Cutest Kids in the Whole Wide World!

Okay, so I tried to be cool and make a slideshow of the various poses appear in this posting but I couldn't figure it out. Once I talk to Master Nerd (my brother Rick) I'll switch it so you can see both poses. But even with just this one I think you get the idea--super cute kids, super cute pajamas! Notice how the fabrics all coordinate? Amazing. The most amazing part isn't visible in the picture--Monroe has tops & bottoms in the stripe pattern and not only do the stripes line up on the top, but they also match up with the bottoms. I am quite proud of that, as it took me a good solid hour of planning to make that happen. (NOTE: for those of you who are worried, Elise (the oldest one, in the back) does not actually have a blob above her eye, that is just from the scanner)).

These are my 6 nieces and nephews. Later this week we'll be delivering PJs to Jerel's 10 nieces and nephews in Utah. Jerel is nicer than me and his kids all have fabric that matches their personalities, hobbies, and style instead of all matching. It won't make for as cute of a picture, but it will make for happier kids. (Although you could--and should--argue that I am still the nicer one since I actually did all the sewing.) We are supposed to leave tomorrow afternoon to drive down to Utah, but since we currently have about a foot of snow with a layer of ice on top, and since I-84 is closed, it's not looking promising. We'll make it down there, we're just not sure if it'll be before Christmas. Cross your fingers, or pray, or do a little dance, or whatever it is you do for good luck--we need it!

One of us is getting really old...

I used to be fairly confident that Jerel was the older looking one but I recently received some devastating news that may just change that. It started out as a routine visit to the eyedoctor and ended with the revelation that I will now be wearing bifocals. Me: "You mean like what old ladies wear?" Dr: "I can call them 'progressives' if it will make you feel better.'" She also warned me that I will be basically running into things and falling over for the first couple of weeks until I get used to them. I told Jerel the horrible news and he very sensitively said "aren't those like granny glasses?"

In other tragic news, Jerel's hair stylist has moved away. I can't imagine why someone making $8 an hour at Supercuts would ever want to leave, but his beloved Tina is gone. At first I wasn't too concerned. See, with his dentist, the one he had for 32 years, Jerel felt it was perfectly reasonable to fly to Utah for a cleaning. I tried pointing out that there are more than a few dentists located within the state of Oregon but to no avail. Last year his Utah dentist retired and he was forced to find a new one. Anyway, I assumed he would just find out which state Tina had moved to and start flying out for his haircuts, but apparently he was unable to find out where she is. First the dentist and now Tina. I don't know how much more loss he'll be able to handle. (As a boring sidenote, the whole flying to Utah for the dentist thing was funny when Jerel tried to convince me that the cost of the airline ticket should be deductible on our taxes as a medical expense. I mean, it wasn't really funny to normal people, but to me it was funny.)

I guess we will both have some adjusting to do. I really shouldn't be surprised, I mean I already crochet doilies and I am seriously looking forward to being old enough to dye my hair blue, so I guess this just brings me one step closer to my true identity as an old lady.

Arctic Blast

Today we got our first snowfall of the year. I ran into the bedroom at 8:09am yelling "Jerel! It's snowing!" He was so excited that he jumped out of bed, ran outside, and built these cuddly snow people as a symbol of our love. Oh wait, just kidding. He was cranky about the "stupid snow" all day and since he didn't, in fact, build any snow people I had to find this picture online.

Having lived in SE Idaho and in Utah for several years I've experienced enough real snow to know how funny this is to people who aren't from the northwest. From 6am-11am, and again from 5pm until, well, probably all night, they have been having special news broadcasts describing the "Arctic Blast," the "treacherous conditions," and the "blizzard-like conditions" here in Oregon. We got about an inch and a half of snow. Every school district around here is closed tomorrow, they sent us home from church after Sacrament meeting, etc. I remember walking to classes in Rexburg with my head tucked down and my snot literally frozen in my nose and there was not even the hope that they would cancel classes. But here you get a flake or two and it's mayhem.

In some ways it makes sense because no one here can drive in the snow (except Jerel) and they don't really even de-ice or sand the roads, they just tell everyone to stay home. I'm thinking I may have to make Jerel drive me to work tomorrow. Even after 5 years living in snow-prone places I still cannot drive in the snow. I mean, I can hardly stay on the road on a bright sunny day, snow and ice is just not a good idea.

Our backyard neighbors are a family in our ward with a daughter in my Primary class. She came and sat with me at church today and I invited them to come over later and play in our yard. We have a bigger yard than they do, thus lots more snow, and no children (yet) to play in it. So Marianne came over with her two kids--Aria and Nathan--while Jerel was home teaching and we played in the snow, had a snowball fight, and generally froze to death. We came in and while I made hot chocolate (the fake kind, not the real kind my mom makes with that special ingredient) Marianne (who is significantly taller than me) decorated the top third of my tree. I had done it as high as I could reach standing on a chair but we have a 9 1/2 foot tree. Good thing I have tall friends! She even put the angel on top that my Grandma Mosbarger made before she died. Jerel is arguing that it should have a star, but I say grandma-home-made-angel trumps store-bought star any day.

Paisley's Journey Continues

I had another ultrasound but hadn't posted the pictures because I didn't want to be one of those annoying people who can only talk about the baby. I mean I AM one of those people, but I've been trying to hide it. But a few people have asked for the pictures, so here's the best one.

You can see that instead of just looking like a blob Paisley now has a distinct head blob, an arm blob, and a body blob. She is coming along quite nicely. By the end of this week she won't even have a tail anymore. It is always a big moment as a parent when your child looks less like a reptile and more like an infant. She is now a whopping 28mm long (for those of you who are American and use the most ridiculous measuring system ever invented, that is about 1.1 inches). I was telling Jerel that one of the books said at this point the baby's arm is about the length of a printed number 1 in 12-pt. font. He was supposed to say "Wow. It's amazing how something so small and delicate will one day become our beautiful child." What he actually said was "Hm. So our kid's kind of stubby."

That's the latest on our stubby little Pasiley. The next ultrasound is in about 2 weeks so we'll have another update then.

Clifford the Big Red Dog

While we were up in Washington for Thanksgiving my niece and nephew had a birthday party. Eve is turning 5 and Monroe is turning 3. They both LOVE Clifford, so that was the theme. They played "Pin the Nose on Clifford" and also had a barking contest for all the kids. It was pretty cute. I lovingly hand-made gifts for Eve & Monroe and they both had the same response--throw it on the floor and ask for another present! It was pretty much exactly what I expected would happen. But Theresa gave me plenty of attention and went on about how adorable they were so that made up for it.

Jerel and I also gave all the kids their Christmas presents while we were up there. I can't say what they were because that might give it away for Jerel's nieces and nephews. But the little kids all liked them and the older kids all played along and pretended it wasn't nerdy. They will all have a portrait done together wearing the presents and I'm excited to see it.

When Eve officially turns 5 next week, then up until Elise's birthday at the end of January my nieces and nephews ages will be 1,3,5,7,9,and 11. The accountant in me really loves this time of year when everything goes in such a smooth numerical pattern!

Paisley

Here is a picture of our baby. On the right side if you look in the black blob inside of the big gray blob you will see another small gray blob. That is the baby. I think it looks just like Jerel. The left side shows the heartbeat. It is funny how the doctor says things like "Hm, 127 beats per minute" and then looks at me for a response as if I know whether that's good or bad.

