Surprising my wife with the cruise of her dreams

[greenie082756]

I have been following your story for quite some time now! The amount of effort you have shown is impressive to say the least.

I will continue watching and hoping you have the best time together with your wife and she with you. These times are precious..enjoy your cruise! :D

[skandls]

I am glad you are over your illnesses. I was lucky with my shingles - it was caught early and I took anti virus meds right away. Of course its hard to ignore when just the right half of your forehead is covered with a red rash.

 

Have a great cruise - and I am looking forward to your postings about the cruise itself.

[terrific_surprise]

My wife keeps her tablet computer in a bag that says "I-Need" on the front. (I'm not sure what "I-Need" is, but I assume it is some kind of brand name.) A few days ago I noticed that she also had in the bag the little black box that her cell phone came in. All that remained in the box was the little instruction book that comes with the phone. So I decided to use the black box as the location for another little golden envelope.

 

On my way into a dentist appointment I sent DW a text "Do you know what I-need?" I knew that she would know that I was unavailable for a while, so I thought that while she was waiting for me to come back from the dentist she might figure it out.

 

But when I called her after leaving the dentist, she still didn't understand. Even when I said "I 'dash' need" she still didn't get it (instead looking on the dash of the van).

 

When I finally talked her through finding the envelope, she exclaimed "you're so clever!"

 

On the front I had written "In 7 days we will be together far away."

 

Inside was this photo:

On the back I had written "A cruise within a cruise! -- Anywhere with you is fine with me!"

 

I didn't realize that this clue would be so confusing to DW. "A cruise within a cruise? Am I supposed to understand that?"

 

"Not necessarily," I replied. "Not yet."

 

"Are we not really getting on the Golden after all? Or are we getting on the Golden and then jumping off?"

 

"I've got to leave something a mystery still."

 

"Well it is still kind of a mystery. I won't believe it until we're on the ship. Do you have pirates coming for me or something?"

 

Then she looked at the puzzle piece. "Is that word going to say 'Aloha'?"

 

"You're pretty smart," I responded. "That was supposed to be the last piece I would give you, but I figured there was no point in hiding it anymore."

[john160]

Wow I don't believe the date is upon us! Congrats on keeping this going, I hope you two have the trip of a lifetime!! Looking forward to a full report when you get back.

 

Safe voyage

 

John

[Talus731]

Have been following your thread almost since the beginning. I have thoroughly enjoyed it. Have a fabulous time, looking forward to the review after. Enjoy!!!!

 

Sent from my ADR6400L using Tapatalk 2

[TNGALOHA]

Terrific, Have a great time on yor cruise. Enjoy one of the most beautiful places on this earth. It is so gorgeous and serene. Enjoy all of your excursions and especially the gorgeous Hawaiian sunsets. If you happen to hear the song "Honolulu City Lights" think of me in Yuma. It is a fabulous song!!!!

 

I have enjoyed reading all of your posts this past year and look forward to the review when you return. Be Safe and God Bless both of you.

Gerry

[greenie082756]

I want to wish for you and your wife the most memorable time together while you are on this cruise. I feel like I know you both through your posts and I am so excited for you! I can't wait until you post your review. Enjoy!! :D

[cruisemama5]

Can't believe your cruise is already here. I've been following this thread for so long, I'm sad its ending. Can't wait to read all about it and how it went! Thanks for sharing all this with us! Have a FABULOUS TIME!

[terrific_surprise]

We are sitting in the San Pedro Acapulco restaurant right now, having just had the amazing (and unexpected) experience of watching the Star Princess sail away. I thought I would check in on CC and when I saw the last 5 or so posts I decided to read them to DW. I had told her earlier about our roll call people. Now she is wondering "what have you been telling them about me?"

 

Strange but as someone else said we feel a strange mixture of excitement and sadness. We both realize that once it starts it will soon be over.

 

I'm typing on my phone so that's all for now. Hopefully I'll post a bit more before we sail away.

[terrific_surprise]

I am going to try to catch up on some of the final clues before the cruise begins in a few hours!

