Feb. 21, 2004 Eastern Cruise

[woody64]

Lisa, you're killing me! If it were 39 here we'd be in shorts. Oh well, soon enough we'll all be on the Magic.

You southerners had better watch out. I think there are more of us from up north in the cold. That means we're first in the drink line...gotta keep the anti-freeze level high!

woody

 

[av01bps]

Woody
you are so right about us northerners needing anti-freeze. Today the temp was nine (9) as I drove to school at 6:40 a.m.

SIX-FORTY A.M.

yeeks

It's still DARK here.

I guess we get "seasons" and that's why we like it here.

What can you tell me about Saphire Beach on St Thomas?
We are thinking of canceling the snorkel trip that day as too much scheduling sometimes makes us a bit overwhelmed... maybe a beach day is better...
Amy

 

[woody64]

Amy-it is currently 0 here in Chicago with windchills of -20. But hey, it is winter.

On to warmer subjects, the only thing I know about Saphire Beach is that it has sand and is by the water. If we weren't going on the St. John Beach & Snorkle excursion we would be going to Megan's Bay. It is gorgeous! They have restrooms, snack bar($$$), and the water is calm and clear. They also rent chairs and floats. I have a couple of pics up on the yahoo site of Megans's Bay. Which excursion are you on?

Let me know if you have any other questions and stay warm.

woody

 

[bassoongirl]

We are enjoying the cold weather too! My poor son hasn't been outside for recess at school for couple weeks! He is a kid who NEEDS recess!

Being a Northerner, I can safely say that no matter how "cool" it is on the cruise, we will be out there swimming and enjoying the weather! Anything above 60 degrees is shorts weather at this point!

Lisa,
Thanks for boogying with me! It is always more fun to dance with someone else! My family thinks I am nuts, especially when I was dancing around our family room yesterday!

Woody,
I have been following the beer tasting thread on the big board. I am not of fan of ales and Guiness (too strong for me!), but my husband is. One of his favorite drinks is a Black and Tan.

Gayl (Still doing the doc dance! )

 

[christinou]

It is "nice and warm " this morning 20 degrees, but it is rapidly dropping to 0 with some nasty wind chill.
Sae thing with our school, the kids have not had recess since we came back from break, it is really hard on them.....

We also will be swimming no matter what, I think that at this point 60 will be hot......

We are leaving from home to go on the cruise 4wekks from today...

I am going to start counting minutes to the cruise pretty soon.

 

[Gina]

Woody, we don't have wind chill -- we have heat index. So while I can gloat and crow about our very comfortable low of 45 tonight, you will have the last laugh in August when it is 110 here with a heat index of 115-120. That is when we start praying for a hurricane just to cool things off with some rain. Did you know that a seat belt buckle can actually be a branding iron?

**dances with everyone doing the doc dance**

Now be honest... who else has completely filled their docs out already??


And I just realized that I never heard back from any pin traders, this whole time! Surely there are other pin nuts sailing with me??

-gina-

 

[bassoongirl]

Gina,

I filled out our documents yesterday afternoon right after I received them. Can you tell I am anxious? The only thing on our documents that isn't completed is my husband's signature on his cruise contract. He wants to read it first! Imagine!

Gayl

 

[Ms. Linda]

It is 10:30 p.m. and I am sitting here in shorts.
THe seat belt as braning iron in the summer is one of my excuses for not wearing one. Don't fuss. I know I should wear it.

No docs yet, durn it.

 

[bassoongirl]

Sitting in shorts at 10:30 at night? Unbelieveable! Last night, I wore my flannel pajamas and socks and I was covered in a fleece blanket. The wind chill made the air feel like less than zero degrees last night. Brrrrr! Our poor dog hasn't been for a walk in a couple nights because of the cold and is getting very ansy!

Isn't it funny how our group is divided between people living in the North and people living in the South? There doesn't seem to be anybody from the middle states. How odd!

Gayl

 

[woody64]

To all you people down south: This weekend I will be with my 2 DS's playing in a pool all weekend as we have a father-son weekend getaway with 6 other F-S's. So I will be in a swimsuit all weekend long. Ha, take that!

OK, so it's an indoor waterpark at the Hilton in Wilwaukee... busted! But we may take the boys on a very educational tour of the Miller Brewery, if we don't freeze getting there. Jealous yet?

Gina, we northerners(yes I'm speaking for all of us) are concerned about you being branded BUT you can stick your tongue on a flag pole or playground equipment anytime you want. If we do that up north we are stuck to it. And yes I remember somebody in grade school getting stuck to the playground equipment, and no it was not me but a "friend".

Not too much longer til we're on the Magic,

woody

 

[Gina]

Originally posted by woody64
OK, so it's an indoor waterpark at the Hilton in Wilwaukee... busted! But we may take the boys on a very educational tour of the Miller Brewery, if we don't freeze getting there. Jealous yet?


An indoor waterpark?? How cool!! Wow, what a neat idea...
And yes, as a matter of fact, I AM jealous over the brewery tour.

Gina, we northerners(yes I'm speaking for all of us) are concerned about you being branded BUT you can stick your tongue on a flag pole or playground equipment anytime you want. If we do that up north we are stuck to it. And yes I remember somebody in grade school getting stuck to the playground equipment, and no it was not me but a "friend".

Wow, your "friend" wasn't the brightest bunny in the forest, huh?

And I kinda like my Toyota emblem brand I have...

