Saturday, August 24, 2013

Boarding the JEWEL - 236/365

Today was the day we FINALLY got to board the big ship! 
We have all been waiting on this day for over a YEAR! 
We knew the ship would be coming in, in the wee hours of the morning. We kept waking up in the middle of the night, peeking out our window. Finally, around 5:00am we got our first peek of her. She was so far out, that we weren’t even sure it was the ship. After waiting a few minutes, there was no mistaking it. Nana was on her balcony a few down and we both started jumping up and down!
It was just amazing to see it pulling up to the dock right out front. How they maneuver something the size of a small town is beyond me.
We all got up, packed and headed over to the pier around 11:00am. Check-in was a breeze and we were on the ship, having our first drink, in minutes. We were sitting in the lounge waiting for the rest of the crew, when my mom’s phone rang. She said "hello", then her face went stone cold and she said, “What!? OMG, are you serious!?” Here, Ed, doesn’t have a passport and didn’t bring his birth certificate with him. They told him he couldn’t board the ship without a birth certificate! So, basically, he flew all the way to Seattle for nothing, or so we thought! Thankfully, they just kept begging and requesting a boss, of a boss, of a boss, until they got to the captain of the ship. After much begging and an $80 birth record search, the captain cleared him to board!!! WOO HOO! We all went down to meet them in the Crystal Atrium and were clapping like crazy! We would have missed him like CRAZY! We can’t have family fun without Eddie! 
Reagan and Jim actually got a little swimming in today, too! They went after we got settled and had the whole place to themselves! They had a great time!
Our rooms were finally ready, so we headed down to check it out. The suite was amazing! Jim and I, Nana and Papa, and Reagan, we all had our own rooms which was wonderful! We really had a lot of space! There was actually a bottle of chilling champagne waiting for us. Papa, decided to crack it open for us! He popped the top and it blasted out of his hand, right past Jim's eye and into the ceiling. It actually made a tiny dent. We were absolutely howling! It was HILARIOUS! It was so loud it sounded like a bomb went off. He said he's never had one get away from him like that! LMAO!
Soon enough, it was time for the sail away party. What fun that was! They have a big BBQ by the pool, with music and dancing. Reagan was INTO it! Dora made a quick appearance, too! Reagan shouted, “DORA! Look there is her backpack!” It was adorable! 
After a while, we went down and did a little dancing, too! Reagan was a favorite of a little Asian lady named Donna. She danced and danced with Reagan. They had a good time! We didn’t think Donna would ever give her back! If Reagan went missing, we knew to check Donna’s room! 
This evening, we just all unpacked and hit the buffet for a snack. 
We had a full day, but a fun day! Especially, since everyone made it on board!! 
We can't wait to fully explore the ship and bring on Alaska!!! 
The photo of the day is Reagan and her buddy, Donna, from the sail away party.
Next is Eddie and Reagan! We are thrilled he made it on board! 
 

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