Ahhh, Thursday....

We didn't think it could get much better, but then we hadn't yet had Thursday.  Following breakfast in our "hotel" room, the day started off with a mad scramble of what to do on St. Maarten.  Rob went in search of a scuba diving trip and lucked out in getting the last spot.  He had to scramble to make it on the excursion, but he's glad he did, even in spite of the barfing and shark which headed straight for him.

Kelley headed down to the desk to determine not only what was available but what was open to a four-year old.  We jumped at the five open spots on one of the last excursions available.  After lying to everyone about the time to meet, we headed downstairs to get JoJo a replacement Sea Card (hers stopped working due to sunscreen).  We got in line, made friends, and boarded the Golden Eagle III, a gorgeous catamaran.  This proved to be a highlight of our tip.  We admired the shoreline as it went by, marvelled at the color of the ocean, listened to upbeat music, lifted our faces to the wind and drank fruit drinks.  We arrived at Mullet Bay and Mullet Beach, which turned out to be quite close to the infamous You Tube airport.  JoJo, Morgan and Steven headed off to snorkel and Kelley grabbed a noodle and Romi and paddled the little bugger to shore.  The water was clear and blue, the sand soft and inviting.  We had a ball playing on the beach.  The swell was aggressive but not scary and Romi absolutely loved getting pushed over, rolling in water and jumping up again.  Kelley asked Steven for help returning Romi to the boat and we swam in to little cries of "faster, faster."  We sang, dance, ate and drank our way back to port.  Romi loved Toddler Parasailing on the net.

As we returned to this ship, hungry but happy, we heard a familiar voice calling to us from 12 decks up.  Rob was just finishing up his meal at Johnny Rockets.  We grabbed quick showers, divesting ourselves of an unusual amount of sand, and gorged on fries, onion rings, shakes and burgers.  As we headed to our cabins for family nap time, JoJo picked up Sea Card number three.  Despite sunburns all around, we headed out for the Freedom.com Ice Show.  There simply is no way to describe the out-of-control hula hoop act, forget about the fact that we were at sea and watching an ice skating show!  Following Italian night, Rob and Romi headed to bed and the rest of the crew rocked out a the Britannica Rock Party on the Promenade.  Another great day!

Loose Hair in a Portrait

On Wednesday our beloved Freedom of the Seas pulled in late morning to Saint Thomas, providing plenty of time for JoJo and Kelley to work out (and for JoJo to lose and locate her Sea Card) and for everyone to enjoy breakfast, complete with granola bar and yummy muffins, in the dining room. We disembarked and fond the Virgin Islands hot and sticky but beautiful.  We walked into town and up Synagogue Hill to the shul.  Established in the 1830s as a Sephardic community, the synagogue is now a small Reform congregation.  We admired the building, the sand floor and the amazing pieces in the gift shop.  Mina spent quite a bit of time with us talking shop. 

We headed back to main street and caught an open-air taxi to Magen’s Bay, reportedly one of the world's top ten beaches.  The ride was wonderful in and of itself, with great views and glimpses of our ship's life boat drill.  We arrived, picked out the perfect spot under a mangrove tree, rented lounge chairs and settled in to enjoy the truly spectacular view.  The bay is, well, a bay, surrounded on all sides by lush foliage.  The water is gorgeous, blue and clear, with a picturesque island floating in the middle.  It was refreshing and fun.  We ate pizza for lunch, talked to other tourists, made friends, took photos and had a really good time.  

When we returned to the ship, Morgan, Steven and Kelley headed out on deck to take photos.  We eventually found ourselves in the game room and played Loose Hair in what Steven accurately described as a portrait.  Following a French fry appetizer, we got dressed and headed to the odd magic show.  On our way home from dinner in the dining room, Kelley horrified the man by the elevator when she insisted everyone follow "The Rule."  (The Rule was you could only take the elevator if it was six or more flights, otherwise we took the stairs.)  The Gludts headed off to bed while the Salomon/Brown family went to a dance party, found Melody and played a hilarious game of Cranium, complete with Melody sawing herself in half.

