Autumn and Shawn go to EFY in Nauvoo

Our family was excited to take a trip to Nauvoo in August to drop off our teenagers for the Nauvoo EFY. Eric and Autumn met Shawn, Cody and me in Nauvoo. They had been in Chicago doing an art show. Unfortunately, Joey couldn't be with us because he needed to start school early. We missed him.

We also met up with some awesome Dowdle cousins and their friend Stephen from Portland. Such cool guys! They were all split up into "families" which they didn't love at first, but then had the chance to make new friends which turned out to be very fortunate ... especially for Shawn who made some really PRETTY new buddies.

As Eric and I enjoyed Nauvoo, we did all we could to try to avoid the teenagers while they hung out with their new friends. Unfortunately, there were a few "completely embarrassing" moments when a mother got too excited as she spotted her son. Sorry...

We had a marvelous time --- one that the two kids have called "life changing". Cody enjoyed alone time with his parents and the teenagers enjoyed some independence and a break from chores, chickens and the monotony of summer.

The Nauvoo temple was amazing and right outside our bedroom window. We were so delighted to be staying in the Hart House, right across the street from the temple. Talk about surreal! 

Our love for the Church, the prophet Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum grew tremendously during this trip. What a wonderful history our church has!

I drove home with the kids and Eric stayed for an additional five days to do some Nauvoo drawings and then headed back to Chicago for another show ... poor guy. 

What a treat this was for our whole family! We're hopeful for a repeat in the next few years.