I have been trying to think of what to call the baby since I'm not a fan of referring to it as "It." So whenever I like something I say "Hm. I really like Egg Nog (or rain or slippers or anything else really random), maybe that's what we should name the baby." I was trying to come up with something to call it that would annoy Jerel and I settled on Paisley. Unfortunately it doesn't seem to be annoying him that much. Oh well. That's what I'm calling "It." (Oh, and for those who read the blog about our TV I just want to make it clear that we are not naming the baby Samsung. Apparently even after realizing it was about the TV several of my less smart siblings still thought Samsung was going to be the baby's name...)

I also thought I should clarify how we announced the pregnancy. Between the two of us if you just count our siblings and their families I think there are 34 people or something like that. Not to mention many dear friends and extended family members. We know everyone deserves to be the first to know but we just didn't want to deal with determining who to tell first. So we decided the only fair way would be to make an announcement to everyone at the same time. So if you found out on our blog, don't feel like you missed out on getting a personal notification because we didn't do that for anyone. We love you all and hope you understand.

Well, last night I finished making my pies and as soon as Jerel gets the rolls made we'll be heading up to Bremerton. Jerel is hiding his overwhelming excitement. His favorite part is that after Thanksgiving dinner my family all gathers around the piano to sing Christmas Carols. Not just the popular ones. All of them. We have a bucket of bells on strings and ALL during Jingle Bells, ALL the verses, the kids ring the bells. It is not annoying at all :) Then we do the 12 Days of Christmas and my mom does all kinds of crazy voices for the "5 gold rings" part. The first time Jerel came I was warning him ahead of time not to sing the 5 gold rings part since that's my mom's solo (and has been ever since I can remember). It turns out I didn't need to worry since he really didn't sing at all. Fortunately for him my brother Rick is usually there and they can sit in the corner and grumble about how dumb the whole tradition is. It's all part of the fun!

Anyway, Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Details on our new little addition

We know you guys must have lots of questions--delivery date, names, how I'm feeling, etc. so I'll attempt to answer them for you. The delivery date ended up being a lot sooner than we expected. As for names we've settled on Samsung. Most importantly, we are both feeling great and are delighted with the new arrival. That's right, today our new television arrived. Jerel is going through a period of mourning. He and the old tv were together for a long time--more than 14 years--in fact the two of them got together around the same time I was going to my first church dance. But the breakup was inevitable . . .

I hate working full time so I told Jerel I thought we should buy a new TV as a reward sort of. So I could come home after a long day and have something to show for my work I guess. Jerel, of course, is much more practical. We were in Best Buy looking at all these fabulous tv's and he says "Maybe we shouldn't get a tv. Maybe we should put the money towards food storage instead." I told him that would be fine but that if we did that I would quit my job immediately. So we got the tv. It seems enormous to me! It's a 46" LCD and everything looks so BIG! We found out we don't have an HD cable box so we aren't enjoying the full benefits yet, but it is amazing already.

I hope this answers all your questions!

Christmas in July?

Asher is an old ladies' man...

I spent Halloween in Arizona with my grandparents. My brother Rick came with his two oldest boys. Rick's brilliant idea was that we all dress up as loggers for the Halloween party at the Elks Club. It wasn't such a bad idea really, except that it was 95 degrees and we were all wearing flannel and wool. But it was fun. My great uncle, grandparents, and great aunt even let me put fake beards on them. They were good sports. I crocheted all the hats and they turned out to be pretty ridiculous. But it was fun.

Halloween at the Elks Club was different for Asher (9) and Mason (7). Mason was a little shy, but Asher turned out to be quite the ladies man. After the costume contest (NOTE: anyone older than 55 should not wear a "wet t-shirt contest winner" costume) some of the older folks were dancing. I was looking forward to dancing with my grandpa. It's something we always did when we visit them, but his health didn't allow it. Anyway, Asher wanted to dance so he got out there on the dance floor by himself and started dancing. I think he was doing the moves from that Happy Feet movie. He ended up dancing with at least half a dozen old ladies! When he finally got home he sat down in Grandpa's recliner and said "Boy, all those women sure wore me out!"

The main purpose of our trip was to scan all the photos from my grandparents' photo albums. Rick and I developed a good system. I got up at 6 or so and started working on scanning. Then during the day we'd work together to label all the photos. Then I'd go to bed and he'd work until around 2am putting them all into a book. He found a good program at blurb.com where you can make your own photo books. Anyway, we got them all scanned--I think it was something like 4 or 5,000 pictures--and the book is just about ready to order. It was a huge project but well worth it. Or at least I think so, I guess I should wait until I see the book to decide!

Jerel held the fort down at home. Before we got married he kept the lights off on Halloween. I refused to be a halloween grinch so I kept the lights on and did all the candy. In fact last year Jerel freaked out because I'd gone to use the bathroom and the doorbell rang and he actually had to hand out candy to some kids...it's amazing he survived! Anyway, I figured since I was out of town the lights would be off this year, but no! He bought lots of candy and passed it out all night. I'm not sure what got into him! Two of the girls from my primary class came by trick-or-treating and I was sad I missed them, but I'm glad Brother Atkinson was there to tell them how cute they were!

UPDATE: At church yesterday one of my Primary kids asked if my dad had told me she came by trick-or-treating...Jerel used to come to class with me for a few months when the kids were really out of control and I've told them a million times that he's my HUSBAND not my DAD but they don't seem to get it.

Baby Ban

When Jerel and I first got married he had something like 87 pictures of Sadie on his refrigerator. (Plus his other nieces and nephews, but since she's oldest she had the most.) When I moved in I put up a few pictures of my family and Jerel said "What are you doing? That's where pictures of MY nieces and nephews go." So we had a chat about sharing and he eventually conceded that it might be okay if pictures of my nieces and nephews were included as well.

After some discussion concerning whose pictures would be on top and who would have more I finally came up with our current system. Each niece/nephew has an 8x8 page with their name on it and only the pictures that fit on that square go on the fridge. Jerel picks the pictures he wants and I pick the ones I want. As for placement we went with oldest to youngest, top to bottom. Jerel claims that's a bad plan because it means I have more on the top than he does...but for the most part it's working for us.

As you can see in the picture of our fridge here, there is only enough room for 2 more kids. Amy & Ryan are expecting and we recently found out Theresa & Josh are expecting as well. At first I thought we would simply have to ban the rest of you from further procreation. But that seemed a little too Chinese-governmentesque so I've come up with an alternative solution that I think will work quite nicely.

I would hate to limit the expansion of anyone's family, so I thought I would generously allow you to have more children, but the next sibling to conceive will need to buy us a larger refrigerator to accomodate our need for more picture-posting space. It is the only fair solution. I found one online, KitchenAid - Architect Series II 29.7 Cu. Ft. Built-In Side-by-Side Refrigerator, that I think would work quite nicely. It measures 4' by about 7' so that should give us room for plenty more nieces and nephews. It costs around $7900, but can you really put a price on children?

Attack of the Killer Frogs

Several months ago I had a nightmare about frogs. It wasn't long but I woke up Jerel because I was yelling for help. In my dream there were frogs stuck to my hand and I was trying to yell for help but no sound would come out. The dream wasn't scary because of the frogs it was scary because I needed help but I couldn't yell.

