Day 1: Sunday, July 19

Heading to the airport and flying to Orlando Florida

I am at a point in my life (well have been for a few years) that I just don't have the time or effort to play Russian roulette with  spinning the wheel for check-in with Southwest to get a "good" seat. So, for several years now, I have been just biting the bullet and paying extra for them to sign me up for the best darn seating available when you can't pick your own seat on this airline. The earlier you sign in, the better seat picking option you get. Ehhh, just do it for me and call it a day. However, I have noticed (since my last cruise in December?) that the pricing for them to push the all mighty button on your behalf has went up. I guess maybe too many people are using it? I'm still spoiled and don't want to bother with it...at least at this point. 

They pushed the magic button and I snagged these seats:

As long as I manage to win the lottery with an "A" group, I've done good. 

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So off to the airport we go...For years now, we just drive our own vehicle and park in the parking lot and shuttle over. Kendra still refuses to pay for parking and always arranges for someone to drop them off there. 

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I had a REALLY late flight (for us) this time and yes...we planned it that way. The later the better especially since Kendra and the family were tagging along this time. She's prone to being late...ok, I'll say it, she's NEVER on time for anything she does, and this would give her all day to finish up everything she forgot to pack all these weeks ahead of time. 

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A flight leaving at 6:25pm had us leaving the house around 4pm. I really didn't know what to expect at the airport with this COVID thing. Extra security measures for taking temps, questions asked about where you are going and why are you deciding to travel during this time and was it really necessary? Do you have a doctors excuse that you need a vacation? Have you quarantined for the last 14 days? Have you been tested recently? Maybe they need a blood draw done or brain swab. I really didn't know and was preparing myself for what was to come. After all, this is a new day and age of how things are going to be run in this world now. 

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Arriving at the airport and taking the shuttle bus over to the airport we always have to get a picture. Can you tell how happy we are by the smiles on our faces? Oh wait...

They had the seats sectioned off with plastic between every 2 seats and the driver was now behind a complete wall of plexiglass.

Sakari was excited to finally be going somewhere since she has been cooped up in the house 24/7 for the last 4 months or so. 

I made a promise to myself that as much as I want to, I can't hold Kendra's hand every step of the way and I wasn't going to be late for anything because of her. We headed into the airport and it looked deserted! We checked in our luggage and dropped them off at the luggage desk, where there was no line and I wondered if they were even open at that point, but the ladies at the desk wasn't standing there for nothing right? Then we headed to security...again NO LINE. We walked down the winding path of ropes never ending and walked right up to present ourselves to check in to security. I held my breath, I waited for the questions, I waited for the forehead scanner to present itself....and nothing happened. One look at our boarding pass, our ID's, and Sakari's passport and we were told to have a good night.  They didn't ask any questions, they didn't take our temps, they didn't even ask for a birth certificate (remember our passport expired the day we left).  

Once at the gate, I check to see where Kendra is and tell her what we had just experienced. She was outside getting dropped off according to my "tracker' on her. LOL This tracker is so good that I can even tell where she is at IN her home at any given time. haha

The plane was right on time and now it was time to line up. We jumped in line and took our places at 30, 31, and 32 which were the golden seat selection....then along came Kendra and jumped in line at spots 34, 35, 36 and 37!!! Are you serious? I didn't feel so special at that point and wanted a full refund! (Just kidding, with my luck, I'd probably get the "C" group and get on last. 

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We boarded the plane and got ready for take off

Kendra almost managed to get us on in 1 picture...only Sakari was hiding. 

The plane was a little empty, which meant we were able to get any seats we wanted. You are required to wear a mask the entire flight other than drinking and eating. This flight would be different than any other flight. Southwest always takes your drink orders and you can order alcohol if needed as well. No alcohol was served (and I had free drink coupons that I'll probably never get to use now) but you could request some water. They did pass out a snack and informed everyone "Now don't make this snack last for the next 2 hours nibbling on it just to keep your mask off".

