Hello, Baby! Feeling Lucky?

EmbellishKits.com February 2015 Card Kit Review and CraftWithAnna Tutorial

Greetings Crafters!

What a whirlwind of craftivity I've been in since returning from my vacation/research trip onboard Royal Caribbean's Navigator of the Seas. In case you hadn't been following along, I went for a one week cruise with my best friend at the end of February. We each paid a little extra through our travel agents, Gail and Cheri over at CruiseOne to have crop space in the conference room onboard with one of our favorite teachers from Creating Keepsakes Conventions of the past, Shelby Dredge of Embellish It!  

You may remember, I had the opportunity to interview Shelby for the August edition of DieCutCrazy, a digital magazine whose back issues are now available free through the Apple store. As many classes as I have taken from her and cool tricks I have learned over the years, I was thrilled to spend a week with the other 90 or so crafters who enjoy her projects as well. So many beautiful memories, and even better, terrific relationships formed with my fellow cruisers.

I'm beyond excited to announce that each month, I'll be showcasing the new kits offered from EmbellishKits.com. There are many hot products included in each release, and I'll be sure to include a quick tutorial, as well as showing my finished projects and even a few bonus creations made from the leftover supplies (there are always a lot of those). 

You'll want to head over to my YouTube channel and click the subscribe button (if you haven't already)- now you'll have my latest videos posted directly to your watch feed!

Below are the 8 cards I completed from the contents of the EmbellishKits.com February 2015 Card Kit. Each of their kits contain complete cutting and assembly instructions, those gorgeous quality papers we love, embellishments, and all the cardstock bases and custom envelopes to inspire you to create card collections that you will love to give away. Heck, sometimes I even put mine in a little frame on the mantel for a while... so go ahead and show off: you certainly have my permission!


#1 "Baby Love," and #5 "You & Me Baby"

The best part about the kits for me, aside from all that delicious product, is that the complete instructions for each card are included with full color detail pictures, so I can hop around from card to card completing them as the desire strikes me. Knowing that some of my cards will end up in the shop for sale, I was able to change the designs by simply alternating the patterns or elements- super easy!

First off, let me show you my versions of the large, 5x7 card, number One, "Baby Love," and the 6x6 "You & Me Baby" card with the blue Bazzill base. While many of the same suggested elements appear, you'll notice I added a few more chipboard pieces and fussy cut images to my little hearts desire.

#2 "Hello Baby"

Next up is my this darling little elephant saying, "Hello Baby." Again, by simply choosing an alternate 3x4 card from the kit and that chipboard friend, my card takes on a new look that was so simple, I can't wait to duplicate it!

Now, we all know how fast babies grow. One moment they are a twinkle in our eye and the next thing you know they are thier own person! No matter what stage of life, we care for them with "Love Beyond Measure," which is the theme of card number three in this kit. See how I changed the design from landscape to portrait? And that I used a smaller chipboard heart, and turned the stick pin on it's side. The addition of another fussy cut pennant added to the expressed sentiment and brought in some of that lovely pastel turquoise. The adhesive backed satin scallop trim can be used as a whimsical banner, and home for another enamel dot. Bling bling, baby!



#4 "Baby" Banner

Speaking of banners, don't you just love when the paper does all the work for you? The six by six papers included with this kit make mixing and matching all these patterns a breeze. For this card, I actually just used the piece I had cut for the bottom; one piece of paper, two patterns= one crafty masterpiece! Whoa, that was a little to close to doing math for me to feel comfortable haha.



Something I had no trouble with? Reaching into my seldom used stash of baby themed embellishments to add a little more flair to the bottom of the card. This would have been the perfect place to add a sentiment sticker or even Baby's name! Shelby's idea of wrapping a bit of the included baker's twine and layering the chipboard flower elements is one of the reason's I've always enjoyed her classes... sure, it's a simple trick, but it's one I'll actually remember!

#6 "Love You To the Moon"
& #7 "Hello Baby W/Duck"

 Now for two of my favorite cards in this collection, #6 "Love You To the Moon," and #7, "Hello Baby w/Duck." Aren't they precious?

Again, you can see that I've taken a few liberties with the designs. A few placement differences on our Moon card simply bring the focus to one side and saved me a little fussy cutting. Between elmental-color-matching ruler patterned strips cut from a six by six piece, my little Duck is smelling the tulips atop a distress ink watercolor background.