Okay, getting back to cruise stuff, I decided that TD and I are going to also do the Paradise Point Tramway this time in St. Thomas. I wanted to do it last Eastern, but he was 2 years younger and kinda scared of how it looked. Now it looks "cool" to him. So now I'm thinking that we'll do that first, then take a taxi to Coral World, then goof off on Coki Beach for a little while if we're not worn out.

And YAY, Walmart is slowly but surely getting the warmer-weather stuff in... I found him a normal pair of khaki shorts (I HATE that hideous cargo shorts trend) and a pair of dark blue knit shorts. The khaki shorts were critical, since he has so many tropical shirts. Between those, the denim shorts, the knit ones, and the new ones I'll get in St. Maarten, I think we'll be set. Whew!!

He is just over the moon about being in the Lab this time... it's so funny. I was telling another parent at his school about the cruise, and how much he loves the kids' club, and he had to correct me with "I'll be in the LAB this time, Mom... the LAB!" The one thing he really hated in the Club was late in the evening when they make all the kids lie down and watch a movie, and the younger kids are all falling asleep. He can't wait to be in the Lab, where he can play on the computers or video games or whatever as late as he wants.

Oh, and Bruce -- Tyler Dean is all ready to duel now... he got some of the new Dark Crisis Yu-Gi-Oh cards last night, and apparently they were very exciting ones, because he kept following me around breathlessly telling me about them. Then he worked to sort all his cards and put his dueling deck into his box, and the traders and such into the binder. He's very excited about meeting Alex.

Okay, back to work for me... have a great Friday, all!

-gina-

 

[bassoongirl]

Woody,

Have fun this weekend! Try not to get a sunburn!

Gayl

 

[Gina]

I'm sure glad I locked in my $89 rate at the Radisson way back when I made my ressie, all that time ago! The cheapest rate there now for that date is $104!!

Plus, when I just checked the DCL site, the price for 2 people in a cat. 11 on our cruise is listed at $2390! *faints* My price was $1700. Pretty big difference!! Even at All Seas Travel, usually the cheapest, they show a rate now of $2095.

AND... when I booked my rental car with Budget all those months ago, the base rate I got was $24.99. Now, when I check, it's over $60 for the same exact everything!!

So, I'm feeling pretty happy right now.


-gina-

 

[christinou]

Gina, we also have that rate at the Radison which we thought was just terrific......
Especially considering that we can leave our car there, it would have cost us $70 to park at the port.....
4 weeks to go........

 

[bassoongirl]

Gina,

Nice going! I love a good deal, and it sounds like you got a lot of them! We got a good deal on our room at the MCO Hyatt too. It does pay to book early!

Gayl

 

[Ms. Linda]

I am willing to bet the "educational brewery tour" includes samples. Waterpark sure sounds good, indoor or out. I like waterparks.

I got a good rate on the avis rental, but still need to find a good rate on an airport hotel. I tried priceline, but they aren't biting.
Also on my list of things to do is call the agent about my no-show docs.

OK I confess; maybe I was wearing shorts, but I did have the fireplace going.

 

[woody64]

I just realized I spelled Milwaukee wrong. Ya'll probably think I started the brewery tour early.

I think we are still checking on a car for Fri. We usually do a van at MCO from National as it is on airport property with decent rates. We will be back at MCO early for one of the first DCL buses like last year. We were within the very short ropes to board. TGFGB(Thank Goodness for Game Boy)! Yes these will be making this trip also.

We had more snow today. Gina, Linda, anybody need any?

woody

 

[PhotoLisa]

Woody:

Have you ever seen what happens to Cajuns when it snows? Its not a pretty sight! While it is nice to have a little, we don't know how to act in it. Even when it rains, people go nuts! LOL

I think I'll keep our expected high for tomorrow of 71 instead of trading with you!

Enjoy your outing!

Lisa

 

[bassoongirl]

We had more snow yesterday too. I love snow, but my husband is getting tired of it. It took him three hours to drive home from work last night. Ugh! Last week, when we had another big snow storm, it took him 3 1/2 hours to get home. It usually takes him about an hour to drive home. Cajuns might have trouble driving in snow, but some Michiganders have trouble too! You'd think with all the snow we've had, people around here would be used to driving in it!

Woody,

I like your new smilies. They are cool! I agree with your TGFGB sentiments. Game Boys were the best things invented to entertain kids on car or plane rides or while waiting in line! I even bought Katie and Ryan new Game Boy games for the trip. We plan to get to the terminal around 10:00 am, so we will be on the lookout for your family.

Ms. Linda,

Have you tried Hotwire for a good rate at the MCO Hyatt? If you go for a room on that site with 3 1/2 stars and no shuttle icon by the airport, most of the time you get the Hyatt. I almost used Hotwire to book our room there, but chickened out. I didn't want to take a chance on not getting the Hyatt. Sometimes you get a room at a hotel nearby that doesn't show that it has a shuttle from the airport. Good luck! I hope you get your documents soon!

Gayl

 

[Ms. Linda]

I have lived in south louisiana for over 25 years, and in that time it has only really snowed one time. Everything, and I mean everything, was shut down for over 24 hours. And did we have fun!

Even the threat of an ice storm shuts down schools. We all know we can't drive in it. Any ice on the road means doing accidental doughnuts inside of the intersection. We wouldn't recognize a snow plow or a snow tire. Friends coming back from trips up north tell amazing tales of what people living in snow areas do to their car batteries.

We just deal with the easy things--like the neverending humidity and hurricanes. Oh and yes there are three alligators on the farm. Well, there were a few years ago. I haven't seen them in a while.