The last day we were all together on our "North Trip" we went to Martin's Cove, a Mormon handcart Historic site. We read stories from the pioneers and walked some of the path that they did years ago. The stories made me so emotional. As I get older and now have a family and children of my own, these stories become all that more real as I gain a deeper understanding of their trials.
The land was wide open, hot, full of mosquitos and antelope/deer for summer. I can't imagine the blistering cold winters this area went through.
Crossing the Sweetwater River was an emotional experience. There is a sign when you reach the water that says, "Silence please" for reverence.
We crossed the river in silence as a family and it gave me just a glimpse of what pioneer life was like. Tyson carried Taryn across because the water would have come up to her chest and I had Hadleigh on my shoulders. By the time we were mid river, the river current was very strong which surprised me and others. Without the rope stretched across the river, it would have been very hard to stay up in the water. Our ancestors didn't have a rope to help keep them from falling in the river. Hadleigh on my shoulders made it just a bit more difficult but I couldn't imagine how those few young men made several trips across the frozen river during Winter carrying men, women and children.
The few young men who greatly sacrificed their bodies to make sure everyone got across were angels. They all died later on in life from the effects of being in the frozen river water.
This was the last stop that we would all be together on the trip. We said our goodbyes to the Rasmussens who were heading in a different direction and we set out for the airports and homes in Utah.
I love this picture of Ben and Kenzie working as a team to put Margot to sleep when we ended our little journey.
Saying goodbye to Nataleigh
Taryn just loved her time with cousins!!!! It was great to see her getting along so well with them and wanting to be by their sides all the time. Saying goodbye was really hard for her and there were lots of tears!!!!
We were back on an airplane and exhausted. The girls and I had gotten colds on the trip so we flew being sick which was hard. Hadleigh had the roughest time with her ears. By the time we got home, it was 2 am Sunday morning and we were beat! It took us a few days to get back to normal and a week or so to get over the sicknesses that then got to Tyson! But despite the colds and the long flights, we loved our time with family and the fun adventures we had and the time we got to catch up with one another. Driving with Cameron and Jana in a mini van rental was such a fun way to go. There's nothing like rocking out to good music with fun people!
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