Back to life, back to reality

It feels good to be back home again and see the smiling faces of my three
amigos.

Jason and I had a wonderful time on our cruise this past week and the time flew by.

The weather didn't want to cooperate to the fullest, and therefore we endured some pretty rocky conditions. I still feel like the boat is rocking even though I am on solid ground. It's such a strange sensation - sea legs. It wasn't until the last day at sea that we had sunshine. Otherwise, it was always cloudy and windy - so windy that at each port of call we went to they had to cancel any water activities.

I experienced a lot of firsts on this cruise even though we've cruised in the past. I wanted to stay open minded and embrace new opportunities. I had my first taste of escargot (a fancy word for snails). And they were absolutely delicious - seriously. Anything you smother in garlic and butter sauce should taste good and these were no exception.

Another first was experiencing the "jump zone" which was freakin' awesome! It's a trampoline with bungee cords that you are harnessed into. When you jump you're launched into the air - it was such a rush! I was even doing back flips. But that harness did a number on my inner thighs. Ouch! In the picture you can see the dark clouds starting to come towards us.

I wanted to try the rock climbing wall, but the weather was too windy and they had to close it for the majority of the trip. I can just imagine someone being blown off into the ocean when they reached the top. No thanks.

While we were in Cozumel, Mexico I held a very large iguana whose name was Tequila - seems like a fitting name. He was a cool dude. I was a little concerned about getting bit or pooped on, but he just sat there and looked at me. Thank goodness.

I took my first salsa dance class and found it very enjoyable. I am sure I was able to work off a few extra calories while shaking my hips. And I also found it a bit challenging to run on the treadmill while we endured some rather large waves. It was a total balance challenge, but I managed to get thorough it.

And get this, I played bingo - Ha! That even makes me laugh. The prize was a free cruise - so yeah, I was going to take a shot at winning. Jason was only 2 away from getting a bingo, but it didn't happen. Oh well - we still had fun. I did end up winning $5 off a pop-open which is similar to a scratch off card. So we weren't at a complete loss.

One of the coolest memories I have of our vacation was a show called Howie & Bert. They are these two comedian jugglers who are very entertaining. We were sitting in the 3rd row and half way into their routine they ask for a female volunteer. Sure, I raise my hand quite timidly and wouldn't you know it? They picked me and up I went on the stage - in front of a packed auditorium. I had such stage fright and could hardly keep my legs from shaking, plus did I mention the boat was rocking? - a lot! As I am standing up there I wonder what in the world I got myself into. Then they bring out 6 really sharp machete knives. I was seriously rethinking my volunteer position, but they made me feel comfortable. So here I stand with these two guys juggeling knives in front of my face and behind my head, praying to god I don't get my nose or any other body part chopped off. And sure enough - I survived. The funny thing was that people kept recognizing me as the "volunter" for the next few days. I guess you could say that was my 10 minutes of fame.

And here is something even crazier. I get an email yesterday through Facebook from a girl that I graduated with in high school and here is what she said:

Hey Lynette, I dont know if you remember me. We graduated together, but I just had to tell you I saw you a few days ago on the cruise when those two guys pulled you up on stage. You were so adorable!! Glad you didnt get cut up! I was on vaca with my family. When you went up there I was like, If shes says her name is Lynette I will freak out. I said to my family, I know her. You should go to the website those guys had. Im sure they tape their shows. I hope you had fun. I still feel like I'm rocking on the boat. Ugh. Take Care, gina

What are the chances of that happening? It was pretty cool I must say. I contacted Howie & Bert to see if I could get a copy of the show, but they don't get the tapes from the cruise. I have also sent an email to customer service from the cruise and I am hoping they may be able to supply me with a copy. I'll keep you updated.

Here I am posing with the very creative towel creatures. We weren't too sure what this one was supposed to be. A duck maybe? Who knows? It was interesting to see what animal would be welcoming us to our room each night.



















And then we started getting silly and having a little fun with the statues that were on different levels of the ship. And yes, that is only coffee in our hands - we had not yet had alcohol that day. Maybe I should have lied so you don't think we're that big of dorks. Oh well, now you know the true me. I am a kid at heart.

3 Days!

Crap!