That's another valuable, unadvertised element included in these kits; they are packed full of Inspiration! Do you identify with a go-with-what-feels-good craft-itude, or are you more apt to read and re-read directions before committing to the cut? No matter your style, you'll be making something... BONUS!




Leftover's Galore!

Created this before I even got off the ship :-)

Let's jump ahead to my bonus projects for this kit! Remember how I mentioned the scores of left over's there would be after this collection's completion? As you can see, I've got lot's more patterned papers to play with, plenty of enamel dots, and some large chipboard elements that will be great for more card making, or even ...some scrapbooking!


Time for the Bonus Round

This simple card used a few fussy cut pieces from the six by six pad, including a little of that ruler print I adore. Shelby's trick for tying a bit of ribbon around the flag is mimiced by knotting what's left of the grey polka dot grosgrain and using a glue dot instead of tying it. Wow, that was easy!

Last but not least by any means, is our featured card for this month's video preview, "Expecting You." Created in a matter of moments, little details like the organza ribbon around the chipboard flag make this a wow card big enough for multiple signatures inside. Can we say, office party (or baby shower, or just big handwriting lol)?

Thanks again for stopping by and playing with me today!

You can preview February 2015 Card kit from EmbellishOnline in the video below. Shopping for your must-have card kit is easy and only a click away at EmbellishKits.com.
  

And just in case you missed the linked picture at the top of the post-

Day Before We Go Galley Tour

Chandeliers and Champagne

The head waiter came by our table earlier in the week to inquire if we'd be interested in joining a small crowd of 150 cruisers in a behind the scenes tour of the ship's kitchen. The amount of food one sees constantly available does invite some speculation, and most of our table chose to pay the $25 reservation fee. Any time we choose to dine at one of the specialty restaurants, there is a cover charge of about the same, so the value would be fair as the promise of a sampling from the Mexican and Sushi places onboard. After he had collected our stateroom information and provided each of us with a quaint hand written receipt, we laughed about them wanting to get rid of all the premade foods, since we would be home soon (wah).

Weren't we surprised to learn that in fact nearly all of the food on board is prepared fresh, even our evening dinner plates, which I'll go into with more detail later. At eleven o'clock Saturday morning, 150 hungry cruisers stood outside the Saphire dining room eagerly anticipating our decadent brunch options. I even managed to snag a few photos with some of my new friends from our crop room- and of course one with my friend Denise from the dance floor!



We had those moves like Jagger...



There was a little confusion over the proper dress attire for visiting the ship's kitchen; open toed shoes not being particularly sanitary even if they have been pampered to perfection in the onboard  spa. Of course on a cruise to the Caribbean it's no surprise that most of the women and even a few men arrived with their cutest sandals on! Some were sent back to their rooms to change, which led them to believe that it was a requirement, after all, it was a perfectly reasonable request. However, not Everyone was told to do so, and in fact when we inquired about whether it was neccessary we were informed that in fact it would be no problem at all... hmmm. Oh well, nothing a courtesy glass of champagne wouldn't cure!

Introductions of the head dining room staff were made, and the Polish Head Chef even took the microphone to address the crowd and welcome us into his territory. A few tidbits of info were dosed out to us and gave us a bit to ponder as we were then led into the stainless steel cavern that is the source of so much gastronimic delight throughout the trip. The crowd gave a collective gasp when our Head Matre'D stated the number of eggs required to sustain the breadkfast and baking needs of the ship's guest: 15,000! Think about that for a minute, and then picture an entire truck filled with cartons of eggs, lasting only One Week. Wow, right?

So, when first I started out working, one of my first jobs was at a restaurant, bussing tables. It was a pretty easy job, and Cricket's usually wasn't very crowded, and occassionally I would be required to run the commetcial dishwasher as well. Fast forward about 17 years, and in my house I'm generally doing about three sinkfuls of dishes a day. Not really fun (and I still can't figure out how they keep appearing-and why I don't use paper dishes), but I cannot fathom how overwhelming it would be to face the task of cleaning 15,000 dishes EACH NIGHT! I sure felt sorry for the young man drying cups before us, especially when my co-watcher commented that this same guy, "works so hard, that he was so tired he fell asleep on the tender boat the other day!" I'm not sure I'm going to have a change of heart about wanting to clean food off the plates, but I'll sure be glad it's only a sinkful, and not a ROOM full haha.

