Montego Bay- Jamaica - 6 nights Nice

This was definitely interesting. I booked this trip with a new website I had never used before so I wasn't quiet sure what I had gotten myself into. I felt comfortable using cheapcaribbean.com for the 1st time after some minor research with the Better Business Bureau but I was still a little anxious on how our trip would turn out.

The first sign that things were going well was when I was able to locate my airline reservation almost immediately after booking my trip. I was able to pick seats and set-up up-dates to my phone via text messages. I had never flown with American Airlines so this was another new experience.

For the price I paid, I was very pleased. My son had a great time and so did I.
It is close to the airport and it was a bit of a wait to check in.

Our room was beside the main pool, first floor. It was very convenient for quick trips to the room while at the pool but noisy at night with the entertainment. Also guests for running around yelling up until 4 in the morning. The other issue was the A/C which was pretty loud but we didn't really need it so no big loss.

The beach although nothing very special was perfect for my son as it was maybe ankle deep. It was a nice view to relax to though and the pool was right there if you wanted water.We did not use the kids club as my son wanted to stay in the pool all the time.

The buffet food was ok and the restaurants were about the same. My son always had something available that he could eat if he wanted and that was the most important things. It is definitely a family resort. There were lots of kids my son made friends with.

The spa is great and the prices are reasonable, not what I expected at all. Usually at hotels, the spa over charges for everything. Just as an example, a pedi is $45 and a body wrap $80-90. They have a wonderful tub you get to soak in after your wrap and it was so relaxing.

Internet is very expensive and I am glad I did not bring my laptop. Besides you're on vacation , who needs it. The gift shop is over -priced but you can go across the street and get some good deals there, which I recommend. It's a small area so don't expect too much. Besides that there really isn't anything close.

The drinks seemed ok but a little watered down. There really wasn't much of a wait if there was, all you have to do is go to the inside bar.

You can't beat this hotel for the price and the room was good enough to sleep in which is all we really did.

Days Inn Airport North Charlotte

The first room we were assigned smell so bad that there was no way we could stay there. The second room smelled fine but when I pulled back the sheets, they were dirty. The third room was fine. The carpets are VERY dirty. I would not step on them barefoot and when my son walked on them with his socks, they became filthy pretty quickly. It is certainly a basic hotel but I was not comfortable with the area based on how it looked. I do have to say the front desk person was very good about switching rooms though.


The hotel's restaurant was under construction but they had a sign that said you could let them know if you want something and they would call the cook. I found this very odd and certainly did not feel that was a way to handle it. I was going to order something but for about 15 minutes the desk was unattended so we just left.

When we checked out in the morning, I had to ask specifically for a receipt. After I made it to the airport and I checked it, they hadn't even officially checked me out of the room as it said on the receipt the cost was still owing. This made me very paranoid and I am still waiting to see if I get charged more than once.

The pictures are of the second room, I got tired of taking pictures of the new room but it gives you an idea of how it looks.

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Courtyard by Marriott Greensboro

I was a little concerned after reading the reviews but as we were in town for the ACC basketball tournament the choices were minimal. I was very pleased with the hotel. The room was nice and clean. Everything worked as it should. The staff was super friendly. The only issue I would have had, was the cost of the breakfast but since we had booked a room that included breakfast as well as movie tickets, I was very pleased. The breakfast both days was good and my son really enjoyed the tables with the TVs.

 

 

First GA speeding ticket

Oh boy am I in trouble, well sort of I think but I'm really not sure.

All I know is that I got caught doing 68 in a 45. But I had good reason, really.

Carnival Fascination Cruise

So we just finished our first cruise with Carnival. I found the ship pretty well set-up. We enjoyed the water slides and the mini-golf. My son really enjoyed Camp Carnival so much so that that's where he wanted to be the whole time. I also liked the fact the the build a bear was not over-priced and my son could get a nice souvenir. The room was pretty nice and the price was good. My son really loved the towel animals they made for him and the people taking care of the room were very friendly although they did forget after the first night that we wanted two schedules everyday. We managed though so no big deal. The food wasn't too impressive and I was not happy that the two things I wanted one evening were both out. There was no asparagus soup or grilled zucchini although both were on the menu and we went to eat pretty early. We stopped at Freeport and Nassau in the Bahamas and had a day at sea as well. I'm not a fan of cruises but this one I managed pretty well. I have found that the spas on the ships are a little over-priced as are the pictures but I guess since the prices for the rooms are pretty good if you book early enough you can't complain too much. The service in the Sensation Dinning room was on and off. We had my time dining and were seated quickly. I did like that you could get pizza, coffee/tea and ice cream 24hrs a day.

Is hoping

That this trip home with family will help deal with this new turn of events in our lives. Having a child with a rare disease turns your world upside down and you need the support of family and good friends to help you deal.

Bad News - My son is sick

It has been a week or so since some bad news has been confirmed.

