Back to School Carnival

I had this idea to have a "back-to-school" carnival in the yard for my family.  

We began with roasting hot dogs and brats over the fire.  Lots of sides and desserts to go with them. 

Then the games.  I created some games and used some things I already had to make others. 

Prizes were available in the prize box.

There were some silly toys like the shooting ice cream cones and yo-yos that were big hits.  

There were also school supplies.

The kids had a great time and so did the adults.  

Next time I will be a bit more organized.  I think I'll utilize my adults to "run" a game so there can be multiple things going on at the same time. 

I have some pretty cute grandchildren.  Some have BIG personalities!

I think Eddie really like the shooting chicken game as he asked if he could take it home. 

I think as much as Tom avoids the children, he had a good time too.  

I love the concentration of the children as they attempt to shoot down the cups with the chicken.

There was definitely a learning curve.

Treats were gathered both by "pass the parcel" and by choosing them from the prize box. 

Digging for buried treasure yielded it's own prizes. 

Sammi was the brave one to put the goal post on her head for ring toss. 

I think I'll have a "out of school" carnival as well.

It was so much fun!

 

Whitefish Dunes

Erin likes to have a family day out at Whitefish Sand Dunes State park on the Saturday nearest her birthday.  We didn't attend last year.  I'm sure it was because we were in the temple.

The weather at home was cool and rainy and there were thoughts of staying home by several.

It rained on our way to the beach but was only overcast when we got there. 

Everyone brought their own lunches.  Henry enjoyed his Subway!

The water was very COLD!  I walked in and got my ankles wet and that was enough for me.

The sand was warm and holes were dug and castles were built. 

There were also "Olympic" events captured on video. 

The sun actually showed it's face for a while and it got warm enough for me to go put on a swimsuit. 

The water in Lake Michigan is never warm but watching my family wade in slowly was testament to just how cold it really was. 

I didn't think we would need the beach umbrella but I'm so glad it was packed along. 

We stayed for a few hours and fun was had by everyone.  

Erin dug her "heart hole" so we could have our picture taken inside the heart. 

We should have been on the other side. 

Lydia got to be a mermaid in the sand with lots of feathers.  

Just to make the day complete, it rained on the way home.  It was a perfect day!

 

John and Eloise

While we were serving our mission in Nauvoo, another couple came several months after we got there.  They were also an FM couple.  As the time went on we became great friends.  Last year we asked them if they would like to come to Nauvoo and work the security team for two weeks with us.  They agreed and we found ourselves together again.

Everything was going along just great with working together.  Eloise and I worked backstage almost every night except when one or the other of us worked the 2-6am or had the night off.  Pat and John worked together in the handicapped parking lot each night they were on as well.

We shared meals together and did a bit of touring together.  We did spend some time apart but lots of time together.  On the second Wednesday night we were having dinner at the pageant building and Eloise asked me if a carton of chocolate milk was mine.  I told her that I had mine.  Then she asked if the glass of water in front of her was mine.  Nope.  A minute later she asked again if the milk was mine.  I thought it was really weird and wondered to myself if she was having a stroke.  We were off that night until 2am so we were sleeping when John called me as he was locked out of the house.  He said he was really worried about Eloise as she was acting strange and was going to take her to the E.R. as soon as their shift was over.  I got Pat out of bed and we went to the stage and covered their last two hours so he could get her there asap.  

John came back at 4am and said they ran every test they could think of and nothing showed up.  He was really worried about her as was evidenced on his face.  He was up early the next morning and back to Fort Madison to the hospital.  I called him later that morning and he informed me that she had a UTI.  That explained a lot!  We visited her in the late morning and she was looking great but had no recollection of Wednesday.  By Friday afternoon she was out of the hospital and they were able to finish out their assignments on our last night.  

It was such a scary time and we prayed for she and John.  It was such a wonderful time to be with them for an entire two weeks.  I thank God for bringing these wonderful friends into our lives.  How we love them!

 

Improvements

Grandson Brock asked if I had any jobs for him so he could earn some money.  I actually did have some jobs that I meant to get at but with his help I could do them faster.  One of them was to clean and re-stain my wooden lawn furniture.  He power washed all of the benches as well as the front banister.  

Once he had those clean and they were dry he came back the next day to restain them.  I painted the banister as I didn't want paint dripped on the concrete like the last time I had a kid help me.

I think everything turned out great!  He stained and painted and mowed lawn and got enough money to buy whatever he was after.  

After coming home from two weeks in Nauvoo and prior to going to Mackinac, I wanted to weed the area on the north side of the house.  I didn't get very far before we were gone again.  

