Wednesday, August 2, 2017

Breezing Through Summer- Sea Day #3

Rain Can't Stop Our Parade
Saturday, July 22, 2017


We LOVE the Breeze!

The day began with lots of sunshine and humidity and ended with a rain out but that would not stop us from having fun on our last day at sea!

Morning
Natalie woke up at 7:30AM to use the restroom and never went back to sleep so she and I went and got breakfast on Lido deck before walking around the ship and then going to the Towel Folding demonstration in the Theater. She was so sad that it was the last day of the cruise and she wanted to see and do it all.

Good morning... one last time!

We were so sad it was the last day!

Tip- The towel folding demonstration is always fun and it seems they teach you various towel animals on various ships. Be sure to check the FunTimes out for the day and time. Also, some ships offer a Towel Animal Theater (puppet show) following the demonstration but for whatever reason the Breeze did not.

Getting ready to make some towel animals!

 We made our very own doggies!

She was so proud!

Not my best dog but it will do!


After we finished our towel folding class we went back to the room to see if the boys were awake. It was 10:45AM and Luke had JUST woke up! He was tired. The boys got dressed and then we all went to Ocean Plaza for Harry Potter trivia. Luke got bored real quick so he and I went for a walk completely around the ship on the Lanai deck while Chris and Natalie tried to get us another trophy! Unfortunately, they did not win but had a great time trying!

Luke and I on our stroll around the Lanai found the "swinging chair"!

My last aft view for 70 days... Can't wait!

 Mommy take my picture!

Natalie and Daddy playing Harry Potter trivia!

They REALLY liked this chair!

After the trivia we went up to the Sports Square to try to do the ropes course but we had missed it by 15 minutes and it was closed for lunch. Due to all the rain that would follow that afternoon, Natalie didn't get to do the ropes course anymore on this voyage! Overall she did the ropes course 13 times and conquered EVERY traverse, both easy and hard! I was VERY proud of her!
We LOVE the Breeze!

One more round of golf!

Mr. Dab!


Afternoon
We explored the SkyFitness area one more time before making our way to Cucina del Capitano, the pasta bar, one more time for lunch! Chris went and got his favorite, the Mongolian Wok and met us upstairs on deck 11 aft so we could all eat together. Tip- Remember, the pasta bar is FREE for lunch and can be ordered to-go or eat in house. In addition, other members of your party can get other food options from below on the Lido deck (IE- the buffet, deli or Mongolian Wok and etc) and bring it upstairs. We like this option because it is less crowded and still FULL SERVICE! The pasta bar did NOT disappoint and we all LOVED It! During lunch it started to rain VERY hard!

Our favorite place to eat on the ship!

Cheers!

I'm the KING OF THE WORLD!

We tried to do the WaterWorks after lunch while the rain was still pretty light. Natalie loved playing in the rain but Luke was scared. He made a special friend at Camp Ocean over the course of the week and she tried to get him to play with her and it worked for a little while but eventually he wanted to leave because he was scared. His friend's family left too and ALL of them (10+) said "Bye Luke" as they left. Clearly he made a "friend" with Kendal!
Luke and Kendal outside of the WaterWorks.
After this we took the kids to Camp Ocean one more time while Chris and I went to the Cruise Director Question and Answer with Schwartz. Tip- This is also a great and enlightening event but it has been hit or miss with Carnival as to when and if it was offered. Check your FunTimes as it is usually offered on the last sea day in the afternoon!  Schwartz did a great job and we learned that he is 29 and started his degree in Music Education... WOW, it's like destiny! I should become a cruise director. We also learned that on our voyage there were 4,822 passengers and 1358 of them were under the age of 18. This was one of the highest percentages of kids to adults we have sailed but we still had a GREAT cruise!

As the rain continued to fall our afternoon plans started to change and we were forced to find activities inside, along with the other 4813 passengers. Naturally we went to the candy store despite Natalie, Luke and Chris not having a budget. I gave in and let them get more candy because I knew it was our only entertainment for a bit! Oddly enough, Jennifer the Cherry on Top candy store worker KNEW us and only charged us for 1 a la carte item. THEN she told me to wait a minute and took all 4 bags of candy and filled them to the top with candy FOR FREE! Yet again, Carnival has gone above and beyond! What's sad is it wasn't the bartenders that knew us by name but the candy store worker... Haha #truestory.

Aft of the ship in the rain storm!

Even the main pool had been abandoned!