The trip was uneventful and consisted of breathing in your own carbon dioxide for 2 1/2 hours.  I'm not sure that Brayden has the concept of how to wear a mask yet. 

I couldn't wait to land and be able to stretch my legs and get the circulation going again.

Arriving at the airport was a quick stop to pick up our luggage and go right to the hotel. The airport was deserted...really weird and eerie feeling.  The shops were closed, the food stations were closed and the regular hustle and bustle was no longer. Hey, at least we had Kendra's kids making every bit of noise to make up for it. Kambriah has become a "repeater". She will say something and repeat it at least 10 times until someone (meaning me) tells her to "STOP! We heard you the first time, the second time and every time after that". If Kendra would just reply the first time around or even acknowledge she heard her...we wouldn't have this problem. Yes, I'm calling it a problem because that's what it becomes to my aching ears listening to it over and over.  ​

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WHERE ARE ALL THE PEOPLE???? I'm pretty sure the pitter patter of our feet walking was echoing at this point. 

And then we saw it....the brown shelled, antenna monster of the airport that looked big enough to chew up a small sized toddler! Crawling on the floor in the middle of the airport that wraps around the hotel. EEEKKKKK!!! "What ever you do, DON'T step on it! I will have nightmares for weeks from the sound". Did you ever see the video that went viral online about the huge spider in someone's kitchen and the lady is frantically trying to kill it with a broom and with the last big whack thousands of baby spiders scrambled all over the floor in every direction????? Yea, I wasn't about to take any chances with this huge cock-A-roach from Florida. No sir-ree! Not me. 

Up Next...checking into our hotel.

So as I stated on the first page, we had decided to stay at the Hyatt Regency at the airport for convenience and we got such a super good price on it. I don't know if it's due to the COVID and next to no one is traveling these days or what. But, we managed to snag a room (well, 2 rooms because Kendra and her family wasn't about to stay in mine) for only $135 plus tax.   

 Like that was crazy cheap! All you had to do was be a "member" and let's be honest, anyone can be a member by just signing up with them so why wouldn't everyone do that? 

Check in was quick and simple and we were instructed to go to the glass elevators behind us (there are 3 of them) and take it up to the 8th floor. We requested that ours rooms be close to each other, I had read that when they did the remodel, they "sound proofed" the walls, so I was ok with "close". 

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We got off at floor 8 and turned down the hallway, we kept going and going and going...would it ever end??? Then the hallway ended and we had to turn again...say whaaaat??? My foot was already hurting at this point. I had no idea this hotel was this big. You just can't tell by standing in the atrium at the airport. We once again headed down that hallway, checking each and every door number hoping to hit the lottery soon. We kept going and going and once again, we were coming up on the end of this hallway. Wait! I spotted our number. The second to last door in that hallway!! Whew! But Kendra, she still had another hallway to go! She would make another turn and go down that hall to find her room. 

I guess I should have mentioned to the staff that I'm partially handicapped and needed a room close to the elevators. I would regret not doing this before long. It was quite a walk for someone like me. 

So, let's check into our room. We opened the door and wow, it was a nice sized room! I was highly impressed from the moment we walked in! Plenty of room in the "bedroom", with a very large flat screen t.v. that you could use your phone as a remote, and then a sleeper sofa as well. I must mention that our bed was a king sized bed and I always sleep so bad if I'm not in a king sized bed. I need my space to move around to be comfortable. I was highly impressed still.  Most places we stay in pre-cruise has a regular bed and I never sleep well.

We tried several times to get our phone set up as a remote, but it just wasn't working. Oh well, back to the dinosaur ages and we'd be forced to use .... wait for it....the actual t.v. remote! Goodness sakes this was unheard of!

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They also had a touch thermostat and it was well. 

Now to my favorite part of the room (besides the king sized bed, because nothing can beat a comfy king sized bed)....the bathroom! It was massive big with not 1 but 2 showers!!!! Say whaaaat??

