This past spring break my family and I took a 4 night Western Caribbean cruise docking in both Key West and Cozumel.Celebrity Cruises had a reputation for being very wheelchair friendly and we choose The Constellation for 3 reasons-accessibility, dates, and we got a kicking deal booking last minute. The Constellation was built in 1991 and while its age is showing a bit, we thoroughly enjoyed our time on board. We had two balcony staterooms, cabins 6107, which is handicapped accessible and 6108. I wrote about the wheelchair accessibility of Celebrity Constellation on Traveling Mom if you want to check that out as well. Here are the Top 5 Things We Loved About Celebrity Cruises Constellation Ocean Liners In order for us to do a Celebrity Constellation review the PR department was kind enough to arrange a special dinner for my birthday at Ocean Liners, their premier pay French restaurant. The restaurant is beautiful and any foodie would be in heaven here. My family was treated to all the special menu offerings but the highlights were the flambéed lobster and the dark chocolate soufflé. If cruising on board with kids I suggest sending the kids to one of the many activities ...
How Does the Chevy Traverse Work With a Wheelchair?
When we visited Florida for Spring Break Chevy was kind enough to loan us a brand new Traverse for the week as part of a campaign with She Buys Cars so that we could experience how it would work for our family and, specifically, Carter. You may remember that I was *this close* to buying the Traverse a few years ago but Carter just did not have the strength at that time to make the transfer with the seat height difference from his wheelchair to the car seat. I was nervous about that going into this test drive and worked on simulating it in physical therapy for a few weeks prior to the trip. I need not have worried. His gigantic arms are more than strong enough now. Look in the video at how long his arms have gotten--74 inches at last measure! He certainly isn't a little kid anymore and his arms are longer than Connor's now. So, now that we know Carter could make the transfer with someone else loading his chair into the car...what else? 6 Things I Loved About the Chevy Traverse It’s Got Style. I love the body of this car. It looks less like a minivan and more like sports coupe. The crystal red color of the one I test drove was fun and I loved the way it made ...
Bit By the Photo Bug
I admit it. Every time I see one of my friends carrying around all of this photo equipment (those DSLR's) I am simultaneously jealous and grateful. Grateful because I am not the one having to lug all that equipment around but jealous over the amazing photo's these take. Photography is just one thing that really never made any sense to me. I don't get all the lighting stuff, focal points, lenses..... it's all always been Greek to me. Until I had the chance to learn some great tips from Kymri Wilt during the Traveling Mom Retreat last week. HTC sent us the cute little Rhyme phones which I snobbishly sort of set aside as something I would have to play with a bit before getting back to my beloved iPhone 4S. But when Kymri asked us to pick it up and play with it a bit during her session, I was a teensy bit impressed. So I took it out a bit more while I was on the Disney Fantasy Cruise. And I took some amazing panoramic shots on Castaway Cay (Disney's private island). I love this one. To me, it looks like a postcard. That night while getting ready for dinner the sunset was too beautiful to at least not try. After the cruise I still didn't want to stop playing with it so I ...
iPad 2 How I Love You
I snagged one of the elusive iPad 2's! I was at Best Buy the other day contemplating yet another Sony Vaio laptop for our family. Carter's is a little over 4 years old now and he really could use a faster speed for all the things he does. When I walked in I half joked, as I always do, asking if the new iPads had come in. Of course the girl shook her head no and we made some jokes about how lame Apple is that they can never meet demand. Which we were then told by an eavesdropper that the reason why there was such a back order is because they are made in Japan and production has been difficult post tsunami. So, off I went and purchased the aforementioned Vaio and as I was checking out, I guy walked by with two boxes of what appeared to be iPad 2's. "Could it be" I asked in amazement? He informed me that they had received a box in while I was shopping but the people on the very long prepaid list rejected these. They were white and only 16 g's. The equivalent of the red headed step child apparently in Mac geek world. But I didn't care. I have a 32 gig iPhone 4 and several Vaio laptops. This was just meant to be a shiny new toy for me to use at the hospital and while traveling. ...
Skechers Shape Ups Not What I Hoped For
I rarely write reviews on this blog but I am writing this one because EVERYWHERE I go wearing my Sketchers Shape Ups women stop and ask me if they are worth it.I bought mine as a New Years Day present to myself and planned to write a review on them because I know so many people are curious: at $100 plus a pop, do they work? I held off writing the review this long because I wanted to give them a fair shot. So, do they work? Yes and no. If I wear them to the mall or Costco I do notice my calves are a little sore the next day which tells me they are doing something. I never felt any difference in my thighs, butt or abs as the ads claim. And I haven't lost any weight simply by wearing them and walking around normally.They ARE super comfy. Once you get used to them it feels like walking on air. They were a little weird to get used to. I kept feeling like I was going to roll an ankle but I never did.I did learn not to wear them on a treadmill. Just too fast to get the kind of step needed in for them. Also, they are not the greatest in snow or icy conditions (duh, I know, but I live in Denver so you never know what the day may bring) They are cute and stylish (at least in my ...