Kirtland, Ohio

Part of a day was spent driving to Kirtland, Ohio.
The N. K. Whitney Store is part of the L.D.S. visitor center grounds.



Checkers, anyone?

This room was used to train members who were preparing to serve missions.  Here they would smoke and chew tobacco.  The Prophet Joseph Smith went into the next room and there he received the revelation about the Word of Wisdom.

Another stop was to visit the Kirtland temple (now owned by the Community of Christ church).  Photos were not permitted inside, but we took an architectural tour of the inside.  So many amazing things happened here, but the tour guide did not talk about them.  He chose instead to talk about the design and purposes of this temple.

The temple was smaller than we thought it would be, but we are sure it fulfilled all the purposes needed for the saints at the time.

At the dedication of the temple in 1836 there were visions of the Celestial Kingdom and visits by Moses, Elias, Elijah and Christ.

On the way home to the airport, Jordan, Brad and Frieda attended a session at the Columbus Temple, located just minutes from the airport.

Visiting Family

With Oliver, at 8 months

One of the things Jordan wanted to do before he left on his mission was visit all of his family members.  His brother, Zach, lives in Ohio with Niki and baby Oliver.

One of the first items of business was to assemble a rocking motorcyle that Brad made for Oliver as an early Christmas gift.

 
Although he is a little small, it is evident that Oliver and his dad LOVE it!  Thanks to Great Grandpa Shell's neighbor, the motorcycle is personalized with his name OLIVER in the logo.

Jordan spent many of Oliver's waking moments playing with him.  "Can I spoil him?" Jordan asked. 

Of course.  That's what uncles are for!

He couldn't resist riding the motorcycle himself...

 

We all enjoyed spending time with Niki and her family...

Niki's mom, Ruth and her friend, Don

Niki's future SIL with Jax and cousin

Saying "goodbye" is always hard.  Ollie will change SO much in two short years!

Getting Ready!

One of the things that Jordan needed to do for his mission papers was to get his blood type.  We were pretty sure that he was A+ just like mom and dad, but a Stake Blood Drive was the perfect place to type his blood and donate.

The experience left him with a severely bruised arm from his bicep to his forearm for more than two weeks.  No fun!


Major shopping needed to be done and shoes were on the top of the list.

As Jordan will be taking his shoes on/off multiple times during the day, slip-on shoes were highly recommended.

He settled on Ecco shoes at a pricey $200.  Luckily, he found another pair, last year's model, on sale for $149.  These shoes should hopefully last most of his mission!

Getting ready also meant saying "good-bye" to some of his most valuable possessions.

The beloved 1992 Geo Prism, which we have had for 18 years (most of Jordan's life!) was sold on August 20th to a sister of one of his friends.  Even though he was not leaving for his mission until October 31, it was easier to sell to someone who needed a car before school started.

Getting ready also meant receiving his endowments at the Draper Temple.  August 23rd, we attended the Draper temple with family for a special event.

 

We are very proud of Jordan and his decision to go to the temple and serve a mission.  He will be a phenomenal missionary!