Trials and tribulations are mandnatory, misery is optional.

In December John was diagnosed with prostate cancer. The range of emotions that we're going through is immense! Shock, denial, anger, sorrow, overwhelmed, hopeful that things will get better, grateful for our faith in God's plan for each of our lives-that no matter what happens, we'll be okay and that brings us peace. We've been to several doctors and heard every scenario for treatments and cures that exist. We are still in the process of wading through all the information in order to make the best decision for John. Trying to act like nothing is wrong is helpful to the point that it keeps my spirits up, but when it comes right down to it, this thing is all-consuming for us. We feel the love and strength of faith from our family and friends through your prayers and want to thank you. We know we are in the Lord's hands and there is no other place we'd rather be!

That's a good one!

Here is a conversation that I just had with Brooklynn:
Brooklynn,"I didn't know Jesus was a carpenter."
Me, "You didn't?"
B, "I didn't even know they had carpets back then! I can't even imagine Jesus putting in carpets."

Would you rather...

Would you rather shovel snow in 10 degree temperatures or sip lemonade and swim in your pool in 110 degrees? HeHe Susann!:)

Oh what fun we had!

We had our annual Barry Family Christmas party on the 22, complete with Bingo and white elephant prizes, dinner, talent show, nativity play, Grandpa Santa Clause, and sharing gifts. We laughed until we cried and we cried over the 'Barry Christmas' movie that Anya made of some of our past year pictures. What a marvelous blessing families are!

Big events, cherished times.

John's mother, LaBelle Barry lives in AZ during the winter months. She arrived in November, just in time to get to know her newest great-grandchild Sam Barry, just 9 days old in this photo!
Our oldest grandson, John, celebrated his 6th birthday at our house on Sunday, November 23rd.
Rich and Treslee Barry with Nina and Elle, Treslee's precious daughters, and now ours too! (Nov. 29, 2008)
My most dear parents, Elmer and LaRue Gerber with our son Brian, his wife Scottee and their children, Charlee, Oaklee and Jaxson at our son Rich's and his bride, Treslee's wedding reception.
Thanksgiving Day Family Volleyball Game
Our family minus Devin's wife, Allison and their new son, Sam.
The newlyweds, Rich and Treslee off to a great start!!:)


In the last 11 days we have had thirteen people here to stay. My oldest and dearest friend Herbie and her husband Steve came from Utah for a whole 24 hours on their way to Mexico. After they left our son, Greg and his wife and Bastian, our grandson, came and are going to stay until after Christmas. (Greg is working for our company which includes knocking down a wall in our upstairs playroom to make a huge room that we will watch movies in.) My brother and sister-in-law and four of their children and my parents all came from Utah for Thanksgiving and for our son, Rich's wedding that was right after Thanksgiving. He, my brother left to go back home on Sunday and my wonderful parents left Wed. It has been such a pleasure to be with all of these loved ones. Plus one of my sisters and John's two brothers all came from Utah too! We feel loved and supported.

We hosted a wedding dinner for 70 guests on Friday night. We had Famous Dave's BBQ cater it and it was scrumptious! Rich and Treslee were sealed in the Mesa temple in a wonderful ceremony with 53 family members in the room. Feelings of joy and love were almost tangible!

Thanksgiving was such a great day! Scottee and Brian hosted it which saved my life because of everything else that was going on. There were around 50 of us there but we had enough food for 100! I feel so blessed! We played games and volleyball, rode quads and enjoyed the beautiful clouds as they rolled through the sky.

Last night my quiet dad started telling some of our kids, who were over visiting, some of the events of his youth. We were spellbound as he talked for an hour or so of growing up through the Great Depression and his escapades in the navy. He is truely my hero!

There is not a basket big enough to hold the gratitude I feel for all the events of the past weeks and the people I've shared them with.

Thankful Tag by Brooklynn

List 15 things you are thankful for.
1. John-his righteousness, sense of humor, his willingness to work hard for his family and to serve with all his might in and out of the Church
2. Motherhood-My 7 children and their spouses (the six that are married so far)The wonderful people they are and the times we get to spend together.
3. Being a grandma to 11 of the most amazing grandchildren ever! The way they yell "GoGo!" when they come over, their singing, funny things they say, to see their accomplishments-first smiles to going to kindergarten!
4. My parents and mother-in-law and my siblings
5. My Relief Society sisters
6. The Savior, Jesus Christ and all He did for me
7. Heavenly Father and His love that He allows me to feel each day
8. The guidance and comfort of the Holy Ghost
9. My Faith and testimony of the true CHurch
10. My friends
11. Good food, water
12. Healthy body and strength to serve
13. The comfort of reading the scriptures and knowing I'm heard when I pray
14. The peace that surrounds my life even though peace in the world is hard to find
15. Getting to bed early so I can read before sleep!

I am glad that Brooklynn tagged me. Counting a few of my blessings is so uplifting!

I tag Anya, Alli, Greg and everyone who wants to feel happy!

happy, happy, joy, joy, joy!

Rich and Treslee are getting married November 29th! This is a joy to us all since we have been waiting for another situation to be resolved before they could set a date. Now to get busy-er!!!

Introducing Sam William Barry

Precious little son
A sweet family!
The grandmas.

An Angel floated down from heaven today and joined our family as Allison and Devin's son. He arrived right on his due date (Thank you Sam) at 1:09 PM after a c-section. He wanted to come bottoms up (Breach) but the wise doctor said "no"! He weighs a whoppin' 8 lbs 13 oz. and is 20&1/2 in. long! He already has rolls on his legs and chin! He chose to have Allison's eyes, mouth, and forehead but he picked Devin's nose!!! :) He is our 11th grandchild, 4th one this year because we get to count Rich's 'two new daughters' and Trevee (Brian and Scottee's daughter). We feel blessed beyond words.

