2 weeks ago today we left to go to Florida for our vacation! We were very excited to be able to take Caleb to Disney World for a couple of days. Our flight left around 1:00 in the afternoon and we got there around 4:00. We didn't have to pay for a seat for Caleb but luckily there was an extra seat on the plane so he got to sit in his own seat anyway instead of having to sit on our lap the whole time. That makes a big difference!
Cute picture, but neither of them were actually sleeping
Caleb of course didn't nap on the plane but he did go to sleep once we got in our rental car. We met my parents somewhere for supper and then got some groceries for the few days we would be there and then headed to our timeshare and so Caleb could go to bed because he was exhausted! It is a very nice timeshare and there is a little sitting room that we were able to use for Caleb's bedroom, so it is nice that he didn't have to be in the same room as us. That never goes too well.
On Sunday, we went over to Downtown Disney for awhile in the morning. We did a little shopping and Caleb got to ride the train and the carousel, which he loved. And he also got to go in the splash playground, which he also enjoyed quite a bit!
We had to get a picture since that is Caleb's birthday!
Sunday afternoon Steve and I were headed to Mickey's Christmas Party at the Magic Kingdom. We could get in at 4:00 and it went until midnight. Our plans almost got canceled, however, because 45 minutes into Caleb's afternoon nap he woke up crying and then when I picked him up, he threw up. My mom had thrown up earlier in the day and I had had some diarrhea, so clearly we had some sort of bug going around. I offered to stay home with Caleb instead of going, but of course my parents said no, so we still went and Caleb was fine, luckily. Steve and I had a lot of fun at the Magic Kingdom, but it was really really crowded, and I wish it wasn't that busy. We saw some special Christmas shows and we went on a few of the regular rides as well. They had a special fireworks and parade for Christmas that were cool. We packed a lot into our time there, which was good.
Something not worth going to - Enchanted Tales with Belle
On Monday morning we were going to go to Epcot for the day. However, at 8:30 Caleb was still sleeping after going to bed at 7:30 the night before. So, I waited until he started moving around and then I pretty much woke him up. He was very sluggish and he sounded pitiful when he talked. So, we tried to decide if we were still going to go or not. Our plans didn't have a lot of wiggle room, so we decided to just go even though we ended up going 2 hours later than we had planned. Caleb rallied after he had been awake for awhile otherwise we wouldn't have pushed him to go. So, we got to Epcot around 11:00. We saw Pluto right away and Caleb wanted to meet him. Then we also went to another spot and saw Mickey, Minnie, and Goofy, which Caleb also enjoyed. I had gotten him an autograph book and I didn't know if he would be interested in that or not, but he quickly got the hang of it and was excited to have everyone sign his book.
It's hard to tell but he is giving Minnie a kiss!
Then we did some of the rides like Nemo and Turtle Talk with Crush. Caleb enjoyed those and then we went into the Land and did the ride there and had lunch.
Unfortunately, while we were in the Land it started to rain. We knew there was a chance of showers but it ended up raining pretty much nonstop the whole rest of the day which put a damper (no pun intended) on our day. We still did a few things like Figment, and the movie and singers in America, which were fun, but we would have done a lot more if it had been dry. At one point while Caleb was napping, we rode the little boat for over an hour so he could sleep where it was dry.
We headed back to the car and stopped in Mexico to go on the boat ride there (luckily indoors) which was fun and then we of course had to go on the big ball, which was our last ride of the day.
Caleb was excited to meet Duffy the Bear!
So, we didn't get to stay for the fireworks but it was pouring so it would have been miserable. Caleb had a fun time, but it would have been better if the weather was nicer.
On Tuesday, we didn't have anything exciting planned except getting together with some friends in the area. It was a rainy, cold, miserable day that felt like we were back at home instead of Florida. We met our good friends Tina and Steve Jencks for lunch at Sweet Tomatoes. It was really nice to see them and spend time with them. Unfortunately, I didn't get any pictures with them. After lunch, Steve and my dad took Caleb back for a nap and my mom and I went to some consignment stores and the ABC. Then we went to our friends Jim and Ellie Baez's house for supper and Ellie made us a wonderful meal!
Ellie had a Mickey clock that played music and Caleb loved it!
On Wednesday my parents flew home for Rad's swearing in ceremony at Faneuil Hall in Boston, so we were on our own and we headed to the Magic Kingdom for a long day of fun! We got there pretty much right at 9:00 when it opened and we stayed until after 9:00 when the fireworks were, so it was a full day! I think I should just let the pictures speak for themselves because otherwise I would just be mentioning what rides we went on, etc. Caleb had fun on all of the rides and he also loved the electrical parade and the fireworks. Since I love Disney World so much, I was really hoping he would like it and I was pleased with his reaction to everything. He also really liked the castle with the icicles on it. So, here are the pictures from our day.
Pointing at the castle
Cutest Indiana Jones ever!
Caleb was so excited to meet Pooh and Tigger!
Caleb and Daddy rode the teacups (not Mommy!)
Chillin' on the People Mover
On Thursday morning we got up and packed and headed out to Port Canaveral to go on a 3-day Carnival cruise. It was just a quick trip to Nassau and back, but I figured it would be great to just be on a cruise and it didn't matter where we went. Well, unfortunately, we had lousy weather and it was windy and rough and I was seasick about half of the time. The parts when I wasn't sick were good, but overall, I wish we hadn't gone at all. We had a nice first dinner, however Caleb hadn't taken a nap so when the dinner got a little long (as is the norm on cruises) he started to lose it and we had to leave before dessert.
