Thanksgiving Pictures

I've got a few pictures from our Thanksgiving trip with Paul's family! Our own camera was MIA so we had to rely on others to capture the moments. Here were some of the highlights for me.

Of course we hit the "must sees" like the blacksmith shop. Benjamin still proudly wears his prairie diamond ring around. My favorite place was the family living center which we visited by ourselves one afternoon (hence no pictures.) We got to see how they made wool and flax thread and fabric, candles, and Paul and Benjamin made a length of rope. On another evening some of us went to a performance at the old entertainment hall. It was really cute...lots of old people singing and dancing (and forgetting their lines). Here is part of the group outside the Printing Office, where John Taylor and George Q. Cannon lived and worked together. We took a carriage ride tour, and it was freezing! We were all bundled up in blankets, and sandwiched in pretty close. It was still a great tour.
Peter started screaming until I wrapped him up like this. Then he eventually fell asleep.

Our Thanksgiving dinner was delicious, especially considering we came to a pretty bare kitchen.

Here's Benjamin and Andrew peeking through one of the old windows that connected the original house to the addition. The cousins enjoyed running around the house together shooting Nerf guns (Abby and Patrick were smart enough to bring about six Nerf guns with them). They were about the only toys there.

We stayed at the farm home of the Hyrum Smith family. The original structure has been expanded and they've added a hot tub room, but you can tell which parts are original. It was a really special house! Behind Paul, you can see part of the original brick wall and window. I was surprised to see how large the original home actually was. We had more than enough space. It was such a pleasant experience just to be together! Whether it was visiting the sites or just lounging around in our PJs we loved every minute.

Here we are outside the Nauvoo Temple. It's incredible! I was struck at how enormous it is, and how beautifully detailed it is inside and out. I marvel at how the pioneers built it within the few short years that they were there without power tools or a lot of means. I also marvel that they were able to leave it behind. We got to take a walk down Parley's Street and read some of the journal entries from those early saints as they left. It was incredible to see the beautiful temple towering over the city just as it would have appeared to them as they left.

Here's the entire group. We were pretty lucky to have everyone together this Thanksgiving- especially since everyone besides us had to drive at least 13 hours to get there. Jan brought some family names, and all the married couples were able to do a session together for them.

It was a very memorable Thanksgiving. There was no "Black Friday" or local movie theaters, or even an elaborate Thanksgiving dinner, but we had an amazing time together. It was a really special place to remind us of all that we're most thankful for.