Keep Calm and Cruise On

After entering our stateroom for the very first time, and being hit with a wave of.......a smell that should only belong in the bathroom,

  (the shower curtain was discovered as the culprit - it hung right next to the toilet, which apparently had caught a lot of "pee spray" from the previous occupants of the room!),  

we had a wonderful week on the Fowers Family cruise!

Here's a sampling of our "yearbook" (weekbook?):

Port 1: Puerto Vallarta

 {Note: Contrary to what this may look like....we are NOT drinking at the bar!  Well, kind of.}  

My brother, David, and us both got the "non-alcoholic drink card" (unlimited virgin pina coladas, strawberry daquiris, "Miami Vice's," "Bahama Mamas" etc. that we HAD to get from a bar).  Without giving you an exact daily number, let's just say we tried REALLY HARD to get our money's worth each day!!  ;)

Port 2: Mazatlan

Port 3:  Cabo San Lucas

The Crown Princess 

AND....interestingly enough, it was WAY easier to get my 10,000 Fitbit steps each day on the cruise...without really even trying!

It turns out, if you don't have to work your desk job for 6 hrs. a day, you get a lot more steps - and there's no last minute running around the block at 11:50 p.m!  :)

It also helped that you walk up 5 flights of stairs to get breakfast in the morning.

Then walk the same 5 flights back to your room to change into your swim suit.

Then walk to the middle of the ship and up 7 flights to the top deck to be by the pool and catch some rays.  

Then walk 2 flights down and over to the the drink machines to fill up your water bottle (and to the bars to get a "sunrise cooler" smoothie).

Then walk to the middle of the ship to watch a movie on the big outdoor screen.

Then you walk around the Buffet, the Pizzeria, and the Grill to judge who has the best lunch options, and then walk the whole outer edge of the ship trying to find a window table to eat at.

Then you go back to your room because you forgot your a) book, b) water bottle, c) sunscreen, d) pen

Then you go around to all the hang out rooms/areas around the ship, on 3 different decks, to see if there is an open table to play cards at.

And then you walk up 3 flights to your room to get ready for dinner.

Then down 4 flights to the dining room.

Then you walk in and out of the dining room a few times to go to the restroom during your 2 hr. dinner, from the constant water you drink.

Then walk to the very front of the ship for the evening entertainment in the theatre.

Then back to the middle of the ship and up one floor for the game shows.

Then down a couple decks to the lounge where you dance the night away.

And then, finally, walk back up 4 decks and to the back of the ship to your stateroom to retire for the evening!

Oh...It was fun while it lasted (which is never long enough!) but now it's back to reality.  boo hoo.

And we've decided (I think, but I'm not convinced) we'll have to try to be "responsible" and take a sabbatical from cruising for the a while......until the next great "opportunity" arises!  ;)

It's Not All it's Cracked Up to Be

My son is now 18 years old.

That means he's officially an adult.
(at least that's what he's been telling me.)

So, he had a Dr. appointment the other day, and I just dropped him off at the building entrance while I went to park the car (since we don't have an extra car anymore, I had to drive) and I moseyed on in about 5 minutes later.  It didn't matter, because he's now an adult.

BECAUSE he's now an adult, he can check his own self in at the Dr. office.

BECAUSE he is now an adult, he also has to sign all "consent to treat" and other like papers himself.

BECAUSE he is now an adult, he can speak up for himself, he doesn't need his mom to answer for him.

BUT THEN, the moment I walked into the office, the two gals at the front desk asked, "Are you Ryan's mom?"

"Yes."

So, then they waved me on over to them and started going through the whole 9 yards with ME.

I reminded them, because I'm sure they already knew, that he is 18 yrs. old now. (after all, doctors always seem very interested in their patients' DOB - they ask it a few dozen times in the paperwork, over the phone for I.D. and in person, too.)

I found out later why.

Ryan told me the initial interaction went like this - he said he felt like an idiot:

Do you have a co-pay?

I don't know.

What insurance do you have?

I don't know

Do you have medical insurance?

I don't know.

When was the last time you were seen in our office?

I don't know.

Do you know your family medical history?

No.

Well, you'll have to fill out a new information chart.

OK.  

(And then he walked away, without the forms, and sat down in the waiting room - and that's where I found him when I walked in.)

They gave ME the stuff to fill out - and I promptly handed it over to him.
After he was done filling out the information - it's on an electronic tablet these days, with a stylus AND advertisements for drugs pop up when you're moving between screens.  What the what?!? - he signed his own name (he redid it about 5 times - to get his 1st official adult signature just right, ya know!)

I think he liked how it felt, doing such an "adult" thing, and he returned the tablet back to the front desk feeling good and less like an idiot than before.

AND THEN, they asked him for the money for the co-pay of the visit.

At which point, he had to call, "Mom!" (I looked up from my book, minding my own business in the waiting room), signal me to come up to the front desk, and have me open up my purse to take care of the transaction.

Man, being an adult means you actually have to do stuff - and know stuff - and pay for stuff!
Psfff!  It's for the birds!  ;)

**********
For the record, I did NOT go back into the exam room with him.  I let him field all the Dr.'s [awkward & personal] questions on his own, as well as show his back side to the Dr. in private.  ;)  And he got poked with various needles WITHOUT me holding his hand!
I had to let him regain his [adult] dignity somehow!  ;)