A Piece of Heaven on Earth

August 26, 2026 | cnaglis63

This past weekend was full of moments that brought me great joy. I had the feeling of being part of the greater wholeness this makes up our lives in this mortal existence. Despite our eminent departure from this area, with much work to be done, we decided to attend the annual Ward Camp. We prepared our trailer and headed out on Friday afternoon. This camp was set on an incredibly beautiful piece of property that belongs to members of our ward. They have 100 acres full of adventure and fun. There are trails to go travel on throughout their 100 acre woods. One year the family created a trail for their wife and mother and named the trail after her. The campers were gathered on a lower level surrounded by trees and not far from the lake. There was a mix of tents and trailers. I was especially proud of my friend Olya, who came to the camp with two of her children and set up tents. They had never camped before! My dear friend, Gordon also camped with everyone and slept in a tent brought by another family.

Brother Zobell and Brother Hatch sitting & visiting.

We were in our own little world (encampment) hidden away from the world. There was no cell service and we all visited and played together. The host family had a gator to haul supplies and people as well as a barrel train. The barrel train took people all throughout the trails on the property. There were plenty of outdoor games brought as well. We started the Friday night with a potluck meal. This is where Erik and I made the Watermelon Feta Salad. I had to take a photo of a baby who had just celebrated his first birthday the day before camp. His mom had an ice cream cone and once he tasted it, there was no going back! There was a central firepit which we all gathered around in the dark. My cousin Kelly, had a bug zapper that was quite entertaining. He was trying to protect us all from the mosquitos. We headed to bed and I slept so wonderfully well.

The Candy Launcher sends candy flying everywhere.

The Barrel Train which eventually even the adults were riding.

Morning brought a pancake breakfast where after everyone was finished, a pancake eating contest began. It was only between Kelly and a newly baptized member who is a youth. The contest was won by Kelly with a margin of 30 to 22 pancakes. Imagine my surprise when Kelly’s gout started raging that day (totally tongue-in-cheek).

We were able to visit more thoroughly with members who we don’t get to see for as long a time on Sundays. The part that stirred my soul was how well the youth interacted with the adults. I was able to chat with several youth. One young man who is only 10 years old, said to me on Friday, “Here’s an easy way to get down to the lower level of camping…not that you’re old; because you’re not!” Such a courteous young man!

In the afternoon on Saturday, we felt a few drops of rain and thus the decision was made to get all the trailers up the hill and on the higher level. That became an adventure! Our Bishop had borrowed a truck and trailer for his family and he was struggling to get his rig up the hill. He backed up a couple of times and finally another plan was hatched. Two men had long pieces of 2X4’s to hold up the zip line so that the trailers could all pass underneath. One by one, the trailers all made it up the hill and onto the higher level to park. I don’t think a ward camp can go without some sort of adventure.

To keep the party going, the Ward Corn Bust was held at the same location on Saturday evening. We had a lot more people join us and it was a joy to visit with more people yet again. The Kites were visiting from Finland and we had good discussion on life in Finland, especially as Greg was called to be a Branch President. Greg does not speak Finnish but was told that the Lord needed him in that position. All in all, this may have been the best ward camp I have ever been to. It was definitely a piece of heaven on earth.

We headed home about 7 pm and got the trailer emptied and situated. The next morning we were headed to Olds where we had been part of that ward for 25 years. One of my little boys that I taught in Nursery and Primary was giving his farewell talk. I am watching all those little boys heading out on their missions. Miles Vendiola is serving in the Vancouver, BC mission. McKay Salmon is serving in Idaho Falls mission. Cooper Nielsen is going to be in Nashville TN mission in October. Kepler Fitzner is going to …? (I forget!). Dallin Nielsen is going to be serving in the Scotland/Ireland mission. It was like going home to see all our Olds family.

I was pleasantly surprised to see Amy Dudley at church. She was visiting with her family and I got to see her husband and children. Amy sat down beside me and said, “Do you remember who I am?” I gave her a big hug and said, “Oh, Amy, of course I remember you!” I also learned that one of our friends had moved to Olds with her family and live next door to her parents. The talks that were given by Mary Ellen Toker and Dallin Nielsen were wonderful and talked about the joy and love that we receive by knowing our Savior. Dallin’s high school friends attended the meetings to support him on his journey.

Afterwards a potluck lunch was served which gave me another opportunity to visit with friends that I haven’t seen since we moved away from Olds. The joy of the gospel which binds our hearts together is something that strengthens each one of us. We shared news of our families and of course, news of our move. Again, it was an experience of having a piece of heaven here on earth.

As we have tough times ahead of us as the we get closer to the Savior’s second coming, this past weekend gave me hope and joy that made my heart sing. We find our tribes, the people who we can rejoice with, mourn with, and grow together. There we can find strength and courage to face what the world throws at us.

Sharing memories of these youth when they were babies in my care was precious. To tell them about how they reacted to events when they were 18 months old and as toddlers was really cute. They have grown up into wonderful people who will influence for good where ever they go.

This week, we are again packing, sorting and tossing. We think we have a plan on how to do the move. I keep getting the impression that we need to be moved by September sometime. My next big sort will be my quilting books and patterns. I got ruthless today with some scrapbooking manuals. I was also able to gift a sewing machine to my daughter-in-law. That only leaves 9 more machines to move.

