Vacation!

At the first rest area after entering Vermont

Day one: Joseph Smith Memorial- We got up early to make it there at 9am.  We arrived after 11am.  It's a long drive, 2hrs and 40 minutes.  So we needed to stop for a potty break and to give the drivers a chance to stretch.

After the kids used the facilities, then they also had to play on the playground for a few minutes.  Which it wasn't until after the kids were leaving that we noticed the sign that said "No Pets!"  So my Dad says to the kids, "Uh oh!  We shouldn't have let you guys go on the playground!"  Jordan looks at him quizzically and asks, "Why not?"  And he points out the sign saying, "No pets allowed"

The sign on the left is not that playground sign, but another sign that I thought was humorous enough to take a picture of.

The Memorial was great!  We got the tour by Sister Elder Peterson.  Sister Peterson accidentally grabbed her husbands name tag, so though she introduced herself as Sister, we teased her about being Elder.  She had a good sense of humor about it.  Her husband showed up later and he didn't notice, even after Sister Peterson showed it to him.  We all got a good laugh from that as well.

Not as funny now as it was then.

Dad made a face, mom didn't smile.  If it's not the kids it's the adults!

What I like about this picture is that Madison and Grandpa didn't know that they were going to make the same silly face, yet there they are.  They are so lucky we love them!


When choosing the picture of the spire for the blog is was difficult.  I didn't want the best picture that I plan to reserve for my website.  But I also didn't want a bad picture.  So this is the worst picture with the bluest sky.  So I think that is a good compromise.

Not the best of the many I have, but the sky is the bluest.

The kids were doing several things here. But first, this  is the 2nd most sacred place in the world.  The first being where Christ was born. -According to a Prophet, but I now forget which one.  This spot is where the corner stone of the house where Joseph Smith was born.

So the kids either contemplating spiritual matters or praying.  I'm sure none of them were thinking anything but the most positive spiritual thoughts.  (Yeah, I can be delusional occasionally)  But they did want to pray, so we did as a family.

I want one of these!

This stretched limousine of a golf cart was the most fun part of the day!  We got to ride up and down hills at break neck speeds of up to 15 miles per hour! (I'm really just guessing, I don't know the actual speed) But it was so much fun we all commented on how we all know why they don't have the young Elders doing the tours.  We didn't request the ride, I think Sister Elder Peterson just really enjoys going on the ride.

So what good is a bridge if you can't jump off of it?  None at all if you ask my kids....

Why do the kids enjoy this?  I don't know, but they insisted on pictures.  It was fun watching them enjoy themselves pretending.

My mom caught Jordan praying on her own.  She left the group and went to the opposite side of the monument and knelt down to pray.  Mom went looking for her when she didn't pop up on the other side, then she motioned for me to come over quickly.  And here she is.  Madison and Bailey saw her and they too came over to pray silently.

I love my family!  My kids are amazing.  I don't know what I did to deserve such fantastic people for my own, but I am ever so grateful for them!

For my own ego, I hope it's good parenting.  But I also know that I'm just the second set of parents my kids have had and the previous set were perfect, which I am not.  So I can't take too much credit.