Christmas

For Christmas morning, we told the kids they could come downstairs at 7. We started hearing them around 5:30. Jack slept in Luke's room. Kara woke Anna at 6:30 (although Anna said she woke up at 4 and went back to sleep around 5). They came down at 7, and we started with the traditional pictures by the tree. We opened the stockings, which contained lots of candy. Then, started with the presents. 

Luke was probably the most excited, or at least the most vocal in his excitement. As I know I have mentioned we don't really do presents throughout the year. Even birthdays are generally marked by an outing and not a gift, so we tend to get a lot at Christmas. Although, we don't go too overboard; based on the pictures I see on Facebook, I think we are actually fairly average in the number of presents given. 

Everyone got books. Kara and Luke both got complete series of books they like (Dogman for Luke and Lorien Legacies for Kara). Jack got some high-level books that I honestly don't understand how he can read, like "A Short History of the Byzantium" which isn't really all that short at 3 volumes. Anna only got one book, her gift from Jack on fashion through the ages. Speaking of the fashion book, the kids were pretty thoughtful in their gifts this year. I appreciate when they take the time to consider what their siblings and parents might actually appreciate. 

There were several gifts I was excited to give. I got Kara a book she saw when we were in Asheville and was able to have it inscribed by the author (an art book called The Art of Abandonment). She said it was her favorite gift. I mostly got Thomas the same things I always get him like baseball cards and an old newspaper. I received some great presents, like really powerful binoculars, earrings I love and a watch.

But, I was most excited to give Jack and Anna their big present--their own phones! The three older kids have been sharing a phone since they started middle school. That hadn't been the plan, but we found we wanted to be able to communicate that they made it to the bus stop (when we were both working and they had to get themselves there) and Florida holds kids at school if it is lightening, so it was nice to know when that was happening (it is not consistently applied). Because they shared, they took turns being in charge of the phone.  We figured now that Jack and Anna are 14, it was time for them to have a phone of their own. By default, that meant Kara got to keep the old phone to herself. We don't love that idea, but she would have it in August anyway (as the only kid left at the middle school) and it seemed mean to take away now.

We saved the phones for last. Jack didn't seem very excited or surprised, but Anna was thrilled. Kara was also thrilled when she realized it meant that she got the old phone all to herself. Anna got hers set up the way she wants it, Thomas and I set up Jack's. We instituted parental controls and talked about how they have zero expectation of privacy. Hopefully, we can trust them to make good choices. I did take a video of Anna opening hers, here is a screenshot:

We spent the day enjoying our gifts. We played new games (Cat and Mouth seems to be the boy's favorite) and snacked on leftovers. Jack fell asleep around 5 and didn't get up until 7am on the 26th. When he woke, he wasn't sure if it was morning or night. I was very jealous of his 14-hour night's sleep! 

We let them do unlimited electronics in the days following Christmas and they are taking full advantage (although, happily, they are still going outside and playing with toys other than electronics). It was a good Christmas. The kids even proclaimed it their favorite Christmas. Santa brought the boys handheld gaming consoles (like a souped up gameboy), Kara got noise cancelling headphones, and Anna got a Kindle.

Favorite gifts:

Thomas: the newspaper

Kori: earrings

Anna: phone

Jack: gameboy

Kara: Abandoned Art book

Luke: Wii replacement gamepad

Pre-Christmas

We had a fun couple of weeks leading up to Christmas. Jack and Kara performed in their middle school band concert. It was really good and we all enjoyed it. 

Kara is the flutist on the right. Jack is in a different band and was harder to get a picture (he doesn't sit in the front row).

Kara and I went to Universal and saw all their holiday shows, including a concert by Manheim Steamroller, a live reenactment of "The Grinch" and a parade. We bought holiday treats and had dinner at our favorite brick oven pizzeria.  No one else was interested in a visit that was focused on shows, but we enjoyed it.

The Grinch was funny, and it had a live dog!

