North to Nebraska!

After Kansas City we drove up to Omaha Nebraska.

We got there quite late and couldn't really find any reasonably priced places to camp our big RV or even a Walmart and we were a little worried as the weather was pretty dark and started raining and sounded as though a big storm was coming so we needed to settle ASAP. We decided to try our luck at the nearby caravan park for Department of Defense...which officially is only for families of the department of defense.  It took Jason a good while to convince them and if it wasn't for the terrible weather the people in charge would have moved us along! So we got settled and button down the hatches as they say because the weather warnings were for a tornado!  It was a pretty rough night with howling winds and rains so we said quite a few prayers!

In the morning we could see the affects of the night before.  Loads of puddles and mud and a few trees lying on the ground.  A couple of families areas were wrecked and awnings knocked over so overall we were really lucky.  No tornadoes as such but in the two states below us Kansas and Oklahoma there were loads of tornadoes and a lot of devastation for families so we were very blessed.

We attended church that day with grateful hearts!

During the day we were able to visit the church visitors center that represented whats known as Winter Quarters.  Brigham Young secured an area for pioneers to wait out the very cold winter before trekking on to Utah.  In Christmas in 1846 there was over 4000 saints.  The kids had a lot of fun here especially dressing up as pioneers.  I was really glad it was open on a Sunday. We were amazed to meet a couple that stopped us because of our Australian accents to ask where we were from as her brother was serving a mission in Adelaide Australia!!! We hadn't met him as yet but at that actual time he was serving in Port Pirie where my sister Sarah lives.  Small world!

That night we were able to share a meal with some lovely members, the Kauer Family who just invited us that day for dinner.  We had a very yummy dinner and Jordyn was happy as they had an adorable doggie!

Many blessings coming our way in the past 24 hours of this trip!

Liberty Jail

On December 1st 1838 Joseph Smith and other church members were taken to Liberty Jail in Clay County Missouri as there were no jails in the counties of where they're alleged crimes took place.  We were able to visit the visitors centre here that tried to recreate the actual size of this dungeon like prison in May 2013.

The sister missionary who took us on the tour did an amazing job trying to describe how conditions were like for prisoners and especially Joseph Smith.  I really felt the spirit of this place and felt grateful I was able to be there! The four month confinement took a heavy toll on these latter-day saint members who were prisoners for basically not denying God and denouncing Joseph as a prophet.  A lot of emotional, spiritual and physical pain and anguish that they suffered is recorded in Doctrine and Covenants 121, 122, 123.  There is also revelation given in these scriptures whilst Joseph Smith was in this jail.  As I read them now the words definitely mean a lot more to me. 

I will also remember this day because while we were there the sister missionaries found out that the prophets beloved wife had passed away the day before.