Snow Day

We've got snow today and you know what that means--it's a sew day.  Have not sewn on the sewing machine since I got back from the cruise.  So today is a good day to do that.  First, I think I will work on a challenge for the Renegade quilters Retreat the end of March.  Then I will work on the Mystery Quilt from the McCalls Cruise.  This should get me started on the machine again.  Since the cruise I have worked on Hexagons and that for me is handwork.  So off I go to the sewing room.  Enjoy your day everyone and work on something creative.

Cruise Ship Vacation Gone Bad

This post is not about my cruise, but of the Carnival cruise "gone bad" this past week.  I have prayed for the safety of all.  It brought heartache to me to know how this "nightmare" of a vacation turned out for those on the Carnival Triumph when my cruise with Royal Caribbean was so wonderful just the week before.  I am in no way advertising for the Royal Caribbean.  I pray all of those passengers will come through the settlements with ease and be able to sleep and live their lives more peacefully now that they are home or almost home.  Welcome Home to all passengers that were on that cruise.

Hexagons

I have had a bag of hexagons forever.  Well, on my cruise we had a demonstration of hexagons and that renewed my interest.  I decided it was a good project to work on while DH and I watch TV. That way I am not stuck in a room with the just the sewing machine.  I am not a big TV watcher, so it gives me something to do with my hands instead of jumping up and down doing something else. I don't have much done, but it is a start.

The last Cruise Port

The last cruise port was Cozumel and we were supposed to go helmet diving.  We were very excited, however it started raining and all water excursions were canceled.  Disappointing to say the least.  So we shopped at the port stores and then went back to the ship.  The dock was so very long and I barely got started leaving the ship, I was exhausted. After all joint replacements my legs are not strong and had walked everywhere which includes all the walking on the ship all week.  So my friend hailed a wheel chair and I was happy to pay the tip going and coming from Cozumel.

Here are the girls that went on this cruise also.  I just want to say how very wonderful they are.  Bless them for I know I slowed them down a lot with my legs getting so tired.  They are the best you could ever have.  They have done so much for me and I can't thank them enough.  Thanks girls for making my cruise so very enjoyable. Love ya this much xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.

Grand Cayman Here We Come

Our next Port stop was Grand Cayman.  There we waited for our shuttle bus and went to swim with the sting rays.  Here I struggled first by getting on bus.  The steps into it were too high for me with my four joint replacements, but my wonderful friends and others helped.  As for the stingrays they were huge.  There too friends helped me because I float so easily, they hung on to me or I probably would have floated to who knows where.  LOL  I knew it would be hard to get in the water, but with the boatman's help I made it.  Then there was the reality of getting back up on the boat.  And again the boatman and his brother were there to save the day.  The  wind was blowing and the waves were a little strong.  Then we were back on the bus headed for the dolphins.  There it was fun, but I knew I could not stay on the surf board So I watch my friends being pushed by a dolphin.  However I did get to pet, kissed and got a kiss back from the dolphin.  From there we went to Tiki Beach to soak in some sun.

The ship could not dock at Grand Cayman because the water is too shallow.  All kinds of boats came to the ship to pick us up.

The next pictures show us going back to the ship the same way.

Once we were back on the ship, I saw the Disney Cruise Ship.  The water was beautiful with so many blues.

Port Arrival

Jamaica was in view.  We were to have docked at Falmouth, Jamaica, however the sea was too rough to dock.  The Captain announced that he would be docking at Montego Bay, which was about two hours away.  There was a hustle to get everything arranged for those that were doing excursions.  It was successful as shuttles were waiting for us.  We did get to do our excursions which was "Taste of Jamaica" in Falmouth.  It took an hour drive going and coming, but the lunch was very good. 

The water was so blue.  It was different trying to walk or stand on the ship as you either walked like you were drunk or swayed when standing still.  I surprised myself because I never got nauseated.

After about two hours, Montego Bay, Jamaica  came into our sights.  We were so excited, because we were going to get off the ship. The water was so blue.

As I mentioned above we were driven to our lunch destination.  I think it was called Hope Great House and it has a history back to the 1800's.  The furniture was beautiful inside.

Third Day On Cruise

On this day we got our second step to the mystery quilt to work on from 9 a.m. till noon.  Then it was off to lunch.  There is so much food and one does not even get a chance to be  hungry. In the afternoon there was a quilt design class.  Before you know it it was time to eat dinner. In the evening McCalls  gave us a cocktail party. The drinks and food were flowing.  My friends and I had a good time laughing and relaxing. In other words the champagne was very good.  We happy.

The Cocktail Party

Second Day on Cruise

On Sunday, which was our first full day at sea we had wool penny rug to work on and it fit the theme of  sea shells.  A great memory to make of our good times at sea.  Just a reminder from my last post that this was "McCall's Quilt University School At Sea".   In the afternoon we got our first steps and fabric to start our Mystery Quilt.  It was so much fun meeting quilters from all over the US.  Janome Sewing Machines were provided and "bobbin boys" to go with them.  They were there to thread, change bobbins and fix any other machine problems.  To say the  least we really got spoiled.  Beth Hayes, Editor of McCall's Quilt Magazine, was always smiling and helpful, along with the rest of her staff. This evening was free if you wanted to sew or explore what was on the ship.  So the four of us went exploring.  I must say it is a long walk from one end of the ship to the other.  My legs were already getting a workout. That evening Vickie and I took in a show of Ballroom dancing and it was wonderful.  Due to copyright laws, however, we were not allowed to take pictures.

We brought blocks with the theme of "Winter Break" as a challenge.

This was our wool penny rug  class

Mystery Quilt Classroom

Home from Cruise to the Caribbean

My friends and I got home on Sunday about noon from our cruise to the Caribbean.  We had a marvelous time and our seven days went by so very fast.  Before I start rambling about the cruise, I want to thank my friends Vickie, Carol and Sue for always helping me, for without them my trip would have been so much harder.  We left Blanchard, OK on Fri Jan 25 about 6 a.m. heading for Baton Rouge, LA.  We spent the night there. We got up early the next morning and headed on to New Orleans. This was set sail day to head for the Caribbean.(my first cruise)  We were to start boarding the "Navigator Of The Seas Ship at 1:00 p.m., however they started early about 10:30 a.m. and we were first in line.  Our excitement was building.  We went through security and of course I set off bells.  (I have 4 joint replacements)  I was told to go in a room to be scanned.  All was OK'd and on the ship I went.  It was huge and my eyes were soaking in the vastness of this ship.  Our rooms were ready about 1 p.m. We had 2 to a room and we had a balcony.

The housekeeper pulled the bed apart to  make 2 small twin size and remake the bed.

That first night we had a welcome parade on Deck 5 where the promenade to the shops are.  Our excitement was building more and more. It was so much fun watching the welcome parade.

This was our first day at sea.  Oh, did I mentioned that this was a quilt cruise?  Yes, and that evening we had our McCall's Quilting Class At Sea Orientation.  Our enthusiasm was building even more.

I will post more about my Journey later.  To be continued.