Ohio to Utah - Part I - Nauvoo

Our journey from Ohio to Utah began on Saturday, June 27th. Our first stop was Nauvoo, IL which is about 515 miles from Columbus. For the entire journey, my mom and I were in the minivan with usually 3 or 4 kids, and my dad and Jon were in his car with Jack. We followed each other and made stops every once in awhile.

We arrived in Nauvoo in the late afternoon and it was really hot and humid. (For those blog readers that are not LDS, Nauvoo is a city along the Mississippi River, where thousands of early Saints settled after being driven out of Missouri. We stopped at several church history sites along our way). We went to the Visitor's Center, watched a short movie, and then went and found something to eat. After dinner, we went to the Smith family cemetary and saw the gravestones of Joseph, Emma & Hyrum Smith as well as Joseph Smith Sr. & Lucy Mack Smith.

We then had tickets to see "Renedevous of Old Nauvoo" (or something like that), which is a production put on by the senior missionaries at the old Cultural Hall. It was okay, but made for a late night. We stayed across the river in Keokuk.

The next day was Sunday and we got up and drove to Carthage, IL, where the Prophet Joseph and his brother Hyrum were martyred. It's my favorite church history site! We had a great tour of Carthage Jail and we loved the sweet feelings of peace and love that are there now. Lindsey, Emily, Kate & Jack in front of monument of Joseph & Hyrum

This is the window that Joseph fell out of after being shot by the mob

Emily is pointing to a bullet hole in the door, which may have been the bullet that hit and killed Hyrum

After eating lunch, we drove back to Nauvoo, and met our good friends, the Christensen's. I knew Dawn and Randy when I was a missionary in Ohio and they were some of the first people to welcome us when we moved there in 2002. They had moved to Cedar Rapids, IA two years ago, and when they heard we were coming through, had called us and then drove 2 hours down to Nauvoo to spend the afternoon with us. We loved it! It was so great to see them and their darling kids - Benjamin, Sierra & Eve. The kids had a great time playing and being together.

We spent a fair amount of time at the Family Living Center, where we were able to see some of the ways the Saints made and did things. We saw how they made rope, rugs, candles, fabric, dishes and bread.

Emily & Sierra making a rope

Kate on the wooly lamb

Lindsey & Jack with a homemade candle

Then we went to a park and dropped off the dads and kids. Then Dawn and I went on a wild-goose chase for my lost cell phone. It ended up being in the van the whole time, but Dawn and I were able to enjoy one another's company and chat. Then we went to the Nauvoo Temple, where we met my parents. Dawn & Randy - thank you again so much for driving down to see us. Our Nauvoo experience was much better because you were there!!!

The Nauvoo Temple

R1: Lindsey, Sierra, Emily & Jack

R2: Randy, Eve, Dawn, Jeannette, Hannah, Kate & Jon

R3: Benjamin

The last thing we did in Nauvoo, was find an old cemetary where several people are buried, including two of my ancestors. George Washington Clyde (who actually escaped the Haun's Mill massacre) and Zina Huntington Baker. My mom had done a great job of explaining to us how we were related to them a little about them. I am so grateful for those ancestors that gave up so much and remained so faithful to the truths that they knew.