2011 Summer Vacation, Part II

For the 2nd part of our vacation, we drove 5 1/2 hours from Cindy's to Nauvoo, Illinois. We were meeting my parents, my sister Lynne and her family, my brother Randy and his wife and son, who had all driven from Idaho and Utah, and my sister Suzanne and her family drove from South Carolina. We stayed in some condos about 2 miles outside of Nauvoo. 


On Thursday night after we had all arrived, from 3 different directions, all through many corn fields, we went into Nauvoo so we could see the Pageant. Before the pageant, the people who will be performing the next week put on a "Country Fair" with all sorts of activities for old and young alike.  It was great fun.

 The teenage, and almost teenage kids, and Julie had a great time square dancing with the "pioneers".

Mom and I had a great time watching and taking pictures of the dancing.

Suzanne, Lynne, Julie, me and Mom watching all the activities.

Dad and Blake watching too.

Lynne and I matching in color!

All seated and ready for the pageant to begin.

The pageant was amazing. It was the story of Nauvoo, and performed by volunteers from all over the country. They have a core cast that is the same for the whole month, then there are others that are there for one week of performances. At the very end, the temple behind them is lit up, it was a very breathtaking scene.

The next morning we took Tanner, Michelle, Dallin, Joseph, Alexis and Adam to the temple so they could do baptisms for the dead. I felt very fortunate to be able to go inside the Nauvoo Temple. It is a very humbling experience to be inside that sacred building on that hallowed ground.

Afterward, we went to the visitors center and watched a really good movie about the restoration of the Gospel. 

We spent some time in the Women's Garden and had some fun pictures.

We went to a play performed by the Young Performing Missionaries. It was excellent! Those young people are extremely talented.

We went to several of the homes and buildings that have been restored. It is amazing and inspiring that the early saints could build that city in such a short time. 

After dinner, we went back to Nauvoo and walked around some of the shops, then around the temple. It seemed that we could not get enough of the temple, your eyes were drawn to it from every side.

This monument is depicting Joseph and Hyrum Smith's last ride out of Nauvoo before being martyred, very sobering statue.

Saturday morning we went to another darling play by the Young performing missionaries, once again very amazing! We saw some more restored sights, there just didn't seem to be enough time to see it all.

We took a wagon ride around the city to see more of the sights.

This is the Young performing missionaries band. It was absolutely excellent.

The adults took the time to go back to the temple and do some family sealings. It was a very special experience, I'm so glad we made the time to go back to the temple.

Saturday evening we went to another performance by the Young Performing missionaries and the Senior Missionaries. It was also amazing. So many dedicated and talented people giving of their time and talents.

Blake, Michelle and I waiting for the show to start.

After the performance, we walked down the "Trail of Hope". This is the street the early saints took as they were leaving Nauvoo to cross the Mississippi River as they headed west.

Along the Trail of Hope, there were signs with quotes or statements from many of the saints, once again it was very sobering.

Blake standing on the bank of Mississippi River

 Randy, me, Dad, Mom, Lynne and Suzanne

We found the name William McKeachie on the memorial to many saints who did not make it to Salt Lake.  William McKeachie is Blake's 3rd great grandfather.

We found this little friend on our doorstep when we got back to the condo.

Sunday morning, we went to Sacrament Meeting with all the Nauvoo missionaries. It was really a wonderful meeting, with tons of missionaries. I felt really close to Jared, not just because I was only 2 hours away from him, but seeing all those people with their black name tags made me think of him constantly.  After church, we went back to the temple and took some pictures on the steps.

All 22 of us!

We drove about 1/2 hour to Carthage. Once again a very sobering place. Carthage is where Joseph and Hyrum Smith were shot and killed. I am so grateful for Joseph Smith and his faith. I know he was a true prophet and that he was chosen by God to restore the true gospel of Jesus Christ to the earth once again. 

A statue of Joseph and Hyrum outside the Carthage Jail. Isn't little Steffie cute standing back there?

This is the room were Joseph and Hyrum were murdered. Blake is standing in front of the window that Joseph fell from after being shot. 

After leaving Carthage, Blake, Randy, Julie and I hurried to see a few more of the restored buildings in Nauvoo. We still didn't see everything, but we saw a lot.

We learned how they made boots.

Randy and Blake in front of the tiny Boot making shop.

We thoroughly enjoyed our time in Nauvoo. We learned a lot, and experienced a lot that we won't soon forget. Thanks Lynne, Suzanne and Julie for all the planning and arranging so we could all enjoy being together in Nauvoo!