*OFFICIAL* CC Group Cruise 02/15/2014 Cupid's IV Southern Caribbean - Carnival Breeze

[HeidiHo]

My pictures are up on Facebook.

[Cruisin Dave]

Heidi,

Enjoyed all your photos. Looked like you and Staci had a great time.

Dave

[ViolaSwamp]

Hello. I just e-mailed my TA to reserve a spa cabin on this sailing. Me, DH and our DD who will be 10 when we set sail. This will be my sixth, DH's fifth, and DD's third cruise. My third and their second on Carnival - my last two trips were on the CCL Liberty and while I LOVE that ship and the Eastern Caribbean itinerary in particular, my DH has expressed the desire to visit other ports, so here we go! We have been to Grand Turk twice before but none of the other ports. Can't wait!!! Our last cruise was February 2012 and I was starting to get anxiety that I didn't have another one booked yet!! :p

[AKB10]

Esther, Tricia and Viola - I hope you all are able to join us for the Cupid cruise. :D

 

Heidi, sounds like you and Staci had a great time.

 

Hope you all having warm temps are enjoying it. We are cool here today - 32 degrees right now, will be in the teens for a low tonight. At least there is no snow here and we are not as cold as some of you.

I hope everyone has a good week!!!

[Cruisin Dave]

Welcome to all the Newpids! LOL!!

 

Here is the forecast for tonight:

 

Tuesday

A slight chance of sleet before 9am. Mostly sunny, with a high near 43. North wind around 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.

 

I hope it stays away.

 

Dave

[Flick]

And here is our forecast for Paradise aka Floriduh.....oh, you really don't want to know!

[Cruisin Dave]

And here is our forecast for Paradise aka Floriduh.....oh, you really don't want to know!

 

We received 1/3 inch of snow/sleet this morning. Brrr! Send some of that warm weather here.

[HeidiHo]

We received 1/3 inch of snow/sleet this morning. Brrr! Send some of that warm weather here.

 

I think you have received more snow this winter than we have. It's cold here though.

[Cruisin Dave]

I think you have received more snow this winter than we have. It's cold here though.

 

The nice thing about snow in Texas, it doesn't stick around very long. Just hope the streets are dry by the time I get off work tonight.

[momofzeke]

WELCOME, VIOLA!! So glad to have you join us! :D

 

Still frigid and cold here, highs of less than 20 degrees. We still have several inches of snow hanging around. Too dang cold to melt.

[rgale12]

I'm hoping that we can do this cruise!!

 

Mike and Rhonda

[Flick]

The nice thing about snow in Texas, it doesn't stick around very long. Just hope the streets are dry by the time I get off work tonight.

 

Funny, I often say this, but then again it was 15 years ago and I was still up North! I really don't remember the last time I might have said this in Floriduh but then again I am old and tend to forget a lot........

[De-Luxe08]

And here is our forecast for Paradise aka Floriduh.....oh, you really don't want to know!

 

Rick - Probably right, I don't want to know. I'll just be jealous. Again, my goal in life is to become a snowbird.

 

Dave - I would rather have your snow fall total since we have gotten a foot of snow so far but with last weekend's temps of 60 plus it is now gone. Like looking at it, don't want to go out in it and definitely don't like it once is starts getting dirty.

 

Sue - my temps are not getting closer to yours. We are looking at daytime temps in the low 30s the next fews day, then weekend temps in the low 20s and then the teens next week. Just flurries in the long range forecast. As I'm out of here next week, it can get below zero here for all I care.

 

Heidi - really enjoyed looking at all the pics on FB.

 

Tricia; Mike and Rhonda - hope you decide to join this cruise.

 

Viola - glad you decided to book. The spa cabins sound really nice especially with all the perks of the spa.

 

2 more days of work and they will be nothing to do days, as my boss is leaving tomorrow for Ft. Myers. We are flying into Miami on Fri and sailing on Sat. Read on John Heald's blog that next week there are about 4,086 guests with about 450 kids. A few days ago you couldn't bring up the cruise on Carnival's website, but today you are able. I'm thinking there have been some cancellations and probably some cabins turned back in by TAs. Prices are pretty high though. Our cabin is showing at about $600 more than what we paid. With the size of this ship and the number of people, it's a little overwhelming to me. The largest ship I've been on has been the Destiny.

 

Good night all, Donna

[HeidiHo]

Good Morning!

 

I thought of a few more things about my Princess cruise that I wanted to mention.

 

Carnival has bigger, better beach towels than Princess but I don't believe Princess charges you for them if they disappear. I'm not 100% sure about this because I could swear I read somewhere that you should return your beach towels to the cabin because the steward is responsible for them but then up on deck there were signs and bins for wet towels. I asked an attendant up on deck if I should put the used towel in the bin if it came from the cabin and he said yes. They will also bring you new towels or extra towels if you ask. Anyway, we dropped our used beach towels in the bins on deck one day and were never charged for towels missing from our cabin.

