What's better than a honeymoon? TWO Honeymoons! 8/30 57 hours/13 months to go!

[Joyciemc]

Nice that you got to have some downtime with friends after the wedding/pre-honeymoon! Must have been almost weird to have that normalcy, though!
Ooo I hope Jamaica was fun! Absolutely cannot imagine trying to pack for a trip like that with only a carry on, though!

The carry-on packing is totally Ben's thing. Luckily, I don't bring a lot of stuff with me when I travel. I think we had a break through about checking luggage this trip, though!!

Ok, so I'm dying to know why you kept your wedding dress at the funeral home!

Haha, either you're the only one who read carefully enough to catch that, or everyone else thought it was perfectly clear why I would have my dress in a funeral home

Leading up to the wedding, I started to get a little over anxious about pet hair getting on my dress since I have a lot of pets and we were getting dressed at my house. Michelle happened to be walking by when I was bringing my dress inside and I told her about my fears. So she offered to bring me over to her 'chapel'. Which is in her funeral home. And hang my dress up there. She promised that there were no pets, and she wouldn't let any dead bodies touch it. Michelle and I have a similar sense of humor, so I thought it was funny. That's why we forgave her for pronouncing our name wrong.

 

[SOUTHERNtinkerBELLE]

Well now it makes perfect sense why you would keep your dress at the funeral home! How convenient to have one on hand!

 

[Joyciemc]

Well now it makes perfect sense why you would keep your dress at the funeral home! How convenient to have one on hand!

I wish I had thought to get a picture of my dress there. I was being so spazzy about it getting damaged before the wedding that I never even thought of it.
Looking back, I wasted a lot of energy worrying about that dress. Ten minutes after putting it on I was outside with the train on the dirt and it didn't matter at all.

We are very lucky with neighbors, except for the creepy wackadoo next door. He doesn't have a funeral home, but he may very well have dead bodies.

 

[Joyciemc]

I've been house sitting for the last week and am finally home! 12 cats and a dog kept me plenty busy (try to imagine the amount of litter box scooping involved...) especially considering that several of the pets are on medications and half of those are cats that run the other way when they see me. The extra income was nice, but I am oh-so-glad that it is over!

I left off as we were leaving for the airport to get to Jamaica... but we were actually heading to Miami for a connection. I wouldn't mention it except that my closest brush with death happened as a result of that connection.
We boarded our plane in Miami and were ready for our short flight to Montego Bay. The plane taxied over towards the runway and then we sat there for a long time. Finally, the pilot let us know that there was a big storm that we couldn't fly in and we were going to wait it out for about 45 minutes. Sure enough, a crazy storm came through. But the rain calmed down and we were heading out.
Not long after takeoff, it was clear that we were flying in this storm. The plane fell several times (who knows how far it actually fell, but it felt far!) and I was freaking out. Ben was holding my hand and telling me that he has flown in way worse (this later turned out to be a kind hearted lie) and I was barely holding it together. But then the plane fell some more and all the passengers started screaming. This went on for almost the entire flight. Just before we were landing, we got out of the cloud and the pilot came on the intercom to apologize. He said that 2 planes left before us and both reported back just some mild bumps, so we took off. You could tell he was pretty shaken by this but he did a good job keeping us all alive so I forgave him for almost killing us. (He had also just got married the same day we did)

The passengers of the flight had formed bit of camaraderie, having almost died together, and we were all chatting as we walked towards baggage claim and customs. The adrenaline was pumping and we were all loving life (because we still had life to love) Because of this, we didn't even notice the really long line at customs.
The next thing we knew, we ended up at the Sandals lounge at the airport. I had no idea this existed, but it was really nice! They had drinks (including Red Stripe beer and sparkling wine) for us and comfy places to sit. After just a few minutes, we were called and loaded on our shuttle for the 10 minute ride to the resort. The fun thing was that we were allowed to have alcohol on the bus. So Ben and I got a Red Stripe for the road. The other couple we shared the shuttle with were very jealous- I felt a little bad, but the cup was too small to share!
As concierge Butler suite guests, we went to a private lounge for check in where we met our butler, Devon. He took our bags and brought us to lunch and said he'd be back to get us after he 'finished getting our room ready' (my best guess is he had to stock the fridge with the Coke Zero Ben had requested for me). At this point, we were tired and our nerves were frayed but we were starting to take in the fact that we were in Jamaica for our honeymoon.

