Now I'm off to enjoy a delicious piece of classic gum!
This past Sunday was our ward Primary program. Initially it was supposed to be in September, but the lack of electricity due to the hurricane pushed it to October. I was really looking forward to this program. While subbing one Sunday I was able to hear the children practice and even then the selection of songs and balance between song, scripture and talks was inspiring. BUT, the main reason I was looking forward to this program is because Daria and Dustin were singing a song together, just the two of them. This is the first time they've done something like this. I'm still amazed that they were willing to accept the assignment. When Janalen called me to extend the assignment I thought it was a great idea but told her that she would need to ask them. If I asked them they would say no (parent child dynamics unfortunately). She asked them and to my surprise they said yes. So we practiced for a few months at home and darn if they didn't sound so cute together. The song they were to sing was "Home is Where the Heart is". Daria sang the first verse, Dustin the second and then they both sang the thrid verse.
At any rate while they sang it well during practice I wondered if nerves would get the best of them while singing in front of 300 people. My worries were put to rest as they both sang clear and loud enough for the audience to hear. Oh how I wish I could have recorded it. It was so sweet!! WAy to go Daria and Dustin. They also spoke their individual parts very well.
This program brought to light some things about my kids that I've not ever noticed or thought of.
Dustin. When I look back on Dustin's short 6 years of life, one thing that can be said of him is he is fearless and couragious about sharing the gospel. He has always been forward about inviting others to church, singing the hymns around friends, playing "Army of Helamen" with his friends (pretending to be NEphites), handing out Books of Mormon without being prompted. So I suppose it was no surprise at the beginning of the year when the kids started learning songs for the program that Dustin announced he would like to invite his Kindergarten teacher. Fast forward to September Dustin, who is now in 1st grade with a different teacher, asked me if I had invited Mrs. H. Then the hurricane happened. Now into October he continued to press hoping that Mrs. H. would come to the Primary program. I left a message on her cell phone but didn't hear back. Sunday morning, I felt sad for Dustin because he continued to hope she would be there. I felt prompted to call. No answer. Then a minute later the phone rings. Mrs. H said she WAS coming to the program. Oh my!!!! can you believe that? She did show up along with her teenage daughter and sat with us. She was delighted that he invited her and she was delighted to see another boy who is in her class this year and said she enjoyed the program. I thought to myself that I really just think Dustin has a great measure of faith in that area. It was neat to see one of his small gifts.
Daria. When DAria takes on a challenge she takes it seriously and wants to do well. She says she doesn't like being in front of other people performing and gets nervous but I think that nervousness must be transfered into poise. When she plays the piano in her recitals it's as if no one else is in the room, she seems at ease. Sunday morning she came down stairs and exlaimed that she didn't want to sing in front of everyone, not that she wouldn't but she was nervous. But when it was her turn to stand up and speak her part she had it memorized, leaned into the microphone and looked out directly at the audience and spoke smoothly and clearly. When it was time to sing her song wiht Dustin she stood straight and tall, poised and composed and sang very well. I had not really noticed that about her before, although when I look back on her choir concerts I remember that she did the same thing.
Another thing about Daria that I've noticed is her excitement to serve others. I've mentioned it before that when our friend was diagnosed with cancer her first words were "who'se going to cook for her?". Daria made two full square meals all by herself this summer for our friend and her family. For my birthday she asked me to pick out some scrap material from my material box. I did. Then she shut herself in her room for the day. I could hear the sewing maching humming away. The outcome was a super cute pillow with "mom" stiched on it as well. What could be better than a gift that someone thought up and spent time making.
Thanks for letting me admire my kdis for a moment. The biggest lesson I learned this past month is that all to often I'm focusing on the things about my kids that need to change or be worked on that sometimes I forget the super neat things about them.
1. Getting to Nauvoo was an adventure in itself. Due to the recent flooding that the Midwest experienced right before our trip, we encountered several detours, several very frustrating detours.
2. At midnight we came across an accident where one semi-truck ran through the side of another semi-truck carrying pigs. Not a pretty sight.
3. Thanks to the nice police lady who let us through the wreckage and our 2 way radio's to talk to Greg & Celeste with, we were able to get on our way.
4. Trying to find the bridge that crosses the Mississippi at 1:30a in the morning was like looking for a needle in a haystack. One stop for directions, kids who were wide awake, and some very frustrated drivers, we made it to the toll bridge. The lady looked at Ken and said "you look so sad", to which Ken replied "you have no idea".
5. At 2:00a we arrived at our awesome hotel which was directly across the street from the temple (thanks to Greg our super trip scheduler). Basically we paid a gob of money for a night that we didn't even use. But it was worth it the next morning to wake up and open the window and see the temple.
It is amazing to think of the events and people who settled this area. I felt that everywhere I walked was packed with history. You may wonder why I took so many photos. Well in Nauvoo there are over 60 places alone that you can visit and tour. This doesn't include any other spots that are marked but not tourable. Then there are the shows that we missed.
For those who've never been, the LDS church has gone in and restored, reconstructed and built many of the 350 buildings that existed when the saints lived there. Everything is run by missionaries dressed in period clothing. You tour, you learn, you get to do hands on things. The kids loved it. Daria, Dustin, and Hannah learned how to make candles out of animal fat, brush wool, spin yarn, make wicks, tin, boots, bricks, bread, and guns. They even made their own jump rope, tasted some root beer from Joseph Smith's Red Brick Store, and took a test in the school house.
Probably one of the coolest tours was the Jonathon Browning Gunsmith building. This is Celeste's direct ancestor. When we walked in there was a picture of her great grandmother (I think it's 5 greats) and she looked just like Celeste's grandmother. Lulu was amazed!
I never made it by the land records office. My great grandfather (5 greats) David Evans lived in Nauvoo (he ended up Mayor of Lehi, Utah). That was on my dad's side. On my mom's side I had another ancestor who lived in Nauvoo, Thomas C. Smith.
The visitors center also boasts a beautiful Women's Monument garden that celebrates the divine nature & heritage of women. I was moved by this garden & it's monuments. Where in the world can you go as a woman to be celebrated for who you are, not some huge worldly thing but because you were created a wonderful woman by God. Totally amazing.
900 photos could have been 1300, but unfortunately the Community of Christ church owns the Joseph Smith sites. They charge a minimal fee to tour the locations and do not allow any photographs inside. This was VERY frustrating (it was the same in Missouri and Ohio). But the tours were awesome.
The Nauvoo temple by far is the most amazing temple I've ever been in. Salt Lake is cool, but this one was incredible. The outside is constructed exactly as it was in 1841. Because they didn't know what the inside looked like, it was constructed using materials and designs from that era and resembled some portions of the Kirtland temple. It had tons of deep rich woodwork, & spiraling staircases. There were also some neat artifacts there as well, like Mary Fielding Smith's slippers, & other temple artifacts. We were so thrilled to be able to attend the temple there.
Anyway, I could go on and on, but you will just have to visit and experience it for yourself. We know that we will be back!
Here is the video. It's long, about 12 minutes. Sorry, it's lengthy, but my real purpose for making it was for our family and Greg & Celeste's family to reminisce about our trip. Hopefully you have the time to sit down and enjoy it, heck, sit down with a candy bar and enjoy. Don't forget to turn up your speakers. The songs I've selected were chosen for a reason. (if you've not watched the video from Missouri, it's on the September 1st post).
