Happy New Year!

Well, not quite yet but we'll be out this evening and I won't have a chance to blog.

A recap of yesterday's events......

Well, we were ready to go about 9:30 and headed to Epcot where Gary and I were able to find where our Leave a Legacy tile was placed. Right near the front of the park so we'll be able to visit our picture every time we go to Epcot.

We headed to World Showcase where we proceeded to visit the many countries. Did the boat ride in Mexico, ate some Norwegian pastries in Norway, etc. The girls were busy getting their artwork stamped by each country, something they do for kids here to keep them from being totally bored. Oh and they got some autographs from a few characters. Before we finished the remaining 3 countries, Gary, Brynna and I decided to go to Beaches n' Cream at the Yacht Club for lunch whilst the rest chased characters. After a scrumptious lunch where we sat at the actual soda fountain, we headed over to MGM by way of boat. Gary left there and Brynna and I went into the park and to Coaster where we backdoored and got on the very front of the ride, woohoo! After we headed back to the resort and after a bit of sitting around, Gary and Brynna went swimming with the Jefferys while Mom and I sat poolside with frozen drinks. Left there shortly after 7, back to our rooms to get ready, and we (sans Gary) went to Magic Kingdom. Rode Buzz Lightyear, watched the kiddies do some Fantasyland rides, had some dinner at 11 pm and then watched the fireworks which were awesome. It was a trial run for the NYE fireworks tonite so they were pretty spectacular. Mom, Brynna and I went back to the resort not long after Lee, Nyla and Sarah did. Hannah and Teresa stayed on to do Space Mtn. and I'm not sure what time they stumbled in, prob after 2.

Pretty quickly we're off to House of Blues for the Gospel Brunch. We'll come back to the resort for some swimming and rest and then we're heading out to MGM around 5ish for our ressies for dinner at the Prime Time Cafe and then we'll stay at the park until midnight.

Hope everyone has a wonderful NYE. I'll post more next year!

Just thought I'd do a quick blog on our day's escapades.

We were up by 6 am, dressed and ready to go and got out of here before 7. Caught the bus and we were in Animal Kingdom by 7:30. Quickly walked to Kilimanjaro Safari and boarded our vehicle for the trek. Saw hippos, crocs, okapi, ostriches, flamingos, elephants, wildebeests, 3 cheetahs and lions. After we had some breakfast at Tusker House and then while the Jefferys and Nana went off to Rafiki's Planet Watch, Gary and I headed halfway through the park to see Donny Osmond! He was doing an autograph signing for various Mulan media and his latest album. Just found out he was going to be here a few days ago on my Disney boards and it was darn handy that we planned to be in the park today. Stood waiting for close to an hour but it was very nice to get his autograph, a photo taken with him and a little conversation about his time as Joseph in Vancouver 13 years ago.

We met up with the rest and did Kali River Rapids where I proceeded to get absolutely soaking wet, as usual. This was our last thing to do in AK so we caught a bus back to the resort. Quick change and then we went to Typhoon Lagoon. Did the wave pool, tubed around the lazy river and did the family raft ride. That twas enough for myself and Gary so we just sat around while the kids did their thing.

We decided to try another resort for dinner so the group of us, less Lee (wanted some alone time) and Brynna (had dinner plans with Joey) caught 2 busses to get to Pop Century (the original resort we had booked) where we had dinner in their food court. It was very good parm chick with alfredo pasta and then tye-dyed cheesecake for dessert. Then we caught 2 busses back here to our resort. It's getting late now but we've decided to head out at 9:30 tomorrow to do the part of Epcot we haven't been to yet. Off to bed!

Doing the Disney Dance....

Well it's been a few days and of course we've been busy, but we've relaxed a little too.