Waiting for Manheim Steamroller

I volunteered in Luke's classroom and was the week's mystery reader. They made gingerbread houses and everyone seemed to enjoy it. I read "Tough Cookie" which I thought was really cute. I didn't get to volunteer all of last year and it was nice to be back in his classroom.

Luke and his teacher. We joke about his inability to take a normal picture :)

To kick off Winter Break, everyone but Jack went to Universal after dinner on Friday night (Dec 17th). Jack really is a homebody. It is annoying for me and Thomas, because we want everyone to do things together. And, I feel like he generally has fun when we do make him attend. But, I also don't want to force him to do "fun" things (too often). It leads to frustration and anger on both sides, and sometimes we just have to let it go. But, the rest of us had a good time. 

Jack had his final basketball game. He played the best he has ever played and they came very close to winning the championship (they only lost by 1 point). Jack scored and had lots of assists and rebounds.

I finally got a picture!

We saw the new Spiderman movie and went to lunch at Steak n Shake. Covid numbers are rising, again. So, we made everyone mask up. I recently read an article, by reputable sources, about how masks aren't nearly as effective as we'd hoped, mainly because people don't wear the right ones and don't wear them properly. So, I made everyone double mask, with surgical type masks using the double-loop method and then another mask over it. It was annoying, but it made me feel better about being in a crowded theater. 

Luke went to the zoo with the Cantells one day. He had a great time. The girls came over here when they got home and Jordyn baked cookies with Kara. We found a really good gingerbread cookie recipe that Kara has perfected.

Another day, Anna had a friend spend the day with us. We went to Leu Gardens and the downtown library. Leu Gardens had lots of varieties of poinsettias. We purposefully chose a cold day (one of maybe 3 we've had this month and by cold, I mean we had to wear a sweatshirt) to enjoy being outside. We also toured the Leu House Museum, which was interesting. Anna's friend didn't enjoy it very much, we overheard Anna say something to her like, sorry if this boring and her friend responded, without any irony, "it's okay, I've been to worse places, I had to go to a funeral once." 

This Japanese camellia was the most perfect flower.

Santa and Mrs. Claus visited the park next to our house another day. It was coordinated by our friend and combined with a cookie exchange. The Claus' were entertaining. They read the Night Before Christmas, sang songs, told holiday jokes, and talked with each child. Luke liked it but didn't love it.

Thomas and I both woke up feeling kind of sick on the 23rd. We had cold symptoms, which are the same as the symptoms for the new Omicron variant. We were supposed to host my sister and brother on Christmas Eve, so we went and got Covid tests. Thomas was sure it was going to be positive. But, we were negative. I was almost disappointed. I am so tired of Covid and feel like getting sick is inevitable, so I am just ready to get it over with. Obviously, I don't want to get sick, but I feel like it's going to happen eventually. We told our family and they decided that as long as weren't worse on the 24th, they would still come.

I felt fine on the 24th. Thomas felt the same and the kids all felt normal. So, the day was on. They came after lunch and we played Just One and Apples to Apples. We had our big dinner (we don't cook on Christmas) and then went for a walk to look at lights in our neighborhood. It was really, really nice. I loved having everyone over. One of Thomas' MD coworkers/friends was passing through the area and stopped by to give Thomas something to pass on to our boss. It was a quick visit, but it was good seeing him. After everyone left, we opened our Christmas pajamas and took the kids' picture in front of the Christmas countdown.

A Very Busy Weekend! (Lots of Pictures)

Friday night, Thomas and I had our long-anticipated date night to Universal. When we still lived in Maryland, I would frequently see ads for "Orlando Informer Meet-ups". They promised low crowds with little to no ride wait times and all-you-can-eat food choices, including butterbeer. It sounded amazing! But, we lived in Maryland and it wasn't feasible. Then, we moved to Orlando. And, I saw more targeted ads and suddenly it wasn't a crazy idea. They do the meet-ups a few times a year and we decided to make it an anniversary present to ourselves and choose Friday, December 3 (as of November 28th, we have been married for 18 years!). We splurged on the tickets in June and have been looking forward to it ever since. And, it did not disappoint! 

