Cruising to Celebrate a 50th!

Today is Saturday and we just got back from a week at sea (compliments of my generous parents who paid for a 5-day cruise for my siblings and I) with 22 other family members to help them celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary! What a great time we had........ but the best part was being with everyone we love and helping my parents ring in their special anniversary.

There were so many memorable moments, but one of the best was the cocktail/appetizer party we arranged to celebrate them. Given that this was their 50th, we wanted to do something really special, and special it was........ everyone attended and it turned out great. We had fun celebrating on the 14th deck overlooking San Diego......

The cruise itself was very fun. We sailed to San Diego, Catalina and Ensenada, Mexico. San Diego and Catalina were beautiful but I can't, for the life of me, figure out why Ensenada is a port of call. I didn't care for it so much. The best part was hanging out with my sister, her husband and their two kids........ we stopped at a cantina for cheap beer and chips!


I think one of the best ways to cruise is with a big group. That way, you are more inclined to do things you might not normally do. With so many people and personalities, we really had a ball - dinner shows, gambling, sight-seeing, all kinds of eating (seems like we did a lot of that), swimming, shuffle board, going to the spa, drinking, shopping, etc. There seems to just be an upbeat energy that followed us everywhere. I have to say that one of the best parts was the family dinners. We had the main seating at 5:30 p.m. I think everyone really looked forward to sharing the meal together. We'd laugh and joke - reminiscing about the days events. Everyone got to know each other just a little better..... 5 days together enables that.... and it was great. I got to know my nephew, Jeff a little better. Though I see him at home, I got to see him in a new light and he is one special kid (well, young man really). He is really a nice guy and funny too! I got a kick out of listening to him talk and laugh. He, of course, had a great time...... I think everyone did...... my niece, Stephanie, is so pretty and she of course, got lots of attention. My two littlest niece and nephew are just as cute and sweet as they can be and I loved hanging out with them too........

All and all it was a great vacation - we've decided we want to do something like this every year!!