 

Because we will be away from our children on Easter, I had planned to have an early Easter egg hunt for them on Sunday. The kids seemed to enjoy it even though it was kind of rushed (because I was busy Sunday focusing on getting ready for an important ministry event that night). Some of them were a little upset that our 9 year old daughter (#10) found both of the best eggs (one containing $10, another containing $5) -- especially when she had done the exact same thing last year.

 

While the kids were looking for the eggs, I hastily tried to hide a golden envelope in a place that my wife would find it. Last year I had put a golden envelope inside an egg, but I didn't want to make that mistake again (the clue and the puzzle piece had become quite wrinkled), so instead I just drew an egg shape on the front of the envelope and wrote on it something like "To the one who egg-cites me!"

 

I had to move the envelope several times because DW kept going to a different part of our yard, but eventually she found it in the branches of our fir tree. Inside she found this photo:

 

On the back I had written "A delectable bite-sized, one and a quarter ounce ball of happiness – I love you mochi!"

 

(Thanks to Renee, CC's "displaced local girl," for giving me the idea for this clue, which hopefully will be fulfilled next Tuesday at Bubbie's in Hawaii Kai on Oahu.)

[terrific_surprise]

Sunday night we had an important ministry event. Past such events have usually closed with me presenting a music video to the group which highlights recent ministry activities. I had decided some time back that the song I would use as the soundtrack for this video would be one that my wife had begun writing when she was a teenager, but that she had never finished. I had presented the unfinished song at her 49th birthday party and announced my intention to finish it before her 50th birthday -- but it was looking like I was going to fail.

 

In the end I completed the song and video with just a few minutes to spare. (Although the recording quality was poor, I knew that DW would appreciate it.) After presenting the video, I reminded the group that I would be taking my wife away soon (and reminded them that we need their help while we are gone). Then I presented DW with a golden envelope, which had these words written on the front: "To my favorite songwriter."

 

Inside was this photo:

 

On the back I had written "You may be 'average,' but the number of islands we will see will be above average!" (At 6'4", I often used to kid my 5'3" wife about being "short," but she always has insisted that she is "average.")

Edited March 27, 2013 by terrific_surprise
correction

[terrific_surprise]

Tuesday morning we had scheduled a ministry breakfast, with the primary official purpose involving coordinating the schedule for those who will fill in while we are gone. However, I had told several people that it would also serve as a little 50th birthday party for my wife.

 

Even though I said that no gifts were necessary, several of our supporters generously chose to give us spending money for the cruise, along with other items. (I had worried that some of our supporters would criticize us for going on the cruise, but so far everybody has been very supportive.)

 

When DW sat down to eat, I slipped a Princess Cruises napkin by her plate, with a golden envelope underneath. On the front of the envelope I had written "You've got mail."

 

Inside was this photo:

 

On the back I had written "As much as I loved the Japanese model, I think it's time for a trade-in. How about trying an Italian model? – I can't wait to be with you!"

 

DW reacted by joking about the "models" (as if they referred to women). DW does not have any Japanese or Italian ancestry, but is primarily German and French.

 

A priest friend sitting next to DW picked up the clue and read it after DW was done with it. He did not appear to be amused. :o

 

I had originally intended to give DW this clue some time when a Mitsubishi car was nearby, but after several weeks of not seeing any Mitsubishis, I gave up. But a few hours after the breakfast, as we filled up with gas before heading out of town, I noticed a Mitsubishi truck at the next pump.

 

"There's a Japanese model!" I announced to DW. She still didn't get it. Even after I pointed her to the Mitsubishi symbol, she still seemed puzzled. But somehow a minute or two later, she realized that I was referring to the Sapphire Princess (which was built by Mitsubishi, while the Golden Princess was build by Italian ship builder Fincantieri).

 

During our BVE on February 16 I had asked DW to pose by this Mitsubishi sign on the Sapphire Princess, which had roused her curiosity at the time, so I was surprised that this one took her so long to figure out.

[terrific_surprise]

Before our last cruise in 2010, DW had her hair styled by a friend. In anticipation of the coming cruise, DW wished that her friend could style her hair again, but the friend now lives hours away, in Ventura.

 

In spite of the inconvenience, I decided that we should drive to Ventura the day before the cruise so that DW could see her friend (and so that DW would feel good about her hair on the cruise). I also knew that for our own sakes we needed to force ourselves to meet an earlier deadline, as on our past cruises we have been dealing with so many last minute details that we were among the last to board.

