We survived!

Grace survived a week without me.. and her daddy.
I survived a week without her.. with her daddy.
I'm so proud of myself, I only cried once while we were gone, and once the night we dropped her off.

We had a wonderful time on our cruise. It was very relaxing and fun, and even though I missed Grace, it was nice to have a break. Sunday we left the port in Miami around 5:30. That was a really long day. We had to wake up at 4:45 am and drive ourselves to the airport. Luckily the airport is close by and we were able to park our car there for the week with no issues. We got thru security and all that stuff, and waited for our plane to leave at 7:20. From Akron/Canton, we flew to Atlanta. I can't really remember how the flight was exactly from Akron to Atlanta, but I do remember that the flight from Atlanta to West Palm Beach was forever long and very bumpy. Plus I didn't have anything to eat that whole day and I was so sick to my stomach. By the time we landed in West Palm Beach, I thought I was going to be sick. I needed food so bad. But there was no time, because we had to get our luggage and then get on the bus to Miami. Another hour and a half and we'd be to the boat. Anyways, we made it there and finally scarfed down some pizza after we checked into our room.
So Sunday we left and we could really feel the boat rocking. Everyone told us that we wouldn't feel anything, but we did. Monday was at sea all day, and another day of rocking. I can still feel the rocking as I type this. I guess we were in rough waters or something, because we literally we're being rocked back and forth as we walked. Monday night was the formal night, which was really fun. We got all dressed up in our formal gear.. Mike in his Tux and me in my dress, and went to dinner. We went to see a show that night on the boat and had our pictures taken. I felt like I was in high school again, getting dressed up for prom or a dance. Here is a picture of us that night.


Tuesday we arrived in Cozumel, Mexico in the morning sometime. We woke up and ate breakfast, and decided to just stay on the boat that day. Cozumel looked very beautiful, but we were still tired and just needed to relax. So we ended up going to the pool on the ship, and there was no one there. We basically had the pool to ourselves since it was our first stop and a majority of the people got off the boat to explore Cozumel. (Looking back, I wish that we would have at least gotten off the boat for a little while, just for the experience, but oh well)


Wednesday we stopped at George Town, Grand Cayman. As soon as I woke up and saw the blue blue water, I could not wait to get off the ship. I wanted to go swimming in the ocean so bad and explore the town a little bit. I've never seen water so blue before. What a beautiful place. Our friends Nikki and Aaron went with us to town, and first we shopped around a bit before taking a taxi cab to the Seven Mile Beach. It's literally seven miles of white sand and blue water. Such a beautiful place and we spent a few hours there swimming and laying out on the beach. I could have stayed there for days, I just loved it. Here is a picture of the beach, and our cruise ship in the backround.

Wednesday night Nikki and I treated ourselves to a massage at the spa on the boat. That was really nice. I haven't had a massage in a really long time, and it felt great. Very relaxing.

Thursday we arrived in Montego Bay, Jamaica. Wow, I thought for sure Grand Cayman would be my favorite place, but that all changed after a few hours in Jamaica. We did the "hot spot tour" for $12.00 a person. They will basically take you to all the hot spots in Jamaica and also take you back to the boat when your done. Our first stop was the flea market, something I was not prepared for. I've never been to a flea market where they beg you to look at their items and you have to barter with them to get a good price. At first I was overwhelmed with the people there, but after being there a few minutes, you get used to them. Every person wants you to look at their items and they claim they are all handmade. It's funny though, because each person has the same things! I ended up buying Grace a pink sundress there, and myself a small jewelry box to keep my rings in. Mike bought two pictures that were "handpainted by the men in the mountains" which made us laugh. But hey, they gave us a good deal on our stuff and we left there happy. On my way out I noticed some wood carvings made into pictures and painted. On the top of them they read "The Devon House Kinston" which made me wonder what that was. I asked the guy working there and he said the Devon House was the first plantation house built in Jamaica. I told him that Devon was my name, and it was also his fathers name. I found that really interesting. He shook my hand and said that we were brothers and sisters from the same race, no color. I kinda felt special having the same name as his father. (who knows if any of that was true, he might have been trying to get me to buy from him, but I didn't think he was lying to me)



After we left the flea market, we headed to the main shopping area. We got off the bus expecting kind of the same thing as the flea market, but it was different. Just regular stores and no one wanting to barter with you. I saw this lady all dressed up and dancing on the street so I snapped a picture of her. Well little did I know that if you take their pictures you must tip them. So she came walking over, did her dance and we gave her a tip. I learned my lesson right then and there! Only take pictures when they are not looking. haha!


