Disney Cruise!!!!

Let me just start this post by saying that this was by far, the best vacation we have ever taken with our kids! We didn't tell our kids we were going on a vacation until the morning that we left. We didn't tell them we were going on a cruise until we got to the boat! It was so much fun to keep them guessing and they were really good sports about not knowing. They really loved being surprised! When we got to the port and I told them we were getting on the "Mickey Boat", they couldn't believe it! We spent the first few hours exploring the boat. Then, the kids begged to go swimming.

The pool was even shaped like Mickey!

We hung out with Mickey...

Minnie...

and Pluto.

One of our favorite parts of the cruise was the dinners! Our wonderful waiters had our kids sit at one table and the adults sit at the other table. It was brilliant! Then, after the kids were finished eating, the staff from the kids club on the ship would come and gather up all of the little ones and take them to play while the adults finished our dinner. Disney knows what they're doing. :)

The kid's club was such a great thing for both the kids and the adults. They always have fun activites planned for the kids and the adults can enjoy some time alone. We even left our kids on the boat for a few hours while we were in Cabo to enjoy some adult time. Our kids didn't mind at all! They loved it! Here they are after getting their faces painted, and coloring with Goofy.

At night, before dinner, they have these amazing shows! They are almost Broadway quality, seriously. I loved them and so did the kids! They also had great family activities you could participate in at night. One evening, the activity was Disney Karoke. Did I mention we went on this trip with our dear friends the Lintons? Their kids our best buddies with our kids. Ellie and Lizzy decided that they wanted to sing "Part of Your World" from "The Little Mermaid." Halfway through the song, they forgot the words and just started laughing. It was hilarious. The guy running the karoke went over to Ellie and told her to just read the words on the screen. She looked at him and said right into the microphone, "I can't read!" The whole crowd started laughing. Heidi and I went up at the end to help them get through the song. It was so much fun.

Some of these pictures are out of order. I apologize! Let's go back to the dinners and our amazing wait staff! Our waiter's name was Wayan. He was so great. He was from Bali and had left his wife and children to come work on the ship to provide for them. If you have ever gone on a cruise, you know how much you grow to love your waiters. He was the best. He would make little presents for our kids and would fold their napkins into all sorts of different animals.

The room attendants are great as well. Look at this towel guy he left on our bed. He also left chocolates every night which our kids looked so forward to!

After a few days on the boat, we reached Puerto Vallarta. I thought it was a beautiful place.

We took a tour of the city with an amazing tour guide. He was from the U.S. but had moved to Mexico when he married his wife who was from there. He even drove us past his home which was so fun to see. He gave us a wonderful tour of the city. One of our favorite spots was up in the mountains at this beautiful restaurant.

At the end of the tour, we stopped at the boardwalk at the center of the city. We walked along the walkway and watched some amazing people at work.

This guy would balance rocks on top of each other. It was unbelievable! The kids were mesmerized!

Look at this crazy sandman! There were several of these amazing structures made entirely out of sand.

That night, back on the ship, was Pirate Night! Argh Mateys!

The next day was another day at sea. Ellie and I woke up and had some special time together. We went to meet the princesses.

Then, we went to breakfast together, just the two of us.

That night was pajama party night at the kids' club. Here are Ellie and Parker playing a game.

Here I am with some of my buddies. :)

Look at these crazy kids!

The next day, we ported in Cabo San Lucas. We decided to take our kids to swim with the dolphins. The dolphin they got to meet was named Freida. We were a little nervous as to how they would react being that close to such a large animal. They all did really well! Luke was so calm and seemed right at home in the water. Ellie was a little nervous at first but she warmed up to Freida pretty quickly. Parker was the most afraid, but I was so proud of him. He even gave Freida a kiss!

After the dolphin swim, we went on a glass bottom boat tour around Cabo. It is such a beautiful place!

The final day of the cruise we had breakfast with all of the main Disney characters. Here are a few shots of all the kids with Pluto,

Minnie,

& Dale (I think).

Here are a few final pictures of our great wait staff. Our assistant waiter's name was Sadat. He was from Turkey and he was so sweet with our kids. He remembered their favorite drinks and would even help cut up their food. We loved our waiters so much and learned so much about their home lives and countries that we had to get a few final pictures with them.

This was such a wonderful vacation. Usually by the end of a week long vacation I am ready to go home. I could have stayed on this boat for another week! Luke cried when we left the boat and I think we were all depressed for a while after we got home! Even now our kids keep asking when we are going on another Disney cruise. I wish we could go again tomorrow!