IceSk8ersMom
LRT
- Joined
- May 26, 2008
- Messages
- 720
I have read hundreds of trip reports, but I never wrote one. Well, there is a first time for everything, so after five cruises, I decided to go for it.
We sailed on the Holiday 11-day Southern Caribbean Cruise. The whole family cruised: DH, (Mr. Grumpy), DD15 (the princess only child and grandchild), my mom (the matriarch), my dad (Mr. Grumpy 2), my sister (newlywed), her husband (newlywed/first timer), and me (a Disney freak to the core).
Our magical Christmas cruise started very early on the morning of December 17th. My DH and I were up at 4AM to weigh our luggage. Five out of our six suitcases were over 50 lbs. Crisis! We arranged and rearranged our clothes and shoes but no luck. Yes, we were going to pay the overage fees along with the baggage fees. It is vacation so you are supposed to spend money like a rockstar. Well, maybe, like two hard working people, who saved their pennies to have a fabulous vacation.
It was cold and raining (Yes, it does rain in SoCal) when our shuttle picked us up. There was a bit of a crisis. Our 14 pieces of luggage did not fit in the van (really…We were reassured over and over again by Primetime that one van would work for 7 people with 14 pieces of luggage). Well, it wasn’t working this morning. So, what did we do? We stuffed our luggage between seats and on seats. Important fact not now, but later in the trip report: My BIL double-checked his Geo Tracker to make sure it was locked before we departed. He loves that car, and my sister is always planning its demise. Finally, we were off to LAX.
When we got to LAX, we were surprised with a few treats. We did not have to worry about the 50 lbs. limit for each suitcase, as well as there were no charges for our 14 pieces of luggage. Those were the perks of flying first class, and since it was my first and only time probably ever flying first class, I had no idea. So our early morning “musical luggage” routine was all in vain.
After the standard airport gourmet breakfast of McDonald’s, it was time to board our Delta flight to Orlando. Flight was uneventful. Allegedly, there was this actress on our flight. Nobody knew her name, but we knew that she was on that show. What show? We all knew the name but could not recall it to save our lives.
We arrived to Orlando on time with our entire luggage, which was a good thing since last vacation we arrived with only 3 of our 14 suitcases. Yes, indeed we were happy campers, but not for long.
My parents and my family were registered at the Hyatt but not my sister and her husband. Yes, no reservation. My sister called DCL, and they could not find her reservation for the Hyatt or the CRUISE! Crisis! I think we stopped breathing at that moment. After breathing resumed, she gave her information again and our names (ressies were linked), DCL “magically” found her cruise reservation, but no Hyatt. Still don’t understand what happened, but there was a room for them in the inn (a small Christmas miracle).
We checked into the Hyatt right on time for our DisMeet. We had a great time with Leilani, Laurie, Nick and their families. The kids were excited to finally meet after chatting online for months. They ran off to explore the airport while the adults enjoyed a few cocktails. We all turned in fairly early because we all had a big day ahead of us.
My DD15 (Raven) and I were waiting for our plane at LAX.
My DD and my mom were getting ready to board the plane.
My sister and her husband were enjoying the company at our DisMeet.
It was nice to meet fellow Disers at our Hyatt DisMeet.
The kids were having a good time exploring the airport and taking pictures.
My DH (wonder why we call him Grumpy) and DD cannot wait for tomorrow.
My DD and I posed for one more picture before we called it a night.
We sailed on the Holiday 11-day Southern Caribbean Cruise. The whole family cruised: DH, (Mr. Grumpy), DD15 (the princess only child and grandchild), my mom (the matriarch), my dad (Mr. Grumpy 2), my sister (newlywed), her husband (newlywed/first timer), and me (a Disney freak to the core).
Our magical Christmas cruise started very early on the morning of December 17th. My DH and I were up at 4AM to weigh our luggage. Five out of our six suitcases were over 50 lbs. Crisis! We arranged and rearranged our clothes and shoes but no luck. Yes, we were going to pay the overage fees along with the baggage fees. It is vacation so you are supposed to spend money like a rockstar. Well, maybe, like two hard working people, who saved their pennies to have a fabulous vacation.
It was cold and raining (Yes, it does rain in SoCal) when our shuttle picked us up. There was a bit of a crisis. Our 14 pieces of luggage did not fit in the van (really…We were reassured over and over again by Primetime that one van would work for 7 people with 14 pieces of luggage). Well, it wasn’t working this morning. So, what did we do? We stuffed our luggage between seats and on seats. Important fact not now, but later in the trip report: My BIL double-checked his Geo Tracker to make sure it was locked before we departed. He loves that car, and my sister is always planning its demise. Finally, we were off to LAX.
When we got to LAX, we were surprised with a few treats. We did not have to worry about the 50 lbs. limit for each suitcase, as well as there were no charges for our 14 pieces of luggage. Those were the perks of flying first class, and since it was my first and only time probably ever flying first class, I had no idea. So our early morning “musical luggage” routine was all in vain.
After the standard airport gourmet breakfast of McDonald’s, it was time to board our Delta flight to Orlando. Flight was uneventful. Allegedly, there was this actress on our flight. Nobody knew her name, but we knew that she was on that show. What show? We all knew the name but could not recall it to save our lives.
We arrived to Orlando on time with our entire luggage, which was a good thing since last vacation we arrived with only 3 of our 14 suitcases. Yes, indeed we were happy campers, but not for long.
My parents and my family were registered at the Hyatt but not my sister and her husband. Yes, no reservation. My sister called DCL, and they could not find her reservation for the Hyatt or the CRUISE! Crisis! I think we stopped breathing at that moment. After breathing resumed, she gave her information again and our names (ressies were linked), DCL “magically” found her cruise reservation, but no Hyatt. Still don’t understand what happened, but there was a room for them in the inn (a small Christmas miracle).
We checked into the Hyatt right on time for our DisMeet. We had a great time with Leilani, Laurie, Nick and their families. The kids were excited to finally meet after chatting online for months. They ran off to explore the airport while the adults enjoyed a few cocktails. We all turned in fairly early because we all had a big day ahead of us.
My DD15 (Raven) and I were waiting for our plane at LAX.
My DD and my mom were getting ready to board the plane.
My sister and her husband were enjoying the company at our DisMeet.
It was nice to meet fellow Disers at our Hyatt DisMeet.
The kids were having a good time exploring the airport and taking pictures.
My DH (wonder why we call him Grumpy) and DD cannot wait for tomorrow.
My DD and I posed for one more picture before we called it a night.
your trip report. I especially love all the pictures!
