The Golden Triangle

We had a wonderful time visiting some of our people out west! We headed to Utah and stayed in Bountiful,Kaysville and Orem. We also had a great time at the "This is the Place Heritage Park." We were able to see friends that we haven't seen for quite a while!

Then we headed to Nevada to be the Pattons in Spring Creek. After Nevada, we went to Idaho for the Nef Family Reunion. It was great! We were able to go the Twin Falls, Idaho Temple open house and what a gorgeous building!

One of the highlights of the entire reunion was Shelby's baptism. She was baptized on Saturday, July 19th, 2008- her 8th birthday. She looked like a princess in her dress and it was a wonderful experience for everyone who was there!

Shelby's Dad baptized her and 14 good men helped with her confirmation! The other highlights of the day included Shelby opening her presents, ultimate frisbee and the game of Fugitive! It was the best family reunion so far.

A Very Late Entry...

This was from our London Trip- way back in March (before Madison became a member of the family).

March 16, 2008
We are enjoying our London adventure! Dan and Cheri arrived Wednesday morning to Dublin and then we all came to London on Thursday evening. It was a nice short flight. (1 hour) Then it took us a while to get from Gatwick Airport to Victoria Station to our hotel (the Hilton London Metropole). We got here late in the evening- but the kids were troopers. Only Claire fell asleep on the tube (what they call the subway here) and it was rough to get her awake again.
Friday morning we got up and had a lovely breakfast buffet (the best we’ve had in Europe) then went on a Hop on /Hop off tour. We stopped at the Tower of London and took the tour and saw the crown jewels. It is fun to listen to one of the Beefeaters (the tour guides) describing the things that happened there. They seem to especially enjoy the brutal and horrific details. (It’s great fun!) Dan and Cheri even got a picture with the only female Beefeater (ever!). Beefeater fyi- to apply for a position as a beefeater- you must be in the military 22 years. You must have at least one medal and you must be at a certain rank in the military- for them to even consider you. There are currently 35 Beefeaters and they all live on site at the Tower of London with their families.
After the Tower of London- we enjoyed lunch at Subway then we went on a little boat tour of the Thames. It was a nice little tour and they did a good job of pointing out interesting landmarks along the way. Then we got back on the bus and headed back to the hotel. There wasn’t a tour guide on the bus and it was rather dull. It wasn’t until we got off the bus that we found out that we should have been listening to an audio guide with the headphones! Oh well…
Danny and the kids went swimming, Dan and Cheri did a bit more exploring- and I enjoyed time all to myself for a bit. Then- Danny, Jake, Kailey, Shelby and I went to “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.” It was good. A bit too risqué in parts- but we discussed it later. Jake loved the pharaoh (Elvis- the king) the most. The girls enjoyed the “Go go go Joseph” musical number and Danny reiterated that it is one of his most favorite plays.
Saturday- we started our day at the breakfast buffet again. We then got on the tube and headed to Westminster Abbey. That is a fascinating place. I was happy to see the plaque for Jane Austen (who is buried there) and very surprised that Charles Darwin (Mr. Evolution) is buried there. I was also a bit surprised that the actor, Sir. Laurence Olivier was buried there. Then we walked over to the Churchill museum where we walked through his WWII bunker. It was fascinating. I listened to the kids’ tour and probably enjoyed it more than the adults. Then we walked through St. James’ Park. The kids had a great time looking at all the different birds (pelicans, ducks, we even saw a black swan). We saw this crazy dog that would jump up and grab onto a branch of a tree and swing himself around in circles. He could hold on for a good couple of minutes. It was fun to watch. We walked by Buckingham Palace (the queen is currently in residence- the flag was out) and then went and had lunch. Dan and Cheri left us at Buckingham Palace. Our kids had seen enough- so we went our separate ways. We had a lovely lunch at a little Italian place and everyone was happy. Danny and the kids again went swimming when we got back to the hotel (I would really rather not as I am big as a house…) and then Danny went with Cheri and Dan to “Buddy”- the theatre production of the story of Buddy Holly. The kids and I ordered room service and my avocado, tomato and cream cheese wrap was lovely. Jake enjoyed his pizza- but the girls were very disappointed with their chicken noodle soup. Oh well- we finished off with some candy bars and those make everything better.
Today- (Sunday) We got up- went to breakfast and hurried over to the Hyde Park Chapel for church. However, it was Stake Conference and wouldn’t start for another hour. (We just had Stake conference and didn’t think our kids would make it through another 2 hour session.) So we came back to our hotel and had our own version of church in our hotel room. Danny discussed with us the story of Moses and the Exodus. He pointed out some great details and the kids helped read a few scriptures. We will try not to whine like the Israelites (see Exodus 14:11-12) but do as the Lord said in verse 15 and “we shall go forward.” Good counsel. Then- since we were already talking about Egyptians- we went and saw the King Tutankhamun exhibit here in London. Jake has been studying Egypt lately and his class is putting on a play about when they found King Tut’s tomb in April. Sadly- we weren’t overly impressed with the exhibition. It was really interesting- but we wanted to see King Tut’s sarcophagus and how about a mummy or two? Oh well… it was still good. We had lunch at a Chinese buffet and headed back to the hotel on the tube. Dan and Cheri had left us after our church service and they went to the National Gallery museum. (They enjoyed it a lot.) Now the kids and Danny are having their evening swim and I am enjoying the quiet. It should last another ten minutes at least…