We got there around 5:30 and were each given a $15 voucher for food (the free food didn't start until 8). We used one voucher at the Three Broomsticks and shared beef pasties and corn on the cob. Then, we snagged a virtual pass to Hagrid's! We got off Hagrid's around 6:45 and took the Hogwart's Express to IOA. We got there right around 7, when the park closed to regular guests.

We rode the Mummy (twice), Transformers, and MIB all with no wait. Then, we ate at Monster's Cafe. We walked over to Universal and rode the Seuss Trolley (so fun at night with the Christmas lights) and Velocicoaster--no waits! We did have to wait about 25 minutes for Hagrid's, which we rode for the second time that night. We got hot and frozen butterbeer and watched the light show on the castle (without wall-to-wall people, which was amazing). We got green eggs and ham tater tots and then rode Spiderman (no wait and we had the ride vehicle all to ourselves). We browsed the empty shops and watched the Grinch insult people and then decided to call it a night. The park didn't close for another hour, but we had done everything we wanted to do and were pretty tired. 

Rare to have an empty street for a photo backdrop

No wait!

The Tribute store is generally packed with people

The older kids watched Luke while we were out. It was their first time babysitting him late at night and by all 4 accounts, it went really well. We ordered them pizza and let them stay up late to watch a movie. It was pretty nice to not have to worry about finding a sitter!

Saturday, I was hoping to have a relaxing day, but that is not usually life of a parent. Instead, I took Jack and Kara to the downtown library on Saturday morning. Then, I took Anna ice-skating that afternoon. She is working on her backwards crossover and made some good improvements. Thomas took Jack to his basketball game, but otherwise spent the entire day putting up lights. 

We (but mostly Thomas) put up all our indoor decorations before the cruise. I saw some videos with decorated hallways and thought our entrance would work perfectly. Thomas agreed and set to work. It took him a lot of hours, but it makes our house feel so festive! He also did our blue and silver front room and we put up the Christmas Village and main tree in our family room. It is very Christmasy around here! 

Hallway and some of the front room

Village "left-overs"

Family room tree.

But, he still had to do the outside. It took all day (Kara and I helped for a few minutes, but it was 99% Thomas).  

Living a little dangerously to get the lights in the tree

Finished view from the side

And the front

Saturday night, Thomas took Luke to Jeremiah's (where they now recognize us) and I took the older kids to see A Christmas Carol. It was performed by the girls' theater teacher's acting troupe at the Dr. Philips Center. We all enjoyed it and the girls were so excited to see their teacher perform.

With their amazing teacher

All three (I took 2 pictures and Kara's eyes were closed in both)

Sunday, we went to Legoland to see their Holiday stuff. Miniland is finally open! They had Santa sprinkled throughout, and it was fun to try and find him and the reindeer. We did a scavenger hung and saw two funny shows, one where Thomas and Luke got called up to participate. We also saw the tree light show when it wasn't quite dark, but we were ready to go and it was a school night. It was a crazy, busy weekend and it was hard to get up for work on Monday morning. 

Santa being arrested on the roof of the White House

Full White House shot

Santa Elvis on the Las Vegas strip

Lego sorting hat

Quite the performers

Cruise Finale

 Day 5--At Sea: Our last day started with breakfast in the main dining room. Well, at least for me, Thomas, and Luke. The older kids went to the Windjammer. After breakfast we hung out in our room and then did the escape room. It was okay, just like all escape rooms; they just aren’t my thing. There were 12 people in there and it is hard to work in a large group, especially with people you don’t know. It was our family, except Luke who is not old enough (he got to hang out with the Cantells), Marta and Frank and five strangers. The theme had something to do with Astronomy and the theming was good. We got a couple of hints and did manage to get out with one minute to spare. However, there is no way we would have figured it out without the hints. Kara had been asking to try an escape room for quite a while, and it was $20/person, which is significantly cheaper than the ones I went to in Maryland, so it was good to give her and the other kids the experience. 

