Carnival Freedom

Dear Family & Friends,

On July 1st, our family embarked on our first big family vacation. We drove to the airport in Charlotte, NC in order to catch a flight to Ft. Lauderdale, FL. Once in FL we met up with my parents and brother and his girlfriend who were joining us on the vacation (which was actually intended to be a celebration of my parents 30th wedding anniversary). We had to get plenty of rest that night, because the next morning we were going to be heading out on an 8 day cruise!

On Saturday morning we had a nice breakfast while we waited for the taxi to take us to the cruise port. Once the taxi came, there was surprisingly little trouble loading everybody's luggage and dropping off the luggage at the cruise terminal. Within 30 minutes of arriving at the ship, we were able to board. After everyone dropped off their bags in their rooms, we made our way to the Lido deck (where the pool and all the buffets are located). All of us (except Andrea and Noah) had been on a cruise before so we knew that this is where we would hang out on our days at sea.

Our first port of call was Cozumel, Mexico. Here, we decided to spend a relaxing day at the beach. Everyone, except me, went snorkeling right off the beach. I decided on our last cruise that snorkeling was not for me, so I avoided the water knowing that there were some decent sized fish swimming out there. The most exciting part of the day was when we came across the amazing artists who can use spray paint to create awesome surreal works. We had them make a custom NC State painting for us (all for only $25). These guys had obviously never heard of NC State so one of the artists had me Google the NCSU block letters on his iPhone. After seeing the block letters he proceeded to go out templates (without using rulers). He made five templates in all in order to allow the red, black, and white colors to be produced. In the pictures below you can see our work of art in progress. If you ever get the chance to go to Cozumel, this is one souvenir I recommend you waiting in line to get. 

       

One of the funniest nights on the ship was when "Stevie Wonder" gave an impromptu performance on the Lido deck. Jorge, Noah, and I were hanging out in our cabin when suddenly there was a manic knocking on our door. My brother was there (almost frantic) and he told he said, "Yo, Stevie Wonder is on deck. You've got to come up here now!" Jorge and I looked at each other with disbelief but he decided to venture up there and see what the fuss was about. A few minutes later he came back and told me that there was no way that was Stevie Wonder. So I went up there and sure enough it was clearly an impostor. Jorge called the front desk and confirmed that it was an impersonator. About an hour later we hear our family coming back. When we broke the news to them they were in complete shock and argues with us for a good five minutes. They didn't believe the truth until they called the front desk themselves. For the rest of the trip my mom complained about Carnival's "false advertising." Despite there disappointment, we all had a good laugh about it whenever the "concert" was brought up.

One of the most awesome experience of the whole cruise was partially traversing though the Panama canal. We boarded a ferry docked in a marina in the Pacific Ocean. We (Steph, Noah, and Steph's parents) traveled through three locks and made our way to another smaller port located within the canal. It was interesting to learn that complete passage of the canal will take up to 10 hours and can cost up to $250K (for the largest ships). While traveling through the canal we passed the construction site for new locks that will accommodate ships that are too large to fit into the existing locks. While we were going through the canal, Jorge and my brother and his girlfriend went kayaking on a lake that is considered part of the canal.

Throughout the cruise, one of our favorite times together as a family was dinner time. Every night we all got together to share the stories from our day. We especially had fun on the nights when the crew put on a show for all the guests. Noah was a big hit in the dining room and got waves and smiles from every member of the waitstaff that passed our table. 

All in all this was an amazing vacation. It was great to get away with my family and discover new locations in the process. It was also not as scary traveling with Noah as I had imagined. This has definitely allowed me to start mentally planning our next couple vacations. Here are a few more pictures from the trip!

Steph and her mom in Panama

Pose on the deck

Granny and Noah at the cacao plantation in Costa Rica

Love,

Steph, Jorge, and Noah

June = Beach Time!

Dear Family & Friends,

In order to prepare Noah for our impending cruise we thought that it would be a good idea to take  him to the beach so that he could have some exposure to the ocean. In the beginning of the month we packed up the car (with what felt like three time as much as we would take to the beach before Noah was born) and headed to our favorite North Carolina beach spot, Topsail Island.

Jorge and I have been going to Topsail Beach for years. We love the small crowds and easy beach access. Plus on a good day the water is pretty clear and reasonably warm. On a more sinister note, this beach has pretty frequent shark attacks - ~2/year. Which makes me nervous whenever Jorge decided he wants to some far from the shore. This year we wouldn't be worrying about sharks, thought, because we weren't planning on swimming in the water.

As the next two pictures show, Noah was not too thrilled with the beach, which was super disappointing to Jorge and I because we absolutely love everything to do with it.  As soon as we put Noah's feet into the water, he had a fit. I imagine the huge expanse of water in front of him was somewhat intimidating. But we figured the cool water would feel refreshing in the blazing heat. This, surprisingly, was definitely not the case. As soon as Jorge put Noah in the sand to play, he attempted to make a bee-line escape away from the water.

Noah was much happier when we were hanging out under our beach tent. It never ceases to amaze us when Noah is fascinated with any object besides his toys. On that day at the beach, and empty disposable cup was Noah's new favorite toy
 

On the sand we had a blast playing and finding some time to relax. With all the excersise I've been doing, I felt brave enough to take a stroll in my bikini. I'm not quite back to my pre-Noah size but I'm definitely getting close! Jorge has also noticed some decrease in muscle mass and has made a commitment to get back to his NC State size/strength. By next year's trip to the beach we will be in better (hopefully) shape then I've ever been.

At the end of the day, our first trip to the beach was awesome. We had fun kicking off the summer and by the end of the day we were looking forward to our big vacation in the Caribbean.

This trip to the beach was not just viewed as a quick weekend escape. As new parents, Jorge and I are making a conscientious effort to expose Noah to as many of the  world's wonderful experiences as we can, starting at a very young age. To us, it is important for our children to understand that the world is a very big place and that we should do all we can to prevent them from becoming complacent and encourage them to be people who are continuously looking to explore, learn, and be more enriched individuals.

Be Blessed, 

Jorge, Stephanie, and Noah