Recent Spinning

I have quite the blessed gal lately. First off, my husband forced me to get a new dishwasher. Our old one had been broken for nearly a year. It was the second time the pump has gone out on that machine, and like a petulant toddler, I threw a tantrum and refused to get it fixed or go shopping for a new one.  It never really cleaned the dishes all that well anyway, despite being sold to us as a friggin' awesome dishwasher. What is the point of a dishwasher if you have to mostly wash the dishes before loading them? 

Anyway, while we were shopping for a new fridge since ours was leaking out increasing amounts of water onto the kitchen floor, Brady declared we were getting a new dishwasher as well. I was not sure, but now that it is installed, it is so wonderful......there just are no words. Washing dishes by hand for quite a while has made the machine seem nearly amazing. While the dishes are being washed, I can do other stuff! Like spinning!

That brings us to my second bit of wonderfulness. I received a box containing an extra bobbin, a beautiful niddy-noddy, and a lazy Kate.....all which match my Kromski Sonata. So far, all I have done is look at them admiringly, but I am sure I can get some use from them soon.

For finished spinning, I have this skein to show you. This was 4 oz. of bamboo roving that I purchased shortly before our cruise. The color reminded me of the Caribbean waters that I have marveled at, and so even though I was intimidated by spinning bamboo, I bought it anyway. It is two-ply, and about a sport or perhaps heavy fingering weight. I am really happy with this yarn, which I think will make a nice small scarf or shawlette.

My collection of handspun yarns is slowly growing. So far, they just sit and look pretty on my shelf. Honestly, I like looking at them enough, that I am okay with that for the time being. 

Silly Chicken Tricks

We have a goji berry plant in our backyard that Brady planted a few years ago. It has grown quite large and produces many, many goji berries each year. They are not all that wonderful when eaten fresh, although once they are dehydrated are a nice substitute for raisins in cookies. Dehydrated or not, there really is more than we can eat. We do have some backyard residents who love them. The kids regularly pick goji berries to toss to the chickens, who lovingly gather around when they see someone near the bush. Me, Brady, and Princess were doing just that when we discovered just how much they love those berries.

Two of our chickens, Spirit and Starlight, jumped to get the berries from Brady's hand. The two in the background, Sweetie and Princess (the chicken named by our very own Princess) were having none of those shenanigans and just waited for more to be tossed to them. I don't know if anyone else would find this amusing, but I found it downright hilarious.

Senses Spa aboard the Disney Fantasy

Each of the four Disney ships have a wonderful spa, called Senses,  that has a variety of great treatments. On our third cruise, aboard the Fantasy, me and Brady scheduled a couple's massage. It was the first massage I have ever had, and I was unsure about how relaxing it would be. I am not much of a touch-feely person, so it honestly gave me a bit of anxiety as the time for our massage approached. All my worries were pointless. The two ladies who did our massages were great,and the whole experience very relaxing.

We started our treatment by being led to the women's and men's changing rooms. Inside, an attendant showed us how to operate the lockers, and where to get robes and shower shoes. We were also told where to head to when we finished changing.

The location where me and Brady met back up was the relaxation room. The room has a number of white, very comfortable, recliners and a beautiful ambience. There is spa waters flavored with cucmber or lemon, and a selection of teas available that you can help yourself to. This is where I really started to feel calm and relaxed. Our masseuses came in shortly afterward to discuss what type of massage each of us wanted. They were both very nice and easy-going, which put me at ease.

Just like the rest of the spa, the couple's massage room was beautifully decorated. The massage was very relaxing and had a wonderful finishing touch of putting me and Brady's hands together. I enjoyed it very much. 

The spa treatments at Senses are generally fairly expensive. I do feel that it was worth it when looking at the whole experience.

An example of one of the teen spa treatment rooms.

On our latest cruise, we decided to let our oldest daughter get a facial at the teen spa area, called Chill. This is an area located in Senses Spa that is specifically for teens. There is a complete list of treatments for the 13 to 17 age crowd, and rooms that are decorated with more of a young, funky flair to them. Once again, this was not a cheap experience, but our daughter really enjoyed it. From what she told us, the woman giving her the facial was very nice and made her feel relaxed. Teens will need a parent to drop them off  in order to sign the necessary paperwork.

