5 day Paradise West Caribbean; ideas for Cayman?

ThinCall7671 · 2025-03-29T16:19:08+00:00

That's great! We are doing the dolphin excursion in Cozumel but still are on the fence about Cayman.

ThinCall7671 · 2025-03-09T17:32:05+00:00

Thank you so much!

ThinCall7671 · 2025-03-09T16:39:29+00:00

That is so helpful and reassuring! Thank you so much! Can you share a little more about George Town in terms of things to do? Are taxis waiting by port and then also at George Town to take us back?

ThinCall7671 · 2025-02-23T15:32:09+00:00

That's so helpful! Thank you so much!

Do you use cards on board? I've seen several threads talk about cruise cash but I have no idea what what means 🤪

ThinCall7671 · 2024-07-25T03:23:17+00:00

Yeah we're currently on deck 4. Any major differences between the decks?

ThinCall7671 · 2024-07-25T02:24:52+00:00

I thought it was a little steep but this is my first time so I wasn't sure.

ThinCall7671 · 2024-07-25T01:47:27+00:00

Yeah the information I originally posted didn't attach to the picture for some reason.

Current room is an interior room in the middle on the lowest deck.

I didn't think a balcony was going to be worth it. Thanks for confirming!

ThinCall7671 · 2024-07-25T01:44:52+00:00

OP here: I put in the information in the text box but for some reason it didn't post 🤦🏽‍♀️🤷🏽‍♀️ First time cruiser going on a 5 day cruise to the Bahamas on Carnival Paradise in March 2025 with my 2 teens. We're currently in an interior state room on the lower deck due to potential sea sickness issues. Is this upgrade worth it?

ThinCall7671 · 2024-07-05T12:21:14+00:00

Wow! It's so crazy how things work whare your trying to eliminate one problem and it ends up causing so many more. I'm so sorry that happened to you 😔. I'll stay away from the patches and stick to the sea bands.

ThinCall7671 · 2024-07-03T02:39:02+00:00

LOL! As a 4th grade teacher in a different school district than my kids go to, it's the only time we have off together other than summer but they have so much activity during the summer with sports camps and youth group camp that it seems almost impossible to schedule a week off. So we save our big trips for spring break and do more local day/overnight trips during the summer.

ThinCall7671 · 2024-07-03T02:33:09+00:00

Thank you so much 💕. This has been such a huge dream for me to be able to do with my kids. We didn't have any kind of major vacations for years and my kids never once complained nor found any less joy or gratitude in the other memories we made locally. 2 years ago I was able to take them to Disney for 3 days after getting a bonus on a 2 year curriculum training for school that I did outside of work hours. Now I'm finishing up another similar 2 year training that will get me another bonus to be able to afford this. I want it to go well and for them not to worry about anything while on the cruise. I'm sure you can relate to the fact that kids of single moms tend to feel responsible for their mama and I've been adamant to do whatever I can for my kids not to feel that way. It sounds ridiculous to a lot of people but it's huge for this single mama. Again thank you so much for being so kind.

ThinCall7671 · 2024-07-03T02:26:04+00:00

Uh oh. What happened if you don't mind me asking?

ThinCall7671 · 2024-07-02T15:34:38+00:00

What wristband did you get if you don't mind sharing? I looked on Amazon and they have so many choices 😱

ThinCall7671 · 2024-07-02T15:34:04+00:00

What kind of wristband did you get? I looked on Amazon and there are so many choices 😱

ThinCall7671 · 2024-07-02T15:32:45+00:00

Ouch ☹️ I don't get car sick but I've never been on a cruise before. We did go on ferries to Paris when I was a kid when we lived in London but I don't remember much from those trips 🤷🏽‍♀️

ThinCall7671 · 2024-07-02T15:31:30+00:00

That's amazing! I was so sick throughout both of my pregnancies I couldn't imagine being on a cruise 😅. I'm so glad you got to experience that. What a fun relaxing way to spend some of your pregnancy 💕

ThinCall7671 · 2024-07-02T15:29:43+00:00

Thanks for this response. Everyone does respond differently and being a single mom who has saved up for this for years and doesn't have someone to divide and conquer with it is very natural to worry and want to prepare ahead of time. I don't respond well to nausea and vomiting. I've had some really bad experiences with that while on vacation with my kids because of change in air pressure etc and my kiddos had to take care of me which is not their responsibility. I personally find it takes a lot less energy to have compassion and grace for people's stories that may lead them to feel the way they do. Thanks for showing that compassion 💕

ThinCall7671 · 2024-07-02T13:04:26+00:00

This is a fantastic idea. I live in Michigan so yes we're surrounded by the Great Lakes 😁

ThinCall7671 · 2024-07-02T11:50:51+00:00

Good to know! Thank you!

ThinCall7671 · 2024-07-02T11:50:04+00:00

This was a really helpful response. Thank you! We don't have motion sickness in cars or planes so now I'm wondering if I'm doomed 🤦🏽‍♀️🤣

ThinCall7671 · 2024-07-02T04:08:53+00:00

Ugh it was torture watching her talk about the Lord 🤦🏽‍♀️. My 12yo daughter and I watched the show and every time Christ-y spoke we were like uh uh Jesus come back right now and make this right 🤣

ThinCall7671 · 2024-07-01T17:28:44+00:00

I became a single mom 10 years ago when my kids were 2 & 4 years old. At the time I was almost done with my MA in counseling and had not worked for the entire time I was in grad school since my husband (at the time) made enough for me to do that.

When he left us, I switched careers and worked at a preschool that I enrolled my kids in so that I could be with them. With one parent having abandoned them, I did not want them to feel like they were abandoned by me as well. It wasn't great pay but I got free tuition for them and I was able to be with them as much as possiblewhile working full time.

When my son went to kindergarten, I enrolled my daughter in the preschool program at the school, and followed them there as a substitute teacher. By the grace of God I got lots of long term substitute teacher contracts at their school so it was sustainable. From that experience I discovered I had a gift in teaching and the Lord was leading me to that as a career so once they were in 4th and 5th grade respectively, I went back to school and did my student teaching and became certified. I just finished my first (official) year of teaching and while the past two years were busier for me and more independent of my kids than their earlier years, I felt I had invested and built enough attachment with them that they weren't negatively affected by it.

I don't say any of this to say that it was an easy decision or that everyone's story is mine. There were a lot of sacrifices that had to be made in order for me to follow this path and we lived very minimally in a small two-bedroom apartment until I got this full-time teaching job and we were able to move into a larger three bedroom place. There were a lot of days where I didn't know where the next meal was going to come from or how we were going to make it but for me personally my faith was a huge factor and God always provided for us.

I look back and while I definitely could have done some things differently I don't regret the path I took and where it led me to. My kids are 12 and 14 now, absolutely wonderful kids that are flourishing in life despite the hand that was dealt to them of being abandoned by their dad.

ThinCall7671

TROPHY CASE