Hi everyone! We arrived home yesterday morning around 8:30am after driving since around 11am the day before. Everything was smooth until we got around Ann Arbor, MI so we were happy about that! I think dh is finally convinced that road trips are NOT for us! He will happily fly in the future and I am glad that we had the opportunity to do the road trip so we won't have to do it again!
We had a great cruise other than some issues with our kids not following directions. They will not be vacationing with us again for awhile! We didn't meet as many of you as I had hoped, but did "see" some of you - I think we saw Averysmommy on a game show with her son the first night and I think one of your sons took our picture about the lookout tower on Castaway Cay (I wondered why he looked familiar!). Our wait staff was amazing! Jelena and Cindy were fun to spend our dinners with and we couldn't have asked for more on the service side. I was, however, disappointed in the food. I expected a lot more in the flavor department from Disney. The only memorable item I ate on the ship was a pastry from Cove Cafe. I felt that Disney did put some thought into picking our table mates. There was a girl my dd's age and a boy my ds's age - they all really hit it off and were sad to leave at the end. I wish Disney would have put the same thought into the people in the stateroom next to us. They had small children who would cry often but especially at 7AM in the mornings. I don't know if the noise was more pronounced because they were connecting staterooms or what, but with our youngest being 10, we're definitely done with those early mornings when we don't need them and were quite unhappy.
For those of you not feeling well, I was seasick during the cruise - my husband bought me these ugly Sea Bands at the gift shop but they seemed to do the trick (even though when he brought them back, I was hoping that they were something that would inject drugs directly into my bloodstream!). By the end of the cruise, I was no longer even bothered by the boat rocking. I am continuing to wear them to avoid any icky feelings and will probably wear them for another 3-4 days if needed. Anyway, I highly recommend those of you who are feeling sick try them out. They are quick, easy, and hopefully will leave you feeling a-okay.
We had a great cruise other than some issues with our kids not following directions. They will not be vacationing with us again for awhile! We didn't meet as many of you as I had hoped, but did "see" some of you - I think we saw Averysmommy on a game show with her son the first night and I think one of your sons took our picture about the lookout tower on Castaway Cay (I wondered why he looked familiar!). Our wait staff was amazing! Jelena and Cindy were fun to spend our dinners with and we couldn't have asked for more on the service side. I was, however, disappointed in the food. I expected a lot more in the flavor department from Disney. The only memorable item I ate on the ship was a pastry from Cove Cafe. I felt that Disney did put some thought into picking our table mates. There was a girl my dd's age and a boy my ds's age - they all really hit it off and were sad to leave at the end. I wish Disney would have put the same thought into the people in the stateroom next to us. They had small children who would cry often but especially at 7AM in the mornings. I don't know if the noise was more pronounced because they were connecting staterooms or what, but with our youngest being 10, we're definitely done with those early mornings when we don't need them and were quite unhappy.
For those of you not feeling well, I was seasick during the cruise - my husband bought me these ugly Sea Bands at the gift shop but they seemed to do the trick (even though when he brought them back, I was hoping that they were something that would inject drugs directly into my bloodstream!). By the end of the cruise, I was no longer even bothered by the boat rocking. I am continuing to wear them to avoid any icky feelings and will probably wear them for another 3-4 days if needed. Anyway, I highly recommend those of you who are feeling sick try them out. They are quick, easy, and hopefully will leave you feeling a-okay.
Teenagers, GRRRR!!! DD wanted to initially move up to the Vibe too, but after meeting tons of kids her age (she thought they would all be boring and little kid-like) she definitely didn't want to move up. I thought the area they had for this age was lacking though. DS (10yo) did want to move up and I felt that the area dd was in would have been a better fit for him, but she did not want him in the same club as her, so he stayed where he was. After seeing some teens in the halls and at the elevators, I was super glad dd stayed where she was - they just seemed so much more "crazy" than I want her to be! Ha!
Next day, Meredith was burning up and we took her in to the medical doctor on board. Temp of 104. 
No wonder she was so miserable. Tested positive for influenza B--which meant she was isolated to the cabin. Had a recheck and temp was down to 102--this is where it stayed most of the cruise. We spent a few hours out of the cabin as permitted, but for the most part we were in our room watching tv. 
How was the baby? Did you get to get off and go to the Islands at all? Did Meredith get to do anything the times she was allowed out? Oh I feel so bad for you guys.
Sorry I thought I had memorized everyone and then totally drew blanks when I was trying to remember faces.
Matt, thanks again so much for organizing the FE list. It made our day every day and every time we found a little surprise in our pouches! 
The week went by too fast and again, too bad the girls weren't in the same club. Next time. 
