A “Wonder”ful Spring Break in the Mexican Riviera 3/30-4/9/12 (in progress)

[sarahmarie]

Hi everyone!

I tend to be a lurker on the boards, but since I wanted to create a personal journal of my recent trip on the Wonder to Mexico, I thought I’d also post it here in case it’s of any help or interest to anyone else.

First things first, let me introduce myself. I’m Sarah. I live in the greater Seattle area, work at an elementary school, have never been married and have no kids. In my free time, I like to read, knit, crochet, and scrapbook. I love to travel both nationally and internationally, and have taken a lot of trips (even as an adult) with my parents and (adult) brother. I’ve been to Disneyland 6 times (3 times as a kid, 3 times since graduating college) and once to Epcot (all that I’ve seen of WDW). The only cruise I’ve ever been on was a one day, 2-night (non-Disney) cruise to the Bahamas when I was 18. It wasn’t long enough to really get a feel for cruising, so I don’t really count it.

Here’s me on vacation last summer at Crater Lake:

This trip made possible by my best friend Jess (known on the DIS as mom2aidanNpiper – she’s on top of things and has already completed her trip report). I went on this trip to take care of Jess's two kids: Aidan (turned 11 on the trip) and Piper (recently turned 7), so that Jess and her new husband, Matt, could enjoy their honeymoon without needing to take care of their kids full time. Jess and I have been best friends since high school (where I also met Matt, although we were more of acquaintances than friends).

Jess and I in high school on our very first vacation together (a school theater trip to Ashland, Oregon):

I’ve known Jess' kids since they were each born, and I’m like a godmother/aunt to them, as I’ve been the most constant adult presence in their lives other than their mom.

Here’s me with Piper the day she was born:

And the oldest picture I could find of me with both kids – in 2006 right before Aidan started kindergarten (age 5) and Piper was 17 months old.

Present day: Matt, Jess, Aidan & Piper

Trip Itinerary (will update with links as I post entries):
(Background on the trip)
Pre-Trip Nannying: Sunday, March 25: Jess & Matt leave for Hawaii to get married
Day 1: Friday, March 30: Fly with Aidan and Piper to California to meet up with Jess & Matt (flying in from their wedding in Hawaii); check into our villa at Disney’s Grand Californian
Day 2: Sat. March 31: Disneyland
Day 3: Sun. Apr 1: Disneyland for Magic Morning, then embark on the cruise
Day 4: Mon. April 2: Sea Day (Palo Tea booked)
Day 5: Tues. April 3: Sea Day (Palo brunch)
Day 5: Wed. April 4: Puerto Vallarta (Las Caletas)
Day 7: Thurs. April 5: Cabo San Lucas
Day 8: Fri. April 6: Cabo San Lucas
Day 9: Sat. April 7: Sea Day
Day 10: Sun. April 8: Disembark; back to Disneyland
Day 11: Mon. April 9: Morning at Disneyland, then fly home.

 

[sarahmarie]

So as I mentioned, the reason I was on the trip was basically to be a nanny for my friend Jess on her honeymoon.

Jess and Matt got engaged in December of 2010, and decided they wanted to do a destination wedding that was just the two of them, so I volunteered to stay home with the kids so they could have some quality alone time (a real rarity for them). I occasionally have the kids spend the night at my house, and I’ve stayed with them at their house a couple times. In the past, the longest I’ve watched the kids on my own was 2 nights/3 days.

Initially Jess & Matt thought about being gone for 10 days, but they decided that was too long to be away from the kids, but not a long enough vacation…so the decision was made to do a two-part wedding/honeymoon. Matt & Jess would spend 5 days alone in Hawaii to get married, and then the kids and I would meet up with them to do a Mexican Riviera cruise for a week. We’re booked in category 5B cabins (verandahs) on deck 6, midship. Jess and Matt are in one room (6550), the kids and I are in another (6556) three doors down the hall. That way we can all do things together during the day, but the newlyweds don’t have to deal with the kids at night .

Here’s where Jess & Matt will stay in Hawaii:

Since the cruise leaves from California, we decided that we couldn’t be in the LA area and not do Disneyland! We’re all arriving in LA on Friday, March 30th, but at different times – Jess & Matt arriving from Hawaii in the afternoon (giving them time to do the parks that day), the kids and I flying down after I get off work and arriving in the late evening. Jess rented DVC points for us to all stay in a 1 bedroom villa at the Grand. I’m excited about staying there – I’ve never stayed on-property before, and the Grand seems like a really nice place to stay.