 

Princess does not allow smoking on balconies. That's a huge plus for non smokers. No problems with smoke coming onto your balcony from cabins up wind from you. It was a Princess ship that had a fire a few years ago that they believe came from a cigarette thrown overboard and blown back on to a balcony.

 

Princess has free, soft serve ice cream like Carnival although it's not 24 hour (open till about 11:00 PM or midnight, I think) and instead of self serv machines it's behind a counter and a crew member does it for you. I think this is better because it is more sanitary. On Carnival the machines always seem to be a mess from all the kids and half the time out of cones or cups. One day though I went to get some and I told the girl twice that I wanted it in a cup rather than a cone and she still put it in a cone. :confused: Oh well, no biggie, I chalked it up to a language barrier and took the cone. LOL

 

Princess doesn't have as many photographers as Carnival. We actually had our pictures taken only about 5 times the entire cruise. There were plenty of opportunities though had we wanted to get our pics taken. You know how on Elegant Nights on Carnival down in the atrium area you can hardly walk through due to photo stations set up? Well, on the Grand there were maybe half as many photo station set up. Princess does some of the same stupid, corny pics that Carnival does though like pics with pirates when you come out of the dining room. Another stupid pic they did was with a guy dressed as Popeye with these stupid fake muscle arms. I really wish they'd do away with stupid pics like that except for with the littlest kids who get a kick out of it. We didn't buy any pics on this cruise. It's just gotten too expensive.

 

I am back at work. I hate going back after a vacation. Even though I've gotten enough rest I still feel exhausted at work. it think it's more due to the fact that we have been super slow at the restaurant and that is more tiring than being busy just because it's sooooo boring. I just keep looking at the clock to see how much longer it's going to be. Time goes so much faster when we're busy.

 

I better get going. I have tons of stuff to do today and I have to work tonight. Then I'm off till Sunday though.

 

Have a great day.

Edited January 16, 2013 by HeidiHo

[HeidiHo]

Donna and Mimi - have fun on your cruises.

[Cruisin Dave]

Donna and Mimi, smooth sailing.

 

Heidi, I concur about going to work after a cruise. It stinks royally. Have a great day.

 

Dave

[Flick]

Heidi, now that you are back from your cruise with Staci, I couldn't resist posting this for you....enjoy!

 

A mother passing by her daughters bedroom was astonished 2 see the bed was nicely made & everything was picked up. Then she saw an envelope propped up on the center of the bed. It was addressed, "Mom". With the worst premonition, she opened the envelope with trembling hands: "Dear Mum, it is with great regret & sorrow that im writing 2 u, i had 2 elope with my new boyfriend because i wanted 2 avoid a scene with u & Dad. I've been finding real passion with him & he is so nice, even with all his piercings, tattoos, beard & motorcycle clothes. But its not just the passion Mum, im pregnant & he said that we will b very happy. He already owns a trailor in the woods & has a stack of firewood 4 the whole winter. He wants 2 have many more children with me & that is now one of my dreams 2. He taught me that marijuana doesn't really hurt anyone & we'll b growing it 4 us & trading it with his friends 4 all the cocaine & ecstasy we want. In the meantime we'll pray that science finds a cure 4 AIDS so he can get better, he sure deserves it! Don't worry Mum, im 15yrs old now & i know how 2 take care of myself. Someday im sure we'll b back 2 visit so u can get 2 know yr grandchildren. Yr daughter, Sophie... P.S. Mum, none of the above is true. I'm over at the neighbors house. I just wanted 2 remind u that there r worse things in life than my report card thats in my desk top drawer. I love u! Call me when it is safe 2 come home.."

[HeidiHo]

Heidi, now that you are back from your cruise with Staci, I couldn't resist posting this for you....enjoy!

 

A mother passing by her daughters bedroom was astonished 2 see the bed was nicely made & everything was picked up. Then she saw an envelope propped up on the center of the bed. It was addressed, "Mom". With the worst premonition, she opened the envelope with trembling hands: "Dear Mum, it is with great regret & sorrow that im writing 2 u, i had 2 elope with my new boyfriend because i wanted 2 avoid a scene with u & Dad. I've been finding real passion with him & he is so nice, even with all his piercings, tattoos, beard & motorcycle clothes. But its not just the passion Mum, im pregnant & he said that we will b very happy. He already owns a trailor in the woods & has a stack of firewood 4 the whole winter. He wants 2 have many more children with me & that is now one of my dreams 2. He taught me that marijuana doesn't really hurt anyone & we'll b growing it 4 us & trading it with his friends 4 all the cocaine & ecstasy we want. In the meantime we'll pray that science finds a cure 4 AIDS so he can get better, he sure deserves it! Don't worry Mum, im 15yrs old now & i know how 2 take care of myself. Someday im sure we'll b back 2 visit so u can get 2 know yr grandchildren. Yr daughter, Sophie... P.S. Mum, none of the above is true. I'm over at the neighbors house. I just wanted 2 remind u that there r worse things in life than my report card thats in my desk top drawer. I love u! Call me when it is safe 2 come home.."

