Carnival Inspiration.

I have been begging Austin to take me on a trip since we got home from our honeymoon. Austin was either getting really sick of my constant begging or just knew we probably wouldn't get to go on a vacation for a long time because he finally agreed to take me on a cruise. We sailed on the Carnival Inspiration with Aubrey and Trey through Baja Mexico. Although the weather was a bit uncooperative it was still a blast. For me, some highlights of the cruise included the endless food. My doctor ordered me to gain some weight so I took advantage of this opportunity. I am pretty sure all 11 pounds I gained was straight french fries and bananas. I also loved waking up in the morning to dolphins swimming below our window, finding the perfect little baby poncho in Mexico, and relaxing by the pool (minus the getting burnt to a crisp part). Here are some more highlights of the trip....

Aubrey, Trey, & Austin Hot Tubbing

 Catalina Island

 Playing in the beach

 Austin was the only brave one to try the waterslide. I was so proud! :)

 Like i said, I LOVED the food.

 Dinner in the Dining Room

On the Carnival Inspiration

Neglected Blog. Neglected Husband.

The semester is over. My internship is over. I feel like my life is finally starting to slow down. Hopefully it will slow down enough that I will be able to update my blog more than once every other month.

These past couple of months have been hell for lack of a better word. I had 20 credits, an internship, and a part time job. To top it off I have been pregnant which means I am unusually tired, emotional, and always hungry. I couldn't have survived without my sweet husband, Austin.

Austin has been pretty neglected this past semester, I can't even count how many times he had to eat mac'n'cheese or PB&J for dinner because I didn't have the time to fix him something a little more filling.
OR when he was stranded for hours at work, school, or home because I had the car.
OR when he got his shirt all wet and stained with make-up from letting me cry on his shoulder yet again.
OR when I had zero motivation to roll out of bed on the weekend so he would scrub the house clean by himself.
OR when he would spend hours rubbing my back and feet when I know when he had much more important things to do (like his own homework).

Moral of the story: Austin is fantastic. I don't know what I would do without him.

Sundays....

So, This is Austin. I just googled "neat things to do when you don't have anything to do" because it is Sunday afternoon and i have nothing to do because it's Sunday. I found a website with a list of 30 things and I already did a couple of them. One of the ideas was to crank up the tunes and Cami shattered that one real fast. Another idea was to do a blog, so that's what i'm doing. I would be willing to argue that Sunday's are not a day of rest, it is more of a day of waiting. Odds are you've got either early church or late church. If it's late, you're waiting all day to go to church at one o'clock and your whole day is shot. If you have early church, you get done so early that you find yourself just sitting around all afternoon trying to think of something to do because after all, it is Sunday and so I'm "not allowed" to go do the things that I could do any other day, like golfing! :) In my mind, golfing is the perfect Sunday activity. Think about it, you could go spend a few relaxing hours of quality time walking around the course with a friend or family member enjoying the day. Beats sitting on the couch all day, or rummaging through the cupboards munching on whatever just because you're bored. Yep, I'd rather be golfing...

Christmas/New Years

Yeah, I am a little late. I know. That is what taking 20 credits, working, interning, and being a housewife does to ya. We spent Christmas at the Richard's house this year. It was fun to be altogether, eat nonstop, and play the Kinect like crazy. One night during the break I got to spend some time with my amigos (Carlie and Josi) on a classic Arctic Circle run. It was nice to finally see these girls again. Finally, New Years was spent at my house. We went to Logan and watched Mission Impossible 4, ate some Pizza Plus Pizza (Oh how I missed it), and partied like rock stars. Here are some pictures to prove it.




And I couldn't leave out the classic Christmas PJ picture...

11 in 2011

Top 11 Events in 2011

in no particular order
1. Got married to my best friend.
2. Family Vacation aboard Carnival Splendor to the Mexican Riveria.
3. Cruise to Baja Mexico with Austin.
4. Started an internship that I absolutely love and changed my career path.
5. Followed the Utah Jazz faithfully. Go Jazz!
6. Katy Perry concert with Carlie and Josi
7. Turning 21. Vegas anyone?
8. Spending my first Christmas with my new family.
9. The many times my bestie Markellie came back from New York to visit.
10. The friendships and people I have met at my job.
11. Finishing up my junior year at UVU. I am almost done for good...

