Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, Spain - Mediterranean Cruise

Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, Spain - March 2

Las Palmas was beautiful!  We did another taxi tour.  We found that if you have more than 2 people it is often cheaper to take a taxi to see everything you want to see.  You also get a more personalized tour and are able to go at the pace you want to go.  Our driver was fantastic!  We took a 3.5 hour tour here in a nice, clean, and comfortable taxi for the same price we paid in Casablanca.

Here we went to the Botanical Gardens in La Calzada (Jardin Canario), the largest botantical gardens in Spain.  Our driver took us along a winding road to look out above the volcanic Caldera of Bandama.  He drove us through the oldest quarter of the town called Vegueta to see Columbus' house and the Cathedral.  We went to Teror Village and saw the square and the church.  Then we went by Arcus, the stone church. 

Jardin Canario

Entrance to Jardin Canario

Caden waving "hello" in the square

Arcus, stone church

Christopher Columbus' house 

- the house he lived before he came to America

Our ship, the Norwegian Jade

Funchal, Madeira, Portugal - Mediterranean Cruise

Funchal, Madeira, Portugal - March 3, 2010

Portugal is one of my favorite countries and the island of Funchal did not disappoint.  It was my favorite port.  Not only was it absolutely breathtaking beautiful but the people were very friendly.  We took another private taxi tour and were blessed with another wonderful driver.  He told us that Funchal does not have a lot of crime and generally people look after each other.  Don't you wish your neighbors were all like that?

Our driver took us to the Botanical Gardens with more than 2,000 plants.  The garden was on a mountainous hill and had beautiful plants and amazing views.  We spent a little over an hour there.  We then went to the Village of Monte where we road a tobaggan on wicker sledges downhill back to Livramento.  The tobaggan ride was a lot of fun!  This was the main thing I wanted to do here.  Last, we went to Cabo Girao, Europe's highest sea cliff at 1900 ft.  Cabo Girao is the second highest sea cliff in the world, the tallest is only 3 meters higher.  The views were absolutely amazing!

Pictures from the botantical gardens

Pretty church my dad and I went to while Collin, Cathy, and Caden waited in line to ride the tobaggans

The tobaggan ride was a lot of fun!!

Views from Cabo Girao

View from our balcony

Malaga, Spain - Mediterranean Cruise

Malaga, Spain - March 5, 2010

We decided to take a 40 minute horse carriage ride around Malaga and saw La Alcazaba, the Cathedral, Plaza de Toros (La Malagueta), and Playa La Malagueta.  Caden seemed to enjoy the ride, this was his first time to ride a horse, or a carriage pulled by a horse.  Then we walked around the city and passed Museum Picasso and visited Pablo Picasso's birthplace.  His house was not very impressive, but his art was neat to look at and some of it honestly looked like something a child would draw.  I guess if you live during the right time you can make big bucks or someone makes big bucks off your work once you die.  We also went into a run down mall and bought a snack at a local Dunk n' Donuts, it's not the same food, I got a smoothie and it was horrible!  Everyone else got coffee and a donut.  We had a nice time in Malaga.

One more thing, I also decided to get a haircut in Malaga.  I don't know why I like to get my haircut in any country but Germany but I do.  I don't speak Spanish very well but thankfully Collin is fluent.  So he told the man what I wanted and the guy did a great job.  The only thing different was the man who cut my hair sat down to do it.  Don't most people stand?  Oh well, for 17 Euros you can't beat it!

Castle

At the beach

On the horse carriage

In front of Picasso's house

View from across the street of Picasso's house

Malaga from our balcony on the ship

Before haircut

After haircut, I have a funny smile but I think the guy did a good job.

I will post our ports of call as five separate entries since there are so many pictures I would like to share.  Then I plan on doing one more cruise blog post of our time in Barcelona as Part 3.  Thanks for reading.  I know it's a lot!

Our Ship - Mediterranean Cruise

We just got back from a wonderful western Mediterranean cruise. Thankfully we were not cruising on Louis Cruises (the cruise ship that got hit by three "abnormally high" waves that broke windows in the front of the ship and killed two people. Our condolences go out to the families and friends of those who lost someone that night. The night people died on Louis Cruises the waves were really strong where we were too. Poor Caden was getting tossed around in his crib so we moved him to our bed. Most of our cruise was pretty smooth. The fact the waves got high enough to break windows of a cruise ship is very rare, cruising still is one of the safest and best ways to travel in our opinion.  Plus it's cheaper in general and the food is really good!