My 7 year old son was recently in the ER back in April with pneumonia. he was given some IV meds and sent home. We thought everything was well. About 10 days later, he had abdominal pain again and off to the ER. They gave him different Antibiotics and sent him home again. Within a day he spiked a fever of 105 and then again. This time he was admitted to the hospital for severe pneumonia with unknown cause. Not good. He then was given different antibiotics again via IV for the next 8 days. The worst part is he looked fine on the outside but was very sick on the inside. Unfortunately due to his illness our trip home was cancelled/postponed we have yet to see.
While there the doctors did all kinds of test trying to figure out what was going on. Towards the end of his stay there is a possibility that they may have discovered what it is and it is not good.
A few days later they confirmed their suspicions, my son most likely has a rare disease that effects his immune system called Chronic Granulomatous disease a.k.a CGD. The doctor decided that one test was not good enough and we tested my son again and the same results were returned a week later. So now it is almost 99% sure that he has CGD but 100% wont be known until after the results of the genetic testing that the National Institute for Health will be doing.
This has been very hard on me. I have read up on this disease and there are so many stories and some of them are very sad. I love my son with my life and can't imagine a life without him. I am so afraid of losing him. He is a constant joy to me. As this disease is so rare, there real is no support group in our area and the doctors are only vaguely familiar with it so I have to look for good sources on line.
He has had to start taking anti fungal and antibiotics that he will take for the rest of his life to help his small body fight off the things his white blood cells are unable to do. The danger infections for him are any bacterial and fungal infections. The worst part is that since his body can't fight these, his body does not show normal symptoms that he is sick. We have to be ever vigilant, watching for any little sign of sickness.
I wish I could be near my family but currently I don't have that option unless I want to quit my job and let whatever happens to our home happen. That is not a logical or realistic thought so I will continue daily to search for work closer to home.

Ramada Airport North Hotel Charlotte - 1st Stop to Jamaica

I was going to do an overall post on our trip to Jamaica but realized it would probably be very long. So I am going to start with the first hotel we stayed in. It was the Ramada Airport North Hotel in Charlotte NC. I decided to get a hotel room because we were leaving super(0600am) early in the morning out of Charlotte which is a good 2hrs and 15mins from us.

Now to the hotel, I booked from the Ramada website directly just so I would have more flexibility and the price was reasonable. The last time I booked with them was on our trip to Maggie Valley and the room was great. This was one on the other hand left room for many improvements.

The first room we were assigned smell so bad that there was no way we could stay there. The second room smelled fine but when I pulled back the sheets, they were dirty. The third room was fine. The carpets are VERY dirty. I would not step on them barefoot and when my son walked on them with his socks, they became filthy pretty quickly. It is certainly a basic hotel but I was not comfortable with the area based on how it looked. I do have to say the front desk person was very good about switching rooms though.

The hotel's restaurant was under construction but they had a sign that said you could let them know if you want something and they would call the cook. I found this very odd and certainly did not feel that was a way to handle it. I was going to order something but for about 15 minutes the desk was unattended so we just left.

When we checked out in the morning, I had to ask specifically for a receipt. After I made it to the airport and I checked it, they hadn't even officially checked me out of the room as it said on the receipt the cost was still owing. This made me very paranoid and I am still waiting to see if I get charged more than once.

The pictures are of the second room, I got tired of taking pictures of the new room but it gives you an idea of how it looks.

Time for another class

So after my week break I am starting my next class, accounting and finance, I am already confused and it's only the first day.

It has been a nice break, I think I will have to do this between every class. I probably should have seen if I could start my class after my birthday but it's too late now. I still haven't decided where I should go for my birthday but I'm leaning towards Disney World, duh I have a free ticket lol only valid on my birthday.

While I am on the topic of vacation or travel, I can't wait until Thanksgiving when we go visit our good friends Tennessee. We haven't seen them in ages. It will be a nice week away although of course I will still have class but what else is new.

It's almost that time

For my birthday that is and I am trying to decide what to do. My current options that I am taking into consideration are: Orlando (because I get into Disney World free on my birthday), New Orleans, Charleston, Chapel Hill (because there is a football game on my birthday)... I have 4 whole days off to celebrate because it so happens that my usual Friday off falls the day before and the Monday after is Columbus Day an official holiday.

Of course the main thing I have to take into consideration is cost because I will have to pay for 3 of us, my son, my mom and myself.

Orlando is good because I get in free but tickets for the other 2 on that day are around $150. The other issue is that I don't know what to do on the Sunday that wont cost out the.... Orlando is also a 7 hour drive from here.

Chapel Hill will have me spending $167 on the tickets for the game and then we would have to find something else to do and that drive is 5 hours.

New Orleans well is New orleans need I say more and that is over 9 hours away.

Charleston on the other hand is the closest at 3 or so hours. It is a beautiful city at least from what I can remember from the last time I was there.