John's adventures...

John has had his own adventures while I've been gone. John performed his very first wedding this weekend while I was with my family. While I hated being away and not being able to join the Berry family John sent me some little pics to show me all his fun he was having with our nieces.

The beautiful bride...Tiffany Alverson Nicholson

Ella with her two Johns- Papa John & Uncle John... I really think she's saying 'Pepu', her name for me, in this picture.

John & Allie...isn't she so little and sweet.

BEACH BUMming

My love for the beach has grown and grown as the years have gone by. Now that we are only a couple of hours from the beach I'm enjoying it even more. This week though marks a rare occasion in my life. I have only been on 2 other 'family' vacations in my life. This might be what drives me so hard towards the desire to set traditions with my family- pictures, traditional family trips.... other things that surely bother others because I am so adamant about it...but hey you don't know what it's like to not have it when you've had it your entire life. I truly value the experiences and the memories of it. No taking it for granted here.

Knowing it was a HuGe birthday for Nana, we wanted to celebrate in a special way. Wanda, my aunt, decided she would get us a condo at the beach and we could spend the week together soaking up the sun. Now I've been teased quite a bit about my inability to narrow down my clothing choices when packing for a vacation. But maybe after seeing this picture of the luggage for the 3 of us everyone will understand that I picked up this special attribute of packing from my family! I typically get teased at how much I "need" when i am going on a vacation. It reminds me of our trip to Israel...I'll post about that packing job later! Anyway....we had MORE than we might ever need to say the least!

We made our way to Pawley's Island, south of Garden City Beach in about 3 hours from Fayettnam and I was so excited.

We stayed at Litchfield Beach & Golf Resort and I totally could have lived in our condo. It was awesome.

We spent most of our week sleeping, reading, at the pool, at the beach and eating & shopping. Laid back and relaxed! It was a great time! I'm so glad we did it! We have made memories we will never forget.

HER blooming onion!

Her Birthday Icecream!

Hitting the beach!

Nana & her book on the beach.

Wanda sporting a hat I would NEVER let her buy!

Nana & I at the Original Benjamin's...YUMMO!

Nana with her plate from Abuelo's ...she reminded the waitress that she got the Senior plate..supposedly with smaller portions!

My new hat! I really like it.

SeVenTy.....

My Nana turned 70...SeVeN decades of being alive....She was born when Franklin Delano Roosevelt was president, a stamp cost 3 cents, and World War II was beginning. She experienced the effects of the war when she had to move to her Grandma's house at the age of 2 with her youngest brother and her other 3 brothers, all older than her, went to stay with an Aunt so that her mom could go to Baltimore, Maryland to work in a factory for military products. She specifically remembers hearing that WWII was over on the family radio and everyone ran outside when they heard the planes flying overhead. She recalls ' everyone cheering and crying' because the end had come.

She's raised two daughters...3 if you add me into the equation. From the time that I was 8 until I moved away to college at 18, I was taken care of by my Nana.

She taught me to clean, bargain shop, cook, drive, & gosh so many more things that I don't have time to list. She's taught me so much in my life that I know I've really taken it for granted. She's given up so much in her life to be my care giver...I'm grateful. One thing she shared with me that I am most grateful for is her belief in an amazing SAVIOR. I remember her making me be at church ' every time the door was open'.

Nana & her 2 Babies

Here's to Nana. An amazing lady who has loved me very much!

cLoSing OuT another sChOOL Year!

School ended on June 10th and it is the first year in my 5 years of teaching that I have ever EnDuRED summer into the month of June! I must admit I could feel the lengthened sense of dread each morning. Not only were the students ready for the summer with 97 degree temperatures outside our door, but I was as well. With EOG's finished there is only so much students are willing to do....I had to concur and movies, checkers, & playdoh filled our last days.

Middle School is so different than Elementary School. Seeing students signing yearbooks and t-shirts reminded me so much of my own days in school. Remember signing yearbooks and pouring your heart out to people that you really thought you would see for the rest of your life and you will NEVER and HAVE never seen them again! I look back to what people wrote in my yearbook and think, "Wow...we were so oblivious to what real life was going to be like." Wonder what we would write now....

