It's done

So Mommy was incorrect when she was thinking Drew had 3 years until Kindergarten. He only has two. Which means Joey has one. What happened to the babies?!?!?! Anyway. Drew applied for preschool for the 2009-2010 school year two days a week. We are skipping the Summer session. We will try the High School program on the days we aren't in the other since that one is only 5 weeks. Mommy is not going to stress out about it anymore. We applied and that is that.

Now if we can only get rid of the illness! Drew went to the Doctor yesterday. He has an ear infection in both ears. We got a prescription, but are not using it unless he starts to complain about pain. They try not to give antibiotics to kids his age if they don't have to. We do have to watch for fever in case he develops pneumonia. Joey went to the Doctor today and also has an ear infection in both ears. But she has pneumonia too! Dylan is being observed. He'll probably end up at the Doctor next. Mommy's sinuses are going crazy, she's going to the Doctor tomorrow.

If it wasn't our turn for snack we probably wouldn't go to school tomorrow. We'll see how it goes. Maybe we will just drop off the snack and leave.

Today was not a good day. tomorrow can only get better, right?

Preschool

Help! We are trying to decide what to do with Drew for Preschool next year. Drew will probably be going to summer preschool either in June or July for one month, maybe both. The High school has their "playschool" program in September that Joey attended last year. Drew is excited to go to that too. But...Do we put him in preschool for 2 days a week for the 2009-2010 school year? At first that was the plan, but now with the summer session (that Joey could go to too), Mommy is leaning towards summer and September and skipping 2009-2010 school year. Drew is only 3. He has 3 years until he goes to school since he has a late birthday. Daddy thinks he should go as much as he can. Does it really make that much of a difference if he goes when he is 3,4 and 5 or if he just goes when he is 4 and 5? Or if he goes at all? All opinions welcome!!!

Day 7- At Sea

We all woke up a little too early for as late as we stayed up the night before. The first thing on our agenda was a back stage tour of the theater on the ship. While they waited until the time it was supposed to start we just sat in the audience chairs and the staff answered questions. In a moment of quiet, Drew says, "Mommy, let's get out of here!" As you can imagine everyone chuckled. Mimi took Drew to go have breakfast with Papa while Mommy and Daddy finished the very interesting tour. When the tour was finished, Bingo was starting in the theater. So we all played. Drew was very restless (tired was more like it) and kept saying he didn't want anyone to win. Well Mommy didn't listen! she won $233.51 on the cover all. If it was won in 50 numbers or less it would have been a couple thousand. When the 50th number was called there was only one left on the card. Mommy won it in 52 numbers! Oh well, it was still nice to get something.

Drew and Daddy ended up taking a 4 hour nap. We knew he was tired!

After dinner Drew went to the kids program for the last time to play with his friends. We quickly packed our clothes (luggage needed to be out at 11pm) and headed to the disco. The disco had an all ages night (or hour). Drew had a blast! But his next activity should maybe be dance class! His Mom and Dad have no rhythm so what do you expect. It's cute when your 3, but...

Our trip home went well. Again Drew was tired. He only had about 6 hours of sleep on the last night. He started to get a little cranky in the Miami airport. He slept on the plane to Atlanta. On the plane from Atlanta to Minneapolis is where we had screaming kids (not ours :-)). Drew was extremely excited to see Joey and Dylan. We went to their house for a short visit.

It has been a rough week since we have been back. Mostly for Mommy. Everyone has been sick. Mommy had stomach issues and head cold issues. Drew has a head cold which seems to be at it's worst today. Daddy is starting some stomach issues. Maybe it was getting used to our good food over the cruise food! Ha!

There was no swimming lessons or ECFE this past week. We are looking forward to getting back to normal and hopefully everyone getting well!

Day 6- Cozumel, Mexico

OK so the first two pictures are left over from Day 5. The handsome guy in the tux and the mouse kid. Don't ask us why his mouse nose is on his cheek. We don't know either!

In Cozumel, Daddy, Papa and Mimi went 4 wheeling. Since Drew wasn't old enough he stayed with Mommy. After breakfast Drew and Mommy bummed around the ship. The pool with the bridge is in the Solarium which was for adults only. Then we hung out at the porch swing. There was a man moping the floor. He said to Drew, "My name is Kevin, What's yours?" Drew replied, "Diego". He also gave that answer when a teenage boy asked him his name one day in the elevator! We stopped by the library and read a book. Not much of a selection for children's books in English. Drew poked some holes in a paper in our room too. We went down and had a piece of pizza and then headed onto shore. Mommy and Drew walked around the shops just off the pier and then headed down the street. When we started to get bored we turned around and headed back to the ship. It was pretty windy that day. When Daddy returned from his ATV ride he was covered in mud and grinning from ear to ear. The only clean spots on him were a white stripe on his t-shirt where the seat belt was and a clean spot on the top of his hat where the helmet was!