On "Boxing Day" we went to Epcot and although it rained a little, the dampness was pretty much over. We chose to go later in the day and get some sleep instead. We got there around 2, had some lunch and rode Soarin' then did Journey into Imagination (mostly for Nyla) then when the Jefferys and Nana went to see Nemo & Friends (the wait was far too long) the rest of us went for hot chocolate and then browsing through the stores. We then met up and did Test Track and brrrr, it was darn cold outside. Had some fast food for dinner then Gary departed which was handy since Brynna and I had planned on looking for something for his birthday in the gallery. Found a Stitch figure in the Art of Disney he had been eyeing up a few days ago. He's in a tropical shirt holding a tropical drink, very cute. We left shortly thereafter though and went back to our resort.

Yesterday we slept in a little as our ressies were for 10:50. Went back to 'Ohana for the Character Breakfast and saw Mickey, Lilo, Stitch and Pluto. The kids were all excited to get autographs and their photos done with them and also me with Mickey and Gary with Stitch and Lilo! We ate tons, they brought around cinnamon buns, sausages, eggs, bacon, Mickey waffles, biscuits, home fries and tropical juice and we even got Kona coffeee. We ate our fill and then out came the birthday cake I had ordered for Gary. We each had a small slice and then sent back the rest to the college students in the kitchen.

After we went to Downtown Disney and headed to Disney Quest where we spent a few hours following the kids around while they played games, etc. Then we went to see "Night at the Museum" which was very funny and quite good. Brynna left us at 'Ohana as she finally was able to meet up with Jimmy and spend the day with him.

We headed back to the resort, as it was freezing, and had our dinner there at the Pepper Market again, followed by a nightcap in our room and watching TV.

Today we took the girls to Bippity Boppity Boutique and they had a great deal of fun. It was fun for us to watch them get their hair and makeup done but it was quite the zoo. So many little "princesses" getting done up, Disney must be making a killing! After we headed to Animal Kingdom and met up with Gary, Brynna and Lee. We had lunch at the Rainforest Cafe and then headed into the park where we rode Dinosaur, some did Primeval Whirl (not me, too spinny) and then we saw Nemo, the Musical. It was quite cute but sitting in the dark makes me nod off! We then did Expedition Everest which I really like. Such a fun roller coaster. Everyone did it except for Nyla (too short) and Nana (doesn't like coasters). Had some dinner at the Flame Tree BBQ and then headed back here to our rooms.

Tomorrow we're getting up super early, 6 am, so we can hit Animal Kingdom very early to do the Safari and a few other things before it gets too crowded. Then we're going to Typhoon Lagoon, the water park. Hopefully it gets super warm tomorrow. It was much nicer today but is somewhat cooler now. Off to get in my jammies!

Another Christmas over.....

Well, it's been a long day but a good if not wet one.

We were up and dressed by 8 am as we were expecting the family to invade our room to open stockings and gifts. We were all suitably spoiled. I received an awesome scrapbook from the cruise to fill, some Zydeco cds and a Disney pin from the Jefferys, my Mom gave me a set of home movies that were converted to dvd, way cool. Brynna gave me a really neat case for my cell phone that has Mickey on it and Gary gave me beautiful diamond earrings! I gave him a Zune for Christmas which is a personal mp3 player/video player/fm radio and he seems to like it pretty well.

After gift opening we headed out for our breakfast reservation at the resort. It was all very good and we stuffed ourselves silly. Then it was off to Magic Kingdom to see the Christmas parade. Just before Santa showed up, the skies opened and didn't stop for hours. We were sooooooo wet, can't believe how much it rained today. It was literally bouncing off the ground and unfortunately Florida doesn't drain very well so it was a couple of inches deep in most places. We managed to procure some ponchos and raced back to the resort to get dry. After a few hours of lolling about we caught a bus and then monorail to the Polynesian Resort for our reservation at 'Ohana. That was a feast I tell you. We had deep fried wonton, chicken wings, salad, shrimp, scalloped potatoes, and hunks of meat they came around with on skewers. The whole meal was fantastic and then followed by pineapple coconut bread pudding with ice cream, yum! The girls had fun learning how to hula.