Senses Spa waiting rooms. This is also where some of the informational classes that are presented by the spa are held.

 Me and Brady finished our Palo brunch shortly before she was scheduled to get finished, so we made our way to the spa waiting room.  We had quite a fun time looking out the large windows at a bird that was gliding along the side of the ship. I can only imagine that it had started with the ship when we were at Jamaica, since there were no islands around that we could see. We were mesmerized enough by the bird that we missed our daughter. Thank goodness for wavephones, so we could catch up with her to see how it was.

Happy Fourth of July!

Our family had a wonderful July 4th, as I hope yours did as well. We are all spending the lovely, mellow time when the weather is cooling down a little and everyone is relaxing before it gets dark and we will all migrate outside to watch fireworks.

We started our day with a parade. I am not sure how things are in different parts of this country, but here in Utah, parades are a big thing. The kid of thing that it is nearly required that you venture out the previous day (even if it is pouring rain with close lightning like it was here) to set out a blanket so you could have a place to watch. Me, Brady, Spike, and Squirt had a nice time watching the festivities though, and we loved waving and yelling at Princess as she went by on the float with her Girl Scouts. Next time though....next time I will bring along our canopy. The heat was brutal! Luckily, we had our umbrella and some kids walking by selling cold drinks.

Totally unpractical, but I totally want one of these cars.

The bagpipers were awesome!

To cool off, we went over to my in-laws home to play in their pool. Most of Brady's siblings were there, and the kids got the chance to see their cousins, some of whom live far away. Swimming may not be my favorite thing in the world to do, but on a day like today, the cool water was wonderful.

I can now hear the first bit of the pops and bangs of fireworks from outside. Happy Fourth of July!

Disney Cruise - Pirate Night Tips

One of our favorite nights on our Disney cruise sailings has been pirate night. These occur on select cruises, mainly in Caribbean and Bahamian sailings. The evening has a host of pirate activities, including themed pictures with characters, pirate trivia, a pirate themed dinner menu, and a deck party including fireworks! Up until recently, Disney cruise line was the only company to be able to offer fireworks at sea. Now you can also see them on on Norwegian Cruise Line, but for our money.....we are still sticking to Disney. :)

Are you going on a Disney Cruise and want to make the best of it? Here are some of the tips we have picked up over our sailings.

1.Dress up! Many people are concerned about how much to dress up for pirate night. On every cruise, we hear someone comment with regret that they wished they had brought pirate costumes. However, no one who has dressed up has ever seemed to regret it. At home, it may be seem like a hassle to pack pirate costumes, but once you are on the ship and seeing other people dressed up, you will be glad that you did. For our family, pirate costumes take up an entire large suitcase, but I still would not leave them home! There are always people who chose to just wear a pirate T-shirt (I was one of those on a cruise when I was pregnant with Squirt), but fully enjoying the theme of the night and wearing your pirate best is really fun. Pirate costumes are available for purchase on the ship if you would rather buy them there, but don't plan on them being cheap.  Disney does provide each passenger with a pirate bandana, so if nothing else, you can sport that.

2. Put your costumes on before First Seating/First Show. Don't wait until it's dark to get into the pirate spirit! We aim for around 4 o'clock to gather everyone back to the stateroom to get ready. We usually have second seating for dinner, and we like to get our costumes on before the show that night. That way, if you want to get some pictures taken between the show and dinner (or vice versa if you have first seating), you are all ready.

3. On the larger ships, the Dream and the Fantasy, there are two pirate deck parties. On the classic ships, both shows are combined into one which is shown after second seating. The first is aimed towards younger children and includes Mickey and friends. The second one, after second dinner seating, is more for older kids and adults and includes Jack Sparrow and fireworks. You are welcome to go to both if you like. The times will be listed on your Personal Navigator. Our family really likes the second show.

4. Wear comfortable dancing pirate shoes. After the second show, the upper deck turns into "Club Pirate" complete with a DJ. Fun family dance party under the stars!

