Quick Trip to Palmyra

So my sister called me a couple of weeks ago and asked if I would be interested in going up to Palmyra for the Hill Cumorah pageant with her and her family. Of course my answer was YES!! They came up to my house from Richmond on Thursday evening and we drove up to Gettysburg and spent the night there. They hadn't been to Gettysburg before so we explored the visitor center on Friday morning before making the long trek up to Palmyra. Since the pageant starts kind of late we didn't want to bring the kids out so we decided to go in shifts. I got the short straw and had to on Friday night in the rain. Not really, my friend Emily had come up for the pageant that night and I met her there so I wouldn't have to sit all by myself. It rained for quite awhile just before the program started, but after the opening prayer it only sprinkled for a little while, I didn't even need my umbrella. The pageant was AMAZING!!!! I had the most wonderful time there and the spirit was so strong. Julie and Austin went on Saturday night while I stayed back to put the kids to bed. They are so cute!! On Saturday morning we headed to the Palmyra Temple first. We walked around the grounds and got some pictures there. It is really beautiful! From there we drove over to Joseph Smith's house and went on a tour there. I can't believe that such a large family lived in something so small. One of my favorite things was walking through the Sacred Grove. Although there were a lot of people passing through, it still had a very calm and peaceful feeling. It truly is a sacred place and I will always remember the way I felt there. I even heard the bees humming and the sweet birds singing! What a wonderful and beautiful place!! Another thing we got to do was tour the Grandin Printing Press where the firstBook of Mormon was printed. It was amazing to see all of the steps it took to produce the Book of Mormon. I absolutely loved my trip to Palmyra!! It was especially great to spend time with Julie, Austin, Caleb and Brooklyn.