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Travel Reflections - Purpose In How We Travel

Travel Reflections - Purpose In How We Travel

Allan and I recently celebrated our 14th wedding anniversary with a visit to Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada, for the first time! Canada is so close to us here in New York, yet it took us visiting more than 30 countries before we got to Canada. In reflecting on our anniversary trip, I’m led to share a deeper message that I receive from this experience, rather than writing a typical blog that provides a play-by-play of all we did during this particular trip. That said, for those interested in seeing those details, the video play-by-play of our weekend is available at My Cruising Family on YouTube and is linked here.

I’ve wondered and asked God about how in the world telling people about cruises and travel is glorifying onto Him. How is this a ministry? Well, dare I say that this trip highlights some of the answers to that question, at least a bit, for me.

Fly With Us To Dubai And Cruise Aboard MSC World Europa!

Fly With Us To Dubai And Cruise Aboard MSC World Europa!

It’s been 10 months since my most recent blog post, Twice Upon A Disney Wish, and I’m jumping right back into sharing our most recent travel adventures with you, here, on My Cruising Family, the blog… but not before addressing the elephant in the room…

So, where have we been since Twice Upon A Disney Wish? Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Bermuda! These trips involved two new and exciting cruise ships… oh, and we even stayed overnight right here in New York harbor for the Christening/Naming Ceremony of a third new cruise ship. Those are the quick updates, but if you know me, then you know I get into details. So here goes…

African-American Family, African-American Travel, African-American Vacation, Cruise, Cruise Activities, Cruise Reviews, Cruising With Children, Cruising With A Child, Cruising, Family Cruising, Family Cruise Line, Family Cruise, Excursions, Excursion, Dubai, Family Travel, Family Vacation, Family Time, MSC, MSC Cruise, MSC Cruises, Pre-Cruise Hotel, Vacation Planning, Vacation, Abu Dhabi, Warner Bros. WorldPeta-Gaye DanielAugust 30, 2023Cruise from Dubai, Cruise to Dubai, United Arab Emirates vacation, MSC World Europa, MSC World America, Flying Emirates with children, Flying Emirates from New York, Emirates from JFK to DXB, Traveling from New York to Dubai, Visiting Abu Dhabi by cruise ship, Cruise to Abu Dhabi, Cruise from Abu Dhabi, family cruise, Family Cruise, Family Cruising, family cruising, Warner Brothers World, Theme Park in UAE, Abu Dhabi theme parks, Dubai theme parks, largest indoor theme park in the world Comments

Dominica: Our First Visit To The Nature Island

Dominica: Our First Visit To The Nature Island

Allan and I recently traveled to Dominica - not to be confused with the Dominican Republic. What’s the difference? Well, there are many, but the primary distinction is that The Dominican Republic is a major tourist destination in the Western Caribbean, and it shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti, while Dominica - known as the Nature Island - is an entire island located in the Southeastern Caribbean and seems to be far less known or, at least, less visited for vacation.

7 FUN FACTS ABOUT DOMINICA - THE NATURE ISLAND:

Dominica has 9 volcanoes
Dominica’s beaches are black sand beaches
There are at least 365 rivers in Dominica
There are at least 12 waterfalls in Dominica
Dominica can be visited by airplane or cruise ship
Dominica is known for excellent whale-watching and dolphin-spotting as they live very close to shore, year-round
Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man’s Chest and Pirates of the Caribbean 3: At World’s End were filmed, in part, in Dominica.

Dominica was country number 30 for me, getting us closer to accomplishing our goal of visiting every country in the Caribbean!

The Truth About Royal Caribbean’s Boardwalk View Balconies

The Truth About Royal Caribbean’s Boardwalk View Balconies

This Spring Break 2022, our family enjoyed a wonderful 7-day Caribbean cruise aboard Royal Caribbean’s Harmony of the Seas, and we stayed in two adjacent Boardwalk View Balcony Staterooms – 8329 and 8327. These rooms are the furthest aft on Deck 8, next to the AquaTheater Suites, which also means that they are closest to the view of the ocean and the AquaTheater, which is exactly why I selected them!