 

Sure enough, our Tuesday morning was filled with last minute details, but somehow we made it to DW's Ventura hair appointment Tuesday afternoon. I was still dealing with details (deposits, getting things in the mail, etc.) but at least we were on our way.

 

After our friend finished with DW's hair (and even gave me a bonus trim), we headed toward Los Angeles taking Highway 1 along the coastline. The almost-full moon shimmering over the water heightened our anticipation (especially for me, as I have been anticipating today's full moon for over a year).

 

I had hoped that we would make it to San Pedro by 7, in time for the evening show at the Fanfare Fountains, but instead it was 8 by the time we arrived. But as we exited the freeway, I was stunned to see a huge Princess ship in port. "Umm, what's going on here? Did the Golden Princess come in early?" I wondered. Then I noticed that it was the Star Princess.

 

As we pulled into the parking lot, the ship's loud horn let out a blast. Just then the fountains began playing the Sound of Music, so I rushed DW to the fountains, hoping not to miss the song. Along the way I said to DW, "you're my favorite -- even though you're not a 'thing.'"

 

I wanted to take a few photos of DW near the fountains (photos corresponding to clues I had previously given).

 

But after just a couple of minutes I noticed that the ship had left the dock! So we hurried over to take some photos of the Star Princess before it quickly sailed down the channel.

 

Seeing this huge ship sail away at night was quite a spectacle for us, with the shimmering lights dancing across the various surfaces of the ship, with the almost-full moon shining above (the photo doesn't do it justice).

 

"Just think, tomorrow we will be sailing down this same channel!" I exclaimed.

[CM2J2R2S]

We, too, have been following and been inspired to do a similar quest.

 

Enjoy every single second of this amazing adventure together.

[fatheraquarius]

I have been reading this thread for a long time I can't believe the cruise is here! I hope that you and your wife have a great time!

[terrific_surprise]

As the 118 piece puzzle neared completion over the past few weeks, both my wife and I were a bit concerned that we may have lost some pieces. Obviously over the course of a year that would have been easy to do, and in retrospect it seems kind of foolish that I thought that we could get through this process without misplacing any pieces. Nevertheless, all of the pieces have now been accounted for. Last night I gave DW two more pieces (in golden envelopes of course), and this morning before we board I will give her the final two.

 

The two I gave her last night were ones that I had been holding on to for a long time. I had hoped for a chance to go to a restaurant named Canaletto to give her one of the clues, but it never worked out. (I am aware of two Canaletto restaurants, one at the Venetian in Las Vegas and another in Newport Beach.) So last night I loaded a website with some information about the Las Vegas Canaletto restaurant (at the piazza near the Venetian's canal) and showed it to DW. After explaining to her how I had hoped to give her a clue at that restaurant, I gave her the golden envelope. On the front I had written "To the one I have loved from the start." (This was actually a reference to a song I wrote for DW which I gave her on our first cruise in 2005, but I'm not sure if she realized it.)

 

Inside was this photo of the Canaletto dining room on the Golden Princess, where we will be dining every evening for the next two weeks:

 

On the back I had written "Looking forward to many memorable conversations over dinner at Canaletto! – You are my favorite dining companion."

 

DW was excited to see the puzzle piece, because it was part of one of our faces. (It just so happened that a piece had been missing from both my face and DW's face on the puzzle.)

 

"You have had that envelope ready for a long time," DW commented.

 

"Yes," I agreed, "but not as long as this one," handing her another envelope. "I had intended to give you this one some time when we were in the midst of a disagreement, but the time never seemed quite right."

 

"I'm glad to know we never had any disagreements," DW laughed. Of course she knew better. (We are both very strong willed and often have opposite perspectives on issues.)

 

On the front of the envelope I had written "To my favorite opponent." Inside was this photo:

 

There was a similar chess board on the deck of the Sapphire Princess when we were there in February, but I was pretty sure that DW didn't notice it. On the back of the photo I had written "I challenge you to a game of chess – winner take all (off loser)! – I love it when you win (you won my heart after all)!"

