We had another great weekend. Brandon's Institute teacher offered to take his class and their families on a tour of Church history sites in the area. It was great to have a guided tour because we had a car to follow to the sites so we didn't get lost and he gave us background and stories as we went along.
We met at the Liberty Stake Center and found out that most of the senior missionary couples serving in our Riverview Ward were also coming on the tour. He headed to Hiram Page's grave site. It's a strange grave, because it is just on the side of a dirt road between two farms. We then hit a couple of cemeteries and saw the grave sites of David and John Whitmer, Oliver Cowdery, etc.
We stopped at the Far West Temple Site. The first time we went there it was for a ward activity. This time it was much more peaceful. It really is a beautiful temple site. We then drove on to Adam-ondi-Ahman. The valley is beautiful and the fall colors were amazing. We also saw a few other sites along the way which you can see in the picture slide show.
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Nauvoo
We decided to take a mini vacation this weekend since Brandon finished his Neuro section and I still have a few more vacation days this year. We decided to go to Nauvoo since Brandon has never been there and I haven't been there in years. We made a quick stop in Hannibal, MO to see the hometown of Mark Twain. We were impressed that even the pop machines boasted pictures of Mark Twain.
Next we stopped at Carthage Jail in Carthage, Illinois. It was nice to go on the tour with just a few people and have plenty of time to take pictures. I was impressed at the kindness of the jailer in letting the men stay where it was more comfortable or safe depending on the day. As we were talking the the Sister missionary afterward we found out she is distantly related through the Roberts family. I thought that only happened at BYU but I guess it stands for all Church history sights.
We made our final stop at Nauvoo. On our first night we had time to check out the visitor's center, go to the temple, and see a show called "Rendezvous" at the Cultural Hall, put on by the missionaries in the area. The temple is BEAUTIFUL. It has exquisite murals, lots of wood work, and spiral stair cases.
On Saturday we had a great time visiting many of the sights. We were able to go on the wagon ride by horse through town and later by ox. We also were able to see the brickyard, Lucy Mack Smith's home, the school house, the post office, John Taylor's home, the print shop, the Browning Home and Gunsmith Shop, the Webb Brothers' Blacksmith shop, the Seventies Hall, the Trail of Tears, the Scovil Bakery, the Family Living Center, Heber C. Kimball's home, and the graves of Joseph, Emma, and Hyrum Smith. At that point we were exhausted! Luckily the drive home only took about five hours.
We had a great time and recommend a visit to anyone who hasn't been there recently. You can come visit us while you're at it.
Next we stopped at Carthage Jail in Carthage, Illinois. It was nice to go on the tour with just a few people and have plenty of time to take pictures. I was impressed at the kindness of the jailer in letting the men stay where it was more comfortable or safe depending on the day. As we were talking the the Sister missionary afterward we found out she is distantly related through the Roberts family. I thought that only happened at BYU but I guess it stands for all Church history sights.
We made our final stop at Nauvoo. On our first night we had time to check out the visitor's center, go to the temple, and see a show called "Rendezvous" at the Cultural Hall, put on by the missionaries in the area. The temple is BEAUTIFUL. It has exquisite murals, lots of wood work, and spiral stair cases.
On Saturday we had a great time visiting many of the sights. We were able to go on the wagon ride by horse through town and later by ox. We also were able to see the brickyard, Lucy Mack Smith's home, the school house, the post office, John Taylor's home, the print shop, the Browning Home and Gunsmith Shop, the Webb Brothers' Blacksmith shop, the Seventies Hall, the Trail of Tears, the Scovil Bakery, the Family Living Center, Heber C. Kimball's home, and the graves of Joseph, Emma, and Hyrum Smith. At that point we were exhausted! Luckily the drive home only took about five hours.
We had a great time and recommend a visit to anyone who hasn't been there recently. You can come visit us while you're at it.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
26 Things You Might Not Know About Melody
These lists are usually a big hit. I wanted to try and pull one together before Melody get's too old and the list gets too long to be interesting. This list comes pre-approved by Melody herself, though she didn't want me to put in anything too sweet or romantic.
As you can see, the cake didn't even last long enough for the candle lighting or picture taking.
Now on to the main event:
1. Melody would spend more hours of the day asleep than awake if people would let her.
2. Melody wears shoe size nine, most of the time.
3. Melody hates buying clothes for herself, but loves window shopping.
4. When Melody does manage to buy herself new clothes, they usually sit in the closet for two or more weeks before she decides that she really does like them.
5. Melody loves watching sappy, girly movies, but can’t stand to be sappy or girly in real life.
6. Melody is almost certifiably mysophobic (germophobic). Hand-washing is the transition between any two activities of the day.