In the morning I told Jerel why I was yelling and he thought it was pretty funny. That day I got home from work and pulled into the garage and saw a poster Jerel had hung on the door that goes from the garage into the house. It was a picture of a frog with one of those big red circles with a line through it and it said "No Frogs Allowed." He thought he was pretty funny.

When Tabitha and Richard came to visit they saw this poster and I explained it to them and they too saw this hidden humor in the situation. A little while later I got a book about frogs in the mail from my dear sister. Then when I went up to Bremerton this weekend for my uncle's funeral they had a birthday part for me and the cake had a big frog on it. My mom got me a frog windchime as a gift and Richard thought it was pretty funny to call me Frogger the whole time.

I am still at a loss as to why this frog nightmare is so funny to everyone!

Anyway, the real reason for my visit was to attend my uncle Curt's funeral. He was only 56 but had been sick for a long time. It was a really busy time for me at work but I put in lots of extra hours so that I could leave at noon on Friday to get up there in time for the 4 o'clock service. About halfway there I-5 turned into a parking lot and a call to Jerel revealed there had been an accident and the backup extended 13 miles. I was very disappointed that I would miss the funeral but figured at least I'd make it there in time for the family dinner at 6pm. By the time I arrived at the church at almost 7 everyone was packing up to leave so I ate cold lasagna in the kitchen and then headed over to Rick's house for my birthday party. (Note: Rick is my brother, Richard is my sister Tabitha's boyfriend, in case it gets confusing.)

When I got to Rick's house with Eve & Monroe in tow (for some reason the kids are always dying to ride in my car) there was a man there playing an accordian. I guess he is my uncle's son. He was raised by his mother and a stepfather so I have never met him before, nor had most of the family until the funeral. He played the accordian pretty much the entire time. There were at least 20 people there and Rick's house is really just not big enough to accomodate a birthday party and an accordian conert (consisting mostly of repeated versions of The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything) at the same time.

Regardless, it was a fun party and I got lots of nice presents, so thanks everyone!

To see all the pictures from this visit to Bremerton visit http://www.flickr.com/photos/28030935@N06/sets/72157607766447371/show/

The Brighton Happy Home Visits Portland

Jerel's sister Karee and her husband Dave brought their family to visit in September. Dave is a big BYU Football fan and they came up to go to the BYU vs. UW game in Seattle. It was such a fun visit!

We went to the Tillamook Cheese factory out on the Oregon Coast and watched them making cheese and then had a nice lunch (complete with Tillamook Ice Cream for dessert) before heading back home. I think by the end of the trip Isaac could tell you that cheese was made from milk and milk came from cows, but mostly they just had fun watching the cheese go along the conveyor belts and such.

We planned on visiting the Portland Children's Museum but it was closed that week for maintenance or something so instead we went to a children's museum down in Salem. Ellie's favorite was the bubble room where you could make really huge bubbles, or you could just use the bubble wands to get bubbles all over yourself and end up a sticky happy girl. She chose the latter. Isaac and Uncle Jerel went in the inventor's room and used recycled materials (aka trash) to build a rocket ship. Isaac is a big fan of rockets and now we can say Jerel is a rocket scientist.

Friday morning Isaac and Ellie came to my work (Oregon Gymnastics Academy) for gymnastics classes. Isaac wanted to be a big boy and go to two classes so he was with me for both of my morning classes. He does gymnastics in Utah but hasn't gone to one without his mom before. He did a great job! I thought he might be timid and shy but he jumped right in and was one of the braver ones in the class. I was so proud of him! My favorite part was that he called me "teacher Mandy" the whole time. Ellie went to a mom-n-me class with Karee. She was adorable in her little leotard and she seemed to have fun. I didn't get to see her do much since I was teaching my own classes, but it was fun to have them at the gym.

After gymnastics we headed up to Seattle. We got to Pike's Place Market just as it was shutting down. Dave wanted to see them throwing the fish, but since it was closing up all we saw them toss was a crab. I wish we had had more time there. I love outdoor markets and wandering around just looking at all the things people are selling. I'm glad I don't work on Saturdays anymore because Portland has a great outdoor market and I haven't been able to go for a couple years now.

Saturday morning we headed to Husky Stadium for the football game. Even though I went to BYU I'd never been to a game before. Karee & Dave got Jerel and I blue BYU t-shirts so we would look like good BYU fans. It was fun to be there. We were sitting with lots of other BYU fans and it was great being in the middle of all the excited Mormons! The marching band (which I believe is the most important part of any football game) played the BYU fightsong during their pre-game show and I even tried to sing along. I do okay except that I'm always the one throwing my fist up for the "rah rah rah" at the wrong time so I just skipped that part this time. Even Isaac knows all the words!

I think I must be a good luck charm because BYU has won every single game I've ever attended. It's a pretty strong record as long as you ignore the fact that this was the only game I've ever been to. Anyway, we had lots of fun and BYU winning made the ride home much more fun for everyone.

The Brightons joined us for Sacrament meeting Sunday afternoon where our bishop was amazed at how much my sister and I look alike (meaning me and Karee, who are not sisters at all) and then they headed out on their long drive home. It was so fun to have them here. In the past we've only seen them when the whole family is around and Isaac has been too shy to talk to us. It was great listening to him chatter away in his tiny little voice. Ellie was such a sweetie I wanted to keep her here forever. And Karee & Dave were so nice to plan our activities around my work schedule so that I could be involved. We had a great time & hope they will come visit us again.

To see all the pictures from their visit go to http://www.flickr.com/photos/28030935@N06/sets/72157607353536625/show/

B-town Basher & Shipperturtle

Shortly after we got back from our big trip two of my nephews came to stay the week with us. Asher (whose Wii name is B-town Basher) and Mason (who is Shipperturtle). They are 9 and 7. A friend of mine told me all the fun free things to do with kids around town so we had lots to do.

We did crafts and lunch at a park every day, visited the Portland Children's Museum, explored Pittock Mansion, had dinner at Out of This World Pizza (a pizza place where they have big play structures and bouncy houses and a climbing wall and all kinds of other things), and then the boys spent a day at day camp at Oregon Gymnastics Academy where they got to take a field trip to Oaks Park (an amusement park). We sent them each with $20 and the coaches told me they had both spent it all before lunch so someone had to buy food for them to eat...silly boys.

Anyway, we had lots of fun having the boys here. They are both so energetic and fun and happy all the time.

To see all the pics from their visit go to http://www.flickr.com/photos/28030935@N06/sets/72157606708183177/show/

Montserrat

Okay, so the cruise was fabulous and all, but one thing that really annoyed us was that Royal Caribbean told us not to book our flights home before a certain time in the afternoon on the day the cruise returned to Barcelona. We thought that was because we wouldn't be back in time, but really we got in before 7am and they just wanted everyone to sign up for one last tour. We didn't know this ahead of time so our flight wasn't until 8pm so we were suckered into a tour on the last day. I'm sure we would've enjoyed it much more if it hadn't meant that our journey home would be something in the neighborhood of 38 hours.

