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RCCL Alaska Cruise

8/5/2017

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“It’s not Disney.”
That became the common phrase throughout the cruise aboard Royal Caribbean Explorer of the Seas. It’s really hard to not compare cruise lines once you’ve been on a Disney ship. For this blog, I will do my best to focus on what it was instead of what it wasn’t. After all, it’s not Disney.
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To start, we stayed overnight in downtown Seattle at the Fairmont Olympic Hotel. From the moment we saw the hotel, we were mesmerized by its beauty! It truly is an amazing hotel with great views, great rooms, beautiful lobby, gorgeous inside pool and workout area, and an escalator which kept Gavin occupied for hours. The room was huge, with two queen beds and a very large bathroom. We played on the escalator, swam for a bit, played on the escalator some more, had room service bring us a very delicious dinner, and played on the escalator. We did get to take a walk around the hotel and look at the gorgeous ballroom, the shops on the lower level, and sneak a peek at the upscale restaurant. Back inside our room we shot animal zingers at the ceiling, the walls, and each other for fun. We got great belly laughs from Gavin that night! I would most definitely recommend staying there.
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The next morning, we met in the lobby to wait for our bus transportation to the port. After the Celebrity passengers were on their way, the Royal Caribbean bus arrived to take us. It was a quick ride to the port – about 15 minutes. As the bus pulled into the unloading zone, we could see what looked like billions of people waiting in line that snaked outside the building. Feeling a pit in my stomach thinking about how to handle Gavin in a long line like that, we trekked off the bus, collected our bags, and journeyed toward the line. As we neared the building we noticed orange balloons floating above the line towards the front of the building. JOY filled our hearts, and I think the corner of my lips seriously touched my ears, as we realized they were balloons that said Autism on the Seas (AotS)! We saw the “orange team” standing there and as soon as they saw Gavin, they presented him with a balloon and one staff member whisked us away, straight into the building. We bypassed the waiting line inside the building and went straight to another “team orange” staff member who brought us directly to the port security who quickly checked us and allowed us up the escalator. At the top, another “team orange” staff member escorted us past the many lines of people waiting to check in and into a cordoned off area with seating and gave our name to the port check in staff. Gavin had room to roam and move around while we waited with other AotS clients. Check in went swiftly and we were told to go straight onto the ship. Ship crew directed us toward the dining area, Windjammer, for lunch. When we arrived at Windjammer, more “team orange” were waiting there to direct us into a private, quiet room set aside for our group. Unfortunately, the excitement was all too great for Gavin and he was not able to stay long. However, I have to say from the time we got off the bus and into that room, the speed, the efficiency, and the friendliness was beyond my wildest expectations. I really felt like we were part of a special family.
                The first day on a new ship is always my favorite with Gavin. I absolutely LOVE to explore with him and take everything in from his point of view. I let him lead me around and we took elevators, stairways inside and out, down corridors and decks, and we had a blast looking at everything. We even found the potty spots for the service dogs. No stone was left unturned in the Gavin tour. We stopped to play some mini golf, look at the Flowrider, and examine the rock climbing. Unfortunately, he was not tall enough for the Flowrider (52”) and not old enough for the rock climbing (6+). Since the mini golf was right next to those off-limit activities, we didn’t play it again during the rest of the cruise because of temptation and possible meltdowns. Larry, Manny and Deanna mingled with the group at lunch and got to know some of the passengers and staff.
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We were able to inspect our stateroom at 1:30 and were very happy with our room. The verandah was a good size, with two chairs and a table, and the room itself was very nice. Our room 7656 had the twin beds pushed together and a pull-out sofa. There was one bathroom, with a rounded shower, and sufficient space to put our bathroom supplies. Gavin loves flushing ship toilets so we let him get that out of his system, so to speak. The TV situation on the Explorer is very limited. They do have a channel dedicated to one special movie throughout the day. For example, one day they had Beauty and the Beast (live action) and another day they had The Founder. The rest of the channels are your basic police dramas, news, and cartoons. They did have Disney Jr. but it was repeats of Doc McStuffins, Jake and the Neverland Pirates, and Marvel. No serious complaints about our room, but we did have to ask for things like Kleenex, a bath mat, and the room to be made up. It’s not Disney!
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We went to the meet up with AotS in the Conference room on Deck 2 for the muster drill and check in to meet the staff and families. There were over 20 families sailing with the group and they had provided over 13 staff onboard. There were a LOT of people in this room! It was overwhelming for Gavin, but he took it all in at 60 mph running around the room, through rows of chairs, crawling like a gecko on the floor, and getting into everybody’s bubble to say, “Hi Guy!” and run off. But that’s OKAY! You know why? These people get him. It was so absolutely wonderful to be in a room filled with people who understand and get him. He played with some of the kids, pet some of their stuffed animals, roared like a lion at a few of them, but did really great sticking around during the personal lifeboat drill. Afterward, we followed him to his favorite place on the ship – the glass elevator. We went up. We went down. We didn’t push buttons. We just rode to wherever the other passengers were going and he took in the scene out the window. I’ll miss the stars on deck 1 and 2.
Another place he loved to play in was the arcade. We spent $$$ trying to win enough tickets to get that $ item, but he had a blast shooting at mummies, driving cars and motorcycles, riding the rapids, and trying to get that claw to pick up the Mario Kart toy. The ship arcade is located just outside the kid’s clubs – convenient, huh? So every day, we took our arcade lap, played some games, then went inside the kid’s club so he could play with the kids. AotS provides respite hours each day, but Gavin absolutely loves to socialize inside the ship clubs with kids his own age. We usually hang out near the club so we can look in every half hour to see if he’s having fun or looking like he wants to leave. He loved to be in there, had great fun, and we received positive reports from the staff that he was enjoying himself and the kids around him.
                Another place we loved to take Gavin was to Johnny Rockets, because they always had the French fries and root beer that he survives on. They do have a surcharge of $6.95 per person to eat there, but they were very generous to our situation and only charged us for Gavin. We were there daily and they only needed two days before they expected us and had his fries and drink ready as he walked in the door. Our first trip there, we were accompanied by Taylor and Shannon, two of the AotS staff. They were so kind and sweet to Gavin, helping him stay focused in his new surrounding and getting him to eat. I mention this because the next day we decided to have a staff member come with us on an excursion in Juneau to help with Gavin. When we showed him the staff bio sheet with the pictures of the AotS staff, he pointed to Taylor as the person he wanted to go with him. Although I’m sure he loved them both, Taylor’s picture was above Shannon’s so there may have been unfair advantage. 
                The night sky doesn’t appear until 10:30 – 11:00 pm that far north so it was difficult to get that bedtime routine down. Plus, the night sky doesn’t last that long, therefore, around 4 am, the sun is peeking through the curtains. Gavin could get to sleep with the aid of Melatonin, but nothing would help keep him asleep through the sunny 4 am mornings. We survived to tell the tale, though!
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Excursion #1:  Juneau - Mendenhall Glacier, Whale Watching and Wildlife Quest (JU-40)
                The tour began on a bus and took us through the city of Juneau. The bus driver was awesome, knowledgeable, and funny. We saw a bald eagle on a streetlight post along the way. He took us to a catamaran to whale watch. The crew was excellent and very informative. We got to see humpback whales, orcas, and sea lions. The ride was smooth and they positioned themselves in the best spots for viewing and maneuvered to give everybody a chance at great pictures. Afterward, we took the bus up to Mendenhall Glacier visitor center. This place is pretty amazing! They have great exhibits to entertain the youngest and oldest in the group. Gavin was in awe of the mountain goat and bear. Yes, they had the skin of these two animals in the center and Gavin was able to touch, pet, and investigate the orifices of these creatures close up. Outside the center are hiking trails. Eight miles roundtrip can take you to the falls and about 3 miles roundtrip can take you very near the glacier. We chose to look at the glacier from across the lake. It’s a gorgeous area and we loved watching the helicopter tours hover over the glacier. We had our first meltdown as Gavin didn’t want to leave the area. He could’ve walked all day and night to the falls, but unfortunately, the bus would not have waited for us and neither would the ship. With help from Taylor, we got him to the bus and back to the ship with great effort, strength, and perseverance.
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Excursion #2: Skagway – White Pass Railroad and Alaskan Dog Sled Experience (SK-98)
                Taylor went with us on this excursion as well. We figured she had such great rapport with Gavin and had been a tremendous help so why fix what isn’t broken? First of all, this excursion is backward. Might not matter to some, but when one is dealing with an ASD child who relies heavily on no surprises and very meticulous visual planning for his well-being, it is of the upmost importance. So let’s climb aboard the bus and head over to the Dog Sled Experience first. After telling him the train needs to wait until after the doggies, a very upset Gavin was then escorted into a crowded, tight viewing area where a musher talked for over 30 minutes about what it’s like to be a musher. I’m sure it was fascinating, really, but I didn’t hear most of it since Taylor and I were chasing a bored Gavin around the tight space while he crawled like a gecko and made sure everybody knew he wasn’t enjoying the presentation. We finally made it to the dog viewing area where we all lined up along the edge of a dog run and watched a few dogs parade through while we all reached down and pet them. We watched as the musher hooked up the dogs and took a lap around the corral. The dogs were cute, the musher was very knowledgeable and caring toward his dogs. All was great. Except: Where was the snow? Where were the huskies? Do you have a wolf somewhere? This was a lesson in expectations. It looked like a dirt ranch, but with dogs not cattle. The best part was the puppies. Everybody got to hold and pet a puppy – a future Iditarod sled dog. That was cool. Gavin held and loved the pup with the help of Taylor, who was able to get his attention on the pup for about 2 minutes.