There are only 3 days until hubby and I leave for our vacation. How in the world did it sneak up on me so fast? I've spent the last few days preparing, packing, pulling my hair out.

It's always been in the back of my mind and my gentle reminder on the sidebar has helped as well, but time is going a bit too fast. I hope it can slow down next week so we can enjoy the escape we need so very much.

While we're gone the boys get to have their grandparents stay with them for a week. Excitement doesn't even come close to describe how crazy the boys are in anticipation. It should be a fun (and hopefully not too stressful) week for all.

We are going on a 5 night Western Caribbean cruise making stops in Key West, Cozumel, and Belize City. I am looking forward to spending one on one time with hubby, fine dining, dressing up, laying around soaking up some sun, shopping and catching up on sleep. The last time we went away together was when Carson (boy #2) was 9 months old. So we're due for a get away - alone!

Don't worry, while I'm gone I will still have posts that I have waiting to go. No guest bloggers or anything like that (cause I'm not that cool.) But it will be like I never left. Lucky you!

I'll be sure to take lots of pictures and you'll get the full report when I get back.

Miss me, would ya?

And she's back

We arrived back home from our mini-vacation and are settling back into the groove of things.

Overall it was nice to get away with the family and spend some time together without the distractions of everyday tasks.

The first day we spent at the indoor water park which was a lot smaller than I anticipated, but was actually thankful for it. I stayed with the younger boys and attempted to follow Carson as he moved about from one area to the next and at times he slipped away so fast it took me a few minutes to locate him. Talk about a moment of panic. The only real bad thing was the level of chemicals they used in the water which was overwhelming. We all felt itchy, Luke's cheeks were red and I could only smell chlorine for the next few hours after we got out.

That night we set the navigation in the van to take us to the nearest Olive Garden for dinner and then came back to the hotel to call it a night. In the morning Jason had a conference call so I took the boys to the arcade for an hour. The feel of the arcade area was that of a casino. There wasn't much difference except that you got paid in tickets as opposed to money. They even gave you a card that you swiped for each game you wanted to play - no tokens or cash. That made it way too easy to spend way too much money. There again were a few moments of panic trying to keep all 3 in my sight. But I managed and they were starting to get restless. It was approaching lunch time and I really was hoping Jason would show up soon. I texted him to meet us at the restaurant when he was done. We all needed to eat and I was starting to get a nasty headache.

After lunch we headed over to Cleveland to surprise the kids by showing them the Christmas Story house. Unfortunately, it was closed that day, but at least they got to see the location which they thought was pretty cool. The rest of the day was spent looking at different neighborhoods and houses for sale.

At one of the houses we stopped at we got out to peek inside since the house was vacant. I walked around back and noticed the back door was wide open. I yelled in to see if anyone was in there so I decided to go in and give myself a tour. We also decided to call the agent and let them know what was going on. It was a bit strange.

That night we went to a different hotel and upon checking in we find out there is no pool. How could we stay in a hotel that does not offer a pool to keep our little ones busy? It wasn't going to happen. So while I was up in the room giving Luke a bath since he decided to pee his pants while standing in the hotel lobby, Jason was downstairs trying to figure out a different place we could stay at. It was at that point that I was just ready to drive home and be done with it.

Luckily, I left it in Jason's hands and we went down the road to a very nice Holiday Inn, which had a great pool and restaurant where the kids ate for free. I felt my sanity returning to me.

The next morning we did a final run through of some other areas and subdivisions and headed back home. Carson wanted his "Dee" which is his Winnie the Pooh stuffed animal that he has slept with every night since he was one year old. I ended up looking through every bag in the van and could not find it anywhere. At this point Carson starts crying and is visibly upset. He buried his head in his hands and was sobbing, which completely broke my heart. I made phone calls to all 3 hotels that we were at hoping at least one of them would give us good news. Two of the three said nothing was turned in and as of this morning the first hotel we stayed at still has not returned my 4 phone calls and messages I have left. I am quite irritated to say the least. I told Carson that if we didn't find it then I would get him a new one, but he said he only wants his old Dee, the one that he chewed the ears on.

I got online last night and actually found one just like his (minus the chewed ears), so I ordered it. Hopefully the hotel will find the old Dee and this will be a "just-in-case" replacement. Wish us luck!









It sure is good to be back home.