We made it to Independence, Missouri. Long drive, but we are here! Last night, after we checked into the hotel, we saw on the news that there was a tornado in the county we just drove through! The area we stayed in was under a tornado watch. We had a hard time sleeping because there was LOUD thunder and lighting all night! The kids and I were a little nervous! James grew up in tornado whether, so he had no problems sleeping. Today we went to the LDS Visitors Center. They had a great tour on God's eternal plan. They also had a great tour of the early saints who came to Independence and their unwavering faith. The next stop was The Liberty Jail. This was an awesome experience! The only thing left of the original jail is the stone floor. The church has built a replica of the jail from some of the original stones. This sits on top of the original floor. The missionary, Sister LaBlassa was so nice. At 20 years old, she had a strong testimony of Joseph Smith and his faith. This is a sacred place and the spirit touched my heart as I pondered the 120 plus days the prophet Joseph Smith and his companions spent there on the cold stone floor being unjustly charged for treason as their families and other church members were being forced out of Missouri. What tremendous faith these men had! We as a family have enjoyed seeing the church historical sights here and the strong spirit we have felt here. Tomorrow we are off to Nauvoo.

Independence

Original printing of Book of Mormon- printed in 1830

Yee-Haw!

Easy traveling thanks to DVD's and Nintendo DS!