March 17, 2008
Happy St. Patrick’s Day!
To finish yesterday- we ate at the restaurant here in the hotel for dinner and it was really good. They were very, very slow- but it tasted good. Dan and Cheri were able to see some of their friends- the Perry’s from Prescott who are missionaries here. They had a nice little visit with them.
This morning- we got up and ate downstairs. Then we got on the tube and headed to Westminster Pier. There we got on a boat that took us to Greenwich. We walked right by the Old Royal Naval College and were pleasantly surprised at what we found. These really beautiful old buildings were once the training college for the Royal navy and their officers around the world. We went into the Painted Hall and found this beautiful huge room that had a gorgeous painting on the ceiling and some of the walls. (It took 19 years to finish!) It was used as a banquet room – but it sure didn’t look like a mess hall! It was just beautiful. We also talked for a few minutes to the guide. He was a very nice older gentleman who told us lots of interesting things about the room and the buildings. Then we walked across the courtyard and went into the chapel. Some of the buildings now make up the Trinity College of Music. As we walked into the chapel we heard beautiful music. It was a small choir from the college being accompanied by a few different instruments and the organ (I believe). It made a beautiful chapel even lovelier! Too bad they finished practicing a few minutes after we walked in. The designer of the chapel was the same man who designed St. Paul’s Cathedral- and he did a fine job! We were thrilled with our unexpected adventure!
Then we walked over to the National Maritime Museum. It was really interesting. The kids felt that they didn’t have enough hands on stuff- but the adults thought it was great. “It was the most boring adventure of my life.” Kailey Carrell
Then we got back on a boat and headed back to Westminster. We ordered hot chocolate (hoping that the warmth would appease the semi-grouchy and really hungry shorter people) only to find it lacking in taste. (It looked okay- but had minimal flavor.) At Westminster we got back on the tube and went to Victoria Station where we were all able to eat some good food (KFC and Subway…) and the girls spent a few moments enjoying the Claire’s store. The afternoon was finished off nicely with the promise of Krispy Kreme donuts to be enjoyed back at the hotel. Once again- the kids and Danny are swimming and Dan and Cheri are enjoying the “Jack the Ripper” walking tour.

March 18, 2008
We spent our last day in London in two groups. Dan and Cheri went their way and we went ours. Dan and Cheri went to St. Paul’s Cathedral and then window shopped at Harrod’s.
Danny, Kailey, Jake, Shelby, Claire, Emery and I went and rode the London Eye. Since most of the Carrells are a bit afraid of heights- it was a great way to fight our fears head on! The London Eye is really just a very slow ferris wheel. You can see up to 25 miles away in all directions (on a clear day). It was a pretty clear day and the views were amazing (lots of rooftops and steeples- think Mary Poppins and Peter Pan here). Then we went to the Golden Hinde- the reproduction of the ship that Sir Francis Drake captained in the 1500’s. It was fun to explore and imagine up to 80 men on this little ship. There was a school group on the ship too and it was fun to hear the guide telling them things that make your imagination run wild. (The first thing we heard was actually just a snippet- “You pee in a cup- then you have your friend pee in a cup and you boil it- … although you shouldn’t try it or your mum might get really mad…”) I don’t know if I would have made a very good sailor.
We then went back to the hotel and packed and loaded everything up. We took the tube to Victoria Station (4 adults- 5 kids- 8 suitcases, 2 rolling carry ons and 4 backpacks- does this paint a picture?) and caught the train to Gatwick. We had lunch at the airport and headed back to Ireland. We found all well at home.
Our Top 3 Favorites
Jake- “The Beefeater at the Tower of London and all the stuff he told us.” “I liked the London Eye.” “I liked swimming in the hotel.
Kailey- “The London Eye, Westminster Abbey and the Tower of London were my favorites.”
Shelby- “Going swimming, The Golden Hinde, and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat were my favorites.”
Claire- “When we saw all of the jewels and when we goed swimming and when we did the hop on hop off bus tour. That’s all – bye!”
Emery- “I like it when we flyed. (On the airplane.) I liked swimming and I liked It’s a Small World!” (Emery is still re-living our trip to Florida.)
Danny- “The London Eye, Greenwich and the boat rides on the Thames were my favorites.”
Diane- “My favorite three were the Tower of London, the surprises in Greenwich and just being together as a family.”
Cheri- “My favorites were the Tower of London, Westminster Abbey and Harrod’s.”
Dan- “The Tower of London was spectacular, Buddy Holly at the theater and Westminster Abbey.”