Our Cruise!

Well hello my friends!! We have missed you all! We just got back from a week and a half long vacation, and already I am really missing the ocean! I loved every minute of the cruise, and especially loved seeing the new places and just hanging out with my little family and all of our other awesome relatives! We started the vacation off by driving to Sacramento to pick up my sister and her cute family. We miss them already, and it is crazy how much they have grown! Misty and I get together every couple of months, but it always amazes me how quick they are growing.Check out how sweet her kids are!






On Saturday we drove down to Southern California and stayed with my sisters' in laws, who were gracious enough to let us stay the night before we checked in for the cruise the next day. They also watched my sisters' boys so that they could bring Taylor and go on the cruise with us. (Thanks Kim and John for the amazing dinner! It was so much fun chatting with you and seeing your beautiful home and family! We have missed you guys, and loved spending the evening with you. Kim did you finish the book yet? AWWWWWWWW, I have been dying to talk to you about it! I LOVED IT~)

DAY 1

On Monday we checked in. The boat was awesome, and bigger than I expected. We went on the Royal Caribbean ship and LOVED IT, the people there were so much fun.There was music everywhere you went, and our little ladies were constantly dancing. So much so, that throughout the cruise people started calling them the "dancing girls". Everyone would always clap, and the girls were totally and completely convinced that they were famous! The girls were so excited we could hardly contain them. Here are a few cute pictures from our first day!

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DAY 2

On the second day of the cruise we docked in San Diego. Since we go there every year, usually around the same time that we do our yearly Disneyland trip, we decided to stay on the boat and check out some of the fun things. The boat had this HUGE climbing wall, and my girls were so excited to climb it. Eric taught the girls how to repel when they were just tiny, but this was the first time that they went as high as they did. Eric of course did it with them and was so fast, but the real shocker, was that my sister did it as well. I know, I was shocked, but she was awesome, and I was so proud of her. She made it to the top and did such a great job! Way to go sis. Check them out!

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DAY 3

The third day was probably my most favorite. We went to Catalina Island. The weather was so awesome, and there was so much to do. The girls swam in the ocean, found fish, climbed up to a cave, and we rented a golf cart and drove to the top of the island. I loved it, and the girls agree that it was their favorite day as well. The only bummer part was that my wedding ring was stolen. I took it off to put sunblock on my girls, and left it in a public bathroom. I didn't remember it until about an hour later, and when we went back, it was gone. But the day was wonderful anyway, and Hannah is completely convinced that she will be moving there one day! LOL!

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After the girls had been shopping for a while, Eric and Marc were totally bored! So they grabbed our cameras and took off. Apparently they were playing a game where they had to try to get as close as they could to a stranger and take a picture with them without them knowing it. Some of the pictures were pretty good. The funny part is that Eric hates taking the time to take pictures, he would rather be doing something else fun, but I guess anything was better than shopping! LOL





DAY 4

On our last day of the cruise we went to Ensenada, Mexico. What a beautiful and humbling experience. It has the most beautiful ocean views, and such beautiful people. But it also has such extreme poverty. We had an adorable guide who told us a lot about her country and the people that lived there. This experience was very humbling for Hannah. We have taken them to homeless shelters before, but I don't think that she was quite prepared for the level of poverty that she saw. She came home with a renewed passion for wanting to somehow make a difference in this world.



This was also our last night on the ship. The grownups saw a fun singing and dancing show while the girls were preparing with the other children for a small pirate play. It was so cute, and they looked awesome. Tay Tay was a pirate princess and my girls were good 'ol tough looking pirates.

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Meet Elaine

We meet the most beautiful and sweet lady on our cruise. Her name is Elaine and she has one of the most sparkly personalities of anyone that I have ever met. She was so lovely. My girls just feel in love with her instantly, and we loved having the chance to get to know her. She is one of those people that after you talk with them, even for a few moments, you leave feeling like a bettter person. So thank you Elaine, you were such a joy and blessing to our family!


DAY 5

Time to say good bye. I loved every minute of the cruise and loved spending the time with the ones I love. I would have loved for it to be a little longer, and want to go on another one some day! On Friday after we docked in LA, we said goodbye to Misty and Marc and we drove straight to Carson City, Nevada to spend a couple of days with Eric's family. We spent the day on Saturday at Lake Tahoe and got to see some of the sweet new additions to our family. Check out how cute these kids are!

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So I guess that is about it. We sure miss you guys, and can't wait to see you all again soon! Love ya!