Our next port of call was in the US Virgin Islands at St Thomas. We had a longer stay than in the Bahamas so it gave us a chance to visit without feeling rushed. We started off by taking a taxi to the beach at Magens Bay. This was an absolutely beautiful beach that put the one at Nassau to shame. The weather was beautiful, the water was calm; it was the perfect place to relax.
Here, the gang poses (if what Adam is doing can be called posing) on the taxi ride.
One very valuable lesson we learned on this cruise is that visiting places without using the ship-associated excursions is MUCH cheaper. I think the total cost for the three of us for the taxi ride to and from the ship was under $50 ($8 each, one way). In comparison, the excursion cost around $40/per person! This won't work in all cases, but if you're just looking for a beach, going with the locals is the way to go.
There's not much else to say about the beach itself so here are the photo highlights.
The taxi ride back had some good opportunities for pictures of the harbor and our cruise ship. Being a mediocre photographer, I didn't make the most of the opportunities, but you should at least get an idea of what it was like.
We had lunch at a restaurant that the taxi driver recommended. I can't complain since they had jerk chicken, and that's one of my favorite seasonings. We also spent a bit of time in the shopping district, but I didn't think to take a picture of anything. The highlight for me was buying a 1 liter bottle of Absolute Mango vodka for $15. We then poured it into our water bottles and smuggled it back on the ship. It was pretty good stuff, but by the end of the trip, I'd had about enough mango-flavored drinks.
Before we got back on the ship, we got Lucas to pose in front of it.
This last picture was actually taken in the morning, before we left the ship. I wanted to included it since it shows one of Lucas's favorite features of the room: the porthole. The way our room was set up, the porthole was recessed and had about 2-3 feet of ledge space. Not only did it give Lucas a place to sit and play with his action figures, but he and his buddies had a blast jumping off of it onto our bed.
Update: Although he is still on antibiotics for pneumonia for the next 10 days, Lucas's fever is gone. He went into school a little late yesterday (so that I could give him Advil that would last the day), but today, he went in at a normal time--sans medicine--and he made it through the whole day so three cheers for this ordeal being over!
Today was a long day with the doctors, but it ended on a decent note. I initially brought Lucas into our family doctor at 11:30 to have her check out his fever and rash. It turns out our doctor is vacationing so we had an attractive, 20-something doctor in her place, which made the whole appointment feel a little like a Grey's Anatomy episode.
She wasn't worried about the fever since the children's Advil was keeping it under control, and she only had mild concern about the rash. However, just to be safe, she had me take him to CHEO (the children's hospital) to get some bloodwork done.
As expected when using the emergency room, the wait was the worst part of the hospital visit. Lucas and I got there at about 1:30, and then Marilu got there after work, around 3. I had to run some errands so I left at that point, but when all was said and done, they didn't get home until after 7. A very long day for all of us but particularly Lucas.
Once they actually were seen, the doctors at CHEO said that the "rash" on his neck was due to broken capillaries from when he threw up this weekend. I was particularly happy about this since it meant Lucas didn't need to get any shots. Before we went to our family doctor, I had promised Lucas that there would be no needles today, not realizing we would be at the hospital in a few short hours.
I'm not sure what happened next, but they then decided to do a chest X-ray to check for pneumonia. It turns out he does have signs of it--not a severe amount, apparently--so they gave him an antibiotic prescription, and then they came home.
As I write this at almost 10:30 PM, they have both been asleep for a couple of hours, and everything seems to be okay. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they both get plenty of rest, and I'm really hoping Lucas's fever is gone tomorrow so he can get back to work. I love the little guy, but I've been at home with him since Friday, and I'm starting to get a little stir crazy!
Speaking of crazy, here's a picture I took of Lucas while waiting in the examination room at our family doctor much earlier in the day. None of this was staged. This was all him.
I'll be sure to keep you updated with any more health news.
Health update: the last couple of days, Lucas has been dealing with a fairly high fever. When we give him children's Tylenol, it brings it down to under 100, sometimes even around 98. However, towards the end of the 6 hour cycle, it can get as high as 104. We're not super concerned since his fevers tend to be like this, but since it's been going on for 3 days and we just got back from a vacation, I'll probably be bringing him to the doctor tomorrow. No need to get too worried, but I'll update to let you know how it went.
Between Nassau and St Thomas, we had a couple of sea days on the cruise. During that time, we took a whopping total of 4 photos, 3 of which I present to you now.
The first one is just him and Brandon playing on the deck chairs. For what it's worth, although most people are out first thing in the morning, getting the best chairs they can get, I think I spent less than a half hour total on them during our trip. I got all the sun I wanted at the beaches, I guess.