We also planned to go to Disneyland after disembarking on Sunday and staying that night at HoJos – but as you’ll find out, those plans changed for the better

Next up: Quick summary of my pre-trip week with the kids.

 

[pixarmom]

Hi Sarah! Great start to your report! We'll be on the Wonder to Alaska with our three boys (ages 5, 11 and 12) this summer, and while your MR experience will be different in many ways, I'm really looking forward to hearing about the ship and your time with the kids!

 

[sarahmarie]

Hi Sarah! Great start to your report! We'll be on the Wonder to Alaska with our three boys (ages 5, 11 and 12) this summer, and while your MR experience will be different in many ways, I'm really looking forward to hearing about the ship and your time with the kids!

Hi!

Glad you've enjoyed what I've written so far - I'd hoped to put up my next entry today, but I ran into difficulties uploading pictures. Should get it up tomorrow, and then hopefully this weekend I'll get to the actual cruise part of things.

I will say that the kids LOVED the cruise. This was their 3rd time on the Wonder, and they didn't want to get off. Hopefully your boys will feel the same way

 

[sarahmarie]

Sunday morning came early – I arrived at Jess’s house at 6 am (latte in hand) to see her and Matt off. We went over a few last minute details, and they left around 6:25. The kids were up already, and Piper was having a hard time with them leaving We all had a low-key start to the day and watched Happy Feet 2. Piper and I played with play-doh for a while as well while Aidan played Wii, and then we went over to my house for most of the morning so the kids could play there and I could finish gathering my things for the stay at their house and then the upcoming cruise trip. Both kids played with my old marble toy, Aidan and I battled it out on Mario Kart Wii, and Piper and I assembled Goofy on my old Lite-Brite. The weather was decent, so we went over to the playground at the school I work at for about an hour too. Then the afternoon rolled around, and time slowed to a crawl. Piper and I did two more Lite-Brite designs (Dumbo & a horse); Aidan played more video games. Piper and I colored; Aidan sulked because I wouldn't let him play video games any longer, and he was bored.

Throughout the day, Piper mentioned missing her mom & dad about every half hour or so, but she seemed to be having fun even while missing them. She refused to play on her own all day, and kept begging me to actually play with her (being in the same room wasn’t enough). She also occasionally would say that she was having a bad day, or that it was a rough day, but she held it together. Aidan had a few instances of typical moodiness - he was bored, and he really wanted to go ride his scooter with some of his friends and sulked because I wouldn't let him because we had to go run a few errands.

Piper and I talked with her mom after dinner, and then at bedtime she started getting upset again, saying she missed her mom. She then claimed she had both an upset stomach & sore throat, and needed to go to grandma's tomorrow instead of school. I didn't buy it - I figured she's just basically missing her mom, and a little anxious about what the week will be like. Once she experiences a normal school day with a normal routine, I thought she'll be fine.

The rest of the week went well. Mornings went pretty smoothly, kids were good about getting up and dressed without too much prompting. Neither kid got sick (which had been a huge concern, since Jess had the stomach flu right before she left). Piper would mention missing her mom and dad several times a day, but it was always said matter-of-factly rather than in the complaining tone she’d had the first day.

Evenings were busy with homework, dinner, showers, and play time. Kids were really excited on their mom & Matt’s wedding day – and loved seeing pictures they posted on Facebook of things they were doing. Each evening Piper and I would chat with Jess – usually on Skype. Aidan refused each night, saying he didn’t want to talk to his mom until he could see her in person. Every night after the kids were in bed I’d work on getting myself ready for the vacation (kids were already packed).

Monday evening we spent playing over at my house again. Tuesday was really busy, as we talked with Jess as she was getting ready to get married and then after dinner went to my parents’ house for cake and ice cream to celebrate my mom’s birthday. The kids have met my parents a couple of times before, and they’ve played over there several times with me when my parents weren’t around, so they were excited to see my parents and have a birthday party at their house. Piper, who is normally shy and reserved in public, chatted with both my parents easily and didn’t show any signs of anxiety at all, so that was good. The kids had fun playing with some of the old toys my parents still keep around (a Fisher Price castle and a Brio train set being the main attractions). I thought they seemed a little wound up and hyper, but my mom thought they were fine, so that’s good. It was definitely a different sort of birthday for her! Piper had insisted that birthday cakes need sprinkles on them, so we added red, white, & blue sprinkles (the only ones I could find at Jess’ house last minute). My mom’s traditional birthday cake is usually topped with chopped nuts, so it was a very different looking cake than usual. And we put the cake on a Disney Princess plate of Piper’s, because she thought the cake needed a special plate.