We sailed for 9 days on the Norwegian Jade. My parents joined us in Barcelona and we spent two nights before and one night after the cruise exploring the city. Because we did so much I will write several blog posts over this coming week giving snippets of our trip. Most of the pictures I will post on Facebook. But you can see a few here and later this week I'll post links to some really cool photosynths that Collin is making.

This was Caden's first cruise and for an eight month old he did great! This was Collin and mine's third cruise.  The past two cruises we only booked an ocean view but this time wanted to get a balcony so we could go somewhere and talk at night after Caden went to bed.  After talking with my step-mother, Cathy, who is a cruise specialist, we decided to share a penthouse suite with my parents because we would have a lot more space than booking two balconies. Thanks Dad and Cathy for the suggestion!  Our suite had two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a dining area, and a living room. We also had a butler, something we've never had on a cruise ship before. I highly recommend getting a suite! The master bedroom and bathroom in which my parents so generously let us have for 8 of the 9 nights was very spacious! It fit Caden's crib nicely. From the shower you had a huge window looking out on the ocean, the same from the nice big bathtub. Our suite had a private balcony and four televisions! Crazy! We still do not allow Caden to watch TV. However, two of the TVs had DVD players and we could rent movies from our ship to watch for free. So most nights after putting Caden to bed, Collin and I watched a movie in the living room or sat and talked while my parents went to a show or other evening event.  Our ship also had a tennis court and my dad and I played a set.  Collin hit a few tennis balls with my dad and Caden enjoyed playing on the court and learning the game while we were waiting to get the tennis rackets.

A few other perks of our suite included breakfast and lunch in an exclusive dining room along with other people staying in suites. We had a butler like I mentioned before and we had VIP services. Which means we didn't have to wait long to get on and off the ship and you get discounts on some spa treatments. Collin bought me a spa package and I got a hot stone massage and a facial. Both were really nice. I was hoping the hot stone massage would have been better for the price. But both were very relaxing. Thanks Collin!

Our ship stopped at 5 ports (6 if you include Barcelona). We went to Casablanca and Agadir (Morocco), Malaga (Spain), Grand Canary Island, and Funchal (Portugal). We were not too impressed with Morocco but the other ports were really nice.  Our favorites were Grand Canary and Funchal.  It was a great 9 day/night cruise!

It was a little more challenging traveling with a baby. However, with the suite Caden had plenty of room to crawl around in our cabin so he wouldn't be crawling on the yucky floors of the ship. They may look clean but these people come from all over the world! Norwegian also had a Zoo for under 2. It was a play room with lots of toys and books for children under 2. Parents have to stay with their children but the play area was covered with mats and Caden really enjoyed going there. Once your kid is older than 2 there is childcare services available where you can leave your children and go on a date or take a shore excursion. This will be nice once Caden is a little older.  Some cruise lines such as Disney and Royal Carribean offer babysitting starting at 6 months or 1 year.

We had to pack a lot of stuff. We brought diapers, wipes, and baby food from Germany. Caden has very sensitive skin and we couldn't risk having food allergies or reactions to baby food, wipes, and diapers from Spain. We also brought him a bag of toys and several of his favorite books. We took his stroller and infant car seat (since they fit together) and he thankfully got a seat on the airplane both ways. We bought an Ergo Baby which makes traveling in Europe a lot easier with a baby when visiting cities that are not stroller friendly. Collin, my dad, and I took turns carrying him when we didn't bring the stroller. He was able to take naps in his carrier which was nice.

Overall I would recommend cruising with a baby and older children. We are looking forward to going on another one. It should be easier once he is no longer eating baby food. He did try several new things while on the ship. I gave him grilled salmon several different times and he loved it. I also mashed a banana for him to feed himself and he drank out of a cup most of the time. He really did fantastic. The other cruisers and staff loved him. Plus it was nice for him to see and play with his grandparents.

Here are some pictures from the ship. I'll write about the ports we visited in the next blog entries. 

Caden with his grandparents

Grand-Cathy and Caden in our suite on the ship

Caden looking at the rabbit towel animal, so cute!

Daddy and Caden hanging out on the balcony

Granddad and Caden on the tennis court

Collin took this picture of us while we were standing on our balcony, we were on deck 11

Caden playing in the Zoo under 2

This was such a good dessert we had to take a picture

This was just Collin's meal! He ordered this at the Mexican specialty restaurant and nobody was expecting this much food!  See the meat hanging down?