The second and third photos are from face painting Lucas had done while at Camp Carnival (he's a bunny, if you can't tell). For the uninitiated, CC is Carnival's "daycare." It's completely free, and it gives you a place to drop off your kids from 10 AM to 10 PM. It's broken down by age so each age group has its own activities going on. Lucas probably spent an average of 3-4 hours a day there during our trip. It was particularly nice to have a couple of quiet dinners, without him and his cohorts running around the table like hooligans. We honestly weren't sure if he would take to it, but by the end, he didn't want to leave.
I know other ships, particularly the Disney cruise line, have their versions of Camp Carnival that may be bigger and better, but from what we saw of his time there, it was a great experience. We would definitely do it again.
Our first port of call, on the second day of our cruise, was Nassau, Bahamas. Of the three ports we visited--the other two being St. Thomas and St. Maarten--this was my least favorite for two reasons. The first was that it was a pain in the ass to get to the public beach. We had to hunt down a water taxi, ride that for 15 minutes, and then when it dropped us off, we still had to walk a good half hour before we found the beach. And I stress "found" since it's not clearly marked so we had to wander through the Atlantis resort before finally stumbling upon it. I suppose it doesn't sound like that huge a problem, but it gets exponentially annoying when you have a small kid with you.
My second qualm with Nassau was the quality of its beach. Don't get me wrong, the beach itself was nice enough, if extremely crowded. Unfortunately, the surf was crazy. So crazy that for the majority of the time, Chris (one of the other dads) and I had our back to the surf and were playing a "game" of making sure our kids didn't get swept away. Not only was the surf crashing right at the shoreline, but when it receded, it pulled hard. Hell, I was nervous about going out much past my waistline. I don't think Chris's wife Nicole realized what we were dealing with since she came over to check out the water and got completely knocked over by the first wave that hit her. No injuries other than a lost hairband, fortunately.
All that said, from what I saw of Atlantis, it looked pretty impressive. It would be worth coming back to the Bahamas if we were going to do the resort thing, but as a cruise stop? Probably not. So enough about the overview of the day, onward to the pictures!
Here's a shot of our cruise ship, the Carnival Dream, taken from the water taxi. I should point out that we did see normal taxis on our walk back from the public beach so if there is a next time, that might be the better choice, time wise.
This is the best shot I could get of Atlantis. The place is massive, and it reminded me a lot of a Las Vegas hotel.
Rough waters or not, I have to admit the water was quite spectacular looking.
Just one of the many times I probably saved Lucas's life from oncoming waves. This was a small one compared to some of the others.
Lucas takes a break. The picture Marilu took of the two of us from behind that I posted while on the cruise was taken shortly before this one as you can see I am still sitting in the background. It turned out that wasn't the smartest decision as I got sand in just about every spot on my body sand can get into. Let's just say Lucas and I were still finding sand days later.
Marilu and Nicole relax on the beach. Judging by Nicole's wet hair, this was taken after the wave had its way with her.
Lucas, Brandon, and Jayden play in the sand. Apparently, covering a wet towel completely in sand is what's fun for 4-6 year olds these days.
Back on the cruise ship, Lucas relaxes on his bed. Of the three cruises I've been on so far, this was by far the best stateroom I've been in. We didn't have a balcony, but we had plenty of room for both a large bed (queen size, I believe) and a fold out couch for Lucas. In addition, we had two bathrooms: one with a shower, toilet, and sink, and the other with a sink and a bath. It was a far cry from our last room where Marilu had to open the bathroom door just to shave her legs. I know Carnival isn't considered 5 star when it comes to cruise lines, but I was more than satisfied with this aspect of their service.
That night was the first of two "elegant" dinners, where everyone in the main dining rooms dressed up. Here's a photo of Marilu with her brother Jonathan.
Lucas and I took a serious picture for the camera...
...before devolving into our true nature.
Unfortunately, our new camera was giving us a hard time getting a picture of Lucas and his cousin Colby. They are all blurry to some extent, but this is the best of them.
This was taken a little later, after we'd somehow fixed the blurring issue. Sadly, it's not the most photogenic shot. "Wow, look at that food."
As for this video that was taken in our room before dinner, I have no idea.
The first stop on our vacation was Orlando. Lucas and I traveled down on Thursday, while Marilu had to wait until Friday due to work. As a result, it gave the two of us a whole day to have fun together before heading out to sea on Saturday. In the week leading up to the trip, I was researching lots of different places, trying to figure out what to do.
While the big amusement parks like Disney and Universal Studios can be fun, going alone with a 4 year old would be a huge waste of money. I wouldn't be able to go on any adult rides since there was no one else to watch him, and the kids rides are just a fraction of the rides in the park. Considering the average prices were $80+ for an adult and $60+ for a kid, you can see why I marked these off the list quick. Don't even get me started on how crazy I would go waiting in multiple hour long lines with Lucas. We'd hate each other by the end of the day.
