Well, time for the next update, I'm obviously a tad behind so I'll get a couple of these out tonight with any luck at all. The kids are mostly all in bed (it is dark here sooooo early that it feels late for them) A couple of the boys have had high fevers and headaches...I guess that seems somewhat fitting for a Nauvoo experience, can't tell you how very grateful I am to have tylenol these days. I would never want to be those pioneer momma's trying to take care of sick kiddos and having no way to help give a little comfort, other than hugs and kisses. Having the blessing of being able to bring a fever down is so huge, and I think most of us have never even really given that one much thought. Spending time here makes me really think about things in a whole new light...life is simple and sweet and slow-paced. It's 9:45 p.m. and if I were at home, I'd have a million things still waiting for my attention, and yet here, I have quiet time to sit and reflect. AND, this is after already enjoying a brisk walk to the Nauvoo Temple...it is so beautiful to see lit up at night...wish there were words that could really share how I feel when I stand trying to take it all in.
Well, here I am rambling away...time to get to how the trip has been :)
Saturday first thing we visited Winter Quarters. Did a tour at the Visitors Center, had a wonderful sweet sister missionary, Sister Lawlor, she didn’t understand what our last name was and called us the Kings and the Legos!!! We all laughed, maybe we’ll have to call ourselves the Lego’s instead of the Lytle’s, (a little easier for others to say and remember) We were also very privileged to listen to another Sister ??? (wish I could remember her name!) sing to us Come, Come Ye Saints, Natalie joined her (as well as she could) tear jerking moment, the Spirit was so sweet. We dressed as Pioneers, pulled the hand cart and learned about the 2nd prophet who led the saints…last stop on the tour was a replica of the SLC temple. They went through all the displays after showing us a video of the saints leaving Nauvoo and coming to Winter Quarters.
The biggie that we had to listen for and remember was the size of the puddle…in the video they mentioned that they only came across one puddle that day, it was 6 MILES LONG!!!! (all references were taken from original journal entries)
After leaving the Visitor Center, we walked across the street to The Winter Quarter Temple and walked through the Pioneer Cemetery. In a movie that we viewed in the Visitor Center there was a reference to a baby named Peter who had died…Cassie and Bekah felt they found his headstone in the cemetery.
After leaving the Visitor Center, we walked across the street to The Winter Quarter Temple and walked through the Pioneer Cemetery. In a movie that we viewed in the Visitor Center there was a reference to a baby named Peter who had died…Cassie and Bekah felt they found his headstone in the cemetery.
As our families were leaving the Cemetery, Danielle and Dad had private moments of their own (I saw Chad praying and am filled with gratitude for the blessing I have of being married to this special man) His “quiet moments” to ponder don’t come often enough for him. I am sooooo thrilled he is here to enjoy these sacred moments with us.
This was an amazing spiders web that was just outside the cemetery...had to take a photo to remember how exquisite the work of one lone little spider is!While driving down the a little road we read a sign that states: "EMERGENCY SNOW ROUTE”…hmmm…
We saw so many funny billboards...after seeing one we came up with a silly idea for our carpet cleaning business: GRIME STOPPERS…Because a dirty carpet is criminal. The billboard was actually for car washes but since we were becoming a little crazy having pretty much no sleep, we were just coming up with all sorts a doozies!
The other sign that totally cracked me up and I truly could not believe my eyes at read:
Don’t drive Naked…get covered (insurance billboard) thinking of you Matt. :)
Okay, time to get back to it...enough of the crazy signs, but there will be more to come, I promise!
After Winter Quarters, we hit Council Bluffs, earlier known as Kainesville. It was the first Mormon tabernacle. The tabernacle was built because Brigham Young needed to be sustained as the 2nd prophet. 1,000 people packed into this 60 x 40 building to witness and sustain him. We also learned about the Mormon Battalion and the Gold Rush of California. Pretty awesome, as we sat in this building we were a little stunned that a thousand people gathered here and we were pretty grateful that the 18 of us fit quite comfortably :) Danielle had a moment to play on their organ...oh it sounded beautiful...she is missing playing the piano while we are gone.
Below you have my narration as we are driving along the road...it was quite a journey!
As we’ve driven through Nebraska, Iowa and Missouri, we’ve decided that it is BEAUTIFUL out here…the boys and Danielle (Dad very much included in “the boys") are desperately searching for the perfect lake to stake out to build our new home on. We went past a motorcycle racing track…the race was on…street bike races ~ too scary for me! The boys were oohing and aahing, crazy boys!
