Nope. No moon shots for you. I want to thank everyone for the birthday greetings! Whoda thunk I would ever live 56 years? I mean who ever lives that long? Haha.
I started writing out some notes yesterday to mail in the real mail and it got sort of addicting! I ended up taking 12 cards to the mailbox today! Wheeee! And I received some, too, so how cool is that? It’s really quite fun!
So, let me post some cruise pics. I have been seriously lax in my blogging since we got back from our cruise. Ken and I both caught colds, but I see on the news that this past week the Crown Princess (the ship we were on!) came back with 300 people sick with Norovirus. I’ll take a cold any old time!
My birthday was perfect. MSU beat the socks off of U of M. Heeheehee. And the Giants won the Superbowl. I’m happy.
Here is Sailor Babo and his friend XX on the deck. It was a beautiful warm sunny week, duh, it’s the Caribbean. SB enjoyed being on the sea! We watched the playoff games out on the big screen on deck, too. This was the last playoff game, but I am sure Tom Brady looked like this after the Superbowl, too. Sorry, Tommy.
We snorkeled three times. Saw many many stingrays. Several nurse sharks. A moray eel who swam around about 20 feet below us in the coral. And a four foot barracuda who swam across in front about 20 feet ahead of us. 
The rays saw our ship coming (ok, they probably heard it) and started drifting over. We got to hold them and pet them. They are like Great Danes of the sea!
The obligatory Smooching the Stingray pic. The dear thing didn’t seem to mind. She just wanted some squid.
This was an island off Belize. SO beautiful!
I never get tired of the colors! Or of taking bird pictures!
I think these little guys are sanderlings. They were moving so fast they were a blur!
Little Blue Heron!
I think I id’ed this dude as a Ruddy Turnstone in winter plumage! 😀
The dogs and cats were extremely happy to have us home. And I was really glad to get home!It’s been sunny and in the 40s….warm, beautiful days. Quite an unusual winter for us!
Oh wait! I almost forgot to post a pic of the teeniest hermit crab we have ever seen. He was smaller than a small green pea!
Ok….here’s a dawg pic!
Lauri's Blerg 
OOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!! Glorious pictures!!!!! WOW!!!!! Looks like you had a fabulous time! Sailor Babo was in his element, hunh? LOL…love XX and madcap expression on his face!
Happy Birthday! ::tosses confetti:: 56! A baby! When I was a senior in high school you were FRESHMAN!!! Little kid…LOL
Gotta say, the dog picture is a delight to see. Happy puppeeez.
Hai, Robbbbbie! I forgot that you are older than me! How did you do THAT??? Hahahahaha.
Reeses. Five Reeses a day. That’s the secret.
LOLOL!!!!!
::tosses a giant bag’o’Reeses to Sailor Babo for safekeeping and runs home::
Nomnomnomnom!
So you are admitting to infecting the ship?
I’m admitting to escaping the infection by about three days!!! And I’m SO glad. Nothing would be worse than being stuck in those tiny cabins whilst sick with the stomach flu. Ok, having the ship tip over would be worse!
It looks like I missed your birthday. Do you all have little calendars to keep the dates straight? Oh well, happy birthday anyway.
It’s nice to see Babo getting some sun. Make sure he doesn’t drink too much, though.
Oops, I spelled my name wrong.
Lol about your name. It happens to the best of us.
I think Vox used to have a way to keep track of birthdays. And I stunk at it even back then. But some people are really good about remembering birthdays.
Now I have Facebook send me a note when someone’s is coming up. And I still forget to tell them Happy Birthday.
LiveCloud (or whatever it’s called now) told me …
Since it turned into Hoo.do I haven’t re-signed up for that site. So I have been missing LOM’s posts! 😦
Yesterday was your birfday? Happy birfday! ::presents Lauri with a cake, candles, and dog/cat fur:: You old ‘un. 😉
I love the pics! The hermit crab is so cuuuute and the scenery looks very warm and relaxing. Sting ray kissing. Hehe! Glad you guys and SB had a great time. 😀 I have got to figure out how to shrink myself to stow away in suitcases!
Yesterday? Oh yeah…it was yesterday! Bwahaha. Damn. Time flies when you’re having fun.
I wish you COULD have beamed yourself onto the ship with us!
Happy birfday!
Sailor Babo, appropriately enough, looks most at home on boats/ships. I admire his willingness to take on drinks bigger than he is. You need to put those pix of him over on his blog.
love the colors!
I do need to post on SB’s blob!
I have other things to post there, too!
I just love staring at the water all day!
Aww, I missed your birthday! Happy belated Birthday, Lauri! Watch your mailbox, there’s something from California headed your way!
The sting rays actually came up to your ship? And you weren’t afraid? I would have been thinking ‘OMG Steve Irwin’ the whole time.
