Day 1 - Raleigh

Our vacation started in Raleigh.  Ryan had to travel there for work, so the girls and I met him there a few days later.  We got an early start - here's Alaina watching the sunrise from the plane:

The girls and I spent the day going to the Raleigh Children's Museum.

Then, we went back to the hotel and went swimming

We saw the movie OZ in 3D at the I-MAX theater - so good!  A fun way to start off our vacation!

Day 2 - Charleston & Boarding the Ship

The birthday girl!!!

We woke up early in Raleigh since we had to drive to Charleston, SC.  Alaina is not a morning person and refused to eat with the rest of us for breakfast:

The 4 hour drive 

 We made it to Charleston!

On our cruise ship, the Carnival Fantasy

The waiters serenaded Alyssa at dinner and brought her a birthday cake:

Day 3 - Day At Sea

On Day 3, we spent the day at sea.  It started off chilly, but by the end of the day it had definitely warmed up.  Alyssa spent the majority of the day with her new friends swimming and hanging out in the hot tub. Alaina spent the day on the water slides, playing miniature golf, and playing ping pong.

Oh yeah, and I may have paid the girls each a dollar to go dance with some drunk lady.  They just thought she was really happy. Yep, mom of the year...

Alyssa dancing with the waiters at dinner

A friend met us back in our cabin:

Day 4 - Nassau

On day 4 we went to Nassau in The Bahamas on a shore excursion to Atlantis. Loved this place - we definitely could have spent more than 1 day here.

Our Ship

Another friend...

Day 5 - Freeport

On Day 5, we had a shore excursion in Freeport.  We all got sunburned the day before, so we bought the girls hats to hide from the sun. We rented a car and drove out to Lacayan National Park.  There, we did a little hiking and explored caves.  

 Then, we hiked through a swamp to a very beautiful and remote beach.

My relaxing view from the beach.  That's my feet with the girls chasing Ryan in the background.

For our friends and family back in Indiana who were building snowmen, here's a sandman we built :)

 More fun pictures