The meals that work well for us in the midst of chaos are one pan meals. Chop the veggies and the meat and put everything on a pan in the oven. I seasoned the chicken with taco seasoning and then made a hot honey barbeque sauce to baste the chicken with when it was nearly done. It was delicious and easy.

The time is ticking and I have learned not to do packing after 9 pm at night otherwise my brain hits second gear and doesn’t want to slow down for bedtime.

I really felt this throughout the past weekend. Such joy to be in the presence of wonderful people and experience the reconnections.

As we go throughout mortality, may we leave behind judgement and criticism and simply love as the Savior loves. Keep choosing Him!

Grow Through What You Go Through

July 21, 2026 | cnaglis63

I have been seeing this quote in multiple places and to be honest, I have to groan because I know what this means in my life. This month has been a month of huge change for us. We somehow decided to relocate our lives and I’m not really sure how we came to that decision except that we both feel good about it. We attended the temple last week and we both received sure assurances that we are doing the right thing. Change does not come without effort. Two years ago, the Lord told me that I needed to get moving and walk everyday. In hindsight, I see that He was preparing me for a mission where we were on our feet on marble floors each day. Our legs and joints needed to be strong and resilient. We purchased a treadmill and both of us used it until we moved to Gull Lake. At our cottage there was no space to set up the treadmill and we were walking through the trails of the Provincial Park. Eighteen months ago, I purchased a rebounder to continue my strength training and core building. All of these choices led us to change what we had been doing previously and to try and better ourselves. I remember my first day on the rebounder; I only bounced for 5 minutes. My experience taught me that if I go too hard and fool myself into thinking that I can do much more, the pain that ensues stops me from progress for a few days. After a month on the rebounder, I could go for 20 minutes and after two months, I was doing 40 minutes.

That must be growth! I have learned to take baby steps and build myself slowly rather than have the expectations of an eighteen year old. Our brains aren’t interested in living in constant pain. How do we accomplish this? The term “Grow Through” is a way to reframe “Struggle”. It’s a shift in perspective. Instead of viewing obstacles as unfair setbacks, you treat them as catalysts for self-discovery. We can embrace the duality of life; we have both joy and pain. While pain is uncomfortable, it teaches us empathy, deepens our understanding and builds emotional stamina.

Active participation involves doing the work. It is the active choice to no longer be incapacitated by pain, but to let it shape and mold you. Every time I encounter adversity, I stop and say to myself, “What do you need to learn from this?” There is a mantra about pain, “Name it to Tame it!” Taking the time to recognize what emotion the pain is been driven by, will aid you in building your emotional stamina.

Driving home from British Columbia, we decided to stop at Three Valley Gap for the night. It is a beautiful spot and was an adventure all on it’s own. For most of our lives we have driven past this quaint little spot as it is along highway 1, as you drive from Alberta to the coast. We have stayed in Chase a couple of times and this time decided to try Three Valley Gap. It is incredibly picturesque with lakes and surrounded by mountains. Behind the hotel was a spot on the mountain where rock climbers were trying their hands at conquering the mountain. A number of guests were watching the show. We didn’t have time for the Ghost Town experience but did go to the restaurant in an attempt to find food that wouldn’t kill me. An amber alert sent everyone’s phone off in the restaurant. Our waitress was kind and we enjoyed our time. The things that I found funny were that there were no restrooms in the lobby. There was no Wi-Fi in the rooms but there was Wi-Fi in the lobby. There was no air conditioning in the rooms either. It was like a person stepped back in time.

I found the bed very comfy but my dear, husband struggled with the light coming in the room and when we set up the fan with the sliding door open, there was a lot of train noise and traffic noise coming in the room. My ear plugs saved me!

When we were children, one of my sisters was complaining that she couldn’t go to sleep because it was too light out. This was in Cherry Grove, where the sun doesn’t set until well after children’s bed times. My dad’s response was, “Well, you have to close your eyes to go to sleep!” Soooo, you know that I tell Erik the same thing!

On our way home from Vancouver Island, we received a message from Meaghan, who sent a link to a listing for a house in the area that I would love to live in. Erik looked at me and said, “Should we turn around!?!” I said that we should just keep going and think on it. We were driving through dense smoke because of a forest fire and I wanted to get through it.

I liked the look of the house and we made arrangements for Meaghan and Dallin to go look at it for us and see what they think. During the viewing, they both agreed that the house would work for us. If you don’t know, I have an industrial quilting machine and her name is “Miss Elaine”. Even the realtor learned this and was asking us during house tours if “Elaine” would fit in the house. Miss Elaine needs a LOT of space; at least 20 feet by 12 feet. Dallin made us a couple of videos to show us the house as well. It was really difficult to get the full scope of the house and we agreed that if we made an offer it would be contingent on us going back and viewing it in person.

Last week on the way home from Edmonton, we were passing a semi truck hauling a backhoe. A sizable rock loosened from the track of the backhoe and struck our windshield leaving a huge mess. I used a German word to express my dismay; Scheiße! I should have used Sheibenkleister! Unfortunately, I learned some bad words from my dear mother when we lived in Germany. There are days where everything seems to go sideways and I want to say, “Alles Kacke!” Yes, there is pain and joy because the rock didn’t go all the way through the windshield and kill us. We’re still here to tell the tale.

