Week 3 Highlights

The temple was busier this week than it was last week. More to do and more to learn.

On Tuesday (After one of our “early” shifts) we decided to drive to Burlington to see what we could see. A lady we were talking with told us they were staying in Burlington in a hotel that had a small water park. We think this may be where the Peterson’s and Huisken’s may be planning to stay in July. It’s only about 30 minutes or so from here. They have Kohl’s and Staples. We didn’t see a LOT of the town, but it’s the biggest town we’ve seen in the last three weeks.

On our day off on Thursday, we went to an even BIGGER town. Springfield. The state capitol of Illinois. This was the first organized trip with our “Thursday Off” group. We decided to take this trip during our first meeting last week and because it is outside the Temple district, we had to get permission from President Peterson, our Temple President. Springfield is a three-hour drive from here so we were able to see a LOT of farmland. It’s amazing how green everything is. Mile after mile after mile of beautiful green farms. We hear they are getting ready to plant this year’s first corn crop. Last year they had their best corn year ever with the new ethanol market. Most of the gas stations here sell gas containing ethanol made from the local corn.

In Springfield, we visited the Abraham Lincoln Museum and Library. The Museum is great. They have a lot of displays and movies (Excellent) and very interesting things to see.

In addition, we had a chance to meet and talk to President Lincoln himself. We had fun and came away knowing a LOT more about our 16^th president.

There were eight couples that made the Springfield trek. We carpooled with the Lindsay’s so we got to know them a lot better. And when we stopped to eat at Appleby’s in Quincy on the way home, we sat with the Hein’s and it was good to get to know them, too. A very full, very fun day off.

Friday is normally a pm shift in the temple for us, but we had the assignment this time to work in the Accommodation Canter. The Accommodation Center is in an old home right across from the temple and serves several functions. It’s sort of an Information Center . We have several videos that we can show to visitors in a small theatre and also some displays about the construction of the Nauvoo Temple in the 1840’s. There is also a lot of printed information about the temple and about the church and about other things to do in Nauvoo. We were the only two working at the Accommodation Center Friday afternoon, and we really enjoyed it. We were asked to keep track of how many groups came in, how many videos we showed and how many pass-along cards we gave out. At the end of the day we had a total of 10 groups (about 30 people) we showed the “Temple Restored” video 6 times and we gave out 36 pass-along cards. Not bad. Off and on there were times when no one came in, so we were able to preview some of the other available videos. We really enjoyed working at the Accommodation center and were able to meet and talk to people from all over the U.S. and even spent some time with a couple who were on their way home from their mission in Bermuda.

Earlier this week we invited our two downstairs neighbors to come over for dinner this afternoon (Sunday). We had a great time eating and laughing. One couple is from a cattle ranch in Idaho and the other couple is from Seattle Washington. They are a lot of fun to be with and it was decided that we would get together for dinner every fast Sunday, rotating homes. Everyone brings something, so it’s not a burden on anyone. We had a roast, and some yummy baked potatoes/carrots/onions. The Cottles brought homemade rolls and a German chocolate cake and the Whites brought a nice raspberry-banana Jell-O/whipped cream thing (yum) and mom made an incredible raspberry/angel food cake truffle. We ate and ate. After dinner, we all piled in the Cottle’s van and went to a fireside at the Visitor Center where Bro. Donald Q. Cannon (Just retired as a history teacher at BYU) spoke about all of the towns that were settled in Hancock County (same county as Nauvoo) during Joseph Smith’s time. We learned a lot about the history around this area. For example, did you know that under Joseph Smith’s direction, the church purchased 20,000 acres just south of Montrose, Iowa, but never had the chance to develop the property?

Thanks for all your mail. It’s always good to hear from you.

We love you all,
Mom & Dad / Granny & Grandpa