Camping and Palmyra Day 3

On the morning of the 13th, we packed up our campground and headed out of town.  We had to get back for Eliza's birthday the next morning, so we tried not to waste any time.  We had two stops to make on the 5 hour drive back home.  Our first stop was the Peter Whitmar farm.  They have made some additions to this church history site since the last time I visited 13 years ago.  We watched a video that illustrated the role Peter and David Whitmar played in bringing forth the Book of Mormon and the organization of the church.  I was touched by his involvement.  It just goes to show that the spirit can move and inspire anyone who is willing to listen to its promptings. 

 at the entrance to the Peter Whitmar home

The fireplace where the church was organized

They really liked the little rooms and quaint decorations in each room. The upstairs room they thought was the coolest and they even mentioned that they could all sleep in the same room.  How cute!

Right outside the home, Zabien felt the need to "climb" this apple tree. 

What one does, another must do

Monkey see, monkey do

I made some sandwiches in the parking lot, and we ate them in the van while driving to stop number 2 - the priesthood restoration site in Harmony, Pa.  Driving from the Peter Whitmar home to Harmony wasn't eventful, but it made me appreciate modern technology.  We drove on so many small, winding roads and had to use GPS to arrive.  It amazes me that David Whitmar rode on a horse in faith (having never met the prophet Joseph Smith, but wanting to) and rode all the way to Harmony to meet the prophet.  I have no idea how they even knew which way to go.  We would have never found it without GPS.  Eventually we arrived.  The church just completed in the fall of 2015 a renovation of the priesthood restoration site.  It is definitely worth seeing.  Bruce and I went 5 years ago, and there was one small monument.  Now, they have moved the main highway, reconstructed the Hale home and small farm Joseph and Emma lived on, built an interactive visitors center, and recreated the sugarbush.  It is really neat. 

I loved these statues of the priesthood being restored - the whole thing is amazing. 

In the kitchen of Joseph Smith house, they had a box that resembled the weight of the golden plates.  It was surprisingly heavy - over 60 pounds.  I can't imagine carrying those heavy things around.

We would have liked to stay a bit longer, but by this time of our 3rd day seeing church history sites, our children were definitely done. 

Even though we didn't originally plan to see these things this summer, I'm so glad we did.  It will make a lasting impression on our children.