Bahamas Cruise Vacation: Day 3

Our first stop on our Bahamas cruise was Freeport island in the Bahamas.

Our day began with a taxi ride to Lucaya Beach.

Aaron enjoyed a little snorkeling
while the rest of us sunbathed on the beach.

Nate and Andrea got the crazy idea to go parasailing! We rode along in the boat to a platform that was floating in the ocean.

Nate & Andrea high up in the sky

Aaron decided he wanted to go too, but I was
far too rational to go with with him!

Aaron is the speck in the clouds in the middle of the picture below.
When passing the beach, the driver of the boat
would make the parasailer drop down to barely touch the water.

After a day at the beach, we enjoyed lunch and shopping at Port Lucaya.

Then, back to the cruise ship. . .

for an elegant dinner.

Bahamas Cruise Vacation: Day 2, Part II

Before boarding the ship, Nate and Andrea were kind enough to share their motion sickness patches with us. Aaron couldn't help teasing Nate about how funny they looked, but he ended up putting one on himself a few hours later!

the lifeboat drill

enjoying our first of many meals

Once we got settled into our rooms, Andrea and I attended a shopping seminar held in one of the lounges. The designated shopping expert shared some advice on shopping in the Bahamas. He held a raffle at the end of the show for the hundred or so people in attendance, and my name was drawn! I won this 1/2 carat diamond and sapphire necklace!

I was especially excited since I thought this might make up for Aaron losing his wedding ring at the Cocoa Beach hotel. Luckily, we found his ring several days later in my makeup bag! I have no idea how it got there. . .:)

our first dinner

I discovered my nightly dessert of the famous Chocolate Melting Cake, which made an excellent fondue dip when paired with a tropical fruit plate. As any cruise veteran knows, one of the best parts of a cruise is the food! And you can order as many appetizers, entrees, or desserts as you would like. Right, Nate?:)

After dinner every evening, we enjoyed a show in the lounge, which mostly consisted of comedians. Some were better than others, and we only heard two Mormon jokes (something about polygamy and non-drinking).

Although our ship, the Carnival Sensation, was plenty big and spotlessly clean, the decor was a sight to behold! We learned that our cruise was the last for the ship before being dry-docked for five weeks and undergoing $70 million in renovations. So the ship's next passengers should enjoy the upgrade.
Soon to come, Day 3. . .

Bahamas Cruise Vacation: Day 2, Part I

Our second day began with a morning at the beach.

The cooler ocean temperatures didn't stop Aaron from enjoying a swim.

Cocoa Beach wasn't crowded at all in January.

We found a live jellyfish on the beach that was moving
all over the place! Check out the video clip below.

As the designated trip planner/accountant, I was able
to get us this awesome Buick Enclave at a ridiculously low price.
We loved driving around town in it and were sad to give it up.

Still more to Day 2, with soon-to-be-posted Part II, when we board our cruise ship!

Bahamas Cruise Vacation: Day 1

Here's my attempt to journal one of our favorite vacations yet, our trip to Orlando for a cruise to the Bahamas!

We left in the wee hours of the morning and were very grateful to finally take off after waiting over an hour on the plane for a delayed departure. The second engine wouldn't start due to the frigid temperatures (kind of important, eh?), but luckily they were able to warm it up, start the engine, de-ice the plane, and we were off!

Our friends, Andrea & Nate

Two things surprised us when we landed at the Orlando airport hours later:

1. The long line of elderly people in wheelchairs waiting to board the plane we were disembarking, and
2. The warm, humid temperature!

We wondered why we choose to live in Utah when such tropical climates exist in this very country in January! It was heavenly.

We spent the first night close to the port at Cocoa Beach.

Aaron & Nate were excited that our hotel was right next to the beach!

After driving around for an hour trying to find a quaint, local restaurant we could all agree upon for dinner, our famished stomachs convinced us to give in to Aaron's request of the ever-exciting and unique Applebee's.

Unfortunately for Aaron, the restaurant no longer offered his favorite meal, the infamous Chicken-fried Chicken. He was, however, able to find a meal he deemed equally as delicious, a steak and shrimp concoction.


Stay tuned for Day 2. . . .

Surfin' Santa

Here are some pictures and video of Maddie's first dance recital. It is a few weeks late, but cute nonetheless!










In the video you can see Maddie on the far left. She did much better than I thought she would! You'll notice she watches her teacher who is hiding in the wings, and she looks down at the ground frequently to make sure she is still standing exactly on her spot. Sorry it's a little shaky--I was laughing a lot! Thanks to everyone who came! (You'll want to turn off my blog's music before you watch the video.)

Stay tuned for pictures of our Bahamas vacation!

Christmas Catch-up

Although it has taken me a while to post any pictures, we enjoyed many fun Christmas activities in December, including:

Gingerbread houses

Tree decorating
(Notice Maddie's range for ornament placing.
I never knew my artificial tree could hold so many
ornaments on a single bough. )

Holiday dresses

Santa surprises

A new personal shopper

Pink running shoes

Phone calls to our missionaries

and a gleeful 4-year-old,
bouncing up and down, exclaiming
"I LOVE Christmas! I LOVE Christmas!"

Why You'll No Longer Find Scissors at the Hansen Home...

On days like these, I'm grateful to have a family blog. Rather than screaming or crying at these moments, I collect myself enough to grab my camera, recognizing that one day I will be laughing at this. And by posting such entries on my blog, all of you can enjoy a good laugh. I'm not at the laughing point yet.

I should have learned my lesson last March, when Maddie gave Kennedy her first unintentional haircut with Dad's razor. I really should have learned the lesson last month when Maddie gave her sister her first intentional haircut with the scissors she retrieved from their former spot, the kitchen drawer.

I did learn that the scissors should no longer be so easily accessible, and I found a good hiding spot for them. Unfortunately, I forgot to put them away today. I left them on the bathroom counter.

Here is what I discovered when I went to check on Maddie's unreasonably long potty break:






Her beautiful dark curls scattered on the floor and in the trashcan! She chopped several inches off each side of her hair, and it looked even worse when I took out the ponytails. I discovered a little patch she cut much closer to the scalp with only two inches of hair still attached. I wanted to cry since it took us four years to get her hair so long and full. She was as bald as Kennedy when she was that age, and we didn't even know she had curly hair until she was 2 1/2 years old. In a matter of five minutes, two years worth of hair was gone.

Maddie explained that she wanted to have short hair like Kennedy. She also wants to be a "haircutter" like her Aunt Aujelle and tells me so all the time. I obviously told her she CANNOT cut hair, and she got a long, LONG timeout in her bedroom while I tried to figure out what to do. Luckily her Aunt Aujelle came to the rescue. Here's what she looks like now:


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It's a good thing she is so cute, or I don't know what I'd do with her...