Camelback 2012

We took John and Ella for their first hike up Camelback Mountain!

It was windy and exciting.  Ella is such a good hiker and had to pull her little body up some very steep areas...I was so impressed.

John RAN up that mountain and I was shocked at how agile he was.  It is a strenuous climb even for adults...about 1200 feet in 1.2 miles.  If you haven't hiked Camelback, you might find it interesting that there are portions that are so steep there are welded handrails to use for hanging on with.

Way to go!

Halloween 2012

Ella wanted to be Dorothy for Halloween this year and I think her little pose for the photo is just fabulous.  

John asked me to pick out a costume for him this year!  At first he wanted to walk around with his leg over his shoulder because he is a pretty flexible guy.  I thought that would be a difficult "costume" to hop around for trick-or-treating.  He ran out of ideas so I grabbed this skeleton costume at the local party store.  He seems to be enjoying it very much.  Nothing like the walking dead and ruby slippers!

p.s. - Get a load of Ella's toothless smile.  She lost BOTH teeth in one weekend!
Happy Halloween!

Barry Family Photos 2012

Welcome to Paradise!

Well, we packed up our things and made a sudden move to Scottsdale, AZ.  We co-purchased a 1964 ranch style home with my mother -- a multigenerational property.  Mom has been a very helpful supporter in the move and we couldn't be more excited and grateful!

I must say, we are thrilled with the education the kids are now receiving.  Their new school offers a remarkable music program so John is learning to play the trumpet.  Administration immediately doubled John's services and they have a specially assigned teacher working with him one on one to catch up to grade level.  He has a mentor that oversees him and they have social skills practice during critical hours like lunch and recess.  Everyone in the school really watches out for John and he is surrounded by girls in his class who LOVE him.  John really enjoys school now...WOW!  Ella is making friends fast and we are so happy to finally be called as her primary teachers in church!  We pass a nearby horseback riding facility on the way to school and she really wants to learn how to ride a horse.  This makes my heart sing because I love horses!

It's not all fun a games here, though.  The house is old and needs major upgrading.  Air conditioning units, plumbing and water heaters, landscaping, mold, tree removal...  There is a lot of laughter going on around here...but also a lot of frustrations too.  One minute we're on edge, the next minute we're laughing about the new boat we acquired:

This thing needs some serious help.

Any ideas for a name?

 

Ok, so let's do a sneak peek...

 

So this is the kitchen.  The backsplash is a lovely wine bottle and veggie basket display.

It actually looks better in this picture than in reality.

I could talk about our plans...but I'll just show before and afters as they occur.

Mom, Adam, and I have some great ideas but it's going to take TIME and WORK!

 

A hall?  A laundry room? 

No...the dryer is in the garage. 

I really like the 60s style cabinets so we might try to save these bad boys.

 

This is the flooring.  We ripped out nasty carpet.

Flip flops are a must.

The previous owner had parrots that were pretty destructive.

This is one of the two sheds.  At first I really didn't like it, but we have some fun ideas.

We have a nice large yard now and a big pool!  The main house has 6 bedrooms so we hope to fill it with kids one day.  Mom's house has 3 bedrooms and she is wisely holding off on moving here until her place is complete.  There are large shade trees which need to be trimmed.  Mona is having the time of her life chasing lizards.  We hope she will be kind to the chickens we would like to have soon...just a few because I'd like to have fresh eggs.

 

Overall, we are happy to be here.  Some folks warned us about "Snottsdale" or "Snobsdale" but it really is very diverse and I like that!

There are wonderful families we have met at church that live in apartments and other wonderful families with large homes.  I think the house we visited last night was around 9,000 square feet and the family was so kind.  One would think this type of diversity would cause disharmony, but the people are more powered by the work of the Lord. They emulate the words of Jeffrey R. Holland, "We are not diminished when someone else is added upon. We are not in a race against each other to see who is the wealthiest or the most talented or the most beautiful or even the most blessed. The race we are really in is the race against sin"(Laborers in the Vineyard, April, 2012).

 

I was humbled when I met our Relief Society presidency which consists of all sisters who are the only members in their families!  They are really incredible women.