Pumpkin Patch and Trunk or Treat

Brooklynn made it to the top without breaking a sweat!
Every year Brooklynn and I, along with some of our dearest friends go to Schnepf Farms Pumpkin Patch in Queen Creek. We hoot-it-up with miniature golf, rides, dog shows, pig races, a corn maze, a spooky movie in the pasture and a yummy out-door barbeque. The scary train ride after dark is the highlight of the day, besides just being together.

Brooklynn as Spongebob was a big hit at our annual ward Trunk or Treat! The little children were especially thrilled with it. Just as the crowd quieted down for the blessing on the food, one little 3 year-old called out from across the parking lot, "Hi Spongebob!"



Well, I had a total riot as Warren Jeff's 3rd wife. Here is how it came to be. About 2:00 PM Wednesday (the day of Trunk or Treat) I told Mindy that I didn't know what to wear. She suggested that we go to Savers. So we were scouring through all the women's wear when I came upon that exquisite blue dress! Mindy's reaction was, "Oh, that looks like a polygamist's dress!" So I figured it was all meant to be! Mindy styled my hair in a French braid with my bangs standing up. With my tennis shoes and crew socks, I think I could have almost been an undercover agent for the government! I put a sign on me with 'Warren Jeff's 3rd wife' on it just in case someone mistaked me for the real thing! If you need a costume for this weekend, give me a call!

Two A+ movies

There are two outstanding movies out there right now. One is called "Forever Strong" and is about a high school rugby team in Utah. It's a true account of a wayward young man from Arizona who gets sent to a correctional facility in Utah. He is forced to play rugby for one of his biggest rivals as part of his 'therapy'. THe coach for that team is more concerned with having strong boys in every way than in winning games. It is just so good. It is probably in theaters in Mesa only by now since it has been out for a month or so. I guess there is always Netflix!

The other movie is called "Fireproof". We saw it last night for FHE at Harkins. It is about how to fireproof your marriage. There is a 40-day "Love Dare" in the movie that the husband takes in order to salvage his marriage. The movie is produced by a Christian company and even though some of the acting is amateur, the message and feeling of the movie is exceptional. There is a website called fireproofmymarriage.com that I went to and found the love-dare book and other good things. It can be hard to find a good movie these days and what do you know...there are two out right now!

New England at Harvest Time

A few years ago John and I made a list of things we wanted to do together. We just checked one of those items off the list by going to New England last week. We flew into Providence, Rhode Island and checked out the Vanderbuilt mansions-unreal! Then we drove up the coast to Maine and meandered our way back down to Boston via New Hampshire. We stopped in a quaint little town called Freeport, Maine that had stores named, "When Pigs Fly", "Wicked Whoopies", and "Horny Toad" to name a few. We felt like we had stepped back to a relaxing, slower-paced time. We spent two days in Boston and wished we had had more time there. There is so much to do and so much life in that city, mainly due to the 70 colleges there. We walked the "Freedom Trail" that took us all over the city to historic and modern sites. We relived the times of the Revolutionary War from the Paul Revere home to the monument that commemorates the Battle of Bunker Hill. We climbed all 294 steps to the top of the monument. Why? I don't know but my legs cried for two days because of it! Our main reason for going there was to see the Fall leaves and we were not dissapointed. They were breath-taking!

How old are you?

Our family tries to get together for dinner to open a monthly fast or close it. It is always fun and crazy no matter what, when or where! I couldn't resist taking a picture when I saw the grandkids on the trampoline together, enjoying a popsicle. Charlee had the idea of holding up their fingers to tell how old they are. Jaxson thinks he's five, but he is really two! (Nina, Charlee, Ella, Jaxson, Johnny, and Oaklee.)

My tag picture-Brooklynn and Rich's GB house

The 4th picture in the 4th folder-Last Christmas we had a gingerbread house building contest and this is Rich and Brookynn's. They didn't win! Neither did Ryan and I win. Alli and her sister, Jessica did. (second picture.) I tag Ciara

It is time for a new post, but John got a new computer and gave me his old one which necessitates the transfer of all my files onto his old computer and all his old files onto the new computer and on and on. But this goes beyond our brain power so it will be a while until I can post a picture again.

The blood tests I had came back...mono. No wonder I had NO strength, fever, aches and sore throat in August and the first week of Sept. I am very thankful to be feeling better. I had a set-back this week where all I could do was sleep, it seemed. John and I went to the temple where I could hardly stay awake. I slept on the way home and slipped right into bed when we got there and slept more! John and B have been patient and kind through it all and my counselors in Relief Society have been amazing! They have taken so much off of my shoulders where possible and have become my "peeps"! (People) They say that I don't know how to say 'no' so whenever I am asked to do something out of the ordinary, I am to refer the askee to my peeps and they will say if I can or not. (NOT is their usual answer)

Quelf

We (Greg, Alli, Devin, Allison, Brooklynn, John and I) played a game called Quelf tonight and I am still laughing! We added five years to our lives by laughing uproariously for at least five minutes straight. As some of you may know, John isn't a real game player but since it was family night he didn't really have a choice!! So in this game you are doing some wacky things. On John's turn he got a card that said for him to write a five line poem about his looks and say it in a rap. He wrote: "Here is the man, here is the man, you know what I mean, here is the man, here is the man." We had to coax him into rapping and when he did, we fell totally apart. Devin collapsed on the floor, Greg and Brooklynn were hehawing so loud and Allison, Alli and I had tears running down our faces. But John went over to the couch and sat down and commensed guffawing like I haven't heard him do in years. Tears were leeking out of his eyes too and the more we saw and heard of each other's reactions, the more we laughed. Oh the fun!!! Can't wait to do it again.