Trip to the Grand Tetons!

John and I had the chance to go to Jackson Hole and the Grand Tetons and we had a blast. My sister, Mel, and I swapped kids this summer so we would both have a chance to go on a trip alone with our spouses. The kids also had the chance to go to Grandma and Papa's house for a couple days also, which is always fun. We both has so much fun traveling without our children that we are already planning it again for next year, I can't wait.

If you do not know John then you may not know how much he loves wild life. He was seriously like a little kid in a candy shop, and lucky we saw a lot of while life. I was a little worried that we would be searching our whole trip to see the wildlife and especially the moose that he so badly wanted to see that we would not be able to really relax and enjoy ourselves. Luckily as we were driving to find a camping sight that first day we got there, a lot of cars were parked alongside the road, so we parked also to see what everyone was looking at. As we got closer right across the river was the biggest bull moose I have ever seen. He was a little bit hidden so I had to get up on John's shoulders to get the pictures. There was even some stranger that took advantage of John and got up on his shoulders also, it was pretty funny, she really didn't want to get down. After seeing the moose John was so relaxed and really didn't care what we were going to do the whole rest of the trip because he had seen his moose. Throughout the rest of the trip we saw 3 more moose, buffalo, an eagle, deer, elk, and even 2 grizzle bears.
The first night we were there we camped, and then the next two nights we stayed at Grand Teton Village in a place called the Hostel. It really did feel like a youth hostel too. The first night at the Hostel it wasn't so bad but the next night it felt like there were only sheets separating us from the people on both sides of us and above us. I also think the people above us spent the whole night rearranging their furniture, it was quite the experience. I guess when your hotel is at least $100.00 cheaper a night then any other hotel around there is a reason.

The whole trip was so relaxing there was nothing that we had to do or anywhere that we had to be. The second day we decided to go river rafting which was so much fun. We were put on a little 8 man boat with only 4 people plus the guide and one of the 4 people was a little boy so I was a little worried. The guide worked with the boy most of the time trying to teach him the different strokes so we would not tip over. The guide put me as head row-man or what ever you call the person that leads all the other people. I think it was little difficult for John to follow my lead, so that was fun to watch him wanting to be in charge, and getting yelled at if he was not rowing along with me.

We went on a few different hikes while we were there and they were so amazing and beautiful I loved it. One hike we went on we only saw one other couple and it was so quite and peaceful. On our longer hike we went on there was a bull and female moose right off the hiking trail hanging out together. John got really close to get a good picture but I stayed up on a rock in case it charged.

We loved this sign because a lot of the wild life we saw really was trying to cross the road or just hanging out along side the road. Even the 2 grizzle bears we saw were just trying to get across the road, and had to go between all of the cars stopped to watch them as they cross.

Our Grand Teton trip was one that we will always remember. I almost felt like we were just newly weds again, because we could really focus on each other. I can really see how important it is to spend alone time with your spouse and always cherish one another. I felt like on this trip that is exactly what we were able to do. Although part of me was sad to go, I was so excited to see our kids that I was okay with it. Can't wait for next years trip, thanks again Mel, Mom, and Dad for having Eric and Ash.

I'm so glad when Daddy comes home!

Having a teacher as a husband definitely has its perks, like having a lot more time off in the summers. However, the fun is now over and John is back at school getting ready for the students to show up on Monday. When Eric and Ashtyn wake-up they still don't believe me when I tell them Daddy has gone to work. They just keep asking where Daddy is, like I am hiding him from them. When Daddy does finally get home Eric and Ashtyn are always so excited. They immediately yell out "Daddy" in unison and run over by the garage door to great him. What the kids don't realize is that they are not the only ones that is excited for Daddy to come home! I am so grateful for what a wonderful Dad John is. He spends so much time with Eric and Ashtyn, teaching them new things, reading books with them, and listening to their endless chatter. I am not near as patient and constantly look to him as an example of the kind of parent that I should work to become. These are a few pictures of when Daddy comes home.

