Happiness is...

On the way to New Hampshire, we stopped at some Church history sites.  I have been to them all but no one else has had that chance so we made an effort to visit them on our trip Eastward.

First stop was Winter Quarters in Omaha, Nebraska.  There is a very nice visitors center there that tells about the Saints coming from Illinois and also from Europe.  Right across the street is the Winter Quarters Temple.  I think this temple has a really sacred feeling because the yard of the temple is also a pioneer cemetery.  There are some really touching gravestones there and a memorial to all the unknown people who are also buried there.  It was a quick visit but I hope Mom and Chad were able to enjoy it.

We also took a day to see all the sites in Palmyra, New York.  We visited the Joseph Smith log cabin and frame home, the Sacred Grove, the Palmyra Temple, the Hill Cumorah, and the Grandin press.  Palmyra is a small little town and we had a nice day there.  The Sacred Grove was so peaceful.  I tried to keep the kids with me so Mom and Chad could have a few quiet moments.  I don't think I succeeded very well, but I sure tried.

Carter walking in the Sacred Grove.

Eli and Kate walking in the sacred grove.

The Palmyra Temple.

Eli was obsessed with looking down this grate the whole time we were at the temple.

The monument at the top of the Hill Cumorah.

A view of Eli's black eye.

Carter and Kate had the most fun at the Hill Cumorah.  It is a REALLY steep hill that has a switch-back trail up it (you can also drive to the top) and of course Carter wanted to just run straight to the top.  He ran up the whole thing. Twice.  I guess sitting in the car for all those hours just gave him a lot of extra energy.  I was scared Eli would just topple off the edge and roll all the way down so I kept him pretty close the whole time.  I don't know if the kids will remember any of the sites we saw but I hope they remember how they felt.