Christmas Newsletter.

Its not Christmas without my families cheesy Christmas Newsletter. Madison wrote it this year and didn't do too bad of a job. I decided to attach it below. Enjoy!

It’s that time again, Christmas time is finally here! Cue the cheesy Christmas card from the Packers. This is Madison writing this by the way, so fasten your seat belts because you’re about to know what the Packer house hold has been up to for the past year.

Eric: Or as I like to call him, bishop. Yes, dad is sure enjoying the bishop life. Because who wouldn’t enjoy to be stressed out about being a bishop and a hospital administrator? He is seriously living the dream. Dad enjoys taking trips down to Utah Valley to see his three older and wiser daughters and still loves to go hunting when he can find the time.

Sandy: Mom was devastated this year when her favorite daughter, obviously me, moved out. Mom is staying busy with her calling in the stake Relief Society and being the bishop’s wife. Someone needs to keep that man in line. Mom does enjoy though having less laundry, less dishes, and not having to walk past my unorganized bedroom.

Courtnie and Dillon: (both 23) Courtnie and Dillon celebrated their one-year anniversary in November. Courtnie graduated from USU last December and the happy couple moved to Orem for Courtnie’s job. Dillon is currently attending UVU, studying political science and Spanish, and Courtnie is working at TopTenREVIEWS.com as a consumer electronics reviewer. Dillon is staying busy as Vice President of Governance in UVU’s pre-law club and as Young Men’s President in their ward. Courtnie serves as Young Women’s 2nd counselor and enjoys doing freelance on the side. They spend their free time watching Modern Family, playing games, and inviting me over for dinner.

Cami and Austin: (21, 22) If you weren’t aware, Cami got married in July to Austin. If you didn’t get an invite then oops, we will just say it got lost in the mail. Cami and Austin live in Provo but both attend UVU. Austin is going into construction management while Cami is studying political science and also interning for the Presidential cabinet of UVU. Can you say connections? Cami also is an ambassador for UVU so seriously, come get a tour. Cami and Austin enjoy making new food from Pinterest, stalking the Utah Jazz, and basically just being married.

Madison: (18) I graduated from Bear River in June and moved to Orem in late August. I’m attending UVU and love it! I was definitely made for college! I am a wolverine ambassador so yes, I get to work with Cami. How precious is that! This summer I also met the man of my dreams though my parents would have to disagree. I met Martin Johnson from the band Boys Like Girls and I’m sure my whole family is tired of listening to the story. Oh well. I also enjoy procrastinating my homework, eating my sisters’ food, and meeting good looking college boys.

Darci: (16) Darci is a junior this year at Bear River and misses me greatly. Although she sure enjoys having mom and dad wrapped around her little finger. Darci got her license this year so be sure to be extra cautious on the road. Darci decided not to do the high school drill team this year and decided to be on the high school ballroom team. So make sure to keep your eyes peeled for Darci on Dancing with the Stars in the future. Darci also loves supporting her Bear River Bears and causing chaos to Tremonton with her friends.

In May the family (minus Austin) went on a cruise (surprise, surprise) to Cabo San Lucas and Puerta Vallarta. Dillon braved his fear of sharks, I withstood a boy wanting me to run away to the forest with him, and Cami enjoyed winning prizes on the cruise morning show. It was a fabulous vacation and I’m thinking we should go again. Basically that is all the Packers have been up to this past year, nothing too exciting. We hope everyone has had a wonderful year and has a happy holiday!

Christmas Break.

The semester is over and I survived. Barely.
It is such a relief to know I have no more homework due, no more papers that need to be written, and no more tests to study for.
The next couple of weeks of my Christmas Break will be heavenly.
No school, No work, No internship.
If only the break could last forever.