I'm not sure if it was genius or insanity to take all my crazy crew on a cruise on Mother's Day, but I knew I wouldn't have to cook or clean for the next week so I was ok with it. The kids (and Jeff) surprised me the following morning (Sunday, May14th) with matching "I (heart) Mom" shirts (of course mine [and Laurin's] just said "Mom"). We got so many compliments on our attire that first day. The first two and a half days of the cruise, we were just on the ship. We sailed with Royal Caribbean aboard the Allure of the Seas. This is the same ship we cruised on over four years ago. The kids loved it then and they loved it now! Jonas was finally old enough to participate in some of the activities. Last time, he mainly chilled with Jeff and I wherever we went, but this time, he got to hang out with his siblings too. Dallin, Danny, Casey, and Jonas enjoyed the FlowRider. Jonas could only do the boogie boarding, but he LOVED it! Danny also won the "Best of the Best" in surfing on the FlowRider. He got to sign a surfboard that will forever stay on the ship. I would say the next favorite activity was the rock climbing wall. We also enjoyed some arcades, games on the boardwalk, the carousel, the sport court (Dallin, Danny, Jacob, and Casey were on the winning dodge ball team! Dallin, Casey, and Jacob also participated in the 3 on 3 basketball tournament.), mini golf...and of course the FOOD! (Jeff and I chose to use the stairs as often as we could. I secretly did it so I could have an extra dessert...or two!) In the evenings, we would attend some kind of show. We saw the broadway musical, Mama Mia, watched Amber and Casey sing karaoke, danced at a concert, laughed at an ice skating show, and were in awe of aquatic acrobats in Aria of the Seas. There was always something going on, which was good considering that towards the end of the cruise we had an additional day and a half on the ship before we disembarked in Galveston on Sunday, May 21st.
Our first cruise port was Roatan, Honduras (Wednesday, May 17th). We literally had no plans when we got off the ship. And, if you know me, that made me a little nervous, but we'd heard that there are so many local tour companies just outside the port that you could contract with on that day to take you wherever you decided to go...and there were! We were able to find a tour company to take all of us to see the monkeys and sloths, take a brief tour of a chocolate factory, drive us around the island, and transport us to and from West Bay beach (and it was half the price of what the cruise ship was charging). It was a fun stop! I was a little unsure about holding a sloth because I think they're a little creepy, but I couldn't pass up the chance. We all loved the mischievous monkeys who jumped all over us. Carter and Everly were fascinated with them. The chocolate was delicious...except the spicy chili one. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy spicy things...but not in my chocolate. The island was beautiful and the beach was divine! The sand was so soft and the water was refreshing. Again, Carter and Everly were enthralled with all the new experiences. Overall, they did a great job on the cruise. They definitely had their moments but what 2 year old or 9 month old wouldn't?! I think they did so well...for being on a trip they won't remember. Haha!
Our final cruise port was Costa Maya, Mexico (Friday, May 19th). This was the only port where we had already booked an excursion with a local company. After two days of fun in the sun, we decided to explore some ancient Mayan "deposits" (aka ruins)...and I'm so glad we did! Our tour guide was very passionate about the Mayan culture and the deposits in this location. During our tour, he approached our family to inquire about our religion. He knew we were from Utah when we introduced ourselves. He reported that his mother was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and that he had taken some BYU professors on a tour of the area. He reported that those professors believe this area could have been the land of Bountiful discussed in the Book of Mormon. It was so cool to contemplate that! It was fun for me to talk to Jonas about what could have occurred here and allow him to have a real life experience with the lands we read about in scripture. We loved seeing the ancient temples or residential locations. Our guide even helped Jonas find a couple of pottery shards to take home with him. He also showed us some the plants in that area that smelled like guacamole or pumpkin spice. I'm not kidding! We all nibbled on a few leaves. I guess we really trusted our guide! This cruise stop was our shortest but probably one of the favorites. As we walked around, we saw monkeys swinging through the trees and iguana scampering on the jungle floor. On our way back to the boat, our driver stopped at a roadside fruit stand where we purchased some yummy pineapple and mango.
Like I mentioned before, Saturday (May 20th) was simply another day on the ship. I actually couldn't believe how quickly the week flew by. I enjoyed the lack of responsibilities. I wasn't sure I was ready to go home to all the chaos that would ensue. I was relishing all of the moments with just our little family. I feel extremely lucky to have found Jeff. Our journey hasn't always been easy, but I wouldn't trade it for the world!
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