I’d love to meet Sailor Babo’s friend Double X. I should have gotten a photo of my Sailor Babo making friends with Kirin Biru in San Francisco.
Oh we had stingrays in our arms. They are huge snugglebugs. But, it’s just because they want to eat the squid we had. What happened to Steve Irwin was such a horrible freak accident. The tour guides tell us to stand firmly on the sand and not float above the stingrays. Sometimes that’s possible, sometimes it’s not. Depending on how wavy it is!
Happy Birthday (a day or so late). I remembered a while ago (my sister’s is today) then yesterday I forgot and then I saw it somewhere (I think on Laurie’s?) and totally forgot again, I meant to bake you a blog-cake or something. I’m so easily distracted, especially when I’m in a funk.
Oh well, looks like a great trip! Welcome back, and love that doggie picture!
Thanks for the birthdee wishes. I really do wish that birthdays would be completely ignored after…oh….30? 40? 18?
But, I’ve given up telling my mom not to get me anything and certain friends, who will never let a birthday go past. Let it go, really! 😉
HAPPY BIRTHDAY! And welcome back! Loved the Brady pick. Aww, poor Tom. HAHAHA!
GO STATE!
Ooooo, you ebil! I lubs it! HAHAHAHAHA!
Ooo! I’d be afraid of the rays! I’m afraid of everything!
Love your piccies, though and I’m happy you’re home safe and sound with the furs and feathers!
Don’t be askeered. They are so cool! And soft and cuddly!
I did have one suck onto my arm a couple of years ago and it hurt like a bitch! I had a hickey for months. I swear it sucked muscles right up through the skin. But, it didn’t stop me from going right in the next year. It’s worth it!
I’m glad I’m not the only one who finds the letters addicting. It’s why I’ve been writing like 3 a night. I’d write more, but dogs have me on a strict bedtime schedule. Also, I love Orion with his “pillow.” Just the right size.
Sooo… does kissing a stingray come with good luck like kissing the Blarney stone? Or do you just get slimy lips? (The little crab made me squeeee! You got crabs!)
Yes, it is supposed to be good luck to kiss a stingray. So that must be why our particular cruise didn’t get Norovirus! Ha!
I am surprised at what a kick I am getting out of sending and receiving these cards and notes! What a hoot!
Absolutely gorgeous. It’s easy to take pretty photos there, but these are very special. Love the blues. I’m massively jealous you got to see a nurse shark. Welcome home and a big Happy Birthday. Glad to have you as my friend.
We were able to swim on a sandbar with about 6 nurse sharks..from 3 to 6 feet long! Soooo cool, but they were completely oblivious to us. Oh, I guess that’s a good thing! 😉
I’m so glad to have you as my friend, too, Amelie! 🙂
LOL I just noticed your tag cloud, “Murray Obama” I guess Murray and Obama get the same amount of tags on here.
I don’t think I have tagged more than three pictures on here since we started at WP. I’ll probably regret that….but, nah, I am too lazy, I don’t tag things and if I can’t find them later oh well!
Great pics! Loved the heron and the hermit crab.
Thanks! 🙂
Teenie weenie hermie! Cutes galore, and ray smooching to boot! It looks so relaxing, i could sure use a beach in my life right now.
I’m so bad, larui, I missed your birthday too. Please forgive mee! A million happinesses to you!
Thanks for the happinesses! You not bad, you busy! And that’s a good thing!
D’awww, happy birthday Lauri! Mum and I have decided we’re stopping birthdays once I’m 30. Well not stopping *birthdays* because they’re fun, but stopping the getting older bit.
So envious of your holiday. You deserve it!
Thanks, Inga! I really like the idea of stopping aging when my kids hit 30! Only two more years for the oldest one!
Happy birthday Lauri……I’m not going to stop having birthdays…….I’m damned well going to make sure the whole world knows what a miserable grumpy OLD bastard I am. 🙂
Love that island off Belize….reminds me of places in the South Pacific.
All wonderful pics….thanks for sharing them.
I don’t mind having the birthdays, but it would be nice for my kids not to get older than 30. That would make me really old. *shifty eyes*
That’s when my mother stopped having birthdays. The big 3-0 is traumatic for everyone.
I wish I hadn’t gotten older than 30, especially first thing in the morning.
Turning 30 was a huge relief for me. My 20s were for shit and I was SO happy to get out of them. So long, and no thanks for the memories!
38 was the most traumatic. ALMOST 40!? AIEE!!
A big fist bump for escaping the Norovirus. And love the bird pics. I’ve always wanted to see where ours go for the winter. The rays look like a lot of fun, but I’d still be nervous about their tails.
LOL – Bert makes a perfect travel-sized pillow for Orion’s gigantor haed! &:o)
Happy Lubbs Day Lauri. ❤