What sort of stateroom do you prefer when sailing? Is there a certain view from your stateroom that you have in mind? Have you ever considered a Boardwalk View Balcony Stateroom?

Cruise, Cruise Reviews, Cruising With A Child, Cruising With Children, Cruising, Family Cruise, Family Cruise Line, Family, Family Cruising, Family Time, Family Travel, Family Vacation, Island Hopping, Island-Hopping, RCI, Royal Caribbean, Royal Caribbean Cruises, Vacation Planning, Staterooms, Cruise CabinsPeta-Gaye DanielApril 18, 2022Oasis class ships, Oasis of the Seas, Allure of the Seas, Harmony of the Seas, Symphony of the Seas, Wonder of the Seas, Boardwalk View Balcony Stateroom, Boardwalk View Stateroom, Boardwalk View Balcony, Boardwalk View Room, Boardwalk View, Best room on Harmony of the Seas, Best room on Oasis class ships, Best balcony stateroom on Harmony of the Seas, Best balcony cabin on Harmony of the Seas, Best balcony stateroom, Aquatheater suite, Aquatheatre suite, Aquatheater balcony, Aquatheatre balcony, Loyal to Royal, Royal Caribbean, Royal Caribbean cruises, Royal Caribbean cruise, Royal Caribbean CruiseComment

5 Steps To Planning A Momcation

5 Steps To Planning A Momcation

When: Decide when you’ll go

One very important decision to make after deciding that you will take a momcation is to decide when. At present, my children are aged 10 and 6, so school plays a role in deciding our vacations whether the children are vacationing with me or not. For me, the two overarching options to consider for when to take a momcation are as follows:

When school is on vacation, so the person caring for my children while I’m away won’t need to take them to and from school. This works well if the person is older, is retired, works from home, or has taken time off from work to stay with the children, and so this person would usually not be leaving the house for work, etc.

NOTE: This is the option I opt for because my “go to” person to care for my children while I am away is my mom, and she is a retired nurse. While she can drive the boys around, if necessary, it is much more convenient if school is on vacation, so that she doesn’t have the juggle their two different school schedules while also managing cooking and cleaning for them as well. I know my boys, and they are a handful. While my husband would also be at home, he works, so having my mom care for our boys works best.

However, there is another option…

Moms Want To Run Away Too!

Moms Want To Run Away Too!

TV shows and stories when I was a kid would sometimes feature kids who wanted to run away… but listen… us mamas want to run away sometimes too… probably even more than the kids! Can I get an amen?!

I love my husband and children dearly - and for some reason, when getting into “real talk” about our feelings, us mamas always feel the need to preface our statements with the “I love my kids” statement. That, in and of itself, is a showing of the emotional and mental burden mamas carry around. As I was saying… I love my husband and children dearly, but being around them almost every single day at the magnitude that we’ve been around each other for the past 2 years has been a lot - from working from home while they were simultaneously schooling from home, to trying to make sure they’re taking their vitamins and being even more vigilant than my usual germaphobic self in the fight against germs, especially now that they’ve been attending school in-person, to managing health challenges in our household - it’s been a lot for them and for me. Can you relate?

Where To Stay During A Disneyland Family Vacation: Tropicana Inn & Suites

Where To Stay During A Disneyland Family Vacation: Tropicana Inn & Suites

As a person who prefers to stay on property at Disney World, and highly recommends Disney World hotels, I am in awe that I am now excitedly and highly recommending the off-property Tropicana Inn & Suites at Disneyland! It was the perfect place for our family’s 5-day Anaheim stay and 4-day Disneyland vacation! Truth be told, when researching places to stay near Disneyland, off-property hotels/motels come highly recommended.

Here are some reasons why I specifically recommend the Tropicana Inn & Suites if/when traveling to Disneyland.

Disney World's 50th Anniversary Or Disneyland: Help Me Choose!

Disney World's 50th Anniversary Or Disneyland: Help Me Choose!

