Kirtland

This past weekend I went to Kirtland, Ohio with our ward's YW, for the Buffalo Stake Youth Conference. It seemed like a lot of people thought I was crazy for volunteering to be a leader at this, but I was excited. I knew I couldn't go to girls camp this summer (we'll be in Cali), so I thought it'd be a good opportunity to {bond} with the girls. My only apprehension was the drive. It's almost three hours away and this may shock you, but I've never driven that far before. *gasp* I hate driving in general, so luckily my dad, husband, or friends have always been the designated drivers on road trips. We've been having problems with our car {rocking} on the freeway and after multiple inspections, getting the tires aligned, balanced, and rotated... the dealer finally found the problem! The lower, rear links were torn up and needed to be replaced. $400 later and 4 hours before needing to leave, the problem finally got fixed! Hooray. I had Trav teach me how to use cruise control (seriously), and I felt ready to roll. Tiff drove with me, along with three girls from my ward. Once we got out of the city, the wind, rain, and semi's were my only concern. I hate semis. I always imagine them tipping over on me. And the wind was so strong, it'd move the car back and forth in the lane. Not a fun feeling. But we still had a fun road trip, singing at the top of our lungs and rocking out to music. We plugged in my Ipod first and Tiff and I busted out LFO's "Summer Girls" song (you know... I like girls that wear Abercrombie and Fitch....) The girls thought we were sooo lame. Then they plugged in their Ipod and we listened to Lady Gaga, Kesha, etc. I still knew about half the songs and could sing along, which made me wonder if I needed to grow up. I felt better when they put on some awful, screamy music and I made them change it, because I couldn't handle it. That's more {adult} like, right? Well, we pulled into the Kirtland Stake Center around 7:45pm and the kids had dinner and a dance. It ended around 11:00pm, then we had to clean up and get our room assignments before heading to the Days Inn. By the time we got to the hotel it was much past my bedtime.

I didn't have much to pack, since we were only staying one night.... so guess who I had room for in my bag? Yup, Teddy Rumpkins. Trav teased me viciously, as did Tiffany. But when I showed the girls my friend, Magaly piped up that she had brought her teddy bear too! Well, that called for a picture.

The hotel wasn't TOO bad, but it wasn't good either! I figured as much, so I brought my own sheets, blanket, and pillow. Another thing Tiff teased me about. Although I know it's just because she was secretly jealous... right Tiff? :) But really, if you've seen the Dateline where they swab hotel glasses, bedspreads, and towels for bacteria, you'd bring your own stuff too. Another fun tidbit about our room.... the bathroom door didn't close. At all. Good thing I was rooming with a friend! :)

I had never been to Kirland before, so everything was new to me. There was about 120 people in our stake there, and we split into groups. My group started at the Kirtland Visitor Center. It's on the land by the Newel K. Whitney store and other historic buildings. These are just pictures of what the area looked like.

Inside the Visitor Center we started the tour with the Reflections of Christ exhibit. It's only here until May 2, so I was really excited to see these pictures again! It was also cool, because I had shown my girls the Reflections of Christ DVD over Easter, so they were familiar with the photos.

Then we watched a movie about the events that took place in Kirtland. That was one of my favorite parts. You could really feel the Spirit and it was a good overview of the importance of this area. Next was the N.K. Whitney Store. Upstairs, we sat in the room that the School of the Prophets met in. The same place that prompted the Word of Wisdom revelation.

This is inside the store.

This is the Whitney's home.

The Sawmill and Ashery.

 Then we went back to the Stake Center for lunch before heading to the RLDS Visitor Center next to the Kirtland temple. They had a gift shop and museum and it was interesting to see and hear their version of events of the restoration of the gospel. They showed us a video and when it was over, the screen went up and they pulled back the curtains, which blinded us all with the light....

Once our eyes adjusted, this is what we saw!

The tour included going inside the temple, but they didn't allow photographs. It's an absolutely massive building, even by today's standards, so I can't imagine how difficult it must have been to build back then. It's so different than temples today are built, so it was interesting to hear about the dedication and how it was used. Next, we visited the Morley Farm, but I didn't take any pictures. We ended with a testimony meeting at the Stake Center that lasted 2 hours!! I thought I'd fall asleep, but it all the testimony's kept my attention, along with trying to keep my slightly, less- than- reverent girls from giggling too loud. It was worse than trying to keep Collin quiet during church! Of course, some kids were a bit awkward or said things that could raise eyebrows, but then so many bore testimonies that really touched me. So many talked about how hard it is to go to school being the only member of the church. They get teased, made fun of, and don't feel like they have friends. Then they come to Youth Conference and finally feel accepted. They feel the Spirit and strengthen their testimonies. I was really impressed with the youth and their courage. I think a lot of people saw this trip as a big sacrifice on my part, but as always, it was much more a blessing for me than a sacrifice. It was an incredible amount of work to plan, so I'm grateful for the stake YW and YM's presidencies and also grateful for Trav, staying home with Collin and letting me do this. It was a wonderful experience.

After the testimony meeting, everyone drove to Cici's pizza for dinner, before heading home. I wanted to get on the road quick, so we booked it to the restaurant and were the first ones there! We snarfed then ran.

 I may have been trying to hurry a little too fast. My cup of soda found its way onto my lap. I seem to have really bad luck with Coke. I think the universe is trying to tell me to quit drinking it. We pulled into Buffalo around 10pm, which isn't too bad at all! I was really proud of myself for completing my first road trip. I know that's sad, but I'm still proud. Tiff helped my nerves out a lot too. Thanks Tiff! As she would say, Go Kirtland 2010! :)