I'll try to stop whining now and just tell you about our visit to Montserrat. We left the ship and drove through the center of Barcelona and then north through villages and beautiful countryside on our way to the Montserrat Mountain Range. Our guide took us through the Monastery and the 16th century Renaissance Basilica. After waiting in a super duper long line we saw La Moreneta, also known as the Black Madonna. We waited forever (did I already mention that?) and then when we got to the viewing room we weren't even allowed to stop, we just had to walk on through.

Some people believe the statue was carved in Jerusalem in the early days of the church. It's made from wood and dates to about the 12th century. The statue was discovered and apparently the Benedictine monks who tried to move it were unsuccessful, so the monastery was built around it. I was looking online a little bit to try to find out why this Black Madonna is so important and discovered that there are black Madonnas in 13 European countries. I thought there was just one. I guess I'm not up to date on my Catholic studies.

It was nice to enjoy the countryside of Catalunya before returning to the airport for our journey home. The view from atop the mountain was beautiful and offered a different perspective of Spain than we'd had in the cities.

French Riviera

Our last stop before returning to Barcelona was Villefranche, France--the gateway to the French Riviera. We decided to visit Nice and Cannes and although by this time in the trip we were both exhausted and ready to go home, we still had a good time.


We explored the two towns on our own. In Nice we spent a lot of time wandering through the Old City (I love old cities!), looking at the Flower Market, and strolling romantically along the Promenade des Anglais. Well, maybe not romantically, but it was beautiful there and I think Jerel might have tried to hold my hand at one point.

In Cannes we saw the famous red-carpeted entrance to the theater where the film festival is held. We hung around for a while hoping to be discovered and cast in a major movie but that didn't end up happening. The city is situated right on the Mediterranean and we wandered along yet another promenade thinking about how nice it would be to finally be home.

Rome

We started the day with a drive through the Etruscan countryside before arriving at the Roman Colosseum. I've seen pictures of it before but I didn't realize how enormous it really is. In this picture you can see Jerel standing in front of it. The archway he's standing in is just the bottom layer of three rows of arches. The amphitheater was used for gladiators, Christians, and wild animals battled to the death in front of around 50,000 spectators.

One of my favorite places in Rome was St. Peter's Basilica. In Catholic tradition St. Peter's tomb is beneath the altar of the basilica. The basilica is built over an ancient Constantinian basilica and was finished in 1626 after more than 100 years of contruction. I was amazed at the exquisite paintings in the basilica, and even more amazed when our guide explained that they weren't paintings at all but rather mosaics. They had such fine detail and I was quite impressed. We also saw Michelangelo's Pieta--a statue depicting Mary holding the body of Jesus in her lap after the Crucifixion.

I could go on and on about St. Peter's Basilica! There were so many inspiring works of art and so many details of the building that were just amazing. After visiting the Colosseum and St. Peter's Basilica, we ran around trying to see the rest of the sites before catching the bus back to the ship. We found the Pantheon and had pizza for lunch there (no Pizza Hut this time) and enjoyed a moment of resting and hydrating before scurrying off to the next site. We managed to see The Forum which was the center of the development of the ancient Roman civilization, Piazza Colonna, Trevi Fountain, and the Spanish Steps. Rome is definitely one of those cities you could spend a full week or more exploring--one day was not enough!

Dubrovnik

Who ever would've thought we'd visit Croatia? Dubrovnik was a great old town to visit. On the drive in we could see the old city with its protective wall and towers as we drove along the Zupa Dubrovaeka Riveria. On the way we stopped at the Restaurant Konavoski Dvori. The restaurant is nestled in with an old mill on the Ljuta River. They tell us it's one of the most beautiful restaurants on the entire Croatian Adriatic Coast. Since it's the only one we visited, I guess we'll just take their word for it.

The waitresses at the restaurant were dressed in beautiful costumes but got really upset if anyone tried to take their picture. I'm not sure why since they clearly cater to tourists, but maybe it was just a bad hair day. Regardless, we snacked on smoked ham, cheese, and homemade bread but opted out of the local wine.

After the restaurant we rode to Pile Square--the western entrance of the old town--where we entered through a crowded gate and walked along the famous main street called Stradun. We saw the Onoforio Fountain which was built in 1438, the 3rd-oldest functioning pharmacy in Europe which has been in business since 1391, and two palaces--Sponza and Rector's.

We also stopped at Croata to buy a tie for Jerel. Croatia is apparently the birthplace of the necktie. The story goes that when the men were sent off for military service, the women would give them a red piece of cloth to wear to remember them. It quickly became a trend and later developed into the choking neckties men wear today. In the end we didn't buy a tie at all because the least expensive ones were several hundred dollars and neither of us could fathom spending that much just for the sake of tradition.

Venice

Venice was one of my favorite stops in Italy. My hometown is situated on a peninsula and you can see water from just about every location in the city so I felt a little bit at home in Venice which stretches across 118 small islands. Lots of water everywhere!

We had two days to explore Venice. Since Jerel has been there before, we skipped out on doing a guided tour and just discovered the city on our own. The picture here is a view from our cruise ship of Piazza San Marco. It was so crowded there! We visited St. Mark's Basilica and the famous bell and clock towers.

I found Venice to be a great city for window shopping. We saw beautiful Venetian masks which have been hand crafted in the city for centuries. They are worn during the Carnival of Venice (which the rest of us refer to as Mardi Gras). We also saw lots of lovely jewelry featuring Ventian glass. A lot of it comes from Murano and all of it is gorgeous! I bought a couple of necklaces there and am complimented on them all the time. I love to smile and say "Oh, this old thing? I just picked it up last time I was in Venice..."

Pompeii

Pompeii was one of my favorite sites in Europe. When we were in Israel we visited tons of tels, which are basically the ruins of ancient towns on top of hills. I thought Pompeii would be really similar but it wasn't. It was a huge sprawling metropolis compared to the sites we'd seen. It was so interesting to see how the town was laid out and to walk on the ancient streets.

Pompeii is 14 miles east of Naples and was buried in 79 AD by the eruption of Vesuvius. There have been lots of excavations and it is so well-preserved that you can really get a feel for how the town looked. We saw lots of public buildings, temples, shops, and public baths--all from about 2000 years ago!

The gate at the entrance to the town had two arches--a large one for chariots and such which was closed at night and a smaller one for pedestrians which was kept open (but guarded) through the night. In this picture Jerel and I are standing in the Forum. It's like a main street square kind of area with all the important civic buildings around it and the temple at one end.

When the town was buried by ash and pumice more than 2,000 people perished. Fascinating (but probably gruesome) plaster casts were made of some of the bodies. When the debris from the two-day volcanic eruption came through Pompeii it of course didn't fill in the spaces where people were. During the excavations they discovered many of these holes in the shapes of people. Some of them were filled with plaster and then removed so that you have a cast of what the person looked like. We saw one that was a man sitting with his hands over his face. Another was a young woman who was pregnant and probably a slave, laying face down. A third one was a dog curled up. It really made you think of what it would be like to face death. I mean I guess I've thought about it before, but I've never considered how I would be sitting or what my facial expression might be. Sorry if this is morbid to you, I just found it so intriguing.

Some day I'll get around to labeling all of the pictures on flickr and you can see lots of cool pictures from Pompeii.

Sorrento

When we stopped in Naples we'd selected the tour called "Taste of Sorrento and Pompeii." When we picked the tours ahead of time, I picked all the ones that started with "taste of" because I thought that meant there would be food. Boy was I disappointed!

