Holy violent North Pacific batman! Waking up, I thought my ride on the nausea express was over. I showered, and got Taylor ready and we met the rest of the gang in the dining room for breakfast. Dad, however, went to the spa. He had a massage appointment. He was very easy to locate for most of the cruise, because he spent all morning in the spa and evenings in between dinner while Taylor was being put down to bed in the casino. I had no idea he was such a spa/massage fanatic. He even showered there. I think he enjoyed the hot tub too, which had a view.
At breakfast, it hit me again. I barely was able to touch my bagel. Susan and Donna assured me that Taylor would be in good hands, so I quickly made my way back to the room. I'd forgotten my key, but I saw the room steward and seeing how green or stark white (not sure which) he let me into the room. I'd taken some motion sickness pills at breakfast, so I hung the privacy sign outside of the room and went back to sleep. I woke up at 11:30, feeling a lot better. Noon was the suite lunch in the dining room, so I attempted to track the crew down for that. I went to the dining room first, no sign. I scoured the 4th and 5th decks, no sign. Back to the dining room, no sign. Up to the lido deck...Jackpot! Everyone had forgotten the lunch. I was hurriedly looking and didn't realize that I was hot and almost sweaty from running around the ship. I'd just missed Susan, who had gone back to look for me in the room. I went to the room, leaving Dad and Donna and Ray (Susan's father), and the steward told me I'd just missed her. Back at the lido deck, I gathered the troops to go down to the restaurant, as I was sure Susan would have seen my note in the room that I'd gone to the dining room. Finally, we were all together. Lunch found me starving, from the little I'd ate last night and in the morning. I had two servings of the carved filet, which was delicious. After sharing a plate of desert with everyone, I took Taylor back to the room for her nap; as she was getting cranky. Dinner was a formal affair, and I was looking forward to dressing Taylor up more than I was myself. She was absolutely beautiful in her brown dress, and fancy shoes. All that she passed on the way marveled at her. People love babies, especially those in the twilight of their own lives. It's just what the represent, I guess. A clean slate, a hope, and unabated joy. It's a good thing for her that she is so beautiful, because her behavior at dinner wasn't the most impressive I've seen. Throughout dinner, she shouted and squealed and threw food on the floor. Trying not to seem outwardly angry at dad's sshing, and embarrassed by Taylor's display of fine toddler behavior, I made it through dinner without any permanent damage. Putting her to sleep was also a challenge, and turned out to be almost impossible. Charlene, from the spa, arrived for Maytersitting, and was noticably upset that it was Taylor's bedtime and that they wouldn't be staying up for late night fun. She was a tiny thing, thin and petite, with a thick Jamaican accent. She seemed very sweet, and was really looking forward to her time with Taylor. Taylor provided an opportunity for some get-to-know-you time, because after repeated bedtime attempts, I left Charlene with her and made my way out to the Crow's Nest bar to meet Dad, Donna, and Susan. It was the first night she'd ever been with someone watching her that wasn't Delmo and Sabrina, or Darina and I was very nervous. I was also a little stressed about the unsuccessful bedtime attempts. Susan agreed to walk back to the room with me and poke her head in to check on Charlene. She said that Charlene had Taylor in her arms and was rocking her. Everything was ok. I was relieved enough to try to have a good time. We started to enjoy ourselves and the bartenders, and I felt like it was a real vacation for the first time. Getting to know Donna was great, she was totally a sweetheart and loved Taylor and had a blast without drinking with all of us drinking. It was karaoke night, and Barbara Bush took to the microphone for a rendition of some song I'd never heard of. Looking around, there were quite a few people seated around the karaoke area and I was impressed with the turnout; but it seemed as though we were all about 30 years too late for the party. The average age had to be close to 75, and there were some folks close to the age that were truly good dancers. I felt good, and comfortable. When everyone else around is a bit older, it seems easier to relax and be yourself and not worry too much about impressions. Sort of like Taylor. No matter what she does, she's adorable to all of us just because she's so young and new. I realized that, even though this cruise was going to be much different than the Carnival cruise, it was going to be a blast. I was really ejoying Susan, and Dad and Donna's company.
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