We went on a cruise out of Galveston headed south towards Mexico. We stopped in Costa Maya and Cozumel in addition to having 2 days at sea. We honestly didn't know what to do with ourselves and couldn't stop thinking about the kids, their schedules, all the pieces that needed to be connected. My mom and Aunt Maggie came in to help watch the kids and Nana and Papa took Jack for us so we could be without any responsibilities for a while. Have I mentioned how glorious it was to get away.
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| Galveston Government building |
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| Oil Rigs, must be getting closer |
Upon boarding the ship we found our way to the bar and had a fruity drink. We were pretty good about finding our way around the ship from one bar to the other and even found our favorite in the Schooner bar. Jarrett enjoyed getting to know the lead bartender Catalin from Romania. They had lots of conversations about international countries and cultures. Meanwhile I stayed busy with drinking and talking to the other staff. I love hearing their stories, why they work so hard on a cruise ship and how they view the opportunity to get to be on a ship. We have so many things to be thankful for in our country and to think that they work EVERY SINGLE DAY for 7 months straight serving others, with smiles on their faces... is remarkable.
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| Center of the ship |
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| The view from the top deck |
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| Talking a walk around the ship... we'd walk that track many times. |
Jarrett ahead of time surprised me with a massage on the ship's spa and after boarding we went to find the spa and ended up staying for a drawing where I won an additional $250 worth of services. I was so thrilled!!!! I have never spent anywhere near that amount of money on myself at a spa. It was SUCH A TREAT! I ended up using it to try acupuncture and a facial. I had been having pain in my shoulder for many months which was causing my right arm to go numb. I was skeptical but the acupuncture seemed to help and combined with the lack of stress I was feeling, I slept without pain for the first time in months. It was so NICE.
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| Getting to be pampered at the spa was SO out of touch with my everyday. I don't think I have ever spent that much time at a spa. I joked that Jarrett might not recognize me when I'd come back. |
We ended up not getting off at Costa Maya so we pretty much had the ship all to ourselves. Jarrett couldn't take the entire time off of work so he ended up working that day while I went to the pool, read a book, watched the March Madness on the big screen and soaked up every moment of peace, sun and joy.
Costa Maya
Pretty darn beautiful! Look at that water!
Jarrett ended up working this day, so I went to the top deck, laid on a chair, read a book, watched the NCAA basketball tournament and soaked up every minute of no-mom-duties bliss.
Another task we pretty much conquered each day was eating... oh my gosh did we conquer this. We did our best to eat salads and healthy but I think between the drinking and the so many yummy options, we would have been better off just skipping the lettuce all together. Our favorite experience was eating at one of the ships specialty restaurants called Giovanni's. The food was incredible. The had scallops that were A-MAZ-ING and then I had the filet mignon that I could cut with a fork and was the most flavorful steak I've ever had. And after stuffing ourselves we had to have dessert... Tiramisu, that I could have eaten the entire pan myself. It was honestly so good that we came super close to eating there again even though the other restaurant food was free. It was incredible.
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| Can you tell Jarrett thought it was good. This was when he took a bite of my filet. It was SERIOUSLY the best. I think I'd book another cruise again just so I could have this! |
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| And the desserts... delicious too! |
On our final port Jarrett and I participated in the America's Cup sailing race. Jarrett and I, along with about 15 of our previously stranger "friends" boarded two huge sailboats (one team USA and the other Canada) and we raced each other. We ended up on the Canadian ship and we lead the entire way until the end when the USA ship took us on the inside, took over our wind source and beat us to the finish buoys. After we raced, we sailed for a while, Jarrett got to take over as captain of the boat for a while and the bar was open. Such a pretty place to sail and reminded us of our sailing adventure with Jarrett's friend Tom when we were in San Diego after Noah passed. We thought so much of Tom as we sailed as we had learned just two days earlier that Tom had lost his battle with pancreatic cancer. He would have loved to have sailed with us that day. Another reminder to soak up the moments we get here.
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| The large sail on our ship was probably over 100 feet tall. This was my view looking directly up. |
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| That's our cruise ship in the background |
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| Jarrett was pretty thrilled he got to captain the boat. Want to give him a compliment... just call him Captain. I think its a career he's aiming for in the future. |
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| We got to do the work of cranking on the levers you see to the left of Jarrett. I did such a great job paying attention to the instructions, I forgot not only what it was called but how to actually turn them based on the commands of 1, 2 or 3. |
One of the nights, the only formal one we had. We ended up getting to let loose and stayed out way late (I think it was almost midnight-that's late for us old parents). We kept saying... it's got to be later than 8:30, seriously I just want to go to sleep! We ended up making our way to the schooner bar after dinner and had a lot of fun. It didn't hurt that the bartender kept filling our glasses with Jameson shots and champagne. I haven't partied like that since I was in college, and there is definitely a reason for it.
