Day 2 at Sea

Our first full day at sea started exactly how every vacation day should: with someone else cooking a delicious breakfast. We headed to the Main Dining Room, and once again, the kitchen did not disappoint.

With full bellies, we migrated straight to the pool deck and anchored ourselves there for most of the day. I found myself thinking about the chilly weather back home, which made the warm sunshine feel like a luxury. Also, can we talk about pool logic for a second? I don't know the exact science behind it, but drinks objectively taste better when you're sitting next to a pool. It's a fact.

A few of us decided to head back to the dining room for lunch as well. Personally, I found the food and atmosphere much better down there. Meanwhile, the others—namely the boys—officially kicked off their own personal challenge: a running competition to see just how many ice cream cones they can consume while on this cruise.

By 3:00 PM, it was time to wrap up the sunbathing because tonight was Formal Night. Our dinner reservation was at 5:00 PM, so we needed a solid window to get everyone scrubbed, dressed to the nines, and ready to roll. We all met up at the Centrum—the gorgeous, multi-story hub of the ship—for some pre-dinner drinks and live music.

Then came the main event: French Cuisine Night in the dining room. Now, I had a whole mental game plan going into this cruise about not overindulging in desserts. But then the menu arrived, and "Crème Brûlée" was staring right at me. Since it's one of my favorites, my willpower completely evaporated. I ate two. Zero regrets.

As if the double dessert wasn't enough, my father had a wonderful surprise lined up for me. He had arranged for the waiters to come out and sing Happy Birthday, complete with a special piece of cake. It was incredibly sweet and made the celebration extra memorable.

After dinner, we followed the music over to the Some Enchanted Lounge for the first round of the ship’s Karaoke Competition. The slots were super limited—only seven people could enter—and Emery managed to snag a spot! She crushed it and was chosen as a finalist.

Right after, they announced a kids' competition, and Priscilla was picked to go up on stage. The challenge? A speed test of stacking and unstacking Solo Cups within a time limit. Now, this isn't exactly a skill Priscilla has spent hours practicing at home, but she stepped right up and gave it her best. She got a little embarrassed when she didn't do very well, especially because the boy she was up against had clearly trained for this moment his entire life. He smoked the competition, but I was so incredibly proud of her for putting herself out there and trying.

Once the family fun wound down, Brian took the younger kids down to the cabin for bed, leaving Emery and me free to hit the ship's nightclub. We had the best time dancing way into the early morning hours. One of the coolest parts about cruise nightlife is how friendly everyone is—literally everyone was dancing with everyone, and we met some genuinely awesome people.

Just as Emery and I were about to leave the club, a huge, surprise happened: my brother and sister-in-law showed up on the dance floor! This was a momentous thing for me because I can’t remember a time my brother and I hung out like this since the early 2000s.

It was really nice that after a little "extra fun" and some unforgettable family bonding, closing time didn't mean calling an Uber—it just meant stumbling a few floors down to our cabin.