Kansas trip part III--Independence

The Christus was beautiful and I couldn't pass up Livi's pose.
Monkeys

Lyssa driving the horse and Amber

Cabin replica in the LDS visitors center

Community of Christ Temple

By the time we got here the kids were REALLY tired of being in the car. Our first stop was to the RLDS temple, now known as the Community of Christ. It was really interesting. They had a whole different set of apostles and church leaders. They said that after Joseph Smith was killed and the church left for Utah there were several offshoots and a few years later they all got together and elected Joseph's son as the new leader. He then passed leadership on to his son and on down through the years. However, now they are so different I think it would be hard to recognize much of our own faith in theirs. They had a museum with great artifacts. Original paintings of Joseph and Emma, and a picture of Emma just before she died. Letters, books, and other belongings of the early saints. Scott and I could have stayed longer but by then the kids were playing tag in the foyer and the babies were climbing on the exhibits so we called it quits.

We headed over to the Visitors Center across the street which was much more kid-friendly. They had touch-screen computers and a play area downstairs. The kids climbed on everything and played to their hearts' content. They had a neat exhibit of Arnold Frieberg's work because he just passed away. Other than that, it was a typical visitors center. And we were finally off for Kansas!

Kansas trip part II--Liberty Jail

The kids in front of Liberty Jail.
Replica of the Liberty Jail

Our kids had been in the car for about 20 hours by the time we got here. But I was so pleased with how reverent they were (except for Soran) when we got to Liberty Jail. It was an amazing place. This is the jail where Joseph and Hyrum and 3 others spent 5 months, from December to April. The jail cell was in the basement and was very cold and dirty. There was nothing for heat except their blankets and the food was rotten. The ceiling was so low that 5 of them couldn't even stand up straight. The worst part, though, was hearing about the suffering of their families and the members of the church as they were forced from their homes in winter. It was here that Joseph cried out (D & C 121:1-2):

"O God, where art thou? And where is the pavilion that covereth thy hiding place? How long shall they hand be stayed and thine eye, yea they pure eye, behold from the eternal heavens the wrongs of thy people and of thy servants, and thine ear be penetrated with their cries?"
He received this revelation in return (D&C 121:7-8):
"My son, peace be unto they soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment; and then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high; thou shalt triumph over thy foes."

There were signs all over the visitors center that said, Where Faith Was Tried. I feel like our faith has been tested this last year, but I can't imagine going through that and feeling as lost as I'm sure Joseph Smith did. But what a comforting reply. And I know that although the end is unclear to us in the midst of our trials, God does know and He will help us through.

Kansas trip part I--Adam-ondi-Ahman

Scott and the kids overlooking the valley.

Spring Hill, also known as Adam-ondi-Ahman.

Scott read some church history books a few years ago and has been anxious to see some of the places he read about. We planned a trip but it fell through, so we were ready to go by the time we left this year. We left on Sunday and traveled 8 hours to Cheyenne, Wyoming. Then we drove 10 hours the next day to Missouri. Wow, it was so beautiful. Green everywhere you looked. Some of the freeway was blocked off because some ponds had overflown. We stayed at Scott's aunt's house and it was neat. They own over 180 acres which they farm. We were really excited to see fireflies but there weren't any. We also learned about chiggers and Lyssa was lucky enough to catch some. Her ankle was all puffy and itchy the next day. The humidity was out of control. There was moisture running down their windows on the outside and Scott's glasses fogged over when he stepped outside. It made me kind of claustrophobic. The air was really thick.

Anywho, the next day we came to Adam-ondi-Ahman. Historically, this was the place where Adam, Seth, Enos, Cainan, and other sons met and Adam gave them his last blessing. Also, it was the place where Adam offered up sacrifice after he was cast out of the garden of Eden. This is the place where Adam will come and a great meeting will be held before the Second Coming. It's a beautiful place.

Christian's 8!!!

My two boys doing what they love most.
Christian is such a good big brother. He loves to entertain the babies.
3 years old--boys and their sticks.

Christian making his boy face.

My camera still wasn't working at Christian's birthday party so I didn't get any pics but I did get some good video. I asked him what kind of party he wanted and what a surprise, he said, "Wii." I decided I didn't want them all just sitting around for hours, so we started at the park and had pizza and cake and played games. The kids jumped on goombas (balloons) and collected coins, they "fed" Mario some meatballs (golf balls) and we had a Yoshi egg pinata. THEN we came home to play for hours and had a sleepover. It was weird this year because usually we have friends but it was just cousins. Oh, and Michael, but he's practically a cousin. Then we had breakfast where Scott taught all the boys how to call, "Woman, bring me my drink." They thought he was hilarious.

Observations I've made about my one boy growing up in a house full of girls:
1. He calls his underwear panties.

2. He goes to the bathroom sitting down (until he was about 7 he wouldn't go outside, he'd just say, I'll wait until we get home, even if we were camping).

