2nd leg: Miracles
Monday, June 25: I got up in the morning and this was my reward. It felt a bit like Heaven was smiling down on me. This was a "little miracle" that blessed me that morning.
When we started the trip off, Saturday morning I gathered everyone around the cab while I was driving, and together we read 4 Nephi 1 versus 3, 5, 13, and 15. We talked about the versus that talked about the correlation between "no contention" and "miracles." I told the kids that there had been miracles that even allowed us to pull the trip off, and asked them if they would 1) help not have contention so that we could be more able to have miracles and 2) if when they spot the miracles if they could share them. So we have been spending the trip already talking about little miracles.
I had to do a quick run to Walmart, so I pulled out the RV, and everyone stayed asleep. Gracie was awake and so she and I ran in and got some essentials we needed. We then pulled back into camp, and everyone stayed asleep.
This morning I let the kids sleep in. Everyone's clocks are all kinds of messed up and McKay said he couldn't get to sleep until 3, and he and Abby slept until almost 12. Matt and Nate needed to stretch their legs, and started exploring the camp.
Karson and I needed to go and get quarters for laundry and were itching to get out and walk. So we walked a few miles around the town. For some reason, I am totally infatuated with the canal. Maybe it is because I know the history of what this canal meant to this area, but I totally loved walking by it. I am deeply in love with the beautiful lady that I made keep getting in the pictures, too!
The weather was the definition of perfection and we just enjoyed hanging out outside and not moving. All of our ears still felt like we were moving. So we were trying to get our land-legs back. But the weather was the perfect temp - the sun was warm, but not hot, and the shade was cool but not cold.
I roused everyone finally, and we got ready, and headed off for the day. First we were heading over to the E.B. Grandin press. Minutes before we were going to park the RV, Nate started to complain of a headache. He felt a little warm and Karson got him some ibuprofen and he started throwing a fit that he didn't want to leave the RV. We all got frustrated, and some of the kids started to get mad, but Karson worked her mom-magic and we convinced him we would pack him and he could color. Miracle: the meds kicked in fast and we had our happy Nate back for just long enough to do the tour!
The E.B. Grandin tour was A.M.A.Z.I.N.G. We could go and listen to it again. We all loved every minute of it.
After that we went and grabbed some lunch at Pizza Hut and were truly the only souls in the restaurant. This was oddly creepy to our kids. But the food was good and we were ready to go again.
With the perfect weather, and because the Sisters on Sunday had told us that the buses were coming Tuesday, we headed back to the Sacred Grove. This time, we had journals in hand and were ready to spend some time here. We met at a neat little devotional spot. I said a very few words, and we then spread the kids out. I took Nate on my shoulders most of the way because he just wasn't feeling well. But the Spirit of the place was amazing. We left the kids to have their time to themselves. The Spirit of the place was palpable.
As we left the kids each at their own secluded spot, Nate and I ended up hiking alone way back into the back corner. The Sacred Grove is surprisingly large. You can hike for a long ways in it. Way back in the corner, Nate and I stopped to rest. He and I were listening to the trees, and I reminded him of the video and of what happened there. He then told me he heard the birds singing "the bird song". He asked me to sing it. So we sang "Yes, I know Heavenly Father loves me." After we did, he told me "I feel good here." The Spirit in that place IS amazing.
I then hiked back and we rounded up all of the kids 1 by 1. We had left them for a little over 1/2 an hour - some more as it took time to round them all up. We then found a spot together and I bore a short testimony that I knew that Joseph Smith was a Prophet, and what he said happened there did indeed happen.
I then shared my conversation that Abby and I had had as we left the Sacred Grove Sunday afternoon. I had asked Abby if she felt the Spirit of the Grove. She said, "I didn't hear a whole symphony, but I heard some notes." I shared this with the kids and let them know that having a testimony meant hearing lots of "notes". That we rarely hear the whole symphony. The Spirit was strong, and I know they all felt it. We love, love, love this place.
On the way out, some wanted to hike more than others, and so some of us hiked as many trails as we could. We all came back to the RV and decided that we would stop for ice cream on the way back in. Nate's fever was back now, but it was another little miracle that it had stayed away just long enough that we had been able to get these things in.
