March madness

The month of March is about half-way finished and it has been as it always is, a busy one for us both at work and at home and school! We began the Lenten season on March 1st, and then came my 37th Birthday on March 2nd and that weekend we had extra celebrations as we enjoyed visits from Mimi, Papa, and all of the playgroup Perrysburg ladies. We had a great long weekend and a fun cocktail party one night when everyone was here and came over to see our new home and catch up with us. We also celebrated Dr. Seuss' birthday at school (the same day as my birthday) with lots of silliness and fun and Sarabeth's Kindergarten class hosted their first school mass...Sarabeth helped with collecting the offering just ahead of Communion and she also participated in her class choir and they sang my favorite Catholic Elementary school song...We Come To your Table...so sweet! We also celebrated St. Patrick's day, attended our local fair (it is fair season in Florida) and just today Sarabeth and I went to a princess breakfast at our local children's theater. Friday was the last day of school ahead of the upcoming spring break week and while I had planned to have a low key quiet spring break week this year with a short work week and a few days to enjoy the lake...Jon and the kids had other plans and out-voted me last minute about a week ago 3-1 to go on a 7 day western Caribbean cruise...OMG...you only live once so here we go! We are leaving tomorrow to drive to Miami where the ship will depart tomorrow afternoon. We are cruising for the first time on Norwegian cruise line this time. The ship we are going on is a newer ship, it first sailed in 2015 and is called the Norwegian Getaway and got great reviews for families. It is larger than the Disney ships we have been on and has A TON of outdoor onboard activities for kids, even a high ropes course, tons of water slides...it looks pretty neat. We are excited to check it out. The itinerary on this cruise is also really different than the ones we have done. We leave from Miami (not excited about that, longer drive and it is the busiest cruise port in the country and especially this time of year so will be crazy I am sure) but we are going to some places that are supposed to be amazing. Our first day is a sea day to get our bearings and explore and enjoy the ship, always fun! The second day we will wake up in Roatan, Honduras and we booked a shore excursion to take us by Ferry to a nearby island that is an animal sanctuary and also has beautiful beaches and some ruins to check out. I've talked to people that have done this trip and everyone recommended this and said we would all enjoy it. The next stop is Belize...I am especially excited to see Belize, everyone single person says this is one of the places everyone should see at some point...gorgeous water...I wonder how it will stack up to Turks and Caicos...also gorgeous water!!! We have a great beach day planned there and lots of sun and fun and relaxation. This is the place to do the beach everyone has said. The day after Belize we will wake up in Costa Maya Mexico and after the relaxing beach day I planned more of an adventurous day in Costa Maya. This is where the Mayan ruins are and we are going to see them! This was an expensive shore excursion (x4 people) but I figure if we are going all the way there we are going to do this!!! Jack learned about the Mayan culture this year and is also very excited. I booked the half day morning ruins tour and then the excursion takes us to a full buffet lunch at a nearby beach and gets us back to the cruise ship in time to make the ship and leave port on time. We will be tired after this busy day but I am really looking forward to seeing the Mayan ruins! The next day we will wake up in Cozumel and after the busy day before this we just have a low key beach day planned. The final day is our last day and will be a sea day to once again enjoy the ship as we head back towards Miami. The 7th day we will wake up docking in Miami and head back home! This will be a jam-packed week with lots of activities for everyone and lots of great places to see. I will do a blog post when we return...for now here are some glimpses of what March has been like in our lives!!! Bon voyage!!!