albrecht family summer reunion days 9-10

Friday was, sadly, our last day in Nauvoo.  There was way more that I would like to have seen, but such it is sometimes.  We are definitely planning on returning someday!  For Youth Conference next year, we are taking the kids to Kirtland, OH - but I wish we could take them to Nauvoo.  But Kirtland is a 6-hour drive, and Nauvoo takes 14 hours to get to.  So Kirtland it is.  I'm sure that will be great too.

Our first activity was a carriage ride in the morning, and our driver told us all kinds of inspirational stories (unlike the wagon ride, which was more of a secular history of the town).  The ride was beautiful, and though Jed tried to climb out of my arms and off the carriage several times, we enjoyed ourselves.  We then went on a short oxen ride, where we learned all the reasons that oxen were better as draft animals for the pioneers than horses.

After the ride with the oxen, we saw the blacksmith shop, and walked the Trail of Hope - a pathway lined with quotes from people's journals about the journey west, after they were forced from their homes and driven out of Nauvoo.

Sadly, it was then time for the Hubers to drive back to Wisconsin (Taylor couldn't miss any more soccer practices), but the rest of us stayed for a little while longer and saw a couple more things.  We took a tour of Brigham Young's house first, which Jed wouldn't stand for - he had no interest in being inside and being quiet.  Scott spent our time there, and at the printing press (our next stop) walking Jed around outside to keep him happy.

Here is a collage of some more pictures from our couple days in Nauvoo:

I hadn't had a chance to get any pictures of the Nauvoo temple, so we stopped by there on the way out.  It is a beautiful building, built by people who loved the Lord and sacrificed so much to serve Him.  I'm grateful for their sacrifices so that I can live with the restored gospel!  I love my Heavenly Father and truly have a testimony that Jesus Christ is our brother and our savior, who died for us.  Through the Atonement, we have a chance to be forgiven of our many inevitable sins and mistakes and live with Heavenly Father and Jesus again, in eternal joy and glory.