Wednesday evening was the roughest – Aidan had a hard day at school getting his work finished, and Piper was in a cranky mood. I think both of them were just really missing their mom, and the novelty of me taking care of them was wearing off.

Thursday evening both kids were excited because it was the last night before vacation. Piper was really hyper, and was literally bouncing off the walls (trying to do a headstand).

And then Friday rolled around! The day our vacation would start! (Well, after a day of work & school).


Some more photos from the week:

 

[sarahmarie]

Today is the day! Kids both woke up in great moods, and got ready easily on their own. The school I teach at had a half day, so I got off work at 1:00 and picked Aidan and Piper up from school a little early at 2:00 to give them time to change clothes and gather up last minute items for the trip. Shuttle Express was scheduled to pick us up between 2:40 and 3:00, and we were all ready by 2:20, and we waited…and waited…and waited. 3:00 rolls around, and I get a phone call saying that our driver is running late, but will be there in 10 minutes – and we’re the only people, so no other stops to make. The stated 10 minutes comes…and goes. No shuttle. I’m starting to panic – I was worried about long lines both to check our bags and at security on a Friday afternoon, I’d checked traffic and it was starting to get bad, and then there was always the risk of a hold-up at security if there were questions about me flying with the kids, or if there would be difficulties with my insulin pump. Kids got really impatient, so I was worried about having my hands full for the whole trip.

The shuttle finally showed up at 3:20. I got a text from Jess at 4:10 saying that she’d landed in LA – we were still on the road, which stressed her out. We were all keeping our fingers crossed we’d make it through security ok – our extra cushion of time was now gone, and there were no seats left on flights to anywhere in LA that evening if we got held up and missed our flight.

Pulled into the airport road at 4:25, which gave us just over an hour until our flight was scheduled to leave. Normally that would be enough time, but didn’t really allow for any mishaps. Only one family in line ahead of us to check our bags, so that went smoothly, and then we got in line for security. The line was longer than I’ve been in recently at Sea-Tac, but not too bad. Made it past the first TSA guy and no questions were asked at all about me traveling with the kids, which was nice. Going through the metal detectors, kids no longer have to take their shoes off, so that was nice – I was the one who held us up as I juggled two carry-ons, 2 liquid bags, a bag of snack food, and put my shoes back on. Made me glad I didn’t have a laptop to juggle this trip too! Kids were very cooperative the whole time – carried what I needed them to carry without any complaints.

We found seats at the gate, and I let the kids play their DS’s for the first time this trip – which they were excited about because of new games. We all took a quick bathroom break once the plane showed up, and boarding started at 5:25. Piper took the window seat, I sat in the middle, and Aidan on the aisle. Aidan continued playing his DS until he had to turn it off, and then took it out again the instant they announced electronics could be used again.

Piper started the flight watching her tv (Aidan’s was broken – but he didn’t really mind since he really only wanted to play his video games). She couldn’t get her headphones to fit right, so she watched without any sound. She then did a bit of coloring and then was really excited to have her first Diet Coke of the trip – something she’s only allowed on vacations.

Earlier in the week I’d picked up Lunchables for the kids to eat, so I had to tear Aidan away from the DS to eat.

He went back to his DS, and Piper played hers for a bit too.

I spent most of the flight knitting – was working on finishing a cardigan-type sweater for the trip. Got it almost all done, which was good.

We landed in Long Beach at 8:10. Turned my phone back on and had this lovely picture text message waiting for me from Jess: the view from our room!

Piper’s ears were really bothering her (mine too), and she was in tears for the last 10 minutes or so of the flight, and then cried the whole time we were waiting to get off the plane and walking through the airport. We got lots of sympathetic looks as we deplaned. Took us 15 minutes to get off the plane and to the luggage area, and as we were waiting Piper finally stopped crying, but still looked miserable. Jess and I had been texting at this point, and we promised Piper ice cream Mickey Bars once we got to the hotel, so that helped cheer her up a little. Got in a taxi at 8:35 and headed to the hotel. Both kids seemed exhausted – Piper even more so. She was concerned about bedtime – kept asking when she’d have to go to bed, and saying she wanted to stay up just a little once we got to the hotel. I think she was worried I’d make her go to bed the minute we got in, so I promised her she could stay up and see her mom for a while. Got to the hotel right at 9:00, and reunited in the lobby with Jess and Matt. Kids were super excited to see them.