Thanks to a suggestion from a friend in Florida, we decided to go to the Orlando Science Center. Not only was it a much less expensive (a little over $30 total for both of us), but it wasn't terribly crowded. OSC is a pretty good science museum with plenty of stuff to interact with for the kids. We ended up spending a good 3-4 hours there. I think Lucas also enjoyed the bus rides there and back. I was going to rent a car, but then I realized I could get an all-day bus pass for less than $5. I'm not a cheap person, but that's just common sense right there.
So here are some of the highlights from the Orlando Science Center.
One of the first exhibits we looked at was a really cool one that demonstrated the process of harvesting oranges. Kids pulled "oranges" out of the trees and dropped them into a couple holes at the back of a machine. Then another kid would pedal the tractor, raising the oranges up above the tractor, at which point they would roll across and drop into a box. The kids could then put the oranges into little crates, place them on a conveyor belt sort of thing, and the oranges would dump into a hole behind the scenes. The oranges would then appear back on the trees. All in all, a clever exhibit. It was really neat to see a bunch of kids playing around it, each performing a different task.
It might be a little hard to see, but he is standing in front of a display that has a black snake in it.
Remember the photo in the last post in which Lucas was standing in front of an island full of reptiles? Here's a better look at what was right behind him.
Even great scientists need to take a break now and then. In case you're wondering, I'm not sure where the hat to the side thing came from. God knows I didn't teach it to him. I suppose it's cute on a 4 year old. Less so as you grow older.
I thought this next one would be a really cool picture, but it ended up just looking confusing. For what it's worth, we are standing inside a kaleidoscope. It was pretty impressive as we could see hundreds of reflections of us. Unfortunately, in the photo, it looks like I'm taking a picture of a dirty wall.
He spent a good 10 minutes at this wall, rearranging the pipes and tubes to see how a ball would roll down them. It probably would have been even better for him had he been a couple of feet taller.
Here are a few random shots taken in front of other exhibits.
Finally, the hurricane booth! In the weather/climate section of the Science Center, there was a booth you could stand in that would simulate winds up to around 75 mph. When we first got there, the line was huge since there was a camp group or something. However, about 10 minutes after we got there, a movie started on the first floor and the room emptied out completely. As a result, Lucas and I were able to experience it about 5 times in a row before some other people started showing up. As you'll see in the following photo and video, he got a kick out of it. Me too, to be perfectly honest.
So that's Orlando. We didn't get any other pictures since the rest of our entertainment was riding in buses and going to a nearby mall. Thrilling stuff! Tomorrow, the cruise photos begin!
One quick comment to wrap this up: I would highly recommend the Orlando Science Center for anyone who has a free day in Orlando between Disney parks. It's affordable, and as you can see from the pictures, a heck of a lot of fun for kids.
Before we get to the pictures from our cruise vacation, I just want to address some of the lowlights of last week. Basically, I'm giving the bad news before the good news so we end on a high note in the next blog entry or two.
In corporate speak, we had some good "lessons learned" this past week. First and foremost, we'll probably never do a major vacation over Spring Break ever again. Lucas and I left on Thursday, which gave us plenty of time before our cruise left Saturday morning. However, Marilu couldn't leave until Friday afternoon/evening since she had to teach that day. Apparently, the school system frowns on teachers taking off the day before or after a vacation. Well, this was almost disastrous as she nearly missed her connection due to a delayed flight. Thankfully, it worked out and she got to Orlando very late that night.
On the other hand, our friends Sheri and Adam were not so lucky. They also left on Friday (she's a teacher), and they got as far as Toronto before their flights crapped out on them. They weren't able to get in Saturday morning, and instead had to fly directly from Toronto to our first port of call, Nassau, Bahamas, in order to catch up to the ship. This added a few grand to an already pricey trip. So second lesson learned for us is to always buy travel insurance for these types of vacations.
Coming back, our household was scheduled for 3 separate flights:
Lucas and I: Delta to Detroit then Ottawa
Marilu: Air Canada to Montreal then Ottawa
Jonathan/Chantal/Colby: Air Canada to Toronto then Ottawa
As it turned out, Lucas and I were the only ones who had a clean flight schedule. This turned out to be a bad thing as we arrived home first. Why is that a bad thing, you ask? Well, since we were expected to get in last, Marilu and her brother each had house keys, and we had none. If all went well, this wouldn't be a problem, but obviously, all did not go well.
Luckily, and perhaps stupidly, one of our back windows was left unlocked so I was able to get it open, push Lucas through, and he unlocked the sliding door leading out to the deck. He wasn't too thrilled with this plan since the house was pitch black (it was after 11 PM when we got home), and he'd already been talking about robbers all day. So he was crying hysterically as he went to the door but the little trooper got the job done.