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There was a regular shower and a shower with a tub...side by side. It was really nice. 

I thought the mirror was so cool. It had a built in clock in it that glowed. Now that's nifty and when we do our bathroom remodel at home, I plan on getting one! Never mind the hubby...he was being a camera hog.

I also wanted to mention that there were other neat little things in the room like a nightlight under the bed that when you got up in the middle of the night (listen up all you sleepwalkers) it would turn on so you could see your way. Now although this would not be of any use for the sleepwalker, it would let others know where you are heading to in the middle of the night so they can give you a good story the next morning about what you did that night. Yes, I do have 2 sleepwalkers every so often. I got lucky this night and no one woke me up. 

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Anyhow...on to the rest of the hotel Around the hotel...

I'm just going to (for the most part) show you around the hotel. It's big, it has a lot of hallways, it's very open and has a lot of greenery for decor. Oh, did I mention how long the hallways were? They were forever long.

The pool was on the 6th floor, but yet on a rooftop. You had to use you room key card in order to make the elevator stop on that floor. It was really nice with water spouts on both the pool and the "toddler" pool as well.  There was plenty of seating out there and several tables to eat at.

They had a "courtesy" phone out by the phone and you could dial a number and order food right up to the pool area. However, when we tried, it didn't work. 

Up next...our time spent there...Our night at the hotel...

So as soon as we arrived, went down the extremely long hallwayS (emphasized for effect) the kids immediately wanted to go swimming. Kendra and Billy immediately wanted food. With the Covid issues, all of the restaurants were not open in the hotel, but one was and they headed there while we went to the pool with Sakari the mermaid. 

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The pool was supposed to close at 10, I believe it was, and they waited and waited for their drinks and food. I told them if they planned on letting the kids swim, they better get a move on it. So, they asked for their food that was ordered almost 45 minutes ago to put it in a "to-go" box. Then they brought it upstairs to the pool and ate there. 

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We noticed the "food phone to pool" service sign and tried to place an order there, but the phone wasn't working. The hubby managed to find a phone number for them and called on his cell and placed an order. It did take awhile for them to come. I believe they told us a 45 minute wait. After almost an hour passed, he had to call again (because at this point the pool should have been closed and we were still waiting) to see where our food was and make sure they didn't try to deliver it to our room. 

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Finally the food arrived. We ended up getting wings, quesadilla, and cheeseburgers and they all were good. However, Kendra said their food was not the greatest and Billy got the chicken alfredo and said it was the absolute worst he's ever had. 

The kids were busy swimming and having a great time!

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I have to mention....about 2 weeks prior to vacation, I taught Kambriah (Kendra's daughter) to swim. She is not a very trusting child and it took a lot of work and "baby steps" to get her to do what she needed to do to trust me enough to teach her. But, she was swimming in no time and we practiced every night we could (Kendra has a huge pool and slide <----getting her to go down the slide is still a work in progress) and she got better and better during vacation. 

I was busy checking in on the animals. Kolin (my youngest son) always watches the animals when we vacation. I have to say he's always having fun with them too. (A little snapchat humor)

No matter how many times they watch our dog and cat (they have 2 cats), it usually takes them some getting use to each other but this time, I think they did a little better. By the end of the night, Loki was actually laying on the ottoman with their (mean) cat. LOL  Of course Kolin said it didn't last long because Loki was feeling uncomfortable and moved. But I could rest easy that night knowing it was going better than the last several times. 

After eating, the kids swam a little more and then we headed up to the room. It was way past 11pm and the pool wasn't closed yet and there were a huge group of guys up there at a table drinking and having a good time. 

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After going back to the room we pretty much showered, watched some t.v. and headed to bed. I didn't even bother to set the alarm since we had a late flight out the next day to St Thomas. 

Up next...the plane to St Thomas!!!