Youth trip to Nauvoo

All I can say is wow! I had so much fun with the youth and it was a truly spiritually uplifting experience. The only down part was having to drive overnight Tuesday night to get there Wednesday morning and overnight Friday night to get back home Saturday morning. Here are some of the things we did:

Wed.: Watched a film, “Remembering Nauvoo” in the Visitor’s Center and walked through the Women’s Garden (the girls took goofy pictures with all of the statues); the kids did baptisms in the temple (my job was handing them towels as they exited the font and it was so neat to be able to see the baptisms and see their faces as they finished—there were some baptisms where I felt the Spirit really strong); watched the “High Hopes and River Boats” show (a musical drama documented from histories and journals of early Nauvoo residents); walked down the Nauvoo main street and visited some of the shops with my group of four girls

Thurs.: Walked the 3-mile hand cart trek with the kids {the weather was awesome—really cool and breezy—we were so blessed!}; took pictures at the temple; went on the horse-drawn wagon tour of Old Nauvoo; toured some of the Nauvoo sites (Family Living Center where we made a rope and learned how to make bread and candles; got cookies at the Scovil Bakery; played games at Pioneer Pastimes; got a “prairie diamond” at the blacksmith shop and a Nauvoo brick from the brickyard); watched the “Sunset on the Mississippi Show” (a really fun variety show featuring senior missionaries and young performing missionaries); went to the Nauvoo Pageant—A Tribute to the Prophet Joseph Smith. The pageant was AWESOME!!! The actors, music, story, costumes and props were all fantastic! Probably my favorite part of the trip.

Fri.: Walked around Old Nauvoo; watched the “Just Plain Anna Amanda” show—a short musical play; had lunch, played games, and watched some of the youth in a stick pulling competition at Pioneer Pastimes; took my group of girls to get ice cream; watched the “Joseph Smith: The Prophet of the Restoration” movie; drove to Carthage Jail and had a testimony meeting. Between the movie, the jail tour, and the testimony meetings, my eyes were swollen from crying so much. It’s been a while since I felt the Spirit that strongly for such a long period of time. Even the tour guide at Carthage Jail cried a bit and said she rarely gets that emotional but she really felt the Spirit with our group—I was bawling, BTW.

I loved, loved, loved Nauvoo. I really want to take Jared now.

I’ll just add a few of my favorite pictures but I’m not even going to edit them to make them look better, like I usually do—these are straight out of my camera:

{My girls in the Women’s Garden}:

{Me & my group of girls}:

{The beautiful Nauvoo Temple}:

{My group on the trek}:

{The Pageant}:

{Stick pulling competition!}:

{Carthage Jail}: