The Harrison Family: Disney Cruise!

The long awaited Disney cruise finally arrived! I must admit I was very nervous leading up to the trip but I could not be more pleased with how it turned out. There could not have been a more child friendly vacation. The staff on our cruise went so far above and beyond to make the kids happy and the trip spectacular. Vacations with kids are never easy but the staff of Disney did everything possible to make my job as easy as possible. It was the little things like warming Riley's milk to making Carter homemade baby food each night that really meant a lot! Riley knew Mickey and Minnie but really is not too into TV and does not know a lot about the Disney characters. Prior to our trip Justin and I read her some books on the characters hoping that she would be familiar with them. Her reaction the first morning at breakfast when the characters walked in was priceless. Seeing this experience through her eyes was truly magical. The characters on the ship were awesome. They spent a lot of time with the kids, talking to them and really getting to know them. They had dance parties with the characters, Riley learned to Do se Do with Snow White, we learned the Waltz from Cinderella, etc.. by the end of the trip I think she really felt like she knew them. She is now in love with the Disney princesses (or as she refers to them the angels). Belle is her favorite but she really loves them all. There were a few times she would get a little intimidated and require Justin or I to take the photo with her but for the most part she loved it.

We had three stops on our trip: Key West, Castaway Key (Disney's private Island in the Bahamas), and Nassau in the Bahamas. In Key West we got off the ship and took the kids to a butterfly exhibit and we toured the aquarium which was very nice. In Castaway Key we lounged on the beach and did some swimming in the ocean. Castaway Key was nice as it was only our cruise ship on the island. All the characters got off the boat and hung around the beach with the kids and even held a dance party with all the kids. Nassau was probably our favorite stop. We went and spent the day at Atlantis which was amazing. Justin and I loved that resort and we will for sure be taking the kids back there when they get a little older. We rented a private cabana and spent a good portion of our time playing in the water with the kids. Riley and I did a dolphin experience which was awesome. I have always wanted to swim with the dolphins and I am so glad I got to do this with Riley. I was afraid she would be nervous but to my surprise she jumped in the water with the dolphins and had no problem touching or kissing them. Next time we go we are going to swim with the sea lions!

Overall the trip was awesome. Watching the kids through this experience was so much fun and something Justin and I will never forget. Of course in Harrison family luck we did have a hurricane start in the gulf during our travels back. It only caused us a little bit of rough water the last two nights but nothing that affected us or the kids thank goodness. I was so proud of my kids and the way they behaved on this trip. While they were not perfect, after looking around and seeing how some of the other kids acted, I am so grateful for the two that I have! I took 500 pictures during our trip so I have shared a few of my favorites: