Finally!

(As usual, Blogger won't do the pictures....I PROMISE to have those tomorrow.)

Well, I've been avoiding blogging for a number of reasons. First, Mark was out of town all week and that has made for absolutely NO blogging time. Second, our brand new fancy camera that we bought right before our big trip already had issues, and we had to return it this weekend. So, we just now downloaded our pictures from the trip! Third, I am still completely overwhelmed by the thought of condensing our trip into a blog-type report! I don't even know where to start! But, I'll give it a try, just to make my family stop bugging me!! (Love you guys!)

In no particular order, here are the highlights of our trip (to me):

*Seeing Mary Poppins AND Wicked on Broadway in London. Both shows were amazing and I can't wait to take my girls to both someday!

*Finally having the chance to stand in so many spots I had dreamed about: Big Ben, the steps of the Bank of London (Mary Poppins scene of "Feed the Birds"), and at Trafalgar Square in London, at the Coliseum and the Vatican in Rome, on the cliffside of the coast of Italy (among many other awesome spots along the way), in front of "David" in Florence, and in the midst of history in the ruins of Rome and Pompeii.

*Spending time doing the cheesy cruise activities that all of us secretly love....Bingo, putt-putt, rock climbing, art shows, Black Jack in the casino (not my favorite thing, but definitely Mark's!), shopping in the overpriced stores, and attending the awful nightly entertainment, ranging from wanna-be Broadway shows to not-all-that-amazing magicians and comedians.

*Seeing the skies change from gray and dreary (London), to cloudy and rainy (France), to clear and sunny (Italy). We had fun in all three, although I preferred the beautiful sunshine to the pouring rain days!

*Finding out how wonderful the hot chocolate and croissants tasted at numerous cafes in France....as we tried to stay out of the rain. :)

*Finding out how wonderful the gelato (Italian ice cream) and espressos tasted in every cafe in Italy....so we could use their bathroom. :)

*Getting the incredible surge of joy from bargain shopping for leather bags, cashmere scarves, olive oil, jellies and honeys, artwork, and beautiful handmade children's toys in Florence.

*Modeling our "P&G Cruise" sweatshirts and t-shirts. (P&G stands for Papa & Grandma, since they were the reason for the vacation.) These were a surprise in our staterooms the first night of the cruise.

*Getting to spend our "quiz euros" on ourselves and each other. We had weekly quizzes (given by Mark's dad) leading up to the vacation about the different cities we would see. For each correct quiz completed, we got 50 euros credit for the trip. All together, we had 250 euros when we arrived. The rule was that we had to spend half on ourselves and spend half on our spouse. It was SO fun to shop with "free money" and surprise each other with great remembrances of our trip.

*Watching the people of each country live their daily lives. From the tiny European cars and scooters, to the local markets selling every fresh food item you can imagine, to the sidewalk painters who made amazing keepsakes for tourists like us....it was so much to soak in and I loved knowing what it was like to live there for even a day.

*Standing where Romans and Greeks stood 2,000 years ago and just imagining what a day was like for them. Especially in Italy, the history was so rich and surrounded us so much, that it was breathtaking. Pompeii, for those who don't know, is a city that was literally frozen in time when Mt. Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD and covered the city in ashes. It is indescribable to stand in a house that still has paintings on the walls and mosaic tiles on the floor and to see these people who were living centuries before us (many actual remains of the people of Pompeii are still there to see as well). The streets even had chariot tracks still rubbed into the stones! Truly amazing!!

*Getting all dressed up with the whole family for our formal nights on the cruise. Although we didn't get quite as decked out as many people, in their sequins and tuxes, we enjoyed nice dinners together every evening with as many courses and as much food as our hearts desired. And, we got a few cute pictures too!

*Gambling in the Grand Casino in Monte Carlo on the French Riviera. It was WAY glitzy and glamorous and very distinguished feeling. However, we still lost money the same way we do in Shreveport or Vegas. So, I liked it as much as I do any other casino....not much at all. (I'm not a gambler...can you tell?!) The French Riviera was beautiful though!

*Being kid-free for ten straight days! (Although we missed them alot!) It was nice to take naps when we wanted, stay up late when we wanted, have long dinners with great conversation (usually about our kids!), and enjoy being with adults....especially my husband! Of course, we called the girls when we could, and emailed them from the ship. Thank you Gammy, Papa Ron, and Aunt Cailee for taking care of them while we were gone!

The list could go on and on of the great parts of our trip. It is still hard to believe we were in such amazing places. I am so thankful to Papa and Grandma for the blessing of that time together. They would have been so proud of what they had given us. The next P&G trip is planned for three years from now...a Disney Cruise to the Caribbean---with all the grandkids, of course! Let the countdown begin!