We took a short family vacation last week to Niagara Falls, Palmyra, NY and Kirtland, OH. It was amazing to see the Falls up close. We stayed on the American side of the Falls because we don't have passports, but it was still a great view of their beauty.
The Falls begin in this picture where the mist and rainbow are. We were standing behind the Falls on a pedestrian bridge. The buildings in the background are in Canada.
We took a boat ride to have a close encounter with the Falls. A souvenir rain poncho was included with the ticket price because we got soaked! Ashleigh couldn't handle the amount of water that poured on us, so we hung out on the bottom deck for most of the ride allowing me to take plenty of pictures.
Posing on a pedestrian bridge behind the Falls.
We enjoyed walking the temple grounds while we waited for Nathan and Grandma Borders to go through the temple. The flowers and lawn were amazing!
This is the Sacred Grove behind Joseph Smith's boyhood home. I know that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ appeared to Joseph Smith in this very place. Its sacredness is so evident when walking through it. I can't wait to go back!
Joseph's boyhood home. Eight children lived in this tiny log home with their mother and father. It was humbling to imagine and made me grateful for my home.
Our trip to Palmyra was planned at the time of the annual Hill Cumorah Pageant which takes place on the hill where Joseph Smith obtained the gold plates which contained writings of ancient prophets. The pageant is amazing! The pageant brings the stories of the Book of Mormon to life with real fire, rain, and lightning. After a really intense war scene that had tons of fire and deafening sound effects, Owen was awestruck and said, "That was awesome!" It truly was! It is SO hard to believe that the cast of 720 volunteer Church members learn the entire pageant in exactly 1 week. The volunteer actors camp in tents during the week practice and the week of the pageant. They practice from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. everyday. Maybe we'll be in it one day.
The costumes were so detailed and colorful. We loved seeing the actors walk around to talk to the crowd before the pageant began. 
Trying out some pioneer children's games on the Kirtland Temple grounds. I think I need to get a set of these because they really enjoyed them and it might keep them busy for hours.
The real joy of our trip was having the opportunity to visit some important historical sites of our Church. Palmyra, New York is the town where the gospel of Jesus Christ was restored to the earth by Joseph Smith who lived in Palmyra in the 1820s. We visited the Palymra New York Temple which is situated just minutes from the Sacred Grove where Joseph Smith saw God the Father and Jesus Christ.
We enjoyed walking the temple grounds while we waited for Nathan and Grandma Borders to go through the temple. The flowers and lawn were amazing! This is the Sacred Grove behind Joseph Smith's boyhood home. I know that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ appeared to Joseph Smith in this very place. Its sacredness is so evident when walking through it. I can't wait to go back!A special moment in the Sacred Grove.
Joseph's boyhood home. Eight children lived in this tiny log home with their mother and father. It was humbling to imagine and made me grateful for my home.Our trip to Palmyra was planned at the time of the annual Hill Cumorah Pageant which takes place on the hill where Joseph Smith obtained the gold plates which contained writings of ancient prophets. The pageant is amazing! The pageant brings the stories of the Book of Mormon to life with real fire, rain, and lightning. After a really intense war scene that had tons of fire and deafening sound effects, Owen was awestruck and said, "That was awesome!" It truly was! It is SO hard to believe that the cast of 720 volunteer Church members learn the entire pageant in exactly 1 week. The volunteer actors camp in tents during the week practice and the week of the pageant. They practice from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. everyday. Maybe we'll be in it one day.The costumes were so detailed and colorful. We loved seeing the actors walk around to talk to the crowd before the pageant began. 
After the Church was organized by Joseph Smith, the Saints faced intense persecution. They were repeatedly forced from their homes. It makes me so sad to think how hard this must of been for them. The Saints eventually settled in Kirtland, Ohio in the 1830s where they built their first temple. This is a picture of it today. It is so big! It is hard to believe they constructed it during a time of limited tools, money, and technology.
Trying out some pioneer children's games on the Kirtland Temple grounds. I think I need to get a set of these because they really enjoyed them and it might keep them busy for hours. Kirtland is situated on Lake Erie which we were able to enjoy the evening we were there. The water appears to go on forever.
Our Church has restored some of the homes and businesses that the Saints owned during their time in Kirtland and offers guided tours of them. We learned so much about the lives of the early Saints. Owen prefered seeing the homes and businesses from the outside instead of listening to the missionaries teach us inside, so we spent most of the tours outdoors.
Waiting outside the N.K. Whitney Store. Doesn't he look so tiny on that big bench?
Our Church has restored some of the homes and businesses that the Saints owned during their time in Kirtland and offers guided tours of them. We learned so much about the lives of the early Saints. Owen prefered seeing the homes and businesses from the outside instead of listening to the missionaries teach us inside, so we spent most of the tours outdoors.
Waiting outside the N.K. Whitney Store. Doesn't he look so tiny on that big bench?
3 comments:
We actually just looked at our pictures to all the same places today! But it was almost seven years ago that we went. I really wish that we could make a trip back and spend more time. Trav's brother got married in the Palmyra Temple and we drove from Utah all the way out there with a little 10 month old Trenton. YES, we were crazy!
What a fun vacation. We loved going to the pageant but I wish we would have had more time to spend as well. We went to Niagara Falls too, so amazing up close. When we went to Kirtland the stake put on a little play production that was a lot of fun! My kiddos still talk about it.
I am so jealous! My parents did all of that last year and had amazing experiences! I want to go so bad! How exciting to be able to do that with your family!
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