I am always fascinated with how things are made. I can remember watching Mr. Rogers as a kid and seeing how they made crayons. I just knew if I was really good I'd be able to work in a factory someday. Anyway, I was really excited because in Sorrento we got to watch a woman making mozzarella cheese! We left the boat and drove along a coastal highway that was, I am pretty sure, narrower than our tour bus. The view was absolutely amazing. When we arrived in Sorrento we went to a local farmhouse in the hills. It was a small family-owned farm that produces mozzarella, vegetables, olives, and lemons. They used to do olive oil so we got to look at the old presses. Of course since we'd just been in Israel we were already experts on olive presses, but it was still interesting.

I took really good notes on how to make the mozzarella, but now that I'm reading through them they don't really make sense. Here goes. First they separate the curds (solids) from the whey (liquid). Then they mix it with hot water. A cream develops on the top of the water and that is skimmed off. Then they do a little stir, stir kind of thing and voila, mozzarella. Okay, so maybe my notes weren't as thorough as I thought. Anyway, she showed us a few shapes they make it in--this picture shows the donut shape which is my favorite because I like donuts.

The best part was that this lady spoke no English at all. Our guide narrated what she was doing as she made the mozzarella. Then when she was done and everyone wanted to take pictures she explained that the woman did know one word in English and right on cue she smiled and said "cheese." It was funny, even if she has made the same joke a million times before.

After watching the demonstration we went up to this outdoor seating area and ate fresh mozzarella with tomatoes and salami. Yum!

Florence & Pisa

Florence and Pisa developed as Roman military trading towns. Florence and Pisa are both along the River Arno and date back to 800 BC. The famous leaning tower was begun in 1172. After only 3 of the 6 planned stories were built the project was abandoned because it was leaning. It was completed in the mid-14th century and stands 180 feet high. It leans a total of 14 feet and moves another 1/4" each year.

We left the boat early in the morning and drove through the picturesque Tuscan countryside to Pisa. We had a bit of time to wander around the tower and look at the adjacent baptistry. There were lots of little shops set up but after a couple of them I remembered we were in Europe and they like to print naked people on everything. Not in a tasteful way, but in a tacky way. Fortunately the stop wasn't too long and we continued on to Florence.

I told Jerel I was very excited to visit Florence. When I was in band in junior high we always had this super old man as our substitute when the real teacher was gone. He gave everyone old-fashioned names and mine was always Florence, so I felt a real connection. Jerel didn't seem to see the importance of it, which is what tends to happen when my stories start with "One time, when I was in band..."

Anyway, in Florence we visited the Piazza del Duomo (if you prefer to speak English you can call it Cathedral Square) where the Cathedral, Bell Tower, and Baptistry are. I don't know a thing about architecture but I sure enjoyed seeing the magnificent buildings.

Barcelona

After being entirely worn out by Israel we spent a couple of days in Barcelona before the cruise started. It was such a long trip that we really hadn't done any planning in advance for these couple of days, other than to book a hotel room. (That was really all I needed since I just wanted to shower and sleep). We ended up taking a couple of walking tours of the city and had a good time, particularly after we found the much-searched-for laundromat!

One of our walks took us up to the Olympic Stadium from the 1992 Olympics. I've included a picture of the stadium here, not because it's so cool but because it's where I first learned how to use the panoramic setting on my camera. From the top of the hill where the stadium is we could see the distant Montserrat which we visited later on the last day of our cruise.

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We also walked around in the Mercat Boqueria in Barcelona. That was quite an experience! It's a huge market and they sell all sorts of things--tongue, dead chickens with their heads still attached, and lots of things I couldn't even identify. I found it fascinating and could've stayed there all day. They also had normal things like fruits and vegetables, but I admit to being drawn to the strange products.

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Another walk took us to a few Gaudi places. Jerel tells me this Gaudi fellow is famous, but of course I've never heard of him. I'm just not that cultured I guess.

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The most important thing we found in Barcelona (besides the laundromat) was just a few block from our hotel. Pizza Hut. Jerel is a bit of a picky eater. I would say extremely picky, but then that would start an argument, so I'll just say a little picky. Although I'm more into trying local foods and can find something to eat just about anywhere, the sight of the Red Roof was such a relief because then I knew Jerel would not starve to death on our trip after all. (Similarly, we ate at Pizza Hut last year in France and in England.) I think we ate at this one 2 or 3 times in our day and a half in Barcelona. It was pretty similar to the pizza at home but I was jealous because they had a much more extensive dessert menu than I've ever seen in the States.

The Garden Tomb

This is my last post about the Israel portion of our trip. I hesitate to even write it. There is such peace in the Garden Tomb and I know that can't be portrayed in a blog.

There is no way of knowing if the site we visited is where Jesus actually laid while awaiting resurrection, but it is the site traditionally used and photographed among Latter-day Saints.

The tomb itself has a wooden door (obviously added later) with a sign reading "He is not here, for He is risen." You can enter the tomb and last time I was there we went in the tomb and sang some Easter hymns. This group was not as prone to bursting into song, but I will always remember siging of his resurrection in that empty tomb. The entrance to the tomb would have been much smaller at the time of Christ's burial but it has been extended over the years to make it more accessible.

The tomb was left empty and because of that our hearts and lives are filled.

Shepherd's Field

There is no way of knowing exactly where in the Bethlehem area those "shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night" were. There are a couple of spots that are said to be the "exact field" and churches have been built in those places. We visited a little hillside and saw lots of sheep. We also saw several natural caves where the sheep would have been gathered at night to make them easier to protect.

Soon after we arrived and began reading scripture and discussing that night long ago two real-life shepherds came. They were children--maybe around 10 years old--and sadly weren't dressed in brown bathrobes, nor did they carry long canes with hooks on the end. Yet another disappointment when comparing my own little visions of the Christmas story with reality! They herded the sheep right into our group and were more than willing to pose for pictures...for a price. Daniel warned us that if we wanted the sheep to stick around we'd better hold off on paying them. Sure enough, as soon as they received their dollar bills from many members of the group, they were off again herding the sheep back across a busy highway to where they camp with their Bedouin families. Smart kids--they must've made at least $50 for their little 30-minutes of shepherding! Daniel takes a tour group nearly ever week of the year and I'm almost positive these kids make much more from their brief outings across the freeway than from whatever real shepherding they do.

Mount of Transfiguration

In the Jezreel Valley a round peak rises up 1,840 feet as Mount Tabor. This is the place where Deborah and her general gathered the Israelite troops to do battle against the Canaanites. From the top of the mountain you can see the hills of lower Galilee and Nazareth to the west and Mount Moreh to the south. But the little battle in the book of Judges is not what attracts so many visitors to this mountain.

There are two churches atop the mountain--one Greek Orthodox and one Franciscan Catholic. After a frightening ride up a very narrow switchback road we visited the Catholic church. It is called the Church of the Transfiguration because of the Byzantine tradition that Mount Tabor was the site of the transfiguration of Jesus, Peter, James, and John (Matt 17). The church is built over the ruins of Byzantine and Crusader churches and has 3 separate chapels. The central chapel is in honor of Jesus and the two smaller chapels honor Moses and Elijah. (The picture here is of the chapel of Moses.) This corresponds nicely to Peter's words in Matthew 17 about building three tabernacles--one for Jesus, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.