We booked flights back to the island to see the house. We flew out on a Friday and flew back on Saturday. The small airports make flying reasonable and everything went smoothly. The tiny glitch was the window seat occupant. She had perfume on and I couldn’t sit next to her so Erik did and I used the emergency procedure card as a fan to blow the air away. Our realtor picked us up from the airport and we stopped at a farmstand along the way to pick up fruit. Then we met up with Dallin to see a boat that he was interested in. At last we made it to the house for the viewing. After our time there, we walked down to the ocean to get a view of what we would be living next to.

Meaghan and Dallin took us to Witty’s Beach. The tide was out so we made our way down from Tower Point to the beach. This is an expansive beach and we were able to walk through tide pools and watch people with their dogs. It was windy but I believe that any day at the ocean is a good day, wind or not. I am looking forward to bird watching there. Witty’s Lagoon is a designated bird sanctuary with over 160 species of birds documented there including the Great Blue Heron. At Tower Point we saw so many harbor seals basking on an island taking in the sun.

At the Edmonton Airport, we met the mission president and his wife from the Edmonton Mission. I guessed that they were headed to Yellowknife to meet missionaries. When we passed in the line up again, they did say they were headed to Yellowknife. We had a lovely visit with them before heading to our gate.

Dallin drove us back to the Victoria airport and we had lupper (lunch/supper) before boarding. The plane wasn’t as full so Erik and I had our row to ourselves. I sat in the window seat and all was well until I heard the pilot talk about preparing for landing. I looked out the window and saw tornado skies. I had been receiving notifications on social media about what was coming up through Rocky Mountain House, weather wise. As we hit the big cumulous clouds, I knew that we were about to go on a roller coaster ride. The turbulence was fun. Erik could see everyone’s heads going up and down throughout the plane. I was laughing and the lady across the row was also smiling. I did learn that airtime is from wheels up to wheels down. We were scheduled to have flying time of 1 hour 21 minutes but did the trip in 1 hour 10 minutes.

The drive back to Gull Lake was like being pushed around because of the strong winds coming from the south west. We watched the skies and by the time we got home there was another wave of the storm coming through. Our home was safe, praise the Lord! There were trees down along the highway in the morning on our way to church. We were so grateful that we followed the prompting to take out some big old trees on our property.

Now Erik has some tree sections to split to make room for moving our trailers back onto the property. The time has come yet again for more downsizing. Marketplace will be my friend again.

I know that we will be facing more adversity but as we approach it wisely, we will receive grace and happiness.

In honor of our pioneer ancestors, I found a quote from James E. Faust. “In the heroic effort of the handcart pioneers, we learn a great truth. All must pass through the refiner’s fire, and the insignificant and unimportant in our lives can melt away like dross and make our faith bright, intact and strong. There seems to be a full measure of anguish, sorrow, and often heartbreak for everyone, including those who earnestly seek to do right and be faithful. Yet, this is part of the purging to become acquainted with God.

Stay strong and remember that adversity is not disfavor from the Lord or a withdrawal of blessings. We all must pass through the refiner’s fire and emerge stronger and brighter.

The Adventure Continues

June 2, 2026 | cnaglis63

Staying in Bonnyville was a wonderful opportunity to see a few family members. On Monday we drove to Cold Lake to walk the pier and eat some lunch. We found a Latino restaurant and I tried some pupusas. Erik enjoyed fajitas and we had the best server. This young man came from Nigeria when he was seven years old and was raised in Cold Lake. He had his Bio Chemistry degree and was about to walk in two weeks. Then he was accepted into Pharmacy and was working hard at this restaurant being the sole server. He was delightful and I tested his Spanish but he said that he probably should be learning it.

We headed back to Bonnyville to see how my dad was doing. The smokers are just outside the doors of the hospital and I feel like you have to run the gauntlet to get through the doors. The culture of smoking has been strong in Bonnyville and I wonder if it’s because there are so many French here who smoke. Total supposition on my part but it’s been my experience. Dad was doing slightly better today. My sister Tracy showed up after her work and she was a great help for dad.

On Tuesday, we went to French Bay which is the bay of Cold Lake that we grew up swimming in. Now, to give you some clarity, Cold Lake is on the 54th parallel; we’re 300 km north east of Edmonton. The lake has that name for a reason but French Bay has a shallow shelf that allows the water to warm a little more than usual lake temperatures. Cold Lake was first recorded on a 1790 map by the name of Coldwater Lake. Around 1877, the Hudson Bay Company established a fur trade post at Cold Lake. They traded with the Chipewyans from the Cold Lake First Nation. When we lived in the Cold Lake area, there were three distinct communities; Cold Lake, Grand Centre and Medley (the CFB Airbase). In 1996, the three towns were joined to form Cold Lake North, Cold Lake South and this area is known as the Tri-Town. But, in my brain they will always be the original names.

I removed my sandals and decided to dip my toes into the water and feel how cold it was. Considering that this was May 26, it wasn’t too bad. Erik convinced my to go farther in and I did it. For someone who is spoiled by the waters of southern Mexico, this was a big deal! This was most likely the earliest that I had ever been in the lake. When we had walked the pier in Cold Lake, you could feel the cold coming off the water. The ice has just left the lake and there were only 3 or 4 boats in the water at the marina. Both Erik and I would love to have a boat there to explore the shores of Cold Lake. This lake sits partly in Alberta and partly in Saskatchewan. It is one of the deepest lakes in Alberta with a maximum depth of 325 feet. Fishing is a big deal on this lake and the species here are: walleye, sauger, yellow perch, northern pike, lake trout, lake whitefish, cisco, burbot, white sucker and longnose sucker.

