This cruise has been an absolute blast so far. We have really enjoyed visiting these beautiful locations in Mexico and spending time in the warm sun. The last two days we spent time on the cruise ship cruising home. We worried that we would be bored on these two days at sea but they actually turned out to be some of our funnest days!
I think the reason these last two days were so fun was because we really got involved in the on board game shows. Stuart was the first one of our group to hit the stage. We kind of haggled him into participating but he ended up being great. The game show he participated in was called "Trivia or Dare." It was basically like Truth or Dare. The participants had to answer trivia questions or take part in outrageous dares. Stuart was great and he really gave the other guys a run for their money. In fact, he had us rolling on the ground laughing that is until he started explaining the "birds and bees." Then we all decided we didn't know him at all. We couldn't stop laughing.
Next Grandma and Jacee got in on the BINGO games. Jacee won a few prizes for dancing the "Baby Shark" dance during the Bingo game. Then on the very last Jackpot Bingo game, my mom won Bingo! She didn't get the Jackpot though because she didn't get the Bingo in 50 calls, but she did win in about 55 calls so she won $275! That was exciting.
Then, Russell really got into it and participated in the ship's Sexy Leg Contest!
This was the funniest thing ever! Russell really got into it and did the best dance of all of the guys. We could not stop laughing at all of the guys during this contest. There was one old guy that had a signature leg lift move that got the whole crowd laughing. Russell did a lot of moving and flexing and shaking in order to get the judged to give him the highest score. He ended up getting a score of 35 which made him tied for second place. We were definitely disappointed in the guy that won because he was really arrogant and didn't really do anything special. Russell tied with the old guy with the leg trick and we were wishing one of them would have won. Oh well it was still so funny and exciting to watch.
That night was another formal night at the dining. We didn't know there would be two formal dining nights so we were not really prepared. The girls looked great in their authentic Mexican dresses though. They loved matching each other.
Charlotte was so tired that she slept right through the formal pictures. These pictures on the stairs turned out so pretty. We loved walking up these glass stairs each time we went to the center of the ship.
Before dinner we went to center ship and got to meet Stanley the Bear.
Stanley is the ship mascot. He was really friendly to the kids and they loved seeing him. We even got to have a little dance party with him and the other kids on the ship.
Finally it was time to head to dinner. This was a great dinner tonight with steak and lobster! We loved everything we had at the dining each night but this was probably the best.
The girls love showing off their new dresses and everyone complimented them on how beautiful they looked.
Also during dinner the waiter that took care of us each night loved entertaining the kids with napkin folding. This night he made these torches and a hat and had the kids wear them. They looked like the Statue of Liberty. They loved it.
After dinner, the kids wanted to head up to the Kid's Discovery place and have some fun in their kid rooms. That night they were playing Bingo and Minute to Win It games.
When the kids were in their play rooms, the rest of us headed to the Vista Lounge to watch the Marriage Match game show. This game was just like the Newlywed Game. Russell and I decided to volunteer on the sign up list to be on the show. There were probably about 50 other couples signing up as well so we figured we were pretty safe and would not get picked. Then... when they announced the couples, yep, we were picked!
We could not believe it! They selected a newlywed couple, a middle of the road couple, and a couple that had been married for a long time. Well, we were the middle-aged couple I guess you could say. The first couple had been together 5 years, we have been together 14, and the third couple had been married for about 40 years. The whole experience was really fun but really embarrassing at the same time. During the first round Russell was asked questions while I had sound proof headphones on. These questions were kind of basic but still funny. First, Russell had to describe what I was wearing while I walked around and modeled for everyone. Then he had to tell what color my underwear was. This was an easy one. In fact, we had people come up to us afterward and say they already knew what color my underwear was because they were members of the church too and had the same underwear! We just had to laugh. They also asked other fun questions like where was our first kiss and stuff like that. We did really good on that round until they came to the question about which person in my family can Russell really not stand. The funny thing about that was all of my family was watching us in the audience so they kept yelling "Chose wisely!" and "Remember we are here!" The host really took that and ran with it and made Russell feel even more in the hot seat. Finally he chose someone that was not on the cruise and the host said that was a good choice. I had no idea how to answer that even though I had a little thought about who it might be but I just decided to not say anything and get the question wrong. The host said that was probably a good choice too. We all laughed. Then it was my turn to answer questions while Russell was deaf.
