Getting Carnival Vista Ready #10… Let the packing begin.

I have had plenty of time to choose my clothes, shoes, and accessories. Now it is time to start packing.

For this cruise, I decided to use packing cubes. This is something very new to me so I’m not sure exactly how it will work out, but I’m going to give try it. I started out by ordering some GONEX packing cubes from WalMart. It comes in 3 sizes and in a variety of colors. Since I would need to order some for my mother to try, I order 3 in different colors, Blue, Yellow, and a turquoise color. I received them very quickly and decided to give them a trial run. I tried rolling my clothes and I tried just folding my clothes. I have decided that these will not work for me for a 7-day cruise but can still be used for the smaller items. I next turned to Target and found some things I thought would work great for my husband and I so I ordered said items. I was able to use the extra large and large cubes to fit my clothes in.

I decided to use the large cube for what I consider daytime clothes… shorts and shirts to wear around the ship and at the various ports of call. I tried the rolling technique and the regular folding and found that regular folding works out best for me. Everything fit in the cube nicely and doesn’t feel like they clothes are shoved into the cube.

I used the extra-large cube for the evening clothes which are the outfits I will be wearing to dinner and around the ship afterwards. My cruise-elegant dresses will be packed in a regular garment bag. The evening clothes fit nicely into the extra large cube and I can probably add some more to it if I wanted to. But I don’t want to. I’m trying NOT to over-pack on this cruise. I guess time will tell if I have succeeded or not!!!

I purchased a bead container at Hobby Lobby along with some plastic bags to use for my jewelry as I have seen people on YouTube use them with great success. I was amazed with how easily everything fit into the container and now I do not have to worry about anything becoming tangled!!!

My travel first kit has been packed and is busting at the seams!!! But keep in mind, I’m packing for 9 and I feel the need to be prepared for any emergency that may come along. I am keeping everything in a cosmetic case I purchased at Tuesday Morning. Everything fits in nicely unless I think of some other items I might need.

I am using a ditty bag I found at Tuesday Morning for our suntan lotions and after sun lotion. Everything fits in nicely and will come in handy while hanging out on deck or on the beach. There is also enough room for the mosquito repellent wipes I purchased, but not for the Bugables. So it looks like I need to do some more shopping!!!

And last of this packing series, I have packed my hair care products into a cosmetic bag I purchased at Tuesday Morning. Everything fits well and will be easy to access for our pre-cruise stay.

In the next segment of Getting Carnival Vista Ready, I hope to be able to pack my cosmetic bag and also our overnight bag. Plus some other essentials I will be taking and how I hope to pack them.

Getting Carnival Vista ready #7 – what I will be packing for the daytime fun!

I have been planning on this cruise since we book it over 14 months ago. To say I’m excited would be an understatement. You would think it is my first cruise, but it isn’t. But this cruise will definitely be different as we are traveling as a 4-generation family. My grandchildren have never been on a cruise and I can hardly wait to see their faces when we first get on the ship. I hope they are filled with as much excitement as we will be!

Most of my days on a ship are usually spent on one of the upper decks catching some rays. I’m hoping this trip will be much like the others have been. As crazy as this may sound, I have selected 2 pairs of shorts and 4 tops that will be worn on the sea days and while we are at Mahogany Bay. I have also picked out a pair of shorts and top for our time in Belize and Cozumel. So that is a total of 4 pairs of shorts and 6 tops.

This is my selection for Belize. Now, in all honesty, there is a possibility that I will just stay on the ship on this day. But then again, I might take the tender and check things out at the port area. It just depends on my mother and how she is able to navigate here and there.

This is my selection for Cozumel. I know we will be doing shopping in town and maybe some in port area when we return.

Sea days will definitely require a swimsuit and I have 2 that I will be taking along with 2 cover-ups.

Stay tuned for the next installment which will be my even attire selections. Over-packing is alive and well and living in my house!!!!

Modified Keto day 14… Family birthdays, and mom’s dementia.

Some days I feel like I’m in a rut. Doing the same things over and over and over. Like my morning coffee. Like deciding on continuing with the diet or try something else. In all honesty, today I didn’t eat anything until around 5 pm. And then it wasn’t much. But I’m just not feeling myself. I’m feeling bloated. And with that feeling comes the feeling of being defeated. Hopefully tomorrow, these feeling will be gone and I will have a much better day and week on my modified Keto journey. At least that is what I am hoping for.

Today was a fun and somewhat productive day. I managed to design our tumblers for our upcoming Carnival Vista cruise. It is the first time I have used my Cricut Explore Air to cut vinyl. I have completed one tumbler and even though it isn’t perfect, it will work perfectly for my needs.

My plan is to put things on the tumblers that are what my family wants on theirs. So the variety includes a cruise ship, a couple of dolphins, a whale, a flamingo, a ships wheel, and a 3 anchors. And each tumbler will also have everyone’s name on them. Everything has been cut but I have not had the chance to put them on the tumblers. Hopefully that will happen tomorrow.

This afternoon was fun. We had family birthday’s at my sister-in-law and brother-in-laws house. We celebrated birthdays for my brother-in-law, my daughter, and my granddaughter Victoria. This is always fun and there is always plenty of food.

On our way home, we had to stop at CVS to pick up a prescription for my mother. She wasn’t expecting us to come over, but when we got there she was happy to see us. She didn’t know she had a prescription ready but she told me she was out of a lot of her medications. My mother’s dementia seems to be getting worse. She hasn’t driven in over, no longer manages her medications, and does not manage her finances. But she thinks she can do anything and everything. Vascular Dementia is sad to witness. We know that one day we will have to make some decisions about where she will be living. But for right now, she is able to take care of her basic needs. She does not cook for herself but we make sure she has plenty to eat.

My mother is very excited about our upcoming cruise. Of course she thinks she needs new everything for the trip!!! While I was at her house, we did some online shopping and got her some casual things to wear in the evening. Now all she needs are some shorts and some dainty things and she should be good to go!!!

My hope for this cruise is that she makes some memories that will stay in her mind for a very long time. My mom, daughter, granddaughters, and I will be making scrapbook pages after our cruise. I hope that will help her with retaining the memories we make.