It seemed that night, every time we turned around people were handing us glasses of champagne.
Seriously, even though I had a full glass in my hand, the waiter kept bringing me another.
Before leaving the bar, being the smart professional drinkers that we are (NOT), we decided to load up on water...
Yep all 5 bottles. And some food. There was no time to not feel good on our few days away.
On our last day at sea I spent a great majority of the day sitting on deck 6 (the mid-deck ship) that has a walking track. I saw on a deck chair, read my book on mindfulness and listed to the sound of the waves hitting the side of the ship. I have never enjoyed sitting, listening to the sounds of waves and the peacefulness it brings more. I ended up recording a few of my favorite waves so I could bring it home and listen to it when I feel stress overwhelming me again. At one point I stood at the railing, watching the waves, paying attention to the smallest crests of each wave and in watching the waves I ended up seeing a few fish jumping out of the water and crashing down again into another wave. Seeing water as far out as I could, I was clearly reminded of just how small and tiny I am in this bigger puzzle of life. How massive the ocean is, how powerful the sea is and yet each creature within it is important. Each fish, coral, wave perfectly designed at doing what it was created to do to come together in this beautiful creation of the ocean. As I stood along the railing of the ship, thinking about my life, Jarrett and my life together, the one we've created in the 15 years of married life we've shared I could feel all my raw emotions rising to the surface. I shed tears, I asked the ocean the same unanswered questions that cause me pain and while I never got an answer, I am reminded that just like the wave crests and recedes back before gaining strength to crest again, I guess each of us can be like a wave. When life crashes into us, knocks us down and takes away our steam, we must find a way to pick ourselves back up, build up our strength and find the will to keep going on.
Truth being said... the last few months, I have lacked the strength and the will to do this. I think that's why this trip was so enjoyed and important.. for many reasons. I found myself feeling the will in my soul coming back and while I still find it void in multiple places, I know I must be mindful in cherishing the moments I have here, while not taking for granted those I get to have in my life.
As the sun set on our last day on the ship, we could feel the reality of our normal, chaotic, stressful life seeping back in. Having those few days to let loose, to not have to worry about anything other than feeding and drinking for ourselves was incredible. Jarrett and I got to talk like we haven't gotten to do since we took on the title of mom and dad. We talked about goals, what we want out of life and how we get through the hardships life has and continues to deal to us.
I vowed to myself that I was going to use this trip as an opportunity to start over in a few ways in my life. I am going to try to be more purposeful in how I approach situations and how I try to build myself back to the person I want to be. I am trying to celebrate moments of joy and beauty in my life, no matter how small. I am also trying to recognize those things that cause me stress and pain and when I can I'm going to find ways to stop and accept the stressors and then find a way to remove as many as I can from my life. I know it seems to be a huge challenge but I think it should be something I try to make my life, our life more peaceful.
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| Who doesn't want to stop through Las Vegas on their way home? Actually we didn't but it ended up okay. |
And then on top of that they lost our luggage, all of it. EVERY SINGLE PIECE. I did my best to remain calm and laughed as I thought... thanks for the test. It ended up working out okay and our bags did arrive the following day.
Of the many gifts last week was, some of my favorites are these:
*a reminder that this world is truly so beautiful and there are so many great places to see.
* I want to travel more, with Jarrett alone, with our family, and even with our friends and extended family
* It is important for me to take care of myself physically (I actually worked out several days on the ship) and emotionally
*I am truly lucky to have Jarrett as my partner in this life. I find our bond, our connection even stronger than it was all those years ago, and while our life isn't perfect, we've suffered loss and sadness I never could imagine, we are stronger together and I couldn't have made it through these hardships without him. I can honestly say I love him more today than I did yesterday and more than I did as we stood at the alter and said I do. I guess that in itself is a gift to me.
They say the sea is good for the soul and it couldn't be more true for me. I love it and find it to be such great medicine. I hope that the salt from the sea breeze that rejuvenated me last week can stay with me until the next time we get away.
Until next time,
Angie
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