in october, my parents took brandon
and me on a pixar-themed disney cruise. after some debate, b and i made the decision to leave esme
at home. she stayed with my sister’s family and we knew she would be in good
hands. i think we had forgotten how wonderful travel can be without a child. don’t get me wrong, i LOVE, LOVE, LOVE my baby girl, but a week without her was AMAZING.
we drove with my parents to california on saturday and boarded the disney wonder on sunday. it was 7 days
of no worries. no toddler to run after, clean, and pacify. no meals to prepare, no dishes to do,
no laundry to fold, no diapers to change, no groceries to buy, no 13-hour work
days for brandon, (oh my gosh, i could go on and on).
our first day was at sea. we had breakfast with the disney characters, went to a movie (i think Brave), explored the ship, and of course stuffed our faces.
our first port was san francisco for 2 days. our first day we were able to visit the pixar studios and get a tour from my cousin, emma’s, husband. amazing! we of course stopped by china town and bought a week’s supply chinese candy. mmm. that evening we explored the island of alcatraz. creepy.
the next day, we were still in san francisco and were able to meet up with my cousin, joe, and his wife, liz. it was great to see them and their two adorable boys. we toured the __________. fascinating. it was a cargo ship that was on the shores of normandy just days after d-day. on our way back to the ship we stumbled across a shop that was jam-packed with old, antique carnival games. most of the games were in working condition and were hysterical to play, albeit a bit creepy.
the ship's engine room was insane. it seemed to go down forever. and a cool piece of info - it was used in the filming of the titanic. it has the same engine that the titanic did.
we played "i spy"... can you find us???
seriously creepy
that night, as our ship sailed out of the bay we wrapped up in blankets and braved the wind to watch the golden gate bridge pass over us and the city light fade into the distance.
the next morning we were in san diego where we spent the day at sea world.
the next day was another day at sea. so nice. brandon and i slept in. my favorite. we had brunch at the palo (the boat's "fancy" french restaurant) where we endulged, and discovered a new favorite... goat cheese and grape pizza. so good! who would have known. we also layed out by the pool, read, and watched another movie or two. that night was pirate night which included fireworks, a pool-side dance party and of course, more food.
our last port was ensanada, mexico. the armpit of mexico... actually worse than the armpit. not my favorite place to travel... and i love mexico and it's craziness.
The trip was amazing and much needed. Thanks to my parents for a fantastic week!