We ate at one of the other specialty restaurants, the Italian one.  The food on the ship was very good!

Happy Birthday Collin!

Collin's birthday is today and although our plans didn't go as we had hoped.  The restaurant ended up being closed today that Collin wanted to eat dinner at and I didn't make him a cake (he wanted me to wait).  We still had a great day and I wanted to share with you a few wonderful things about him that you may or may not know.

Collin is the best friend I know.  He genuinely cares about people and tries to help others when he can.

Collin is a great dad and is funny.  I love watching Collin and Caden play.  Collin can get the biggest and longest laughs out of Caden.  It is so cute and funny to watch!

Collin is a hard worker.  When he does something he puts 110% in it.  He wants to make sure something is done right and will put forth the extra effort to accomplish that.  He also works hard to provide a good living for our family and thanks me in return for my hard work at home.  I know a lot of guys don't show their appreciation to their wives.  But as any mom out there knows, taking care of a baby is no easy or light task!

Collin is one of the smartest people I know.  Not only does he pick up new languages he also has a great memory and knows about a lot of things.  I love listening to him give a sermon or teach a class.  I love just sitting and talking to him.  I learn something new pretty much every day from him.

Collin is very good looking!  This comes as no surprise because you all have seen his picture.  It's so nice to be married to a handsome man!  =)  The nice thing about it is he doesn't let his good looks get the best of him. 

Collin believes in me.  He is very supportive of my dreams and ideas.  He encourages me to be the best I can be and to go after my goals.

Collin is a Christian.  I have to add this because I truly believe that all of the good that comes out of him is from God.  He strives to be like Christ and tries to love me like Christ loved the church.

There are many more wonderful things about Collin but I am going to end here and just remind the world that I love this man!!  Happy birthday Collin!!  I hope you had a great birthday!  I am so glad you were born today. 

The past 8 have been great!

Caden is 8 months old today. This past month he has really developed a lot more skills. He is so much fun to have around! We love playing, singing, reading, and enjoying life. Here is an overview of some of his new milestones:

- Caden can crawl forward! This past week he finally discovered he could move forward. He not only crawls on his hands and knees but also in a bear crawl (knees off the ground). It's so funny to watch. The ladies at the nursery who watch him while I attend MOPS and my ladies' Bible study say he's really strong and it won't be too long before he's walking.

- Now Caden can feed himself cheerios. A few weeks ago we decided to introduce him to a few finger foods and this was the first one. He can now pick up a cheerio and put it in his mouth.

- He drinks water from a sippy cup all by himself. I'm still breastfeeding so between feedings and with his meals he gets water in a sippy cup.

- He eats two meals a day of solid foods. On average he eats about 2 Tbs of dry grains mixed with water and two Tbs of a fruit or vegetables or a mix of the two.

- He can take a few steps while we hold his hands. It's so cute how he pulls himself up and wants to try and walk with our help. He can also now walk backwards in his walker.

- He can go from tummy to sitting. He practiced this a lot once he discovered he could lay flat on his belly and then sit up. When he first did it I was super surprised and excited. No more "forced" tummy time, he now gets plenty on his own.

- He is babbling more. He'll say "ahh, baa, caa, daa, hi, hey, dada, daddy, and several other babble sounds." Still no mama or ma, just maaahhh when he's upsit and wants me. It's in a cry form so I don't know if that really counts.

- He can bring his hands together and bang two objects together.

- He now has 8 teeth! Yes, that's right, 8! He had been teething and drooling so much for months. I'm so glad his teeth have finally decided to make their presence known. He has 6 on top and 2 on bottom.

We took him to the doctor yesterday because he has a cold and were able to get his 8th month growth measurements. They are:

- 29.33 inches (87th percentile)
- 21.67 pounds (76th percentile)

Caden is still a big healthy boy. Sadly he has a cold but he's getting better everyday. He really grew a lot the first few months he was born and is now on a more slow and steady pace.

A few more notable things:

- He wears size 12 month clothes
- He sleeps 10-12 hours through the night and takes 2 naps a day, one morning and one afternoon anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours.

We are enjoying parenthood and really love our sweet baby. Caden is so much fun to have. We're looking forward to seeing my parents next week. The hardest thing about living in Germany is not being around our family and friends.

Here are some recent pictures of our sweet baby.

You can see my two front teeth!

Caden likes standing

I love his laugh and smile!

This was after his haircut, he was really tired

Caden the morning before his haircut, he has a lot of hair! =)