I purchased a yearbook for this year. It was really nice to read what the kids wrote to me. One of my favorites was from a young lady that had less than pleasant days in my classroom.

She wrote: ' I'm really going to miss you Mrs. Berry and I want you to know that I love you, even though I say that I don't. You've been my best teacher. Thank you'. Things like this make all the rest of teaching fade away and makes me grateful for the opportunity to teach some great kids.

I really loved them and had a great year with my first set of middle schoolers! Many of them are already texting me and telling me how much they miss me. Though I'm unemployed right now due the Budget Cuts in the state, I'm hopeful that something will work out for next year, but until God opens that door I will enjoy my summer!

Splish Splashing into the Summer!

We've been so busy! It's amazing how much we have had going on this past week....

Softball has been going in fullswing. Last week the guys won 19 to something...It was rediculous really. The guys were on fire!

John was ordained last Sunday on May 31st. While he has been in full time ministry for the past 5 years, he never had been through an offical ordination service. But here at Liberty we finally were really blessed by our deacons and pastor who prayed over John and myself. We felt so loved and encouraged. It felt so good to feel like a group of people were standing behind us, loving us and wanting to work with us in ministry. Of course we didn't get any pictures because I, the picture queen, was up there praying too! We followed up church with a trip to the Ole T & R (Texas Roadhouse). This is one of John's absolute favorites! John's parents and Nana & Wanda came down and it was a great time with our family and friends.

Bruce, Yvonne, & Mike all avoiding the camera

Papa John & J Berry

Di soaking up some sweet tea in 3 gulps!

Nana & Brandon...he's so sweet!

Today we headed out to Fantasy Lake in Hopemills which is not far from Fayetteville. A few of our students decided to join us for this journey. We had never been and wanted to check it out because we have a youth event planned for there this summer. It was a blast and it was so much fun to get to know these girls better. They each have big dreams! They are wonderful girls who have blessed us in our time since we have been here. All three have been in the praise band with John.

John, Sam, Ashton, & Brianna

Brianna loves to read books and write plays! She's so smart- she shares so much knowledge! She plays the guitar, piano and really wants to learn the violin.

Sam loves soccor, plays the keyboard and is SUPER quiet! She makes some mean chocolate chip cookies though.

Ashton's going to be a Christian Rockstar someday in some amazing girl band that praises their Savior with their talents! She's an amazing drummer! She knows every Christian band....names, birthdays, children's names...she's a bit of a stalker! :)

John on the Tarzan Swing

Drop Slides--- One of their favorites.

Check out Ashton's face!

Sam slid right off before I could get her almost.

God has really blessed us with so many wonderful students. It's gonna take time, but I pray we get to know them all as well as we knew all our wonderful students in Boone.

Kids say the darndest things!

The following are a few conversations that I have heard from some of my students in the last few days....



I know a lady that is 114 years old Mrs. Berry. She's in the funeral home....
Really? the funeral home...
yeah....you mean a nursing home?...
Oh yeah that's right. A nursing home. opps...




Another students was standing next to the mirror in the back of the room. Everyone else was working quietly. I asked "Juan, what are you doing back there?" He quite easily replied, "Well Mrs. Berry, I was wondering if I could flip my eyelids. So that's what I'm doing...flipping my eye lids."






Then another student came up and said...I really need to talk. My chest is heavy.
What do you mean your chest is heavy?
You know I need to talk because my Chest is heavy.
Very persistently he continued to press that he was struggling and needed to talk.
We finally realized he was referring to the old term "I have alot on my chest".


Then this morning I had a student, who is always 'full of energy'. She asked to go to the bathroom with her purse on her arm. I knew better than to think that she was only going to the bathroom for its typical uses. So I asked for the cellphone and all hairproducts that she had and this was my collection after she emptied her purse. She turned after handing me 2 combs, a brush, and some grease and just threw her purse down too and headed out the door to the bathroom....then she turned right back around and said...."I guess I really don't need to go".