We boarded the bus again and trekked through the highway portion of the excursion. We were supposed to stop at Tormented Valley and Pitchfork Falls for photo ops, but we took those photos going about 45 mph. After a grueling drive, with a boring bus driver, a speaker on its last leg crackling as he spoke, and no wildlife to be seen for hundreds of miles, we finally reach the train station. YAY! But wait! Now we have to stay on the hot, idling bus, because the train cars are being cleaned. Gavin starts meltdown mode! He wants off NOW. He sees the train right there in front of us, but we can’t leave???!! Larry gets off the bus and talks to the driver, who agrees that Gavin needs off the bus before we have blood on our hands. As we exit the bus, Larry tells us, “The driver said to just go ahead and take Gavin onto the train.” YAY! Man, I love when people GET IT! So we get on the train before all of the other passengers and Gavin has time to use the potty, walk around the train car to get his wiggles out, and go from seat to seat to seat to find the very best seat. That right there helped him so much during the train ride through the narrow gauge railway. We did not see animals, but we did see Sasquatch and Oswald. Apparently, past travelers through the railway understood the lack of wildlife along the way and kindly provided comic relief with little statues set out along the path.  
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The highlight of the trip for me is when Taylor and I brought Gavin out onto the platform between the train cars so he could feel the wind on his face and the thrill of standing right above the railroad while the train chugged along. His smiles were enough to light up the long, dark tunnels we traveled through.

