Please let me take a nap..UPD 10/13/13- TR w/DH(folded in)

[Toria]

DH and I hit the road around 10:00am and I was so ready to how some he and I time. I must say that it felt really strange not having the kids in the car with us. I was waiting for someone to say that they needed to use the restroom. We were 2 hours into the drive when I started to panic about the passports. I made DH pull over so that I could check the trunk and make sure that they were there. Yes, they were in the trunk in one of my carry one bags. DH stated it would have been a bad start to the trip if they were left at home. The drive down was uneventful, and I only had DH stop once for a restroom break. DD and I are notorious for stopping more than we should. I doused off and on for the other 3 hours of the ride. We were staying at the Crowne Plaza in Orlando pre-cruise. I was not in the car when DH choose the destination in my navigation menu before we left, let's just say he chose the wrong hotel. I quickly changed the destination and got us on the right track. All he could say was I had no clue where we were staying(you could have just asked before you chose the destination ). Anywhoo we arrived at the hotel around 3:00. This hotel did not disappoint and I was happy that I chose it. I am extremely picky about hotels and it is the last thing to get booked when we are traveling. I look for value and almost great ratings/reviews. When I checked in I asked if we could be upgraded and how much it would cost. We were upgraded to the executive level and it was only $40.00 dollars more We headed up to the room and the room was nice, but the views were amazing. We were in the 14th floor and we loved it.

I can't seem to find the pics that I took of the views. If I find them I will upload them. We had a couple of hours to kill before dinner that night, so DH caught up on ESPN and I took a short nap before the executive club opened.

 

[Toria]

DS made it in around midnight once again, so I truly fell into a deep sleep. The next morning was Castaway Cay. I did not feel the ship backing into port, so I had no idea that we had made it. We all slept until 9:00 and then it was up to start our day. We arrived to Cabanas around 9:45 and enjoyed breakfast without rushing. As always breakfast was good. After breakfast we went back to the room to get our things before we headed off the ship. Once we were off the ship I saw that they had dressed the island up for the holidays.

There was a huge Christmas tree right outside of the trip, and they had the fake snow blowing. We did not take a picture, but instead we spotted Captain Jack Sparrow. We attempted to get our picture taken, but the line was long. My mission was to find a hammock in the shade. We took the tram and got off at the first stop for Scuttles Cove. I wanted to check DD in, so that she could have fun and enjoy the activities. She was happy to go and check it out, because the last time she did not get to go. I am happy to say that I found a hammock to park myself in for the day. Meanwhile DS was having a minor meltdown, because he could not find the kids from the Edge. After about 30 minutes of being down in the dumps; he found them playing soccer. I laid in the hammock for about an hour, then I decided to go and check on DD. She was happily playing, so I did not bother her. I went back to the hammock and read some of my book.

I was so lost in my book that lunchtime was upon us. I went and picked up DD (who was covered in dried white clay because of the Dino Dig) we stopped and showered her off. We then made our way to Cookies Too. I ran into a lady from my town(small world). After lunch we headed back to the hammock and laid there for about 30 minutes. DD was so ready to get in the water, so off we went! She had this lil ball that she was playing with in the water that was colorful. She liked it and the fish that was swimming around did as well. The fish tried to eat it and they were swimming around you the whole time in the water. I went and brought a chair down to the water and sat for about a hour and a half. DD and I then decided that our time on the beach was done. I ran across DS that was having a mini breakdown, because he wanted to go out to Pelican Plunge. DS has had terrible issues with his ears(many surgeries on them), so needless to say that swimming lessons were not taken. That is going to change this summer though. He said that he would wait for the other kids to come back to shore. He was not the only kid that did not make it out to the Plunge. He started smiling, so DD and I headed back to the ship to shower.

 

[pooksma]

Lost in the book - Love it!

Great pics of CC.

 

[Cheryl726]

Great update, I LOVE Castaway Cay! That's great that you found a hammock and you didn't have to be the first one off the ship! We still have yet to get one!

 

[Luv2Diz]

I enjoyed your photos of Castaway Cay. I want to visit there so bad! We've done 2 DCL cruises so far and neither one included Castaway Cay. I will be sure that our next cruise does!

 

[Toria]

Lost in the book - Love it!

Great pics of CC.

Thanks and I have more coming

Great update, I LOVE Castaway Cay! That's great that you found a hammock and you didn't have to be the first one off the ship! We still have yet to get one!

I thought that was great as well and there were other ones open as well. DH and I are going again in June, so I know that I will have to be one of the first ones off. That may be a stretch with DH though, because he is not a early riser.

