Our New Ward!

We have started going to our new ward and we both love it! Everyone is so nice and we already have callings. I am teaching CTR 5 and Cory is an assistant scout master. We are both very excited. I taught my first lesson last week and it was an adventure. I kept having to move them around during sharing time because they are very chatty but in the end I had the most reverent class. Yay me! J My nephew is in the class and he asked if he could sit in my lap and I said sure. Well, about 5 minutes later his little best friend tapped me on the shoulder and said “Sister Barber (who was their teacher last year) let two sit in her lap.” I got the hint and had two sitting in my lap through the rest of sharing time. J Class did not go quiet as well as I had hoped. I have learned quickly that to them class time means “freedom” so we are going to be having more active lessons from now on so hopefully I can actually teach them something. J I only teach every other week so I can get to know the sisters in Relief Society which is really nice. The girl I team teach with is new as well and her family will be here until May when her husband finishes a program at Fort Jackson. So after that I will be on my own. I am a little afraid of that but I also have a feeling I am really going to miss them next week.

Cory absolutely loves being involved with the scouts. He earned his Eagle when he was in scouts so he has the benefit of “been there, done that.” I think he is most excited about the camping trips. He has scouts on Wednesdays and then plays basketball, which I love because it gives me a chance to do all the girly things like watch chick flicks and organize things that I miss. It is very hard to do anything in our two tiny rooms when we are both there. I am so ready for February 6th to get here I don’t know what to do!
It is also nice being in the same ward with Cory’s brother and sister in law. Jenn is in primary with me and Mike is an assistant scout master with Cory so it is very fun. They have been so good about introducing us to new people and having us over all the time. We are definitely blessed to have them!

We went to the Elders Quorum social at the weekend and it was so much fun. We ate Barbeque and played games. It was very yummy and fun! It was so nice to meet more people from our ward and spend time with the people we already know! I am looking forward to many more exciting times there!

Here are a few snapshots from the Elders Quorum social:

It was really hard to run straight after all that spinning!

My nephew doing his crazy dance moves!

Mike and Trevor running the three legged race!

Steve and Cory in the saltines eating contest.

A Long December...

Wow. December was definitely a crazy month! It started off with our wedding on the 5th (Happy 1 Month Anniversary to us!) followed by Cory’s exams, our Honeymoon to Disney, my Grandmother’s passing the Monday before Christmas and finally a ton of Christmas and New Year festivities. I felt like I was on a crazy emotional roller coaster for the entire month. So many wonderful, yet very emotional moments.
Our wedding was an absolute dream. I am so thankful for our temple marriage and have already felt the blessings of it in the month we have been married. We were so blessed to be surrounded by so many of our family and friends on our special day even though it made it hard to speak to them for very long. The last thirty minutes was an awesome dance party and we had to almost literally be pushed out the door. It was a wonderful day and we are so thankful for everyone who made it so special for us. We spent that night at a bed a breakfast in Camden and had a little picnic in our beautiful room. By far the best day of my life.
The next week was a rough one. We were both impatient to be on our way to Florida but we still had school and work. After Cory’s exams were over we were finally able to leave. Cory finished with A’s and B’s by some miracle because I know he did not study nearly as much as he should have this semester, but I guess he had some good excuses. J Driving down 95 to Jacksonville in the dark is not an experience I would like to repeat. I have always been wary of big rig trucks and that is about all that drives on 95 at night. Plus there was construction going on almost the entire way so I was a huge bundle of nerves the entire time. We made it safely though and had an absolutely wonderful time. We ate so much food, but it was all delicious. Everything was decorated for Christmas and it was so magical. The weather was wonderful. We wore shorts and short sleeved shirts and even went to the water park! Cory had never been before so I had fun playing tour guide and showing him all my favorite parts. :) We are already talking about our next trip. :)
We got back from the honeymoon on Friday and my grandmother passed away the next Monday. She was in the final stages Alzheimer’s disease and so it was surely a relief for her to be free of that body. She was one of the most wonderful women I have ever known and it was definitely hard to say goodbye. She had been on a downturn since Thanksgiving and so we had expected it, but it is never easy to lose someone you love. She and my grandfather had been married for 57 years. Someone asked her once when she knew she was going to marry him and she answered “Third grade.” J She was always the last to sit down for dinner and the first to ask if there was anything you needed. Her recipes for tea cake cookies and spaghetti were famous. My brother and I even made our own commercial about her spaghetti while watching home movies when we were little. I have so many wonderful memories of her and feel so grateful to have had such a wonderful woman as my grandmother.
The thing about loss is that it tends to bring families together and that was definitely true for our family this year. It was nice to be able to spend so much time with my extended family leading up to Christmas and we really learned to rely on and help each other. Cory and I had a wonderful first Christmas together. The nice thing about getting married at this time of year is that you get to spend a lot of time together. It has kind of spoiled us. :) Our nicest present was from Mom and Dad. They are paying someone to paint almost our entire house and we are so excited and grateful! We finally have a move in date: February 6th! I can hardly wait! Right now we are living with my aunt in two little rooms. It will be so nice to be able to spread out! :)
For New Years we went up to Cory’s brother and sister in laws house to celebrate his nephew’s birthday. It was a lot of fun but crazy with all those kids! Cory and I are both looking forward to a wonderful New Year filled with many more exciting adventures! I will have some pictures of how the house is coming to post soon (fingers crossed)!

New Blog!

Now that I am a married woman, I decided to start a brand new blog about Cory and my life together. I'm going to copy over my last post from my personal blog and from here on out I will be posting on this one for the most part. I hope you enjoy a peek into the craziness that is our life! :)