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Tracy Arms Fjord – we got into the glacial area around 4 am and that was the first and only day Gavin slept in (until 7 am).  We were counting on him to be our alarm clock so we missed the first views of the Fjord. However, Manny said they were awesome. From what we did see of the glacier, it was spectacular. Larry watched as pieces of the glacier fell into the water. He heard the thunderous crackling sound and watched as a large piece gradually slid off the wall of the glacier and fell, displacing and causing ripples across the water. It was a great sight he said. I was watching Doc McStuffins and narrating for Gavin whenever a spectacular thing like this would happen. We were out of the Fjord by noon.
Excursion #3: Victoria, Canada – Bug Zoo, Miniature World, and Victoria Highlights
                Okay, again look at the title of the excursion. Notice first on the list. Yeah, didn’t happen. We started with Victoria Highlights on a bus. Taylor sat with Gavin and kept him happy and occupied during the bus ride. We saw wildlife! A peacock at a petting zoo along the road. So we head to our first stop: Miniature World. I really need to find out how to get the true information on these excursions because dealing with social stories, schedules, and expectations for an ASD child is complicated enough without these forks in the road. So his first words were, “BUG ZOO!!!!” Yes, Gav, I’m really sorry this isn’t the Bug Zoo, but let’s just take a look inside and explore! If you know Gavin, then you understand that with every new experience, room, place, etc. he needs to take a “hot lap”. This is done in high speed and he appears to not really be taking anything in, but in reality he’s taking it ALL in and preparing his brain so that he can do his second lap to hit those things that stuck in his brain during the first lap. This is how he processes. So we do the “hot lap” at breakneck speed and hit the exit door. Now we have to go back, because to exit  the door means we can’t come back in. Another thing about Gavin is that he hates to go “back”, “u-turn”, reverse direction, or in any other way go back from the direction he just came. Why? Who knows??? I sure don’t, but we’ve had to deal with this quirk since he was 18 months. So Taylor and I try to get him to go back, explaining that we missed the airplanes, we missed the trains, and oh so much more! It works and we get him reluctantly to take another lap through mini world.

He really enjoyed the trains and planes very much, but started asking for the Bug Zoo again so Larry finds the tour guide and she says we can walk to the Bug Zoo ahead of the group and gives us directions. We walk him over and explain to the Bug Zoo people about Gavin. They Get IT!! They agree to let us go through ahead of the group. Gavin proceeds to do his “hot lap”, taking in all the bug displays at 60 mph. Thankfully, the Bug Zoo is set up in a circular type setting so it works perfectly. His 2nd lap is slower as he takes in the beetles and roaches and his 3rd lap goes even better with him taking in the spiders, stick bugs, and grasshoppers. By the 4th lap, he’s done. We exit and buy him some souvenirs and start to figure out what to do now. The tour guide arrives and tells us our group gets a private room where we all sit around the room in a semi-circle and listen to presentations for each insect and wait patiently while the bug is passed around….NOPE. Not going to happen with the Gavman.

So we walk down to the water area, grab a water taxi and begin our trek back to the ship. While on the water taxi, Gav gets to see a Sea Plane land in the water next to us! Cool! He enjoys the ride so much, but we eventually get kicked off and start our walk back to the ship. On the way, there is a park so he stops to play. He had a great time sliding, climbing, and playing. We walk the rest of the way back and shop for some more souvenirs. He’s been a trooper, I tell you!! We all took turns holding him part of the way back to the ship, but overall, he’s in a great mood, being very cooperative and had the best transitions of the entire cruise portion of the trip.
We made the decision to avoid the AotS group activities on Wednesday afternoon because Gavin had an incident where he was hurt by another child during a respite session. Gavin wouldn’t go down to the Conference room again. He didn’t even want to go near that bank of elevators during the rest of the cruise.  I felt the group was too large and the needs too great for the amount of staff they had onboard. Gavin did enjoy one special group activity which was the ice skating. The group was given private time to enjoy the ice. Unfortunately, it was right after the incident so he only was on the ice for about 10 minutes. He had a great 10 minutes though! We continued to let him play in the kid’s club though, which he really enjoyed. The staff was very attentive to him and even let him take items to the room to play with. Some of the highlights of the trip were feeding seagulls crackers from our verandah, watching whales from our room and at dinner, sitting with Gavin in the library overlooking the Promenade just chilling, and the Headhunter a few rooms down from us that Gavin had to salute every time he passed him on the way to and from the elevator. Some of the lowlights of the trip were the lack of correct information related to the excursions, the lack of cleanliness of the ship with dirty plates, cups, glasses with leftover liquor sitting in elevator areas, common areas, and pool areas that were not picked up by the crew, the lack of cleanliness overall in the restrooms, tables in Windjammer, and around the ship. The attention to detail is definitely lacking on this ship, but as we were told by several crew members, the ship is old and likely will be replaced instead of repaired. We could tell.
Dining on the Explorer was good in some ways, bad in others. The food in Windjammer (buffet) was good, with a variety of options for every picky eater. In the morning, we took advantage of the omelet station. Desserts were okay, but nothing to gush over. Room service (extra surcharge) was limited, but good, especially the chocolate cake and the cheeseburger. The specialty restaurant, Chops, was very good! I was told, but did not experience it myself, that the main dining room was not up to par as far as steak and pork chops being tough and bland. Again, it’s not Disney. There aren’t many options for snacks outside of sit down dining, like pizza, hot dogs, chicken strips, etc. Johnny Rockets was good, but there’s a surcharge for it.
The last day, we got up, threw our stuff in the bags and headed to the lounge to wait for the special disembarkation. We kept Gavin in a bubble, letting him roam while we waited for our group to be let off the ship. AotS was, I believe, the 4th group off the ship. We didn’t wait long at all. We barely had time for pictures and they announced we could leave. Definitely, great perks to traveling with this group! As for the overall autism aspect of the cruise, I have to say the Royal Caribbean crew really helped us feel comfortable. They really do Get It! Whether it was because of the presence of the large AotS group or the fact they are a certified cruise line for Autism Friendly Cruising, we felt comfortable moving about the ship with nearly everyone being understanding and supportive of Gavin while he was a gecko down in the Promenade, having a meltdown at the security area getting on the ship, or taking the millionth ride inside the elevator. There was even a mention in the daily Compass asking passengers for consideration with the autism and special needs individuals on the ship. Pretty Cool!
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We stayed at the Crowne Plaza the last night. “It isn’t the Fairmont!” But it had the most amazing view of the Space Needle, the water, and the beautiful buildings in downtown Seattle!  It does not have a pool and it does not have an escalator. This caused a meltdown. We took Gavin to ride the Great Wheel and Wings Over Washington, which is a simulator ride much like Soarin’ at Disney California Adventure. Both are amazing rides and well worth the time. We walked through Pikes Place Market area but it was a massive crowded zoo so we headed back to the hotel. He did play in the bathtub A LOT and we had fun playing in the room. He loved sitting in the window seat and looking out at the view. Did I say it was an AMAZING VIEW? It was.                 
Both the flight there and the flight back on Alaska Airlines were awesome! We sat in first class and didn’t have a single issue. Gavin was a perfect passenger! Wish us luck for Florida…
​Trish
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Disney Dream with Autism on the Seas

10/8/2016

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We have previously sailed with Autism on the Seas (AotS) in October, 2015 aboard the Disney Wonder and had a fantastic, albeit very new experience. I'm so happy we decided to try again! As autism parents know, it's extremely difficult to entrust the care of your ASD child with a stranger. It doesn't matter if that stranger says they have XX credentials or whatever! We know what our children want even if they're nonverbal - how can a stranger know these things? We were blown away by the excellent level of care the staff gave Gavin and wish we would've trusted in them a bit more the first time around so we could have fully enjoyed that experience. Let me explain.
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As you can see above, Gavin was surrounded by beautiful women. These women have more than looks going for them, because they have special skills. Sandy, Alley, and Laken all have experience working with special needs children. It's not just a job to them; it really is a passion, as we got to witness throughout our cruise. From the moment we met them, we knew Gavin would be in excellent hands and having a blast with them.

We were allowed special boarding through AotS; however, our bus wouldn't arrive until much later so we met up with the group after boarding the ship. There were a total of five autism families sailing. We met in a quiet section of the Royal Palace dining room to get to know the staff and meet the other families. We were presented with a schedule of activities for the first day of sailing and a tentative schedule for the rest of the trip. One on one, the staff discussed with each family their individual requirements/needs. For instance, my main concerns were Gavin's elopement issues (especially being on a ship in the ocean!) and his being nonverbal making communication nearly impossible for those outside his daily routine. There were other concerns as well, but we felt assured they knew exactly what they were dealing with, having dealt with many children on the spectrum like Gav. There were many respite opportunities scheduled throughout the cruise. By far, for me anyway, the best thing about traveling with AotS is that you get a nice, quiet muster drill brought right to the group by a member of the Disney Cruise Line. So while we sat comfortably in that gorgeous comfortable dining room, we went through the ins and outs of a possible emergency, without the loud whistles, the crowds wedged against us, and the heat!
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Okay, so the weather didn't look that great in port. Didn't matter to us, because we were leaving anyway!!! YAY! Did I mention (no) that this was a Halloween cruise? Well, it was so there would be Halloween parties, characters dressed up in costumes, and Trick or Treating. There were many Halloween activities set up throughout the trip. 
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The first day is really about exploration. We walked around and let Gavin get acclimated to the ship for a while. As you can see in the photo above, he loved seeing the decorations throughout the ship. The ship shuts down around 4 pm for the muster drill so we went into our stateroom and listened as people hustled to find their muster stations. Gav enjoyed watching from the veranda all the trucks loading up the supplies to our ship. After the drill was over, the deck party was moved to an inside area because of the rainstorm. We avoided the crowd, although the staff was on hand to help the families who did go. We ordered room service that night even though the staff was available in the dining room, because Gavin was already showing signs of being overwhelmed and close to meltdown mode. Other families were down in the private dining room with the staff and reported that the staff was incredible at helping with the wandering kids and allowed the parents to enjoy their meal. We did stop in at the Kids Club for a bit and let Gavin have run around time during Open House. He had a blast!
The next day we were docked at Nassau. We didn't have an excursion, because we planned to take advantage of an empty ship. WRONG! Many people had the same idea and the ship was still packed. Luckily for us, the other four families did have excursions so Gavin had these three wonderful ladies all to himself! They took him on the Aquaduck many times. Now, to understand the importance of this comment, you need to know something about the Aquaduck. Yes, it's a long, fun water slide, but it takes a great many steps to get up there! I'm forever grateful for the effort of these ladies to have climbed with him all those times. It was a fantastic day for us all. 

After the water time, we hit the Halloween party in the Atrium. Again, Gavin had all the girls to himself so he flew around like the beautiful bat he was dressed up as and Trick or Treated with the girls. He also got to dance with Donald in a little private encounter above the Atrium. He was happy as can be. 

We had ressies at Palo, the adult only restaurant, so Gavin spent some time in the club. We had respite available but he wanted to play in Andy's Room in the club. We had set up for the staff to have sign in/out privilege with the club so they were on hand when he wanted to leave. We picked him up from the Outlook room (where respite was held each night) when we finished our delicious Chocolate Souffle! He looked to be having such a great time, it was sad to pull him from there, but it was getting late.
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The next day we were docked at Disney's private island, Castaway Cay. AotS had a special arrangement that morning to allow our group to have early, private access to the Aquaduck. So at 9:30 am we met at the entrance to the Aquaduck and got to ride on it as many times as we wanted for 30 minutes (it opened to the ship passengers at 10 am). It was so amazing how many rides we were able to get in! Everybody got a trip down the slide with Gav, who had the most wonderful experience ever! 
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Afterward, we all exited the ship to spend time on the family beach. The staff were there to help the entire time. They swam with the kids, took them out to the play island, held a group of chairs for us all, and were on hand to help during lunch. It was a fantastic day of fun with our chairs plopped in the water while our children all played. I have to say, that day we really got to know the other parents. It was such a relaxing way to spend the afternoon and I've never seen so many special kids all having so much fun at the same time. It was an incredible experience I'll never forget.

Around 1ish, we got back to the ship and let Gavin play in the Kids Club again. We did have to discuss with the Disney crew members about Gavin's needs again, because they had mentioned areas of concern with regard to how Gavin was interacting with other children. He is a very "in your bubble" type of kid. He will come up behind a child and wrap his arms around them and hug them. Many kids don't like this, understandably, and when rejected, Gavin may push out of frustration. So, we had to explain this situation so the cast members could be on the "lookout" for the behavior and remind him "No Touch" (the words we use to remind him). This was the third time I had to discuss it with the cast members, and after telling them, they would look at their computer screen and say, "Oh, okay, I see that here. Thank you." Overall, I thought they did an awesome job with him in the play rooms using the methods I suggested and the distractions to remove him from potential problems. 

That night was Respite Dinner for the parents so the staff took the kids into Outlook while we parents got to eat dinner together in peace and quiet (you know, actually CHEW THE FOOD). What can I say about this? It was absolute heaven. It was Pirate night so everybody was dressed up in their pirate best and ready for the pirate party out on the deck later. We chose to not go because it was getting late, Gavin doesn't enjoy crowds, loud noise, etc. So we hung out in our stateroom and unwound watching the great Mickey Mouse cartoons in the history of Mickey Mouse! Gavin was asleep before the first fireworks went off, but they could be seen off the veranda (don't tell DCL I said that). 

Today was the last day of the cruise. A sea day. It was crowded on deck. The swimming pools were at capacity. We didn't want to mess with all of that. We let Gavin do what Gavin wanted to do. We walked and walked and walked. Generously, the staff allowed Gavin to play with their links so he dragged them all over the ship, in the elevators, out on deck. He took them everywhere. Around 2ish, the ladies took all of the kids to the movie theater to watch Finding Dory. I didn't think he would stay long, but wanted to let him try. Amazingly, he sat through the entire movie with them! Go figure! We were able to finish our packing during that time. Later on, we met in the Outlook for an AotS party and group picture. The kids rolled around, played, chased each other and threw beach balls around. They enjoyed it tremendously. Respite was scheduled for after the party but we wanted to spend some time with Gav on the last day. Later, when we returned the play links to the girls, Larry saw the room set up dimmed, quiet, and calm with the kids all partaking in one on one with the staff. It looked like they were having a really great time winding down. 

The following day, AotS has a special arrangement with the cruise lines to be escorted off the ship together as a group prior to the torrential crowd of people who are normally pushing, shoving, yelling, and pulling off tons of rolling luggage through small children. We consider this second in importance (muster drill privacy being the first) of why AotS is worth the price! When you have a tired special needs child, you understand how golden it is to be able to avoid as much hustle and bustle as possible. Our exit from the ship was seamless! The rest of the journey home, not so, but that is where this part of the adventure ends. Thanks for reading!

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The Great Wolf Lodge (April 17th-19th, 2016)

5/23/2016

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There is a new resort in town with plenty of family activities, entertainment, and dining all in one spot- and it’s not Disney! The Great Wolf lodge has recently opened in Garden Grove, just two miles south of Disneyland on Harbor Blvd. The Great Wolf Lodge franchise has 14 resorts in North America, however this is the first on the west coast. It is a family friendly hotel centered around an indoor water park and offering plenty of entertainment, dining, and activities to keep everyone in the family happy.
The main attraction is the 105,000 square foot indoor water park with 14 slides, 4 pools, a wave pool, lazy river, flow jet for body surfing, and a 1,000 gallon tipping bucket! There are slides for every age level with plenty of lifejackets and life guards positioned around the water park. Toddlers have their own area with slides and activities just for them.

We recently stayed there for two nights and our FireMouse Vacations “test kid”, Gavin, gave it a thorough exploration and rated it two thumbs up! Gavin enjoyed the wave pool, lounging in the lazy river, climbing through the Fort Mackenzie tree house, and the River Canyon Run. He would have tried the Howlin’ Tornado water slide, but he didn’t meet the height requirements.
After soaking up the water park, he tested some of the “dry” activities in the lodge. They have a large arcade, with each game distributing tickets as a reward which you can exchange for prizes. The lodge also offers glow in the dark mini golf, mini bowling, motion simulators, and their own “MagiQuest” interactive adventure game. The “MagiQuest” game requires a magic wand - purchased separately - which activates several game kiosks located throughout the resort. Each kiosk also has several adventures for you to complete before you can advance in the game, meaning it can take several hours to complete a full game!
 
The Great Wolf Lodge has plenty of Dinning options to choose from within their resort, which made it easy to please any type of eater in our party.  The Lodge Wood Fire Grill is a table service style restaurant which serves freshly made entrees such as hamburgers, fish, smoked meats, and steaks. The Loose Moose family kitchen is a buffet layout serving breakfast and dinner. They also have a pizza place, quick service meal locations, Dunkin’ Donuts, and a coffee house. While there isn’t room service, we found it easy to order from the Wood Fire Grill and have our meals packed to-go, and the pizza place will deliver to your room in


The resort has three types of rooms all with the ability to sleep 5 or 6 people, and also include a small kitchenette space. The standard room is a basic room and offered at $249 per night. A themed room is available with bunk beds and decorated in a very “woodsy” style and start at $349 per night. Premium suites are available, with two bedrooms and a large common room, starting at $549 per night. Specials are available throughout the year, and a standard room is often available for $174. All prices include admission to the water park, beginning on your check in day until your check out day. WiFi, a fitness center, the kid’s center, and story time are all included in your room price.
We found The Great Wolf Lodge to be very clean and offered plenty of resources to entertain and feed our entire group without ever having to leave the property. Gavin’s favorite was by far the water park, and being able to have such a wide variety of ways to play with water. Personally, I enjoyed being able to explore the resort and the many types of restaurants available each day. The Great Wolf Lodge is a fantastic family resort with plenty of activities to keep everyone entertained. While the resort is located just two miles from Disneyland, you will find it hard to break away from all the activities offered at the Great Wolf Lodge!
      
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California Coastal Cruise 2013

10/20/2013

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      Princess Cruises had a fall special that was announced at the beginning of September, $50 a night for their 7-night cruise along the California coast. FireMouse Vacations subscribers received this announcement via email and Facebook. Trish, Alexis, Gavin and I packed up our stuff and headed to the port to enjoy a week of fun in the sun. There is a lot to be said for a vacation that does not require air travel and transfers. We just took a leisurely Sunday drive to the Port of L.A. and by noon we were in line for lunch on the Star Princess.

    The Star Princess is one of the larger Princess ships, considered their “Grand” class of ships. It is 110,000 tons, serves 2,600 passengers, and has 17 decks of entertainment, shops and staterooms. Immediately upon boarding the ship we went to the two specialty restaurants, Sabatini’s (Italian) and the Crown Grill (Steakhouse), to make reservations and then we made our way to the horizon court buffet for lunch. After our lifeboat drill it was time to set sail for San Francisco and explore the ship.

    The first day of our cruise was a day at sea unfortunately we had large swells and a very strong sense of going “up” and then “down”. We all handled it very well but by the evening we were counting the moments until we got to San Francisco and could walk on stable ground again. Trish and Alexis went to Sabatini’s where they dined on some excellent pasta and lobster. Gavin and I hit the Trident grill for hamburgers, hot dogs, and French fries. They also have the Prego pizzeria which serves thin crust made-to-order Pizzas (we had our share of those too).

     
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The seas were just a tad bit rough.

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Gavin had that look that said, "You didn't tell me about the swells, Gramps!"

     Princess Cruises has a reputation of serving an “older” crowd, but they are making changes and trying to be more “family” friendly. They have a children’s program for kids over three and a play area for kids under three that has to be supervised by a parent. We visited the play area at least three or four times a day and always saw older kids in the other rooms. It is not the Disney Cruise Line! DCL has an entire deck devoted to kids! The play areas on the Star Princess were adequate for the number of children sailing, which we estimated were less than 25 compared to the 300 to 400 kids on a typical DCL sailing. We really missed the babysitting available on DCL for the under 3 crowd.
     The Star Princess has a wonderful pool deck with two large pools, one which is an indoor pool with a retractable roof for their Alaskan cruises. They have another pool at the back of the ship along with a kid’s splash pool. There are hot tubs located all around the pools also. The main pool is where they have their giant outdoor movie screen which shows live concerts, sporting events, and of course movies all day long. The area was never truly crowded and finding a lounge chair was never a problem. The pool and hot tubs at the back of the ship were hardly used and often we were the only ones there. It wasn’t until the last couple of days that anyone else discovered them and we had to share our area with sometimes five or six people!

     In San Francisco we took a short walk to Pier 39 and Fisherman’s Wharf showing Gavin the famous Sea Lions and sampling the sourdough bread. There is plenty to do in San Francisco and the ship does not depart until late in the evening. Make your reservations for excursions early, especially Alcatraz, as most excursions sell out months in advance. We enjoy just taking in the sites and enjoying the sunset view of the Golden Gate Bridge from the ship. Trish and I went to the top deck as we set sail from San Francisco and enjoyed the feeling of seeing the bottom of the Golden Gate Bridge as we passed underneath. It looks so close! 

     Our next stop was Santa Barbara where the ship anchors offshore and they use the lifeboats to tender passengers to the harbor seaport. The view of Santa Barbara from the ship is wonderful and it is just a short five minute ride to the port. It was an easy bus ride from the port to the shops on State Street or a short walk to Stearns Wharf and the beach. Passengers were getting sandwich lunches and going ashore to have picnics on the beach.  Princess offers excursions to local sites and wineries. We enjoyed having the ship to ourselves as we explored more areas and relaxed in our "private" swimming area. 
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     We had another day at Sea on our way to San Diego. We participated in the “Deck Walk for the Cure” and Gavin was proud of earning his hat at the end of the 5K walk. The seas had flattened out after San Francisco and the boat ride was smooth and relaxing. We used this time to explore the art galleries and shops located in the three story atrium. Alexis and I dined at the Crown Grill where we had Steak and Lobster. We found it to be like a steakhouse of old with wood paneling and big booths to dine in. We had a great server who was kind enough to continue bringing us Lobster until we could not eat anymore. Any more Lobster that is! I still had room for molten chocolate cake. 