Next we learned about the room service prepping area. One of two on board, there were all the carafes, creamers, teas and plate covers I recognized from our morning meals delivered to the room. Again, I hadn't even thought of this, but there are two prep stations to aid in the speed of delivery. Apparently, the 15 minutes it can take to get from one side of the ship to the other would be too much to ask of the patrons waiting for their goodies?

Next, an observation of the most sandwiches I've ever witnessed being prepared all at once by one person. Subway workers ain't got nothin' on this gal! It is truly awe inspring to consider all of the different dishes, available at all hours of the day, that are continuously being prepared for consumption. Another point I hadn't thought of was that the staff are being fed in much the same manner throughout the day as well... what a task for whoever is the food manager!

Too many cooks in the kitchen?
Not on a cruise ship.

All of that food is delivered and stored in cold stoage on Deck One until the time it will be used; first in, first out. We learned there is even a food checkout of sorts; the time and temperature of items is documented both upon pickup and delivery. Four hours is the limit for food to be out, and then it is disposed and replaced. The thought of so much potential waste was quite appalling, but before it is deemed no good, it is offered to the crew, and then some is incinerated.  Their wet goods are mashed and pulped and then released when we are more than 20 nautical miles from shore. So, the fish are eating well too- and then we can go and catch and eat the fish, beginning the cycle all over again.

Can you spot my plate?

Would you be surprised that it cost $300,000 for the food stocked onboard for each week's journey? That explains how they can affored those eggs, 10,000 pounds of flour, and 25,000 pounds of beef! Is all this information making your stomach growl as loudly as ours did when it was announced that we could now go back into the kitchen for a visit-as-many-times-as-you-like smorgasboard of food choices?

As facinating as all of the information about the food was, the concern for our wait staff was apparent, with many guests wondering aloud all manner of questions about their pay structure, rate of advancement, length of employment (or deployment, I suppose). Our water, James, had shared with us early on that this was his first cruise as head waiter. He was excellent! His enthusiasm for giving us exceptional dining experienes throughout our voyage was almost as enjoyable as the warmth in his smile. His assistant Zekun was sweet as could be, too. Head waitors can advance and earn the privledge of more tables (i.e. more shared tips) through the scores they recieve on the after-cruise- questionairre mailed by Royal Caribbean. I'll be sure to remember how welcome to the table we felt each night when I respond to that email!

Well, friends, my time on board has nearly come to an end. There is still a day of departure tomorrow that I hope you'll join me for. No one wants to stand in line alone! I've so enjoyed reliving this "epic" adventure with you all. Feel free to come back and re-read these posts as I'll be filling them in with more memories as they reoccur. And of course, if you want to share these with friends, or feel inclined to comment, there are buttons to click beneath each lengthy rememberance.

My rise to Craft Diva Superstardom continues, but first... 

Best Day Ever Embellies Get Ready

Continuing into our vacation with what would become a Monday worthy of all those "Best Day Ever" embellishments I can never put down...

Captivated by the Sun's Rising

After my mornings typed musings had reached their 5000 letter limit, I sat in bed gazing out the balcony window, watching the sky continue to lighten with the promise of a beautifully warm although somewhat overcast day. Listening for the footsteps of room service really. D headed into the water closet. The phone rang- Hello? "Oh hello madam, are you awake then?" Mmmn, yes. "Okay, then I will bring you the food to your room." Oh great! You mean you're on your way? "Yes ma'am that is correct." And back in bed I jumped to sit and wait for the food to arrive! A knock at the door- Yes, come in! Another knock. Yes? Oops, I guess I need to answer the door instead of sitting here in bed like the queen of Sheba.

Breakfast m'lady?

