We were informed that we would be “tendered” to shore today. This means that the cruise ship can not get close enough to shore to allow the passengers to walk along a pier to the mainland. So, small boats, like water Taxis, come out to the cruise ship to bring the passengers to shore. This was about a thirty minuet boat ride across very choppy waters. Once on the mainland, we were immediately placed in another boat to began our tour of the Rio Dulce and the little town of Livingston. Rio Dulce is a river that goes from the Caribbean Sea deep into the jungles of Santo Tomas. And to the lives of the people that live in this jungle. We rode about an hour inland, and then stopped at a little village. The houses were all built on stilts over the water. As soon as we got to the pier, little children paddled up to our boat in their hand carved wooden canoes, with little animals that they had caught that morning. Crabs, turtles, a parrot. All hoping for a dollar for their little catch of the day. One boy had even picked a bouquet of water lilies. I examined each little child’s animal, took their pictures, and then headed into the house of “Maria”. She was busy making tortillas over a wood fire. She offered in Spanish to teach us, and I quickly volunteered myself. She already had the dough mixed up, so she gave me a little ball and showed me how to flatten it. It was more like a flat bread than what we would call a tortilla, but it was still good to eat. After shaping it, I laid it alongside hers on the little stove she was cooking on, and then after it cooked, we spread a butter-like substance over it, put on a scoop of fish ,rolled it up and ate it.

Mouth of the Rio Dulce

Water lilies

A baby crib in Maria’s kitchen

You can even buy Coke here!

A little boy running the store.

Blankets for sale.

Cooking the tortillas

The sink

Maria at work in her kitchen.

The little girl who stole my heart!

Turtle

~cheryl

***note*** We are already back home from our cruise. A few friends have been totally confused with these posts. I journaled (not sure if that is a word) while we were on the ship, but did not blog anything. So all of this is from me at home now. I did this for two reasons. First to protect my children and family while we were gone, since many people read this blog that I don’t even know, and second, because internet on the ship was about a dollar a minuet. Ouch!

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As we stepped out onto the deck that morning, we were greeted with a blast of warm, humid Caribbean air. The sun was shining, full of warmth and a promising day of Caribbean bliss. We left the ship and headed down the long pier to Costa Maya, Mexico. We have never travelled as tourists before to another country. We have moved our family, and lived in foreign countries, but never showed up with a blinking sign over our heads that said “Hey, I’m American, I’m a tourist, I have no clue about your country and will only be here a few short hours!” I’m used to learning the ways of a country thru the backdoor. Living with the people of that country. Buying my food and whatever else from a place tourists hardly ever frequent. I love learning all the cultural differences that country has and how I can incorporate it into my families life as we set up camp in a new place. But today, I actually felt awful walking around the shops, listening to other “American tourists” go about their shopping. I was horrified at how rude many of them were to the locals. I was shocked at the amount of alcohol being consumed by the other tourists and the foolishness that was followed. No wonder American tourists have such an awful reputation. I wished to sit with the children that played in the back of their parents shops, to speak with the women about anything… their family, their stories, their heartaches. But these shop owners were very focused on selling their wares to the thousands of tourists that had just flooded the streets.

The pier we walked down to get to the island from the ship.

Dancers that greeted us.

Guards that “protected us”

Our cruise ship

Where I could spend the rest of my life…

Eric and I were signed up for a trip to the Mayan Ruins. So after walking around the “shopping center”, we found our tour group and loaded up on a very nice tour bus, complete with air conditioning, and headed into the jungles of Costa Maya. Our tour guide was very educated with the history of the Mayan people. We had an hour drive to reach the Ruins, and I was fascinated with the history of these people. We spent a couple of hours walking thru the Ruins, and then stopped at a little stand and bought some fresh pineapple, cut and sliced right before us with a cutlass (machete). It was so sweet and delicious.

A little store on the side of the road.

A little cemetery.

Our little stop for Pineapple

Mayan Ruins

Our bus. (Or one of the buses anyway, each bus contained one tour group)

Marks made in a Chicle tree by the Mayans thousands of years ago.

Bats asleep in the top of a Palm Tree.

Coconuts that we use for coconut oils.