After dinner Drew hung out on the deck of the concierge lounge. Since there was free alcohol in there it is supposed to be for adults only. However Pretty Shamu, the concierge, said Drew could be there. He only did that once. Papa watched Drew (Mimi was sleeping) while Mommy and Daddy went to the "80's dance party". Daddy was in heaven singing along to every song. He's old. Drew was still awake when Mommy went to check on him, so we let him stay out later. The next day was the last day of the cruise and we were at sea all day anyway.

Day 5- Georgetown, Grand Cayman

We went on an excursion. First we spent an hour in an underwater observatory. We thought this would be a good way for Drew to see some fish. Then we loaded onto a bus that took us to the turtle farm. The picture is of Daddy and Drew feeding pellets to the turtles. Next stop, Hell. The town is actually called Hell. And you can see that Drew fits as their mascot, our own little devil! By the time we arrived back in town, Drew was sleeping. We put him into his stroller and wandered around for awhile.

When we got back on the ship we headed to Johnny Rockets for a late lunch. Every once in awhile the servers dance. Drew had a great time getting down with them! And after all that dancing who wouldn't be thirsty! Bottoms up Drew!
It was the second formal night too. Of course Drew was rockin' the tux again. After dinner Drew went into the kids program. It was zoo night. Just take a guess what animal Drew had his face painted to look like....a mouse. Unfortunately Drew ended up having a pee pee accident in the program. Oh well, no one said he was potty trained! Drew said he just forgot to go potty. No harm done.

Next stop....Cozumel, Mexico.

Day 4- Montego Bay, Jamaica

We started off the day with a little shopping right on the pier. That is where Drew was sporting the dreads. Mommy, Daddy and Drew took the shuttle to the actual town to look around a little. We mostly just rode the shuttle, walked a block or two and rode the shuttle back. Jamaica isn't a favorite destination, but Daddy and Drew had never been there so we decided to look around a bit. Mimi and Papa shopped on the pier and then got back on the ship.

Back on the ship for the afternoon Daddy and Drew played some mini golf. Drew's new phrase is "winner, winner, money roll!" although the "winner, winner chicken dinner" did come out a few times too. After playing in the pool for awhile Drew hit the ice cream machine. How convenient it was right next to the pool. It was also nice that when it came time to clean off, Drew just got back in the pool!

After dinner Drew did a photo session with one of the ships photographers. Drew loved being the center of attention, but didn't cooperate very well for photos. He wanted to be silly instead. Drew went to the kids program to prepare for the "Pirate Parade". If he looks like a strange pirate it is because he wanted to be a mouse. So he had a pink nose, and gray cheeks. And of course his favorite color is still green so he had a green eye patch. All the "Pirates" went to the promenade for their parade. Mommy and Daddy were waiting with cameras in hand. Drew was first in line. But all of the sudden when the pirates came out, Drew was gone! Of course Mommy and Daddy panicked a little. Daddy went and asked one of the staff and found that Drew was in the bathroom. When we watched the video later you can see Drew was doing a little pee pee dance while he was in line! He made it out for the very end of the parade.

Next stop....Georgetown, Grand Cayman.

Day 3- Labadee

Labadee is part of on island in Haiti that RCCL owns. It was mostly a day of hanging out on the beach. Drew brought some of his sand toys from home and had a blast in the sand. We started the day with breakfast in the Concierge lounge. That is where Drew was lying on the window sill behind the chairs. We spent the day on the island playing in the sand, riding a tram pulled by a tractor, wandering around and having a BBQ lunch. They also had a fun pirate themed water play area as part of the kids club right on the island. Drew didn't stay there himself, but was able to play there with Daddy. By the time we made it back to ship Daddy and Drew were exhausted. On this day Drew also informed us he changed his name to "Crocodile". Our fun filled day was capped off with a night of 11 hours of sleep! gotta love it!

Day 2- At Sea

Drew started the day with breakfast on the balcony with Mimi. He went into the kids program for a couple hours before lunch. Mommy and Daddy had a hard time without him. They couldn't find too much to do because they were so excited to share all the experiences on the ship with Drew. They did make it to the casino though.

After lunch, Mommy and Drew spent some time in the H2O zone aka the pool. Drew loved running around in the ankle deep water. Mommy didn't enjoy the fact that one of the ships photographers was running around taking pictures by the pool. Of course it was a man! A woman would have known better than trying to get pool photos on a cruise. The picture of Mommy and Drew actually wasn't that bad. Drew took a nice nap. It was formal night so Drew wore his tuxedo for the first of two nights. The old ladies could not get enough of him! Of course the Thonander in him was shining through and he was eating up the attention. Drew stayed up until 11pm that night. He bought a "cruise set" (matchbox size cruise ship, car, bus, luggage cart, etc.. with RCCL logo on them) at the gift shop and had a grand time playing with them in his bunk bed. The bunk was his play area since he was too little to sleep up there. He also enjoyed playing behind our balcony curtain. That became his "Private spot". He also wore underwear all day with no accidents.

Our Caribbean Cruise

The top picture is Drew and Daddy on the gangway getting onto the Liberty of the Seas. Drew sitting like a big boy with Mimi taking the shuttle from the hotel to the pier.

