CRUISE 2016

We were SO SO SO lucky to go on an amazing vacation with my family (Dad, Mom, Brooke, Clarke, Grandma & Grandpa Shields) in October. I was really nervous to travel with Ruby and unsure about how she would behave...but she was a rockstar! Travis and I were in total disbelief how well behaved and happy she was. She was probably better behaved than most of the adults on the trip! Clearly the trip had a pretty big impact on her because not a day goes by where she doesn't say one of the following phrases:
"Look! My airplane! Come to take me to holidays"
"I went on a biiiiiiig boat!"
"The bird ate the fish right out of my hand!" (more on this later)
"Let's get on the bus to Mexico"
"I slept on the top (bunk)!" 
"I ate sketti (spaghetti) on my big boat"
"I'll put on my cloud jammies so we can go on holidays"
She will gladly talk your leg off about this trip - even months later!! We had a blast! (I am finally getting around to blogging about it - I am the worst!) Hopefully I remember all of the important parts - I will spare you the embarrassing amount of food pictures I took!

Our trip started by getting on a PARTY BUS - because we travel in style! We Rode up to Calgary in the middle of the night to catch an early flight to LAX. I was hoping to sleep on the car ride & plane, but Ruby was way too excited to sit still! (Plus Finding Dory was on...so who could really blame her!) Once we got to LA we were off to the cruise terminal. We traveled on the RUBY PRINCESS ship. I am not even lying. The staff of the boat would come up and ask Ruby what her name was and the conversation would go as follows:
Staff: Hey cutie, what is your name??
Ruby: Ruby!
Staff: Like the boat??

This happened at least once a day. It never got old. There was also another little baby on the boat named Ruby! By the end of the trip she literally thought the boat was hers. She is Princess Ruby. 

Ruby's first airplane ride, Dory headphones, waiting in the cruise terminal & first dinner. Her hair was crazy, she was so loopy and then a waiter made her a kitty out of a napkin and kept meowing every time he went past our table. She was SO confused!! It was hilarious. 

Enjoying the view, ice cream all day every day and treats with auntie!

Eating & drinking all day...what more could a pregnant lady want?? 

 Our first stop was San Francisco. This was our first time going and I for sure want to go back one day! We weren't sure what to do, so we just got off the shipped and walked around. We ended up walking to find a mall, got a little bit lost and then hopped on a bus to Pier 49 where there are lots of cute shops & yummy seafood. We ate the most delicious clam chowder & fish tacos! This was Ruby's first time on a city bus - so much excitement!! We drove through Chinatown and it looked amazing! Something I would explore in the future. I would also like to do a tour of Alcatraz next time! A really cool city! (And yes, Ruby recognized Starbucks and we had to stop!)

San Fran!

Fun on the boat! Mini-golf and movies on the deck!!

 Our second stop was Santa Barbara. HOLY so beautiful. It was such a relaxing and picture perfect place - I would for sure go again!! We walked along the beach, found some shopping (luckily Grandma found a replacement George stuffed animal from Peppa Pig...Ruby's was left on the plane and hadn't noticed he was missing yet!!) and went to a cute aquarium right on the beach! It was a beautiful day. Ruby could not get enough of the sand and ocean! 21 weeks pregnant here! I was so lucky to be feeling fantastic on the trip. 

At the Aquarium - we touched a shark!

 Next stop: Sea World! I love Sea World!! We debated between doing the San Diego Zoo or Sea World and I am so glad we picked to go back to Sea World. (the fact that Ruby is obsessed with Finding Dory was a key factor) It was so fun watching her run from each exhibit and naming all of the animals ("Look mom! Hank! Look Mom! Gerald! Look mom! Bailey! Look Mom! Becky! - Find Dory characters for you sheltered people!) Plus there were rides! I was so sad I couldn't go on them - dang baby! The best part of the day was when we were just about done and we were waiting at the Sea Lions for everyone to come meet up. You could pay $5 for 4 little fish to feed the Sea Lions - so Ruby suckered my Dad in to buying an obscene amount of fishies. (Literally we spent more money on those fish than we did on food for ourselves that day!!) We were holding her over the glass to drop in the fish - the sea lions were going nuts, they were SO cute - when all of the sudden a bird swooped in and took the fish right out of Ruby's hand!! It was hilarious and Ruby was just like "hey!!" I'm just glad the bird left her fingers!! It was a long day but so much fun. We all slept very good that night!!

I'm actually not sure who had a better time...Ruby or Travis!!

 Our last stop was in Ensenada Mexico. I didn't take any pictures because I felt extremely sick that day - I almost didn't get off the boat! We went in and ended up taking an hour bus ride out to "the blow hole" - basically a geyser (not super exciting as we had been there on our last cruise) and a flea market. It is always fun to see all of the junk in the market. Plus they have a ton of fake stuff that claim to be Prada, Michael Kors and all of the fancy brands! The only thing I got suckered into buying was this silly little Mexican doll. Ruby saw it and was so excited, so we went up to look at it and then she says "mom, I need my money so I can buy that dolly and take it to my house". Are you kidding me?? How could I say no to that?? So I bought a silly over priced mexican doll. Which she named buoy (Boo-ee). This girl kills me.

During the 7 day cruise I only felt sick one day - so grateful!! We had such a blast! I thought it might be weird doing a cruise with stops in the USA, but it was awesome. I would 100% do this cruise again. Most of the passengers on the boat were actually from the LA area and a couple we met actually told us they take this cruise a few times a year. What a life!! But really, that would be like us going on a week to Banff. (I'll take the cruise please!) Plus it was very convenient to have normal shopping! For example - we had to make a diaper run at Walgreens! Ruby was basically potty trained before the trip, but once we were there - it was all out the window. uhhh. I had packed enough pull-ups & diapers for night time and a few spares, but it was easier to just forgo the underwear after so many accidents. (plus her food & drink intake was WAY up on the trip, so she was going 10 times more a day!!) 
One of my favorite memories from the trip is one night we were saying family prayer and Ruby insisted she said it and she said (without help): "Bless the food, thank you for corn dogs, thank you for dancers, thank you for nephi amen" I was in tears from the sweetness & hilarity. For the record, she had eaten one corn dog in her entire life - weeks before the trip! We also had taken her to one of the shows on the boat with the dancers and she sat in total awe the entire show - literally hands cradling her face, eyes wide and a big smile. It was the sweetest thing to see. Unfortunately the kids program on the boat was only for kids 3+ so they would only let her into play if I stayed with her. We only went the one day to make a craft because we were always on the go and didn't have time! Thankfully Ruby passed right out on the flight & drive back home. When we got back to Lethbridge she asked if she could get back on her boat. It was such an amazing experience and I cannot wait to make more memories with my kids on vacations! Truly unforgettable!! 

You know how they always take your picture on cruise ships? And then they charge $20 per picture?? How could I not buy that picture of her sweet face!! Sums up her feeling on the trip perfectly!!