One of many polite people working on the boat, "Room Service Man" Oshando? came in (once I invited him) and waited patiently for me to shove the clutter on the vanity aside in order to allow him to set his tray down. Steaming black coffee, another pot full of hot water for tea, and two covered dishes with a side of apple, orange, yogurt, granola cereal and linen covered silverware stacked and waiting to be enjoyed on the balcony with my bestie! Does it get any better, friends?
Pouring my first cup of coffee and heading out to the balcony seemed to be an especially pleasing idea, but I thought with the sound of the wind howling outside all night that it might just be a tad chilly, the high for the day only being an expected 68*. OMG was I ever tickled to discover that the coat was completely unnecessary! 

a Zen moment

Back through the doorway flew the coat, and with coffee in hand I experienced the ultimate breakfast delight; warm salt mist in the air, sunlight already reflecting off the waves, and not a soul to disturb being able to silently absorb how wonderful the moment was. To really be present in appreciating the splendor that could come from such an act as simple as crossing a threshold. Then it was back in to grab a camera, for what would a cruising cropper like myself do without a self-timed picture of me silently enjoying said moment. I would actually have to remember it, like, in my mind?!
We were quite surprised at the humidity when we stepped on deck, but quickly made ourselves comfy and set in at enjoying our fresh fruit and atmosphere. Lot's of laughing and exclaiming, mixed in with the usual life's muddling's and reflective musings that come so naturally when we're together. I kept my eye down in the spray and reveled in the simple delight of catching sight of a single flying fish skimming along the water perpendicular to the ship. 

Dolphins beneath my window

Suddenly, I stutter-shouted excitedly, "They're HERE! Oh man oh gosh look they're really here!" D didn't even stop to question what I was shouting about, running back inside for cameras and back out in time to capture one of the most hoped for moments of my life: porpoises playing in the wake directly beneath us! OH wow- were they ever fun to watch, and I may have over stretched a cheek muscles with my maniacal  grinning.

Goodbye Friends!

 I had been sharing just moments before how disappointing it had been not to witness more marine life on my families previous to cruise to Alaska in the fall of 2012. Friends, have you ever had a dream you have no way of controlling come true? Then you will know how cushiony the cloud of air I floated down on to visit our conference room friends was. How could the day possibly get any better...

How about with an afternoon sun siesta, followed by the attendance of the Sexiest Man in the World contest? You'll have to stop by tomorrow to read all (okay, maybe not ALL) about the antics displayed by the contestants in another bit of Best Day Ever enjoyment. Thanks for following along on my high-seas Caribbean adventure, and feel free to share my stories with your friends on facebook, etc. There are icons directly below this posting that will take your right into a status share window. 

Have a Best Day Ever story to share? Comment below and you could win an embellishment to emblazon with!

 