When I was 14 years old, our Young Women’s camp was a canoe trip for a few days leaving from French Bay. We camped at this one beach that was pristine sand and the Bishop came out with a ski boat to take us girls waterskiing. I received a fine sunburn on my backside because I fell asleep on an air mattress in the water. That made life uncomfortable for a few days. My partner on the air mattress was laying face-up and she burnt the front of herself. What a pair!

We drove the back road to Cherry Grove and as we were cruising past the new chapel, I said that we should go to the cemetery. Well, one house that we drove past, the people waved to us and I realized that they were relatives. So, Erik turned the car around and we pulled up to their house. It was Shay and Maria Hatch with their parents, Dennis and Merlene Hatch. We got out and had a lovely visit with them as they showed us the drawings for an addition that they are building onto their home for Dennis and Merlene to live in.

Stopping at the Cherry Grove Community Center was fun because it was the Farmer’s Market and we were able to see our nephew, Kyler. He was selling bison meat that their family raises. We also saw my cousin Kirby Claybert and had a quick chat.

We carried on our way back to Bonnyville and completely forgot to go to the cemetery. As we hadn’t seen my sister Patti yet, we went to Extended Care, where she lives. She was in a chair outside the nurse’s station having a snooze. We were able to visit for awhile and then we headed over to the hospital to see my dad. While we were there, we were able to also see my nephew, Kevin and his fiancé, Thea. Having these visitors was good for dad and he enjoyed having conversations with us all.

A funny thing that I noticed was my dad’s feet. I realized that I don’t ever remember seeing them before. Dad told me that the last time he had bare feet was probably when he was twelve! As much as I don’t like touching feet, I pay attention to feet. One day, I saw my brother-in-law’s feet and was shocked because they are exactly like my husband’s feet. Strange; I know, hahaha!

Wednesday morning, we packed up and started our journey south to Leduc to go to the Costco there. I had a Zoom appointment, so Erik went in to do the shopping. With a tank filled up with gas we were ready to go the last hour to home. Unpack again and do more of the unpacking from Palmyra. One day, we’ll have some sort of order in our little cottage.

We had an appointment with our Stake President on Thursday evening to be released as missionaries. It was great to see President Higham again. He told us that he received our packet twice because our original date to return was two months ago. I had received a concerned email and a call from the Stake Executive Secretary about our return and that the Stake President needed to release us. I had told him that we were still actually on our mission. Our temple president has authority to extend us by one month and that meant that Salt Lake didn’t know that we weren’t home yet either. President Kimbler wrote a lovely letter to President Higham telling him what we did and how we served while in Palmyra. As we left the office, there was a group of young missionaries sitting and waiting. I told them that we had just been defrocked and were ready to start the next mission application.

One thing we discovered on our journey home was that we would do better in an RV for travelling. Being celiac, it is much safer to cook my own food, which is hard to do while travelling for any length of time. On Saturday, we decided to go to Red Deer to see what the options are. It was an eye opening trip. I did make Erik get in one of the RVs that had a wet bath. He couldn’t even turn around in it. I told him that my caboose certainly wasn’t going to get in that space capsule!

Our Red Deer Stake had an Emergency Preparedness Fair on Saturday and we decided to attend. There were booths set up all around the cultural hall with a great variety of topics and demonstrations. Outside, Brother and Sister Coutts were doing Dutch Oven cooking and had samples for people. The Stake was serving hot dogs for lunch and Erik made sure to get in on that. The fair was very well done with a lot of information to help encourage people to be prepared for any eventuality.

Whilst on a mission, you receive a protection from the world to a degree. On Friday, I had my own adventure in the Co-op in Lacombe. After shopping and heading to the till, I unloaded my cart and suddenly heard a commotion behind me. I looked and saw the store manager and an assistant manager as well as a couple of other people. Voices were stern and I was wondering what was happening. I turned back to the cashier and suddenly I was being leap frogged over by a man. I know that I’m short but seriously! There was a man trying to get out of the store and I realized that he was a perpetrator that was cause of the stern voices. I paid my bill and headed out to the foyer. There was a slew of store employees gathered around and I made a comment about the peanut gallery showing force. The perpetrator was on a bike and they weren’t letting him leave as the police had been called. I loaded my car and heard sirens heading my way. Two police cruisers arrived on the scene and dragged the perp off his bike. Then as I was driving away, two more police cruisers arrived. I thought, “It must be a slow day in Lacombe if four police cruisers show up for a bandit on a bike!”

Sunday was a great day to be in the Lacombe Ward. They had a special sacrament meeting where different members who spoke a foreign language were asked to give a short testimony in the language. We also had two members use ASL to give their testimonies. You can feel the spirit despite maybe not knowing that language that they were using. Erik and I were asked to share a quick testimony about our mission as well at the beginning of the testimonies. At the end of the meeting, we were again brought up by the Bishop to receive our plaque commemorating our mission. We did learn that we will be giving talks on June 14th to share about our mission experiences.

Having the opportunity to be with family members near and extended was a blessing to me. My blood sugar settled down and my body was at ease. My nephew, Kevin gives such good hugs! A good hug can help you in ways that you may not know that you need. Being given the opportunity to visit with my dad when the health professionals thought he was done, was a wonderful blessing. Even though I feel my mom is calling for him, his time on earth is not quite done. Our cousins, Dennis and Merlene gave Erik and I a tour of the new chapel. We received that blessing because we stopped to visit and their calling is as the facilities managers of the building. Family is everything! We receive their love on both sides of the veil and what a blessing that is! Another nephew is the maintenance man for the hotel we were staying in and we were blessed to have a chat with Alex too. The Lord filled my cup and I am grateful for that.