After that we grabbed Luke and we played miniature golf with the Cantells. Then we got ice cream before heading back to the cabin to get ready for lunch. Anna and Kara went to the teen club and hung out with their new friends, including having lunch with them. One of the kids Kara has been hanging around with is actually from Lake Nona. Small world! They did Harry Potter trivia, which Kara‘s team won and another scavenger hunt, which Kara‘s team also won. Meanwhile, Thomas and I had lunch with Marta and Frank in Chops Grill, one of the ship's specialty restaurants. It was absolutely delicious! I had a shrimp cocktail (with huge shrimp), filet mignon and chocolate cake. Everything was perfection. Thomas also had a steak, but he doesn’t like steak as much as I do. He still enjoyed the lunch. 

Jack took Luke to the Windjammer for us and then kept an eye on him while we finished our lunch. After lunch we played games on our balcony with Marta. 

Among other games, we played a family favorite--Love Letters.

Frank made a wise decision to take a nap while we played.

Then we got dressed for dinner and looked for a photographer, we were hoping to take our annual family photo in front of the ship's giant Christmas tree. Even though we were expecting a photographer to be there, based on the daily itinerary, none showed up. So, we went to the suite lounge and had virgin piña coladas and Shirley temples before heading to the main dining room for dinner. 

Our last night to enjoy Shirley Temples and Pina Coladas

After dinner we tried again to find the photographer and this time were successful. Although, the pictures below were taken by Marta. I will add a blog with the pictures from the ship's photographer if I ever receive them.

One that shows us

One that shows off the size of the tree

We picked out our photos from the cruise and then most of us called it a night. Anna went to the teen's club until about nine and we gave Kara a 10 o’clock curfew again. Once again, she was not happy, as the scheduled activities didn't end until either 12 or 1 (I can't remember which).

Our final morning, Thomas finished the packing while I took the kids to the Windjammer. We were among the first people off the ship and the kids were home in time to catch the bus. I think it was a very successful experience. We have one more cruise booked and then I think we will take a break for a while! Well, unless I can figure out a way to get us to Alaska without spending a fortune.

To conclude, a picture with the view from our deck on a sea day. It was so peaceful to sit out there!

Cruise Days 3 & 4

Day three: A Day at Sea. We had breakfast at Chops Grill which was an included benefit of being a suite guest. The service and the atmosphere were good, however the food was no better, and actually probably worse, than the Windjammer. We went to breakfast in our bathing suits and headed straight up to the deck with the pools. First, Luke, Kara, and Jack did the sky pad. Then, Luke, Thomas, and I did the water slides. There’s one that briefly goes out over the water and that was terrifying and cool at the same time. I went on twice and then felt dizzy and had to call it a day. Luke and Thomas went on it a bunch of times with no line. 

Eventually, we met up with the Cantells and Luke and Ella spent time on the water slides. Jack and I found Marta and Frank and we checked out the peekaboo bridge, which was pretty cool (it lets you look into the ship's bridge). We all had lunch in the Windjammer. After lunch, Jack played cards with Marta. Thomas, the girls, and I went back to the peekaboo bridge. We were really close to Cuba and it was pretty cool to be on deck and see it as we went by. We used our binoculars and were able to see the skyline of what looked like a pretty big city.  