"You have Got to Try this Carrot!" or Steven Loses His Pants

The following Tuesday was a wonderful day at sea.  We began with breakfast in the dining room (an invaluable cruise tip!) and headed to deck 11 to procure lounge chairs in a good spot.  We sat and enjoyed the views and the weather while JoJo worked out, including a pool-side Zumba class.  Eventually Morgan and Steven got up to play and while waiting in line for some ice cream met Melody, a fun, outgoing girl from South Carolina.  JoJo and Romi cavorted in the splash zone before we hurried off to lunch in the dining room.  Following quiet time, Rob headed off to yoga and Romi played with his brand-spanking new toy ship set up on deck. 

Before dinner we enjoyed the talented a cappella group Voice Play, had some pre-dinner drinks, and splurged on dinner at Portofino, one of the fancy restaurants on board (all in memory of mom/grandma).  The two-hour meal was incredible, from the gorgeous room, the impeccable service, the scrumptious tapenade to the potatoes, antipasto, lamb chops and lobster tails.  We indulged and enjoyed and laughed heartily when, surrounded by all this gourmet food, JoJo emphatically exclaimed to the table, "You have got to try this carrot!"

Dessert was no understated affair, with the plate of chocolates followed by a sampler.  When we asked Romi which was his favorite, he enthusiastically exclaimed, "All of them!"  The meal came to an end when I realized you really shouldn't give tiramisu to a four-year old.  We aren't sure if it was the alcohol or the caffeine, but our boy went more than a little crazy. 

Rob and Romi headed off to bed while the rest of the family ventured to The Quest.  This adult-orientated game was a hit with all of us, including Melody.  Steven did his mama proud when he took one for the team by taking off his pants in front of hundreds of people.


When I returned to our stateroom I was momentarily surprised to find the bed empty, but quickly located my two boys, snug as bugs in a rug, cuddled up together in the teeny-tiny pull-down bunk.  Another great day in life on the Freedom of the Seas!

First Port o' Call: Cococay, Bahamas

The Freedom of the Seas as seen from Cococay

Kelley woke up first and spent some wonderful time out on the balcony, watching as we pulled into Cococay, our first stop.  When Rob and Romi woke up we got dressed, grabbed some breakfast and headed down to the first deck to catch the tender, leaving the rest of the family happily asleep in their stateroom.  We enjoyed the short boat ride to the private island.  With such an early start, we not only didn't have to wait long for a ride but the day was cool and breezy.  Two minutes after hitting the island Kelley was talked into braids by Stacey, who has been braiding tourist's hair for more than 20 years.  I didn't have enough money on me to pay her, but she told me not to worry about it, that I could find her later in the day.  Within 15-minutes I had a whole new do!  I chose a multitude of colorful beads, which I loved, but I forgot that I would have to sleep on them.  Stacey carefully sunscreened my white-girl scalp and the three of us set off to find the perfect set up. 

We checked out the island's amenities and settled down in three lounge chairs inthe shade.  Rob rented a float and while we enjoyed the lovely water, the sand was gooey and there was way too much sea grass.  After a while I decided to check out the bamboo market.  As I headed toward the stands, I looked up at the tender coming in and who did I happen to see just getting off? Seriously, with 4000 people on board, what are the odds that I'd run into the rest of the family at just that moment?!  I took them to our happy hideout and we played, ate and relaxed all day.  When it turned out that JoJo also had no cash on her to pay for my stylin' head, my awesome and loving husband schlepped back to the ship to retrieve some cash.

Romi fell asleep on the tender on the way back home, hard enough  that he stayed asleep through security and up in the elevator.  Of course, he woke up just as arrived at the stateroom.  It figures!  Steven did his manny best to get the little guy to go back to sleep but the two just ended up watching Shrek.   We spent the remainder of the day relaxing, sleeping, noshing on pizza, drinking soda water (well, I did anyway), and hanging out by the pool.  JoJo tried a singles mixer without luck, but we were glad to get her back early.  Steven and Kelley fulfilled a lifelong dream of playing cribbage on our cruise balconies with the incredible ocean as our backdrop, after which Morgan and Kelley dorked out and made a color-coded Excel calendar of all our planned activities!

