Got up, showered and ate a quick breakfast and we were out the door at 10:30 am to take a shuttle to the port. It was 2 miles away and you could see the ship from the hotel. I can’t believe how big it is! I mean it is really big! We checked in just like at an airport and it wasn’t busy at all. I’m glad people recommended to get there early because it did pick up a lot later on. We took a few pictures and waited for the second boarding group to be called. It is a very impressive ship and we can’t wait to get on. On a side note DN was able to find a swimsuit that suited his tastes at the hotel gift shop. We also stocked up on sunblock, Immodium AD, and Pepto just in case. I also still have my dramamine but I forgot to get some ginger. It’s a little windy and it’s supposed to be on and off storms the entire trip so it will be a good test for my motion sickness.

Wow what a day! There is just too much to write about. The cruise is incredible and I can’t believe it took this long to go! Once we started boarding a man ran up and asked if the bracelet he found was ours. DN recognized it and said thanks. Good thing it wasn’t his cell phone like at scout camp! Oh wait, the other DN can’t find his cell phone! We had just passed through the security and just stepped onto the ship when he realized he didn’t have it anymore. So we left the ship and searched where we were sitting. We looked for about 15 minutes and were starting to give up when I noticed an employee holding something in her hand and looking around. Sure enough she had it so we were able to board for good this time. (Don’t worry DN’s Mom, I will tie them together in the Bahamas). We ate at the Beach Blanket Buffet and it was very good.

We then changed our dining time from 5:30 to 8:30 so we could eat more (eat a earlier light dinner) and stay in port longer if we wanted to. We than walked the entire ship to find where everything was. It is really clean and nice. DS would be so happy. There are gel sanitizers EVERYWHERE! They even hand them out to everyone as you walk in to eat.

The boys decided to stop and play shuffle board for a little bit, since our room would not be ready until 1:30pm.

We arrived in our room and it is also really nice. It is a lot bigger than I expected and is very clean. The queen turns into two twins so we have three twin beds. There is a ton of drawers and storage but only two plugs.

At 4:30 I had a nice hour massage while the boys visited the arcade and checked out the ship. After we met up and got a second lunch and played ping pong. Next was the Hercules musical show. It was a lot better than I expected. It was really funny and well put together. I’m sure the boys enjoyed it (I caught them laughing a lot) but if you ask them I’m sure they will say it was just ok. After the show we did a little shopping. Family bingo was starting so we checked it out and didn’t even come close to winning anything. By this time dinner was about to start. We still had 20 minutes and we were really hungry so I got half a bratwurst and the boys got chicken strips. I felt like DD and DS asking everyone what they were ordering and ordering something different or telling them to order something. After our pre-dinner dinner we ate our actual dinner. It was great. DN14 loved the cold papaya soup and wanted it for desert. Our servers are really good and funny. I could have done without the Happy Birthday song but it was nice. At least it wasn’t like Macaroni grill and sung in opera!

After dinner we shopped some more and then DN’s went to their age areas to just check them out. DN12 came back right away because the age group is 8-12 and he said there were not really any kids his age. DN14 has been gone for over an hour so I guess he is having fun!

So here is the sickness update. Right when I walked on the ship I got a slight motion sickness headache. But it was completely mental. The ship is dead still while in port. It was weird because I knew we weren’t moving but I was on a ship so my body instantly did what it normaly does. We actually started going while I was getting a massage so I didn’t hear the horn or feel it moving. Once I stepped out of the room I felt it. My headache got a little worse but was still not bad at all. I was fully functional and just had a slight headache. I was on the verge of starting to get sick for a few hours but I think I’m going to be ok. There were a few times I stumbled a step or two but the motion is really really slow so I think that helps. There are thunderstorms all around us and it rained a bit but it’s been pretty good. I did hear one castmember say that it is rocking a little more than normal. Overall I have just had a slight headache and I think I will make it. I am just taking Dramamine so we’ll see if it keeps working. Tomorrow I am doing a run so we’ll see if that screws me up. Our room is in a perfect location. I can barely feel the ship moving at all and it is very very nice to just sit on the balcony and look at the ocean. The boys aren’t getting sick at all so, so far so good!

Things to do next time or things I’m glad I did. Bring highlighters to mark the Navigators. There is way too much information to remember. I’m glad I brought a magnet for the door. It does add a little something and helps to remember what room we are. I have only three things to plug in and I thought for sure they would have at least two outlets with two plugs each but they only have one! And they are side by side instead of on top of each other so my plug blocks both! So next time I will remember to bring a power outlet. Two other bits of information. I get wireless internet in my room (They say you can get it in most public areas, guest staterooms and all open areas on decks 9 and 10). I also have cell phone service. My cingular bars say “cellular at sea” and I usually have full bars. I can still make calls and text message from the ship. I will try to update more often but we are very busy so we’ll see!