All that said, there is still debate about whether Mount Tabor is really the Mount of Transfiguration. A more geographically logical site would be Mount Hermon and LDS opinion remains divided--Spencer W. Kimball preferred Mount Tabor whereas Bruce R. McConkie favored Mount Hermon. Since we didn't visit Hermon, I'm assuming Daniel Rona prefers Tabor as well. I think Jerel agreed with that, although I prefer to remain undecided. Regardless of where it happened, we had a touching devotional atop the mountain and were able to feel a little of the spirit of that truly glorious event.

Gethsemane

Gethsemane is on the Mount of Olives overlooking Jerusalem. The Mount has become a symbol of hope for a future redemption and because of that it is the site of many, many Jewish graves. Some of these date back almost 3,000 years! Daniel explained to us that throughout the world most Jewish graves point with their feet toward Israel; in Israel the graves point toward Jerusalem; in Jerusalem the graves point toward the Temple Mount.

A lot of historic sites in Jerusalem seem to have lost the sense of peace that you would expect. Many have been commercialized or overrun by competing churches. I understand the desire to build churches at these sacred spots, and in some cases it is very well done, but other times it just leaves the place feeling overcrowded and busy. There are seven churches built around Gethsemane, but fortunately the Mount of Olives is big enough that you can still find a quiet place among the olive trees to ponder on that great sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

One of the insights Daniel shared with us is related to the biblical accounts of the sacrificing of a red-haired, unblemished firstborn calf on the Mount of Olives. (He mentioned it as if this red calf sacrifice was something we were all intimately familiar with, so I played along and then read it in the bible later. Guess I need to study more). Anyway, in ancient times the ashes of the red-haired calf were used in immersions performed of those needing remission of sins. Daniel suggested that since Christ sweat great drops of blood his clothing must have been stained red and perhaps this red calf sacrifice is a symbol of that suffering. (A side note: the "lilies of the field" mentioned in the bible are actually red. I always imagined them as white and was disappointed to hear they were red until I was able to connect it with the Mount of Olives and all that has, and will, happen there.)

When Christ comes again he will come to the Mount of Olives clothed in a red robe. In that way his visit will be similar to that time in Gethsemane, but in most ways it will be so different. I imagine how joyful it will be and I wonder how it would feel for Him to return and remember that long-ago suffering and see the good it has brought to the world.

The Model City

Early on in our trip we visited this accurate miniature of what the ancient city of Jerusalem looked like about 2,000 years ago. In this picture you are facing west and can see the Temple Mount in the front. The model city was built as a memorial for a father's son who was killed in the War of Independence. They constantly update the model when new archaeological discoveries reveal better information.

The idea behind visiting the model is that it gives you an understanding of where things were in relation to each other. Then during the rest of the touring a normal person would have a great perspective of where they were. Unfortunately I'm not in that category of normal people. I have no sense of direction. I still get lost occasionally in Hillsboro and I've lived here for 5 years now!

Fortunately Jerel doesn't suffer from this same condition and he really enjoyed this visit. I think he said that in the model you have to remember that the scale is that a person would be like the size of a thumb. You can see some people in the background and hopefully get a feeling for how big the Temple Mount is. If you want to know anything else you'll have to check with Jerel.

Jordan River

It is neat to realize just how much doctrine we learn from Primary songs. There is a spot along the Jordan River where thousands of Christians flock to be baptized because they believe it is the spot where Jesus was baptized. But as kids we all sang "Jesus came to John the Baptist in Judea..." Judea is much further south in the Jordan Valley, closer to Jericho. You can also read in Luke 3:21 that Jesus went unto John and further study will show that John lived in Judea, not in the northern area we visited. But then I'm not really one who cares much where the exact spot was. To me figuring out exactly where Christ was baptized is not nearly as important as figuring out how I can live up to the covenants I made when I was baptized.

That aside, it was fun to see all the people being baptized. There is a gift shop there (of course) and they sell everything from t-shirts to magnets that say "I was baptized in the Jordan River!" It is always inspiring for me to see people of all religions enjoying their religion and having excitement and passion for it. I mean it's not my style, but I am always happy when people are able to find a little more light in their lives.

The BYU Jerusalem Center

On the Sabbath we went to church at the Jerusalem Center for Near Eastern Studies. Because the rest of Israel observes the Sabbath on Saturday, the LDS branches in Israel do so as well. So on Saturday we went to church at the Center. It is such a beautiful building! All of the buildings in Jerusalem have to be built with limestone and the Jerusalem Center blends right in. It has beautiful archways. My favorite part is that from the chapel where you go for Sacrament Meeting you can see right out over Jerusalem. The picture here is the view from where we sat for the meeting. I lived at the Center for 2 months when I was in Israel in 2000 and I will never forget singing "There is a Green Hill Far Away" while looking out over that very hill.

You can see more (and better) pictures of the Center at http://ce.byu.edu/jc/ It is an 8-story building. There are a couple floors of student housing, a couple floors of classrooms, a cafeteria, a chapel, a floor for security, and then the top floor is the administration center and library. I just remember that there was only one elevator and students weren't allowed to use it. You really think twice about eating when you know you have to climb six flights of stairs to get to the cafeteria! The floors inside are limestone as well. Limestone is pretty soft so we were not allowed to roll our suitcases on the floor because it could damage them. I can remember a brigade of all the guys in our class going up the stairs tossing our suitcases up and up and up. But now this is turning into a blog about my trip 8 years ago...sorry.

The grounds are beautiful as well and lots of local couples come there to have their engagement and wedding photos taken. The chapel has a lovely organ and that room is used for community concerts on a weekly basis. There is no prosyletizing from the Center, but they still make sure they are a positive presence in the community.

The Palace of Caiaphas

After being betrayed by Judas, Jesus was arrested and taken to the High Priest, Caiaphas. Both his arrest and subsequent interrogation were illegal according to the law at that time. We visited two rooms, 2,000 years old, where prisoners (including Jesus) where held. We could see holes in the rock walls that were used to tie the ropes that held the prisoners hands and feet for scourging. You should be able to see two of those holes in the picture here. There was another area in the basement where we went down lots of stairs into a deep pit. There is no record that Jesus was ever put into this pit. It was a dark, cold basement and it was sad being there and seeing where they would have tied up the Savior. It made His suffering so much more real to me.

Hezekiah's Tunnel

Since Jerusalem is on a mountain, it is naturally defensible from almost all sides, but its weakness is that its major source of fresh water, the Gihon spring, is on the side of the cliff overlooking the Kidron Valley (the valley many believe to be the Valley of the Shadow of Death). Since the spring was outside the high city walls King Hezekiah had this tunnel built around 701BC to bring water into the city. One team of men started at each end and they met somewhere in the middle of the 533 meter long tunnel. You can see a few spots in the tunnel where they started going the wrong direction and had to change course. You can also see the spot where they met in the middle because the chisel marks reverse directions. In some places the tunnel is quite tall, but in others even short little me had to duck. It made for a refreshing end to a long hot day. Our guide told us the water would maybe go up to our knees, but I guess that was just for people with regular length legs...