Monday night was Captain's Night, the most formal of all.  It was easy to get dressed with beads in my hair!  We all looked stunning and took pictures with the captain before a lovely dinner.  Romi wore his Shabbas hat and received many a well-deserved compliment.  After eating, Kelley and Romi hit the bunks while the rest of the crew enjoyed a "Broadway" review.  (What Broadway play included Karen Carpenter's "We've Only Just Begun"?) 

Another truly wonderful vacation day!

Bon Voyage!

We spent a perfectly lovely Shabbat at the Doubletree in Melbourne, FL.  The rain cleared up, leaving us beautiful beach weather. JoJo invested in two lounge chairs and an umbrella, and we were set for the day.  We swam, we ate, we swam some more, we slept.  It was a truly relaxing family day.  

The boys all play in the water

On Sunday we breakfasted at The Blueberry Muffin and impatiently headed off to Port Canaveral.  The only "good" thing about Cocoa Beach was it afforded us the first glimpse of the Freedom of the Seas--beautiful!  Henry had arranged for us to have priority in boarding, we breezed through security and all crossed the gangplank together.  Talk about excitement!  We were all bouncing.

We quickly located staterooms 8620 and 8622 and fell in love.  They were a good size, well designed and, best of all, had adjoining balconies!  We got the best rooms by far (our balconies jutted about just a bit to line up with the Solarium above).  We did some exploring and snacking but made certain to show up on time and in the right place for our muster drill, something they take very seriously.  We returned to our rooms, broke open the champagne and prepared to sail away.

Steven enjoying the view from our balcony

As we made our way out of the harbor, we waved and smiled to people on shore, at water-side restaurants and on other ships and boats. JoJo managed to get an entire boat to "who-hoo" back.  We did some more exploring, unpacked our bags and headed down to dinner.  The dining room was beautiful, but the best hing in it was Mervyn, our waiter par excellence.  Not only did he take such good care of us, he made certain we knew what not to miss and steered us toward the best of everything.  The food was yummy, not overboard (pun intended) with loads of vegetarian options. We all left happy.  We tried to find the parade on the Promenade but Romi was done in. When we returned to our stateroom (which Romi referred to as our "hotel" all week) Jacquline had opened the bunk and Romi had a blast scurrying up and down the ladder.  In the end, however, he decided his bunk was too scary and slept in our very comfortable king-sized bed, with the ocean rocking us all to a good-night's sleep.

A Great Start to a Great Vacation

Following the hustle and bustle of packing up, cleaning out and preparing for a vacation away, Morgan, Steven, Romi, Ima and Abba (aka Auntie and Uncle) loaded up the luggage and headed off in Yoshi for a great breakfast at Miss Shirley's Cafe.  Between the breakfast sliders and cinnamon roll French toast, it was a totally indulgent way to begin our fancy-schmancy Caribbean trip.  We made it to the airport in plenty of time for Steven to treat the family to Jamba Juice.  We had a short, easy flight (Romi napped) and had no trouble finding JoJo at the Orlando airport.  We gathered up all the luggage (Oy!), loaded up the minivan and headed out on the Florida toll roads in search of some fun, sun and relaxation.  We hit no traffic (hooray) and easily made our way to Melbourne, even if it was raining.  Following a quick stop for Shabbat food supplies, we headed to the Doubletree.  The cookies were delicious and helped tide us over for dinner.  We loaded up a luggage cart, Kelley slipped on the wet walkway (good to get the injury out of the way), and we settled into our rooms.  What a great view!  We got to enjoy not only the beach and the soothing sound of the waves, but we even saw dolphins!

The view from our room

Needing to eat before sundown, we jumped into the van and headed to Squid Lips.  What a find!  Kelley got her much-desired dinner on the water at sunset and we feasted on coconut-pineapple bread, homemade potato ships with balsamic vinegar and bleu cheese, and the most amazing twice-baked sweet potato covered in maple syrup, spices and whipped cream.  Really.

Dinner at Squid Lips

 JoJo and Romi explored the pirate ship while we admired more dolphins.  It was a great start to what would turn out to be a truly incredible week!

Smells Like JoJo

Romi Amiel Gludt may still be my baby, but he's no baby. Yep, our little guy is four. FOUR. How in the world did that happen? He has been very excited about his birthday and has made it clear that he would like a celebratory hat. He also wants people to sing to him. And he wants presents. Last night we had this conversation:

Romi: Me have an idea. You drive me to Target. I go by myself and get a present.

