  Email I sent from the cruise on Wednesday,  July 14th:  & nbsp;  Good morning! nbsp;
 We are about to arrive in CocoCay this morning. nbsp;  We will be going snorkeling and to an " Aqua Park"  which,  basically,
 sounds like a water amusement park- we are thinking along the lines of Michigan Adventure? nbsp;  Of course,  last night,  I had a nightmare about being bitten by a shark and being stuck on coral so we will see how long I last!
nbsp;  & nbsp; nbsp; nbsp;  We have been having a wonderful time.
nbsp;  We got to relax in Miami and took a tour around the city. nbsp;  Our guide was Cuban and very friendly and very knowledgeable. nbsp;  It was neat to walk around with him as he showed us all kinds of places that aren't necessarily tourist attractions.
nbsp;  One of his friends gave us some Cuban coffee. nbsp;  I actually liked it! nbsp;  It was VERY strong and made your tongue tingle.
nbsp; nbsp; Hubby was not a big fan. nbsp;  Later that night,  a limo picked us up at the hotel to go down to South Beach for dinner.
nbsp;  We ate a lovely Italian restaurant and then walked down to South Beach. nbsp;  & nbsp; nbsp;
nbsp;  The first few hours of the cruise we were a little nervous about being bored but it is NOT even possible! nbsp;  There are a million things going on the boat and we are somewhere different everyday. nbsp;  Yesterday,
 we were at Nassau and took a taxi over to Paradise Island. nbsp;  I dragged& nbsp; hubby to a special seminar on the boat about the shopping in Nassau. you can imagine how thrilled he was!
nbsp;  But we got some " insider tips"  and had a successful ( though I'm sure& nbsp;
hubby would say painful)  shopping trip. nbsp;  You will have to ask him about the " Straw Market"  sometime.
Paradise Island was beautiful and we went up to the Atlantis Resort. amazing. nbsp;  Being the seasoned gambler,  I sat down at the nickle slots and won the first push! nbsp;
 I was so excited! nbsp;  It was the best $ 13. 25 I have ever had! nbsp;
 And then,  the frugal side of me came out and we walked away. lol!  & nbsp;  Last night was our formal night.
nbsp;  It was very nice. nbsp;  I tried salmon for the first time! nbsp;  I tried to get&
nbsp; hubby to taste escargout with me,  but we chickened out& nbsp;  After dinner,  the captain's reception took place.
nbsp; nbsp;  & nbsp; nbsp; nbsp;
 Well,  we are off. we miss you! Love~ S ( amp;
 S) nbsp;  Well. we are back. nbsp;  We got back into Miami on Friday.
nbsp;  I wasn't expecting us to get off the ship so early but we were off and back at the hotel by 10am. nbsp;  We basically napped and watched tv ALL day. I could have used another day of that! nbsp;
 Saturday we flew back into Chicago and then drove& nbsp; the rest of the way& nbsp; home. nbsp;
 It was so wonderful to see B again. nbsp; nbsp; There was only one time,  while we were watching Jersey Girl in the hotel Friday,  that it hit me hard how much I missed him.
nbsp;  Other than that,  I did a& nbsp; good job of compartmentalizing.  We had an amazing time and I will blog more when I have the energy.
I am SO thankful,  period never showed up! nbsp;  I was so concerned it would happen the second we& nbsp; left.
nbsp; nbsp; However,  this morning I woke up in hideous pain. nbsp;  What I thought was my period but am now beginning to believe was&
nbsp; a cyst bursting. nbsp;  My dr's told me it would feel like a period but,  potentially,  with no blood.
nbsp;  Well,  it was the MOST hideous cramping I have& nbsp; had. nbsp;
 I was so nauseous and it hurt to even go to the bathroom!  Trust me when I tell you,  I have had& nbsp; painful,  wrenching cramps.
I used to be knocked out for a couple days. but this,  this was terrible! nbsp;  I couldn't cry because it hurt too much. nbsp;
 I seriously thought I was going to pass out. hubby wanted to take me to the emergency room but I just wanted to be crawled up with the heating& nbsp; pad. nbsp;  Lo and behold,
 this afternoon,  I am fine. nbsp;  I am exhausted from this morning and still nauseous but not in hideous& nbsp; pain so I'm convinced I'm healed.
and oh so grateful it happened today and not a day earlier!  & nbsp; nbsp;  & nbsp;
nbsp;  & nbsp;
