A Really Nice Day

Sunday, September 23rd was a pretty special day.  The Brigham City Temple was being dedicated, so there were no regular church meetings throughout all of northern Utah.  David, Alison and I were able to watch the dedication service via satellite at our church (you had to be 8 years old or older and have a temple recommend to go).  My parents were kind enough to stay home with our little kids and attend a later session themselves.  President Packer was the presiding authority there.  He was born and raised in Brigham City, so it was a pretty special day for him.  In fact, he said that when the temple was announced, he asked Heavenly Father if he could please live long enough to be allowed to see the temple get dedicated.  His prayer was answered, and he says he won't pray for any more time.  He looks pretty old and tired, but he was so very happy.  Elder Perry also spoke in our session - he too was raised in that area.  It was great.  I think Ali felt mature and had fun sitting between her parents.  It was pretty long for her, but she did a good job.  Of course, the other three kids were in heaven playing with Grandma and Grandpa Smith instead of going to regular church!

We were done with our church meetings by 11:00.  Awesome!  We had lunch, then we all loaded up in the van and went for a Sunday drive.  We wanted to see the fall leaves, so we drove through Trappers Loop, which connects the Ogden and Weber canyons. 

We timed our drive to coincide with Bronson's nap time.  That way, we could go a bit longer without him getting bored.  It didn't take very long for him to fall asleep.

The fall colors this year are literally breathtaking!  As in we all gasped several times as we saw bright reds, pinks, oranges, yellows, peaches and corals splashed all over the mountainside.  Once, Alison said, "Okay.  That's it.  Heavenly Father is the best artist!"  I agreed.  We stopped on the side of the road for a few minutes to take a look and stretch our legs (Bron was awake by then).  It was such a beautiful, fun, peaceful drive!  Can't wait to do it again some day.

That evening, we went over to my parents house, along with my sisters' families, and had a little birthday celebration for Alison, who would be turning 9 the next day.  I'll write more about that later.