Chacchoben (Mayan Ruins)

Different views of Chacchoben

Our trip back to the ship was uneventful. We were told by our guide that it was “siesta time”, so no more history lessons. Except for Eric. We had been seated at the very front of the bus, directly across from the guide, so Eric took this time to ask her hundreds of questions about the Mayan people, the Ruins, and the guide herself. We made it back on board the ship (this is very important, because they do not wait for you if you are late) were sprayed by the Washee Washee Guards, cards scanned by the security guards, bags run thru the x-ray machine, and then ushered thru the metal detector. Whew, survived it all!

Things I saw on our trip back to the port.

Guards that stopped us at a checkpoint.

The sun setting on the shore as we headed back on the ship.

And the sunset that night.

Since we were cruising “Freestyle” we had decided that we would dress up for dinner a few nights. This was our first “Formal” dinner night. It was so much fun to put on an evening gown, and walk thru the ship to our restaurant. We had a delicious dinner served to us by a very friendly waiter. Afterwards we went to the show, an amazing husband wife team of acrobats. It was fabulous. Oh, and Eric had somewhere on the ship found a supply of earplugs and had given them to me. So this night was the first night on the ship that I actually got some sleep.

21 weeks pregnant!

Found this little guy on our bed when we came back from the show! Eric and I debated on whether it was a rabbit, pig, or maybe an elephant??? Never did decide!

~cheryl

I awoke not feeling very rested. The bed was small and very uncomfortable. Today was a full day of sailing. We were headed to Costa Maya, Mexico, which would take almost 30 hours at sea on this vessel. The weather was still very cold and very windy. We headed to the buffet for breakfast, and were greeted by a very happy staff member who had a very large spray bottle full of some mysterious liquid. He greeted us with “Washee, Washee!!!” I had to stop for a second to process what had just been said to me. hmmm, “Washee, washee”… Ok, this sounds like something a preschool teacher might say to her class before lunch. I quickly looked around. No children. Just adults. I look back at this guy who has his spray bottle aimed at me and this huge smile on his face. Then someone comes from the other side. They stick out their hands and he sprays them while saying “Washee, washee!!!” Ok, I get it. So I put out my hands, half ready to defend myself if needed, and half accepting his blast from the bottle. He laughs and tells us to have a good breakfast. Now that we are all sanitized, we head to the buffet and grab some food for breakfast. Let me state that I think this is a great idea. How many adults actually practice what we preach to our children and wash our hands before EVERY meal. And with a ship full of thousands of people, germs are definitely a huge issue. The last thing any of us want is to get sick while on vacation. And I can only imagine the nightmare of that many people all contracting the same virus. Not a good situation. So every restaurant on board had guards at the door that attacked you with spray bottles before allowing you to enter. And this also happened each time we boarded the ship while in port. So, no bad germs were allowed to enter the ship. I think I might instute this new concept at my house. I’ll put a child guarding our front and back door with a spray bottle and anyone who enters get a spray from the “Washee Washee” guard. Ha, that would be funny. Very impractical, but funny!

The weather never warmed up that first day at sea. We spent some more time exploring the ship, which had 12 floors. We read some. Met new people. Found out that there was a Dental Convention on board this cruise. Which meant there were lots of dentists. But since this cruise was about me and Eric, and spending time together, there was no time for Dental Classes. The ship had many activities on board to keep you busy. From Bingo to shopping, it was all there to do. After dinner each night, there was a show in the “Stardust Theater”. From Broadway Musicals, to Acrobats, to a Magician, each night was a fun new show.

After the show.

The Stardust Theater

I think I look a little alarmed with all that rocking and swaying from the boat!!

Self taken picture. A little scary!

A Caribbean Sunset.

My second night on board was better than the first. Our captain managed to steer clear of the icebergs that had kept me awake the night before. We were now in the Caribbean Sea and would be making our first port stop, Costa Maya, Mexico, bright and early the next morning.
~cheryl

So here are the answers and explanations behind the three clues.

Clue #1 (Eric’s clue)
The answer- 2x
The explanation- xx is the sex chromosome for a girl.
(For all my right brained friends out there, don’t feel bad. I still don’t get this even after Eric has explained it to me a dozen times.)

