Alaska: Chapter 3

The next day was GLACIER DAY! 

And I was very excited. 

My dad really wanted to go to the sit-down breakfast. So we joined him. I regret it. It was SO SLOW, and I didn't want a leisurely breakfast. As such, we were scrambling to get into the Mickey line. 

See Glacier Day is the day when you can see the Disney characters, on deck with the cool backgrounds of Alaska, in their Alaskan outfits. 

Mickey's line was long. And it was the only day it was a little chilly. But you'll see the weather was PERFECT. No clouds. Windy as all get-out. (Kinda a theme for Alaska, actually.) But lovely. C ended up going to get his winter coat while we waited in line. 

His was the ONLY winter coat I packed because I genuinely wasn't worried about the other three of us. I knew we'd be fine. Everyone says "light layers" for Alaska packing, and I would agree that's true. If you're someone who is constantly cold, pack warmer. For us, that's C. Even in the hottest part of the summer, the kid likes sweatshirts and 72 blankets while he sleeps. **72 might be an exaggeration, but it's a lot of blankets.**

I mean M and Minnie look like they're on a photoshopped background, don't they?! But that was the actual reality. It was that gorgeous. M LOVES her Alaskan Minnie ears. 

Glacier Day is also when it's the Frozen Night! 

On Alaskan Disney Cruises, there is no Pirate Night, just Frozen. Good thing I love Frozen. There was a special dinner menu with Sven's Carrot Soup which is my favorite!! 

But mostly we just took pictures of the nature. These are completely unedited and from my phone now! 

This was also the first day we won! Please note the medallion on M! 

Later that night we had room service Mickey Bars. Because why wouldn't we? 

I didn't love the slow start to my glacier day but we made the most of it for sure! 

Alaska: Chapter 2

Our first day waking up on the ship was actually Husband's and my 16th anniversary. Because of this, we booked a special brunch at Palo, the adults-only restaurant. It is also not included in the fare. 

I think it was the best food I have ever eaten. I took no pictures of us dressed up. Or really of much of the food, actually. (We were stuffed. It was so much.) 

This lasagna melted in my mouth. It was so good. So so so so good. I didn't take a picture of our pizza, or the fritata or the almond croissant. But I loved all of it. 

The best dessert. That is hazelnut ice cream and I am not usually big into hazelnut but it was exactly right. 

Later I went with my mom to napkin folding. We were good at the candle. We were less skilled at some of the other folds. 

It was a beautiful day at sea to sit and look out. It was a little foggy in the morning by mid-afternoon, it was total perfection. 

I should stress to you that every single person we talked to, from cast members to Alaskans, told us how perfect our weather was. And it truly was. There was even a heat advisory going on because it made it to the 70s. 

The days at sea on a Disney cruise are my favorite. It's just activities and fun. We play a lot of trivia and do a lot of crafts. 

After our dinner that evening and the early evening activities, Husband and I put the kids in our room, and we went to the late-night game show Match Your Mate. 

They asked for the couple that had been married the shortest. They became couple number 1. 

Then they asked for the couple that had been married the longest and they became couple number 3. 

For couple number 2... they asked for volunteers. So we did. Obviously. It was our very anniversary! 

And no one else did! But Mike G the host, still made us do the dance-off they'd make us do if there were challengers. So we rocked out, even threw in a shimmy shimmy. And we officially became couple number 2!

First, all the ladies went into the pub across the hall. We got a free drink while we waited for the guys to answer their questions. 

1. Describe Your First Date. (We did not match because he described our first hang out, not date. I still had a boyfriend who wasn't Husband!)
2. There is a parrot in your bedroom; what does it repeat? (We did not match though we totally should have because we both said first "We don't really talk in our room". I said "wake up, I don't wanna." and he said "Where's my eye mask?" He was actually right, I totally say that all the time.) 
3. If your Husband were like a Marvel hero, who would they be?
1. Spiderman
2. Black Panther
3. Ant-Man **We matched because we had both actually seen this movie!**

Then the boys went out to get their drinks while we ladies answered the questions.

