Friday was time to say our goodbyes.
Final pictures:
All of the 2014 babies. This will never happen again since Samantha is the end for us!
Raya is missing from these 2 pictures due to a blow out but otherwise, behold all of the cousins.
It was such an amazing week! I am so thankful for the efforts made by all to travel and spend time with each other. I don't have any pictures of us doing it but we had a fun time on Tuesday night doing some Family History activities. Grandma brought some old photos and the kids had to investigate the story behind them. We also quizzed the core Rabner family about funny memories they had from their childhood or about a sibling. It was a really fun night.
I nearly cried for joy and excitement when I saw the exit signs for Martin's Cove.
I have never been to this place but have read so much about it and had ancestor's in the Martin Handcart Company and so it is a place of significance for me.
I had visited with my Aunt Naomi while I was at my parents, she is married to my Uncle Doug Bird who passed away on Wednesday, July 29. She had been talking to me about how he was holding on so long because of his hardy Harrison stock.
Hardy is a good word for it. The story of the Martin and Willie Handcart companies is a sad one. There were so many problems they faced and so many things that were already against them but they had faith, determination and a desire to be with the Saints in Zion.
What I found truly remarkable is that all of the Harrison family including the baby lived. All of the yellow names are those that died but not the Harrison family. I am a descendant from George.
The kids had fun pulling a handcart (or just being out of the car, maybe both).
It is a beautiful place and I wish we could have stayed for longer...someday I will.
But we piled back in and continued on.
Those are beehives out there. There were so many of them dotting the landscape as we drove along.
By the time we reached, Mt. Rushmore that night, Peter was ready to shop for land in Sound Dakota or Wyoming. I am so glad we made the detour.
No comments:
Post a Comment