Thanksgiving Cruise with the Footes - Part 4

We made it to our other port, Cozumel, Mexico!  We hit up our go-to resort - Paradise Beach.  Cheap entrance, food, freshwater pool, and a great beach!

She had a great time playing at the beach

We happened to be in Cozumel the exact same day that Maxwell's friends from Castle Montessori, the twins, were also in port while they were on a cruise!  So we met up with their family John, Claire, Joshua and Lucas and the boys had a ton of fun playing together.

They played on the big inflatables out in the ocean (made me super nervous because the life vests were pretty big and it wasn't quick swimming to the other sides of the toys if they fell/jumped off.

After awhile they switched to the pool 

Joshua - Lucas - Maxwell

Such silly friends

Unfortunately they weren't in port as long as we were so they had to leave part way through the way.  It was still a lot of fun to see them in another country!

Enjoying life on the beach!!!  Even though it was a cloudy day, it still was enjoyable.

Tired but not sleeping.  We made her lay down for a little bit.

Enjoying some street tacos

Maxwell and I decided to go snorkeling.  I wasn't sure how if it would work since the mask was so big on him.

Out in the ocean

We switched from the snorkel mask to his goggles and it worked just fine.

He loved snorkeling and we saw some cool fish and even a gorgeous spotted stingray!  He was really excited about that one.

Playing some more on the smaller inflatables

Such happy faces!

Emmalyn did not want to stop being in the water!

Maxwell got really brave and climbed up this big slide!!

Everyone is clearing out but we stayed as long as we could.

Maxwell was still out there having fun and since most everyone had left, he wasn't having to watch out for the big kids anymore.

Family picture

Back to the boat after some quick shopping.  No need to buy a lot of souvenirs in Cozumel since we've been there so many times.

We hit up karaoke again that night after dinner.  It was fun to be back with the Footes who had spent their day on Cozumel doing other things.  Max sang "Take on Me" by A-ha.  I ended up going up on stage with him because the boat was rocking so much and I didn't want him to fall.  Emmalyn came up and stood there too.

Tammy, Taylor, and I did Jason Mraz.

Maxwell didn't get time to do another song before the family karaoke time was over and he had a full melt down.  He's quickly become very passionate about karaoke!

At dinner each night Emmalyn wants chicken nuggets and fries and I've just given into it.  Max has tried a couple thing but only things from the kids menu.  He does like the Carnival Molten Melted Cake for dessert each night (my favorite!).  The kids have been getting worn out on the cruise.  This morning Emmalyn didn't even really want to wake up until 7:45 am - - a very big deal!

I was on kid bedtime duty tonight and Peter went and had some fun in the casino.

10 yr Anniversary - Caribbean Cruise Part 3 Antigua

Today we got to enjoy the port of Antigua!  We LOVED it and had a great time!

We started out on a huge catamaran that took us to a snorkel spot.  This was the best catamaran trip we've been on. Great boat, great staff, great sandwiches and drinks, great fun!

Checking out the front of the boat when everyone went snorkeling

Jumping to dad

Paradise....beautiful day...hanging out over a beautiful blue ocean...FANTASTIC!

This is a sexy look, right?

Peter hung with Maxwell while Kimberly and I went snorkeling.  I didn't end up going very long.  I knew Peter was really looking forward to snorkeling so I wanted to make sure he had plenty of time.

Peter and Kimberly are out there somewhere...

The snorkeling is done...now to enjoy the rum punch!

Max enjoyed some water and was entertained by the staff.  They were pretty cute with him.  

Soaking up the sun on the way to our next stop, a private beach.

We saw this jellyfish swimming in the water.

The staff grabbed it and showed us - it was really beautiful.  They let Kimberly and I touch it.  (We washed our hands really well after - apparently it's the tentacles that will sting you,  not the main part.)

Diving off the back of the boat

How's that for a private beach?

Silly kids

Having fun picking up the sand and carrying it around.

It got a little cloudy but it was still a fantastic beach with amazing sand and perfect temperature water.  Max had fun playing in the ocean.  We were throwing him back in the forth in the water and he was counting in Spanish going "Uno, Does, Tres!"  It was super cute.

"Aunt Kimi, I have some sand I want to throw on you..."

Tired little boy self soothing...

They really liked the rum punch

Partying on the way back to the port.  I am pretty sure Kimberly had a great time. :)

Max's first conga line

Once we got back to port, we decided we wanted to go find some local food and explore the area.  So we walked around and ran into some Canadian college students that were on the catamaran with us.  We tried to ask some locals where to eat but their accent was so thick, we just couldn't understand.  After walking for a bit we came across this sort of Caribbean food truck.  This guy, in full chef gear, was basically cooking out of the back of a van.  He had a full grill and burners set up on some picnic tables and the place was hopping with customers.  We decided to go for it!  He had stuff like steak, fettuccine alfredo, and BBQ chicken on the menu.  It was just crazy.

We ordered a ton of stuff including a chicken sandwich, BBQ chicken, some local coconut ball pastry thing, rice, beans, steak, etc.  I wanted to try it all.  I was really amazed at the high level of food this chef was making.  

Peter, Max, and our new Canadian friend Juan.  After the party boat, everyone was having a good time (as evidenced by Kimberly harassing me and continually sticking her finger in my ear... so annoying!).

The chef at work

The locals pulled some chairs out for us to sit on so we sat right there on the sidewalk and enjoyed our food.

Headed back to the boat (the Carnival Freedom) with Max's cool new hat.  It was a Parana Joe hat that was super cute.  I was sad because somewhere during the course of the rest of the trip, we lost it.  :(

After we dropped Kimberly back off at the boat so she could take a nap, we decided to go back to a place we had passed that had free wi-fi and check in with life back home.  We hadn't had internet for days so I was itching to just look quickly at my work email and facebook (I know, I have an addiction to both!).  We only had about 15 minutes and then it was time to get back on the boat.

Thank you Antigua!  We loved visiting you!  We would come back in a heartbeat for your beaches, your people, your town, and your Susie's hot sauce!

I always enjoy it when the port has live music for your entertainment.

Ahhhhhh... being on vacation is pure happiness!!!!

The view off the balcony

Remember how I said I didn't bring many toys?  Well, when you are desperate, nearly everything can be a toy...even the small liquor bottles they put in your fridge.

Max would line them up and knock them down.  They are almost like blocks, right? (Is it a parenting fail to willingly let your child play with unopened bottles of booze??) :)

That night Kimber stayed with Max and Peter and I went to enjoy the entertainment in the theater.  (I miss how tan we were!)

We were nice enough to bring her back a treat of pizza though.  The ship had a place to get Neapolitan style pizza 24-7.  It was one of the best things about the ship.

Add a crib into a room and there isn't much room left for anything else.