I bought a new to me bike to take along since our e-bikes are not allowed on the island.  Brock asked again if I had any jobs to earn more money.  Adam tried out my "new" bike and asked if he could trade me his for mine.  I agreed but asked him to help Brock and I with this job.  

It was a very hot and humid day but we all worked hard and we got it finished.  I discovered that when those boys want to earn some cash, they work pretty hard.  I'm grateful for the help and their willingness to spend time with me.  I appreciate them so much for helping me get this accomplished.

 

Backstage

Except for the days off and our 2-6am shifts, I was assigned backstage every night except the final two.  It is an easy assignment but I never did get our front to see the performance.  Pat filled in for Eloise after he was done shuttling people in, for two nights so she could go watch it with John.  

It is interesting to watch the people scramble around to get into their places and be ready to get on stage.  We had beautiful weather for most of the time.  Not at all typical of Nauvoo.

Some of the principle actors came and talked to me and thanked me for my service.  Being backstage just means we aren't to let anyone who isn't supposed to be back there past us.  Eloise was really good at it.  She questioned everyone.

It was really quiet back there until about 8:15 when the cast started coming back.

I loved watching all the little things like people sneaking on to the stage when they were late or the gathering of props.  Watching the work crew under the stage was also something new for me. 

Just prior to leaving, the moon was getting bigger and coming out while it was still light.  A good shot of the Yearsly home.  I liked watching everything happen with the "buildings" going up and especially the temple being constructed.  

The very best part was at the end of the Nauvoo pageant when the real temple is lit up and President Hinckley's voice is heart telling about Joseph's temple faced west and Brigham's temple facing east as they are bookends with volumes in between.  Each time I would look at the temple and hear his voice, the Spirit would wash over me.  I knew I was standing on holy ground.  I was again reminded of the importance of temples.  It was a moment that made up for not being able to have an assignment that was more exciting.  Such a wonderful experience!

 

Train!

Staying with the Steens has some real perks.  Marty built this train for his grandchildren and ours got to enjoy it too.

Pat got to pull them around in the yard and even in the neighborhood.

I think Butch and Lydia's faces tell how much they liked it.

Across the street in the condo parking lot was a great place to pull them.  Especially with the missionary vehicles gone.

Papa! You should build one!

Family in Nauvoo

The Gourley and Fillmore families minus Clint and Jeff spent a few days in Nauvoo.  They took the temple city tour and here are Tom and Adam cutting stone for the temple.

The Gheen home is part of the same tour.  I loved giving that tour!

On the nights when we worked the 2-6am shift or when we had the day off, we were able to go to the County Fair with our kids.  Almost all of them except for maybe Henry loved trying the stilts.  

They came on Wednesday night but couldn't get into Don's house until Friday so they crashed with us at Jamie and Marty Steen's home.  Children were sleeping everywhere!

The first night we played tug-of-war and mostly the littles loved it.  

I don't know who this man is but he was willing to help Lydia pull.

I think our children and our grandchildren love Nauvoo as much as we do.  Our testimonies have been strengthened each time we go.  I pray that the same thing happens for our grandchildren.

 

Nauvoo Security 2024

This is the third year we have gone back to Nauvoo to work as part of the security team for the pageants.  What was extra special this year was having John and Eloise Carlson there with us.  

We ran into Darryl (the plumber) one of our first days there.  We spent some time catching up and met Elder Astill who is living in our former apartment #9 at Village Inn.

As always, Pat had a co-pilot for a few nights in William.  Our final night he presented him with an Iron Man shirt with his name on it.  I never saw anyone get a hug so fast in my entire life!  It was sweet.

Most nights my assignment was backstage and on the first night the sun was shining on the temple so brightly as it was setting.  Many people came up to snap a photo.  A picture just doesn't capture what I really saw in person.

The water was really high on the Mississippi river so we didn't see any barge traffic until just before we left.  This beautiful shot was from behind Joseph and Emma's home.  I think our fence makes it even more beautiful  I painted that fence and Pat assembled it!

There are way too many deer in the city.  These twins were hanging out by an empty home.

We ran into Craig and Tori Sanders who we know from the City of Joseph pageant.  They are now serving as site missionaries!  It was so fun catching up with them.

Being on the south side of backstage paid off for me as the Lusvardis found me there.  I love them so much.  They were our mission president/companion when we arrived in Nauvoo for our mission.

Working the 2am-6am shift was full of adventure for these raccoons.  We saw them everywhere.  They tipped a lot of empty trash cans.  Fortunately they were empty.  One night just before we left, a raccoon found its way onto the stage during the performance.  Wish I could have seen that!