A Magical Vacation

Well now that we've made it passed the big events of the spring, I'm going to try and play catch up on the blog here. So I apologize now if the next few posts are long and filled with total picture and information overload, but hey, we've been busy people!

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Princess Minnie and Princess Emma

For Spring Break this year, Kevin's parents Elmer and Sandra took the whole family on a weeklong Disney Cruise in the Western Caribbean on the Disney Magic. And let me tell you, it was SO unbelievably awesome. Now, when they first floated the idea by us about taking the family on the cruise, Kevin and I weren't so sure. I mean, what do you do with an almost two year old on a boat for a week? So, we did our research and found that the Disney Cruise line excels in activities for kids (and adults) for all ages and had special programs for even the youngest of travelers, which was good since Emma and Andrew were going to be almost 2 and Christian was 6.

Day 1 - Port Canaveral

Such a sleepy toddler

We flew out of Houston to Orlando VERY early in the morning, with our toddler who had never ever been on a plane. We didn't even bother getting Emma dressed until we got through security at the airport. She just rode around in her stroller in her pjs clutching Minnie Mouse with some very sleepy eyes and a lot of bed head. She did really well in the airport though and on the airplane. We decided to get Emma her own seat, which was a wise choice for our wiggly toddler. We made sure we were prepared to ward off any imminent toddler meltdowns though - we had our portable DVD player with Toy Story ready to go, plenty of snacks, and we had purchased the FAA approved CARES Airplane Safety Harness which is a car seat like buckle system for the airplane seat. The plane ride never even phased her; she was a champ and next it was off the plane and on to the Disney motor coach to Port Canaveral. The nice thing about traveling with Disney is that we never had to worry about our luggage. Disney picked it up from the airport terminal, took it to the port, and delivered it to our stateroom for us. The only thing we had to remember to do was to pack anything we'd need for the day in our carry-ons while we waited for all the luggage to get sorted and delivered.

Stateroom 6036 - our home away from home for the week.
The doors are metal, so we made some magnets to decorate it.

Once on the ship, we got to our stateroom. We had a balcony room around midship, so it was the perfect distance from everything. One of the things we really liked about our rooms was that there were two separate bathroom areas: one that had a sink with tub and shower, and the second that had a sink with the toilet. It made getting ready more convenient, plus having a tub for Emma made bath time go a lot easier. Emma had the option of sleeping in a real bed for the week that pulled down from the wall, but we opted to get a pack and play for her, and it worked out really well for all us. After we got all squared away in our room, we grabbed some lunch and did some exploring before the Sail Away party.

Fun at the Sail Away Party

That night we dined in the first of three restaurants, Lumiere's, and got to meet Mickey and Minnie Mouse in person. We were a little unsure of how Emma might react to meeting them in real life. When she went up to meet Mickey, he made one quick moved that scared her just a little, but with some coaxing from Daddy, she went up to meet Mickey and it was nothing but love for all the characters after that. She went fan-girl crazy here, people. Like crying cause we had to stand in line and other people were getting to talk to and hug on her Mickey, Minnie, and pals. It was too cute! By the end of the night, we had had a full day, everyone was super tired, and we all slept hard!

Day 2 - Key West

We all slept really well - maybe too well because we had to hit the ground running to catch the meetup with Princess Sofia! A lot of the events for toddlers were early in the morning, which is good if you have early risers and bad, if you're us. Now, if you've hung out with us lately, you know that Princess Sofia is one of Emma's faves. We totally know all the times it comes on Disney and Disney Jr. Luckily, we got there a bit early, so we didn't have to wait in line too long. I think Emma was a little star struck by Princess Sofia though and didn't really know exactly what to do when they met (side note: trying to get posed pictures with toddlers is quite hilarious and bless those Disney photographers, they tried hard).

Meeting Princess Sofia

Not quite sure what to do

Telling Grandma and Grandpa all about it

Princess Emma tries out her first ever bowl of Fruit Loops

Key West tram selfie

Most days we had signed Emma up to spend about 2 hours every morning at the It's a Small World Nursery, so that we could have some fun on our own. The nursery was great - there were toys, a huge TV, and they did arts and crafts. You could even drop them off for nap time there if you wanted. It was a good break for all of us, and I'd highly recommend it!

Now, this day the ship docked in Key West, and we hadn't scheduled any excursions and weren't originally planning on getting off the boat. But we decided to run into town and get some Diet Dr. Pepper (none on the boat!) and some other items for family members who were out on excursions. It was nice to take the tram into town, but Key West was super busy seeing that it was Spring Break and there were other cruise ships docked there as well. Maneuvering around with a stroller took some strategizing. By the time we found what we needed and got back to the boat, we had just enough time for everyone to squeeze in a nap before we had to change and be ready for dinner that night. That night for dinner, we rotated to a new restaurant called Animator's Palate. It was cool because they showed all these different stages of animations on the screens around the restaurant, and we even got a surprise visit from Mickey Mouse.