I enjoyed your photos of Castaway Cay. I want to visit there so bad! We've done 2 DCL cruises so far and neither one included Castaway Cay. I will be sure that our next cruise does!

Castaway Cay is beautiful and Serenity Bay is wonderful.

 

[Toria]

The Executive club opened at 5:30, so DH and I headed over to grab a bit to eat. The food that they had was great. They gave complimentary drinks and beer. DH and I selected what we wanted to eat and grabbed 2 chairs by the window facing Universal Studios. The view was amazing and we enjoyed every moment of it. It felt good to have and adult conversation without lil people asking 500 questions. We did however miss the kids terribly. After we sat there for 30 minutes we headed back to the room. I ironed our clothes for dinner and headed out to look around the hotel. I wanted to find out where the gym was as I was determined to exercise throughout this vacation. I found the gym, restaurants, convention rooms and bar. After that it was time to get ready for dinner. Dinner tonight was to be at Don Shula's steakhouse. We headed down to make our way to dinner around 7:00 pm. The traffic was just horrible, so I had to call and let them know that we would be about 10 minutes late. I hate being late it really drives me nuts. We made it exactly 10 after our reservation. The food was wonderful and my steak loving husband really enjoyed his dinner. The serving sizes are huge and we ended up splitting sides.

After dinner we headed back to the room to prepare for the next morning. When we got back to the room I decided to open the curtains and I could see the fireworks from MK. Being on the 14th floor was absolutely amazing. I tried to get pics, but the glare from the glass was working against me. We showered and called it a night. However I would find myself waking up at 4 am not able to sleep. I decided to...........

 

[Toria]

After DD and I showered she wanted to walk by the gift shops to look through the windows again(my lil shopper). After that we took a stroll to the Future cruise desk. I knew that I was going to re-book and that is what I did. I had received a quote the day prior and I wanted to take care of that before they got busy. Well they were busy, so I gave my CC info and left. I received verification later on that night with our info. We walked Tow Mater's Grill and snacked on some fries and a wrap for myself. It was around 3:00pm and I wanted to head back to the island to track down DS. DD and I headed back off the ship and took some more photos and stopped by the places where the kids from the Edge should have been. I finally found one of the CM's and I was told that they went back to the ship. DD and I caught the tram back and found him in the room showering.

After DS showered guess where he went???? Yep, right back to the Edge. I told him that he had better be back on time tonight for dinner or he would not be allowed to go back after dinner. DD then decided that she wanted to go to the kids club for 30 minutes or so. I dropped her off then headed to iron our clothes for dinner. Tonight was Enchanted Garden and I was so looking forward to eating there. One of the main dishes are Scallops and pearl pasta(love,love it). After I ironed I headed back to pick up DD and we turned in her bracelet, because she did not want to go back after dinner. DS made it back in time, so we dressed and headed to dinner. Tonight we were the first ones at the table again. Shortly after us our other tablemates arrived. The couple told us that they had eaten at Palo the previous night. They said that they really enjoyed it. I did as well when DH and I went on the cruise without the kids( it had a bad ending though- you have to read that TR that is folded in with this on to find out about that madness). Anywho, I had two plates of the scallops and DS had 2 plates as well. Dinner went off without a hitch, and everyone said their goodbyes. I did not plan on eating breakfast there the next morning. DS took off to the Edge and DD and I went to get her teachers a gift. After that I went to settle the account. We headed back to the room to shower and hit the sack. I had to drive 7 hours to get home,so it was no hanging out for us that night. I had also opted out of leaving the baggage outside for pick-up. I hung on until 10:00, then I called DS and made him come to the room. Let's just say that he was not happy about that. Lights out....... The next morning we grabbed our luggage and headed to Cabanas one last time for breakfast. We enjoyed breakfast and we were sad that we were getting off the ship. After the annoucement was made that paasengers carrying their luggage could disembark; we hightailed it off the ship. I must say this is the BEST thing to do. Absolutely no wait for customs or hunting for your luggage. We were off the ship and through customs within 5 minutes. LOVED IT! We made it off the ship in break neck speed only to be slowed down by me hunting for my keys for about 10 minutes. I found them and then we made the journey back home. Thanks for joining everyone! Continue to follow the other TR within this thread about DH and I.

