I don't have much to write about today, as the day just consisted of us getting up early to get to the cruise terminal to board our cruise! If you look at the photo album for this entry, I did include some photos of our Air BnB. Did you see just how many freakin' elevator buttons there were! The building was so tall! And sometimes it took forever to get down to the dang lobby with people getting on the elevator! There were 6 elevators, but still. Our view from our TS room was very cool. We could actually see the cruise terminal from our balcony! At night the view was also really beautiful with all the lights from the buildings.

We chose 10:00am-10:30am for our check in time for the cruise. This was a great time because it was not yet too crowded, we actually did not wait in a line at all, just walked right up and checked in. We did however, have to wait in a waiting area for a bit until they let us board the cruise, but still, overall was a very smooth process.

Once we got on board, we were not yet allowed to go to our rooms, as they weren't ready yet, and luckily, we were able to check our bags to have them delivered to our rooms later. So we quickly went to the Shore Excursions desk to ensure everything was in order for our plans in the ports, then went to lunch. The rest of the group decided to go to a sit down restaurant, but there weren't very many options for me, so Jaime and I went to the buffet. Since we were done quicker, we joined them back in their dining room after, and that is where I got the group photo.

In case you are wondering exactly who all these people are in our group, I will explain. You probably recognize Hayley, she was a bridesmaid in my wedding (And I officiated her and Jesse's wedding!) and she and my friend Matt were the ones who sang at me and Jaime's wedding. I consider Hayley to be one of my very best friends. And then there is of course Jesse, Hayley's husband who I am very close with as well. Before Jaime and I moved in together, I rented a room in the house they shared with our other friends Chelsea and Brandon, so I was even roommates with Hayley and Jesse for some time.

Then there is Sue and Gerry, who are Hayley's parents. (Also Chelsea's parents, Hayley and Chelsea are sisisters, Chelsea was also a bridesmaid in our wedding, and I was one in hers) Sue and Gerry are so amazing. They host parties at their house all the time, and the annual Chili cookoff that Jaime and I always go to is hosted by Sue and Gerry. They are retired and travel all the time. The love cruises. I am very close with Sue and Gerry, Sue especially since I am so close to their daughters, Hayley and Chelsea. Sue is the one who put together the beautiful slideshow of photos that was played during our wedding. We hang out with them a lot, and they are just super fun to be around, and turns out, to travel with! Sue is so awesome, she is the one who found our Air BnB in Miami, and booked the cool tours we went on there.

And last but not least, we also have Mary and Linda with us in this trip. Mary and her husband Adam were my roommates for a little over a year when I had an apartment in Hungtingon Beach. They now have 2 daughters, but Mary left Adam at home with them to enjoy this vacation! And Linda is her sister, but also a close friend of ours. Most of them (Hayley, Jesse, Linda) met in High School and have been friends since, I came into the fold later when this group started a weekly kickball game. It is kind of a long story, but in short, that is how we all know each other and why we all decided to take a trip together. Everybody in the group besides me and Jaime had gone one on or two Europe cruises together, but this was our first time joining in something like this.

Back to the day...After lunch we all just kind of did whatever on our own. Jaime and I went to the casino and tried our luck (no luck, but only lost like 40 bucks, and ended up playing quite a long time on this coin machine thing) and then once our rooms were ready, we went in to grab our bags and get settled. Our stateroom is so COOL! We had a lame inside cabin when we took our cruise back in 2015, and let me tell you, that window makes all the difference in the world. The room is small, but no big deal, we will not be spending much time in it.

Sue was smart enough to make reservations for us at the sit-down restaurant every night at 5:30pm. So once that time rolled around, we all met for dinner and had a lovely one. We have a choice of a couple of different sit-down places or the buffet for each meal. Dinner is fun to kind of relax and be served. All of this is included in our fare we have already paid. We also have the premium drink package, so of course we enjoyed some beverages as well.

The cruise seems to have some really cool events and activities. Tonight there was a dance competition with the cruise employees and passengers. I entered my name for the contest, but did not get picked to participate, but that is ok, perhaps there will be some other competitions I can enter later in the cruise.

Tomorrow our tour leaves at about 8:30am, so early bedtime tonight. Sue and Gerry will be joining us on our excursion tomorrow, but the other 4 are doing stuff on their own. Looking forward to being to a part of the Bahamas I have never been to before - Freeport!