7. Melody stacks the pillows flat against the wall when she makes the bed. Maybe I’m the only one who thinks that’s strange.
8. Melody has a built in neurological reflex to mute or change the station whenever a TV or radio commercial comes on. This is even to the point that if a real show or song even sounds like a commercial, she can’t listen to it.
9. Melody hates spending money, no matter whose money it is.
10. Melody loves anything with peanut butter (literally anything, but mostly chocolate).
11. Melody is the world’s best side-seat google map reader, except that she always seems to forget the difference between right and left…
12. Melody has 12 nieces and nephews all under the age of four. She loves all of them.
13. Melody and I have played Yahtzee 19 times since we’ve been married. Melody won 18 of those games (and I think that one time she just let me win to make me feel better). We don’t play that game much anymore.
14. Melody’s life is not complete unless she has four or five stashes of notes around the apartment.
15. Melody loves to keep the apartment clean, but hates decorating.
16. Melody eats cereal for breakfast, pancakes or waffles for dinner, then cereal again as a pre-going-to-bed snack.
17. Melody eats her pre-going-to-bed cereal out of a cup to try and convince herself that it is only a snack. By the third or fourth cup she’s not fooling anyone.
18. Melody scrunches her eyebrows together whenever I’m doing something strange or embarrassing.
19. Melody always said, before three years ago, that she would never marry a doctor or someone she’d have to put through school.
20. Melody parts her hair on the right side of her head.
21. Melody is a crack shot at clay pigeon shooting. She also hates guns.
22. Melody can make any recipe taste good.
23. Melody refuses to use our dishwasher, no matter how large the pile of dishes has gotten. In her defense, she washes dishes most of the time in our family.
24. Melody has a hypersensitive sense of smell. Though more acute to foul odors, she can detect any smell within several hundred yards.
25. Melody has a very low tolerance for the cold. Hypothermia sets in at room temperatures below 80°.
26. Melody is a sucker for a head scratch.
Happy Birthday Melody. I Love You.
As you can see, the cake didn't even last long enough for the candle lighting or picture taking.Now on to the main event:
1. Melody would spend more hours of the day asleep than awake if people would let her.
2. Melody wears shoe size nine, most of the time.
3. Melody hates buying clothes for herself, but loves window shopping.
4. When Melody does manage to buy herself new clothes, they usually sit in the closet for two or more weeks before she decides that she really does like them.
5. Melody loves watching sappy, girly movies, but can’t stand to be sappy or girly in real life.
6. Melody is almost certifiably mysophobic (germophobic). Hand-washing is the transition between any two activities of the day.
7. Melody stacks the pillows flat against the wall when she makes the bed. Maybe I’m the only one who thinks that’s strange.
8. Melody has a built in neurological reflex to mute or change the station whenever a TV or radio commercial comes on. This is even to the point that if a real show or song even sounds like a commercial, she can’t listen to it.
9. Melody hates spending money, no matter whose money it is.
10. Melody loves anything with peanut butter (literally anything, but mostly chocolate).
11. Melody is the world’s best side-seat google map reader, except that she always seems to forget the difference between right and left…
12. Melody has 12 nieces and nephews all under the age of four. She loves all of them.
13. Melody and I have played Yahtzee 19 times since we’ve been married. Melody won 18 of those games (and I think that one time she just let me win to make me feel better). We don’t play that game much anymore.
14. Melody’s life is not complete unless she has four or five stashes of notes around the apartment.
15. Melody loves to keep the apartment clean, but hates decorating.
16. Melody eats cereal for breakfast, pancakes or waffles for dinner, then cereal again as a pre-going-to-bed snack.
17. Melody eats her pre-going-to-bed cereal out of a cup to try and convince herself that it is only a snack. By the third or fourth cup she’s not fooling anyone.
18. Melody scrunches her eyebrows together whenever I’m doing something strange or embarrassing.
19. Melody always said, before three years ago, that she would never marry a doctor or someone she’d have to put through school.
20. Melody parts her hair on the right side of her head.
21. Melody is a crack shot at clay pigeon shooting. She also hates guns.
22. Melody can make any recipe taste good.
23. Melody refuses to use our dishwasher, no matter how large the pile of dishes has gotten. In her defense, she washes dishes most of the time in our family.
24. Melody has a hypersensitive sense of smell. Though more acute to foul odors, she can detect any smell within several hundred yards.
25. Melody has a very low tolerance for the cold. Hypothermia sets in at room temperatures below 80°.
26. Melody is a sucker for a head scratch.
Happy Birthday Melody. I Love You.
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