This was Natalie's favorite art print on the ship!
"Mommy, can you buy me this for my room"?

Our stash of candy from Jennifer in the candy store!

Sugar high!

We then started to feel the ship sway for the first time of the cruise. The seas had been perfectly calm the entire cruise until now. In fact, the weather was so bad that after we got back home to The Woodlands, we learned from our Facebook group that the captain TOLD everyone to go inside, the storm was so bad! Tip- FIND your specific voyage's Facebook group! It is very helpful and it is nice to meet people prior to boarding! We decided to go back and try out the arcade but our cards were still not swiping correctly like a few days past and we were not able to play. We could have gone to guest services to fix our cards but it was the last day and if you've read my blogs at all you know going to GS the last day is a HUGE, ROOKIE mistake! We stepped outside to see if it was still raining and it had let up after an hour so we all changed into our swim gear to go to the WaterWorks but unfortunately it was closed due to all the rain so we decided to get into the main pool!

The seas were still so calm after the storm! Gorgeous!

Luke was not excited about this pool and with no hot tubs nearby he was bored. He spent a little time in the gazebo area nearby until Natalie got him a lifejacket. Tip- Carnival offers these on most ships FREE and are checked out or borrowed in this case. Look for them in the "main pool" area of your ship! After Luke got the lifejacket he was good to go. Not only did he GET INTO THE WATER, he actually swam on his own, not holding on to someone, multiple times. I have never been more proud. I swear my kids did more growing up in these 7 days than the previous 7 months!

Evening
We spent so much time in the main pool that we missed taking the kids to the Camp Ocean dinner so they ate dinner with us in the MDR. We got to the MDR line at 6PM to find a VERY LONG line of over 100 people deep but the line moved quickly! We sat in our usual spot with our usual LaLa team and had an EXCELLENT last dinner on board. In fact, Luke ate like a champ and  a true CRUISER ordering a DOUBLE order of mussels. In fact, the kids ate more this meal than I did! We listened to the Farewell song and danced Gangham style alongside our wait staff for a traditional last evening at sea!

 They were all smiles on this night!


Natalie wanted to pose in front of the "chain" wall. I had not seen anything like this before, and it wasn't on the Dream or the Magic!

This night he became the King of ROLLS... he ate 5!

AND a DOUBLE order of mussels- he really is a DAVIS!

The kids dancing with the wait staff!
I know Chris hates this but I think it is fun!

"All your bags are packed, you're ready to go"
This makes me cry EVERYTIME!
I LOVE being on a cruise ship!

I really wish I could buy these pics AFTER the cruise!
I really wish I would have purchased this one!

After dinner, we went into a food coma and went back to our room to pack our bags! We have only used traditional check-out on our very 1st cruise in 2006 and all of the other 9 cruises we have used self-assist! There is a reason for that... more on that later! BE SURE TO CHECK BACK FOR THAT! We got all of our suitcases packed and laid out clothes for the following morning and before we knew it, the time was 8:30PM and it was time for one of our favorite events, 80s music trivia.

We made our way to the Atrium and luckily found a spot for Chris to sit and then sang our heart out. Even Natalie made her way to the dance floor to sing and dance along! Chris and I enjoyed our FREE Gold level loyalty drinks and Natalie got a "ahem" VIRGIN drink and fun was had by all!

Natalie trying to dance 80s style!

Now I've had the time of my life...

#BestLiftEver

Her virgin strawberry smoothie!

The kids wanted their own picture with Schwartz!

She loved this!

We made one more stroll on the Lido deck where we saw the Carnival Freedom exiting Galveston headed towards Key West, FL. It is always hard to see a ship knowing it is leaving and you're coming back!

The Carnival Freedom headed to Key West, FL!
They are so lucky... they just started their cruise!

Y'all have FUN!

One more view of the gorgeous atrium!

Looking down from deck 10!

The last night is always depressing and this proved to be the case for all four of us but at the same time we were ecstatic about the memories that were made! It was a fully loaded 7 days and the cruise of a lifetime on this Carnival "mega ship". The kids are already asking what their 4th cruise will be and we have an idea (or two or three).

Thank you all for following along but it is not over yet... We still have a FOOD BLOG, Carnival Breeze pictorial review and the FunTimes scans! Be sure to check back for those!

God is good... ALL the time!

Click on a link to see our past cruising adventures:
Our Cruise Ship Experiences 2006-present

 Carnival Dream- 2017

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