We're back! And we are relaxed and had a great time on the cruise. I'll tell you, a cruise wasn't on the top of my list for vacations - in fact it wasn't on my list at all - but we had a great time and would do it again someday.

( pictures and play-by-play below the cut. )
Phew - I think that is all I can muster right now anyway and I think that is almost everything.

I apologize for any typos, I need to run and grab some lunch so we can go out to do some errands.

( edited to add two things I forgot )

I posted the other day that Matt's mom had been back in the hospital and they didn't think she could go on the cruise. Then she was told she could go on the cruise.

Well, today Matt called me - he is in Detroit for work today and part of tomorrow. Well, he talked to his mom and she can't go on the cruise. It appears that the hospital screwed up her blood thinner medication (she has a fake heart valve and part of her aorta was replaced as well). In order to get it back to normal, she has to have blood tests every day for the next two weeks.

Matt and I had discussed it and we decided we'd go anyway. We had some options - we could cancel the whole thing and go somewhere else, but we are leaving in just a few days so we decided to do it anyway.

Because we knew it was a risk that she wouldn't be able to go, we bought the cruise insurance. That means we can get a refund on her part of the cruise. She is going to talk to Expedia about her plane tickets and they can probably give her a voucher due to the medical nature. She'll just come down some other time. We'll take her somewhere else instead - may Charleston.

It is disappointing and I am sad for her. I am still looking forward to the cruise, but it is sorta bittersweet.

oneandonlymatt and I are going to Asheville this weekend. It is a "scouting mission". Matt went last month to check out some land and I am going back with him this weekend to do the same thing. We are also going to see Lucy Kaplansky play while we're in town. The only down side - it is going to be cold. Possibly the kind of cold where it snows.

When we get back, I have to start packing for the cruise. Matt has to go to Detroit next week. That is stupid because it is cold in Detroit.

I am looking forward to the cruise more than I expected to. A cruise wasn't on my list of vacation destinations but I am really excited about going on the cruise.

I had the pleasure of trying on swimsuits this weekend. Yay me. Most women recognize this as a humiliating moment - even if it is just between yourself and the dressing room mirror. But considering the swimsuit I have is more than 5 years old and I am about to go on a cruise, I decided to suck it up and shop.

I am very pleased with the one I found. It was sold as seperates, which is good for me because my top half is a different size than my bottom half. ( pictures of the suit - but not on me - behind the cut )