I was tagged :(

I was tagged a few weeks ago by both Melissa (my sister) and Marci (my good friend from college) with two different types of tags (thanks a ton girls). So I am just combining the two to make a little creative tag of my own. Fill free to skip through this post if you would like.

3 Joys

1. My wonderful husband has always been a strength and support in my life. I am so grateful to be married to a man like John. He is always so willing to go with what ever crazy ideas I come up with. While I have been going back to school, although it has definitely been a challenge for our family, he is constantly trying to make it easier on me in what ever way he can.
2. My two beautiful children are a huge joy in my life. They know just how to make me smile, and how to make my heart melt. I love to watch them as they play together, and develop a relationship with one another (it definitely can be rocky at times).
2. The gospel in my life is such an amazing blessing. It brings such joy and peace into my life. I know that through the atonement we can have true happiness, and I have felt that true happiness in my own life.

5 things I was doing 10 years ago

1. Getting my drivers license, and my first traffic ticket a few months latter.
2. Playing tennis everyday.
3. Having my mom as an English teacher. She is still my favorite teacher that I have ever had, not just in English but in life.
4. I was the laurel president, which really pulled me into the church and helped me with my testimony.
5. Snowboarding all winter long, even if it meant skipping school once in a while.

3 Current Obsessions

1. Graduating from college. It will only have taken me 8 years to graduate with my bachelors degree. I am so excited for this spring when I am finally finished.
2. The twilight series by Stephenie Meyer. I just got into it a couple of weeks ago and I only have the last one left to read.
3. Photography. I just got a new canon digital SLR that has been so much fun to play with and take pictures with. I hope someday to be a professional photographer.

5 things I would do if I were a billionaire

1. Move into a bigger house with more rooms (preferable out of Las Vegas).
2. Travel
3. Put my kids in the best private school I can find.
4. Do a lot of service with my family. Eric found out the other day that there were kids that didn't have any shoes. He now wants to give all of his shoes to those children without any.
5. Go to the spa once a week, I would settle for once a month even. This one is a little selfish, but I am trying to be honest.

I hope that was not too painful for you to have to read. I have to tag a couple of people so sorry about this ahead of time. I tag Cassie and Ashley.

All 5 Parry Cousins Together at Last

Recently Joe and Mandy came to Las Vegas to celebrate their little girl, Ryan’s 1st birthday with everyone. I think it was the first time that all 5 of the Parry Grandchildren were together at once. Eric (4) is the oldest Grandchild and the only boy. The next grandchild is Arianna (3), then Ashtyn (2), then Ryan (1), and last Caroline (5 months). We had such a great time with the entire family together. Here are some of the pictures of the party.
This is John and little Ryan at her birthday party. I think she was not sure who all of these people were because she lives in San Diego. We are going to just have to visit more often so she knows us better.
This is Arianna and Ashtyn who both love to just sit on the stairs of the pool and watch all that is going on.
This is me with baby Caroline. She is about the best baby ever, I hardly ever hear her even give a fuss. It is really fun to hold a baby again, since mine is getting so big and constantly reminds me what a big girl she is.
The best part of the party for all of the bigger cousins was that Ryan shared her birthday cake with who ever wanted to dig in. It was really fun to see them all eating the cake at once. It was one of the only pictures of Eric, because it is so hard to get him to hold still long enough to take a picture of him.

Kamas, UTAH

One of our favorite places on earth is now Kamas, Utah. This is where my parents built a house last year. It is the most beautiful country and so peaceful and relaxing to visit. Eric and Ashtyn pretty much entertain themselves because of all that there is to do there. They love to go out back and play on the swing set, help with the garden, play with all of the toys downstairs, go on four wheeling rides, go exploring, cook tinfoil dinner around the camp fire, go on tractor rides with Papa, the list could go on and on. We love to go and visit Grandma and Papa. Here is a little slide show of family pictures in Kamas.