Day of Departure

After staring about the ship's entryway with wide eyed wonder, our stomachs finally decided to alert us to the fact that we were a bit on the hungry side. The Windjammer is the all hours cafeteria style serving area, and the first line we jumped in started with the with our culinary exploration of some East Indian fare. I chose to skip the rice options to go with my hot pink Tandoori chicken and Masala beans, instead opting for a small spoonful of the best mashed potatoes I've had this year! Truthfully the only ones, but still. Then a supplemental salad topped with fresh peas, parmesan cheese, arugula of all greens, and olives. A few broccolis and the scraping on my plate of the ladle used to dip a scoop of Cesar salad dressing out. It wasn't much , but a little does go a long way with me when it comes to dressing. I figured it'd be terrific incentive to eat those little green florets of healthy intentions.
So did I cap the meal off with a soft serve ice cream cone, petite four sampler, or fresh fruit? No, I figured there'd be plenty time for that, and why start this week of fabulousness with a regretful tummy? There's a very comparative narrative running through our conversation as we bask warmth of our place in the window, watching our cruising companions pile obscene amounts of food onto their plates and return for more. We ponder, what is it that brings out the desire to excess on a vacation like this?
The drink packages onboard worked out to be about $25 a day for the liquor and $16 a day for soda and bottled water if you signed up the first day. Don't forget they include a souvenir color changing cup lol .DF and laughed about how important it becomes to some people that they MUST HAVE DRINKS! Agreeing that we both don't need that type of enhancement to make the vacation worthwhile, and then laughing about how we had started the day with Bailey's.
Next it was off to the Spa for a tour and the chance at winning part of the $500 in certificates they'd be giving out after muster. The scents of Eucalyptus, mint, and algae permeated the air and the lilting accents the spa staff were relaxation in themselves!
Now, when I cruised on Holland America's Oosterdam in 2012, we went out on deck and stood under our life rafts for the safety drill. On this boat, we were directed to muster in our designated area- inside the boat, in one of the nightclubs, a room with no exits to the outside as far as I could tell. With about 500 people! As one of the ladies crammed onto the stage with me remarked, is this what it's going to be like in an emergency? Feeling very Titanic-ish as we were advised to, "step back, please make room for the arriving guests," and hearing them call out repeatedly for rooms that had not yet reported in, the same woman further pondered, would we be waiting for these slowpokes in an emergency?!
I know we weren't the first ones to enter the Conference room which would become home to our scrapbooking sessions over the next week. I knew we were only two among 90, and that we may not become fast friends with everyone in the room. I also knew that our teacher Shelby Dredge of Embellish It! would have provided some fabulously trendy goodie packs to house our new memories, even if our two table name tags had been misplaced.  I still savored the opportunity to look over all of the kits out waiting for their scrappers to arrive.
We would be working on a mini cruise/vacation/summer album, as well as two, two-page 12x12 scrapbook layouts. The rich textures and patterns of Simple Stories, Echo Park, and Fancy Pants, a few sentiment sticker sheets, and a card of ombre ribbons, as well as an additional card kit were all sifted through with delight. I myself  had packed only 3 additional kits to work from, and then a large supply hoarding of cruise and vacation style embellishments I hoped to use in the mini-album. I also brought about 6-10 loose photos in case I ran out of "stuff" to work on.
Remember how we were waiting for our crop supplies to appear in our room? A quick run up to the room before dinner and guess what? No bags outside our hallway waiting. Hmm, well I wouldn't have minded going to dinner in my jeans and scrappy Paper Wizard tee, but luckily I didn't have to, our Porter Kenneth had them there inside waiting for us. Our paths crossed again on the way to dinner and after we thanked him he shared that, "When I saw these to bags coming up, I said to myself, oh no- these two are going inside where they will be safe!" Awww. He didn't want anyone taking our precious scissors!
Remember those two friendly ladies we had met in the hotel, Lani and Nancy? Can you guess who's table they'd be sitting at? Yep, it was ours! Hooray, now we will have even more gab time with our neighbors from Sequim :-) Notice they have on beautifully coordinated ensembles in coral- totally not planned. But I love to see women (and men, too) wearing this cautionary color. It's funny that a color so easy to wear for so many skin tones is the one that people steer away from. So, next time you see it, why don't you try it?

Yumm, if you've ever gone on a cruise, or know someone like me who has, you will be sure to hear a lot about the food onboard. My favorite place to eat is always the dining room, maybe because of the formality of the wait staff. Or perhaps I just enjoy selecting three courses each night without a care to the price! Yeah, pretty sure that's it... So bring on the Eggplant! Poached Salmon? yes! BBQ Crème Brule? OK! oh and the Drink of the Day, sluuurp! All enjoyed next to a large porthole window overlooking the sun as it sets on fun-filled, dream like day.
After dinner, I was so tuckered, I just went right to the room for night the night. NOT. I had get at least one page out of my system, and besides we wanted to meet our table mates, Candi, Halee, Miranda, and Laurie. Such sweet ladies, Laurie even remedied the name tag situation with a flash of paper and flourish of sharpie. I enjoy any opportunity to teach, and with my Sweet Carolyn over my shoulder, it was no time at all before I had shared the basics of scrapping, from the foundation up. Echo your story with patterned paper or colors, give your photos a resting place, include room for journaling, add a title of some sort, and embellish away!

Finally, it was deemed retirement time, but knowing my craft habits as well as I do, and feeling especially grateful that I had the supplies with which to create with, I brought a small armful of treasures back to the room and made a thank you for our steward, Ken, who had also re-arranged our King size bed into the two twins we had requested.  Sitting at the vanity while Daphne read herself to sleep, I couldn't help but consider what my day would have been like at home... wondering would I be able to catch up on some sleep in the morning? And, what would I like delivered from room service! Sweet dreams indeed for our first night at sea.
Thanks for following along as I relive my adventure filled cruise onboard the Royal Caribbean Navigator of the Seas. I'll be posting all week, so feel free to share the trip with your own friends and family, and ask anything you like in the comments section. There will be fun (and facts) abound as we continue towards our first port of the island of Roaatan, Honduras!