 

DW was thrilled to see that the puzzle piece enclosed was another piece of a face, exclaiming "now our faces should be done!"

 

The two final pieces I will give her today will complete a special message on the puzzle.

[skiladyldp]

I am so happy for you that your dream vacation is finally here. May you both have a wonderful time. I have been following this thread since you first began it. At the that time, I was planning my first cruise which was for last October. You posts helped to keep my own excitment going. By the way, I live in Hawaii Kai!

[youngestof9]

It's funny - you popped into my head today and I had to search and search to find this thread. I was wondering how the surprise was coming along (not remembering when you were sailing). Very ironic that you're leaving today!

 

Hope you have the vacation of your dreams :)

[terrific_surprise]

At about 5:45 on the dark morning of my wife's 50th birthday, I drove our van down to the water's edge to watch "our" ship coming in. When we had watched the Sapphire Princess coming in to port in February, we had gone down to the far end of Ports O' Call, but this time I thought we would go down a little further so that we could catch an earlier glimpse of the ship. After facing some roadblocks (apparently due to some construction) we parked near a warehouse at the south end of the channel.

 

We could already see the Golden Princess approaching as we parked. We hurried out to a little pier and watched our ship silently slip by. For some reason she didn't seem as huge as the Star Princess had seemed the night before, and the lights didn't seem to dance like they had on the Star Princess. In fact, the whole scene seemed to have a strangely gloomy feeling about it, although we were both very excited. DW wanted to videotape me as the ship came in so I performed a mock reenactment of her "how did that sneak in" reaction when we had seen the Sapphire Princess coming in on February 16.

 

After the ship passed by, I slipped a golden envelope into my DW's coat pocket. Then I joked "do you have something in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?" She of course quickly found the envelope.

 

On the outside I had written "Happy 50th birthday!" (That was a message that didn't require much thought for once!)

 

Inside was this photo of what I thought was the pub lunch dessert (probably not the best photo I could have given for the occasion, but I was running out of options):

 

On the back I wrote "The Captain chose to celebrate his 80th on the Golden Princess, and now he sends his best wishes for your 50th. – You put the 'love' in my boat!"

 

Her response indicated that she thought I was referring to the captain of the Golden Princess, but I was actually referring to a more well-known Princess captain.

 

Then we headed down to the port, walking along the cruise ship promenade to watch the Golden Princess docking. With the skies hazy and filled with clouds, it was not the spectacular morning we had experienced in February when we watched the Sapphire Princess docking. By the time we walked back to our van, the morning sky was lighting up, but we still hadn't really seen the sunrise.

 

Now we needed to turn our minds to the final pre-boarding details. We had left in such a rush that there were still some things that had not been packed in our bags (and I still needed to finish a mailing). Not long into the process of our final packing, DW noticed that her wallet was missing, and this became the unfortunate focus of the rest of the day. Everything was unpacked from every bag, more than once, but still no wallet was found. We were very mindful of the fact that this was no small inconvenience: my wife's drivers license was in that wallet, along with a substantial amount of money. But I later learned that there was also something else in there that my wife considered to be very precious.

 

"Please pray with me," my wife pleaded. Sadly, I was too stressed to find anything meaningful to pray (but I am thankful to know that at times like this the Holy Spirit intercedes for us).

 

If it wasn't for the fact that our son and his friend had arrived to share the Bon Voyage Experience with us, we probably would have wasted hours more reexamining everything we had packed. As we thought through everything we had done recently to try to determine what could have happened to DW's wallet, the most likely scenario seemed to us to be that it had ended up on the floor of our van and that I had kicked it out the door when in the darkness when we went to watch the ship coming in! But eventually we knew that, ready or not, we needed to try to board and see what would happen.

 

We had way overpacked (one of the disadvantages, I suppose, of such a long time of anticipation) but thankfully our son and his friend were there to help with the bags. We left our luggage with the porter, in faith that we would be able to board the ship to join our luggage later.

 

When we entered the port building and walked to the little tables to fill out the health forms, DW's stress was peaking. She couldn't even finish filling out the short form, asking me to do it for her (although I told her she had to sign it herself). She almost didn't even notice the final golden envelope, which I had placed next to her health form.

