Hello all! Some background info on me first - I am a 36 yr old teacher from SE GA, wife of 12 yrs., mom to 10 yr old daughter and 7 yr old son. This cruise report on the Wonder is extra special because it was my family's first cruise ever and we were lucky to be able to get the kids sail free pricng for Spring break too (trip was around 1,200). There were extended family members who also made the trip and include: my mom and stepdad, my aunt, my grandmother, and my aunt's grandson - 10 yr old (so total of 3 kids and 6 adults). I am typing this trip on Monday morning so please forgive the typos because I am still suffering from the effects of mild motion sickness and feeling like I am moving. I would like to say that you REALLY should take off a day after the cruise to get your body adjusted if at all possible. Okay, on to the trip....We live about 5 hours from Port so we drove down and stayed at a La Quinta. The hotel was nice, pool was heated and plenty big for kids to have some fun. We got a good rate of $99 for the night which included breakfast (which was very good and hot food) and round trip shuttle for 2 people. We had to pay extra for the kids - $8 each for roundtrip shuttle costs, still cheaper than parking the car for 3 days at port. The hotel is near the beach but we didn't have time to check it out, though I hear it is very nice and if you can schedule some time for it you should! Anyway, the shuttle picked us up at around 11:00 and after getting all loaded (this took a while) and through traffic we finally were at the port at about 11:30ish. The shuttle let us out and porters were there immediately to take our bags for us. In my opinion my family overtipped our driver because we thought he was going to take out our bags not the porters. So then my family kept walking toward the terminal when they exited the van and I was left to tip the porters for all of us! There were 2 porters but I gave 1 a nice tip, I don't know if he split it with the other guy or not. I hope you don't think I am being callous about tips but during all of this commotion of 9 folks getting out of the shuttle and trying to tip 2 different groups, my hubby pulled his back out getting out of the shuttle. I MEAN HE HURT HIMSELF! I could tell as soon as he mistepped out of the van he hurt himself and let me tell you - he is 6'4 250 lbs so this was not a good thing to happen! So I am trying to help him, tip folks, keep up with excited kids, adults in our party asking what to do next, ETC all at once and I was VERY worried about him. So, callous or not we kept walking only a few feet to the terminal entrance where we showed our passprts and were allowed inside. Let me tell you the folks are sooo very friendly everywhere here (well, all Disney folks are to me) and helpful too. The terminal was big and a sight to see! There were tvs for kids to watch, a big model of the cruise ship, Mickey taking pics with kids, and the counters for registration. It was very organized too! We walked over to the first counter and because we already registered on-line and printed out our forms, it was NO TIME to get our room keys printed! We then got in line to have a quick pic made for security as were given boarding group #10. As we were wating for security pics, they began boarding the boat. The air was THICK with excitement and faces were glowing! We didn't rush to get anything done and I knew not to worry about rushing to get in line (thanks Dis boards) to get on the boat because waiting for everyone else to stand and wait got us full access to get a pic with Mickey in only 5 min! And we didn't waste time waiting to register kids there either because I knew doing it on board was quicker and you have to go there anyway to sign kids in and get a pager so we got to enjoy looking at the details in the terminal. When we did get in line it took maybe 7 or 8 minutes to get on board, and what took time there was a final security check, wiping your hands, and getting a welcome aboard picture. By the way, the guys who take pics can't take your camera to take a pic but others standing there will galdly do it for you. The security guard gladly did it for us - sweet guy. Then we got to the entrance of the boat and announced our name - the kids loved it (and so did I!!) I was in awe of this boat as soon as I stepped into it, and that level is the prettiest to me anyway. Hubby was being a real trooper too , newly bummed up back and all. I think the only reason he was able to even walk as well as he did was the excitement helped to distract him. And what happened after we walked on board?Next part coming!!
