New Year's Cruise!!

 Work cruise with Rick!! 

Cruise

Rick and I went on a work cruise over New Year's Eve like we did last year. Everything went smoothly and we had a good time! The ship was SO nice! We loved it! It was an older crowd over all and the new year's eve parties were pretty chill. We walked around and went to a couple of the parties for a while, but then decided to go back to our room and watch a Hallmark movie instead, ha ha. We LOVED that the ship had streaming services that connected to your phone. That's the first time we have seen that on a cruise ship. 

The first stop was San Juan, Puerto Rico. We arrived after dinner and so it ended up being an evening tour, which was nice because it wasn't very hot, in fact it was very pleasant out. Near the end we saw this huge Christmas tree lit up that had statues around the tree. We were looking at the tree when all of a sudden one of the statues started walking! We were like, "wait -- that's a real person!" There was this person dressed up like a statue and he would maintain a frozen pose (and he did indeed look like a statue) until someone put money in his can and then he would come to life and move around. It was so cool!!! 

Other ports included Tortola, British Virgin Islands and Basseterre, St. Kitts and Nevis. In Tortola we went on this tour that included a taxi drive around the island and then a trip to the beach. The taxi was this open air bus that fit around 4 or 5 people on each bench -- around 20 or 25 total. The ride was so nerve wracking! I can be a very anxious passenger even in more typical driving situations, and this definitely wasn't typical! 

They drive on the left side of the street, instead of the right side, but that wasn't the scary part. The streets were very narrow and windy, going up and down hills, with sharp corners that you couldn't see around. The streets seemed only big enough for one vehicle, not two! It looked like cars were coming right at us and then would pass us in a way that was way too close for comfort! At least we were driving on the side next to the hills and not next to the cliffs -- that would have been even more terrifying!

When we were heading towards a sharp turn the driver would simply lay on his horn to notify anyone coming the opposite direction that we were coming. This would definitely not be a good place for a deaf person to drive! One time after our horn blared we could hear a horn coming from the other direction. I was pretty much praying for our safety the entire time and was very relieved when we finally arrived at our destination! The views and beaches were really pretty though! We went swimming in the ocean at two of our stops. 

The theater on the ship was amazing. There was a big rounded stage with a huge panoramic screen behind it. The screen would show various animated backgrounds that matched that musical numbers. They looked so real! There were scenes with trees with leaves blowing or flowers swaying in a breeze. One of the backgrounds included a brick wall with clocks that had moving hands. The scenes look 3-D. It was really neat! The talent was amazing as well. The singing and dancing were incredible and the acrobatics were breathtaking! 

We went on a behind-the-scenes tour of the ship, which was interesting. Since we were working we stayed busy -- interpreting several shows, tours, and other events. It was fun to get away with my husband to share in new experiences and have some time together!  

Happy New Year!!

Josh went with Hailey, Jocelyn, and Lilly to the Stake Dance and Jenna had a party at our house with friends! A lot of her friends were out of town, but a few were able to come -- Clarissa Williams, Cortnie Kendrick, and Grace Freeman. 

Visiting the Grandparents

After leaving the cousins we headed to Ogden to go visit Grandma Jensen. She was ready with a nice dinner for us. After dinner she let the girls open their gifts from her. She had made these darling Christmas pictures out of wool for all of the grandkids! 

She also had a really nice Suunto watch for me and a soft minkie blanket for Rick and Christmas money for us. Grandma had cases of food storage as a gift for all of the grandchildren. We barely fit it all into our car the next day! There were six cases for each person! Whew! I am so grateful for Grandma Jensen and all she does for us. She really spoils us! Tonight we just visited and the kids watched the movie, Ratatouille. Our niece, Chantel, left two big boxes filled with hair products for the girls to take home. They had fun going through them all and choosing what they wanted! The next morning we visited some more and Jaiden helped Grandma set up her new watch. After lunch we headed to SLC to visit Grandma and Grandpa Westra. 

I forgot to get pictures at Grandma Westra's house. Grandma Westra spoils us too and prepared a nice roast beef dinner for us. For Christmas she had given us and our children money in their Roth account. I love how she is helping to prepare us and our children for our future by teaching us about finances and putting money away in a Roth account that can accrue interest through the years. Chris and Corin were there when we arrived and so we were able to visit with them a little. After dinner Alicia brought the kids to come visit. The cousins played on the Wii while the adults played Rummikub. Then Alicia brought Adria and Calder back home since Adria had to work the next morning and Rella stayed and slept over with the girls. We stayed up and watched a Christmas movie. 

The next morning I did an exercise swim with my mom. I always enjoy this when I come visit since we can exercise and get a nice visit in at the same time. The kids had fun playing with Rella and then we packed up and headed to Lindon to meet Alicia at a parking lot off the freeway to drop off Rella to her. Our car was so packed that we could barely squeeze her in! I was grateful that the weather was good and the roads were clear on the way home. The kids had wanted to be home in time for New Year's Eve. We didn't have our traditional New Year's Eve dance party this year. It is the first year in many years that we haven't had it -- so it was different. In fact, Janika and Brandon texted asking what time the dance party was so that they could skype in! I didn't really mind not having it since I was tired from traveling though. Jase and Ellen stopped by for a bit and so I gave them their gifts from Grandma. 

Josh went to a party at Lilly's house (I think). Janelle had to work and then went to a party at Brea's house. Jaiden went to a party at Emily's house and Jenna also went over to the Williams to hang out with Clarissa and then they came back here to ring in the new year!