Sir, Do Cows Ski?: New York Vacation

We've been planning on taking a five-day camping trip up to the Finger Lakes region of New York for months now. Last week, we actually did it. We - meaning the four of us, my mom and dad, and my cousins, the Walde's - left early Monday morning to spend the week touring our Church historical

sites, along with a few of the natural beauties that the state of New York has to offer. We camped in a nowhere town called Bristol. Definitely off the beaten path. It's about 30 minutes south of Palmyra, NY. The boys had a great time. Tanner especially because he was outside for five entire days. He was in heaven!!!

Tuesday we started the day touring the Peter Whitmer farm in Fayette, NY. This is the site where The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was restored. We toured the chapel built there and the visitor center. We then went over to the farm house and got to take a look around there. From there we went to Palmyra to the Joseph Smith farm and checked out the log home and the frame house that the Smith family lived in. There is a Cooper shop and an

old barn there that you can take a look at while you're there. After that, we took a stroll through the Sacred Grove where Joseph Smith saw God, the Father, and Jesus Christ. That's one amazing place. We were able to see parts of the Palmyra Temple as we toured the farm. That's a pretty cool Temple. It's the only Temple that has a clear glass window in it. It overlooks the Sacred Grove. Pretty awesome!

That night we stayed for the Hill Cumorah Pageant. What a spectacular event! It doesn't start until after 9:15pm. But there are hundreds of actors from all over the country that come and portray the story of the Book of Mormon from the time of Lehi and his family, to the birth, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, through to Mormon and Moroni,

then on to where Joseph Smith was shown the Gold Plates and testifies of the divinity of Christ and of His Second Coming. Awesome doesn't even begin to explain how you feel during the pageant. After a long day though, the boys zonked out before the start of the pageant. It was quite cold that evening, so Spencer was covered in blankets while Tanner slept on Papa's lap under the heavy blankets.

Wednesday we went back to Palmyra to climb the Hill Cumorah. We found a mom and pop place that serves incredible portions of ice cream. Really good though. Everyone but Spencer and I took a walk up to the Erie Canal after lunch just in time to see a few boats go through the locks. That was pretty cool from what I heard. That night we hung out at the campsite and played cards.

Thursday we drove over to Letchworth State Park, about an hour west of where we were camped. It's referred to as the Grand Canyon of the East. It was pretty cool. There are three falls that you can hike down to and get up close and personal with. That was probably the highlight of that day. I'm not a huge hiker, and being 4 1/2 months pregnant, it was a big day for me. But it was impressive to see,

nonetheless.

We packed up Friday morning and drove home. We were sad to leave. The weather was perfect. It was pretty cold Monday and Tuesday. We ended up having to bring Tanner into our bed with us once so that he wouldn't freeze. Spencer did fine with his blankets. But the week warmed up nicely. Nick really enjoyed that part of New York and now wants to move up there. He even looked at different hospitals to see if anyone was hiring. Who knows, maybe we'll become New Yorkers.