     Our final two stops were San Diego and Ensenada. In San Diego we were docked next to the US Midway aircraft carrier. The Star Princess dwarfs the Midway and gives you a true feeling of the size of the ship. Shore excursions are available in both ports but it seems like people caught on to our secret and stayed onboard to enjoy the amenities of the ship. 

    
    The Star Princess has two show rooms with entertainment each night. They have a fourth pool located in the Sanctuary, an adults only added cost area that looks absolutely marvelous. The gym, health club and spa are located in the Sanctuary area too. They have several clubs throughout the ship where you can get drinks and snacks all with different themes. The challenge of the ship seems to be the elevators. They have three banks of four elevators. All elevators don’t go to all decks and all decks are not accessible from front to back. We often had to wait up to 15 minutes for an elevator and we would miss some too because people would block access to them while they tried to figure them out.

     We fully understood the challenge of taking our 17 month old grandson, Gavin, on this cruise but wanted to fully experience the family situations on the ship before we recommended these cruises to our friends. We enjoyed the ship and 
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Cruising with a 17 month old on the Star Princess was not without 
its complications and frustrations, but as you can see Trish made 
the best of it.
would love to do this cruise again when Gavin is older and can participate in the supervised kids programs. We can’t recommend this cruise for passengers under three. Princess offers “anytime” dining, which we found out it is advisable to make reservations the day prior otherwise you must wait in a long first come/first serve line. So since reservations were needed we recommend the traditional dining where you get to know your servers and they get to know you. The anytime dining servers lacked that personal touch. The food in the dining rooms was very good and we look forward to trying it again with the traditional dining.

     All in all we enjoyed the cruise and the ship. Nothing beats not having to fly to get to your vacation destination. We look forward to trying their three and four day cruises they are offering this year too. Definitely recommend this for adults and families with children over three. We did escape completely, but Gavin kept finding us!         

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Coastal Cruise Nov 4-11, 2012

3/21/2013

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Okay, as you can see here, the Coastal cruise aboard the Disney Wonder was a great success. We set off on November 4 with just a slight delay. Turns out the gas man was a bit late, but we took it all in stride. After all, we were on a CRUISE SHIP! This cruise was extra special to us because our beloved friends, Manny & Deanna, as well as beloved family, Frank & Kathy, joined us on this trip. Once we boarded, we immediately signed up for some of the special activities taking place on the sea days, then promptly proceeded to lunch. We were greeted by our server from the previous cruise, Sedat, who once again took very good care of us all. The head server was now Paulo, who proved to be a godsend to Courtney - he brought her many delicious gluten-free snacks and deliciously prepared gluten-free meals throughout the cruise. 
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Paulo was an absolute delight with his wonderful support and attention to Courtney's sensitive diet.
Once we set sail toward Puerto Vallarta, we let the fun begin! We had early dining which freed up our nightly entertainment schedule. Enjoying the breeze out on the deck, enjoying the ocean waves on the verandah, soaking in the pool, or enjoying a show or movie, we all dispersed to find our form of entertainment. The nice thing about it was we had set up a meeting place on Deck 9 so if anybody wanted to join up with another person, we always knew where to look. We had the wave phones, but I, for one, didn't use them. Best part about the meeting place was in the morning. We would always find someone in the morning! Fantastic!

Monday was spent relaxing and enjoying the onboard entertainment, such as wine or tequila tastings, taking in fun activities at the pools, or seeing movies. Of course, food was always in abundance so one could just spend the entire day going from one meal to another. Larry, Frank, and Manny spent most of their day in the pool. The girls spent most of their day reading, talking, swimming, or enjoying Gavin, who was always having a blast! The night was set up for formal so we all headed to our staterooms early for prep work. Here is our result:

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Gavin with Grandma, Grandpa, and Minnie.
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The Golden Mickeys was on the entertainment schedule for the night. Most everybody went to enjoy it. Since I had already seen it, I chose to hang out with the girls. We enjoyed getting the coffee drinks and settling in with a movie or hanging out in the Cove usually. It provided a very good view for people watching. Sometimes the spa was empty and we'd jump at the chance to enjoy a soak. There was always something to do! Courtney enjoyed the Rainforest room with Deanna. Larry mainly soaked in the pool on sea days. Kaila had her hands full with Gavin, but managed to have lots of fun with him. We all did! He's such a fun little man and was always in a great mood around the ship. Cruising is definitely something he enjoys! Wasn't quite a contender in the Diaper Dash, but was a total hit during the Castaway Club Member Reception - which is where Mickey showed up for pictures (see picture at top of this post). A happy little man, indeed!
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While in port at Puerto Vallarta, Manny, Larry, and Alexis took off for a shopping excursion. Alexis enjoyed reading the price tags because they were all in peso's. Of course, not knowing the conversion rate,190 peso's for a shirt was shocking to her, until she realized it was really only about $15. Phewwww! Knowing that, she spent about 190 dollars on merchandise... ;)  Going through the shops with dad would have been a nightmare for her, but thankfully, Manny was there to break down the language barrier! Thanks again Manny! The vendors enjoyed calling her "Barbie" - though I don't think she did. One vendor won Larry over with his honest solicitation of, "$5 for absolutely nothing you need!" SOLD! They had a wonderful time though! I enjoyed hearing their stories. I did enjoy my time on the ship relaxing and taking in the great weather. Time for more pics:
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Smile Gavin................. SMILE................... There You GO!!!!!!!!!!!!
That night Toy Story the Musical was playing in the Walt Disney Theater so we all went to watch it. It was very cute, but Gavin was sleepy boy so I left halfway through to help give him some loving night night time. The group loved the show, though! After little man was down with Mama, I joined up with the girls for some time in the Cove. It was incredibly relaxing up there. The next day would be in Cabo San Lucas so we settled in for a good night's rest. The plan for the day was this: Courtney would go ashore with Sedat, our server/friend; Kaila and Kathy would enjoy a day of snorkeling. Alexis and I enjoyed our day with Gavin, walking him around Deck 4 and just watching him enjoy the ship.Everyone else would either join up, swim, eat, do whatever the heck they felt like doing, because IT'S A CRUISE!
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Thursday night was pirate night on the ship. It was a special time in the dining room with a menu filled with cajun delight and pirate attire - unfortunately, little man slept through it all. I stayed with him and waited until the nighttime festivities on Deck 9. The entertainment on Disney is always topnotch! Pirate night is no exception. The show was spectacular as usual with entertainment for everybody throughout the night, ending with an amazing fireworks show. A huge buffet was set out and I gobbled it up. Now, there WAS a small incident. I would be accused of hiding the fact if I didn't mention it here. I was making my way to the table with a completely packed plate of food when a small cupcake decided to leap from my overflowing plate. Before I had a chance to clear the little guy from the walkway, a server, who was apparently running to the table to be of assistance because that's the way Disney crew members work, accidentally stepped on the poor helpless cupcake, thus squishing it into the carpet. Okay, it's out there. I apologize to the server for the mess on the bottom of his shoe and the mess it made on the carpet. Moving onto the next day, we were in Cabo again. We sailed out of Cabo only for the fireworks and then made our way back by morning. Most of us, stayed onboard. I believe Manny and Deanna went ashore for a time. The day was spent relaxing and lounging.

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The night was special because of Disney Dreams. This is by far one of the best shows Disney Cruise Line puts on for their guests. The story is beautifully told and the production is state-of-the-art. The musical numbers beautifully arranged and the performers are exceptional! I can't say enough good things about this show, so let me end by saying I have been on a lot of Disney cruises and this is still one show I see every single time we cruise. Afterward, we spent the evening in the adult entertainment section, watching the juggler/comedian and the musical entertainment. In the morning we had fun at breakfast with Gavin being a nut and having fun with Sedat! They also went to the Captain's signing where Gavin had his captain's hat signed! Very cool!
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The day was spent.....you guessed it! Relaxing! The night was spent enjoying the last of our cruise. :*(  Special memories were made and we made sure to take in the most of it while we could. We did get to enjoy for the FIRST time - yes the 1st time - the Disney rendition of the Pub skit "If I Were Not Upon the Sea" which was absolutely hysterical!!! I don't think I've ever heard Alexis and Courtney laugh so hard! We really enjoyed it and would highly recommend it. Sadly, we went to bed after that and, well, the rest is history. Came into Los Angeles early and disembarked without a glitch. Parted ways with dear friends and family. Made our way home. But we took with us great memories, great laughs, so much relaxation and enjoyment from a week of pure heaven. Can't be more grateful for the friendships and fantastic family we have!!! :)
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Pixar Cruise Sept 23-30, 2012

3/21/2013

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This was not just a typical cruise. Not that any voyage on the Disney Cruise Line is a typical cruise; however, this was especially magical. You see, this was my grandson’s first cruise. We were all very excited to show him the magic. In addition to this being his first cruise, it was also a specially themed cruise dedicated to Pixar! Onboard were a slew of special events, characters, artwork, excursions, and guests. 
Leaving from the Port of Los Angeles, we were greeted by extremely nice Disney cast members who also bid us a fond farewell complete with Mickey hands! 
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The SS Iowa battleship was a pleasant surprise as we sailed past her.




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The muster drill proved to be a breeze for Gavin. (Shown here on his mommy, Kaila)

We enjoyed the variety of Pixar characters who were onboard for photo opportunities, autographs, and fun! Characters from Monsters, Inc., Up, and The Incredibles characters were just a few.
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The port stops were breathtaking! From sailing under the Golden Gate Bridge, seeing the skyline of San Diego, to watching sea lions beg at the ship in Ensenada. We had so much fun touring Alcatraz, enjoying the views of San Francisco, eating clam chowder on the Pier, and listening to the sounds of the Pier 39 sea lions.  Seeing the sites of San Diego, enjoying a day aboard the ship in Ensenada, and taking a day to relax in the spa, is what cruising is all about. 
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Spending time with Gavin is something we all treasure. Pictured above: Grandpa, Courtney, me, and Kaila - with Gavin. He enjoys cruising!
From the moment we stepped onto the ship until the very sad day we had to get the Mickey boot, we enjoyed every single moment of the cruising experience. From wonderful service with Sedat, our server, to the great entertainment, like Toy Story Musical, and on this cruise, the exceptional Pixar gifts and memorabilia, our vacation was incredible! To top it off, Gavin was so thrilled at every turn - whether it be the characters who made him smile or the cast members who played with him throughout the cruise. We had so much fun, we went again in November! (More to come)
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    We have decided to start a fun area of the website devoted to experiences from both clients and our planners' travels with their own family!

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