He wasn't supposed to go in the swimming area with a swim diaper on, but we broke the rules and brought him anyway. He had fun!
Caleb was too short to go down the slide but they let them go together. I'm not quite sure how he liked it.
The next day we arrived in Nassau around noon (after a rough morning at sea) and we were all set to get off after having lunch. When we got to the gangway we discovered that it was pouring rain, so we decided that we would wait until later and we would just let Caleb take a nap in the room before getting off. Well, we all napped and we napped for about 2 hours, so then we didn't get off the ship until about 4:00. By that time it wasn't rainy anymore, but it was cool and windy. We walked over to a beach because Caleb HAD to go to the beach since that is his favorite thing to do! I didn't go in the water but Steve and Caleb did. They had fun but only stayed in about half an hour since it was a little cool out. Then we just walked back to the ship in time for supper.
Since it was so windy, I was expecting it to be rough when we left that night, but luckily it wasn't rough on Friday night and Saturday morning was ok too. It didn't get rough until about 3:00 in the afternoon on Saturday and then it was bad the whole rest of the day and night until we docked back in Port Canaveral the next morning. Steve was very good and spent a lot of time with Caleb while I just laid in my bed. I am so thankful that Caleb didn't inherit my weak stomach because he and Steve were both fine the whole time.
This was the crib they supplied for us - I thought it looked like a hospital bed!
Our room was much more spacious on this ship than on the one we went on in February
Needless to say, I was so happy to get off the ship on Sunday morning, which is unfortunate. We then headed to Corey and Duncan's house to spend the day there before flying home on Monday morning. We had a lot of fun playing with the kids and Steve spent most of the day helping Duncan do some electrical work on the pergola he had just built in the backyard. It helped Duncan out quite a bit and Steve was happy to have something to keep him busy instead of just hanging out all day.
A little birthday present from the Grodacks
Monday morning we got up early and headed home. We were all very happy to get home, I think. Caleb seemed very tired and fell asleep in the car on the way home, which I wasn't necessarily expecting.
Steve had left his car at the bridge so he could go right to work for half a day. Caleb and I then stopped at Market Basket to get some groceries for the week and then headed home. Market Basket was a nightmare and I kinda wish I had gone somewhere else, but in reality it saved me more time than having to go into Hyannis. After we got home, we did a little unpacking and then headed over to my parents' house to see my grandparents who had been here for several days already. We had a nice visit and then headed home to finish unpacking and to start laundry. I put Caleb to bed around 6:45 since he was so tired and he went right to sleep and slept about 12 hours.
Tuesday was Caleb's 2nd birthday! Unfortunately, because of Thanksgiving, I ended up working on Tuesday so we could go to New Hampshire on Wednesday. So, my mom and Nana watched Caleb on Tuesday. My mom took Caleb to the mall to go to the carousel, since that is one of his favorite things to do. I think he had a good day and I know for sure that Nana had a good day! Steve and I got home from work and busily got ready for Caleb's little birthday party. We just had my parents, grandparents and Rad and Jen and Levi over for supper and presents. Nothing fancy. I had ordered some decorations from a website and luckily they arrive while we were gone.
The aftermath
We played pin the tail on the cow - Rad and Steve are the ones who didn't even make it on the door!
Caleb got a lot of nice presents from everyone and it was a little overwhelming to be honest! He enjoyed his cake and it was just a nice time overall!
On Wednesday morning we got ready to drive up to North Conway for Thanksgiving. We were originally going to go in the afternoon but there was a snowstorm coming so Steve took the morning off of work and we ended up leaving around 10:00 instead. I needed to get a few more groceries so I went out early to Trader Joe's and I was in the middle of checking out when the power went off and they didn't have a backup generator and they said it would be awhile until it came back on, so I had to abandon my cart and go to Shaws instead. I was very aggravated and annoyed that I had to start over. We ended up having a pretty good trip to New Hampshire. It started snowing about halfway there and then it was pretty slow going, but we didn't get into any traffic which was helpful. Caleb wouldn't take a nap in the car, so that was too bad. We got up there and just hang out for the rest of the day. We had supper and then Caleb took a tubby with Finley and Griffin and then he was in bed by about 6:45.
Caleb and Griffin checking out the freezer
The rest of the night I just sat around and talked with Shannon and Camille and Jen. It was nice to get together with everyone.
Thursday was Thanksgiving of course! Caleb went out in the snow for a little bit but he is still a little too young to be enjoying it and getting around in it.
I went for a nice walk with several people while Steve got Caleb down for a nap. We also played a game of Minute to Win It before dinner.
We had our dinner around 4:00, and it was wonderful food. Such a lot of work, though! I think we had 25 or 27 Adults and 9 kids, so it was quite a crew! It is so nice to get together with everyone, though, even though it is a long trip for us!
On Friday morning we just got up, packed, ate breakfast, and headed home. We got home around 1:00 and besides unpacking, I didn't go too much the rest of the day. I was pretty tired from vacation and everything still so I was in bed by 8:00 last night and slept until 6:45 this morning. It feels good to get caught up on sleep.
Well, I think that's about it. I am so glad to be caught up with this blog!
At Caleb's birthday
A picture from Disney that I missed earlier
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