At 2 o’clock, I went to the ice-skating show with the big kids. Meanwhile, Thomas and Luke played ping-pong and then Thomas was able to get Luke a spot in the kids club. After the show, the girls and I met up with Thomas in Café Promenade to have an afternoon snack. Jack and Marta played some more rummy. Thomas and I spent some time sitting on the deck and reading, as did Jack after cards. We had dinner in the main dining room at 5:30 and then everyone but Anna went to the 7:30 show, which featured the comedic juggler that we saw on our last cruise. He was funny and we liked it. Anna had gone to the teens club, Kara met her there after the show. We gave them a 10 o’clock curfew. Kara wanted to stay for a surprise 10 o’clock activity. But, she is 12 and we think 10 o’clock is late enough. She was still in a good mood, mostly because her team of three won a name that tune competition and she got a metal water bottle.

Day four: Cozumel. We had breakfast in the main dining room which was good. Then we hung out in our cabin until it was time to leave for our excursion at 10:30. The plan for the day was Playa Mia. Originally, we had booked an excursion to Xcarat, which everyone was very excited about. But for some unknown reason the excursion was canceled, and we scrambled to find something that we could do. Because Luke is not vaccinated, we could only do excursions with the cruise line and many of the ones that were still available had a minimum age of 8. So, we decided on another beach day. We went to Playa Mia when I was pregnant with Luke on our first cruise, which was a Disney cruise. And, I had fond memories, so it was a good consolation excursion. 

The bus left from the end of the pier around 11:15 and we were there by 11:30. Luke, the girls and I went straight to the ocean inflatables. Thomas and Jack started with some snorkeling. We also did the water bikes and hung out in the pool area. We were there with the Tilleys and the Cantells and we really enjoyed being together. 

Screenshot from a video of Luke that Kaitlin took. It wasn't easy to get up on the inflatables, so we didn't spend too much time there. But, the kids did go down the slide a few times (I even braved it once).

I love how clear the water is in the Caribbean. Anna on shore, the rest of us on the water bikes.

Better water bike view

Playing in the pool. We were the only ship in port, so nothing was crowded.

I wanted to recreate some of the photos from this play area, but we ran out of time. The pictures from the first time are in the blog under Cozumel (Nov 2013).

Our excursion did not come with food, but the food was super reasonably priced. We had some amazing nachos, quesadillas, and tacos. Everything was very good. Our excursion lasted only 3 1/2 hours before we were back on the buses. Luke was very upset about this as he wanted to do the inflatables again. But I think everyone else was ready to go. When we got back to the port, we did a little souvenir shopping. Anna got a bracelet, Kara got a necklace, Jack got a Mayan ruins statue, and Luke got a T-shirt. I bought some earrings and Mexican vanilla. Thomas got nothing. 

We were back on the ship around four and everyone showered and changed. Some of us met the Cantells at the suite lounge around five. I had a virgin piña colada and Luke and Anna had their nightly Shirley temples. We all went to dinner at 5:30. I had some delicious shrimp. Then we went to the 7:30 comedy show, which was fun. Jack especially enjoyed it. The girls headed up to their evening at the team club, where they did another scavenger hunt, and the rest of us walked around the ship a bit before deciding to call it a night.

I wish I had thought to order a pina colada on the first night. It was delicious!

Thanksgiving Cruise Days 1 & 2

When we booked the birthday cruise, I noticed that prices for Thanksgiving were really inexpensive. The 5-day cruise was less than the 3-day October weekend cruise. I suggested postponing the birthday cruise until November. Thomas suggested we do both. Almost everyone was on board with that! Jack didn't really want to do either. He especially didn't want to give up Thanksgiving at home. But, he doesn't have to do any of the preparation, cooking or cleaning that Thanksgiving requires, and he is a bit of a homebody, so that was not surprising. We dragged him along anyway and he had a good time. Marta and Frank joined us as did our neighbors, the Cantells. They are the same family that we did family camp with. They have two daughters, one Luke's age and one who is 5. All my kids (but especially Luke and Kara) love their girls, so that was really fun.