Ima: How will you pay for it?

Romi: Me take your wallet. After some serious contemplation: Huh. No one to pick me up. Me talk to Abba about that.

I love a kid with a plan!

Romi has been loving all the company we've had the last month. He had a blast when the Brunks came for a long weekend (they drove 15 hours from Chicago!). We love the Brunks and Romi took to them immediately. They walked in and he grabbed his guitar to serenade their arrival. He followed Max and Lauren around the house and the Brunk kids did their parents proud by playing so nicely with our little guy. We spent the day at the Inner Harbor and when Romi needed to navigate down the steep ladder he immediately spurned my offer for help, exclaimed, "No, Bob!" and turned and held his arms out to him. Later, in the aquarium, Romi grabbed on to a nice, friendly and understanding blond women who turned out not to be Jacki. It didn't faze the Romster at all, he just looked at me and requested, "Show me my Jacki." So I did.

Now he's loving the Dindsale crew who are staying in the basement. He gleefully wakes up Mark and Nathalie and each morning waits impatiently for Grandma Virginia to get up and play with him.

One more tidbit: In the pre-Passover bread-arama, Steven, Romi and I went out for a fabulous meal at the Cheesecake Factory. It was seriously some of the best salmon and rice I have ever had (with miso sauce). Of course, salmon is one of Romi's favorite foods so we split the meal. Afterwards we explored the really large mall for the first time. Making our way back to the parking lot through Macy's, the three of us were cutting through the cosmetics department when Romi looked around, sniffed and declared, "Smells like Aunt JoJo!" Priceless!

What's in a Waffle?

For a kid who doesn't want to go to a birthday party, Romi is awfully excited about turning four. He knows that his birthday is April 11th and that he's up next for a celebration. And while he doesn't have many plans for commemorating the actual day, he does have some grandiose ideas about what will happen when he reaches the big four. He even asked me the other day if he could drive when he was four. When I told him he'd have to wait until he was much older, he shot back, "Like eight?"

I'm beginning to think we need to expand his horizons a bit, but Romi is still passionate about airplanes, playing his guitar, swimming and cooking. The other morning when I asked what he wanted for first breakfast (there can be up to three) he requested waffles. Where he learned about waffles is a complete mystery seeing as I didn't even recall if we had schlepped the waffle iron with us to Maryland. We went on a hunt for the little-used appliance, finally locating it on a top shelf in a dark corner. To be honest, I wasn't even sure it would work (especially after I recalled it had been a wedding shower present 20-plus years ago). We plugged it in and after a short wait the little orange light went on--waffle iron success! Next we headed to the fridge to get started on batter. Unfortunately, that's when I discovered that Rob must have used up the last of the Bisquick. No matter, I thought, how complex could waffles be?

Waffle batter takes a bit more work than I expected. The particular recipe I alighted on instructed me to melt the butter, separate the eggs, beat the whites. It wasn't as labor-intensive as souffle, but it certainly wasn't a one-step process either. We persevered, made beautiful waffles and enjoyed a lovely breakfast. The odd part was that while the waffles were perfectly tasty, I missed the old-style Bisquick batch. I pointed this out to Romi and asked (rhetorically), "Where's the irony?" I never expected a response, but I certainly appreciated it when Romi lifted his arm, gestured to the kitchen counter and declared, "There it is" all the while pointing at the waffle iron.

I love this kid.

Me, Me, Me

I realized the other day that we live in Baltimore. I know, it doesn’t come as a shock to the rest of you, but it actually took me a bit by surprise. A part of me (and not even a small one) keeps wondering when we’re going home. Romi misses Tucson too. More often than not he picks a pre-bed book with Tucson photos. He talks about our family and friends, our old house and his old school, the synagogue. It’s amazing how much he remembers. That being said, our little guy has adjusted quite well. He loves his new school and his teachers, seems perfectly happy in the new house and thinks that having his very own Steven living in the basement is the best thing, well, ever.