 

"I don't need to open this right now, do I?" she asked, obviously overwhelmed with the situation. Of course I didn't want to add to her stress, but I did hope that she would open it before she boarded the ship.

 

When we reached the top of the escalator, the Princess representatives -- standing adjacent to the "Bon Voyage Experience" sign -- told us to go sit down and wait to be called! We knew from our February Bon Voyage Experience that this was not the right procedure, and the Bon Voyage Experience sign clearly indicated where we should go. We also knew that the proper procedure was for us to board with the members of our party who were on the Bon Voyage Experience. But after the Princess representatives insisted, we sat down obediently.

 

During our hour or so of waiting, DW finally found time to open the final golden envelope. On the front I had written "Have a happy trip to the 50th state!" Inside was this photo, which happens to be the view from our balcony!

(Several months ago, our Princess Cruise Vacation Planner, Charles, had offered to switch me to this room at the aft end of the Baja deck.)

 

On the back I had written "Over a thousand rooms, but ours is unique! -- Today I celebrate the mystery of your uniqueness!" (That part about "mystery of your uniqueness" is a quote from our wedding vows.) While we were waiting to be told that we could get in line, DW had time to put the final piece in the puzzle, completing the message "Thank you for sharing the best moments of your 50 'Golden' years with me!"

 

When they started calling others to begin lining up, we reapproached the Princess representatives several times. Seeming to be unconcerned with us, they repeatedly (and rudely) chided us with the words "Bon Voyage boards last!" Eventually almost all of the hundreds of others in the room had lined up. There were only five or so other people (besides us) who remained seated.

 

Finally I had had enough. Picking up my cell phone, I called 1-800-PRINCESS. It took a few minutes, but finally I reached a real person and explained the situation. After being placed on hold for several minutes, she finally told me "we just sent an email to the ship informing them that they are to let you board immediately. If anyone tells you to wait, tell them about the email."

 

When we walked back over to the Bon Voyage Experience sign, the Princess representative standing near by told us to go back and sit down! But this time we insisted that she let us through, telling her about the email Princess had just sent to the ship. After checking with somebody else, she finally let us through.

 

Soon we heard the words we had dreaded. My wife was told "you cannot board without a government-issued ID." She had found another photo ID, but it wasn't government-issued. My wife of course was sobbing. "You need to board without me," she said. But I told her that I would not consider such a thing.

 

"Unfortunately we can't do anything about this," the Princess representative at the counter informed us. "These rules are not set by us, but by immigration, and they are very strict."

 

In the blur of stress we experienced standing at the counter, I'm not even sure what changed (other than that I have experienced the power of my wife's prayers). At some point, the representative said "we can let your board, but you probably won't be able to get off in the ports." But before we left, she had changed her tune, saying "you shouldn't have any problem getting off in the ports as long as you have your ship ID."

 

Although the Princess representative directed us toward the boarding area, we still weren't convinced that we would make it on the ship. We both anticipated that someone would refuse to let DW board because she didn't have the proper ID. We were asked to show our IDs a couple more times, holding our breath to see if there would be another problem, but within a matter of minutes we found ourselves standing on the ship, having passed the final security checkpoint.

 

Our adventure had begun -- but it would be a while before we would leave our stress behind. The prospect of "escaping completely" had become quite elusive.

Edited March 30, 2013 by terrific_surprise
adding photos

[bean24]

Oh no. I hope you find the ID when you unpack and are able to enjoy your long awaited trip.

[greenie082756]

That must of be terrible to lose your wallet! I know if it was me I would be so "lost" for the rest of the cruise. I sure hope she finds it!

Have a great time!

[bandgbasset]

Anyone else interested in how the cruise went. I've been following this story for a LONG time.:D

[Mrs.C05]

I am very interested how the cruise went! Please come back and tell us!

 

Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2

[cruisemama5]

Anyone else interested in how the cruise went. I've been following this story for a LONG time.:D

 

I am very interested how the cruise went! Please come back and tell us!

 

Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2

 

 

DITTO!! Can't wait to hear.

[marvholly]

Me three!!!

 

Been looking for a follow-up report/review for a couple days. Do realize terrific prob has a TON of kid & ministry stuff to catch up on but...............