Going, going, gone...

So after much thought, prayer...and packing we ended up picking Columbia. After that came choosing what to bring and what to get rid of. Then came the drive...and drive...and drive. All 5 of us in a car for 8 days. We broke it up and visited Church History sights, that was totally worth it and hopefully something that the kids will remember. Our first official stop was Winter Quarters.

The Temple is beautiful. It is so peaceful, more so than any other one that I have been to. This window was breath taking. The kids were glad to stretch their legs and see the huge bugs.

This is a statue in the cemetery right in front of the temple. The statue is directly over the grave of an unknown child and depicts a Mother and Father digging a shallow grave to bury their baby daughter. The Spirit here was amazing, to think of the trials that were faced and the power of their testimonies. I tried to put myself in their place and it was emotionally draining.

In the visitor's center each of the kids were able to "pack" their own wagon. With little wooden shapes that represented things like tables, chairs and flour, the kids were able to learn what was most important to pack. Maybe we should have done that challenge before we moved to NY.

Lance, Claire and Jack were all able to turn the wagon wheel and count the turns. We should have let them do that on the way to NY to pass the time.

With a weighed down hand cart the kids worked together to pull.

While continuing on our drive the kids found amazing ways to entertain themselves. Lance was excited to watch a movie as long as he was able to wear the headphones. Jack discovered a great new trick of tracing Lance and Claire's hands. As long as it would keep him from teasing them they played along.

In the hotel there was plenty of time for jumping on the beds, splash baths and showing off your muscles!