Home Again...almost

Here I am sitting in the Delta Crown Room at the Ft. Lauderdale airport waiting for our plane to begin boarding for our flight home. Nearly one week has passed since Doughboy and I embarked on a 6-day Caribbean cruise aboard Carnival Cruise Lines. Our journey took us to Key West, Grand Cayman Island, and Jamaica. I have many photos to share when I get them downloaded, but will post a sneak peek of a beautiful sandy beach at Ocho Rios, Jamaica.


We celebrated Doughboy's birthday last Wednesday; however, the real purpose of going on the cruise was to scrapbook. I can hear loud groans from readers who don't understand the lure of scrapbooking. Two years ago my daughter and I, along with two friends, journeyed on an 8-day Hawaiian adventure for the 2007 Ultimate Scrapbook Cruise. When ScrapMap advertised the 2009 Ultimate Scrapbook Cruise more than 15 months ago I asked Doughboy if he wanted to tag along. The rest is history, so to speak. If you would ask Doughboy how he happened to be on a cruise with 200 women all obsessed interested in the same hobby, he will tell you he was held hostage. Don't believe him...it was FUN! My dear friend Chere, who joined me on the Hawaiian cruise, also traveled with me this week. She brought along her hostage hubby too. In fact, several women traveled with their spouse/significant other.

If you're wondering what a scrapbook cruise is about, I will say it is tons of fun. While at sea we took classes taught by experts in the scrapbook industry: Heidi Swapp, Donna Downey, Margie Romney-Aslett, Karen Russell, and Teresa Collins. We learned new techniques, previewed the latest trends and products, and had a wonderful experience meeting women from all over the world. Fellow attendees came from as far away as Germany, Italy, Norway, Australia, Greece, Canada, France, and of course all four corners of the U.S.

Look for more photos and tales of our Caribbean adventure...and look for news about our next cruise to Alaska (coming up in August 2010). Shhhhh...Doughboy doesn't know about it yet. And, yes, it's another scrapbook cruise. But this one is planned around couples. There will be special events for spouses while event attendees participate in classes. Oh, and did I mention there is a reprise of the Ultimate Scrapbook Cruise for 2010? It is an 8-day Caribbean adventure with ports of call in the U.S. Virgin Islands and St. Martin. Hmmm... there may be TWO cruises in my future. If you're interested in joining the fun, visit the ScrapMap web site for more information.