Motorcycle Trip

John recently went on his first overnight motorcycle trip (and wives were not invited). The group (or motorcycle gang) that went were all members of our ward and decided to head out on a man's adventure. I was sad he was leaving but I wasn't too worried because our bishop was part of the group and I figured they would be looked after.

This is a beautiful picture that John took on one of their runs through Bryce National Park. They also had the chance to drive through Zions National Park and Cedar Breaks National Park.
There were five guys that went and they all had a blast. I think John smiled straight from a couple days before the trip, I'm sure the whole time while on the trip, and then a day or two after the trip (then reality hit).
This is another beautiful picture that John took.

We're still kickin'

I am so sorry that it has been so long since my last post. I have been anti-computer and anti-blogging for the last couple of months. But I am going to start again. We are all enjoying our summer, especially now that summer school is out for me. I just finished a drawing class that was everyday for 5 weeks. It was a bit of a roller coaster but in the end when I look back I enjoyed the class. Taking the class also means that I only have to take 9 credits this fall which will be awesome! John is loving his summer teaching job. Everyday when he comes home and I ask him how his day went he says, "great as always". Eric and Ashtyn are doing great and getting bigger and bigger everyday. I keep telling them to stay little and stop growing because they are getting so big so fast. Sweet Ashtyn informs me that she is now potty trained and a big girl. And Eric says that he doesn't want to stay little, he is ready to be big like his Dad. When I ask him what he wants to do like his Dad, he said, "I want to drink everything, and do everything, and be strong like Dad." I don't know what John has been drinking, but aparently Eric wants a taste.

Future Missionary

Whenever Eric wears a tie around the house or to church, he tells us that he is being a missionary. Seeing the missionaries at church, his favorite thing to do is shake their hand and talk with them. Yesterday, the missionaries came over for dinner. We told Eric they would be coming, and he could hardly wait. He said the missionaries would probably not have their ties on because it was not Sunday. When I told him that they almost always wear their ties, his little eyes lit up because he realized that he would be able to see them and their ties at dinner. The missionaries arrived at our house and Eric immediately ran over to shake their hand. He then announced that they were in fact all wearing ties (there were three missionaries). During dinner, Eric controlled most of the conversation, telling the missionaries about all of the sea creatures that live in the ocean and about his Under-the-Sea birthday party. Finally, Eric stopped talking for a minute, and John took the chance to redirect the conversation away from sharks and sea life. This is the conversation that followed:

John: "Eric, what do you think the missionaries do on their missions?"
Eric: “They wear ties”
Everyone: laugh
John: "What else to you think the missionaries do on their missions besides wear ties?"
Eric: “I don’t know Dad, What?”
John: “Why don’t you ask the missionaries?"
Eric looking over at the missionaries: “What do you do guys?”
Missionary 1: “We teach people about the gospel”
Eric looking at his Dad: “They teach people about the gospel.”
John: “Eric, do you know what the gospel is?”
Eric (thinking for a moment): “No, what is the gospel Dad?”
John: “Why don’t you ask the missionaries.”
Eric turning to the missionaries: “What is the gospel guys?”
Missionary 2: "The gospel teaches all about Christ."
Missionary 3: "We also teach about Joseph Smith and how he was a prophet of God and restored the gospel."
Eric turning to his Dad: "Dad, the gospel teaches about Christ."

This type of conversation went on a little longer covering who Joseph Smith was and who the current prophet today is. Eric also told the missionaries all about his Uncle Ryan who is on a mission in Argentina. Now when Eric talks about President Monson he says, "The new Prophet Monson". Also when we talks about President Uchtdorf he says, "Uchtdorf, that is a funny word" then he laughs uncontrollably. It was the cutest conversation ever. It is so much fun to see little minds develop and ideas click in their heads.

Ashtyn’s Favorite Music

Ashtyn enjoys any music that has a beat. She loves to listen to my MP3 player and dance to the music. I think her Uncle Mathis got her hooked on music when he danced around the room with her when she was a baby. Even when there is no music, she will still ask her Daddy “I hold you and dance?" (translated into: Will you hold me and dance?)