Lee and Nyla left for the resort for some quiet time while the rest of us went back to the Magic Kingdom. We managed Buzz Lightyear, Stitch Encounter, People Mover, Pirates of the Caribbean, Jungle Boat and Big Thunder Mountain Railway. Left the park about 11 pm but it was actually open until 3 this morning!

Tomorrow we're taking it somewhat easy, sleeping in as we haven't done so in the past several days and then going to Epcot in the afternoon.

Have a great Boxing Day everyone, hope the sales are good to you!

It's a Marshmellow World.....

Well, not really, but it really is a very Disney-like Christmas we have going on here!

Merry Christmas! It's 12:42 am here in the east and yes, we're still awake. Must go to sleep soon though, been a long day.

We've been off the ship since yesterday morning. The last few days were simply a blur. Our last day was spent at sea and we did manage to get lots in. Gary, Lee and Hannah & Sarah all climbed the rock wall. We packed, a lot. We picked up our photos that we wanted, did our last-minute shopping and managed to have a few meals during all that!

The evening was pretty fully too, after dinner we had a song & dance show to attend, late night adult comedy, 2 hours of karaoke and of course the casino. Did it all though and got to bed before 2. Yesterday we were up really early as we were to get off this ship between 8 and 8:30 (our priority status, woohoo). We did get off and then got our car rentals dealt with and took off to Orlando.

We got here before 11 am. Wonderful resort but massively large and we're still not sure where everything is. We checked in but of course our rooms weren't ready so we headed to Downtown Disney to deal with our Christmas shopping. Then Brynna, Gary and I took off for the outlet malls to get all the stuff we never got back home. Trouble was, took us at least an hour to circle the parking lot and get a spot. By the time we got back to the resort and lugged everything, up to the 2nd floor, it was well after 6:30. We decided to have dinner at the resort and then Teresa, Mom, Lee, Brynna and I went to Hell-Mart! We were there about 3 hours I'm sure! We had to buy Xmas gifts as well as groceries and a Christmas tree and some decorations. By the time we got to the checkout I think we had to wait a half hour to get through. Who knew that so many people in the Orlando area were shopping at 11 pm at night.

Anyways, today was just about as busy. We got up earlyish to return the rental cars and they shuttled us to MGM where we spent about 5 hours. Took Mom on Tower of Terror, too funny! I think she liked it but just kept staring at us afterward. Gary, Lee, Sarah and I went on Coaster then we all went on the Great Movie Ride. We split up for awhile and met up with Brynna who came to the park later. All had lunch and then went back to the resort. Spent MORE time shopping at the hotel gift shop, just a few last minute items and then came back to our rooms and wrapped for several hours! My goodness this is a lot of work! After having dinner out at the Rainforest Cafe we came back here, decorated our 6 foot Charlie Brown ($13.82) tree with lights, glass ornaments and lots of candy canes. It's quite cute. We filled the stockings, hauled the loot out and put it beneath the tree and now I'm sitting watching the lights glow as I type this.

Tomorrow should be an awesome day. We're opening gifts, having brunch, going to the Magic Kingdom for a parade then back for a rest followed by dinner at 'Ohana, Christmas Polynesian-style.

Hope you all have a very Merry Christmas! TTYS.

Sailing, sailing......

December 21, 2006

Well it’s been a couple of busy port days. We spent Wednesday in Belize City. We had to take rather large speed boats in as we had to tender out pretty far, the water near the city is quite shallow. That took about 20 minutes to get in. Once there we proceeded to leave the “secured” area and went out to have a look at the locals. There definitely is some poverty to be seen, several children and even an adult were asking us for money. We bought a wood carving of a turtle and a cool mask for Gary. He decided not to risk the boat ride in and stayed behind. I even had a beer! It was so super hot and humid and the beer was soooo cold, it kinda hit the spot. Last time I had one was in Mexico in 1982!