Dome of the Rock

The Dome of the Rock is the third holiest site for Muslims. It is on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem and I think it's a really cool looking octagonal building. The dome itself is covered in gold leafing and the outside of the building is covered in intricate tiled patterns. Most mosques face toward Mecca, but this one has a beautiful dome to draw attention to heaven. Muslims believe Abraham was going to sacrifice Ishmael not Isaac. This mosque was built to commemorate that event. This rock is also the place where they believe Mohammed ascended to heaven for a day.

Visitors are not currently allowed in the building, but I was able to go inside the last time I was there (in 2000). It's a pretty building inside. I stood in line forever to get to this place where you put your arm into a little box-like thing near the floor and you can touch the rock itself...it was a little anticlimactic. It just felt like any other rock, except coated with the germs of the last million visitors. If you want to feel the spirit of the story of Abraham and Isaac you'd do well to read the scriptures rather than touch this rock. At least in my opinion. I'm sure some have gone there and had wonderful spiritual experiences. But for me some of these sites just felt dead or empty and left me longing for the living spirit I am blessed to know.

Jerel & Goliath

We stopped in the very hot valley of Elah. Even after 40 days of being badgered by the Philistines the Israelites simply would not give up this valley. It was an important valley because it led up to Bethlehem and Jerusalem. David had faith enough to face the giant man sent by the Philistines. He chose five smooth stones out of the river, took his slingshot, and struck Goliath in the head.

Similarly, Jerel selected several smooth stones, took his slingshot, and struck himself in the foot.

I didn't even attempt it. There were too many people around and I have such unreliable coordination that it just wasn't worth the risk. Jerel actually got pretty good at it. The slingshots they used back them were different from the ones kids have today. It is bascially a rope abotu 18" long with a loop on each end and a place in the middle to hold the rock. You loop one end on your finger, hold onto the other end, and put the rock in the middle. Then you swing it around and at just the right time you let go of one end of the rope and the rock flies out. It was fun to watch everyone testing out the slingshots. It was amazing no one was hurt!

The Western Wall

I am always fascinated by this site. It is so noisy and chaotic, and yet to many Jews is a sacred and holy place where they come to pray and in some way commune with the Spirit. Jews don't think the wall itself is holy but since Othodox Jews feel they can't go on the temple mount because the priesthood was lost, this wall is the closest thing to the temple they have. At the Western Wall today men and women are kept separate, just as they were in ancient temple practices. There is a wall that runs perpendicular to the Western Wall to separate the sexes. The men's side is much larger and there were many more men there than women.

We were lucky to see several Bar Mitzvahs happening while we were there. Even at the Bar Mitzvahs the men and women are separated. On one side you could see the young boy and his father and other family and friends right up by the wall separating the women. The women of the family would be just over the wall standing on plastic chairs so they could watch the ceremony and take pictures. It was fun for me to watch over the wall too, but I didn't stay long since there were only so many chairs and it seemed like the family members and friends of those boys should be the ones able to watch.

Up at the Western Wall itself you could see lots of religious Jews praying and chanting. Some were sitting and rocking while they prayed. Others were standing and quite loud in whatever it was they were saying. There were some who walked backwards away from the wall when leaving because the site is so sacred to them they consider it offensive to turn their back on it. It is also common for people to write down prayers and then fold up the paper very small and squish it in the cracks between the blocks. My boss is Jewish so I wrote a prayer and put it in the wall for her. I'm not sure exactly what it means to them but it seemed like the thing to do.

Over on Jerel's side they got to go right up where the Bar Mitzvahs were happening. Jerel was stopped by a guy who offered to give him a special blessing but then indicated he would expect to be paid for such a blessing. It was just such an interesting place. In some ways it made me think that the Jews really have so much truth; at the same time it was a little sad to see how much is missing from their religion. It makes you want to stand up on the wall and tell them all that they don't have to wait for Jesus anymore because He's already come. Still, I am quite impressed with their dedication to their religion and the integrity with which they live their lives.

Caesarea

This was another place with lots of cool ruins. Jerel says "Caesarea is where we had that gross lunch." Herod built this city about 2000 years ago and named it after his ruler, Caesar. It is a really beautiful place right on the shore of the Mediterranean Sea. Caesarea is the place where Paul was questioned by Herod Agrippa who was "almost persuaded" to believe. Caesarea was occupied by Jews, then Christians, and then was completely destroyed by Muslims in the 6th century.

There is a great restored theater in Caesarea and while we were there we read through Saul's speech to the king. After that we all looked around in the dust and gravel because there are still ancient pottery shards and coins just laying around. Jerel and I found nothing but trash, but some folks in our tour group found some cool pieces of pottery and coins.

Mount of Beatitudes

This is another peaceful place (although HOT--over 100 degrees again!) It is a beautiful hillside with a Catholic church at the top. The landscaping is lovely, complete with palm trees. We had a nice time reading the Sermon on the Mount. Here Jesus taught the higher law to the 12 disciples. I love this sermon. It reminds me to have perspective. Life can be difficult in many ways, but the promised blessings always come. It also reminds me that everyone is dealing with their own tests and trials. Neal A. Maxwell taught (although I can't find the exact quote) that in life there is more equality in the testing than we realize.

Here is Daniel's summary:
The Sermon on the Mount invites all people, whether rich or poor in spirit, happy or mourning or persecuted, to come unto him. He promised that they would be filled with the Holy Ghost if they come unto Him. Jesus indicated that the Law of Moses was fulfilled in Him, that he was giving a higher law, one that was governed and dictated more by the spirit than by the letter of the law which was given at Mount Sinai.

Capernaum

Capernaum has some of the coolest ruins I've seen. It is so well preserved that you really get a sense of what the place looked like back in the day. There was a church discovered in Capernaum that dates back to the first century. On top of the remains a modern church has been built that is suspended over the ancient building. If I was smart I'd figure out how to post a picture of it. It's funny to me how different religions are so anxious to lay claim on these ancient sites. I keep thinking if they knew that Christ's church lives today maybe the dead places of the past wouldn't seem so important. But I guess it's good because they do preserve those sites for us to see.

Here's a brief summary of Capernaum provided by our guide, Daniel Rona:

In recent times, excavations have uncovered the ruins of a once thriving city of Romans and Jews. Capernaum may have had ten thousand inhabitants. It was a Roman toll station (Matthew 17:24), and it was the home of Peter and other apostles (Mark 1:29). Jesus lived here for eighteen to twenty months of his three-year ministry.

The name Capernaum may come from the Hebrew word for "solace" or "consolation." Most of His miracles occurred at Capernaum or at nearby Chorazin or Bethsaida. Sadly, these three cities were cursed by Jesus and only their ruins are visible today (Matthew 11:20-24).

Jesus must have made many friends here, after all, thousands followed him. In an area nearby He fed them with loaves and fishes, five thousand at a time, not counting women or children (Luke 9:11-17). Of the children one recalls the account of a twelve-year-old girl who was ill. On the way to bless her, Jesus noted that a woman had touched is garment (Mark 5:21-43). Religious Jews today wear a garment of wool called a "tallith," the name is derieved from the Hebrew word for lamb, "taleh." The woman who touched the garment (probably the "tallith") was healed. However, by the time Jesus arrived to bless the girl, she had died. He sent all the mourners away, then with Peter, James, and John, "...he taketh the father and the mother of the damsel...and entereth in where the damsel was lying. And he took the damsel by the hand, and said unter her, Talitha cumi." The endearing term, Talitha, may have been Jesus' way of saying "my little lamb" or "curly locks" and "cumi" means get up. "and straightway the damsel arose, and walked."