The questions they asked me were much more personal and I knew my face was red the whole time. I was definitely in shock about revealing some of our secrets. I will spare you the details and let your imagination take it from there. Once again, I was embarrassed that my whole family was here listening! One question I can reveal was about what Russell's most annoying habit was. I told them that his most annoying habit was that he leaves his clothes laying around everywhere. I said I never know if they are clean or dirty and neither does Russell so he just wears them over and over. On man they really took that and ran with it saying he never changed his underwear and was trying to save on laundry soap and oh man it was so funny. I think that was the only question we got right on that round. By the end, everyone in that room knew more about us than we really wanted to share. They also knew that we had a great family with four kids and that we loved having a good time. We did not win with the most points but we did win with the most laughs I felt like. One thing I think we did show about ourselves on this show was that we were clean and sober. I felt like we did set a good example for ourselves, family, and religion. On the table in front of us were some glasses of champagne. The other two couples were just drinking that stuff like no other especially the older couple (well I think they were drunk before the game started...). But Russell and I did not take one sip even though at the peak of embarrassment, we were tempted to. (Okay not really.) Our stories were definitely not as risque as the other two either. In the end, it was all in fun and we were glad we got to be a part of it. As a prize for participating, we got some jewelry and a bottle of champagne.
When the show was over, we walked down off the stage feeling happy, relieved, and thoroughly embarrassed! Then the people started coming up to us and talking to us about how they already knew the color of my underwear and other funny things. One couple came up to us and asked us what we were going to do with our champagne. We told them they could have it and then the lady said, "Oh we don't want it, we're from Utah too!" We had a good laugh at that. Everyone that talked to us though said they really enjoyed us up there on stage and though we should have won.
All that night and the next day, anytime anyone would see us in the elevator, walking around on the deck, at the buffet, or anywhere, they would stop us and say "Weren't you the couple on the Marriage Match game? We loved watching you!" We became instance celebrities on board the ship because everyone seemed to know us after that. We didn't know whether to take in all the attention or to be embarrasses all over again. I was definitely having oversharing anxiety but I got over it.
The next afternoon, Clint was in the spotlight. He participated in a Survivor sort of game.
This game was kind of like Minute to Win It and you had to complete tasks and answer questions in order to advance to a new level. When they introduced the contestants, when they got to Clint, the host asked him if he was related to the Marriage Match couple from last night. Russell and I cheered and Clint just said yes. See I told you we were famous. Clint's group ended up winning because the old guy with the sexy legs (remember him) was a pro at Minute to Win It.
After Clint's game, we all went up on the deck for our daily ice cream and fries.
While we were up there, we got to see these guys sculpt these ice blocks into ice sculptures. This was so amazing! They did it so fast too. The ice sculptures turned out to be a fish and a rooster. It was so cool!
Before heading to our final dining of the cruise, Russell and I decided to take some fun pictures with our champagne.
Hey, what happens on the cruise ship, stays on the cruise ship, right?!
Since basically all of us participated in the game shows, we all won champagne bottles so we all got some funny pictures.
These guys were really fun to hang out with and they really made the cruise fun. It was nice to just let go and have fun with everyone. Clint, Haley, Stuart, and Jacee also had a great time hanging out together. They are really good friends and get along really well. Their favorite phrase during the trip was "DINK." This stands for double income no kids. These two couples just had fun with no worries. #Dinks! Russell and I were glad to be included with the dinks in these pictures and in the other fun activities on the cruise.
The final day at the dining was also really good.
For dessert we had Baked Alaska and the servers put on a parade as they served the Baked Alaska. Charlotte was really surprised by the size of the Baked Alaska. Logan, on the other hand, was really tired and decided to take a nap instead.
After dinner we had to get a picture with our great servers. These two really took care of us each night. They looked forward to seeing us and knew exactly what we wanted and how we liked everything. They were so good with the kids and the kids loved them too. We decided to give them one of our champagne bottles and thank you notes from each of us at the end.
That night, the kids had a fun pajama party in their Kid's room. They loved going to this area and hanging out with other kids. Throughout the week, they played fun games, watched movies, and made a lot of fun crafts. They even made a few friends that they liked seeing at other areas on the ship like the pool and buffet.
While the kids were at their Kid's areas, Russell and I packed everything and got ready for departure the next day. We had a great time on the cruise and we were sad it was over. Before heading to bed, we had to stop in for one last ice cream.
The next morning, we got up really early and had breakfast. We were back in Los Angeles, CA. By 8:00 we were on our way off the ship and heading to our van. We left our second champagne bottle for our room attendant. He really took care of us too. This was such a great trip. We loved every minute. The kids have been talking about this cruise every minute of everyday since then. Charlotte especially loved it and asks us everyday when we are going on another cruise. She remembers details of the cruise and tells us all about it whenever we talk. I am so glad we were able to go on this cruise. I was really worried about it before we left but everything turned out just fine and we had an absolute blast. So now to plan our next cruise!
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