Cruise last days at sea

We had 2 full days at sea on the way back from the Islands. Jeron and the rest of the guys took advantage of the flow rider and got fairly good at surfing, while my sisters and I enjoyed laying in the sun napping and reading.
The guys also had some pretty some pretty good wipe outs

Our last night on the boat was Valentines day, the guys scored big time. We went up and watched the sun set, it was so incredible! Then we went to a nice dinner, and went dancing. I think the guys are going to have to think hard next year to top that off.

Our waitress, Alishia, is from Trinidad. She was very nice and alot of fun. The food was amazing, there was new things every night that you could choose between and we would all end up eating more than you could imagine after we tried everything that Alisha brought us. I was really worried about how much weight I would gain after eating the first night but after that I got sick and my stomach never let me eat more than a few bites every night so I guess that was my bodies way of helping me not put on the pounds. Everybody said we had to get a picture of us together because there was such a difference in height between the two of us.

Jorge was our dive insructor, he was awsome! He helped each one of us get over our fears and get us in the water scuba diving. He saved a baby girl from drowning in the pool when we were all on the bottom of the pool. He is from Venesuela and wants to someday open his own dive shop back home. Hopefully he will and we can all go diving with him again in Venesuela. Jeron gave him a book of Mormon with his testimony in it when we left. Hopefully we made an imprssion on him and he will investigate the church.

Cruise St Thomas & St Martin

St Martin- Jeron and I did some shopping, they have tiny little streets that are paved with brick and little out door shops that you can walk around. Most of the stuff they sold there were repeats of everything you saw and was made anywhere but there, but we were able to find some neet necklaces for the girls that were mother of pearl sea shells carved into sea turles and I also got a neet necklace and braclet that were made from coconut shells. We also were able to eat some fresh coconut and had a coconut smoothie that was soo good.

The beach in St Martin was very nice, lots of people and a few that choose to sun bathe in the nude.

In St Martin we took a small boat out in the ocean to do our open water dives to finish our scuba certification. When we got there we all got suited up and learned how to step off the boat with all our gear on. I was a little scary at first knowing that you were stepping off a boat in the middle of the ocean with gear on that was very heavy thinking that there was know way that you could stay afloat but amazingly we did float! Our dive instructor took Jeanna and Jeremy and Jeralyn and Clay down 25 feet to a platform and the visibility was so bad that they couldn't see a foot in front of them so he decided that it was too dangerous for us all to go down and had to cancel the dive. We were all very disappointed but knew he was doing it for our saftey. Now we all have to find an instructor that will help us finish our dives so that we will be certified

ST Martin

In St Thomas we took a taxi to Coki Beach to do some snorkeling and soak up the sun. It was a beautiful day and the water was so clear and blue. Jeron and I snorkeled for the first time and it was so awsome!! We were able to see some cool fish in the water that were swimming right by us. We also was able to see 3 octopus that were way cool. Jeron and I talked about how much Shaylyn would love to snorkel and that we would never be able to get her out of the water.

Jeron looks pretty hot all suited up in his snorkeling gear!

Cruise, Puerto Rico

The Freedom of the Seas, It looks so big and beautiful all lit up at night

Puerto Rico has some cool old forts and castles.

It was very windy and kind of cold the day we were in Puerto Rica. We didn't arrive there until in the after noon so we didn't spend alot of time there. But it was a neet looking place with all the old buildings and roads that they have.

This is when our boat was going into the port in Puerto Rico. The wind was really bad the first two days of our trip which made for some ruff sailing . There were a hand full of us that got a little motion sick (me included) and was glad that the wind quit after the first two day.

Cruise first at sea days

Most of us decided that we would take the opertunity while on our trip to certify for scuba diving. We spent two days on the boat studying, going to class, learning how to hookup gear, and the basics of scuba diving. We practiced in the pool on the boat. For some of us it was a big challnge to do some of the skills reqired to certify but all we were able to pass of all the skills required to be able to go in the open waters.

At the pool on the boat, learning the ins and outs of scuba diving

We are in the WATER!!! It was a good thing that it was not too deep, alot of us had to make a quick escape to the top more than once when we couldn't clear our masks or breathe without the regulator in our mouth.

Our Carribean Cruise Day 1

A typical beach front house in Miami. How would it be to live in house like that with your own personal boat in your front yard

The first day on the boat was a little nerve wracking. I spent an hour on the phone talking to nurses trying to get something done to help Colton. The day that we left he ended up with a bad ear infection and a fever. On top of that Jeron's Grandpa was taken to the hopital the morning that we were leaving. He has lots of problems with his diabetes and it was very hard for Jeron to leave and not know how things would turn out for his Grandpa.

The famous Miami strip that you see in CSI Miami all the time.

After haveing an awful first night in a horrible hotel that was very dirty, the toilet running all night, the shower not working, very dirty sheets that they would not replace for us (me trying to sleep on towels curled up in a fetal position all night), we was able to get on the Freedom of the Seas boat early and was catered to a good welcoming lunch.

Jense Family Christmas Party

All the cousins exchanged gifts with each other so they all got to open a gift.
Below Brianne and Baily are hanging out on the couch together

All the cousins had so much fun being together. It is notv ery often that they are all together at the same time. There are so many of them now that it gets pretty crazy when they are all together.

Wyatt and Beau challenge everybody to a game of air hockey

Kylee and Aspyn coloring together

Once in a lifetime hunt

There were so many deer that we saw that had broken horns! But they were still nice size bucks

Shaylyn, Sassy, and I pose for a picture while out looking for buffalo

The Henry Mountains has the best deer in Utah. There are so many nice bucks I would have shot if I had a tag to hunt there.

After spending 9 days in a tent in December, and lots of long days, hiking like crazy, a few tears, and almost giving up, we FINALY got a buffalo. By that time everyone that had come with us had gone home and it was just Jeron me and the kids left. We had taken the 4-wheelers up to the top of a mountain to a cell tower. When we turned around to go down there they were. They had been hiding up top where you would only think that mountain goats would be. We were able to sneek up to them and get 250 yards away where I took one shot and dropped her ( so much for the gun not working like Jeron claimed after missing two deer on his hunt). We then spent 8 hours quartering it up, making 6 trips 150 yards straight up hill packing the meat head and cape up to the 4-wheelers, tying everything on so that we could pack it and all of us and our gear down a very steep trail in the freezing cold dark to our camp. By then it was 8:00 at night and I was determined not to spend one more night in that tent so we through everything into the trailer and went home pulling in our driveway at 3:00 in the morning. It was definatly a hunt of a life time. I think that we will all remeber this hunt forever. It would not have been so memorable if we would have shot it opening morning close to the truck and gone home.

Shaylyn and Colton were so exited to finally get a buffalo and they were the best helpers so that we could get everything done fast before it got dark and the storm came in.

It was amazing how we were able to get everything tied to two 4-wheelers and get all of us and our gear down the steep trail in one trip

Target Shooting

Kylee doesn't like listening to guns while target practicing.

Colton is actually a really good shooter and can hit his targets fairly good

We went out to site my gun in before the buffalo hunt and the kids love to practice shooting. Jeron gives Colton another lesson on how to use a gun safely

Shaylyn looks so grown up in this picture. She is not a little girl anymore.

My big Cowboy!! Colton is just like his Dad, he always has to be in his blue jean wrangles, boots, and hat.

Check it out I finally got a new computer that will allow me to update my blog soooo much easier!! When we went out to do family pictures for christmas it was freezing cold and Kylee stole her Dad's vest and hat to try to stay warm. She is my littlle poser in our family.