Last Stretch to Home

May 26, 2026 | cnaglis63

We traveled to Eden, Utah and enjoyed a beautiful stay with Kathy and Brad. They were very hospitable and we again enjoyed a suite similar to the Kinnersley home. While we were catching up, Brad mentions that they have a new pet. Kathy says, “I’ll go get him.” I’m expecting a puppy and what comes out is a LAMB! The cutest little newborn lamb. They had been out voyaging in their side by side and stopped because this little lamb was running towards them, bawling and calling. He went straight to Brad and Kathy filmed the entire episode. They could see that he was dehydrated and needed immediate attention. So, they attempted to find his mom. She was no where to be found. They found other sheep and they wanted nothing to do with this little guy. Fearing that he would die if left alone, they decided to bring him to their home and save his life. Branner’s have a neighbor who is a vet and he looked him over and determined that he was in pretty good shape. Kathy and Brad bought him some milk replacer and a dog crate to keep him contained while in the house or traveling. Outside, they bought a little pen to give him time outside as well. The weather was warming up and this little lamb enjoyed some time in the pen with a ball to play with.

They named him Spartacus (I asked if his name was Lamb Chops). He was pretty cute, especially while hopping and bucking around. They were getting up in the night to feed him and by the time we left, Kathy was feeding Spartacus at 10 pm and then he was good until 6 am. Eventually, they found a little hobby farm for him to live on and hopefully, Spartacus goes on to live a fulfilled life being loved on by four children. I checked up on his breed and he is noted for being intelligent, docile and alert. Romeldale are actually a rare sheep and their fleece is a fine wool.

He walks without a leash 🥰

On Monday, Erik and I decided to drive around the Ogden Valley. On the south end is Snow Basin (ski hill) and on the north end is Powder Mountain. It wasn’t very warm and we had drizzly weather. As we made our way up Powder Mountain, I noted the sign of a 16 percent grade! Our poor SUV was loaded so heavy and I started to hear the motor working hard. By the time we reached the first ski hill, we were at 8200 feet of elevation and it was snowing. I told Erik that we weren’t going higher and it was time to turn around. The longest ski run on this resort is 5 (km) or 3 miles. With 8,000 acres of skiing, it seems to be a great place to go. The road is quite twisty and we were imagining a truck needing a runaway ramp which was at the bottom of the mountain!

Tuesday came and we decided to go to Ogden to get some items from Costco. The weather was much nicer and we enjoyed a quick jaunt to get some beef sticks and simply look at all the different items for sale. Then it was on to Good Earth health food store to get some vitamins. The workers there were so knowledgeable and we were really impressed with the service we received.

Brad and Kathy had been having dental appointments while we were exploring. We drove past the Ogden temple and Tabernacle before heading back to Eden.

Wednesday, our plan was to get to Rexburg for the night and a session at the temple. We have never been to Rexburg Idaho and it had a rocky start with our hotel that we were supposed to be in. It was under renovation and rooms weren’t available. I had a feeling that we needed to cancel and move on. We found another hotel that turned out to be perfect for the night. Many rooms were full of construction workers. We soon found out as we needed a Walmart trip that the Teton River temple is being constructed in Rexburg. Between graduations and construction the hotels were sold out.

We went for supper at a smokehouse and enjoyed some smoked meat. I received news that my dad was not doing well and was in the hospital. The hospital decided to put him in Palliative care. I wasn’t ready for this as my mom just passed at the beginning of March. I was happy to go to the temple and take this care to the Lord.

The first thing we noticed about the Rexburg temple is that the average age of the workers and patrons is much lower than other temples. BYU Idaho is next to the Rexburg temple. These two temples will be the only ones in the world on the same street. Not side by side but still on the same street. Teton River temple is slightly ahead of schedule than the Lethbridge temple. We met the President on duty and his wife and they are friends with someone I knew from Calgary area. It’s such a small world!

Returning to the hotel, we headed to the pool and had the best pool yet in our journey; the water was the perfect temperature and Erik also went in the hot tub while I exercised in the pool. I was prepared for a lovely night of sleep. It was going well until 6:04 am when the fire alarms were going off. The fire detector had a flashing white light that was strobing us into the twilight zone while the screeching of the alarms was going full tilt. We were trying to decide if it was a real emergency. We heard the footsteps of guests above us but the hallway was quiet. The smell of burnt toast permeated the hotel. That had to have been some serious toast fire going on! Our next door neighbors checked out at the same time as us and said that they didn’t hear a thing! I guess that we were meant to be up and at ’em!

Carrying on north, we left Rexburg and headed up highway 20 towards West Yellowstone. We veered off onto highway 87 through the Targhee Pass which straddles the Continental Divide on the Idaho-Montana border. It sits at just over 7,000 feet. This passes by Henrys Lake first and it was surprising to see such a large mountain lake. The weather wasn’t favorable because it was cold and snowing.

Seeing the sign for Butte brought back some memories of living there while Erik was earning his Petroleum Engineering degree. We passed through Boulder Montana and headed north to Helena. Our original plan had us stopping in Helena for the night so that we could attend the temple but with my dad not well, we felt impressed to get all the way to Lethbridge and get more miles under our wheels. Seeing the Sweetgrass mountains makes a person feel like they are nearly home.