So my kids got to swim and slide to their hearts content but they soon wanted to leave this kiddy area and go to the bigger pool - Goofy's. When my 7 yr old son found the jacuzzi it was a done deal for him where he would be hanging out!! My daughter joined the other swimmers in this pool and was happily splashing away. My mom and stepdad sat sown to relax and hubby and I left them with kids to go check out the room. No luggage yet, of course, but our room was 6553 and it was right near the midship elevator. That was terrific! We then went back to the kids and sat down to chat with my folks. I told my Mom about a shopping presentation we needed to go to and maybe win a raffle. Hubby and I decided to go ahead and register kids in the kids' club. So....we departed ways. Registering at the kids club was no problem and they nicely bumped up my 7 yr old to the 8-9group (he is a VERY bright kid who is used to older kids) and daughter was registered to 10-12 yr old group. We got the pager and left. Hubby took kids to rooma nd I went to the shoping presentation. I didn't win anything but I will say that it was very informative and if you are wating to shop in Nassau then it is great info to have! After the show, I caught up to family and got ready for the lifeboat drill. It wasn't too bad and kinda funny to watch everyone lined up in orange vests 
Afterwards, we went to the sail away party and I really enjoyed that and checking out some more of the ship. Hubby and daughter split up to have fun and I had the boy. Hubby's back was still bothering him but the excitement was good for keeping his mind off it (and I asked for ice from the steward for later). It was getting about 5:15 after some more pool fun so I headed back to room with boy to change for early supper time of 5:45 (but thanks to Dis boards I knew to get there about 10 min after to walk on in and not stand in line!) So I was almost ready and so was son when the other 2 got back, and I was steamy about that (because I have to dress her and she has 10 punds of curly HAIR to fix). Anyway, we all got dressed and looked very nice too and got there about 5:58pm just in time for drink orders. My extended family was already seated and joked that it had to be my fault we were late (even though it really wasn't this time
). Anyway, we were at Animator's Palate this first night and it was great! I loved it. The food was good and the show was just what I had expected. The kids were having a blast and so were the adults. The kids even were adventurous with trying food off the adult menu. The dessert really was the best and getting the trio was the way to go to get a taste of each one. After dinner, the boy wanted to go to the kids' club instead of a show, the Golden Mickey's, so we dropped him off there and took the girl with us to see it. It was really good and I loved the humor of the preshow reports. Too funny!! Afterwards, we picked up the boy and all of us went to bed a little after 10. I needed to because even though I took Bonine and wore Sea Bands, I still got a little seasick. I get motion sickness VERY EASY so just letting you know, but I did see a good number of folks with the patch behind their ear (should have gotten some from dr before I left!!) But after a good night's rest, all of us were ready for Friday!!
. Daughter returned from movie around 5pm and was jazzed to be able to tell her friends all about it! It was Pirate Dress night so me and the kids donned our special mickey pirate shirts we had custom made and believe me these were show-stealers! We got to our dinner at Parrot Cay about 10 min late to avoid the line, and sat down with our family to recap the day. My granny especially looked so nice. She had been sick lately so the sea air and sun were really perking her up 
Most of us ordered the steak special they had and it was yummy!! The food was extra good too since I didn't have any sea sick problems (well, we were still docked too) and another tip is that you can get Mickey Mouse ice cream bars for dessert and they are just too yummy! My son ordered one at every meal! Anyway, the 2 older kids wanted to go back to the kids' club before the pirate party on deck so they left us to have some "kid fun". My son told me he didn't want to go to the pirate party so we checked him in shortly thereafter. We did gett o talk to our servers a little more this night and I could feel a bond starting to form! Aaron from the Phillipines and Stacey from Jamaica were super servers and I hope to see them again! 
So....I didn't press it just went with the flow. We got off the tram and I sized up the location pretty quickly. We got a lounger on the back row near the lifeguard side for safety, at the back to be near Cookies BBQ and bathrooms, and could see snorkeling area very easily too. Daughter and I went to swing in hammocks very awhile. Folks were already saving seats and prime spots were going fast. After our relaxing swing, I noticed that it was getting pretty full with folks claiming lounge chairs too. I was glad we were already set-up. Son made friends with some boys at the beach who were shoveling in the sand. I wish I had brought sand toys but thought we would be swimming more. Well, the kids got in and so did hubby but me???? NO!!!!! That water had to be 50-60 degrees cold. I don't speak any other languages but I know exactly what folks were saying in their native tongue about it 
Well, anyway hubby and kids got out in the water and attempted to snorkel for a bit. The boy got out becuase he was just too cold. I went back to the lounger and son played in the sand. DO wear sandals on the sand becuase those shells can be quite sharp and not very comfortable to walk on bare-foot in my opinion. The rest of my crew finally made it to the beach, except for grandmother who wanted to chill out on board. Stepdad and aunt's grandson borrowed some masks from us and went to snorkel with my hubby and daughter. The four of them had fun even though it was COLD!!!! I enjoyed time with aunt and mom in the lounger. One thing I will comment on here was that it was ridiculous how much booze was being pushed by Disney. Everywhere you went - the theater, the pool, the beach, the restuarants, EVERYWHERE - they wanted you to buy a cocktail or beer. It did get a bit annoying to me. And trust me there were plenty of folks buying it in buckets! So Disney definitely made some money. Moving on...
At the beach, aunt and her grandson were getting ready to go. Hubby was still chilling out at the beach. We really loved its beauty and how relaxed it made you feel. The water was an aqua blue that was enchanting with white sand. Just perfect! I looked at some souvenirs with aunt before she left and they were cute. I was not going to pay those prices though when I knew the Disney outlet in St Augustine had greater deals! They had a shirt and towel with the birds from Nemo daying "Mine!MIne!" and that was a riot! The bathrooms were clean (on everywhere on the ship were spotless too may I add) and the showers were right there too. I went back to lounge with hubby a little longer. The girl finally got over here pride and went to get some snacks to eat and ice cream. Hubby got himself a taste of choc chip cookie cough ice cream and deemed it the best ever!! We stayed awhile longer before deciding to board the ship. My legs were burning so I knew it was time or I would pay for it and it was formal night so I didn't want to look yucky
Anyway, we decided to walk this time instead of take the tram. It was a nice stroll, not for the severely out of shape or with small kids though. 
About a 5 min walk in my opinion but so worth it to see the area the jet ski play. It was too windy for parasailing and I hated that becuase I wanted to let hubby try it (and me too 
Even though the ocean water was cold, the beach was a balmy 80 degrees and after a little hike back to the ship that cool wet cloth really hit the spot of capping off a day in paradise for sure!
I def. recommend eating in each one on your first cruise to get the flavor for each one - was the big highlight of the trip for me next to the beach. I took my own pics of the family as I didn't want to spend a small fortune at Shutters. I hope that for a future trip they will have something like the picture system at the parks and you can buy a CD with your pics. Anyway, the show put on by the staff here was nice with them carrying flags from diff. countries and folks in the restaurant were waving their napkins around like banners. Great and fun energy! 
It was here that we really realized how much our servers had paid attention to what our preferences were and worked so hard to give us top notch service. The meal that most of us ate was lobster with pasta. The lobster was good but I didn't care too much for the pasta noodles. In all honestly the appetizer taht we got of french onion soup was soooooooo good that it was just too hard to beat. My aunt said that it was the best she ever had! The creme brulee was also yummy and getting it on the trio sampler was really just the right amount with how rich tasting it was. The kids especially had a great time with our server Aaron who gave them braintasers all night and made jokes. It was also funny to watch him keep my stepdad's coffee cup filled all night - my step dad is a HEAVY coffe drinker 
We gave them their tips gladly - they were such an amazing team they deserved every cent. I don't see how some folks would even think to stiff such hard working people!
Anyway, we finished and agreed that we would come to breakfast at 7 am to see them again and enjoy my fav restaurant one last time before leaving the ship. After dinner....
With the economy the way it is, it seemed better to wait to make sure we truly could afford another trip and maybe a better deal would come our way than she offered, hey you never know!!
So after the pics, the kids wanted to go where?????? Of course, the kids club and we went to the show Dreams. It was 
- I can see why it is a top notch show! I loved the musical renditions of the lion king and little mermiad the best!! There were some annoying families behind us though that kept talking and folks walking up and down the aisle that put a damper on it but aside from them, it was well worth the go see!!!! After the show hubby and I went back to the room to begin the packing process. We left out just what we needed and tagged our bags with the new Daisy Duck tags for disembarking. We had it all out by about 10:45 pm and the girl was back by then lounging in her beloved fold out bed (the kids loved the bunk bed feel of the 2 beds). We kept trying to bring the boy back to the room but he HAD to make flubber!! We called for Mickey to wake us at 6am 
to get ready for early breakfast. Finally we got the boy to come back to the room and into bed. And after falling asleep............