So to describe what we’ve been seeing out here:
Trees, corn, small lakes, a random house here and there, trees and corn and more trees and corn and a little more corn! We thought Idaho had a lot of corn fields, not even!!! The mountainous range here resembles our foothills if you really stretch your imagination, other than that, it is quite flat and straight, we just keep going straight, hardly ever a turn in the road. We’ve now officially nick-named these three states The Land of Short Corn! (there's plenty of it, but it is way short compared to the corn we grow)
Trees, corn, small lakes, a random house here and there, trees and corn and more trees and corn and a little more corn! We thought Idaho had a lot of corn fields, not even!!! The mountainous range here resembles our foothills if you really stretch your imagination, other than that, it is quite flat and straight, we just keep going straight, hardly ever a turn in the road. We’ve now officially nick-named these three states The Land of Short Corn! (there's plenty of it, but it is way short compared to the corn we grow)
Just passed a sign that said entering Hamburg, corner of Iowa. And now into Missouri we go.
So, we had to stop off the side of the road…let’s just say for a boy emergency…out my window I spotted what I had believed to be one of my favorites on this planet…blackberries ~ loads and loads of ‘em. I braved walking out to them, through knee high grasses, all the while hoping and praying I was the only one out there, no giant spiders or snakes or, or, or...my mind was racing, but I was determined I would make it over to those berries!!! Myles said it sounded like there were screaming crickets out there...it was incredibly loud! Anyway, I finally make my way over and reach my hand out to pick a blackberry that I just know is going to be the yummiest, juiciest berry EVER and as I do it crumbles in my hand, it was some crazy looking pinecone sort of thing-a –ma-jig! No blackberries…how distraught I feel at this moment. So, I went for my daily fix…ice cubes and lemon juice. Aaaaahhhhh…happiness in a cup!
So, we had to stop off the side of the road…let’s just say for a boy emergency…out my window I spotted what I had believed to be one of my favorites on this planet…blackberries ~ loads and loads of ‘em. I braved walking out to them, through knee high grasses, all the while hoping and praying I was the only one out there, no giant spiders or snakes or, or, or...my mind was racing, but I was determined I would make it over to those berries!!! Myles said it sounded like there were screaming crickets out there...it was incredibly loud! Anyway, I finally make my way over and reach my hand out to pick a blackberry that I just know is going to be the yummiest, juiciest berry EVER and as I do it crumbles in my hand, it was some crazy looking pinecone sort of thing-a –ma-jig! No blackberries…how distraught I feel at this moment. So, I went for my daily fix…ice cubes and lemon juice. Aaaaahhhhh…happiness in a cup!
Now for our drive…we are currently headed to Independence, Missouri and Liberty Jail…so many feelings happening here for me. And ending our journey of long driving we will be arriving in Nauvoo…but only the journey of driving will come to an end…the true journey has but only begun!
Some random thoughts and observations as we drive…
I thought we grew a lot of corn in Idaho…not even…this place has corn EVERYWHERE!!!
Billboards- in Idaho and about everywhere I’ve ever seen them, they are smack dab against the road…but not in this part of the world…they are forever away from the roads…probably the closest was about a football field away, really!
Bugs…I thought it was raining, seriously, because I wasn’t looking out the window, but it wasn’t rain it was a million or possibly a trillion bugs smackin’ against the windshield…we decided we are quite grateful to have a windshield between us and them!!!
Okay, just leaving Independence, Missouri where the three churches, ours (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints), the Community Church of Christ (RLDS) and The Church of Christ each own a section. Very strange here. The temple (again not owned by us) felt and looked quite bizarre. Not sure how I would describe it. The descriptions I had been given prior to coming were that it looked like an upside down ice cream cone and the other was the Stairway to Heaven. Danielle said it made her think of the Tower of Babel. I just looked and wondered WHY? No great feeling here for me. Wish we’d have had more time to spend so that I could feel the Spirit here as I have in the other locations we’ve visited today. I feel somewhat of a loss. I felt quite confused as we stood in these areas trying to understand who and what and again why?
I thought we grew a lot of corn in Idaho…not even…this place has corn EVERYWHERE!!!
Billboards- in Idaho and about everywhere I’ve ever seen them, they are smack dab against the road…but not in this part of the world…they are forever away from the roads…probably the closest was about a football field away, really!
Bugs…I thought it was raining, seriously, because I wasn’t looking out the window, but it wasn’t rain it was a million or possibly a trillion bugs smackin’ against the windshield…we decided we are quite grateful to have a windshield between us and them!!!
Okay, just leaving Independence, Missouri where the three churches, ours (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints), the Community Church of Christ (RLDS) and The Church of Christ each own a section. Very strange here. The temple (again not owned by us) felt and looked quite bizarre. Not sure how I would describe it. The descriptions I had been given prior to coming were that it looked like an upside down ice cream cone and the other was the Stairway to Heaven. Danielle said it made her think of the Tower of Babel. I just looked and wondered WHY? No great feeling here for me. Wish we’d have had more time to spend so that I could feel the Spirit here as I have in the other locations we’ve visited today. I feel somewhat of a loss. I felt quite confused as we stood in these areas trying to understand who and what and again why?
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