This is my grandfather, and the occasion for the vacation is his 80th birthday. He is a very special grandpa, for he helped establish my roots. He provided something stable when the goings on in my life were anything but. He is as constant as the day is long and his word is his honor.
This is the view that has always told me I'm coming home to the only unchangeable thing I ever knew. This temple is my beacon and tells me that all is well and nothing has changed. She was built by my ancestors and overlooks the cemetary where my mother lies. The stones that make up the sacred building were hand hewn from a local quarry, the furnishings inside were carved or sewn by hand; all by pioneers, some of them with my blood.
These are views of my childhood. Can you see my memories?
This is where my past and present collide and I get to share my history with my children.
And this is where I get to enjoy seeing my husband ride a horse (make that a mule) for the first time.
This is where I swatted swarms of mosquitos with my son....
And this is the stuff that memories are made of.
I didn't grow up in central Utah. I visited a few times a year, and every year I could count on the little town being just how I remembered it. I felt comforted by that. And still do. When I visit I get to revisit memories and see the evidence of families who've loved each other through the generations.
49 comments:
Such a lovely post.....I pop in your blog quite abit...I found your on Tonya's Blog.
What a great vacation...Happy 80th to your Grandpa!! He looks like a wonderful man!!
Look like you had a great time! I love all the photos! When a photo is in black and white it really makes the photo special.
Looks like a beautiful spot for memories! And even better is sharing that with your family now.
There're so many places I want to take my baby, too. One of these days.
And happy birthday to Grandpa!
Hi Angie, that's a very nice vacation. :) It's so nice of you to show your children your roots. It's one way of appreciating where you came from.
P.S. I'm also having difficulty posting replies in my own website. LOL. Thanks for replying. I hope it's gonna be fixed soon.
What a beautiful post. It must feel very special to be so connected to a particular place like that, with roots that go so deep. Thank you for sharing it with us.
PS Love the choice to use b&w :).
Sounds like you had a great trip.
I love driving into Manti at night when all you can see is the beautiful temple on the hill.
That's awesome that your kids can spend time there, with your grandpa.
beautiful post! love the pictures! beautifully put! it's probably so nice to be there together! Have fun!
My two favorite pictures are of you with your grandpa and your kids with your grandpa...precious!
As I was reading through your post the thought "when a door closes, God opens a window" came to mind. Even though you had to experience what happened to your mom, the Lord gave you these roots and an opportunity to feel a constant in your life.
How beautiful to know how much He watched(s) over you.
Love the black and whites. Pioneer woman could do a number on these pics...!
And I don't know what Debra is talking about...I gotta back up and read the past?
what great pictures! central utah is very similar to southern utah, that high dessert, that is often hard to love. i have really learned to see the beauty in it, though. we may have a lot of sagebrush, but we also have amazing rocks and canyons!
happy birthday grandpa!!
What a great mini vaca! I'm so happy for you that your children get to know your grandpa. These are some priceless memories. Good for you Angie--You deserve it!!
Beautiful pictures too!
I love that you took the pictures in black and white. Grandparents are so special. Looks like a great vacation.
I LOVE LOVE the pictures you took. Great pic of your grandather too! Can't wait to see chapter 2.
I LOVE LOVE the pictures you took. Great pic of your grandather too! Can't wait to see chapter 2.
I LOVE LOVE the pictures you took. Great pic of your grandather too! Can't wait to see chapter 2.
Priceless memories!
there is nothing like good family memories. I have many just like that frmo visiting my grand parents up in Downey, Idaho.
You and your children are so lucky to have a Grandpa like that. We didn't have a Grandpa as our parents were quite old when we were born, but my husband had an Aunt and Uncle on a farm in Oklahoma that we would bring the boys to go visit. I think kids need roots like that and a good example to live up to.
Wonderful B&W pictures - is that the Manti Temple? We're not LDS, but we stayed at a campground near there once and thought it was very pretty.
Wow what wonderful photos. I love them. What a great vacation.
I love all the pictures! Looks like a great trip!
I am glad that you were able to go back and celebrate your grandpa's birthday with your family. It looks gorgeous and I love the black and white photos. Very touching post. I am sorry about your mom. I did not know that she is no longer with you.
Totally awesome. I'm going to go call my grandpa. They are very special people!
What a beautiful post with amazing photos! It makes me miss both my Grandpa and my Pop-Pop.
Your pictures are so amazing. I can feel the history.
simply stunning.
the memories of the past, the present and of what is still to come.
thanks for sharing :)
Your grandpa must have been THRILLED to see you and your family Angie! I bet it was so special for him to have you there. I love the pictures that you shared that show some of your favortie childhood memories. It's nice to see some land that is just that....land that's not built on!
The temple is beautiful.
Great post! Great pictures. Great memories for your children. It sounds like you had a nice visit and got to visit your family. That is so important.
♡ Fantastic photo's and memories!
Love the pictures!
What a beautiful post Angie, I love seeing how your past and your present collide....Happy Birthday to your grandfather!!!
That is lovely. How lucky you are to still have your grandfather to share with your children and to make your memories, their memories.
So precious! I loved the photos.
I love the pictures. You are so talented! Happy Birthday to your Grandpa!
FAbulous photography and I LOVE the way you mapped this post out. Just a perfect way to capture your memories, past and present.
What a wonderful post! There is something so special about sharing your memories and your childhood with your own children (and hubby). How neat to take them to a place that hasn't changed much since you were little.
Great pictures! You have adorable children.
Happy 80th Grandpa. What a fabulous post. Thanks for the trip down memory lane. Love hubby on a mule.
What a great place to grow up! I love the photos! (B&W are my favorite!)
I'm so glad you were able to go and spend some time with your G-Pa on such a big birthday!
Beautiful photos, wonderful memories. I am LDS, but second generation. I don't have roots in the church like you do, but still very much appreciate the history and all that the early members did and endured.
Love the black n whites to tell your story. This could have been your photo Friday story!
Happy birthday to your grandpa.
One of your best posts EVER, Angie! I loved reading about this and SEEING your history. The images of the Temple, combined with your description of its local history was incredible.
I love it Angie! Just seeing the pictures brought back many fond memories for me too! One of them was watching 7 brides for 7 brothers at your Grandma's house! (I was always amazed at the beauty of it!)
You say at the bottom of your post that you weren't brought up in central Utah? So where is this? Where were you brought up?
What a great way to make memories. I love those times. You know your kids will look back at them the same way you did as a kid.
I loved Jeff riding the horse in his flip flops:)
Oh I wish you would have called me! I would have loved to visit with you, I am only 20 minutes away you know! I am so glad you were able to visit your grandparents and I totally agree with the feeling of a constant here. Nice to see those fun pictures.
I love the pictures as well as the memories. It reminds me of visiting Colby's grandparents on their ranch -- it is always a grounding moment in our lives.
My ancsetors are from Manti. McCallister, Alder, Cox. You know those poligamists. There are a million of us out there.
You have a beautiful family.
I too am a mother of 5, though no twins... all individual births. They are growing up fast...the oldest turned 21 this year. You can see a picture of them on my blog, if you like.
I found you from Angela (Becoming Me's) blog.
The pictures are beautiful...looks like you all had an awesome time....
Nice to meet you,
Julie
I came over to your blog from SITS. I love it. I love these pictures. I ,too, have a connection with this temple. My ancestor did a lot of the paintings in it- CCA Christensen.
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