Crossing the border back into Canada was a non event and we were on our way. We turned our cars metrics back into metric from imperial. We made it to Lethbridge and decided to drive past the temple construction sight to see the progress. The information trailer wasn’t opened by the time we got there so we will go another time.

Getting to see our grandchildren, Henry and Penny was so fun. Penny is only 9 months old and doesn’t know us so she was a little shy. Later we were able to hold her and she was fine with us. I was finally able to give Penny her quilt that I made her. We toured the backyard the next morning to refill the hummingbird feeder and check out the trees. Then we learned that Lyndon has become a jam maker and has taken up canning. They grow grapes and cherries in their backyard.

Now I got to drive my truck! Erik loaded the tires in the back of the truck and we were off for the final leg to our cottage. Once we arrived at the lake, we discovered that robins had taken over. The bird poop everywhere was incredible; just not in a good way that we were enjoying. Our plan was to take one day to do laundry and unload our vehicles and then to head to Bonnyville to see dad.

This journey home was 7, 410 kilometers, 85 hours and 20 minutes of driving!

By Sunday morning, we were back on the road with a much lighter car. We still have not been released by our Stake President but that will happen when we return from the Cold Lake area. Highway 28 from Edmonton to Cold Lake is not in great condition and I struggle to understand why this highway has not been twinned. There is a lot of traffic on this road!

We checked into our hotel in Bonnyville and then headed to the hospital to see how dad is doing. I was pleasantly surprised to see my youngest sister, Tanya and her husband, Kerry in dad’s room and we were able to catch up on the news. Dad’s struggling and we will be making some plans for and with him.

We surely know this as we face mountain after mountain. As we rely on the help of the Lord we can climb every mountain placed in front of us. It may feel that you have to conquer many obstacles in a day but remember that we place one foot in front of the other and deal with one crisis at a time. Everything will unfold the way it is meant to. God knows your needs and where you need to be. Listen carefully to that little voice that will lead you where you need to be.

Northward We Go

May 19, 2026May 26, 2026 | cnaglis63

We left Liberty, Missouri on Monday and on our way was the Monument to the Eight Witnesses. The monument to the Eight Witnesses honors the eight men who saw the gold plates and signed their names to a testimony of the truth of the Book of Mormon. This memorial sits in a small cemetery just outside of Liberty, Missouri, on property once owned by Michael Arthur. The monument is a large granite obelisk near the graves of Christian and Peter Whitmer. It was dedicated on November 19, 2011. There was a tour group also there and one lady who I talked to, told me that Steven C. Harper was their tour guide. I was oblivious to who that was but learned that he helped edit the Saints series of books.

Erik has been watching some videos on using RV’s. An important thing he learned was called the Rule of Three. 1. Don’t drive more than 300 miles in a day. 2. Don’t drive for more than three hours at a time. 3. Stay for three days in a spot. We have discovered this rule to be quite advantageous to having a successful trip even though we aren’t in a RV. The day we traveled from Atlanta to St. Louis was too much and we were both cranky. Even though we could have pushed and gone all the way to Denver, we decided to stop in Hays, Kansas for the night. We drove for around four hours and then pulled into Hays. We did stop at rest stops every hour as well and walked around.

In the song, “America the Beautiful”, the words are, “O beautiful for spacious skies, For amber waves of grain, For purple mountain majesties above the fruited plain! These words were running through my mind as we drove through Kansas. The undulating plain spotted by the occasional town, had areas of golden grasses rippling in the wind as waves of grain. It was a beautiful sight to see.

We soon crossed over the time zone change into Mountain Daylight time. It felt great to be back in our home time zone. The car’s clock changed automatically but our phones took a half hour to catch up. I was anxiously waiting to see the mountains but it took awhile. We were driving the I-70 westward and Burlington was the border town between Kansas and Colorado.

The Denver temple is the 40th operating temple for the church. It was dedicated in the fall of 1986. We had a 6 pm ordinance booked and are always thrilled to enter the Lord’s house and feel the peace as you leave behind the cares of the world.

Wednesday morning found us driving west again towards Grand Junction, Colorado. This was a stunning drive as we headed into the mountains. The west side of Denver has mountain sides full of large majestic homes perched on seemingly precarious perches. We continued climbing in elevation which I thought was so interesting as we were driving through Kansas, the elevation continued to climb and by the time we hit the border of Colorado we were at 4200 feet above sea level. Shortly after leaving Denver we arrived at the Eisenhower Tunnel. This tunnel takes you under the Continental Divide of the Rocky Mountains. With an elevation of 11,158 feet above sea level, it is one of the world’s highest vehicular tunnels. It is the longest and highest tunnel on the Interstate Highway System, with being 1.7 miles (2.7 kms) long. My first thought was, “I don’t need to go to Machu Pichu, this is high enough for me!” My breathing was a struggle and I was light headed.

We stopped in Frisco for a rest and enjoyed the beautiful views of the surrounding mountains. When we drove past the sign for Glenwood Canyon, we prepared for a stunning ride. Sure enough, we were stunned by the geology and the curving road.

Glenwood Canyon is a spectacular 12.5 mile geologic and engineering marvel in western Colorado. Carved by the Colorado river, the canyon features cliffs up to 1300 feet deep. This canyon is considered one of the most scenic natural features on the Interstate Highway System.