We stopped for ice cream, and the nice man actually said the shop was closed, but wanted to give us ice cream anyways (another little miracle). So we got our ice cream. 😀
We then came back, and this time it took me like 12 tries to back the RV in. I had already parked it twice successfully that morning, but I just couldn't get it right tonight. Finally got it, after many laughs, and we settled in. The kids played with glow sticks, and again we enjoyed the completely perfect weather and the beauty of the area. Everyone was tired, so we crashed out early.
Nate woke up with fevers thru the night - so we are hoping he will feel better with a good night's sleep.
I had to do a quick run to Walmart, so I pulled out the RV, and everyone stayed asleep. Gracie was awake and so she and I ran in and got some essentials we needed. We then pulled back into camp, and everyone stayed asleep.
This morning I let the kids sleep in. Everyone's clocks are all kinds of messed up and McKay said he couldn't get to sleep until 3, and he and Abby slept until almost 12. Matt and Nate needed to stretch their legs, and started exploring the camp.
Karson and I needed to go and get quarters for laundry and were itching to get out and walk. So we walked a few miles around the town. For some reason, I am totally infatuated with the canal. Maybe it is because I know the history of what this canal meant to this area, but I totally loved walking by it. I am deeply in love with the beautiful lady that I made keep getting in the pictures, too!
The weather was the definition of perfection and we just enjoyed hanging out outside and not moving. All of our ears still felt like we were moving. So we were trying to get our land-legs back. But the weather was the perfect temp - the sun was warm, but not hot, and the shade was cool but not cold.
I roused everyone finally, and we got ready, and headed off for the day. First we were heading over to the E.B. Grandin press. Minutes before we were going to park the RV, Nate started to complain of a headache. He felt a little warm and Karson got him some ibuprofen and he started throwing a fit that he didn't want to leave the RV. We all got frustrated, and some of the kids started to get mad, but Karson worked her mom-magic and we convinced him we would pack him and he could color. Miracle: the meds kicked in fast and we had our happy Nate back for just long enough to do the tour!
The E.B. Grandin tour was A.M.A.Z.I.N.G. We could go and listen to it again. We all loved every minute of it.
After that we went and grabbed some lunch at Pizza Hut and were truly the only souls in the restaurant. This was oddly creepy to our kids. But the food was good and we were ready to go again.
With the perfect weather, and because the Sisters on Sunday had told us that the buses were coming Tuesday, we headed back to the Sacred Grove. This time, we had journals in hand and were ready to spend some time here. We met at a neat little devotional spot. I said a very few words, and we then spread the kids out. I took Nate on my shoulders most of the way because he just wasn't feeling well. But the Spirit of the place was amazing. We left the kids to have their time to themselves. The Spirit of the place was palpable.
As we left the kids each at their own secluded spot, Nate and I ended up hiking alone way back into the back corner. The Sacred Grove is surprisingly large. You can hike for a long ways in it. Way back in the corner, Nate and I stopped to rest. He and I were listening to the trees, and I reminded him of the video and of what happened there. He then told me he heard the birds singing "the bird song". He asked me to sing it. So we sang "Yes, I know Heavenly Father loves me." After we did, he told me "I feel good here." The Spirit in that place IS amazing.
I then hiked back and we rounded up all of the kids 1 by 1. We had left them for a little over 1/2 an hour - some more as it took time to round them all up. We then found a spot together and I bore a short testimony that I knew that Joseph Smith was a Prophet, and what he said happened there did indeed happen.
I then shared my conversation that Abby and I had had as we left the Sacred Grove Sunday afternoon. I had asked Abby if she felt the Spirit of the Grove. She said, "I didn't hear a whole symphony, but I heard some notes." I shared this with the kids and let them know that having a testimony meant hearing lots of "notes". That we rarely hear the whole symphony. The Spirit was strong, and I know they all felt it. We love, love, love this place.
We then came back, and this time it took me like 12 tries to back the RV in. I had already parked it twice successfully that morning, but I just couldn't get it right tonight. Finally got it, after many laughs, and we settled in. The kids played with glow sticks, and again we enjoyed the completely perfect weather and the beauty of the area. Everyone was tired, so we crashed out early.
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