Drew getting his shoes shined at the Minneapolis airport with Mimi and Papa.

Packed and ready to go. Just waiting for our ride!

We had a fabulous time on our cruise! Drew loved being the center of attention everywhere he went. He did not enjoy wearing a red plastic bracelet that had our tender station number on it. It was for in case of an emergency when he wasn't with us they would know which lifeboat station to take him to to find us. He tried to get it off for the first couple days. Then he got a new one that was on a little looser. He discovered he could slip it off. We let him take it off at night. Thankfully there were no emergencies for it to be needed.

For the kids program the kids had to be 100% potty trained. Which means they had to go in do their business and the "paperwork" on their own. Drew was not yet at that point before we left, but he was allowed 3 "accidents" before he was kicked out of the program. He was a superstar! For the first couple days he wore underwear all day with no accidents. He did just fine in the kids program. Until Wednesday night. He had a pee pee accident in the kids program. He got a new pair of shorts (they changed him) and a pillow case (filled with his wet clothes) with the kids program logo on them. The rest of the week he had no more accidents. We couldn't believe how well he did on his own.

The first night Drew slept through dinner. It was a long day for him. He actually fell asleep on Daddy's shoulders. We transferred him into his stroller and he slept while we ate. The rest of the week he has dinner with us in the dining room. He was a really good boy. We brought lots of toys to keep him occupied. Our assistant waiter showed him magic tricks. Drew's favorite thing to eat was butter pats. Must get that from his Dad. We shared our dinner table with a family from Connecticut. It was a Father, Mother, Son, Daughter and Daughter's boyfriend. By the end of the trip Drew was constantly flirting with the 21 year old daughter, Kaitlyn.

More tales to follow.....

Moon over Miami

We made it to Miami. Drew was a superstar today! He had to wake up at 5:30 am to go to the airport. Since Auntie Jen took us to the airport and had to be back to work by 8, we spent about 3 1/2 hours wandering around the Minneapolis airport. We found plenty of stuff to do and the time flew. Drew even had his shoes shined right along side Mimi and Papa! Drew started a movie on the first plane ride and fell asleep for an hour or so. We were in Atlanta for almost exactly one hour. On the second plane ride Drew was wide awake and acting like a crazy kid. He was so much fun.

When the first plane started to take of he dropped his sippy cup of water and grabbed the arm rests. It was kind of funny. After that he was a pro. He is really enjoying having Papa and Mimi all to himself and today was just the first day of our travels.

After arriving at our hotel we walked to a shopping area and had dinner. It is only going on 8pm, but we are pooped. For as tired as Drew has to be he has been an awesome kid all day! Mommy and Daddy are so lucky.

We are leaving our hotel at noon tomorrow to go to the ship. Anchors away!!!

60 hours...

60 hours from now our plane is scheduled to leave for our cruise. Lets hope it does.

Drew is working hard at potty training. But every time Mommy boasts about his progress, he has an accident. Oh well, we keep trying. And whoever invented boys underwear needs to rethink the design. Drew likes to wear his underwear backwards because the pictures are on the butt thanks to the opening in the front. They don't fit well backwards. He always has a little crack showing. Little boys don't really need the opening anyway!

Our playroom should be complete on Thursday. Let's hope! They are re-laying the carpet. The first time they brought the wrong colors. We have been waiting 2 weeks for it to be fixed. Drew couldn't wait. We have to clean out the room again. It is amazing how the toys migrate to that room. Guess that is a good thing since it is the PLAYROOM.

Drew is remembering when everyone's birthdays are by the pictures on his Caterpillar calendar. He is kinda bummed because he is on the "Skid steer with tracks" page. Not sure what he would rather have on his birthday month. He flips the pages and says who's birthday is on that page. Nut. He also has some more books memorized and loves "reading" to us.

Swimming lessons start on Thursday. Drew and Joey are both taking them. This time they are in the pool with just the teachers. Hopefully they won't be scared to try it. Drew will miss his lesson next week. Guess he'll have to have a lesson in the Caribbean! He has to miss two weeks of school too. He hasn't been talking about school, so he probably won't care that he is missing it.

Next post....our Vacation!

Happy New Year

We had a great start to the new year.

On New Year's Eve we spent the early part of the evening at Auntie Mandi's house. The "party" was attended by Auntie Mandi, Joey Anna, Dylan, Papa, Mimi, Zackory and the three of us. Uncle Erik went fishing and Auntie Jen and Uncle Bruce went out. We had pizza and played toys and wii. We did a countdown sometime in the 8 o'clock hour. The kids didn't really care, but Drew did start singing "Happy New Year to you" to the tune of Happy Birthday. It was cute.

We were home with Drew in bed around 9:30pm. Daddy was asleep by 10pm and Mommy wasn't too far behind. The new year is here whether we stayed awake to witness it or not.

We spent New Years day together just the three of us. Drew insisted on having pizza for dinner again, so we had a pizza picnic on the living room floor. We no longer can eat pizza at our house with out having a picnic.

We hope this year is better than last. The best is yet to come!!