Clue #2 (Laura’s clue)
The Answer- GIRL
The explanation- Each letter stands in for the number. So A =1, B=2, C=3, D=4, etc.

Clue #3
The answer- first blank, PINK, second blank, GIRL
Explanation- This was for everyone whose brain works like mine. Math and numbers just don’t make sense, but a rhyme, now that I can usually figure out!
~cheryl

Tiny fingers, tiny toes,
Little itty bitty clothes.
Dresses, ribbons & hair to curl,
We’re tickled _______ we’re having a _______!

~Cheryl

Here is clue number two. Eric made up our first clue, and this is Laura’s clue.

7 9 18 12

Happy Guessing!!
~cheryl

***one more clue and then I’ll give the answers***

After watching the parade, we ate breakfast at a little place that Eric had spotted while watching the parade. We wanted something authentic to New Orleans. The restaurant was called, “The Creole Skillet” They were serving Sunday Brunch. We once again were greeted by a cheerful New Orleans waitress. We ordered a Gumbo Soup and an omelet with crawdads, shrimp, alligator sausage, mushrooms, and a special sauce. The Gumbo soup was spicy, but tasty. The omelet, however, was not on my list of foods to every order again. Maybe because I am pregnant. Or maybe because I don’t have the acquired taste of Creole dishes, but I gave it to Eric and ordered white chocolate bread pudding. (For breakfast!) And that was yummy!

Brightly colored doors on our way to breakfast.

We headed back to the hotel, packed up our luggage, checked out, and headed to Riverwalk, the entrance to the cruise ship terminal. I had carefully picked a hotel that was within walking distance to the Cruise ship. And it turned out to be only about a 10 minuet walk. Boarding the ship was uneventful. We had to go thru the same security that you do at an airport. We were herded like cattle to different checkpoints, taking off half of our clothes to make sure we were all safe, law abiding passengers. I did laugh out loud to myself at one point. All these strangers, unbuckling belts, taking off layers of clothing, shoes, and any thing else demanded of you. Each of us in our own little world, trying to just get to the other side. And with an urgency that adds to the stress. No one wants to be the one to stop the line of hundreds of people waiting for their turn to endure the security check points. Thankfully Eric and I knew better than to carry any weapons, illegal drugs, or any of the other harmful/dangerous items that they are looking for.

Walking to our Ship’s terminal.

The hundreds of bags of luggage that were being put on the ship.

Once on the other side, we were “checked in” to our ship. We were issued a passenger identification key card. This looked just like a credit card. They took our picture, which would now show up anytime the card was swiped thru a computer on board. This was also our room key. And it worked just like a credit card as well, since they made you provide a credit card to link to this card. So on board, anything purchased, you just handed your card over, it was swiped, you signed, and then at the end of the cruise, you settled your account. Once carded, we were then allowed onto the ship.

The friendly gentleman who greeted us on the ship.

We spent the afternoon exploring this monstrous vessel, which I was told was the smallest of the fleet that we sailed. I could not, and I repeat, could not, make head or tails of the ship. Or maybe more accurately I should say, I have issues with direction. This has been a problem my whole life. I can never rely on my sense of direction because if I did I would never get to where I needed to go. And being on this ship for only a few minutes, had me realize I was going to spend a lot of time just walking in circles. Going up one elevator, down another, and still not where I thought I would end up. I quickly made a note to myself not to leave Eric’s side. (Whom should I point out is very quick with getting from point A to point B, even on a big ship.)

When booking our cruise, we chose “Freestyle Cruising” This is a style of cruising where you do not have schedules. You eat when you want to eat, where you want to eat, with who you want to eat with, and dress how you want to dress. Compared to some ships that have a very strict schedule that assigns you tables, makes you dress up in evening wear for your dinner, and tells you where you will be eating each night. So “Freestyle”is just a much more relaxed way of going about you meals and day.

The New Orleans skyline.

