BabyMoon Part One: Cruising and Key West

When we first were looking at cruises for our babymoon we knew we wanted to do the Caribbean and nothing more than 6-days, that had us limited and looking at Carnival Cruise Lines.

Not going to lie.

I had flashbacks of the one Carnival cruise I did in college and how cheesy it was.

But, I decided that was a long time ago and we decided to go for it.

But, I didn't have high expectations.

When arriving in Ft. Lauderdale I saw surprised out how smooth the check in process was!

(Yes, Brad was the bag boy since I'm with child)

We were on the Carnival Freedom which was fairly big but not 'too' big.

I have to say that on this trip Brad was in charge of ALL THE PLANNING!

And, you know what?

He did a great job!

Starting with our stateroom!

We had a balcony room near the back of the boat and one floor down from the adult pool/bar and lido deck.

Very easy access on our sea days when we kicked it in the sun.

If we needed more water, food, suntan lotion, or to use the bathroom it was just a few steps away.

We both agreed that we would NEVER NOT have a balcony room.

Worth every penny for the upgrade.

After checking in and getting settled we went straight to the pool and bar.

I had water and Brad went for beer.

This was my first vacation in a LONG time where I wasn't able to booze.

Very different friends but I got over it after the first day.

Know that I'm NOT complaining, I'm thrilled to be pregnant and not able to drink.

I'm just saying...

It's different..

As one person put it -- it's cheaper.

That's for sure, especially at $7 a beer.

We hung out at the pool until late which had us going to dinner late. 

On our way we saw more of the ship.

Entertainment was everywhere.

In the atrium bar it was a piano player.

It was so weird to look up and see this and realize you're not in a hotel but a ship.

Dinner was lovely as was my first night of sleep.

Who knew you could sleep so good on boats?

Holy cow!

I slept better than I do at home!

I couldn't even hear Brad snoring.

It was awesome!

The next morning we woke up in Key West.

I had been here once before around the same of time of year and knew it was going to be hot but boy..oh..boy..

I forgot just how hot it gets.

I'm talking nasty, humid hot!

Thank goodness we rented an electric car to get around instead of by foot, otherwise I might have died.

Key West reminds me a lot of New Orleans.

A place to get drunk except it's on the ocean.

One of our first stops was at Blue Heaven which my bestie Kathleen had suggested.

Two words.

Go HERE!

This restaurant/bar was off the beaten path and is so unique and not full of the tourists like Duval Street.

They have roosters everywhere like much of Key West.

Even, families of them.

We went at a weird time.

In between breakfast and lunch and we had eaten on the boat, so Brad enjoyed his first beer at 11am.

And, me?

Water...

And, their mile high key lime pie they are known for!

Delish and so worth the calories!

After hanging out there we jumped back in our car and took in the sights.

Eventually stopping at Hog's Breath Saloon.

We munched on conch fritters while enjoying beverages and trying to stay cool!

Then, back out again for our last stop before heading back to the ship.

The Southernmost Point.

We had to wait in line to take this picture and Brad was a good sport about it because it was blazing hot and humid and we were both sweating like crazy.

So, there you have the first little bit of our trip.

My Our thoughts at this point in the trip?

* The jury was still out on whether this cruising thing was for us.

* Doing dinner late is not a good idea. We were both exhausted, cranky and stuffed.

* Key West has been officially marked off our list and we never need to go back.

* Charlotte isn't that hot after all.

More tomorrow in part 2 of our trip. 

I might have lied about this only being a 3-parter..