Getting "Prepared"

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

"We're Davis's... We are going to gain 2 pounds per day"

 

These were the words of my Father-in-law in 2006 as Chris, his family and I boarded the Carnival Conquest in Galveston for our very first cruise together. The driver of the parking lot shuttle was speaking to us about the weight one gains while on a WEEK LONG cruise. Honestly, this sounded pretty gross to me but I had NEVER been on a cruise before and was unaware of not only the AMOUNT of food one eats but better yet, the QUALITY of food one eats.

 

In 2006 while Chris and I were on our Caribbean Cruise we had some of the absolute BEST food of our lives. I was able to eat Quail, Filet Mignon (I had never had it before then), Cucumber and Strawberry Chilled Soup, Beef Wellington and tons of other side dishes and desserts that were "to die for"! I will never forget the crème brulee I had one night in the main dining room... Wow, it was as we like to say in the SOUTH, "Good enough slap YO' MAMA"! By the end of the 7 night cruise Chris was ordering 2 main entrées each night and sometimes even 2 desserts. At first this seemed kind of appalling to me but eventually I came around and I was ordering 2 desserts too!

 

Now in all reality, I didn't plan accordingly during this cruise. I mean, I just ate when I was hungry and sometimes I didn't even eat very much since I was "trying to watch my weight" (HAHAHA... Yeah right, on a cruise?) and this was the 1st major trip I took with my in-laws and I was still a little worried what they might think of me (Laughing even harder at this one... if y'all only knew my in-laws!). My brother-in-law, John, really had the right plan when it came to getting the most out of the cruise. Why he even told us that he wanted to "Try it all". And by George, I think he did! He was constantly ordering room service, not because he was hungry but because he wanted to try just about everything the ship had to offer. He would also enjoy himself "A COLD ONE", AN ICE-CREAM CONE, just about every afternoon. John really knew how to get the most out of this cruise... A lesson learned by Chris and Kellie.

 

In just 5 SHORT days Chris and I will be setting sail for our 2nd Caribbean Cruise to Mahogany Bay-Roatan/ Honduras, Belize and Cozumel. We are going to be sailing on the Carnival Conquest out of New Orleans and we are UNBELIEVABLY EXCITED about it. This will be the first "REAL VACATION" we have taken since Natalie was born so this is a PRETTY BIG DEAL! Now, we have taken small 1-2 night excursions to the casino and other short trips but nothing of this magnitude since November 2008 to Las Vegas when I was actually pregnant with Natalie Grace!

 

Even though we have already sailed on the Carnival Conquest, we opted to go on this boat again since this itinerary is to different ports that our 2006 Caribbean cruise. The Carnival Conquest had a $1.2 BILLION make-over in October 2012 so we are also excited to see these new changes as well. I think it is going to be a FANTASTIC vacation and despite having to leave my little guy (and Natalie too) I think some much need rest and relaxation are just what I need.

 

With all of that being said, I am going to learn something from my BIL John about "getting the most" out of our cruise. In fact, Chris and I have been "PREPARING" for our cruise by dieting and exercising. I mean, we BOTH HAVE THE SAME LAST NAME- DAVIS, so we will be gaining more than the "average Joe" so we needed to make room for those extra pounds by dropping a few ahead of time! In fact on June 20 we started "Operation Cruise" and began a diet and exercise regimen. We each had a MUCH REDUCED calorie diet and we were going to the Rec Center to workout about 5-6 days per week. Chris lost a total of 27.5 pounds and I lost 17! We were both very satisfied with this amount and feel as if this will give us plenty of "CRUISE ROOM"!

 

This Body Preparation lasted until July 20 when we then stopped the dieting process and began the Stomach Preparation part of this challenge. As I mentioned before, there is so much amazing food on these boats that you really do "want to try it all" but if your body is not used to this type of eating, it could send you into shock! This usually makes me sick so we decided to start eating "Davis Size" portions again to try to prepare our stomachs for these amazing meals that we will be eating soon. Neither of us have stepped on the scale to see how much we have gained back but we know when we get home in August, the scale will really re-bound but IT IS ALL WORTH IT!

 

If you have never been on a cruise... it is an amazing experience and I HIGHLY RECOMMEND it to anyone! It really is the most BANG for your BUCK in the field of vacations. In fact, I am hoping my mom, sister and I can go on a GIRLS CRUISE soon (A&S- hint, hint... Wink, Wink)

 

*Be watching for the next several blog posts about this special vacation! I hope to document what we eat each day in addition to shore excursions and ship life! (I'm getting old and my memory isn't where it used to be so... this is the best way to remember it all)

 

Chris and I are so lucky to be able to have the financial means to take a vacation like this as well as the wonderful, kind and loving family and parents to take care of our kids while we are away! Thank You, Lord for this opportunity!

 

God is good... ALL THE TIME!