The Nix Family: Family

For Hanukkah last year, we decided to do away with the eight crazy nights of presents in exchange for a family "experience." We never go away for spring break, and we've never taken a cruise. Thus, the Plan was hatched.

We all went in with varying levels of expectations and excitement. None of us knew what to expect. Some of us were more excited than others. For some of us (Holden and Riley), expectations were exceeded; for others (Denise), expectations were met and, for others (Kevin), expectations were very, very low and were barely met. We all, though, had a good time.

If you ask Holden why the cruise was fun, he'll tell you because he enjoyed the independence he had on the boat. He liked coming and going as he pleased and exploring. One night, he was out later than the rest of us.... I stayed up reading and waiting for him to come home. Weird. He also liked the all-you-can-eat part and using his "Sail and Sign" card to drink all the soda he could.

If you ask Riley why the cruise was fun, he'll tell you it's because he likes spending time with his family. We did have a lot of family time - a bit more than we expected. The kids were in different "camps" for their age groups and, a lot of times, the schedules didn't mesh with them both involved in an activity at the same time. Riley's activities ended at 10 p.m., and Holden's were just getting started. In addition, often, the activities were ones they just weren't interested in. Riley will also tell you about winning the Hasbro Family Game Night and coming home with a "ship on a stick" trophy, a travel Simon game and a $150 Hasbro gift card.

If you ask Kevin why the cruise was fun, he'll talk about the all-you-can-eat food (some of which was really good in the Dining Room, while the buffet... not so much) and the entertainment, like music, comedians and the Hasbro Family Game Night. He also, to some extent, appreciated the ease of travel - where you get there and you're there.

If you ask me why the cruse was fun, I'll mention all of the above, but mostly fixate on how I enjoyed several days of being served, not having to cook or clean for any meals and not having to make major decisions about where to go while stressing about directions, traffic and being in a new location. And, the casino. I just wish I didn't lose.

We'll all tell you what we didn't like. Avalon on Catalina Island and Ensenada, Mexico, as ports of call, were boring. It didn't help that it rained the few hours we were off the ship in Ensenada. We all agree that tourist spots are not our cup of tea. The pool on the ship was small and cold and the many, many kids on board packed themselves like sardines into the two small hot tubs. We did get some time to lounge on deck while the weather was good when we were anchored off Catalina Island, and had fun on the water slide.