Back on the ship, in the afternoon I had a facial which was super awesome. So relaxing I almost dozed off like I was in the tanning bed! My skin still feels soft, yet my nose is so Rudolph red at this point in the vacation. Since Brynna grew her nails so nicely, I treated her to a French manicure which she really enjoyed.

We had formal night last night, much fun getting 8 people out the door for photos before dinner. Wasn’t too keen on the results but Mom bought the group photo. Yummy dinner included prime rib AND I asked for the fisherman’s plate on the side, a lobster tail and shrimp. I ate the lobster and Gary got the shrimp, he also ate his lobster and shrimp and Lee’s lobster! Had his fill for the year.

We then had a repeat passenger party where there was more food including white chocolate dipped strawberries, yum, and free beverages. Then on to a comedian who was so funny, really enjoyed his performance. Then on to karaoke where Lee did 2 songs and Brynna managed Winter Wonderland, even though her throat hasn’t completely healed yet. Then we were off to the Gala Buffet! This was quite the packed day and evening of the week.


December 22, 2006

Today we were back in Mexico, this time Cozumel. Docked (lucky us, 6 other ships had to anchor and tender in) at 7 am this morning and finally left just before 11 tonight. Very long day in port.

We got our sorry selves up and out of bed, had some brekkie then caught a cab to Paradise Beach where we grabbed some lounge chairs, a bucket of cerveza and a couple of Mango Margs for me. The kids had great fun in the water and Brynna had a henna done on her neck. After a few hours of sun we headed back to the ship for a little relaxation before we got ready for shopping.

Spent a few hours out in the main shopping district, just a walk away. Picked up the rather inexpensive Kahlua and some vanilla, our typical purchases in Cozumel.

Since we got back later than dinner started, we went to the buffet for our evening meal. It was okay. There must be a breakout of Norwalk that they’re not really talking about cause all the food being served in the Windjammer, the buffet restaurant, is being doled out by servers. We’re not allowed to touch the food. Guess Gary started a trend.

We just relaxed after dinner, hung out in a lounge and talked while listening to some live dance music. Tomorrow is our last day L and we have things to do like bingo, packing, rock climbing (Gary), packing, shopping in the onboard shops, packing and whatever else we can pack into the day.

Not sure when I’ll get online again, hopefully a day or two in Disney. We’re hoping our time there is less stressful than our cruise! One can always hope!

Are we having fun yet?

December 18, 2006

Well, we’ve been away for a while now, and let me tell you it’s not a picnic!

First of all our flight was delayed by two hours due to “mechanical difficulties” and made us miss our connection in Dallas. Fortunately we were able to get another flight out of Dallas, albeit several hours later than anticipated. We landed in Orlando after 10:30 pm (originally to arrive at 5 pm), picked up our rental van, got a wee bit lost (heading north) and when we finally got to Tampa and to our hotel, it was like 3 am (EST).

Our travels were a darn sight better than the Jefferys. They, flying out of Seattle at the same time as us, were hit by the worst wind storm ever which knocked out power at their hotel as well as SeaTac. After many frustrating hours and tears, they ended up back at YVR flying to Dallas, spending a night, then flying out early to Tampa, the day of our cruise.

We all met up at the Port of Tampa, quite excited to finally be starting our Caribbean vacation. Our suite, while nice, seemed so much larger in the photos! It’s actually a pretty good size for us all, just hard to hide the many (and I mean many) suitcases.

Had a great first day exploring the ship, eating, drinking, finally unpacking when our suitcases showed up. We even had some fun gambling, losing our money actually. We watched Lee do some karaoke and had just a lot of fun.

Our first full day at sea and Gary was feeling off. After suffering all morning he went to the medical facility where they promptly quarantined him! Found him a new cabin on Deck 3 where he’s been since yesterday. He’s been so sick, I believe they think it’s Norwalk but it’s an extremely bad flu, he’s never been this bad before. Nothing functioning as it should and he’s barfed non-stop for a day and a half. It’s finally slowed down but he’s got a slight fever and the shivers tonight. We were hoping that he would come back “home” tomorrow but we’ll have to see if the medical staff allows him. It’s made for a rather disappointing couple of days, although it’s been nice to have family to hang out with.