While many Disney fans will be flocking to Walt Disney World to be present for the 50th Anniversary Celebration, starting on October 1, 2021, we just returned from Disneyland, and encourage you to consider Disneyland instead. Now, don’t get it twisted, we love Disney World too, and it was the last big vacation we had before the p a n d e m I c alongside our Disney Fantasy cruise! However, if you are wanting to experience Disney this year, but you are concerned about crowds, long lines, the overall pace, and even the price, we think Disneyland is a great option! Quite honestly, one won’t go wrong with a Disney vacation! Nevertheless, here are some reasons that we find Disneyland to be the Happiest Place on Earth while Disney fans flock to the World’s Most Magical Celebration!

Disney California Adventure Park, Again!

Disney California Adventure Park, Again!

After our first day at Disney California Adventure (DCA) just three days prior, and an overall three days total of Disneyland parks already under our belts, we were prepared for a fun-filled Day four of four! Hoping this overview of our itinerary for a leisurely day at DCA is helpful to you if you’re considering and/or planning a Disneyland vacation

Disney Family, Family Travel, Family Vacation, Family TimePeta-Gaye DanielSeptember 4, 2021Disney Is Worth It, Disneyland, Disney California Adventure Park, Disney California Adventure, Disneyland Itinerary, Disneyland Touring Plan, Disneyland Park, First Day at Disneyland Park, First Day At DisneylandComment

Disneyland Park Itinerary With 10-Year-Old & 6-Year-Old Sons

Disneyland Park Itinerary With 10-Year-Old & 6-Year-Old Sons

Need help mapping out your day at Disneyland Park with two young children? Let this blog article help! It’s intended to (1) give you a feel for what you can fit in a day at the park and (2) serve as a flexible itinerary to assist similarly situated families with mapping out their visits to Disneyland Park.

Our family consists of Grandma, Mom, Dad, 10-year-old AJ and 6-year-old LJ, and it should be noted that LJ doesn’t like rides with drops or any ride that’s on the scarier side, so he sat out some rides that the rest of us chose to ride, and when he would do that, one of us would stay with him and then go on the ride right after if we chose to. Disney offers ride-swapping to accommodate that. We also simply chose to forego some attractions that were “maybes” on our list just because we thought it better to repeat rides that we enjoyed. Despite the dark and the drops on Space Mountain, our brave boy LJ even chose to get on it again in order to get a good photo of him on there because Allan’s head was blocking him in the photo from the first day on Space Mountain. So, little things like that can definitely alter your planned itinerary for Disneyland. During the time we were there, that was just fine, as the entire visit was a nice, self-paced experience we all found to be enjoyable. In other words, we weren’t stuck to a rigid schedule.

Disney Family, Family Travel, Family Vacation, Family TimePeta-Gaye DanielSeptember 3, 2021Disney Is Worth It, Disneyland Park, Disneyland Itinerary, Disneyland Touring Plan, First Day At Disneyland, First Day at Disneyland Park, Space Mountain, Splash Mountain, Space Mountain with children, Splash Mountain with childrenComment

Our First Day At Disneyland: Disney California Adventure Park

Our First Day At Disneyland: Disney California Adventure Park

First day in California for all five of us, and we went to Disney’s California Adventure Park (DCA)! Initially, we had a touring plan to guide us in getting to all the major and not so major attractions on our list, but having gotten to our hotel in the wee hours of the morning, after flying from New York, then staying up to sanitize surfaces throughout the suite, unpack, and having our sons refusing to sleep, I said that I needed decent sleep. Since I went to sleep at about 4 AM, I decided we would not go to the park until about 1 PM. So, my previously scheduled touring plan starting at 8 AM was out the window. However, we had a great, well-paced experience, hitting most of what we had on our original list, plus photo ops and shows we didn’t have listed at all! Technically, we accomplished more than I’d actually planned

Disney Fan, Disney Family, Family Travel, Family Vacation, Family TimePeta-Gaye DanielSeptember 3, 2021Disneyland, Disneyland Park, Disney California Adventure, Disney California Adventure Park, Cars Land, Radiator Springs, Boy Mom, Mom of Boys, The Happiest Place On Earth, Disneyland Itinerary, First Day At Disneyland, Disneyland Touring PlanComment