 

We heard that Elder Bednar is coming to our stake in a couple of weeks and Adam and I almost jumped out of our seats at church on Sunday when we heard.

 

We're missing our friends and especially my dad in Surprise.  Even though things are better for our family in many ways, we still feel the utmost gratitude for our golden friends.  It doesn't seem like time allows for enough reunions but we hope to hear from and see our friends soon.

Make new friends but keep the old.  One is silver and the other gold.

 

This new turn in our family will be a great opportunity to grow.  I know there are also many challenges ahead.  One thing is for sure -- John and Ella are worth every effort to me.  And I know you feel the same about yours!

 

This was a previous photo at the Orange Tree Golf Resort we stayed at (before we closed on the house).

First day of school!

Ella is now in 2nd grade.

John is in 4th grade.

Disneyland 2012

We took the kids for an insane trip to Disneyland.

I'm talking about NON-STOP...morning to midnight....absolute F.U.N.

I can't even describe how exhausted we were.  We were running from ride to ride, giggling, screaming, and momentarily terrified.  

Our friends, Nichole and Ivan, met up with us and gave us sweet discounts because Nichole works at AAA.  

John's only goal the entire trip was to ride the TOWER OF TERROR...

Ella's goal was to see the princesses and the castle....

Adam's goal was go on as many rides as possible and navigate the entire park with Fastpass tickets, strategically planning the most efficient trip ever...

Anya's goal was to ride Dumbo...

Did I mention we were there for opening day of CARSLAND mayhem?

Let us begin:

Hello, Tink!  

We went to see Tinkerbell in her home near the castle.  I can't even explain Ella's sweet smile when we walked into Disneyland Main Street and she could see all the excitement and the castle.  

We were so grateful to take such a wonderful trip.

The Barrys on Space Mountain

Look at Nichole and Ivan making out in the back.

They were recently sealed in the Mesa Temple and we were blessed to be there.

They had just arrived from DISNEY WORLD...a honeymoon/anniversary celebration coast-to-coast.

We, the Barrys, are getting them familiar with the real life of kids and drama.

Ahhh yes, the TOWER.  But not yet, John!

No, you have to wait until the last day at Disneyland.  Just because we're terribly mean parents.

Adam took Ella on the carousel ride at California Adventure... 

While we took John on California Screamin'

5,4,3,2,1....

SCREEEAAAMMM!!

John was in complete sensory BLISS.

So he had to do it again...

3 more times.

Ella thoroughly enjoyed Small World.

We also went on Haunted House, for which we have no photos.

Ella was in absolute terror...so bad that on the next rides we had to hold her down screaming.

I think she calmed down after a while.

Poor little sweetheart...

Adam, John, and strange man riding alone.

These were the rides Ella was able to enjoy.

Breakfast with the characters!!!

Hilarious, fun, great food, and dancing.

Max and Fam.

Tigger and Pooh...ready to greet us for breakfast!

I loved this photo of Nichole and crazy friends!

Dancing with John.

Yeehawww... tractor-tipping at CarsLand.

John was DONEwith photos.

 We were amazed...

And so was everyone else!

Very fast, tummy tickling, super exciting.

Ella's hat is evidence of her attendance.  

She was a trooper through the big kid rides.

She also loved Little Mermaid, Toy Story, Fantasmic, and Goofy's Sky School which we ended up getting stuck on.

We met with Minnie...

Ate obscene amounts of ice cream...

John and Ella learned how to drive...

Went to Lego store...

Slept like beauties...

Smiled...

Drank from road cones...

And YES.

John made it through the Tower of Terror.

There was so much more...the Petting zoo, Indiana Jones, Fireworks, and bread bowls...

What a time!

What a time!

John and the Hill Billies at Disneyland

We got right up front balcony seats for the Billy Hill and the Hill Billies at Disneyland.
While waiting for the show to start, John fell asleep...arm dangling off the rail and all.
The singers came out on the stage and there was John!! Sound asleep!!

So they wanted to get a photo with him...

Watch as he wakes up during their auction...

Jesus Heals a Woman of Faith

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