A stop at the bar for a refreshing cocktail didn't hurt (Bay Breeze for me and Rum and Coke for Ben). Here we are waiting for Devon to come get us. This is what we look like after almost dying:

I'll share pictures of our room in the next post!

 

[Joyciemc]

Our room was absolutely beautiful! Sandals Royal Caribbean is a small resort, so you really can't be in a bad location, but I was still very pleased with our building!
The room was huge, and just beautiful!

This was taken from the front door, looking into the room:

The gorgeous bathroom! There was a whirlpool tub, and an amazing shower that I loved! I want to move this bathroom to our house.

This is the balcony. We had huge sliding doors that opened up on this large outdoor space. Breakfast was served out here every morning by our butlers.

We had a swim-up staircase suite- we had a back door that led to a staircase going right into the pool for our building. It was awesome!

This was taken looking down from our balcony. That is the pool our staircase led into. The first floor suites actually had zero entry into the pool from their patios!

Me in the pool in front of our building. There were lounge chairs on the other side of the pool (that's where Ben is taking this from)

 

[DisneyCrafter]

Joyce-OMG about the plane! I would have lost it no doubt. I freak out about a little turbulence on the plane. That pilot really held it together, I'm sure it was one of the most stressful times in his life as well as yours. Your pictures so far are amazing! Do you really mean it when you say that there really isn't a bad room? We were considering staying here on our next Sandals trip. I was thinking we would just book the lowest room and hope that we get upgraded to a little bit nicer of a room as return Sandals guests. You both look relieved in that picture! Thank God you are both okay! DH's parents had a flight similar to yours on the way back from their honeymoon. People were praying out loud and everything. Yikes! I look forward to reading more!

 

[Joyciemc]

Joyce-OMG about the plane! I would have lost it no doubt. I freak out about a little turbulence on the plane. That pilot really held it together, I'm sure it was one of the most stressful times in his life as well as yours. Your pictures so far are amazing! Do you really mean it when you say that there really isn't a bad room? We were considering staying here on our next Sandals trip. I was thinking we would just book the lowest room and hope that we get upgraded to a little bit nicer of a room as return Sandals guests. You both look relieved in that picture! Thank God you are both okay! DH's parents had a flight similar to yours on the way back from their honeymoon. People were praying out loud and everything. Yikes! I look forward to reading more!

It was bad, really really bad. I was dreading the end of the trip- not because I hated for it to be over, but because I did not want to get back on a plane. It was definitely the other people freaking out that did me in- there was a lot of praying, screaming and crying.

There really wasn't a bad location! The resort is compact, but really well landscaped so it seems bigger than it is because you can't see through the trees and plants. But you can't be far from the main pool or beach, and there are several smaller pools scattered throughout as well. I'll share more details about the trip, but we thoroughly enjoyed the resort!
We just really really enjoy Sandals... we booked a trip for next spring to Sandals Antigua for our anniversary

 

[klacey1]

I would have been one of the screamers on the plane, that's for sure! Thank God you got through it-- and nice of your hubby to try to calm you down with some well-meaning lies lol.
That swim-up suite idea is so cool! Your room was just gorgeous-- breakfast brought by butlers to an outdoor couch does NOT sound bad at all!

 

[DisneyCrafter]

It was bad, really really bad. I was dreading the end of the trip- not because I hated for it to be over, but because I did not want to get back on a plane. It was definitely the other people freaking out that did me in- there was a lot of praying, screaming and crying.

There really wasn't a bad location! The resort is compact, but really well landscaped so it seems bigger than it is because you can't see through the trees and plants. But you can't be far from the main pool or beach, and there are several smaller pools scattered throughout as well. I'll share more details about the trip, but we thoroughly enjoyed the resort!
We just really really enjoy Sandals... we booked a trip for next spring to Sandals Antigua for our anniversary

We had such a great time at Sandals Royal Bahamian. I read mixed reviews on Sandals but the things I heard people complaining about when we were there were so stupid. Really, you're on vacation, get over it!!!!!

