Fall Vacation 2018: I Deserve It!

Hey hey there!! Long time, no post right? Well I’ve just been busy just living. But I am slowly getting back into the swing of things. It has been a week now since I have been back from my very first cruise and I figured it was a perfect time to pop in with a recap.

This trip was a 4 day cruise to the Bahamas along with a couple days stay in Orlando post cruise. When I say this was one of the BEST trips I’ve been on I truly mean it. I was accompanied by some of my closest friends (who started as Sorority sisters that are now considered family), their families and friends. We were celebrating the eighth anniversary of our membership in our Sorority as well as just love and friendship in general.

We cruised on the Carnival Liberty. Being my first time I was so hesitant about the entire process from getting to the ship to leaving when the trip was over. The over thinker in me read every article and watched every video recommended by first time cruisers. My mind was quickly put to ease though. As soon as I arrived at the Port everything ran so smooth. You literally don’t have to think about anything once you are on the ship. If you don’t want to have one second of down time that is truly possible. We tried some of everything. A cognac tasting, trivia dance parties, salsa lessons and much more. From our cruise director NoNo, to the Fun Squad, our room steward Noli and our dining staff everyone made us feel like V.I.P.

We cruised to Nassau and Freeport Bahamas and spent a day in each. I have never seen such beautiful land. From the clear blue skies to the soft sand at the beach. I never knew a vacation could be so busy yet relaxing all at the same time. While in Nassau me and three of my line sisters wanted to see what the city had to offer and explore on our own. I won’t lie as soon as we got into the city it was overwhelming. Of course the locals make most of their living from tourism and they don’t’ hide it. It was an experience for sure. Freeport we all decided on a Beach Getaway excursion. I have never felt so carefree and happy than when I was frolicking around that beautiful beach. We got to enjoy a buffet with local eats, open bar and had a personal waitress waiting for us as soon as we took our seats.

After disembarking, a few of us decided to extend our vacation a couple days. I mean who is really wanting to get off a ship on a Thursday and fly home to be at work on Friday?! Not us! Thankfully all of our schedules allowed for us to spend extra time together in Orlando. We spent our extra day at Universal Studios. I have been to Disney World twice but never Universal so this was an extra special treat for me. I went on a roller coaster for the first time in maybe 10 years. Being a kid for a day again really warmed my heart.

A couple weeks before my trip my mom told me this: “I’m excited for you. Go on this trip and have the best time. Just enjoy yourself. Don’t worry about anything. Don’t stress about anything. Don’t think about anything. You deserve this.” Well then. My mama gave me permission to live my best life and who am I to not oblige?

I wanted to make the most of this trip because I knew it would be hitting many firsts for me. First time on a cruise. First time out of the country. First time at Universal. These are things that might have long been crossed off the lists for others but I was very excited that I had this opportunity.

The prominent feeling I had on this trip was feeling full. I felt so blessed. Not everyone gets the chance to travel to other states, let alone other countries. I was free. I wasn’t worried about work or constantly thinking about what is or isn’t going right in my life. I felt loved. I was able to see my friends that I haven’t seen in a while and we were all able to have a great time together with no drama. I felt proud. I didn’t wait until I could travel to another country with my husband. Or I didn’t feel that I needed to wait for my parents to do this. Finally I felt worthy. I deserved to wake up to the beautiful water and sunshine.

This trip really made me realize that I need to make more time to plan and budget for travel. Whether out of the country or just other states. Taking the time to just be free and have fun is so important.

Just want to leave you with this: You deserve it. Whatever “it” is for you.

What is the best vacation you have ever taken? What is a dream vacation of yours? Let me know below!

If you aren’t following me on social media you definitely should to see a few vacation highlights. I will have another post soon with pictures from my trip!