 

[Toria]

Since I could not sleep I headed to the gym at 4am. I was the only one there for 15 minutes then two other people came in. I ran for about an hour and lifted weights for 20 minutes. After that I went back to the room and showered. I climbed back in the bed and I fell back to sleep. Next time I awoke it was the alarm clock going off. DH and I got up and we starting dressing for the day. We left the hotel around 9:00 and made the quick 40 minute ride to the port. Once again coming over that hill and seeing the Dream waiting, it made us both smile. We arrived at port and handed over our luggage to the porter.
We drove up to level 3 and parked in the very same parking space on previous cruises. We were done with security and check in within 15 minutes. We found some seats and waited for number 2 to be called.




After they announced our number we boarded and headed straight for Cabanas. We found a table near the back, this is where we stayed for about 40 minutes. The food was great and filling as always. We left there and headed over to the Quiet Cove for awhile. DH began his love affair with margaritas, while I tried a non-alcoholic beverage. We sat by the windows and conversed with each other and enjoyed taking it all in.


Before we knew it we were heading to the stateroom. DH swore up and down that he would not stay in an inside room, but that is what happened. I must say that he enjoyed it as well and he did not feel boxed in like he thought that he would.

 

[RunningWithScissors]

I see your next trip is 2 weeks and 2 days. Are you on the Oct 17 sailing of the Dream? We are and cannot wait for this trip!! 4 days at WDW then the 3 day cruise. I think I am more excited than our children!!

Love your TR. You have a beautiful family!!

 

[Toria]

I see your next trip is 2 weeks and 2 days. Are you on the Oct 17 sailing of the Dream? We are and cannot wait for this trip!! 4 days at WDW then the 3 day cruise. I think I am more excited than our children!!

Love your TR. You have a beautiful family!!

Thank you! We are actually on the 20th sailing and I can't wait. Sorry it took so long to respond.

 

[Toria]

When we arrived to the room I noticed that all of our luggage had been delivered. I unpacked while DH watched some television. After everything was properly put away we decided to head back up to the quiet Cove. We relaxed there and enjoyed each other until it was time for the lifeboat drill. This trip our muster station was outside. I was happy that it did not take long to complete.
After we were done with that we decided to head back to the room. I have trouble sitting still, so I left DH in the room while I went exploring. I walked around for about 30 minutes before I headed back to the room. DH was fast asleep, so I let him rest. We did not attend the sail away pau either. While DH slept I headed out to find the laundry room, so that I could get a jump start on ironing. When that was done I returned to the room to find that DH was up from his power nap. DH wanted to see Villians tonight, so we showered and dressed.



We made our way to the Walt Disney theater and found seats in the upper balcony. The show is good and DH enjoyed it as well. That would be the only show that we would watch the entire cruise. After the show we headed to dinner at the Royale Palace. We met are tablemates who turned out to be a couple from Germany who were on their honeymoon. I see how it is Disney pair the freshly married couple with the old married couple that is celebrating as well, lol. However communicating was a problem.

 

[Grumpy's Wife]

Joining in. It looks like I'm a bit late for one trip report but right on time for the other. Looking forward to reading along.

 

[choppee]

Reading along! I've always wondered what traveling without the hubby would be like with the kids...you give me hope! And traveling without the kids, just with hubby? Heaven! One day!

 

[Toria]

Reading along! I've always wondered what traveling without the hubby would be like with the kids...you give me hope! And traveling without the kids, just with hubby? Heaven! One day!

It is absolutely wonderful. I call it our re-connect time. You know life and kids keep you busy and you can easily loose sight of focusing on just each other. I work at night and I only see my family on the weekends and for 1 hour when I am getting them ready for school. Our weeekends are then dedicated to them or sleep(in my case).

 

[Toria]

I last left off where we were paired with some newlyweds. Well they were from Germany and the wife did not speak English at all. The husband spoke a little English, so our conversations were not extensive at all. It was very akward because half of the time we just sat there and stared at each other and smiled Dinner could not end soon enough for all of us. I never take photos at dinner so no photos. I can't for the life of me remember what we had for dinner, but we enjoyed it. After dinner we made the trek back to the room so that I could change my shoes. The shoes that I wear are for making an entrance only(ladies you understand) and for sitting. After I changed my shoes we headed down to the adult areas to see what was going on. DH and I just sat back and enjoyed ourselves and listened to the music. People were enjoying themselves and tearing up the dance floor. This is when I get fustrated with DH. My hubby has to be good and tipsy before he will get out on the dance floor. I am a dancer and I don't need any drinks to have a good(alcohol puts me to sleep anyway). Well after a couple of drinks he still wasn't feeling it and I was getting tired. We headed back to the room and called it a night. I have no pictures of us during dinner or out that night. I sucked taking pictures this day, maybe it will get better.