Joy and......

We are back after our long awaited trip to get Kevin from his mission in Minnesota. It's hard to believe that we are on the other side of that very long 2 years. It seems like just yesterday that he left and 2 years seemed like eternity. Ryan did such a great job on his blog about the trip, I feel like saying - just go read his!! I feel like just copying and pasting his blog right on in here. One of the funnest things was that we didn't tell Kevin that Ryan and Lindsay were coming, or that Lindsay is pregnant. He thought it was just his old parents coming. It was a great moment at the mission home to see Kevin again, and then to watch him see his brother and sister, and then to realize that Lindsay looks a little different!

We spent 3 days traveling around in Kevin's different areas, all except one that was too far north to get to easily. But we really enjoyed the Twin Cities area, and the suburbs he served in, and LaCrosse, Wisconsin. We found the whole area to be very beautiful, definitely one of those places that you think "I could live here!". The people were so nice, we met a couple of the people who Kevin grew close to. We went out to dinner with one man who he had baptized and it was great to meet him and to see his love for Kevin. That is the greatest part of a mission trip like that - to see your son through the eyes of others who love him. We went to one of his favorite wards on Sunday and the people treated him like a long lost beloved son, it was very heartwarming. We were invited to dinner with one of his favorite families on the spot, and had a great time there. Sunday night Ryan had to leave to go back to Salt Lake. We were sad that he couldn't continue on with us, but so happy that he came for the weekend. We're really excited that he and Ashley will be here in Alaska in just a couple weeks.

Monday morning we got up and headed out to Nauvoo. It was a pretty drive, it was amazing that as soon as we hit the Minnesota/Iowa border things changed from beautiful green rolling hills and lakes, to completely flat corn fields as far as the eye could see. Still beautiful, but in a totally different way. We visited Carthage Jail the first day, the place where Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum, were killed by the mob in 1844. It is a somber place, but beautifully tended to by the church. It was easy to imagine there the mob of men with their faces blackened storming the stairs into the room where Joseph was being held, firing through the door, catching Hyrum in the face, and then shooting Joseph as he fell through the window to the ground below. The bullet holes are still in the door.

The next day we visited the different sites in Nauvoo - the brickyard and blacksmith shop, Brigham Young's home, the homestead where Joseph and Emma lived and where their graves (along with Hyrum) are, and to take the walk down Parley street to the banks of the Mississippi River. Imagining those people, leaving behind their lovely homes and the beautiful temple only just completed, heading down that street in their wagons, heading west across the river in the terrible cold, not knowing what lay ahead of them - only that they were again being driven out of their homes by hatred and violence. The great faith they showed, to continue to be strong in the face of such great adversity, it is such an example to us in this day. I always imagine them on the way west, in such extremity - losing babies and children along the way, being so anxious to finally get there, and yet when they finally did reach the great Salt Lake Valley, there was still so much work to do, and so little comfort to be found. Anyway....the next day we attended the amazing Nauvoo temple, so beautifully rebuilt and majestic. To imagine the temple being destroyed by fire during that terribly hard time and then to see it today, it's stunning.

So back home we are now, Kevin is readjusting - reconnecting with all of Provo on Facebook. It is so great to have him home, sleeping in his own bed, enjoying his smile and laugh and easy going personality. We only get to enjoy him home for about a month before he's off again, but enjoy it we will!!

The photo captions are Brad's comments.


Kevin finds out he's to be an uncle!



Standing outside the mission home in Minneapolis.


Map of the Minnesota Minneapolis mission.

In the mission home and with President Howell.



Loading up to leave. A surreal moment for all of us.


Outside the mission office.



We are off to "post mission". Kevin continued to wear his shirt, tie and tag while within the mission. When we entered Iowa and points beyond he was more casual.
(Oh, that's Ryan on the left in the top photo. I thought I'd just bring that to your attention.)


I like this shot of the silhouette of my family looking out at the Mall of America.
Lindsay(with granddaughter), Julie, Kevin & Ryan.


Kevin makes friends easily.


No one said we weren't adventurous!



One of the first things we needed to do was get Kevin some new shoes.
(Those are the badge of a missionary.)


I love this photo of Kevin and Julie.



I was glad to find a caricature artist in the mall.





The Minneapolis Temple


Kevin would become thoughtful each time we would look out over Minneopolis or other areas of his mission. Ending a mission is to experience a flood of conflicting emotions.


Picture taking can be serious business.


Jeff Gintz and his daughters of Apple Valley are three of Kevin's most favorite people met in the past two years.


As is Brother Sawle of LaCrosse, Wisconsin.


Overlooking the city of LaCrosse.


Glad to be with Kevin.


And then there was the long drive back to Minneapolis from LaCrosse.


Again with the picture taking. Seriously, there is a lot of pressure!


Arriving at the Twin's game, Julie got head whacked by a bag of cotton candy.
(Honestly, I wasn't waiting for that to happen just to take a picture!)



The baseball game was fun and even had an exciting nail-biter of an ending.


Driving to Illinois. Is Kevin really asleep?


Kev and Dad at the Carthage Jail, Carthage Illinois.



Some thought the two of them were married.





Nauvoo is about 15 miles from Carthage. The visitor's center displays a good number of amazingly beautiful scluptures. This one is of Christ walking on water. Click on the photo to get a better look at her depiction of His face.


The Nauvoo Temple in the distance.


Soon after we were married, Julie and I took photos by this statue when it was at the Seattle Temple in 1981.


All three photos could have been taken the same day? Hmmmm?
Well, maybe not.




While in Nauvoo, we took a ride in an authentic reproduction of an ox cart.
We learned all about oxen. Julie was quite interested in their teeth.
For the indignity, her new friend drooled on her foot...





The rebuilt Nauvoo Temple sits upon a hill facing West, overlooking the Mississippi River.





This is a statue of Joseph and his brother Hyrum.


The Nauvoo Pagent was about an hour and a half long and was fantastic!
By the end, night had fallen and the darkened temple in the background was lit dramatically as part of the finale.






The drive to Minneapolis from Nauvoo was long.


Where's Kevin?




Welcome back to Anchorage Kevin. We have missed you!


Dinner at Carlos was our first stop after leaving the airport.


Ahhhh, just as I left it two years ago...
Welcome home Kevin.