Romi’s airplane obsession remains unabated. We’ve visited the truly beautiful observation deck at BWI numerous times, his airplane collection can never be large enough (for him) and we’ve even schlepped to DC to see Concorde. When he flies his planes (most often a MD-80 or Boeing 747) the destination is either Tucson or Taiwan, with a bit of Charlotte to visit Aunt JoJo thrown in for good measure. He acts the part of the air traffic controller (complete with pretend voice) and loves when his planes hit turbulence. And of course, the kid is still outsmarting his parents. When I asked if he wanted to take the bus, go to the airport or visit the zoo, he gave it some thought before replying, “Take the bus to the airport.”

He is growing up way too fast. The other day he calmly reported his future plans to Steven and I as he sat in the car seat: “When me get older me going to be a teacher, not a swim teacher, a regular teacher, but me have a big problem. Me can’t read.” And then there was this wonderful proposal: “When me get older me going to be a fireman so me can help people.” And then it got scary: “When me get older, me cross the street by myself, go to a kids’ movie, play angry birds and wear Thomas tzitzit.” I would have freaked out but I figure if he can’t use pronouns he can’t play video games.

We are working hard on saying “I” instead of me following this conversation:

Romi: Me have no dump truck.
Ima; Romi, I don’t have a dump truck.
Romi (with sympathy): Me don’t have one either.

Of course, this led to the conversational gemstone, “Me trying to say I!”

And the one that had Steven and I desperately trying not to react: “Abba in Texas. That sucks.”

Greetings from Baltimore!

Greetings from Baltimore! I apologize both for the mass e-mail and if you haven't heard from us; moving is a bit overwhelming. Also, we don't have internet yet (Gary, don't look so mortified), but we are making do.

Here's a recap of what's been going on: Romi and I had an uneventful but loooooong drive to CA, the horrors of which we quickly forgot in the excitement of seeing everyone. We received amazing hospitality (thank you again Austin for so kindly giving up your bed). We played and ate with Gludts, Dinsdales, Bermans, and a slew of Shiffletts. We took a few meals outside while we could and appreciated a last long look at the “correct” ocean.

As Romi and I visited and enjoyed loved ones' company, Rob, Joel and Penny made great time across the country (even if if did take them forever to cross Texas). They drove 2300 miles with only one speeding ticket and are still friends...a miracle! Romi and I flew to MD on a direct flight out of LAX. Once again, he was an amazing traveler. We jumped in our rental car and relied on the GPS (not easy for me) to get us to Daniel and Miriam's, who made us feel welcome as we once again invaded their home. On Tuesday we picked up the keys to our new home, did some shopping and spent a truly lovely afternoon with our Chuckle Cousin, who so lovingly fought traffic both ways from DC to make sure we weren't lonely on our first day (a real act of loving kindness Suzanne!). Rob, Penny and Joel arrived Wednesday morning, and our belongings came by in a big old moving truck shortly after that. Once Joel got the lock squared away, we headed downtown to Fells Point for lunch and a bit of sight seeing. We spent the first night in our new home with pilfered blankets and pillows on a variety of air mattresses. A bit like camping, but at least we were home!

We may be living amid a myriad of boxes, but we love our new house and are settling in. The house here is completely different from our home in Tucson, yet we fit in the space well (even the kitchen). The move went fairly well (Kim, we had very little breakage and all of the china made it!). The basement has proved to be the biggest challenge: nothing fits down the stairs. And by nothing, I mean nothing. We couldn't get the mattress, dressers, washer or dryer down there, so we are working on a new game plan (mainly involving Ikea furniture which can be constructed down there). As a result, Romi has inherited the queen mattress, which is quite a bit of space for someone three-feet tall. (Not that it matters anyway, since he's still sleeping in our bed.) After way too much hard driving and even harder work, on Friday Joel headed safely home to Hallie while Jodi and Steven headed up to help us (the five hour drive took 10 hours, poor things). Romi is in heaven with his Aunt JoJo and cousins to play with while Rob and I scramble around, trying to make our home habitable before he leaves tomorrow for Texas. Romi and I have great plans for next week, including visiting his new school, taking the train to DC, and unpacking more boxes. He's holding up well, although he misses Tucson and everyone and everything in it (as do we).

We hope everything is well with all of you. Call, write, e-mail...we miss everyone!

Much love,

Kelley

507 East Lake Ave.

Baltimore MD 21212