1. Describe your first kiss. (We matched. Joe Goodall's house. Julie **who is now our pediatrician** told us to kiss. So we did.) 
2. You're stranded on an island with all of the living members of HIS extended family. The Disney Magic pulls up to rescue you but you have to leave one person behind. Who do you leave on the island? (We matched. In kindness to that person I will not type their name. But it was a very easy match.) 
3. If your love life were a Disney song which one is it? 
1. "A Whole New World" from Aladdin
2. "Almost There" from The Princess and the Frog
3. "For the First Time in Forever" from Frozen **We matched because of course I was going Frozen. No brainer.** 

And we won! 

We won a gift bag with some awesome Disney Cruise Line swag and a bottle of non-alcoholic champagne. (By choice, we could have chosen alcoholic, but we thought it would be more fun to toast with the kids.) 

On DCL, the non-alcoholic option is Cloudem Blue. (Not my picture.)

It's an apple cider that is blue and has sparkly dust in it. I had gotten a bottle on our last cruise, but not this cruise, so I knew the kids would want some. 

It was a fun night! Perfect way to celebrate our anniversary. 

Alaska: Chapter 1

Here we embark on the vacation recap for my memories. If this is boring or upsetting to you, feel free not to read! 

We planned this cruise in the summer of 2025 in honor of my 40th birthday next week. My parents and brothers all joined us, and it was a really nice way to celebrate and be together.

The night before we left I gave M Mickey nails. True story: they were a pain to create. But she loved them! 

The morning we left, we woke up and it was severe thunderstorming, so we didn't leave as early as we had planned. This turned out okay. 

I got a call from my brother; they were at their airport, and as it happens, my grandmother passed away in her sleep. It was not unexpected but still very sad. Here is a picture of her with C, her only great-grandson. 

We unfortunately never got M out to see her. Which sounds really bad. But we talked to her on the phone regularly until her Alzheimers progressed to the point where she didn't know who we were anymore. 

We were glad we were all traveling to be together. This was my Dad's mom. My Babcia. She has a beautiful life story, and I will tell it to you soon. 

Anyway. My family got in the car and drove to Chicago. 

We parked in the far, far-away lot. Then we got on a bus to get to a slightly less far-away lot. Then we got on the airport train to get to the terminal and through security. 

We killed a lot of time in the airport and ate some very expensive McDonald's. 

We had a long flight to Vancouver. But I mostly slept, which was good. 

We stayed at the hotel that was at the airport, and our hotel room looked right out at the airfield and the mountains! It was very cool!

We had dinner down in the terminal food court with my parents and one brother. My other brother's flight didn't get in until late, late. 

The next morning, we woke up and took a Disney bus to the port. Vancouver was really cool; my big regret is not flying in a few days earlier to explore it. 

Then we made it through security at the port and waited for our boarding group to be called. 

And by noon we were on the Disney Magic heading to lunch. 

We had ice cream. The kids swam. We changed for dinner. 

We got to the sail-away party with a rock star spot. 

And we sailed out into the sunset. 

Our first blanket animal was there, and we all slept very well! 

And They're Off

I know you're all dying to hear about Alaska. I promise it's coming. But today is Day 1! 

If we are being technical, C actually went to algebra at the high school last Friday. But today is the first real full day and in uniform. So I am counting it. 

Happy First Day! 

Ahoy!

 Hello there! 

My last two posts? They were scheduled. As it happens, we just got back from a big 9-day trip for our Disney Alaskan Cruise! 

More soon! 

A Weekend of Fun

I am behind on blogging but here are some things that happened. 

C sang at a brunch! 

He sounded great. And then he was one of the recipients of a Training Grant towards his voice lessons tuition! So that is AWESOME. 

Later he went to his friend's birthday party. Since the party was quite a ways a way, we decided to kill time in the little town close to the party with M. 

We had some lunch.

M had a mac and cheese pizza and was delighted by it. 

Then we went to the Polish Pottery Shop. My grandmother and aunt collect Polish pottery. (We're Polish.) 

I liked that teal flower print, especially in a butter dish. 

M was a big fan of the Cat Platter. 

We were all taken with this classic-pattern pierogi. 

We all liked these cat statues. 

Some of the other shops had some cute things too. These made me laugh: 

M really wants this burger book where you rate 33 Burgers. I didn't buy it. 

We thought C would like this pigeon hat. 

Then we went and let Meredith run around a playground for a while. 

So it was a fun afternoon out and about together! And C had a really nice time at his party.