The TWA Hotel

The TWA Hotel

We all know from flying that we are to put on your own oxygen mask before attempting to assist others. So, in applying that to vacay season, especially after the past year, Allan and I decided that, before venturing out with the whole family, and before returning to our far and wide family travels, we would personally refresh near home - just the two of us. So, we recently enjoyed a quick staycation at the TWA Hotel, here in NYC! Sometimes we just need a change of scenery! Prior to this hotel visit, Allan had repeatedly said for months that he’s felt the need for a change of scenery. Well, although it’s not yet the beach and didn’t require a flight or a ship, this was a nice refresher.

Taking Flight As The Globe Re-Opens

Taking Flight As The Globe Re-Opens

In our March 2021 blog article, we talked about pivoting, specifically, PIVOT, that is:

· P for Planted

· I for Intelligence

· V for Vision

· O for Opportunities

· T for Take flight

Although that article focused more on pivoting in life in general, it made mention of how we’ve even had to pivot in relation to traveling. As I write this, I am beaming with excitement because I feel like I’m tasting travel again! Our family has three trips already booked, and if you know me, then you know that planning for these trips is a lot of the fun for me! That said, it’s been a journey to get here, and the journey included a pivot. During the pandemic, we’ve stayed physically PLANTED at home, venturing out only to places relatively close to home like Coney Island, the Botanic Garden, the Nautical Mile, the Jurassic Quest Drive-Through, Long Island’s North Fork, and Santa’s Christmas Tree Farm, which are all drivable locations. Yes, this airplane-loving, cruise-loving family, decided to visit a few places by car over the course of the past year. We’ve also been spiritually PLANTED in our faith, believing that this pause/standstill in our global travels would be only temporary. In gathering INTELLIGENCE / INFORMATION about the reason for the global pause on travel, we have also gathered INTELLIGENCE / INFORMATION on options available to us at present and potential options for the future. We have a VISION to safely travel the world again. We have had the OPPORTUNITY to be vaccinated to help slow and potentially stop the spread of a deadly virus, and to be able to travel safely again, and we have made use of that OPPORTUNITY, so that the three adults in our house have now received two doses of the vaccine. We are now preparing to TAKE FLIGHT as I’ve researched and planned three future trips, with my eye on a fourth… two of those three / three of those four will be during the schools’ summer vacation months!

Have you been getting excited about the travel possibilities opening up?

How To "Getaway" At Home

How To "Getaway" At Home

As a working mom of boys, I sometimes find myself in need of a getaway from the day-to-day grind. Prior to the pandemic, knowing I had multiple trips lined up helped me to get through the day-to-day grind, but for obvious pandemic-related reasons, we can no longer rely on that. So, how do we safely get away now? First, the getaway starts by giving ourselves permission. I honestly think that our biggest hurdle as moms is allowing ourselves to step away. Once we resolve that battle in our minds and in our feelings, then we're in good shape.

Jamaican Christmas Cake Recipe

Jamaican Christmas Cake Recipe

I’ve been in the kitchen, watching my Grandma and Mommy make Christmas cakes for decades, and I have yet to bake a traditional Jamaican Christmas cake myself. Well, this Christmas, I am sharing the general recipe with you so that you can plan to bake it next year, as I am planning to do so also. Here’s the general recipe recorded from Mommy making our Christmas cakes this year. As with all recipes, folks may choose to add their own flair, so please don’t take this as the only way to make Jamaican Christmas cake, but it is the recipe that has produced delicious Christmas cakes in our family for years! Culturally, we tend to not use super strict recipes and we tend to use our judgment while learning by doing.

Strawberries, Cruising, and 2020... Oh My!

Strawberries, Cruising, and 2020... Oh My!

