Tomorrow I will officially have 9 days left in school. There is so much left to do. My brain is so exhausted as is my body; the kids are crazy and restless. It is crazy for me to start a new unit, but I did. Despite this, I am looking forward to my summer. As soon as school lets out, I get to spend one javascript:void(0)full week with my baby girl at home, being a SAHM. After that, we pack up and are taking our first "REAL" family vacation. A 7 day Mexican cruise. My dad was gracious enough to book our room, which will include a crib (so I am told). I am super excited, but the more I think about it, the more I'm getting nervous. My daughter just got tubes in her ears. She CAN NOT get water in them. I'm so afraid that while in the pool, she'll get soaked from head to toe, as any 2 year old should. Only, this time, the water will hurt her tiny ears. My husband on the other hand, is getting nervous that she'll "jump" overboard. Although the railings are 12 feet high in some places, he pointed out to me, ever so gently, that there are gaps between railings. We shall see right? Upon returning from Mexico, we have 24 hours before Aaron and I leave for NYC. YOU CAN NOT BELIEVE how EXCITED I am. I LOVE NEW YORK CITY! We lived there for a year, which was way too short, and this is our first time coming back. So, we'll be there for 5 days. Then we're back for a few weeks and for the Fourth of July (my birthday) we're headed to Laughlin to spend with his grandparents. So, needless to say, I will have a busy weekend.
These last few weeks have been busy and crazy. Aaron and I went to the Pen and Teller show this past weekend and stopped in at SweetCakes , which was awesome. :) Still dreaming about the butterscotch and oatmeal cookies. :)
I had a wonderful Mother's Day too. This is the first year I didn't expect anything and got some sweet cards and flowers from Zephyr and Aaron. I'm definitely a lucky gal. :)
Last night we did a PX90 workout. It's the second we've done, and boy is it a good work out. I really do enjoy it. Definitely is a lot of work and I'm not one to sweat, but boy do I sweat!
I'm so excited you'll be in NY!!! Squeeeeeee!!!!
ReplyDeleteDid you enjoy the cruise? Would you want to go on another one? I'd love to hear your top 5 tips for cruising w/ a toddler. :)
ReplyDeletestephanie@metropolitanmama.net
Stephanie,
ReplyDeleteWe've gone on 3 cruises, all with Royal Caribbean. WE LOVE THEM and would TOTALLY go on another one. Hopefully sooner rather then later, but we will see.
Top 5 tips for cruising with a toddler:
1) Bring your own utensils
It was too hard for Z to use the silverware provided and although she can drink out of a cup at home, she struggled with it a lot on the boat. A sippy cup was found really useful
2) Pack toys
Although most cruise ships offer things to do with toddlers, they are extremely limited. Having some of Z's favorite toys allowed for us to play with them on the off chance it was too cold to be on deck.
3) Let them indulge
Z had dessert EVERY SINGLE NIGHT. She never has dessert (seriously) at home. She felt it was a treat and behaved extra good at the LONG drawn out dinners. Also, she realized she was able to stay up later at night because we were doing certain things. We also made a big deal about how well she behaved when we were out way past her nap time. She enjoyed being able to stay away with her cousins and play with them.
4) Maintain your routine as best as possible
Aaron and I took turns napping with Z while on the cruise. This allowed for the other to have a few hours to themselves and relax as well as allowing Z to be rested for the second half of the day. She was also in bed no later then 930pm on any given night, this was good because when we woke up early, she wasn't exhausted. We still gave her a bath (albeit, a shower, cuz that's all they have), gave her milk, read her a bed time story and tucked her in like we do every single night.
5) Don't be afraid to get off the boat.
We brought a wrap and a stroller (the ginormous kind). For us, the stroller worked best, as Z hates the wrap and likes to be able to "go for a ride". At first I was hesitant to bring it thinking I'd be outa place, but A LOT of people brought them. This made my life so much easier once we were off the boat. We were able to stroll anywhere we wanted too. We were able to take tours an do some sight seeing too and best of all, if she was tired she could've taken a nap in the stroller. Having this piece of equipment ensured we did not miss out on the ports we visited.
One word of warning: Often times car seats are NOT used by any moving vehicle once off the boat as it is not really customary in some countries.