The Shafferland Shuffle

And a happy Labor Day Sunday to you!! Did you miss me? {Did you know I was gone?}

Well, remember when last Sunday, I told you I spent the day taking naps and reading a book? I may have forgotten to mention that I did those things in Miami. As in Florida. As in vacation week for the Shaffers! Of course I have much to tell you, but here’s a quick synopsis of our week!

* Last Sunday, we boarded the Carnival Breeze in Miami, and set sail for a week of cruising in the Caribbean. This was Ryan’s 8^th cruise and my first, and we have been eagerly counting down the days to sailing for weeks now! We were up on the 11^th deck of the ship – in a nice room with a balcony, and we got to the ship early that day so we could settle in and explore before it left port shortly before dinner.

* We sailed all night and awakened Monday morning in Key West, Florida – and neither of us had ever been there before, so we enjoyed experiencing that first together. We didn’t sign up for any excursions on shore, so armed with a map and a couple of granola bars, we set out on our own to look around. Among other things that day, a highlight was crossing an item off my bucket list: I got to see a lighthouse in real life…and climb to the top of it, too! This was a big deal for the girl who is both afraid of heights AND claustrophobic.

* Tuesday was one of our at-sea days, so we enjoyed spending the day resting and roaming about the ship – and we took advantage of some of the activities the ship offered for entertainment. One of those was Hasbro the game show, where they did a live game show, and guess which one of the Shaffers crossed off another bucket list item?? NOT THIS ONE!! But Ryan was so excited when he got picked to go on stage and be a contestant!

* Wednesday we watched the sun rise {yes, on vacation…isn’t it WRONG?} over Grand Turk as we pulled into port! This was my first time out of the country {Canada excluded} and I really enjoyed being there, though we were there such a short time. In an event worthy of its own blog post, the highlight of that day was a little activity we like to call The Shaffers Play Paul Blart: Mall Cop and Ride Segways.

* We spent Thursday at sea as well…and while we didn’t attend any shows like we did the first day at sea, we did participate in a digital scavenger hunt and watched an ice sculpture demonstration! We got to be on the big jumbotron for that. This is typical of us: Ryan spends his time waving and I spend my time taking pictures. HA!!

* Friday we docked in Nassau, and we had the BEST TIME on our own private little beach we just happened upon! We got back on the boat about 20 minutes before it POURED, and we just took it easy the rest of the day. Great dinner…met some new friends who were on their honeymoon! And then…sob…we had to pack. We don’t talk about it.

*When we woke up yesterday, we were back in Miami. I was excited to be back in the land of phones and internet – until I logged on and saw all the news…and then I thought it was better when all that was turned off. We had the privilege of spending the entire day in the Miami airport – an activity not on either of our bucket lists!! And there may or may not be MUCH more blog fodder from this day alone!! But until then...