MustSailNOW

Aww, congratulations. :) Welcome to the most challenging, wonderful, frustrating, amazing part of your entire life.

 

Only you and your wife can make this decision but here is my immediate thought: your baby is two weeks old. I guarantee your wife is in no position or state of mind to make this decision right now, or even in a few months. Right now, baby is completely dependant on mother. Your wife can't even consider making this decision right now. Just a thought. :)

 

God bless.

Couldn't agree more! My baby girl is 6 months old and there is no way I'd leave her anywhere, lol. We have 2 other children (ages 3 and 2) who have been cruising since they were 6 months (our upcoming trip will be my 3 year old's 4th cruise). My husband and I have always viewed vacations as family trips, at least until the kids get a little older. Cruising with a baby was really easy for us. Read the family board for lots of suggestions!

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I'm typically a bikini girl, but I have a 3 year old, 2 year old, and 6 month old (yeah, body is destroyed, lol). I'm currently working on getting back in shape, so didn't want to spend a lot on a swimsuit and still wanted to look sexy (I'm only 31!). I ordered this suit ( http://mobile.walmart.com/ip/Suddenly-Slim-by-Catalina-Women-s-Shirred-Halter-Swimsuit/17804497) in red and black. The reviews have a ton of pictures, women of all shapes and sizes. I actually look really great in this suit. Can't wait to wear it!

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My kids can sleep anywhere, lol. We rarely have to go back to the cabin during the day. We like to find a deck that isn't very crowded and take a nap on a lounger. But like I said, I guess I'm in the minority :)

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I guess I'm in the minority. I can't see myself sitting on a balcony in complete darkness while my kids sleep. We've always done insides or oceanviews with our kids (this will be my 3 year old's 4th cruise in October). We've never had a problem with them sleeping while we watch TV or talk. Of course, every child and family are different. One day we'll try a balcony, but for now, we're just happy to be on the ship! We have a family oceanview booked for October. The rooms look huge! Can't wait!

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Thanks for asking this! We're taking our 3 children in October (oldest will be 4). We couldn't decide if it was a good idea to bring one for him. This discussion helped a lot!

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I just ordered Jamberry wraps as well. I haven't tried them, but my friend is a consultant. Can't wait to get them!

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Great review! Our first trip on Freedom is in October!

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We just did Disney this past October. It was a great time. We had heavy rain one day out of the week. The temps were in the 90's, but we weren't complaining (we're in the midwest, so we take heat whenever we can get it!). The crowds were pretty decent, but there were still wait times 30+ minutes (good or bad depending on what you're used to). The food and wine festival was great! As far as prices, we did have cheaper rental rates. We rented a condo and paid less than $100 a day for a 2 bedroom/2 bath. Worked out great since we had a full size kitchen, laundry room, etc.

I was wondering the same thing. We have a family oceanview for October and my mom is thinking about coming. We also booked when kids were free.

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I guess I'm in the minority and agree with Lynda. We have the Freedom booked for this October. We are paying that same price for 5 of us in an oceanview. It also includes taxes and gratuities and we got $120 onboard credit. We booked during the Kids Sail Free promotion. As Lynda said, you never know what other promotions will come out within that time frame. True, you could just get a price adjustment if a better sale comes along, but it sounds like you could use the $500 for your upcoming cruise.

 

Thankyou. That is 100% exactly what I meant, this post is only about the dining room. I tip everyone, do I think a baby should pay the same, no I dont and I wont change my mind. The cabin staff, kids club are amazing and we go above and beyond plus we happily tip the dining staff again no probs, we just feel its a bit insane for a BABY in arms who is still just drinking formula from a bottle to be expected to pay the same amounts as a full grown adult.

 

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The minimum age to cruise is 6 months. By then, most children are on solids along with formula/breastmilk. I don't know about your kids, but mine are messy, lol. We are taking our kids on Freedom in October, one of which will be 10 months old. We already know she will make a mess because we've been there, done that with our other 2 kids (this will be our 3 year old's 4th cruise). Based on this, I think the dining room staff does earn their tips for babies.

 

And just to clarify, I'm not saying that YOUR baby should be eating solids by then. Just that MOST babies are and the cruise line probably took that in to consideration when coming up with this policy.

 

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Thank you for this! We're taking our 3 children (ages 4, 2, and 10 months at the time of sailing) on the Freedom in October. We are not taking family, so we plan to use the nursery at least one night to have some alone time. Is the max 8 infants at night as well?

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We have a family oceanview booked for Freedom in October. We paid $2,900 for 5 of us, including all taxes, fees, and gratuities (prepaid them). We also got $120 in shipboard credit. For some of us, this is a really good sale!

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Wow! Super deal! Did you book directly through RCI?

No, we used a big box travel agent.

We just booked a family oceanview on Freedom for this October. Came to $2900 for 5 of us and we got $120 in shipboard credit. That price includes all taxes, fees, and gratuities for a 7 day.

Thank you! I'm as ready as I'm gonna be. My gym friends have more confidence than I do right now and I'm so thankful for their encouragement because I'm sooooooooo nervous! I'm doing this race to raise money for breast cancer. So far, I've raised almost $1,200 for Susan G. Komen! :) Good luck with your race and keep reading, much more to come!

That is SO awesome! I have always wanted to run for breast cancer. I used to live in the gym as well until I had my little guy. Now, I can barely workout at home, lol. Maybe once we're out of the toddler years I can go back and consider training. Best wishes on your race!

This is just in time! We leave this weekend on the Valor! I also LOVE to dress up and have nothing but heels and dresses in my suitcase for dinner, lol. I can't wait to get ideas from your outfits!

Also, don't tell my husband, but I saw pictures of Emerson in other reviews and I'm looking forward to meeting him! lol :p