Road Trip to Nauvoo

On Friday the 11th, just after Tommy's birthday, Shad and I thought we'd wake up naturally and head out to Nauvoo on a relaxed schedule. Tom and Katie usually wake up around 7:30, but they woke us up before 7 and told us it was time to go to Nauvoo. They did everything they could to get us to move faster in our last minute packing, and were good helpers in the process.

 



Our first stop on the way was the Jesse James Home in St. Joseph, Missouri. I honestly had a hard time choosing our stops in Missouri between Jesse James sites, Harry Truman sites, and Mark Twain sites.

 

 

Headstones of family members relocated to be outside the house.

 

Not THE gun, but the same kind used by "The Coward Bob Ford" to kill Jesse James in his own home. The frame up above it protects the hole that was made by a bullet fired at Jesse's head while he was standing on a chair to reach something. It's much larger than the bullet originally made it to be, due to fans of Jesse's coming to the home to break off pieces of the wall. They also broke off pieces of the blood soaked floor boards.

 

In the room where Jesse was shot, with his portrait hanging behind us.

 

Checking out the Victorian outhouse.

 

Tom is really into waving pictures right now, so that's what most of our tourist family pictures show.

 

Overall review of the Jesse James House: Definitely worth a stop! It was $4 for adults, and something like $3 for kids, but they don't charge under 5. It's a small 4 room home, with a lot of newspaper articles, letters, artifacts, portraits, etc, detailing the life of Jesse and his family members and gang. Just go to the bathroom before you get there. The home itself doesn't have a restroom (understandable due to it's size), and though the Patee House RIGHT NEXT DOOR is owned by the SAME PEOPLE, they do not let you use the restroom. Jerks, lemme tell you what. Nice little gift shop in the entrance of the James' home with James trinkets and paraphernalia, all reasonably priced. Shad and I got a wanted poster replica for $2, Tommy picked a grandfather clock pencil sharpener for $3, and Katie got a blue crystal horse for $0.50.

 

Then we made our way to Adam-ondi-Ahman. Tom and Katie love that name, and repeat it constantly now just for the heck of it. Adam-ondi-Ahman is an LDS Church site in Missouri where Joseph Smith revelations told us Adam had blessed his posterity after leaving the Garden of Eden, and where he will return prior to the Second Coming of Christ. It is a beautiful, peaceful place to visit.

 

    

 

Katie found a green piece of premature fruit and posed with it in her pictures.

 

Tom and Kate had fun playing on the large rocks. I love this sequence of pictures:)

 

Walking down a path. I love the way the trees reach over and create an arch.

 

That's my kids!

 

Tom and Katie cheered me on, "Run! Run! Run!" as I ran from setting the camera timer to get in the shot.

 

First time in a hotel! And what a joy it was to be done with the driving.