Snow and Skiing

I used to love snow---we often played outside with the kids, we skied---cross country and down hill. Looking through some of our old photos, I was reminded of how much I used to love it.  I learned to ski when I lived in Germany. (Click here)

Seeing the snow the East Coast got, last week reminded me of our Pittsburgh snow of 1978--with the toddler (Rachel) in front of the door.  Then, I found this photo of Leah riding her big wheel in the snow.  

And, Kansas City

Two out of three kids had basketball games---one was a spectator.  The official above was one of the best---he would kneel down, talk to the girls, remind them each time what direction they needed to go in.  For someone who obviously loved the game, he did a great job with this Kindergarten team.

Visiting Friends and Family in Texas

 After our cruise, we went to Leah's where we had lunch with my sister, her husband, niece and her husband.  The kids always enjoy getting together with them since my sister always brings treats and crafts and the others help entertain the kids.

Cruise Ship Life

 There is so much I enjoy about a cruise---just being on the water restores me.  Of course, I like the food, but I also enjoy meeting new dining companions, going to the shows, the spa, attending exercise classes like the Zumba class below and the art work like the mosaic fresco above.

 And, occasionally, I even meet up with someone I know like my cousin Carol!

Belize and Cozumel

 This was our third time in Belize and we have never gotten off the ship.  It's a tender boat ride which I thought we might do this time, but the weather was not great, so we stayed aboard and I went to the spa (which my travel journals says I have done each time we went to Belize)

Roatan

 One of the things I love most about a cruise is entering and leaving a port---judging from the spectators above, I am not the only one who enjoys this.  Our first port was Roatan, Honduras.  We didn't schedule any excursions because we had had a private tour there a few years ago.  Click here to see our visit two years ago.

Galveston Embarkation

After we left Tremont House, we drove around the Seawall section of Galveston.  I loved its mix of old and new.   When I mentioned to my daughter how much I loved Galveston, she was surprised because she didn't like it when she visited several years ago.  We finally figured out the difference.  I see it as a typical English Beach Town with old buildings, wide promenades and unobstructed views of the ocean.  She was expecting more American beach town:  high condos on beachfront property and restaurants on the water.  With an amusement park on a pier, it was just like Brighton in England (and many of our east coast beach towns)

But, the Grand Dame of Galveston was where we were headed---Hotel Galvez.  Our Tremont House Hotel (across the island from Seawall) had a package that with valet parking, we could drive to Hotel Galvez to park our car on the cruise and take a shuttle to the ship.  I don't think I have ever waited for a shuttle in a more beautiful setting. (and I have added a hotel to my bucket list)