Should have rolled down the window...oops!
We also had to cross the Mississippi River...We actually had to wait for a barge to go through so the bridge was turned. It was actually pretty cool to see the bridge come back together.
Bridge Turned
The Barge
Waitin' to cross the bridge
Goin' across
Welcome to Illinois!
After getting checked into our hotel, we stopped at the Visitors Center so we could get tickets to Rendezvous in Old Nauvoo.--which we thoroughly enjoyed. Even Peyton loved it. (Good thing we watch those Disney Sing-A-Longs. He was the only baby who didn't make a peep!) Peyton had some milk on our stop and then we visited the Women's Garden--so beautiful!
Then it was off to see the temple. What a magnificent structure. This reconstruction of the temple was actually built in 2002. The original structure was burned down shortly after the Saints left Nauvoo and then--I didn't know this--a tornado destroyed what remained after the fire. I can only imagine what the original temple must have been like. It is one of the most beautiful temples I have ever seen.
Nauvoo Illinois Temple
(A Little crooked..oops!)
Sun Stone
Our Eternal Family
Just across the street is the Joseph Smith Memorial. There is a sculpture of Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum--two amazing men.
This is about the statue..if you enlarge it, notice who one of the sculptors is--Stan Watts haha. Chad has an uncle named Stan Watts but I highly doubt he made this....
Ahhh...my boys
Sweet exhausted Peyday and his daddy!
DAY 2
Carthage Jail--We decided to get up and go to Carthage because it is about a half hour from Nauvoo. Chad and I both agree that, by far, this was our favorite part of the trip. Carthage Jail is where Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum were killed. I expected the jail to be a secluded place, and maybe it was in 1844, but it was just a little stone building in the middle of a small town. We had a wonderful Sister Missionary as our tour guide who taught with the spirit and it was all around just a wonderful experience.
Drivin' along the Mississippi
I know you can't see them very well (Never tell yourself you won't need the zoom lens)..Chad spotted 2 wild bald eagles!
Readin' about Joseph Smith
Just a couple of cute P's
Carthage Jail w/Joseph and Hyrum
Mommy & P
Mommy & Peyton again
Our family in the Martyrdom room...we should have stood in front of the fire place or something...felt a little morbid to stand in front of the window...
Back in Nauvoo, we started touring homes, and shops. We found the print shop and post office to be particularly interesting. I specifically enjoyed the post office. Here's why...
I know for sure that my 5th (or so) great grandfather Reynolds Cahoon was a resident of Nauvoo. There is a long line of history in the church on my mom's side of the family and I honestly don't know too much about--I need to learn. Anyway, at the post office, they were telling us that mail was expensive to send and for that reason most letters were sent COD. It got to the point where the post master was storing so much mail that he listed the persons who had mail in the news paper. They had an actual copy of a news paper to pass around. I thought, what the heck. I will look to see if there is a Cahoon. And there was! Margaret Cahoon, who I am pretty sure is a relative. I just thought that was kind of cool. ;)
Print shop
Chad and P in Old Nauvoo
Post Office
Next we took a carriage ride to Look Out Point. This took us on a back roads tour of Nauvoo. We heard some neat stories, saw some wild snapping turtle and saw the spot overlooking the Mississippi where Joseph Smith would go to get away from it all.
Lookout point
The beautiful trees-unfortunately I was allergic to something! Puffy eyes...Boo
Us & our horses
After Peyton's nap we tried to catch the Oxen Ride but they had already put the "missionaries" away for the day. So we looked at a couple more houses and stopped in at the Brick Yard where we learned how bricks were made! Did you know the phrase "hack it" came from making bricks?
Daddy & P checking out a replica of a covered wagon the pioneers would have traveled in
Ox--These guys are huge!
Getting a ride walking back to the car
To conclude DAY 2 we hit the Joseph Smith Historical Sites. We took a tour where we were able to see the Homestead, The Mansion House and The Red Brick Store. It was fun to see where the prophet and his family lived/worked as well as where the Relief Society was formed and other meetings were held. This was an interesting experience. These sites are owned by the Community of Christ (formerly known as the RLDS church). Although it was fun to see the historical sites, it had a bit of a different feel to it. There were definitely some differences in opinion and perspective. Great sites!
Mommy & P in front of The Red Brick Store
The Mansion House
DAY 3
Our final day in Nauvoo. We were told there would be a ride beginning at 8am so of course, since we have an early riser, we thought that would be great. But when we got to the visitors center to get tickets, they had changed their minds and didn't start the ride till 10am! Bummer! So we took a drive down the Mississippi and crossed over into Keokuk so we could see the dam that has actually made the Mississippi in Nauvoo Lake Cooper.
We also drove along the Trail of Tears--the path the pioneers took to cross the Mississippi River, leaving everything they had and built behind. And we saw the Pioneer Memorial--a memorial dedicated to the pioneers who lost their lives on the journey west.
Mommy & Peyton overlooking the crossing point
River
Cuuuute
Cuuuuute
And finally...
A view of the Temple from our Wagon Tour of Old Nauvoo.
Peyton whined for most of the tour. I felt bad. He conked out in the car for 2.5 hrs!
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