3. He sings along to Taylor Swift.

4. He's watched all the Barbie movies.

5. His closet is overflowing with dresses which he always complains he has to clean up.

6. He's a sweet, sensitive boy.

I love my Christian. He always wants to do the right thing and make everyone happy. He gets stressed if he can't make everyone happy with his decision. He has the sweetest little puppy dog eyes. I can't believe he's 8, but I'm so excited to see where he's headed.

Gutter of Fire

The Grand Finale
Lots of sparklers
The kids would chase the parachute guys--Alyssa's catch

Christian, Amber (ignore the underwear), Kayla, Aunt Holly and Ayden enjoying the show

Scott's sister and her husband throw a firework party every year for the 24th of July. And what, you may ask, is the 24th of July? Utah's own Pioneer Day, and who doesn't need more holidays? We started out the day at the park where they have a bunch of free activities (making butter, relays, watermelon eating contest, making vests, etc.) and the kids had a good time. Scott was actually able to come this year and he and I sawed a log with an old-fashioned saw--the one with a person on each side. That is harder than it looks! Then we went to the BBQ and firework extravaganza. It's fun to be close to everything and just sit and enjoy the weather. Unfortunately the show was a little TOO good, though, because the fire trucks came. But they only gave a warning so we'll see you next year!

Summertime

Our camera is having trauma so I don't have any pics of the last few weeks, sniff sniff. But I pulled out our new video camera and figured out how to work it (mostly) and got some great videos. Now I have to figure out how to transfer to the computer.
Anywho, the Thompson reunion. Scott's family was in charge of it this year so it was in Provo. I think there were over 80 people there. It was a lot of fun to see his cousins and aunts and uncles. We started out with a BBQ and outdoor movie--Meet the Robinsons, love it! The next day we went on a Book of Mormon hike and then played water games. Saturday we hung out and put together a scrapbook for his grandma's 90th birthday. Then we went swimming and had the party that night. It went well. I decorated with lots of confetti. Holly didn't hate me as much as I thought she would while we were doing cleanup. Sunday was the Sweeney. Scott made it to the semi-finals in horseshoes but lost to David and Seth this year. Bummer. His luck is just elsewhere these days. But he had fun playing. I think it's mostly because while he's in the running he doesn't have to help with the kids. They love this reunion. So many fun games and PRIZES.
Our 4th of July was great. Saturday we got together with my family and had a BBQ (did I mention I am so sick of hot dogs and hamburgers?) and then went to the park and watched the fireworks. Sunday night we took the three older kids to spend the night with Grandma on the streets. Craziness. Monday morning was my first 5k! It was so fun. I got there and we had a flag ceremony and then they organized us by how fast we ran. They have these cool little timer things that go on your shoes. I ran pretty slow, but I ran the whole thing, which was my goal. The last leg was running uphill on 9th east (pretty steep). And I had so much energy at the end I sprinted about 100 yards. Next time I'll go more for speed. The bummer part was I had told Scott the wrong park to meet at so no one was there and he had to walk his own 5k to catch up to me. Oh, well. He wants to try and race. I say soon so I can beat his pants off!
The Reece reunion was the next weekend. We played hard. Thursday we had a family history activity and went swimming and watched a movie that night. Friday we went to Lagoon! Scott took off with the older 2 kids and rode the big rides. They had a great time. I had fun watching Livi and Amber the kiddie rides. Soran wanted on so badly, but I wasn't about to pay $40 for her to ride a couple rides. Saturday the boys went golfing and the girls went out for lunch and shopping. We had a talent show that night and it was hilarious! Good times.
But I must say I'm glad to get back into a slower routine. It's kind of hard to drag 5 kids all over. Couple week break and Kansas here we come!

Some days

When I get older and my children are gone and I look back on these days with fond memories and everything seemed perfect, I want to have these times to remember, too. Last night I was so tired and thought the last thing I had to do was vacuum and then I could go to bed when I walked into Soran's room and smelled throw up. So I took took her out of bed, gave her a bath, washed bedding, changed bedding, got her dressed again and got another bottle for her. THEN vacuumed. Woke up this morning to Christian jumping on the bed and Livi crying. Her diaper had leaked in the night and she was running a fever. Changed her clothes and started washing bedding. Took the kids to breakfast at the school and then grocery shopping. Got to check out and they said the computers were down and they weren't taking debit cards. I was like, you're kidding, right? Because I just spent 2 hours shopping. Parked my cart and stomped around the front of the store for 10 minutes, got back into line and waited again and finally checked out. Took the kids to lunch at the school where Livi threw up all over her tray and then peed on me. Cleaned that mess up and hurried home to take a shower. Proceeded to do 3 days worth of dishes and put up groceries. Went to the library with 6 children to get a book for Scott. Found out the kids were saying words they weren't supposed to so put lemon juice in their mouths. Christian threw up. More laundry. Movie. Beds. Thank goodness this day is over.
I love being a mother but there are days when I don't feel up to the task. And I wonder how much psychological damage I'm doing. But that's probably mostly the tired talking. Good night.