 

Thanks Rick, I think I've seen it before. Probably on Facebook. It's cute.

[momofzeke]

I've been a nervous wreck this morning. Callie Dog had to go to get spayed this morning. Even though she is 2 years old, the previous owner didn't have her spayed. I know that is a very routine procedure, but I still have anxiety because when I was a kid, we had a female dog spayed and she died. I have not had another female dog until now, partly because of that. I know it's not logical because that was probably 35 years ago, and vet practices are much more advanced now. But I was still very worried about it.

 

The vet just called and said Callie is done with surgery and waking up. Thank goodness, now I can relax a bit. Everything went fine. She has to spend tonight there and I'll pick her up tomorrow morning. I guess part of why this was so upsetting to me was that the last time I took a dog (my Zeke) to a vet, it did not end well. :( I still miss that dang dog so much, but Callie has sure made me feel better. I made Dave take her cause I just couldn't face it. Even the vet told Dave he knew how I am with my animals and he would be sure and call as soon as she was out of surgery...and he did.

 

Well, just when we thought Chip Kelly was staying with the Ducks, yesterday he took a job with the Philadelphia Eagles. I wish him the best of luck in the NFL, and maybe he can shake up that league a bit. We are such college football fans, but I really don't like the NFL much at all. Our family calls it the No Fun League...no disrespect to any NFL fans here! ;) I'm happy for Chip that he is able to get back to the East Coast, where he's from. Our O-Coordinator is the frontrunner for the head coach job with the Ducks, and he would be a GREAT coach. I hope they make it official soon. GO DUCKS!

 

Still very cold here. Lakeview seems to be the coldest spot in the state for the last week or so. There is an inversion layer keeping it super cold. It was warmer up at the ski hill than it was here or in town. Crazy! At least the sun is shining. I can take the cold as long as the sun is out...somehow that makes it seem not as cold.

[HeidiHo]

Good Evening!

 

Sue - I'm sure Callie is going to be just fine but I understand why you worry. When we had our dog spayed we brought her home the same day. Maybe if our regular vet had done it he would have kept her for the night but we had it done at an animal shelter. Our vet actually recommended that we take her there because during the month of February they would spay or neuter pets for only $60.00. I guess they do that to encourage people to be responsible and have their pets fixed. It would have cost A LOT more if our vet had done it. The worst part was trying to keep her from being too active after she started feeling better. Try telling a young dog that she can't run or jump for 2 weeks. LOL

 

This morning I was reading the obits in our paper and saw that a friend of Dave's passed away. Actually, he was more of a friend of Dave's brother because but back before Dave and I were married and he and his brother lived together so Dave hung out a lot with his brother and his friends. I knew him too because Dave and I were dating at the time. We hadn't seen him in a few years though. Apparently he had a heart attack. He was only 53. We will go to the wake tomorrow night. This will be the 2nd one in the last 3 months for someone who died of a heart attack at under age 60. It's kind of scary.

 

I am finally trying to get my Christmas decorations put away. I couldn't do it before the cruise because we didn't celebrate Christmas with Eric until Jan. 2nd and then on the 3rd I was busy packing and left for my cruise on the 4th. as soon as I came home I asked Dave to get the Christmas boxes for me and bring them into the house but he didn't do that until Monday night. I will be glad to have that done.

 

Have a good night.

[momofzeke]

Woke up early, couldn't go back to sleep, got up at 5. We can't pick Callie up until 9. We are going to go to town & have breakfast & then go get her. We'll leave in a couple of hours, around 8 am. Time is dragging!

 

Yesterday, I realized how much Callie takes my mind off of missing Zeke because without her here, I thought about him a lot, and felt very sad all day. I'm so glad she gets to come home today!

 

Hoping it will warm up here! It was 50 degrees in Bend yesterday, but it sure wasn't that warm here. Mid 20 degrees for us. Right now it is only 5 degrees.

[ooulio]

Sue...I am sure Callie will be okay. I wil with rescue dogs . I am sure your dog will be fine.

 

I love reading everyone's posts. I love to read them. I am leaving in the next month for the Breeze. I know we will love it. Going to Miam. I never posts dates because there are too many people lurkng the boards. Dont need any problems with my house. We had 4 more inches of snow Wed . It is almost gone. I will write and let you know how much we loved the ship. I still can't go online to check on anything. Carnival has had major problems with the website. I wanted to see what I could bring onboard. Can't remember. I bring pepsi but I still buy a soda card too.

Hope everyone is having a great day. Hope they add more balconies when we come back. I will keep checking on that and deposits too.

[flippr5657]

Hi Everybody, I haven't had a chance to read all 51 pages yet, but my name is Andrea (Anakalia). I'm a friend of Mimi's and would really like to join as a newpid :) You guys sound like a real fun bunch

[flippr5657]

ooooops that should be all 87 pages. You are a chatty bunch

[flippr5657]

I guess I should have mentioned that my husband Dave will be coming along as well.