We decided that there was no reason we couldn't attend church on vacation, especially since there was one right down the road from where we were. They had sacrament meeting last......I'm not a fan of having sacrament meeting last. But this sacrament meeting was fabulous. We ended up sitting behind some people who live down the road from us here in Bountiful. They are in a different stake but live just a few blocks from where we are. We had a great visit with them. And it really does go to show that "It's a small world after all."
In the opening announcements they mentioned that the Relief Society would be making a temple trip to the Logan Utah temple, that's over an hour drive. I take for granted the fact that I have a temple five minutes up the road. It's times like that when I need that gentle reminder that I really have no excuse to not attend the temple more often. The youth speaker was amazing. She talked about her Trek trip. She had an amazing spiritual experience on her trip that she shared with us. But the best part was how bubbly and animated she was. She was a riot to listen to.
Paris Idaho also has a tabernacle. The early pioneers built around 1884. They built it out of Sandstone from a local quarry. The tabernacle is still in use today. It is used for community events, Stake Conferences, Region Conferences, free tours, and many other things. We noticed that the tabernacle was open for tours on Sunday. We figured it was a great Sunday activity to do.
Just for fun, here are some fun facts about Paris Idaho.
Paris is a city and county seat of Bear Lake County, Idaho, United States. Located on the western side of the Bear Lake Valley, the city's population was 513 at the 2010 census, down from 576 in 2000. Paris was settled on September 26, 1863, by pioneer settlers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Paris was settled by a group of dedicated Mormons led by Charles C Rich. During early years, pioneers suffered difficulties with the harsh cold climate, however their determination and faith kept them from leaving the area.
Paris sports an impressive landmark for a city of its size: the LDS Bear Lake Stake Tabernacle, a sandstone church designed by Joseph Don Carlos Young and built between 1884 and 1889. It seats around 2,000 people, nearly four times the population of the city.
After church we went back to Eschler Haven to pack up all of our things and have lunch. The second half of our vacation was going to be spend in Ovid Idaho with Nathan's family. Nathan's mom found a great deal on a big ranch house. The plan was for his family to all meet Sunday afternoon at the ranch house for a fun filled family vacation. Nathan, Jacen, Carter, and Taylor hung out and watched the World Cup while Stephanie and I took the small kids to the tabernacle for a tour.
Did you know that the pioneers used to cut their hair and make hair flowers? I didn't. They had some in a display case. I couldn't get a good picture, but found it really fascinating. Fascinating enough to have a dream about it the next night. I dreamed that I made bracelets for my family out of my hair. Very strange dream.
After the tour and World Cup, we hooked up the trailer, said our goodbyes and thank you's to the Loders, and loaded into the van to make the "oh so long drive" of 10 minutes to the ranch house in Ovid. The ranch house was FABULOUS!! It sleeps 20+ people and had all the amenities of home. I have decided that it's the only way to camp.
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| I'm really disappointed that this picture turned out so blurry. The guy who designed the tabernacle was a ship builder and if you look at a picture of the ceiling upside down, it looks like the bottom of a ship. I kept this picture because you can still see how it really does look like the bottom of a ship. |
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| When the early settlers originally built the tabernacle, they only put in one chimney. Later another chimney was added but they couldn't use the same brick so the tabernacle has two mismatched chimneys in the back. |
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| This picture and the one above are millstones. So when you read in the scriptures about how it's better for them to have a millstone and drowned in the depths of the sea, this is what they are talking about. |
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| It's a beautiful building. |
I tried to find some interesting facts about Ovid Idaho. Wickipedia wasn't much help, all they have to say about Ovid is: Ovid is an unincorporated community in Bear Lake County, Idaho, United States. It was first settled in 1864. Its elevation is 5938 ft (1810 m).
I did find this on Ovid on a different site:
The town of Ovid is nestled against the hills at the edge of Bear Lake Valley, surrounded by grasslands.A ridge of hills reaches down from the north right to Ovid, and Bear Lake Valley divides, with a smaller arm stretching to the northwest. The Bear River passes by a couple miles to the east, and Ovid Creek flows from the northwest to meet it. Forested mountains line the valley on both sides, and are most visible to the southwest from Ovid. The valley extends to the horizon to the south, and at the far end is the beautiful Bear Lake.
Ovid was settled in 1864 by Mormon pioneers, as a coordinated effort to settle all this area. Ovid was never incorporated, and its population is quite small, perhaps a hundred. The name is pronounced Oh-vid. Ranching is the traditional activity for the area, and there is a lumbermill in Ovid.
U.S. Highway 89 passes through Ovid, making a turn in the town. It heads south to Paris, and northeast to Montpelier. Idaho Highway 36 begins at the bend and heads west across theBear River Mountains into Cache Valley. The elevation is from 5,930 to 5,980 feet.
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| Adorable little cousins playing on the porch at the ranch house. |
