Goodbye 2015 ... It's been a blast!

Happy New Year!

Well, what a year 2015 has been for team Barlow!  I can't believe we have been here in Scottsdale for 9 months already ... 9 months!! Wow! Mr B is well and truly settled in his new job and absolute loves it (that's a relief!), Youngest has settled in well at his new school and just completed his mid term finals, scoring a GPA of 3.8 (4.0 is the most you can score apparently so we are super proud of him!) and most surprisingly of all (well, to me anyway), I seem to be busy with something or other every single week!  Between school PTA events, scrapbooking group, events organised by the tireless Bev at the Newcomers group (many of which seem to involve eating - result!) and of course the regular 'field trips' with my friend John (or Bubble & Fizz as Mr B calls us, can't think why) I barely have time to throw in a wash every so often and make sure there's food in the fridge ... ahem.    

Here at Barlow Towers we were all so excited to see Eldest arrive the day before Christmas Eve, as it was the first time we had seen him since we moved and we have all missed him so much.  We have managed to cram in lots of activities as well as some quality family time, including a trip to the Grand Canyon; watching the Phoenix Suns play basketball (badly, I have to say); fun at Top Golf and of course Shopping! All too soon though his visit will be coming to an end and after seeing in the New Year together he will be heading back to the UK once again. **sniffs**  We are already planning the next visit though, so hopefully it won't be long before he is back again.

Talking of shopping, the weekend before Christmas Mr B announced that he was taking himself off for the day to do his Christmas shopping.  Oh God.  The last time he was let loose on his own to purchase Christmas presents, I ended up with 5 sets of hand cream ... yes, FIVE! (Ever since 'Handcream-gate' I have generally just bought my own presents, wrapped them and left them under the tree with the label "To Me, from Me").  When he came back some 5 hours later, struggling under the weight of a mountain of carrier bags, he announced that he had had a lovely time, stopping for a coffee and then lunch ... it won't surprise you to know that apparently he even made some new friends ... :D   I have admit though that this year he didn't do too bad at all and I loved all of my presents! He even chose some new clobber for both the boys (always a risky business) which went down very well. The boy done good.

Of course no Barlow/Griffin reunion would be complete without Mr B taking his fair share of stick from the boys (well, he usually has only himself to blame for that) ...

As the self confessed 'selfie king', he had been going on for days before about remembering to take his selfie stick to the Canyon so that he could take the perfect shot.  This proved to be great entertainment for the rest of us when after all the fuss about not forgetting to take it and then carrying it round awkwardly in his pocket all along the trail, he finally found the perfect spot, only to discover that he had forgotten to charge it up!   Needless to say, whilst he was definitely not amused, the rest of us were all collapsed in a heap of hysterics!

Ben proving that you can get the perfect shot without a 'stick' ... who knew?!

He has also taken a great deal of ribbing over his 'phrase of the week' ... "I can 100% guarantee it." 

Let me expand ...

On Monday, as we arrived at the Grand Canyon, we were still quite a few miles away from the entrance when the heavy traffic slowed to a snail's pace in both lanes, all the way up to the gate.  **Groan**.  Ben pointed out that the other lane seemed to be moving much faster than ours and suggested we might want to move over.  

"No, no ... this lane will be faster in the end"

20 minutes later when we had hardly moved and the other lane had progressed by at least 50 vehicles, the rest of us were inclined to agree.

"I really think we would be faster in that lane ..."

"No, no ... I can 100% guarantee that this one will be the quickest"

After another 15 minutes and another 50 cars had passed, he finally admitted that maybe we might be right after all and moved over.  As we then speeded straight to the gate we noticed the reason why.  The two lanes became 5 - two from the left, and 3 from the right.  Top tip people: if you are ever queuing at the Canyon entrance, get in the right hand lane.  This of course then led to the next dilemma ... 

"Oh no.  Which lane shall I get into now?!"  Panic began to set in as cars jostled for pole position on the grid ...

Finally, we plumped for lane 3.  Clearly, once past the point of no return, it became evident that lane 2 was the one to be in. **tuts and raises eyes heavenward**

It was well worth the wait though and that amazing view looked even more beautiful with the recent dusting of snow (although it was soooooo cold!)

Beautiful!

.... but cold!

On the drive home, we witnessed one of the most amazing sunsets I think I have ever seen!  It looked like a giant fireball! The photo below does not do it justice at all, but considering it was taken from the passenger seat of the car as we were speeding along the freeway, I was quite pleased with it.

Aliens ...!

Later in the week we made a quick trip to Costco to get a new TV to replace the 'bargain' one that Mr B had ordered in the Black Friday sales and which predictably had arrived damaged.  

"You boys will have to squash up in the back a bit because I'll need to put one of the seats down to fit it in"

Ben looking puzzled remarked 

"You won't need to out the seat down.  That will easily go in there."

"Trust me Ben, it won't fit.  I tried it when I took the other one back and I had to put the back seat down to get it in"

"I'll be able to get it in no problem ..."

Mr B now getting extremely narky ... "Ben ... IT WILL NOT FIT! I can 100% guarantee it.  In fact, I can 200% guarantee it!!"

Arrive at car. Open boot.  Ben deftly lifts TV straight into boot, shuts door and looks at Mr B raising his eyebrows and shaking his head.  Cue hysterical laughter :D

Well, 2015 has been a blast!  Thanks for sharing in this year's Barlow Adventures - I really appreciate your company and I can't wait to see what 2016 brings! 

Wishing you all a Happy, Healthy & Prosperous New year!

TTFN

Bev X