Galilee

Galilee is 700 feet below sea level and is formed from the waters of the upper Jordan River. There are so many beautiful stories that happened on this sea. My favorite has always been the story of Christ calming the storm. Spencer W. Kimball said "There are depths in the sea which the storms that lash the surface into fury never reach. They who reach down into the depths of life where, in the stillness, the voice of God is heard, have the stabilizing power which carries
them poised and serene through the hurricane of difficulties." When I was here in 2000 we stayed in bungalows right on the shore of Galilee. I didn't realize until coming back what a connection I felt with that lake.

We had a great fish lunch in Tiberias. Well, I had a fish lunch. It was fabulous because they serve the fish with its head still on. I had to put my napkin over that part so I wouldn't have the fish staring up at me while I ate it. Long after we'd all eaten our fish, and I'd eaten more than my fair share of hummus, they finally brought out Jerel's chicken. Which was basically raw so he couldn't eat it anyawy.

After lunch we went on a boat ride on the sea. I have always loved being on the water, but especially in Galilee. There is a stillness in my soul when I am on the Sea of Galilee. Truly the Savior has power not just to calm the troubled waters but to calm my anxious soul as well.

I love this comment by Jeffrey R. Holland: No, it is not without a recognition of life's tempests but fully and directly because of them that I testify of God's love and the Savior's power to calm the storm. Always remember in that biblical story that He was out there on the water also, that He faced the worst of it right along with the newest and youngest and most fearful. Only one who has fought against those ominous waves is justified in telling us--as well as the sea--to "be still." Only one who has taken the full brunt of such adversity could ever be justified in telling us in such times to "be of good cheer." Such counsel is not a jaunty pep talk about the power of positive thinking, though positive thinking is much needed in the world. No, Christ knows better than all others that the trials of life can be very deep and we are not shallow people if we struggle with them. But even as the Lord avoids sugary rhetoric, He rebukes faithlessness and He deplores pessimism. He expects us to believe!

Masada

Masada is one of my favorite places in Israel. I love the courage of the people who were willing to take their own lives (or more accurately, the men took the lives of their families) rather than be raped and sold as slaves. Our guide, Daniel Rona, provided a different perspective. He explained that the Bible teaches us to render unto Caesar that which is Caesar's, and that we believe in being subject to kings and rulers. His view is that if the zealots at Masada had submitted to the political authority, the ending could have been so much better for them. I still like to think of them as courageous people full of integrity, but Daniel makes and interesting point.

Here is a summary of the story of Masada as it is generally told (there are those academics who believe the whole thing has been exaggerated, but it's still interesting.)

During the first Century of the Common Era, The nation which we now call Israel was held as a Roman colony. The Jewish people who lived in this area, however, refused to succumb to the religious practices of Rome and decided rather to remain true to the religious practices which there ancestors had practiced. This Jewish faith was incompatible with that of the Romans, and for this reason, the Jewish people began to revolt in 66 C.E. This revolt would mean the destruction of Israel as a Jewish state, as the Romans proceed to destroy every stronghold of Judaism throughout the area.

The last area where the Jewish people had power was an old fortress known as Masada. From this mountain fortress, these people known as Zealots lead raids on neighboring Roman towns and remained the only Jewish stronghold within Israel. As the war came to a close, the only place left for attack by the Romans was Masada. A Roman general laid siege to Masada in hopes of taking this last stronghold. The Zealots prepared themselves for a long siege by rationing food and water. The Roman forces were strong, and they broke through the outer wall. The Zealots had made there last attempt at survival, and knew that death was their only end. Rather than give the glory of victory to the Roman soldiers, these Zealots committed mass suicide, seeing this as the best way to avoid slavery and death by the hands of Romans.

Masada is a big rock mountain that Herod the Great chose to build a palace. It's 1500 feet above the Dead Sea and totally isolated. When we were there we saw the ruins of lots of buildings, pools, baths, and fountains. It isn't just a one-building palace, it's a whole slew of different buildings surrounding the main palace. It was a hot sweaty day for us as it was well over 100 degrees, but I'm still fascinated by this place. More than 960 men, women, and children died at their own hand rather than surrendering to the Romans. When they realized they were about to be captured, the men in the town cast lots and 10 were selected to take the lives of the other men after they had taken the lives of their families. Of these ten one was selected to kill the other nine and then take his own life. In the end one woman and a couple of children were found hiding in a cistern but the Romans quickly took care of them.

There is a spirit of identity at Masada for Israelis. Children and soldiers visit Masada at least once in their careers. Some boys come to Masada for their bar mitzvah. Soldiers used to come to Masada to take their oaths and would cry out "Masada shall never fall again!" but they don't do it much anymore. It seems the old glorified legend is giving way to the supposition that the mass suicide was driven more by political ambition than by anything else.

The Dead Sea

Wow! So much salt! The Dead Sea is the lowest spot on the face of the earth! The Dead Sea is about 31% salt, compared to ocean water at 3.5%. It has its name because it is so salty nothing but the tiniest organisms can live in it. That's good news for people who are terrified of seaweed (don't be embarrassed, Theresa) as they can enter without fear of being attacked. The rocks and stuff along the shore line had a coating of this white salt crusted on them. If you're really nerdy and want to learn more about The Dead Sea you can visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dead_Sea

We had lots of fun floating in it. I had to be careful to balance on my back because if I turned at all, the fat from my backside is apparently more than the fat on my frontside and it would flip me right over onto my face...I also forgot the advice we got last time I was there, namely not to shave that day. Boy did my legs burn! Jerel had the same problem with his neck/face. You suddenly become aware of nicks and cuts you didn't know you had!

When I was at Ricks College Susan Bednar (Elder David A. Bednar's lovely wife) gave a great talk about salt and explained that it is used to preserve, protect, and enhance. She tied it all in to how we are the salt of the earth and such. I was going to be really cool and add a link to the talk, but everytime I try to open it at the byui website it freezes up my computer. So you'll have to survive with my two sentance summary of the talk.

Qumran

Our first day of touring started with a visit to Qumran. Qumran was an ancient community near the Dead Sea with people who shared the little they had in common. Some people believe this community was the Essenes or Sons of Light (Luke 16:8). Qumran is well known for being the place where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. Some Bedouin boys were exploring the caves and found the scrolls by accident. After the scrolls were discovered, the ruins became significant and were excavated. Living quarters, writing halls, cisterns, and immersion fonts were found which indicates a religious life similar to Judaism.

A part of every book of the Old Testament (except Esther) was found in the Scrolls, including the entire book of Isaiah. The scrolls are 1,000 years older than any previously known Hebrew biblical text.

You can visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dead_Sea_scrolls if you want more information about the scrolls.

At Qumran we saw some old ruins and also saw from a distance some of the caves where the Dead Sea Scrolls and other ancient texts were found. It was interesting to hear about some of the things written in the ancient records and the similarities to the LDS church. For example, the ancient religion was govered by a man who had 2 assistants, then a committee of 12, and then a group of 70 men as well. It reinforced to me that truth is truth no matter the time or place.

Pictures can be viewed by clicking the link at the right for Jerel & Amanda's flickr.