Please Tell Me I'll Sleep In Sometime On This Trip

Monday morning, I thought to myself, "Yeah, I could get used to this..." Get used to watching the day begin in the very slightest way. Get used to laying in bed, knowing it's not time to get up because the sun had not risen at 6:14 a.m. as were told it would do yet. Knowing that, regardless of how the weather is, it's still not time to get out of bed because room service hasn't arrived!

Yes, the food fantasies began that early in the day for me, a surprise because I actually still feel quite full from yesterdays consumptions. A light breakfast of whole fruits and that delicious cup of Bailey's enhanced coffee yummy. Too bad D chose to get her coffee downstairs from the surly unknowledgeable barista, who instead of cappuccino, handed her a cup with about an inch of foam on top of a small spitting's worth of blackened coffee juice. She did offer to fill the cup up with water... which was declined. I added it to the bottom of my cup and swigged it without remorse, then set in to wait for the shuttle bus to arrive, chatting with our new friends Lani and Nancy, and making some new ones too, including the delightful Carolyn, who really is a sweet sweet southern gal with a lot of love to share.  

Don't know quite how it happened that her feet got tangled as we waited for our shuttle at the hotel that morning, but the result was that a simple moving of her suitcase would result in a week of swelling and discomfort. Taking pity on her in the mad rush of boarding cruisers outside the terminal warehouse, I was able to offer myself as a crutch she could use to stay upright. With so many people pushing to get on board I was a little afraid for her! Anyway for the rest of the trip she would insist on introducing me as, "Her Angel, Anna." What a sweetie! 

Here's what might be my first typed comparison about our Alaskan Holland America cruise onboard the Oosterdam: my grandma was along to share the experience. Now, I love my grandma tremendously, and one of the reasons I was so happy to have her alongside experiencing the trip was because then I wouldn't have to try to remember all the details when we talked later!  Well, I'm still the one tasked with remembering the details, but at least she remembers things like the exquisite dining, beautiful scenery, and that unique occurrence of a small city of strangers finding ways to live with one another on the high seas. Having Carolyn to go and squeeze on helped me to connect with "GG" as the kids call her. It will be neat to print out these posts for her to read from the comfort of her living room easy chair.

Once we were welcomed aboard by the Captain's slightly Transylvanian voice, which could have been Dutch, we were set free to swarm back up six flights of stairs with the rest of the inpatients previously milling about the elevators.  Followed the lemming line into the spa for our first treatments of the trip. No, it was actually just to find out if our names would be drawn for prizes. Basically to see if we'd be relaxing for free there at some point. AND for me to grab a quick weight check. 

 Unfortunately for us, it was the guy's day to win; I think four out of the five winners were gentlemen in attendance. One guys daughter whooped and hollered, clapping him on the back and exclaiming, "Yea Daddy!" I had to laugh when he turned to me and commented, "We'll see if she acts that excited when I tell her, I Ain't Sharin'!" 

We did win something though- we each walked away with a free footprint! There is a an analysis they will perform based on your footprint that can help you to discover if pain in your body is stemming from the pressures of each step.  D immediately went to stand in line with the other one shoed ladies and waited for her turn to walk across a silk-screening ink pad. This would transfer her body's pressure onto a large white sheet of paper for analysis.
I opted to critique each stepper with the following foot printing strangers, and then after all that evaluation of technique jumped into the much shorter line and had my chance to prove how well I would do. The trick was to walk across the ink pad. Most participants couldn't help but pause and press, and I was determined that I would not be one of them! So determined for accuracy that I walked right off the ink screen and only got 7/8 of my print accurately placed :-)
With footprints in hand we sought our room. No luggage! Our porter explained that unfortunately, he had not yet located our belongings, but that of course they were on ship... I had to just laugh as the three of us realized our bags were probably being held with 90 others due to the inclusion of SCISSORS. On a cruise offering scrapbooking. Yeah.
So, would our luggage ever arrive? How would we complete the trip sans scissors? Drop by tomorrow for the next installment of my Scrapbooking Cruise Adventure!