We stayed at Disney’s Grand Californian – what a fabulous place to stay! Jess had rented DVC points (from a DIS-board member) to stay in a 1- bedroom villa. The room was great! Cost-wise, it was about the same as what it would have cost for 2 regular rooms (which we would have needed for the 5 of us). This way we had lots more space, were all in one location, and had a full kitchen. The main room has a living room with a queen sofa sleeper (kids shared that) and a twin sized Murphy bed (where I slept), a full kitchen (included a microwave, full size fridge/freezer, oven, stove, and dishwasher, along with an assortment of pots/pans/dishes/utensils), and a dining area.

Off the main room was a small bathroom with a shower, and there was a washer/dryer in the unit as well, which came in handy.

The bedroom had a king bed and a large master bath with a Jacuzzi tub (which Piper loved using before bed!) and large walk-in shower.

There was a balcony with entrances from both the main living room area and the master bedroom – the kids had fun running in circles through the place. Our living room and balcony had a great view into DCA, and was really pretty at night with the lights on.

Jess & Matt had checked into the hotel around 6 pm. We’d ordered groceries from Vons, so they had those brought up to the room when they finished checking in. That worked great – and it was nice to be able to cook regular food for meals and not have to rely on restaurant food the entire time we were there. One we all got up to the room, the kids ran around exploring and we all opened our gifts that Jess & Matt brought us from Hawaii (I got a Dooney & Burke clutch from Alani that I love, as well as scented soap, a candle, and a Starbucks California mug (I’ve recently started a collection of Starbucks city mugs) & Starbucks Hawaii gift card.)

We watched part of the World of Color show from our living room – at all of the Resort Hotels, there’s a tv channel with the sound of the show broadcast, so while we couldn’t see the projections on the water, we got the sound and lights. Piper took a bath in the Jacuzzi tub, and the kids got tucked into bed.

Jess and I then went for a walk around the hotel (she showed me where the private park entrance is for the morning), and then we went into Downtown Disney to pick up a hoodie for Piper. Then off to bed! Tomorrow the kids and I plan to sleep in and then head into California Adventure as it opens (as hotel guests, we actually get in before it officially opens). At that time Jess & Matt are doing a just-married photoshoot in Disneyland, and then we’ll all tour DL and DCA together for the rest of the day.

 

[sarahmarie]

Today we (the kids and I) had a relaxing start to the day – which is totally out of the ordinary for the way any of us usually do Disney! I woke up around 7, and the kids got up a little after that. Jess & Matt left shortly after 8 for their photo shoot (with Sarina Love Photography – they got GREAT pictures!) The kids and I hung out in the room for a bit – once again, check out the great view from our room!

Around 9 we left to wander around DTD. None of the shops were open yet – which was probably a good thing! I love the energy and excitement of the whole area – it was fun. Morning was overcast but not too cold – felt really warm to us coming from Seattle, but Jess was colder since she’d come from Hawaii.
We got in to DCA through the Grand’s private (guest-only) entrance right at 9:30. We went straight for The Little Mermaid, and walked right on.

The only other ride open at that time is Soarin’, which we knew we’d do all together as a group later in the trip, so we skipped that. Hung out in front of the ride for a bit just checking out the view of Paradise Pier area, and then Piper and I managed to convince Aidan to go on the ride again. It’s a cute ride – and it’s fun that it’s a ride made from one of my childhood movies. Jess & Matt met up with us at 9:45, and we all waited in line together for rope drop to get into the Paradise Pier area.

We booked it for Toy Story Mania right away, and only had a 5 minute wait (plus it took about 5 minutes to just walk through the queuing area). Wait times for the rest of the day are usually really long, so we were glad we did it first thing. The ride was fun – it hadn’t yet opened the last time I was at Disneyland, so it was my first time on it. Spent too much time looking around at everything, so I didn’t get a very good score in the game (it’s an interactive 3D gaming ride – like being in a video game).

The kids really like carousel rides, so next we went over to King Triton’s Carousel (no line – just had to wait for the people on the ride to finish their turn and get off).

After that we all went over to Goofy’s Sky School (small roller coaster), which Piper really wanted to go on since she’d watched it from our hotel room. Aidan sat that one out – he’s really not fond of roller-coaster type rides. It’s nice he’s now old enough that we can trust him to stay in one spot and not get into trouble while we go on rides (although we only do this on rides where we have a view of him while on the ride). Piper LOVED the roller coaster – it ended up being her favorite ride of the trip.

(Piper is giving herself Mickey ears – she did this frequently at the parks )

As we walked around the Pier on our way out of the park, we ran into Woody, Jessie, and the Green Men from Toy Story!

Up next: the afternoon and evening – much of it spent in Disneyland.