10th Anniversary

Yeah!

We haven't been married for 10 years. Technically.

The kids were heading back to school in the first week of August, so we scheduled our trip for the end of July.

Grandma Kathleen flew in from Utah to take care of the kids for
6 whole days.


6!

6!


One more time...and really let that sink in...


6 whole days.


I know, right? She really loves me. She proved it.

So we picked her up late Sunday night and we spent Monday grocery shopping and writing down detailed instructions to Chuck e cheese and Walmart (what more do you need?)

Tuesday morning Mark and I got up early and snuck (sneaked? snook?) out of the house at 5:45 am. We left the kids sleeping in their beds and let my mom know she was officially "in charge". We got into the car. I felt that feeling of fear and "what if something terrible happens?" wash over me. We said a prayer and asked for safety and comfort for everyone. And we drove away.

First of all, there was not a single snack or sippy cup involved in this trip. At no time did I reach into the back seat to deliver food or pick up trash. It was surreal. I took little naps and played with Mark's iphone while he drove. We stopped at McDonalds for breakfast in Springfield, Missouri. We then vowed that we would not eat McDonalds again...at least on this trip....nasty greasy hash brown ovals.

Our first stop was Carthage Jail. I had never been and wanted to stop and go through the tour. I was struck by the short period of time that Joseph and his companions spent there...only a few days. Also, I found it was interesting that the room they were staying in was the bedroom of the jailer and his wife. They had given it up to the prisoners and slept downstairs in the kitchen so they wouldn't be so hot in the dungeon cell. Interesting, huh?

It was raining so we didn't spend much time on the grounds, although I really thought they were beautiful and had a nice peaceful feeling about them. For me, I kind of expected to feel some strong emotion while I was there. But honestly, I felt like I do when I visit my father's grave....a sense that he's not there. My father is busy doing the work he was meant to do after this life and I'm positive Joseph Smith's spirit is likewise engaged.

We went on to Nauvoo and were able to make the 3:00 session. Going into the temple was so different than any other temple I've been to. It seemed almost like a house. When you go in the front doors, there is a small room where you can leave your umbrella. Then you go through another door off to the side to enter the temple. There are wood floors, which are VERY loud when you have heels, so I ended up tip toeing around when there wasn't a rug an the floor.

I changed into my temple clothes and met Mark in the chapel. First of all, it's the first time we have been together at the temple in a LOOOONG time. The closest temple we have is 3 1/2 hours away, so we usually take turns doing a session while the other entertains the kids. So being able to sit by him was wonderful. The first thing he said to me when I sat down was, "We're the witness couple. I volunteered." To which I said so graciously, "What! That scares me!" A few minutes later one of the temple workers asks us to come into a different room and warns us that the cushion you kneel on when you are the witness couple is slippery, so be careful so that you don't slide off. Huh? This does not make me feel better.

Turns out it wasn't that slippery, although it took me about 5 minutes to unclench every muscle in my body and figure that out. I loved it. It was so interesting and made the entire session feel more personal. It was the perfect way to start off our week, kneeling there next to him.

We left the temple and it was still raining pretty hard, but Mark jumped out of the car for a few minutes to take a picture...the first of many instances during the week when he would go the extra mile to make sure I had a picture/program/menu/ticket stub for my scrapbook.

We drove around and looked at some of the older homes in Nauvoo for a while and ended up at the home of Sarah Granger Kimball, who was the founder of the Relief Society. I admit, I felt jealous of the way she lived. I often romanticize what it would be like to be a pioneer woman! I conveniently leave out the part where the highest cause of death for women back then was 1) childbirth 2)burning to death when your mongo skirts catch fire or 3) falling down the stairs because you trip over your mongo skirts. So I'm wondering if I could just be a pioneer women equipt with jeans and an anesthesiologist?

We left Nauvoo and drove over the Mississippi River. Mark is not a big fan of bridges and over the course of our marriage some of that fear has rubbed off on me. So of course a huge barge had to pass under the bridge while we were on it and (to our horror) we were able to watch the bridge UNHINGE to let the barge pass under. ugh. Mathew called while we were sitting there and we had a chat while Mark amused himself with the camera, don't I look so into it?
We thankfully crossed the river and headed to Burlington, where we found a little Mexican food. The menu was mind numbing. It had hundreds of different combinations to pick from.

Combo 1: Taco, chile relleno, enchilada
Combo 2: Enchilada, tamale, burrito
Combo 3: Burrito, tostada, chile relleno
Combo 4: Tamale, taco, tostada
Combo 5: Burrito, enchilada, tostada
.......
......
Combo 188: Chile relleno, burrito, enchilada
Combo 189: Tostada, burrito, tamale

Wowzers. Let's save a few trees and a few brain cells: Choose 3 of the following: Taco, Burrito, Enchilada, Tamale, Enchilada, Chili Relleno.

Done!

This is the first of many self portraits in front of things we visited or food we ate. I know you can't wait.

Day one was fantastic and we still had 5 to go!