Day 1:

We arrived at the port around 11 and check-in was very quick. We still had to do a COVID test for Luke (if you are vaccinated, you have to do one no more than 48 hours before the cruise, if you are unvaccinated, you have to do that and then test again right before boarding the ship). We were onboard by noon, did our muster and then met Marta and Frank in the Windjammer. After lunch, we explored our awesome 2-bedroom suite, which was on the back of the ship (prices were so comparatively inexpensive, we couldn't resist, we could never afford a suite under most circumstances).

After unpacking, Jack, Anna, Luke, and I explored. J&L did rock climbing. Luke was able to ring the bell, everyone cheered, and they gave him a medal. Jack came super close but didn't quite reach the bell. 

The line was short for the sky pad, so Luke did that next. Jack left us and went off to explore by himself. We saw the Cantell‘s and they did the sky pad as well. Then the kids played on the climbing structure. 

We got ice cream and went to miniature golf. I sat and chatted with Anna and the adult Cantells while Luke, Ella and Jordyn played. By now, it was about 5, so we headed off to get ready for dinner, stopping in at the suite lounge. I declined drinks, but the waiter offered Shirley Temples to Luke and Anna which they loved. Luke asked if we could go every night at 5 (when they offered the free drinks) and I think we ended up going 4/5 nights.

On our way out of Port Canaveral

We had Thanksgiving dinner in the main dining room. There was a mixup with the seating, so we were not all able to sit together.  I sat with Marta and Frank at a table adjacent to the rest of my family and the Cantells. 

Earlier in the day, I told the older kids that they had to go to the teen's club for at least 15 minutes when it opened at 8pm. They were all very angry about this. We expected them to come back at 8:15, which they did, but only to look for items for a scavenger hunt they were doing with their new friends. Kara's team ended up winning and received a medal (the same kind Luke received for ringing the bell on the rock climbing wall).  Jack’s team came in last place and had to go and play Ring Around the Rosie in the Promenade. They came back to the room between 9-10. Everyone said they had a good time in the teen room, but Jack never went back. 

Day 2

Everyone slept terribly. For Thomas and me, it was because of very thin walls. Our "neighbors" were loud and got sick in the night. I was awake at five. I enjoyed watching the ship back into Coco Cay. Luke and Kara were up around seven and shortly thereafter we woke up Jack and Anna and went to the Windjammer for breakfast. We were on Coco Cay around eight; it was more crowded than when we were there in October. We snorkeled for a little while. Well, Thomas and I snorkeled. Then, Thomas and Jack went out and I went out with Anna. We saw some really big stingrays and found a couple of sunken things that we did not see last time. 

We met up with the Cantells and then we all went to the huge pool, where Marta and Frank were hanging out. We had a really delicious lunch, then played a little bit more on a different beach. Thomas took Anna to get her hair braided and then Thomas, Kara and Jack went back to the ship.  Anna and I stayed with Luke and he and Ella played in the kid's areas. Kaitlin, Anna, and I had fun listening to some live music while they played nearby. I definitely love Coco Cay!

Kara took the "chill" part seriously.

Ella, Luke and Jack took turns burying each other.

The massive lagoon pool. It is huge with music you can hear underwater (which is different than the music you hear above water)

Lots of braids.

We texted Thomas as we were walking back to the ship and he came out and waved at us.  Our ship was parked next to Symphony of the Seas, which looked pretty amazing. Thomas, Anna, and I went up to the top deck of our ship so we could walk around and check it out a little better. Then we went back to our room as we pulled out of Coco Cay and waved goodbye to the people on the Symphony and they waved goodbye to the people on the Mariner.  There were lots of people out on their balconies waving and it was really fun. 

Our view of Thomas waving from our balcony.

Thomas' view of us on the pier.

Goodbye to the Symphony

After everyone showered, we went up to the suite lounge and had some more nonalcoholic beverages and a couple of snacks before heading to dinner. After dinner, Luke went into the kid's club for a little while and Anna and Kara went to the teen area to do the Flow Rider. At some point during the day, Anna did a speed rock climbing activity with the teen club and came in first. They gave her a gold medal, the same kind that Luke & Kara received.