think fast

cruise exclusive

Many of the advantages of a Paper Crafts Magazine cruise are:

• You get the best of both worlds: travel and crafting
  Meeting new friends from around the world
  Delicious food (and no dishes to do)
  Awesome goodie bags
  Instruction from really nice teachers <grin>
  Exclusive stamp set from Technique Tuesday
  Card Swap with 40 new friends
  Tons of laughs and good times

Need some proof?

(We didn't have really great lighting for photographs and I hate using the flash=some blurry shots - sorry).

Our cute door banners made by Events Specialist Brooke!

Formal Night dinner - Beth and Susan looked beautiful!

Special Guest Jaclyn and her hubster Toby.

My roomie and I dressed up for dinner, too.

P.S. Teri=awesome roommate! I puffy heart her.

So, we had a Card Swap the last evening on board. Everyone brought 40 cards and we swapped like crazy. Okay, a few gals didn't bring cards, but we were easily bribed with chocolate for swapping, too. Above are my "mostly finished" cards. Heh.

Swapping in action. (See what I mean about the lighting). Serious amounts of fun happening, though!

So, what did you think about having a GIVEAWAY? I just so happen to have three cards leftover from the Card Swap! How about giving those away and throwing in one of the awesome-tastic stamp sets that Technique Tuesday made especially for us?

And, just to get you more excited - here are cards that Teri and I made for the class we taught on the cruise.

Teri's card.

And mine (which says "A very big hello"). Hee.

So, leave me a comment sometime this weekend telling me about your ideal vacation (cruise or otherwise) and I will enter you to win the cards and the stamp set.

Giveaway open until Sunday evening - Nov. 20th, midnight PST.
Good luck!
Later.

local color

Thought I would share some of my favorite photos of the trip. This post will be a bit random, but hopefully fun! I will do a wrap up tomorrow with pics of fellow cruisers and even have a special GIVEAWAY. Stay tuned for that. In the meantime, enjoy.

Loved all the exotic flora in the Carribbean.

Ahhh-- the unadultered blue of the ocean off Grand Cayman. Bliss.

A glimpse of the brand new dock named Mahogany Bay on Isla Roatan. A bit like mini Disneyland.

So many souvenirs, so little time. Heh.

Coke Light. Seriously? Even better than my beloved Diet Coke. Mmmmm.

What's a girl to do when lounging on the beach in Cozumel? Siesta, of course.

Thanks for sharing a little taste of the cruise with me. It's pretty much a dream come true when a fun job (working from home nonetheless) can translate into such a great time!

Remember - a special cruise prize tomorrow!
Later. 

carnival liberty

Thought it would be fun to post some photos of the ship (ahem, not "boat" I quickly learned). The Carnival Liberty was absolutely gorgeous. It was fresh out of dry dock where they updated several key areas of the promenade deck. There were two new eating areas and several other upgrades. Overall, I was pleasantly surprised by the cleanliness of the whole ship. We constantly saw staff cleaning and every bit of the public area was sparkling clean.

Here is one of the first photos I took after getting to Deck 10 (11 decks total). Just a gorgeous day as we left Miami.

The Miami skyline and harbor - really pretty.

Kind of a cool shot - this is our first stop in Cozumel.

My favorite shot of the Liberty just after we docked in Cozumel.

Please tell me you are dying to take a cruise after seeing these photos. (I'm trying to get some of my friends and family on board to start a Cruise Savings Fund). Who's with me?

to be continued tomorrow...
Later. 

pre cruise brunch

What could be better than starting off the cruise by meeting a new friend and enjoying brunch on the patio of an adorable restaurant?

Sweet gal Amber Daigre ran by the hotel with Susan and Beth in tow and whisked us off to one of her favorite places for brunch. It was called Morgan's and it featured some lovely "comfort food". Sitting on the patio with the breeze blowing through - what could be better? Highly recommended if you are in the Miami area.

Amber and Susan (along with Flat Cristina) enjoying the start of brunch.

Teri and Beth (Susan's best sis).

Yes, Susan really did create a spreadsheet for daily outfits and other information for the cruise. Can you say ocd organized?

That's what I'm talking about - Pillow Light Brioche French Toast. Yum!

Although I did envy Susan't Banana Caramel Waffle across the table, too.

Thanks Amber! For a wonderful kick off to the cruise. What a treat.

(to be continued tomorrow)
Later.

 

hello out there

I know. Shocker. I have returned to blog land. It feels awesome.

Thanks so much for a lot of you who have posted and e-mailed wondering if everything is alright. Yes, life is great. I have just returned from the most wonderful cruise all compliments of Paper Crafts Magazine! I had to keep pinching myself to see if I was dreaming it all.

We sailed and taught card classes and ate and played and taught more classes and toured and swam and taught. Well, you get the idea. I'll have tons to post about it every day this week.

First off, though: here's a mini update of what kept me so busy getting ready for the trip.

We walked in the ASU Homecoming parade with the DS Network to raise awareness for Down Syndrome. It was a warm day, but so much fun! The kids enjoyed games and tons of candy being given out. Chili's even hosted a free lunch. Awesome.

Here is sweet Jamie and his family (Keith's brother Andy, wife Kelly and kids).

Jeff and Mona made it, too. Everyone looked so cute in their matching t-shirts.

During the week Keith and I also turned 10 pints of raspberries into these:

Then, I spent all day Friday at the State Fair with Ello's preschool class. It was fun, but a typical "hurry up and wait" kind of atmosphere. Eloise was pretty patient and she really enjoyed the little kiddie rides.

Lastly, I had to face this wonderful pile of dirty clothes before I could leave on a week's vacation.

Um, yeah. Keep in mind that I already have the sheets on the line and the towels in the washing machine. Yikes.

By the end of last week, I had lists made, grocery shopping done, babysitting and carpooling arranged, passports checked and these two suitcases packed and ready to go.

Deep breath -- Miami and Carnival Cruise Line here I come!

(to be continued tomorrow).
Later.