 

[SOUTHERNtinkerBELLE]

Wow! What an amazing resort - it looks so beautiful! But what a nightmare getting there! I'm so glad you made it there safely! Strangely enough, my scariest plane ride was also from a connection from Miami! I was going the Bahamas, and we had a connecting flight in Miami where we boarded our teeny tiny little plane that would take us to Nassau. A huge jet took off ahead of us, and being that we were in such a little plane, we hit the air pocket that it left behind and literally fell through the air - just like you mentioned! Ugh...it was not a good experience!

 

[Stefy]

Woah not a fun experience on the plane I must admit I do like a bit of mild turbulence (I know weird, but its like being on a ride), but that would have had me freaking out too! Lol-d at Ben's little white lie about being in worse, bless him.

Loving the room, looks beautiful and I can't wait to hear more about the Butler Service and everything else You are my deal clincher to persuade DF to do Butler Service at The Grand Halcyon in St Lucia

 

[Joyciemc]

I would have been one of the screamers on the plane, that's for sure! Thank God you got through it-- and nice of your hubby to try to calm you down with some well-meaning lies lol.
That swim-up suite idea is so cool! Your room was just gorgeous-- breakfast brought by butlers to an outdoor couch does NOT sound bad at all!

I blame those breakfasts for most of the weight I gained on our trip! It was too tempting to order a little bit of everything because the food was included!

We had such a great time at Sandals Royal Bahamian. I read mixed reviews on Sandals but the things I heard people complaining about when we were there were so stupid. Really, you're on vacation, get over it!!!!!

I found that people's attitude had a lot to do with how much fun they had at Sandals. Ben and I wanted to have fun, so we participated in things and chatted and made friends with other couples. And we didn't let things that couldn't be controlled bother us (hordes of ravenous mosquitoes, for example!)

Wow! What an amazing resort - it looks so beautiful! But what a nightmare getting there! I'm so glad you made it there safely! Strangely enough, my scariest plane ride was also from a connection from Miami! I was going the Bahamas, and we had a connecting flight in Miami where we boarded our teeny tiny little plane that would take us to Nassau. A huge jet took off ahead of us, and being that we were in such a little plane, we hit the air pocket that it left behind and literally fell through the air - just like you mentioned! Ugh...it was not a good experience!

I may always be a little nervous flying out of Miami, now!

Woah not a fun experience on the plane I must admit I do like a bit of mild turbulence (I know weird, but its like being on a ride), but that would have had me freaking out too! Lol-d at Ben's little white lie about being in worse, bless him.

Loving the room, looks beautiful and I can't wait to hear more about the Butler Service and everything else You are my deal clincher to persuade DF to do Butler Service at The Grand Halcyon in St Lucia

The room was fabulous! I'll post with some more details of the trip soon, especially some of the butler stuff- we've got to get you a butler in St.Lucia!

 

[Joyciemc]

I have two exciting updates about our September trip!
Number 1 is that we finally bought plane tickets. We are flying Southwest out of Providence, since they don't offer non stop flights to Orlando from Boston. But it works out ok because we'll need to drop our dog off at DH's (that's the first time I've called Ben that! hehe) parents and they not too far from Providence. Now I just have to figure out how we are getting from MCO to Portofino Bay at Universal. It looks like we'll just take a cab, but we still have to do some research.

Number 2 is that we are in double digits! Ben started a countdown while I was away house sitting, and we are now at 96 days. Still sounds far away, but it's a start!

I'm so psyched for this trip!!!

I'll continue by Jamaica report once I have more time to upload pictures and stuff.

 

[Stefy]

The room was fabulous! I'll post with some more details of the trip soon, especially some of the butler stuff- we've got to get you a butler in St.Lucia!

Yes please

Coolbeans about booking your flight Its great when you hit the three month mark, as before you know it its two months, then one and then single digits

Looking forward to hearing more about Jamaica

 

[Joyciemc]

Yes please

Coolbeans about booking your flight Its great when you hit the three month mark, as before you know it its two months, then one and then single digits

Looking forward to hearing more about Jamaica

Here's hoping it goes by super duper fast!

I'm working on the next Jamaica post now...

 

[Joyciemc]

Moving on, here are a few more pictures of the room.

Going down to our pool:

The wonderful mini-bar. It had liquor, beer, wine, soda, juices and water. When we checked in online, they asked if we had any special requests for our butler. Ben asked for Coke Zero because I consume that stuff by the gallon. I didn't know he had asked for it though, so I thought it was WAY exciting that they had it!

There are lower levels of rooms that don't have alcohol in the mini bar, but they have all the non-alcoholic drinks.

The butlers would leave some really neat touches at turn down. There was always a snack left (cheese and crackers, desserts, fruit) and some kind of towel animal.

Lovely rose petals on our breakfast table on our patio:

A couple of evenings, we came back to our room to find more elaborate turn down service:

The service was great all week. We had two butlers assigned to us who would alternate shifts. A cell phone was given to us to use for the week so we could call with any requests. Devon and Adia made our excursion reservations for us, as well as reservations for the restaurants that required them. Breakfast was brought by whoever was on the morning shift that day. They also escorted us to meals, brought us drinks when they would see us out at the pools, reserved lounge chairs for us, and even drew us a gorgeous bubble bath with champagne that was waiting for us when we got back from an excursion to Dunn's River Falls.

I apologize for these huge pictures. I resized them in Photobucket (I thought...) but when I previewed this post, the pictures are huge. I don't want to go back and change it all, especially since the resizing didn't work the first time!

 

[Joyciemc]

I just had to post and share the exciting conversation Ben and I had earlier...

We were talking about our next trip to WDW after the upcoming one. I casually said something along the lines of "we should just buy DVC". And Ben asked what that was. I told him, and then said that I really don't know much about it (which is true- I have no idea what it costs and how points work). He actually said "we'll have to look into it." So I picked my jaw up off the floor, then said we could schedule a DVC tour in September. And he wants to. This could be very exciting!

 

[klacey1]

Oh, TF Green. I went to college in RI and brought my freshman year roomie there many times (she lived in NC and had to fly home).
I can't believe all of the wonderful perks of your hotel!! The "butler at all hours" is VERY Sex and the City 2-- awful movie, but had an amaziiiing hotel in it!
That's so exciting about DVC!! I've heard even just touring ad getting all of the information is fun-- not like a scary timeshare sales pitch.

 

[Stefy]

Wow loving all your pictures and that bath looks heavenly Was the mini bar included, or did you have to pay extra for the champagne and alcohol?

Awesome that you are going to look into DVC, it is a great investment and I think well worth the money. Fingers crossed for you

 

[Joyciemc]

Oh, TF Green. I went to college in RI and brought my freshman year roomie there many times (she lived in NC and had to fly home).
I can't believe all of the wonderful perks of your hotel!! The "butler at all hours" is VERY Sex and the City 2-- awful movie, but had an amaziiiing hotel in it!
That's so exciting about DVC!! I've heard even just touring ad getting all of the information is fun-- not like a scary timeshare sales pitch.

Providence is a nice little airport, and actually not too far from us (though Logan is REALLY close) We still are paying more for airfare to Orlando than I ever have, but Southwest was the cheapest for direct flights.

So excited to check out DVC. We have some free time in our itinerary, so this should work out nicely!

Wow loving all your pictures and that bath looks heavenly Was the mini bar included, or did you have to pay extra for the champagne and alcohol?

Awesome that you are going to look into DVC, it is a great investment and I think well worth the money. Fingers crossed for you

The mini bar was included- nothing in those pictures cost extra and they would restock anything we ran out of. I know there are levels of rooms at Sandals that cost less and don't have alcohol in the mini bar.

I hope we our DVC tour ends with us owning something, but I know it will have to be a good deal for it to happen. Ben is very good at crunching numbers, and we are both pretty frugal. At the very least, it will be fun to be nosy and poke around a model!