Jonathan's party got delayed in Toronto and eventually got home an hour or two later. I don't know exactly when since we were asleep after being in transit, in form or another, from 8 AM to 11 PM.
So where was Marilu in all of this? Well, her flight was cancelled altogether in Orlando so she was stuck in a hotel overnight. Apparently, the pilots called in sick or some such nonsense, but since the ground crews are threatening a strike (or may actually be in one, I don't pay close attention), it's pretty clear that this was an act of solidarity. Whatever the case, Marilu didn't fly out until Sunday morning to Montreal. And that's where the next logjam occurred.
Because it's March Break for just about every student and teacher in Canada, the flights are pretty much all booked up. So even though she was able to get to Montreal on Sunday, she wouldn't be able to take the short flight to Ottawa until Monday! As a result, after waking up Sunday morning, still exhausted, I got the chance to drive the nearly 2 hours (each way) to Montreal with Lucas in tow. Although it's not directly connected here, the third lesson learned was that from now on, we travel together.
And that was the end of the flight drama. Thankfully, the cruise was almost entirely problem-free, which we'll talk about in the next post or two. Notice I said "almost." Thanks to what I believe is a combination of a bad cold I had prior to the flight down, as well as the descent into Orlando, my left ear plugged up, and I basically couldn't hear out of it for the entire trip. I could barely hear loud noises, and conversations were impossible so I found myself having to sit at the end of the table in order to keep everyone to my right so I knew what the hell they were talking about. On the return flight, my ears popped, and I have hearing again, but it's still somewhat muffled. I'm planning to see the doctor tomorrow about it so hopefully that will be resolved soon.
So all that said, the problems we had were mainly pre- and post- cruise, and weren't the fault of Carnival itself. So everyone had a good time once we were actually there. To tide you over until the next blog entry, here's a photo of Lucas that I took at the Orlando Science Center on the day that we had together. Behind him is a pool full of turtles and alligators, hence the somewhat concerned facial expression.
Hello from the islands! St Maarten, to be specific, as we are just about to leave. It's our last port of call, and now we have two full days at sea before returning to Port Canaveral on Saturday. We've had a fantastic time so far, and I expect the last two days to be the picture of relaxation as we laze around by the pool or, in my case, visit the pizza bar post midnight for the umpteenth time. I'll update with a more detailed account of our travels once we get back, but for now, here are a couple of pictures that highlight our adventures.
This was a very cool picture Marilu took of Lucas and I at Nassau, Bahamas.
And this one was from Magens Beach in St Thomas. Fantastic beach, for what it's worth.
I'm running really late for bed (it's 12:42 AM and I need to be heading to the airport around 5) so I'm going to keep this really quick. I found an amusing photo that Andrea, Lucas's daycare provider, took around Christmas time. As you could probably tell with the hair shots a couple of weeks ago, she has a knack for getting great pictures.
So Lucas and I will be in flight tomorrow with Marilu following us on Friday. Then we all head over to Port Canaveral on Saturday for a week-long cruise, in which we will be visiting the Bahamas, St Thomas, and St Maarten. As with my past cruises, I don't really care so much about the destinations as the journey (i.e., lying in the sun, doing absolutely nothing). See you later!
Not much on the blogging front recently, I'm afraid. As mentioned in the last entry, Lucas was sick at the beginning of last week, and on Thursday, I contracted something myself. The very worst is past, but I'm still suffering: at the moment, it's a very sore throat that makes every swallow an exercise in pain, but each day, it seems the symptoms are unique.
On top of that, I'm leaving for Orlando this Thursday. For those of you unaware, we're going on a cruise out of Port Canaveral, FL, on Saturday afternoon for 7 days. Depending on what the wi-fi connection is like on the ship (i.e., how much it's gonna cost), I'll try and post some pictures from my iPhone. However, after Thursday, there won't be anything substantive until the following Sunday. Though with the pace of the last couple of weeks, that should feel about normal, right?
Anyway, here's some more pictures of our demon child, this time from the month of September.
"Enough with the camera, I'm TRYING to play here."
Sometimes the two of them can take such good photos.
Other times...not so much.
For some reason, Lucas got in his head to pull his old stroller out of the garage, put it on our front lawn, and then crawl in it and pretend to sleep. Who am I to argue?.
Striking a mean pose at basketball.
Another one of Lucas's crazy ideas. If you look closely, you'll see that in addition to the sunglasses and Thor's hammer, he taped up my face entirely.
Just doing some work.
I'll try to get one more post up tomorrow before I leave for Florida. Have a good one!