5. If possible, take a nap. Pirate night tends to be a night we are all up very late. Of any day on the cruise, this would be the one to plan for a nap for little cruisers if possible.

6. Save a little room. A pirate buffet is served in Cabanas after all the deck party fun has happened, complete with yummy deserts and turkey legs! Especially if you have late seating, keep this in mind while you are eating dinner.

7. Be aware that there is a possibility that the fireworks and deck parties may not happen. Sometimes bad weather happens, and it is just not possible. However, Disney will do their best. On our most recent voyage, I realized we were turning shortly before the party began, and found out afterward that the captain steered off of our original course to go around a rain storm so that there could still be fireworks and fun up on deck.

Shutters Photography on the Disney Fantasy

Our family just arrived home from our wonderful voyage on the Disney Fantasy. This was our fourth Disney cruise, and the second time aboard the Fantasy. Our family now feels a little like the Fantasy is our "home" ship, and we love it! Unlike the rest of my crew that takes to the seas a little better than me, I am continuing to walk a little like Captain Jack Sparrow while my sea legs wear off. It was definitely worth it though.

On-board the ships, there are photographers taking pictures at different times and locations throughout the ship. While we have purchased some of the photos on our past trips, we decided to go with the entire package of digital images this time. At the time of our sailing, to purchase a CD with all of your photos, the cost is $349 on the ship, or $295 if you purchase beforehand. There are other packages available. The smallest package is 10 images on a disc for $149. If you visit www.mycruisephotos.com you can see what is available and place a pre-order if you wish.

We made more of an effort to get our pictures taken this trip. Formal night fell on Mother's Day, and one thing I really wanted was family pictures. We do have some, and while they turned out nicely, they were missing a certain....something. Brady, for one, does not understand why we are getting our picture taken by the train tracks or an old side of a barn. Esthetically, these backgrounds look wonderful, but I do get his point. I was willing to spend the money on the photo CD because I know that the family pictures I would get on the ship mean something to my family. These are pictures of us having a wonderful, memory-filled time, and not just Mom making them dress nicely and smile.

These are some of the pictures we had taken on formal night when we were all dressed up.

 

Where else but a Disney cruise can you get formal pictures with Minnie dressed up as well? An opportunity we could not pass up.

My Tips: 

Especially if you pre-order all of your digital images, make time to get those pictures taken. After all, you have already paid for them. It is easy to get caught up in doing everything on the ship, but you will truly love the photos when you are back home. 

Take advantage of short lines when you see them. On a few occasions we saw a photographer set up and just waiting for guests to photograph. Even if the background is not exactly what you want, it will only take a few minutes, and it doesn't cost anything to get the picture taken. You never know, you may really like the results.

Don't worry about everything being perfect. Chances are, it is not going to be, so there is no sense in worrying about it. al

Go to Shutters periodically throughout the cruise to check on your photos and make sure they are all there. Our first Aquaduck pictures did not make there way to our account automatically, so we had to do a little searching to find them. Sometimes the facial recognition system needs a little help.

If you have more than one stateroom for your family, go to Shutters on the first day to ask for those rooms to be combined on the CD. This only applies to immediate family members (i.e. parents and kids), so if you have a giant family reunion on board, you cannot combine all those rooms.

Especially on formal night, get there early if there is a background you want. The people at Shutters can give you more information about times and backgrounds. The line for having your pictures done on the staircase gets very long. We arrived a few minutes before the photographer (by accident) and we were about to get a few different locations, and pictures with Minnie in the time that those who arrived later had to wait in the single line.

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We had many more portraits taken throughout the cruise, actually 97 in all. I would like to share some other topics and tips about cruising over the next month or two, so I will be sure to share more of them.

Happy Easter

I hope everyone has had a wonderful Easter! Our family had a great morning. Molly and Beatrix must have helped the Easter bunny know what our kids would like, since there were Disney trading pins in the Easter eggs hidden outside. Those will soon be put to good use on our upcoming Disney cruise! Now...with sounds of Minecraft playing in the background...I think I am ready for a nap.