The Epic Vacation, Days 3, 4 and 5

Day 3 – We took our time getting out the door in Des Moines and had a short (3 hour) drive to Keokuk, Iowa.  Iowa is really pretty.  I expected a lot of flat, straight and boring but with all the trees and cute houses and little towns the scenery was very enjoyable.  

We checked into our hotel in Keokuk, got cleaned up, and let the kids take a swim in the hotel pool.  Then we drove over the river into Illinois.  The drive up the Mississippi was beautiful.  Jeremiah said they called it the “Big Muddy” and Kieran kept saying, “Babbo, it doesn’t look muddy, it’s blue!” 

When we pulled into Nauvoo all the sites were closed, so we just drove around and I reminisced a little.  They’ve built a lot of homes for temple missionaries, the brickyard has a new building with rooms to take the “tours” in instead of sitting out in the heat, and of course the Nauvoo Temple which was built after I was there.   They’ve built a new outdoor stage by the Visitor’s Center and moved where they stage the Nauvoo pageant – to my old backyard, in fact.  The Nauvoo pageant in now held behind the Yearsley house, where I lived with the other sister YPM’s.  (That’s Young Performing Missionary.)  Telling people that I was there the summer of ’96 made me feel so old!!  That was a looong time ago. 

We had dinner at the Nauvoo State Park and the kids played on the playground.  Jeremiah got everybody their dinner since it’s hard for me to do much while I’m hobbling around on crutches. 

Hoorah for Nauvoo!

Day 4 – Today was all about Nauvoo.  We went to the Skovil Bakery, the Browning home, the carriage and wagon rides, the blacksmith shop, the brickyard, and saw Rendezvous in Old Nauvoo.  Jeremiah and I took turns going to the Nauvoo Temple to do sealings while the other hung out with the kids.  I could have stayed for days.  I wanted to see the sights, visit with the missionaries, and then I realized that really what I wanted was to start rehearsing for a show.  So it was time to get me out of there… ;)

Day 5 – It was not planned, but we stopped at two more houses in Nauvoo today.  We didn’t see my favorite houses on Day 4, so on the way out we took the tours in the Heber C. Kimball and  Wilford Woodruff homes.  I loved those houses, and it was fun to remember my companion, Sister Burton, and I hanging out together in between tours.  She and I even went upstairs and played the antique music box – we were so naughty!  

After my last little bit of reminiscing we headed out of Nauvoo and up to Niagra Falls.  It was the longest day yet of driving.  We pulled in late, late, late at the Super 8 – our shadiest hotel yet.  I didn’t even get undressed to go to bed because I just wanted to get up and get out of there as quickly as I could the next morning.