Life in a Northern Town: Summer 14 Roadtrip: Day 4

Day 4: Tuesday June 24th

Another full day in Nauvoo!

We began our day with breakfast at Grandpa John's Café. Then we took our happy bellies down to the brick yard for a tour before we saw the children's play "Just Plain Anna Amanda." On the corner by the brick yard, we caught a performance from Youth of Zion, a fantastic a capella group in period costumes.

Youth of Zion singing beautifully

Niles, Rich, Addie, and Heidi taking in some music.

Niles snuck away and climbed on a wagon.

At the end of "Just Plain Anna Amanda," Amanda pulled James up from the audience
to sing with her. He did GREAT!

After the show, lots of kids took pictures with the cast.

Heidi, James, Amanda, Niles, and the cast...

After the play, we drove over to Carthage to visit Carthage Jail where Joseph and Hyrum Smith were killed on June 27, 1844. We noticed on our tour that we traveled from Nauvoo to Carthage on the very same day Joseph and Hyrum made their last journey--June 24th.

Addie, Niles, Heidi, and James at the Joseph and Hyrum statue in front of the jail.

James hugging his hero

My handsome boy!

A beautiful painting of Joseph's "Farewell, Nauvoo."

Niles was pretty rowdy, so I kept him in the visitor's center while Rich took
the big kids on a tour of the jail. Addie, James, and Heidi on the tour.

James at the window where Joseph was shot.

James by the door full of bullet holes.

James, Heidi, and Addie outside the window where Joseph was shot and fell to his death.

On the way back to Nauvoo, we ate sack lunches and talked about our visit, then we went back to the hotel. I took a nap with Niles and Ammon while Rich took the big kids souvenir shopping. Later we had dinner in Keokuk at Long John Silvers, then came back to watch "Sunset on the Mississippi" and BYU's Jazz Band concerts in Nauvoo's outdoor theater. Around 9pm we heade back to the hotel, but stopped at the temple to watch the sun set. The kids chased fireflies on the temple lawn while I held the baby and Rich took pictures. It was a beautiful night and I felt my Grandpa could see us there.