That night we also had our first princess sighting, and it was totally by luck that we ran into Cinderella. Most of the characters have scheduled meet and greet times, but every now and then we could catch them out and about too. Of course, Emma loved meeting Cinderella (and it set off a whole new level of princess fever around our house). We spent the rest of the night meeting different characters around the ship, and Emma's go-to thing became trying to get the characters to dance with her.

Day 3 - At Sea

A princess and a paci with her daddy

The days spent at sea were definitely easier to stick to a regular schedule. The days at sea also have the most stuff to do one ship, so you definitely have to make sure to plan your day out using the navigators they leave in your room every night (or the available app). The big highlights for today were the Princess Meet and Greet and the Pirate & Princess Dance party.

Emma and Jake dancing

We started the day out early by going to meet Jake from Jake and the Neverland Pirates on Disney Junior. Emma still had that fresh out of bed look to her, but she was ready to dance the day away with her favorite characters. At the princess meet and greet, you get to meet a trio of the "classic" princesses. It's a ticketed event that they do over multiple days, which is a great idea because it keeps the lines small and moving and saves those lovely ladies from getting completely inundated by fans. I have to say that all the characters were excellent with Emma. They talked to her at her level, were always smiling, and were pretty much up for whatever Emma wanted to do - fist bump, hug, or even dance. Since we didn't know which princesses would be on our cruise, we brought our Princess Aurora (Sleeping Beauty) dress to wear since Emma loves that movie.

Emma and Princess Belle

Emma and Princess Tiana

 

Emma and Princess Cinderella

 

After a very busy morning, we grabbed a late breakfast, and Emma headed off to playtime in the nursery. I think Kevin and I ended up going back to the room to hang out on the balcony, read, and watch some TV (I know we we're living it up...lol!). After we picked her up from the nursery, we grabbed some lunch and we're able to take her to go meet Pluto, which was definitely another one of her faves! And after naptime, she even let me style her hair!

 

 

Guys, who is this grown up little girl?!?!?!

We had some time to spare before dinner that night, so we happened to see that they were having a Disney Jr. Pirate & Princess Dance party, so we thought we'd go check it out. At first, she wasn't too sure about going out there and dancing around with all those other kids, but as soon as she saw there was a stage she could get up and dance on, she was hooked. Have we told you how much of a ham our child is? Seriously, people, she's an attention hog.

Checking to make sure it's okay she goes

Dancing on the stage

Dancing with Sofia and Jake


Video: Emma at the Pirate & Princess Dance Party

A ham, am I right? That night Emma headed to dinner with the in-laws while we got a chance to have a nice, quiet dinner at Palo, Disney's adult-only restaurant on board. It was delicious, authentic Italian cuisine, with even our server being from Italy. Everything there was to die for, seriously. But the chocolate soufflé for the dessert was the highlight of all the food on the cruise. If we ever get a chance to go back Disney cruising, we're definitely booking Palo for lunch and dinner. After dinner, we braved taking Emma to see the live action show "Twice Charmed: An Original Twist on the Cinderella Story." The cruise had live entertainment and shows every night after dinner, but we all had previously been so tired, that we hadn't made it to one yet. This show was cute, and the singing and dancing kept Emma mostly entertained. It was the only show we ended up making it to on the whole cruise, but my in-laws said all the others were excellent too!

Day 4 - Grand Cayman

Tender boats taking people to shore

Today, we took our first official excursion off the ship. Since there is a reef surrounding the Grand Cayman island, we had to take a tender boat into the harbor from the cruise ship; it was kind of a neat experience. Our destination for the day was the Turtle Farm where they conducted breeding and conservation of the giant sea turtles (think Crush from Finding Nemo). We got to see the turtles swim in the big breeding tanks and even hold some of the smaller ones. Lunch was included in our day trip, and afterwards, we checked out the aviary and got to go swimming, which is one of Emma's favorite things to do. It was a beautiful day out experiencing something that we wouldn't normally get to do at home. And as a bonus, as we headed back to the cruise ship Emma zonked out completely! 

Checking out the reptiles

Up close and personal with a sea turtle

Emma was super excited!

Trying to give it a kiss (don't worry Kevin didn't let her)

I got in on the turtle action too!


Video: Turtles on Grand Cayman

Feeding the birds in the aviary

After a quick nap, a bath, and a wardrobe change, we met up with the rest of the family for dinner and some laughs with Goofy! We also decided that instead of going to see the show that night that we wanted to take Emma to go watch Big Hero 6 in the Buena Vista Theater on board. So we threw Emma in her pjs, grabbed some snacks and drinks, and had a fun family movie night. Emma loved the movie, and since most everyone on board had seen it at other showings earlier in the week, we had most of the theater to ourselves, which was good since Emma kept kind of a running commentary going throughout the movie despite our best efforts to keep her mouth full of food and pacifier!

Day 5 - Cozumel

The water off of Cozumel

To say we were tired after Grand Cayman would be an understatement. We had all gotten a good deal of sun and were definitely running slow. So we were kind of at a disadvantage to have had two excursion days back to back, but we made it work. At Cozumel, we split ways with Emma and sent her along with her grandparents and cousins for a day at the Playa Mia beach and water park. Kevin and I were headed to the same destination, except we were scheduled to take a Mexican cuisine cooking class. We were really thankful to get to take an adult-only excursion while on the cruise, and Emma ended up having a blast going back and forth between playing in the pools and in the ocean.

Now, if you know anything about how the dynamics of our house works, then you'll know that Kevin does most of the cooking around here. I just don't have the touch (or the desire). But we both really enjoyed the cooking class (when Kevin let me help). We made three different dishes: devil-style shrimp sopes for appetizers, a fish fillet with sautéed vegetables and tamarind sauce for our main course, and caramelized plantains with chocolate tequila sauce for dessert. Our head chef Luis was great and his class was part comedy and part cooking, but all enjoyable!

After finishing our delicious morning, we watched Emma play on the beach for a while and then headed back to the boat a little early to cool down and get ready for Pirate Night! I have to say that Disney does a pretty good job in trying to balance things that appeal to both boys and girls. It wasn't just princess, princess, princess everywhere. There were plenty of activities and meet & greets for the boys too: they had the Avengers on board, sports and video game competitions, and lots of fun, messy goodness. But since we didn't have a little one old enough to hang out in the Oceaneer's Club or Lab, we missed out on getting to see a lot of that.

Once we were out to sea and away from Cozumel, the Pirate Night activities got underway. Dinner that night was all pirate themed, and guests were encouraged to dress as pirates for the evening (we did!). There were photo opportunities with Pirate Mickey and Minnie, Captain Hook, Peter Pan (if you could catch him), and the night capped off with a big party up on the top deck where Mickey and the gang had to rescue the ship back from the pirates. There was even a fireworks show! Even though we were all pretty tired, we enjoyed all the festivities, and Emma was in awe of seeing all the fireworks.

 

 



Day 6 - At Sea

Today we all took it easy. After two jammed packed days of adventuring, it was just nice to take things at mostly a leisurely pace. Our big activity for the day was getting to meet Anna and Elsa, another special ticketed event. By the time, the cruise had rolled around, it had been a while since we had even watched Frozen in our house since Toy Story and 101 Dalmatians had replaced it as being the new favorites watched ad nauseam around here. Nonetheless, it was fun to watch her get to meet Anna and Elsa.

We also got to spend a some time hanging out with our nephews since it was their parents' turn to have some alone time and go to Palo for the evening. We got in some character meet and greets with them and had a fun evening dinner at Animator's Palate, where we had a special treat. When we got there, we all had to color a person on special paper. Unbeknownst to us, they were taking our drawings and scanning them in to animate them and insert them into various Disney cartoons. It was really cool to see something you doodled come to life on the screens dancing to music. The kids absolutely loved watching, especially our nephew Christian as he tried to find his drawing up on the screen. It was a wonderful way to make our night special! Also, that night, the kiddos got to create their own cupcake for dessert - look at the plate they served it on, it's super cute too!

Day 7 - Castaway Cay

Our last picture
with Mickey!

Our last full day on the boat we stopped at Disney's private island, Castaway Cay, for the day. Our family was moving at a leisurely pace this day since we had kind of restless night's sleep (I think everyone was starting to get overtired at this point). We finally ended up getting off the ship around 11 to head to the beach for some swimming time with the rest of our family. But can you believe it, I have absolutely no pictures of this? I guess we were having too much fun out in the ocean to snap any shots!

Emma and Christian somehow convinced their grandpa that they needed an inner tube to play around with in the ocean, so we floated around a lot with them making sure they didn't dump each over the side of it since they were sharing. The weather and water were pretty much perfect the whole cruise and our day at Castaway Cay was no different. We played hard for a good two hours before we decided to call time out and head over to the buffet lunch provided by the ship. By the time we finished eating, we decided it was time to head back to the ship so Emma could get a nap and we could get a leg up on packing for home since our luggage had to be outside our staterooms by 10:30 that evening. By the time we headed for dinner that evening, we were all ready to go. We even finally managed to snap a family picture of all of us.

Ultimately, we had a lovely time, and I would highly recommended it to anyone who's thinking about doing it. Even with littles! The ship was clean and surprisingly spacious. The staff went out of their way to make sure they could accommodate your requests and needs. They have activities for every age group: toddlers, preschoolers, young kids, teens, singles, and adults. Kevin and I would totally go back even just on our own! It truly was a magical vacation, and we're very grateful that our in-laws blessed us with this trip!!

To see even more Disney Cruise photos, click here!