The shopping area was nice, but we were ready to hit the beach. We looked around a bit but decided to head to the water, since we had to board the ship early that day. So back on the bus we got and headed to the beach. Once we arrived and got settled, we jumped into the water. I thought the previous beach was nice, but honestly this beach was so much better. The water was crystal clear, the sand was white, and the view was amazing. I was sad that we didn't have more time to spend there. I love how laid back it was in Jamaica and the music that was always playing in the backround. The weather was perfect and it just felt like a great place to be. I wanted to send for Grace and never leave there. But I knew that it wasn't like that everywhere there. Just the tourist areas I'm sure.


Thursday night was our second formal night, but we decided to just get dressed up but not in our formal clothes. After eating so much all week the last thing I wanted to do was squeeze myself into my second formal gown. So we just got dressed up and had dinner. Then we saw a magician that night on the boat.

Friday we arrived in Labadee, Haiti. I found out while on the boat that week that Royal Cruise lines actually bought a section of Haiti and turned it into a private island resort. And that there are actually cement walls to keep the people out and also armed guards. I was a bit freaked out by that. When we woke up that morning and went out on our balcony, it was hot already. Almost 100 degrees hot. I was tired and didn'really feel like getting off the boat. Mike really didn't care either way I think. So we ate breakfast and finally decided to go explore the island a little bit, since it was our last chance to get off the boat. We ended up staying there for about an hour, because neither one of us were impressed. I felt more like I was at a resort than actually seeing how people lived there. The beaches were rocky and we weren't able to swim in them. Plus it was so hot. So we headed back to the ship and went swimming at the pool. Friday night we saw another show, had dinner and then went dancing. Friday was a really fun night! We stayed up really late and slept in Saturday morning till NOON! I woke up thinking it was around 10:00 but nope, Noon. Amazing. I haven't slept in since before Gracie, and neither has Mike. But I didn't care because it was our last day on the ship, and we had nothing to do anyways.

Saturday we spent the day relaxing by the pool and working on our tan. We had to come back home with a tan, or no one would believe we even went away! Saturday night we had dinner and packed. We were both so tired and had to get up early to leave the ship so we just relaxed. Sunday we had breakfast and got off the boat around 9:00. We all along day of traveling ahead of us, and we were so ready to be home. Our flight left Miami around 1:05, and landed in Atlanta around 3:00. Again no time to eat since we had to board the next flight to Akron Canton at 3:58. Luckily, we arrived home about ten minutes early, and we were so excited to find out it was 77 degrees in Akron! We thought for sure we'd come home to snow. After we got off our plane, Mike stopped to use the restroom and I told him I'd meet him in baggage claim. So I started walking that way, thinking about Grace and how much I couldn't wait to see her. Then out of the corner of my eye I saw someone familiar. I turned to look and it was Grandma Kelley.. and I immediately thought something was wrong and she'd come to the airport to tell us. I started crying then noticed the diaper bag. I turned to look and was shocked to see that my MIL (nana) had brought Grace to the airport! Hailey had made a sign that said "Mimi and Daddy" and of course I was hysterical. Me being upset scared Grace and she wouldn't come to me! I tried to hold her and she went right back to Nana. Mike met up with us and she went to him, but would not come to me for a little while. She looked like she'd grown 10 inches and changed so much. All I wanted to do was squeeze her and never let go. We ended up taking her and Hailey home with us, and all I could do was turn around and look at my baby. Her voice sounded different, she looked different, and it was hard for me. But I was so happy to see her that I didn't care.
We went to Nana's house to pick up her stuff and by the time we came home, she had warmed up to me and was all over me. Since then, I haven't been able to leave her side, or her leave mine. She's giving me kisses and hugs and always wants to be held or sit on my lap. It's the best feeling to know that she did miss me. A friend of mine told me before I left that I'd appreciate her so much more after we came back home, and she was right. I needed the time away from her to realize how much she means to me. More than I knew before.

So that was our trip. If you read this whole thing, wow. I'm not even sure I'm going to read it again. :o)