We set sail at 5:00 p.m. that evening. It took us 8 hours to sail down the Mississippi River before we entered the Gulf of Mexico. It was already dark, and the lights along the shores were twinkling as we passed by. Somewhere in the middle of the night, I awoke to a sound so loud that I was sure we had hit another ship and we were all going to drown. (I have a few anxiety issues about drowning out at sea.) The ship was rocking back and forth, and then another crash hit the boat. Terrified, I woke Eric. Actually, he probley had claw marks on his arms from my attack on him. I quickly explained to him that we were getting ready to sink and that I wanted off the ship now. Eric’s response, “It’s just the waves Cheryl, go back to sleep.” Let me explain that I had just almost had a heart attack, and that “just going back to sleep” was not an option. I intently listened for the ship’s alarm to sound any minuet, so that I could run to deck 4 with my life jacket and make sure I got a spot on the life boats. I looked out the window. The waves were crashing up against the side of the boat, and with each crash came a sound like we had just smashed into an iceberg. Eric assured me there were no icebergs in the Gulf of Mexico, and that I really should go back to sleep. I considered this suggestion, but my adrenaline was no where near sleep mode. Eric suggested that I should be sedated so we could both get some rest. Good idea. But I didn’t have any drugs that would do the job. Forgot to put that on the packing list. I did manage to eventually fall asleep. Which ended Day 1 aboard this ship.
~cheryl

Our morning started early. 6:00am. It’s the big day. Everyone is packed, the house is clean, really clean, and I am trying really hard to not have a meltdown in front of the children. The children are all awake and so excited. They keep assuring me they will be fine and not to worry about them. But I’m a Mom. That’s just what I do sometimes. So with everybody dressed, fed and in the van, we head to our friends house that will be watching the children for the 9 days that we are gone. The children all chattering happily, while I am having second, no third, ok maybe the thousandth thought that this was a bad idea. But then I keep reminding myself that I am a wife first and Mommy second. And since I seem to be the only person questioning this whole trip, I need to get my act together.

My night had been restless and mostly sleepless. Getting to bed after midnight. Going through all the check lists that needed to be done, over and over in my mind. Thinking about the children and already missing them. My bed too. Since we bought our new memory foam mattress this last fall, I have become some what of a bed snob. I love my mattress. Really love my mattress. And the thought of having to sleep on a bed that could be uncomfortable, especially being 5 months pregnant, makes me a bit restless. So this is mostly what my 6 hours that I should have been sleeping made up for.

Dropping off the children was not nearly as dramatic as I has thought it might be. They were so excited to send us off. They had big plans for the next 9 days. Horse rides, hikes, surprises in store that they were anticipating, and all with a family that they feel very safe and secure with. Maryann has fallen head over heels with the oldest. Seth. He has won her little heart and she has him wrapped around her little finger. It’s been really funny to watch. Mostly because he’s 18 years older than her. We tease Seth that he’s got to find an older girl for a wife! But it’s all in good humor. And Maryann is happy to move into “Seth’s”house.

Gabe is the one that I am really worried about. I think everybody else understands to some degree what is getting ready to happen. That we will be gone for 9 days, but that we are coming back and life will resume to normal. But Gabe won’t get it. Mommy drops him off, and then just vanishes. Nine days will be an eternity to him. And there’s a bigger issue at hand between Gabe and I. He has been by far our most challenging child at this age. After having five children, one would think that I could take on just about any child behavior. From stubbornness to tantrums, I thought that I had seen it all. So much so, that Maryann had seemed somewhat of an “easy” child. I thought I finally had this whole thing down. Wrong. Very, very wrong. Along came Gabriel. With a stubborn streak worse than all our other children put together, he has pushed me to new levels of parenting. This is a child who would not walk, not because he couldn’t or didn’t know how, but because he was making the choice not to walk. And the day he decided to walk, he walked, Talking has been the same. He can talk. I have heard him when he thinks no one is listening. But he will not speak to me. Not even “Mama” or “Dada”. Yet, when I work with Michael on his reading, and Gabe is sitting on the floor playing, he will copy every sound that I ask Michael to make. But he is oblivious that I am listening, amazed, because the minuet I say “Gabe, say Mama.” He clams up. Won’t say a peep. Won’t even try. I joked with Eric the night before we left, as I carried Gabe upstairs to bed, that he would be talking when we came back, and Gabe made a noise that sounded like “Uh huh!” Eric and I looked at each other and just laughed. So we will see. My concern with leaving Gabriel behind is how much ground I will loose. Eric has assured me we (both Gabe and I) will survive.

I survived dropping off the children without having a complete meltdown, although barely. Our trip to Portland was very uneventful. We stopped for a quick breakfast and a trip to the pharmacy for some cough drops and Airborne. Eric had a little cough and we wanted to make sure it didn’t get worse. We made our flight, had a layover in Salt Lake City, and arrived in New Orleans about 10:00 p.m. Saturday night. The day before the 44th Superbowl with the Saints playing the Colts. Neither of us had really given it much thought up until we got to our hotel. It was close to midnight, and there were people everywhere. Everyone was wearing Saint’s clothing and draped in the Mardi Gras necklaces. There was an excitement in the air that I have never seen before. The Saints were going to win. Everybody in New Orleans knew this and the parties were already underway. Our hotel was just a few streets away from Bourbon Street, the most popular street to be during Mardi Gras. But this wasn’t Mardi Gras partying. This was pre-Superbowl parting.

We found a restaurant close by our hotel and ate dinner at almost 11:00 that night. Our waitress was amazing. Happy, observant, and cheerful. Not what we normally experience eating out. It seems like more often than not, the waitress is in such a bad mood. Annoyed that we ordered, annoyed that we drank all our water and need a refill, annoyed that she has to take my dirty plate. But not here. This lady was amazing. Watching the other employees in the restaurant, it seemed to be the attitude of everyone. Refreshing, very very refreshing!

Our hotel was fabulous. The bed was amazing. Right up there next to mine. The view from our room was impressive too. All the little toiletries in the bathroom were from the Spa line at Bath and Body Works. I think it was the first night in many, many years that I actually slept through the whole night. My head hit the pillow and I did not open my eyes until Eric woke me the next morning to look out the window at a Superbowl parade.
~cheryl
**pics to come starting tomorrow**

It was a little over eleven years ago. Eric and I had gotten married, but we were not able to go on our honeymoon immediately following the wedding because Eric was only given one day of leave from the ARMY to get married. Just enough time to attend the wedding and then report back to duty. And then, after our first few weeks of marriage, he was given a 45 day field deployment. So we had to keep postponing our honeymoon. We had it all planned though. Or, more accurately, Eric had it all planned. He loved camping. His family had camped his entire life, and he had many wonderful memories of the time spent camping. From tent camping to RV camping to climbing a mountain and setting up camp on a glacier, he had loved it all.

Then there was me. I on the other hand had never spent a day in my life inside a tent. Our family vacations existed of staying in a hotel on the beach. Or a trip to Washington D.C. I’m not sure my parents even owned a tent. But I was young, head-over-heels in love and ready to embrace the world of camping.

So almost two months after we were married, we loaded up Eric’s truck with all his camping nesascaties. Air mattress, camp stove, food, and whatever else was deemed needed for the trip. His truck had a large canopy on the back, so the plan was to put the air mattress in the bed of the truck and then sleep inside the canopy. No tent even needed! So trip mapped out, truck packed, we started on our adventure.

Now there were two things that Eric did not take into account for our honeymoon. First, it was November and we were leaving NC and driving up to Canada and back, hitting all the New England States. And second, I was already pregnant with Laura, but had not figured that out yet. November in the northeast is cold. Very, Very cold. And the back of his truck had no heat. And we were still not very comfortable even sharing a bed with each other, let alone snuggling up for warmth. So this created a some what awkward situation at night when we were both freezing to death. And then I started feeling sick. Nauseous. My stomach would hurt from the time we woke up until we went to bed. And then all night long. But, never being pregnant before, the thought never once crossed either of our minds. We just thought I must have the flu or some other bug.