 

Houston, We Have Landed: Saturdays Sinnings

This morning we were awake long before the 7:35 alarm on my phone went off. What with the emotional send off of my kids the day before, and the week of not sleeping leading up to said departure,  I had guessed that I'd be up long before that with the time changes and indeed, after promptly passing out, I had a few tosses in the night, but for the most part I slept solidly. Every time I woke up I was drenched in sweat from the weight of the deliciously warm down blanket, but with no one to share the bed with, I didn't allow that to keep me from falling back asleep!
I love the Hilton hotel lines, and our Doubletree suite featured all the beautiful granite countertops and dark wood furnishings that we see on our trips to Bellevue each November. What a lovely experience to be in such a familiar setting with someone in whose company I completely thrive in.
Our plane ride here was a perfect example of one of the many character traits I love about my friend. Despite my having been awake for nearly 40 of the last 48 hours, I could never let my eyes close because I was simply enjoying our conversation too much. She is an experienced world traveler, certified scuba girl, and has a way of telling each story that includes beautiful details that paints vivid pictures in my mind of the many places she's traveled to. Tales of encounters with people of all sorts bring tears of laughter to my eyes, as well as the occasional throwing up of hands in the air as we exclaim, "some people!"
Our driver John picked us up with a few others from the airport and told us all about the amenities of the hotel, including that we'd be receiving a warm cookie upon check-in... now, most of my friends know how much I love cookies. So how much did I love hearing that info previously from my DF, then seeing a giant 3 foot cookie emblazoned on the side of the shuttle van, followed by John's announcement? Well, almost as much as I appreciated the actual consumption of promised warm melted chocolate oatmeal cookie happiness!
I discovered two of our fellow passengers would be joining us not just on the cruise but in the conference room cropping the week away as well! Nancy and Lani are from the beautifully forested seaside area of Sequim, WA. Their friendliness brought to mind the realization that although most scrap bookers are very friendly, not all are interested in more than just the casual, " Hi there, where are you from, what are you working on, can I borrow your scissors!" These two treated me to the casual greeting, a follow-up hallway shout out, elevator conversation... wow, what a difference they made to the beginning of our adventure! I commented to D that its the first time I've met croppers who seemed interested in a lasting friendship. Of course I'm drawn to friendlies so I'm really looking forward to spending more time with them.
After cookie consumption destination: long looked forward to wine shopping! A quick Google search showed some intriguing options, including a place boasting the best fried chicken (and wine), the Wine Dive. At fifteen taxi-driven miles, it was a little farther away than we had planned, but a call to the front desk informed us that there was a liquor store within walking distance. It didn't take us but a minute to head over to peruse and purchase a few bottles of vino for our cruise, and a penny from heaven even fell onto our path over.  We do so love angelic approval! After our initial sticker shock at seeing the Cupcake brand on the top shelf for about $26/bottle. What?! I can get that at our local Fred Meyers for the low price of about $12... so that was a no go. A Heavenly Sweet Riesling, and a Stark Raving Muscato will perfectly compliment our dinners. Can we say, no corking fee?
Going to pay for our selections, D asked me if I'd like to purchase any Pu**y (rhymes with Wussy) ... um, no, not really! It's actually an energy drink lol. And the cashier informed us that it's locally sourced, all natural, pink, and sold out, BUTT (get it?) there's a shipment on it's way! Apparently it's a pretty hot commodity (go figure) and they sell out frequently.
With hilarity at the retelling of this story already setting our gigglers off, D turns to me and says, did you see they have miniature Bailey's, and Kahlua in there? Well, yes, I did actually, but hadn't thought to mention it to her because frankly I didn't want to scare her off our decade+ friendship by exhibiting my ability for mass consumption of all things inebriating! At the slightly hesitantly suggested idea of including some in our coffee, I headed right back in to grab a couple "creamers."
The cashier again regaled us with a new beverage consumption opportunity; this time she told us that not only could she sell us alcohol in a plastic bag (for getting past cruise security), but empty shampoo bottles for the same purpose. It just goes to show, where there's a will, there's a way! I was pretty proud of myself, not just for resisting the urge to fill my purse with plastic bagged liquors samples, but also the ability to corrupt my friend so quickly lol.  

Brown bagging it down the boulevard; another first for us! Decided to dine  in the hotel bar on some savory southwest chili, and a glass of vino to celebrate the start of what is sure to be a most memorable week. Our long awaited cropping cruise that we're finally going on... so surreal and yet fabulously real, and just beginning, oh boy.