Fall Fun!

Inside activities? Nauvoo Missionaries make lots  humanitarian projects. Sandy's made 4 baby quilts so far. 

Outside? The fall leaves are turning!

Beautiful fall day in Nauvoo - Just see...

You're Related to Who??

This is a painting of Heber J. Grant. He was the 7th President of the Church. Well, as I served in the Lands and Records historic site on Friday, I was able to talk to one of his decendants. The couple came to see if there was any information on the Grant family in Nauvoo. Well, I was able to map the location of Heber J. Grant's father's land showing where the home had been in historic Nauvoo. We also had a file of digital information that I put on a CD for them to take home. At one point, he mentioned that he wasn't a member of the LDS church. With this in mind, we three went through the file together so I could explain the background of all the information. He loves history and was interested in knowing how it all fit together. In the end, I asked him if he'd like to know more about the church. He stunned his wife when he said yes and that the missionaries could come to their home to tell them more. It was an exciting day!

We Love Being Missionaries!

We love being missionaries here in Nauvoo! You know, sometimes people come to Nauvoo and they didn't even know it was here. They were out for a weekend drive and happened upon it. They often take a wagon ride that gives them an overview of Historic Nauvoo.
One day, Sandy met a couple in the Lands and Records Office who had just discovered they had a Mormon ancestor who lived in Nauvoo. They had no idea and decided to drive 3 hours to get here to see what it was all about! They were so curious about our beliefs because their ancestor had believed the same things. They accepted a copy of the Book of Mormon too. It was a great experience. 

One day this summer, Bryce gave a tour in the Family Living Center to a youth group of about 25 people. His demonstration was how the early Saints made ropes but there is always a spiritual message too. Some of the group got to participate and when the rope was finished, Bryce pointed out the loose strands that were sticking out all along the length of the rope.  These individual strands could be easily broken off. It was dramatic to see the single strand be broken off and then fall to the ground. The lesson is that that we need to be woven tightly together with others in our youth groups or our families. We are stronger as we strengthen each other. 

Another day, Sandy met a couple who had just driven into Nauvoo and knew nothing about it. She pointed out the Nauvoo Temple to them. It turned into a touching conversation about the early Mormon Saints who built the original Temple here and their incredible faith. They were interested in the restoration of the priesthood and that we can be joined as families even after death.

An Outing to Holland - actually Pella, Iowa

For this Preperation Day's adventure, we went to Pella, Iowa. It is a town founded by a group people from Holland. They left Holland looking for religious freedom. They arrived in the USA around the same time the Saints had left Nauvoo in 1846. The Dutch actually considered buying Nauvoo for their refuge, but in the end, decided to buy unfarmed land in Iowa. The main attractions in Pella are the Bakery (and you will see why), the Historic Village and working Windmill, and Tulip Time (festival in April)

First ---- the Jaarsma Bakery

Jarsma Bakery had so many Dutch Yummies to choose from!

We bought some for now and for later. We also bought their State famous salami and summer sausage from the meat market across the street. All very tasty!!

The town square is the center of the April Festival where tulips abound. Maybe we'll have a chance to come back in the spring. 

Historic house of one of the founding families. It was closed for the season. 

Town square from a different angle. Note the bakery bottom right. 

You can see the windmill down the road. It grinds the flour used in the bakery. It was made in Holland, disassembled and then reassembled in Pella.  

Ya...Das is Elder Walton.. 

and das is Sister Walton.

Part of the tour in the historic village was to see an incredible miniature of a town in Holland. 

This man "drives" the blades of the windmill so that the wind is caught just right. The whole top of the windmill can turn too. There aren't very many active windmills in Holland and you are not allowed to tour any that are working. So this was a unique opportunity to learn about windmills. 

The end result is a bag of flour!

Making wooden shoes wasn't an easy job.  Much of Holland is below sea level. This is why there are dykes to keep the sea from overflowing the country. Leather shoes wore out too quickly and got wet too easily so the people in Holland wore wooden shoes.

These are shops and homes in the historic village. Very quaint, picturesque and interesting. 

I did "try my hand" at the puppet theatre. I'd like Bryce to build one for when the grandkids come over.  

I think it would be alot of fun and much better than TV.  

This is Bryce's version of a "selfie"! Along with the puppet show, kids could dress up.

Tools used to carve wooden shoes.

Ladies...look at the old fashioned... perm machine???? Not too sure about that one! 

We tried to call home from Pella but we had a bad connection!

Bryce really enjoyed the large personal collection of Delft. It really was beautiful.  

One of the side streets had a cute walkway. The street directly around the town square and the windmill are very quaint and inviting.