Corn fields, Mounds and Carthage Visitor's Center

We've seen alot of CORN on our drives between Carthage and Nauvoo! See how tall the corn grows here!

One day we drove about 8 minutes north of Nauvoo on Main Street and happened upon a park of ancient Indian Mounds. 

There are 20 acres and 10 mounds. This is the largest one. They date 300 BC to 500 AD. 

You can see a mound up close on the right then another farther down on the right. 

At the Carthage Visitor's Center people are welcomed by these beautiful portraits and statue of the Savior.

In this room the visitor's get to watch a short video clip before touring historic Carthage Jail. I love the peaceful feeling in this room and the I enjoy the artwork around the room. 

The artwork follows the Restoration from the appearance of God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ to the Prophet Joseph Smith...

to when the Prophet Joseph received the Book of Mormon plates from the Angel Moroni...

when the original apostles Peter, James and John restored the priesthood to the earth through the Prophet Joseph Smith...

to the organization of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints on April 6, 1830.

This oil painting is when the Prophet Joseph and his brother Hyrum Smith left Nauvoo on their way to Carthage and looked back upon the Nauvoo Temple.

This original oil painting is of Joseph Smith teaching a small group by the Mississippi. The artist, Theodore Gorka, painted himself into the picture. He is the man holding the hat. The man holding his chin is the man who taught and baptized the artist. WE LOVE SERVING AT THE HISTORICAL CARTHAGE JAIL AND VISITOR'S CENTER.  It is quite an experience!

Our Pre-Farewell to Nauvoo ---- We're Moved to Carthage!

We have a new assignment and will now serve daily at the Historic Carthage Jail and Visitor's Center. As a result, we physically moved from our lovely upstairs apartment at 920 Hotchkiss.  Our move brought feelings of "leaving Nauvoo" even though we had 4 months to go! So, to celebrate our time thus far in the Illinois Nauvoo Mission, we thought it would be nice to reminisce a bit. 

Elder Walton made some improvements in the front garden while we'd been here. The first picture of the house is when we first arrived... and this picture above is 14 months later. TA-DAAA a beautiful garden.

While living in Nauvoo we made friends with the cardinals.

Elder Walton pounded rods into recognizable shapes, preferably small horseshoes.

Sis. Walton can't be "sterotyped" as your typical print-shop apprentice. She minds her "p"s and her "q"s, doesn't rearrange the furniture and knows what it really means to "cut to the chase". 

Elder Walton fit right in at the  Browning Gun shop as everything there is really old. 

Elder Walton welcomed many to George Riser's shop, 

and after the tour gave everyone "the boot".  

At the Post Office, Sis. Walton told many about the 1840's postage problems. Remember, there is never a problem with "knee-mail" (prayer). 

 We sometimes served together in the Family Living Center. Sis. Walton borrowed the "take-home" shawl loom and made 2 shawls at home. 

Elder Walton had a barrel of fun showing how a cooper plied his craft.  

Brick making is an ongoing work of art. Each brick receives personalized attention. In the 1840's it took 40,000 bricks to make a small home at a cost of 2 cents each.   

These souvenir bricks are made by the missionaries everyday and they stock up in the winter months. They have to stay ahead of all the visitors. 

Sis. Walton got cultured at the Cultural Hall. Even though we now live in Carthage, we still perform  in "Rendezvous" (on this stage) and "Sunset" (the outdoor stage). That's a total of 4 shows a week.

Sis. Walton's favorite places to serve were the homes of Brigham Young, John Taylor,  this pictured here - the home of Heber C. Kimball. 

 Elder Walton discovered that he likes pottery and might just take a class or two when he gets home.  He also learned how to make rugs on a loom. (see below)

The Land and Records site was Sis. Walton's "second home". (Note: relaxed position for photo only)

This was our temporary apartment until the apartment in Carthage was vacated. The Horlachers were moving into our old place and we moved into their place in Carthage. It actually all worked out well. 

This is the Bushnell House and it has 5 apartments in it - two apartments on the main floor, 2 on the second floor and one on the third floor. Our spacious apartment is on the main floor. 

We now take tours through historic Carthage Jail recounting its history and the martyrdom of the Prophet Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum on 27 June 1844.  It is a place of peace even though something sad happened here 172 years ago because we remember them and their accomplishments. In the Prophet Joseph's short life of 38 years he accomplished all that our Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ asked him to do. He restored the gospel of Jesus Christ along with His priesthood which is the authority to act in God's name. He translated the ancient record - the Book of Mormon-which stands as a second witness of Jesus Christ. Through the Prophet Joseph, all the covenants and ordinances necessary for all of God's children to be able to return to Him were restored. Joseph truly  the "Prophet of the Restoration". 

In And Around Nauvoo!

The Lucy Mack Smith home is open and if Bryce had his way...

...it would be called the Joseph Bates Noble house - after all Joseph built it and he IS Bryce's 2nd great grandfather!

We thought we'd stop in at the Riser Boot Shop but nothing too serious was going on there.

I've served at Brigham's home many times and thought we'd check on the....

... two baby robins on the window ledge just outside the counsel room window. Cute!  

We'd never been in the above ground cellar at Brigham's home. It was cool and comfortable. 

By Lyon's Drug Store, we spotted a bee in the herb garden. Too bad we hadn't our bee box with us!

This homey picture is of the side door of the Mansion house. 

This lovely creature was donated to historic Nauvoo and will add a new dimension to our "rides"! 

Nope, just kidding! These two camels live near the small town of Kahoka, Missouri 20 minutes away from Keokuk, Iowa. They were actually for sale but we didn't think we could get them home to Canada at the end of our mission!

A Litte Bit of This and That!

This is us at the Sarah Granger Kimball home enjoying all the wonderful peonies. They were beautiful! 

Bryce and I have learned how to chat with people who write in to mormon.org. Only full time missionaries can do this. The young sister missionaries here in Nauvoo have taught us how to do it and we're enjoying it. I helped a man in Nigeria who wanted to meet with the missionaries. 

Bryce chatted with a man in Poland who had some questions about the purpose of life. 

One day last week I helped plant flowers. It was alot of fun working and visiting together. 

Yup, that's me digging in the dirt! I have to make a correction because I actually learned that it isn't dirt, it's soil. 

The full time employedd and master gardener Richard places all the plants and...

TA-DA! Instant garden! Now squint and imagine these plants a foot tall and so full you can't see the soil! That's what they'll look like in the not too distant future! Oh to have this kind of weather in Calgary, Alberta!