doing it before we left and decided it was the definite plan for the day ....

Bike tour around Castaway Cay baby!!!! We filled out the forms, were given instructions to return the bikes to any of the equipment stands in an hour "Bahamian time" and then they pointed us in the direction of the bikes and helmets and showed us the bike paths on the map.

Now, I have a confession to make ... this was the first time I had been on a bicycle since I was a freshman in high school .... over a decade ago ... in 1997 ... and I suddenly became slightly scared .... like legs wobbling and arms shaking scared

Luckily, Candi was laughing so hard at me he didn't even notice that it took us a good 20 minutes to get from the bike stand to the start of the bike path

We won't stop and mention that this was probably only 5 minutes away or the fact that at least half a dozen children went speeding past me on their bicycles

However, once I realized that it really is true that you never forget to learn how to ride a bike, all was well in the world and I was ready to conquer the island!

We all know how fantastic Disney is at their theming and the bike path was not any different. We really took our time riding around, enjoying the scenery, talking and laughing with each other and, of course, taking pictures.

Thank goodness they didn't actually enforce the one hour rental rule, because I'm pretty sure we had been riding around for close to that amount of time before we were parking our bikes for our first stop.

The observation tower!

We had decided ahead of time that when we came to the fork in the bike path we would head in this direction, just in case either one of us got too hungry or too tired to continue on after the first path was completed. We spent plenty of time on the observation tower enjoying our surroundings. It was absolutely breathtaking to see the island from end to end. And very neat to see the island that had been completed and the island that was still left in "nature's form."

The entire time we were up on top of the observation deck we only saw one other couple. I'm not sure if we picked a great time to explore or if many people don't do this, but we really enjoyed the alone time in such a peaceful setting. After a while we made our way back down to our bikes and decided we would ride the other path and then turn in our bikes to grab some lunch.

The second path pretty much went in a loop that lead you back to where you entered the bike path. We did this one quite a bit quicker just enjoying acting like a kid again!

If you haven't already guessed, we give the bike rentals two great, big thumbs up It was definitely money well spent, for only $6.00 per hour per person, and in our case they didn't even stick to the one hour rental! It was a great way to spend our afternoon, we got to see different parts of the island, got to enjoy a childhood favorite past time and were lucky enough to be alone for most of the time which made it even more memorable. The theming of the paths were fantastic and there were several water coolers along the way so that you could remain hydrated. The only "downer" was Candi's bike was super squeaky and needed oiled; however, we could have just changed out his bike and simply chose not too. If you are considering this "excursion" I say you should definitely do it!

 

[native ears]

Enjoying your report. The bike ride will be added to my "to do" list. Cant wait for what's next.

 

[DisneyCruiser83]

I was on the fence about renting bikes at Castaway Cay, but it looks like you had so much fun! I really want to check out other parts of CC. Thanks for posting your pictures!

 

[SoonerGirl]

Hi Shannon. I just found your TR today, I'm obsessively perusing the cruise TR board looking for good reports since I'm starting to plan our first cruise for next summer. I'm so glad I found yours, your report is very entertaining and full of great information - thanks so much for writing it!

And a great big congratulations on your baby boy! I'm the mother of two boys and while they can test your patience and be awfully loud and boisterous, I wouldn't trade them for the world. Not to mention, boys love their momma's!

 

[anetnmike]

Love the pictures- they are beautiful! Castaway is my absolute favorite part of the cruise We have yet to try the bikes but it looks like you guys really enjoyed them. Maybe it's something to consider
Hope you are feeling good

 

[IceSk8ersMom]

Great pictures of Castaway Cay! It looks like you had a blast. Did you have to reserve the bikes ahead of time?
I is a good idea not to rush off the ship, but I am one of those people who are always rushing. I just hope I can really get into vacation mode this time around.

Trip Report? I do not know. We sail in less than two months, and I cannot wait.

How are you feeling?

 

[ariel1025]

Enjoying your report. The bike ride will be added to my "to do" list. Cant wait for what's next.

Thank you

I was on the fence about renting bikes at Castaway Cay, but it looks like you had so much fun! I really want to check out other parts of CC. Thanks for posting your pictures!

Thanks for reading. I think you will really enjoy the bike ride

Hi Shannon. I just found your TR today, I'm obsessively perusing the cruise TR board looking for good reports since I'm starting to plan our first cruise for next summer. I'm so glad I found yours, your report is very entertaining and full of great information - thanks so much for writing it!

And a great big congratulations on your baby boy! I'm the mother of two boys and while they can test your patience and be awfully loud and boisterous, I wouldn't trade them for the world. Not to mention, boys love their momma's!

Thanks for all the compliments! What itinerary are you cruising?

Love the pictures- they are beautiful! Castaway is my absolute favorite part of the cruise We have yet to try the bikes but it looks like you guys really enjoyed them. Maybe it's something to consider
Hope you are feeling good

Castaway is definitely our favorite part of cruising as well! I don't think we will ever do the Bahama itinerary without the double dip

Great pictures of Castaway Cay! It looks like you had a blast. Did you have to reserve the bikes ahead of time?
I is a good idea not to rush off the ship, but I am one of those people who are always rushing. I just hope I can really get into vacation mode this time around.

Trip Report? I do not know. We sail in less than two months, and I cannot wait.

How are you feeling?

You can reserve the bikes ahead of time, but we didn't. They have hundreds of bikes so I wouldn't ever be worried about them not having any available