Anyone having strawberries with breakfast today? In looking through photos from my recent 40th birthday photoshoot, the strawberries that top my birthday cake, as well as these chopped strawberries, remind me of how much I miss cruising. Yes, you read that right! Sure, it could also be that cruising is fresh in my mind because, a few hours ago, I cancelled our planned Spring Break cruise for March 2021. It could also be that I celebrated my 40th birthday in a very low-key way here in New York City when had there not been a pandemic, I probably would’ve been flying or cruising somewhere. Really though, these strawberries remind me of cruising and how much I miss it because, during our cruises, we would have fresh fruit daily! While I can arrange to have fruit at our house by grocery shopping, it’s a whole different vibe when I don’t have to buy fruit and other groceries at the supermarket for a week, nor do I have to figure out breakfast, lunch, and dinner… that’s the deal on a cruise! Honestly, in my daily life, I am blessed to have a husband and mother who both help tremendously with meals; however, when we cruise, we usually do so together, so that my hubby and my mom also get a break from meal-planning and meal-prep. We simply go to our favorite restaurant onboard the ship and eat. We haven’t had a break like that in over a year! Cruising and all-inclusive vacations provide this freedom that we look forward to as an escape from our daily grind. I know I’ve read the saying about creating a life that we don’t need a vacation from, and I agree with it, but

The Journey

The Journey

We all know the “Are we there yet?” question is associated with childhood. During our car rides and trips to various places, our sons have asked how long will it take, which is a valid question. However, when that question is persistent and then becomes the focus of the drive or trip, it distracts from certain things like the beautiful scenery along the way and the event or outing itself that we are usually excited about. As adults, do we do this with God and His plans and purposes for our lives? I know I’ve done it. So, this Word, honestly, is not to condemn anyone, but is to address something identified within me, and I hope it is helpful to you too. What if we approached life like we did our cruises or other vacations? What if we looked forward to the journey and not just the destination?

How To Unplug During The Pandemic

How To Unplug During The Pandemic

Before the shutdown caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the daily commute was hectic for our family. I would commute with both my sons via the Long Island Rail Road and New York City Transit, taking three to four trains just to get to school and work. With the shuffle, hustle, and bustle of getting my children to school, I often walked into my office well before 9 AM, yet feeling as though I had already completed a full day of work. With that sort of daily morning commute, I often looked forward to vacations to unplug, as you may recall I wrote about in a blog years ago, Why I Unplug During Family Vacations. I don’t miss that hectic commute one bit. However, working from home while the children school from home is its own type of hectic. So, again, I look forward to unplugging. My desire to unplug from hectic daily responsibilities is one reason I love to travel. So, if we don’t travel, how do we unplug in the midst of a pandemic?

We Renewed Our Vows On A Disney Cruise!

We Renewed Our Vows On A Disney Cruise!

We chose to celebrate our 10th anniversary with a vow renewal on a 7-day Disney Fantasy Eastern Caribbean sailing, which was a magical escape from navigating the hustle and bustle of New York City, working demanding jobs, and parenting our two rambunctious boys – well, we still parented our boys throughout the cruise, but they shared a stateroom with Grandma and spent hours enjoying the Oceaneers Club, which allowed Mommy and Daddy some much needed rest and relaxation.

On this particular voyage, we enjoyed our gorgeous ship on sea days and we also enjoyed days at port in Tortola, B.V.I., and St. Thomas, U.S.V.I. Then, at sea on Day 6, we renewed our vows on the Meridian Patio, Deck 12, aft, with breathtaking views of the ocean and sky as our backdrop. Whew! I get goosebumps thinking about it all, even now. Our vow renewal was simply amazing!

We Still Do! Mr. And Mrs. Daniel SAILabrate A Decade!

We Still Do! Mr. And Mrs. Daniel SAILabrate A Decade!

Greetings! It’s exactly two weeks since our 10th anniversary, and it’s Throwback Thursday. So, today we share with you this video recap that has been thoughtfully put together by Reality Weddings, the amazing husband and wife videography team that sailed with us on our magical 7-Day Disney Fantasy vow renewal cruise from October 5, 2019 to October 12, 2019! This recap is like three videos in one! So, while we prepare an upcoming blog post and photo gallery for your viewing pleasure in the near future, we hope you enjoy every moment of this special video!