Onto Grand Junction where we left behind the Rocky Mountains and headed into the temple which is only six months old. It was stunning and very well run. We couldn’t scan our phones to print family cards because the cell coverage was limited in the office. I would go out to the vestibule and load it on my phone and then go back to the office to print it out.

I talked with a temple worker and asked her how this temple helped her life. She told me that before it’s opening, she drove three hours one way to the Monticello temple in Utah to volunteer. Now she lives three minutes from the Grand Junction temple. What a blessing!

As we left Grand Junction the next morning we continued south west on the I-70. We saw a long line of cars leaving Moab, Utah in the morning. Our goal for this day was to get to Manti and go to the temple. We had booked a hotel in Ephraim, Utah which is only 7 minutes north of Manti. The vistas of southern Utah are so incredibly beautiful. The geology is dramatic and awesome! It is a premier red-rock destination which spans the Mojave Desert and the Colorado Plateau.

I’m on top of a hill that I climbed in my sandals. I am afraid of heights and I didn’t stay long up there.

As we turned north on the I-89, our elevation was climbing again. We enjoy watching the compass on the car display to see how high we are climbing. We drive through Manti and headed to Ephraim. On the way to hour hotel, I spotted another temple and realized that it was yet to be dedicated. Our hotel was brand new and had a lovely pool.

Experiencing the Manti temple was indescribable! The feelings that I had were overwhelming. It is so historic being the third dedicated temple. It sits on what is known as “Temple Hill” and can be seen for miles.

Leaving Ephraim we headed to the Payson temple on Friday. This is a large temple and we were welcomed by another patron who helped me with directions and tips on where to go in the temple. There were weddings being performed in the temple and we saw a lot of guests coming and going.

The Payson temple is located on the southern portion of the Wasatch Front. It is the 146th dedicated temple and the 15th temple in Utah. From Payson we headed to Salt Lake City to our friends, the Kinnersley’s. They graciously hosted us for a couple of nights. Because they live close to the action of the renovations of the Salt Lake City temple and the Visitor’s Center, we were able to see up close the goings on. The blessings flowed as we entered the Visitor’s Center; it was the last day of the soft opening. We were immediately able to join a tour and see how the Visitor’s Center is now focused on the temple. We were taken through rooms representing the various ordinance rooms in the temple. It was a very special feeling!

Saturday evening, we enjoyed a meal and visit with fellow missionaries that we served with in Palmyra. We were blessed to see our neighbors, Tonya and Rick Gurr, as well as Eileen and Charlie Whitehead. We had such a great night together! I can’t believe that we didn’t take a photo of us all. We spent all our time talking and catching up.

Shauna and Dan serve in the Church History Museum one day a week and it is right across from Temple Square. We were able to walk through Temple Square and see the new landscaping and statues that were in place. The day was a bit cool but definitely a lovely walk. We went to Crown Burgers for lunch and I enjoyed a beautiful lettuce wrapped burger.

On Sunday, we went to church with Shauna and Dan. Their granddaughter was giving a talk in Sacrament meeting and she did a wonderful job. It was a wonderful Ward and then it was time for Sunday School and the teacher, Blake, was stupendous. His knowledge of the scriptures made it such a joy to be in his class.

The weather was changing and not for the better. Dan said that we would be heading into snow by going north to Eden. Our dear friends, Kathy and Brad Branner were hosting us for the next leg of our journey. It was raining in Salt Lake City as we left and the farther north it got a little heavy but by the time we got to Ogden, it wasn’t raining anymore. It was so delightful to see Kathy and Brad again. They are friends that we met in Huatulco and we hit it off really well.

Eden is in the Ogden Valley and is close to Huntsville where David O. McKay was born. The views are incredible and it is home to Powder Mountain Ski Resort.

We have really enjoyed spending time with what I call “Eternal Friends”. We really do help each other along the journey of life and can help bring joy and happiness into our lives. I absolutely love the people that have come into my life and cherish our friendships.

The Wheels on the Car Go Round & Round

May 12, 2026 | cnaglis63

We stayed in Santee, South Carolina for 3 nights. Erik went fishing on Tuesday for fresh water Bass. Erik learned many things about Bass fishing and the wildlife in the lake. There were alligators, snakes, so many varieties of birds. One morning, while using the Merrell App, I recorded 24 different species of birds all waking up and chatting with each other. Erik’s fishing guide had accidently snagged a Water Moccasin the week before. I was quite happy to stay at the lake house, crocheting in the screened in back porch, safe from the critters. Erik did have one incident where he lost his footing and ended up in the lake, hence the photo of the money drying on the table!

On Cinco de Mayo, we wanted to eat Mexican food but it turned out that so did everyone else in town and it was crazy at the restaurant. We opted instead to go to the restaurant across the road. It had golf and fishing decor and there were tables that had all fisherman and other tables with the golfers. I looked around and the tables were full of seniors, (the gray-haired crowd, not the high school graduates). All the waitresses were older too and I felt like I was in a retirement home!