We made it up to Canada. Stopped and camped at Niagara Falls. Spent a few days driving around Canada. I remember the foliage was beautiful. Bright, vivid leaves on all the trees, just at the end of their season. In the mornings we would wake up to a frost covering the ground. Eric would always make hot chocolate, which I often would throw up. Then we headed back to the states and stopped at Bar Harbor, Main. It was the last day of their “tourist season”. The little town would be closing up shop for the winter. We decided to stay at a Bed and Breakfast, which was a wonderful change from the freezing truck. And then their was the highlight of the whole trip. Eric had planned this stop from the beginning, because I professed to love lobster. And I did. Or at least the frozen stuff you buy at the grocery store. But he was going to buy me a “real” lobster dinner. So we asked around for the best place to eat lobster, made our reservations, and sat down with great expectations. Now let me explain a few things. First, these were lobster that had been caught that day. So we are talking the freshest you can get. Second, they serve you the WHOLE lobster. Not just the little tail that i was used to. Intestines, head, even the eggs inside the female, which we were informed was a deliquesce. And third, I was still pregnant, so smells, tastes, and textures were now all greatly intensified. (But still no clue there was a baby on board).

So after being served my huge lobster dinner, Eric could hardly wait for me to try it. I did. And then I thought I was going to throw up. It tasted awful. It looked awful. I was suppose to eat what??? The females eggs??? NO WAY!!! Eric looked crushed. I couldn’t explain to him why it tasted so bad. But it did. Nothing like that frozen tail from the grocery store. And it’s beady little eyes kept staring at me. It didn’t really even look dead. It still had the rubber bands on the pinchers. I could barely breath, it smelled so awful. And there was no way I could even pretend to like it. The funny thing too was that Eric can’t stand most seafood. So this dinner was all about me. He would have been much happier at a steak house than a lobster house! To this day, we love to laugh about our “Lobster Night”. Someday, when I am not pregnant, I want to give it another try.

After our night in Maine, we hopped back in the truck and headed to New York City. But, I was feeling sicker by the day, so Eric decided it would be best to just head home. We had cut our trip in half, but I was not enjoying myself, and hence not very much fun to be on a road trip with. As soon as we got home, Eric was sent off on another deployment and I found myself curled up in bed, thinking I had the worst flu of my life. A girlfriend stopped in to say hi, and when she found me looking like the life had been sucked out of me, she quickly put me in her car and drove me to the ARMY Clinic. It was only a few hours before I was informed that I was with child. The worst part of the whole situation was that Eric wouldn’t be home for a month. But thanks to my amazing girlfriend, she helped me figure out this new medical system that I had just been thrown into, and get the care that I needed to survive the next month until Eric got back and could take over from there.

I have never, ever had any regrets of our Honeymoon. It was what we could afford. It was where we were at, being employed by the ARMY. It was a trip that Eric had put a lot of time into and was so excited to share this new adventure with me. It just wasn’t the best timing. But we had not a clue that I would be pregnant or how severely sick I would end up being with each of my pregnancies. We also didn’t really think about the whole weather thing. About how it gets really cold. And no matter how madly you are in love with each other, you can still freeze to death in the back of a truck!

So that’s how I remember our honeymoon. Then, about three months ago, Eric told me he was taking me on a cruise. He told me how he had promised me all those years ago, one of those days while I was so sick on our trip that I clearly could not remember a thing, that he would take me on a “Real Honeymoon”. He had wanted to at the time we were married. But couldn’t because of finances and work. But I honestly never remember him ever making that promise. But he remembered. Eleven years, six almost seven children, fifteen moves, three degrees, and everything else in between that life threw our way, he still remembered. As soon as he graduated and started working, he had started saving for this trip. He had planned a “Second Honeymoon” for us, a Western Caribbean Cruise, and I had no clue. His whole staff even knew and were so excited for me. Nine whole days, just the two of us! (Well ,three if you count little one.) So when he told me his plans I was speechless. So speechless, that he thought maybe I was upset. I never in a million years would have ever guessed this surprise. But I am so excited. I am even more head over-heels in love today with the man I married eleven years ago than I was on the day I promised to spend the rest of my life by his side. And I think this trip will be a hundred times more fun than if we had gone immediately following our wedding. We are so much more in love now than we were when we started this journey together. We have shared heartache and we have celebrated life together. Time over time, year after year. We have built a relationship that goes so much deeper than the love-struck awe we were in on our wedding day. We have laughed and cried together. We have watched our children grow. We have watched each other grow. And so now, getting to spend nine days with the most important person in this world to me, just because he loves me and remembered a very long ago promise, is the best thing a girl can think of!!!
~Cheryl