Last night we watched Lee do Rock-a-Rokie. It was a lot of fun, he sang with the band. Poor Brynna has had laryngitis for the past few days so can’t do karaoke.

Today we were in Grand Cayman where we did the Pirate encounter. It was a ton of fun but poor Brynna was chosen to swab the deck with all other kiddies on board. So here she is with a toothbrush, on her knees, when they douse the lot of them with buckets of seawater. She was soaked! After that, Hannah and Sarah gave up their mother as the evil wench who made them do chores so she was keelhauled, tied up to the mast and buckets of seawater with ice cubes in them were dumped on her! She was brave, yet cold. After all the merriment we then swam around the ship for a while then they took us back to shore where we did some shopping before heading back to the ship.


Tuesday, December 20

Another day ashore. We docked in Costa Maya around 10 and headed out to pick up our tour to the Chacchoben Ruins. The weather was very warm and humid but so much nicer than wind and rain! The drive to the ruins took about 50 minutes then we spent at least a couple of hours at the site. It was so cool to hear about all the Mayan history and see these recently discovered ruins. They’ve only been open to the public for 4 years and are still in the process of being excavated.

After our bus ride back we roamed around the shopping plaza at the dock, being plagued by vendors so quickly made it back to the ship where we found Gary in our cabin! Yeah! He’s feeling so much better although a bit weak and tired. He even came out to dinner with us but left as we ate dessert. He did want to go to the casino though, he must be getting better. We lost all our money there, as usual, then watched a singer for awhile. My mom enjoyed him but Teresa and I were wondering if they ever got entertainers that appealed to anyone under 60! We then went to see Quest, quite a funny game that they put on for the passengers and watched a bit of the Rock and Roll Party. No one in our group danced, and Gary had long since gone to bed. It’s now after midnight and time for me to put out the lights. Tomorrow we’re hanging in Belize and not doing much of anything.

Getting ready.........there goes my sanity

Well, we're down to 3 more sleeps before we lock our doors and leave this rock we live on.

We're heading over to Maple Ridge for one night, allowing Teresa, Brynna and myself to rock out to Aerosmith on Wednesday evening. Then we're off to Richmond the next day to spend the night prior to our flight and picking up Mom (Nana) en route. We'll be having dinner with Robbie & Marnie and then getting a good night's sleep before our 4:15 am wakeup call.

It's been a pretty hectic weekend all in all. Started off with a staff meeting/Christmas get-together in Victoria on Friday. This was followed by viewing The Holiday with Gary, Brynna and Tabi. Yesterday was "spa day". Brynna and I started out with a visit to the hair salon, then we fought upstream in the mall to pick up last minute gifts and necessities for the trip. This was followed by a lovely sojourn at the spa where we had pedis and a brow wax. Back to Costco for some last minute purchases and then, thankfully, we got to go home. Some last minute baking followed by gift wrapping and the Scrooged DVD finalized the evening.

Today after many phone calls and a late start, Brynna and I put together cookie trays for my co-workers while Christmas music blasted out. Then the altogether frightening task of trying to fit everything into the chosen suitcases. So much stuff, hard to believe we'll actually need it all, BUT WE WILL! Anyway, Gary weighed the largest suitcase and drats, it was almost 5 lbs. over its limit. This means yet another suitcase. Thank goodness they're all on wheels, we'll be doing a lot of pushing and dragging I'm sure. Moved the overflow from our suitcase and Brynna's to another suitcase and everything weighs well.

Not too much left to do now. Dinner with the in-laws tomorrow night, one last matching t-shirt to conjure up and the organization of my purse is all that's left in the agenda, besides working 2 last days that is.

I will be back, hopefully yet another step closer to Florida!