We headed out towards Atlanta, Georgia on May 6. Driving west along highway 20, we passed by Augusta which hosts the Masters Golf Tournament each spring. Arriving in Atlanta was a scary ordeal because of the amount of traffic. At one point I counted the lanes just on our side of the freeway; there were 9 lanes! We arrived just before 3 pm and the traffic was already horrendous. I learned from a lady that travels from Wisconsin to Florida, is that the best time to travel through Atlanta is around 3-4 am. Our hotel was okay. I dressed to go to the pool and got there before Erik. As I put a toe in the water, I realized that this indoor pool was NOT heated. I was determined to do my workout so I carefully immersed myself. Then I got to see Erik’s face when he entered the pool, hahaha!

We had an evening appointment at the Atlanta temple and the sky was looking very dark and ominous. By the time we left the temple, my phone started pinging for Tornado warnings! It was a torrential downpour and were looking for a restaurant to eat at. Nothing gets between me and my Birria tacos.

The next morning the rain was still quite heavy as we headed out to Chattanooga, Tennessee. It was pretty tense driving in Atlanta with nearly blinding conditions. The farther north we got, it started to lighten and I could finally breathe properly again. We carried on in a northwest direction towards Nashville. I was so excited to see the Grand Ole Opry!!!!

Staying on highway 24, we drive into Kentucky and went through Paducah where the National Quilting Museum is located. Paducah has been part of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network in the category of craft and folk art since 2013. We drove through at 3:30 pm and I didn’t feel like we had time to give proper attention to the museum; so we carried on.

At some point we changed to highway 55 to enter St. Louis from the south. We traveled west from Paducah into Cairo, Illinois. This town is now a ghost town. As we drove through it, it was terribly sad to see all the destruction and disrepair everywhere. It’s located at the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers and was an important area for barges bringing goods up the river. Then when railways took over the major part of shipping, Cairo lost so many jobs. They also had a really bad patch with racial riots in the 1960’s and 1970’s. The history is very involved and really requires a person to study all sides.

We ended up in St. Louis for the night but in a suburb close to the temple. St. Louis sits on the Illinois and Missouri border. We did go on a river cruise on a steam boat called the “Tom Sawyer”. As we were walking to the dock, we met a gentleman who used to be a police officer and was now a tour guide. I had questions for him and in our short three minutes together he answered some of my questions. Why did St. Louis’ population go from 1.5 million to less than 300,000? Crime, violence and economic changes. This city ranks in the top five most crime filled cities in the USA. Where did everyone go? They left either to the suburbs or out of the area completely. As this city sits at the confluence of the Missouri and Mississippi rivers, we were able to see barges being moved around and unloaded. We sailed under magnificent bridges. The Eads bridge was built in 1874 and was the world’s first steel bridge. They have water markings in feet on the bridges as flooding does occur. The Dr. Martin Luther King bridge connects downtown to Illinois. The MacArthur bridge is used for freight railroads. Workers were repairing this bridge and all stopped to wave at us as we sailed under.

We were able to enjoy our time at the temple before moving onward in our journey. We carried along highway 70 towards Kansas City. I was really looking forward to this leg of the trip because we were going to see the Historic Sites of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We stopped in Independence first to go to the Visitor Center. We joined a tour and chatted at the end of the tour with the President of the Historic missionaries for that area. We finally got to our Airbnb by 5 pm after doing an Endowment session at the Kansas City temple. It felt good to be stationary for a couple of nights.

Liberty is a beautiful town to stay in. We stayed in the historic downtown area and it felt like being back in the Parsonage house in Palmyra; floors that creaked with every step and old door knobs and doors. We went to church in Liberty on Sunday morning. Sacrament meeting started at 9 am. Being Mother’s Day, the invocation and the benediction were given by young men. The young man giving the benediction said, “Please bless the mother’s that they can have a break from their children today.” It was so hard not to laugh out loud! Imagine the conversations in that household!

We saw a vanload heading out the same time as us and I wondered if it was a tour group. We passed them later in the day and then again today. We drove to Far West first to see the site. Amazing history here again to read about. From here we drove to Adam-ondi-Ahman. I absolutely love driving the back roads of America. I love seeing how people live and seeing the farms and little towns. Adam-ondi-Ahman is a sacred historic site in Daviess County, Missouri, identified by Joseph Smith in 1838 as the place where Adam and Eve dwelt after being expelled from the Garden of Eden. It is believed by Latter-day Saints to be a future gathering place for a major priesthood council before the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. It was magnificent to stand there and look out over the valley and feel the sacredness of this site.

On the way back to Liberty, we drove through Hamilton, Missouri. This is where the Doan siblings founded the Missouri Star Quilt Company to fulfill their mother’s dream and in tribute to her talent on producing videos on Youtube. Jenny Doan and her husband Al are serving a mission in Ghana now and will be home later this year. Erik drove around downtown twice so that I could look at all the storefronts. MSCQ owns 26 buildings in Hamilton and is part owner in three restaurants. It’s too bad it was a Sunday!

One of the things that I discovered is that driving for too long makes both of us cranky. Our trip from Atlanta to St. Louis was a 10 hour day and that ‘s far too long to be sitting in a car with the occasional stop. We won’t be doing that again!

It’s a time to be grateful for those who have gone before us. I am at an age where many of my friends have lost their mothers and it being my first Mother’s Day without my mom here on earth, it gave me pause to think on her influence in my life. My heart was so blessed to talk with my oldest daughter on Sunday. She has a very compassionate heart and is kind and loving. She is not a mother but definitely has a mother’s heart with her traits of nurturing and kindness.

Remember who you are, a divine child of our Father in heaven, with divine attributes that can bless the lives of those around you. Enjoy your week!

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