These pictures were taken last year. And still everytime she gets her hands on my MP3 player she askes me to play the music.

Sibling Rivalry??

I am looking for advice on how to handle sibling rivalry. I know that we are in for the long hall, and it is going to last for years to come. I just had no idea that it was going to come so soon; Eric is only four and Ashtyn is two!!! How do you get through it? Is there anything that helps? I have asked my parents what they did, and they claim they don’t remember (I think they might have blocked it out of their memory). I remember my parents saying that they feared we would grow up and to hate each other, luckily we all love each other very much.

Eric and Ashtyn can play like angels, and most of the time they do. It is just those moments when they really egg each other on that I don’t know what to do. It seems like everything I try works for only a few minutes and then they are back at it.

Spring Break in Arizona!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ERIC!

Having a 4-year-old in charge of the activities for the day, can make for an exhausting day. The day started with picking up Grandma and Grandpa and heading to the Shark Reef. We saw Alligators, fish, sting rays, sea turtles, sharks, sharks, and more sharks, which was heaven for little Eric. After the Shark Reef it was lunch time, and what better place to go then a seafood restaurant to eat shrimp (one of Eric’s favorite foods).

After lunch there was a little break in 4-year-old birthday activities while the grown-ups prepared for Eric’s “Under the Sea” Birthday Party!! The kids had a great time playing under the sea games and attacking a shark piñata, which was filled with toys and candy. The cake was decorated with sharks swimming on it, and sea life all around. You can’t forget about the presents though, Eric wanted to try everything out like there was no tomorrow.

When it was time for bed, Eric said he would stay up because it was still his birthday. He didn’t need to go to bed because he was now 4-years-old. Eric had such a wonderful birthday that the next day he literally cried that it was over. Next year we will do it all over again…

Where did the Years Go???

I look at my two children and can’t even believe how big they are getting. It seems like yesterday that John and I were getting married and living the single (no children) life together. It is amazing at how life changes once you add children to the mix. John and I had no idea what our lives were missing, until we had children. We have truly been blessed with Eric and Ashtyn in our lives. Now that they are getting older, I have no idea where the years have gone.

I wish there was some kind of machine that you could just freeze your children and not let them get any bigger. I know there are great aspects of every age, I just want my kids to stay young and innocent forever, without the worlds influences all around them. It terrifies me to have them grow up in the world that we live in, but that is where my faith needs to strengthen and kick in. I am so grateful for the gospel and for Heavenly Father’s plan for families to be together forever.

Finally Time!

When I first started this blog thing out, I had great intentions. I thought, “Well I am awful at emails, so maybe I will be good at keeping a blog.” I don’t know why I thought it would be any different. I am now announcing that I am not only bad at emails but also blogging. However, this week is spring break and I figure if I say what my goal is then I will be held to it. My goal is… to do at least 3 posts (and yes this one is included as one of them) while I am on spring break. A little ambitious I know, but what can I say, I am just trying to redeem myself.

I know many of you have heard that John got a motorcycle and we finally have some great pictures of it. Don’t worry he did not go out with both kids on the bike.

All Dressed Up!

We thought it would be fun for Ashtyn to have some dress-ups for her birthday this year. Little did we know that Eric would like the princess dress-ups more then Ash. Don’t get me wrong, she did like the dress-ups; she just wasn’t as obsessed about dressing up like a princess as Eric was. After about a week of seeing Princess Eric running around the house we decided that we had to do something about this. That is when Grandma Carol stepped in with an early birthday present for Eric to solve the problem. He has now dressed up as Captain Eric, the pirate sailor, everyday since Sunday when he got the present. It is so nice to hear him say “R…matey” rather then, “Mom, look at my slippers and tutu? Don’t you think I look pretty?”
Eric and Ashey are so full of life, we feel so lucky to be able to laugh with them everyday!