COSI with Peach

Peach is my sister, incase you were wondering. We have called her that since her first day alive because of her cute little peach fuzz hair as a baby. It stuck and everyone still calls her that. Well, my Peachy, my Stella, and I went to the Center of Science and Industry (COSI) while she was visiting. It is a big science museum with lots of exhibits and interesting science related things. I just have cell phone pictures, but we still had a fun time.

Emily rode a unicycle across a high wire. The big weight below it made it balance on the rope. 

There was a movie making station where you could take still pictures of these little astronaut actions figures on a moon landscape and then play back the pictures really fast to make it seem like they are moving. We made a movie where the astronauts land on the moon and then a giant baby alien picks them up and waves them around and stomps on them. Can you see Stella’s chubby legs on the screen in the background?

 

Kirtland

While my sister was here, we loaded up the Subaru and trekked out to Kirtland Ohio. It’s about an hour and half away from Columbus and it is full of history of The Church of Jesus Christ of  Latter Day Saints. We visited the first temple built in the latter days. When the saints left Kirtland 1838, they had to leave the temple they worked so hard to build behind. Now it is owned by the Community of Christ church, which is a branch of members who left the church after Joseph Smith dies and started their own little sect. We had a tour of the temple. It was interesting to see it and stand in the room where prophets stood. And even where Christ appeared to Joseph Smith after the dedication of the temple.  We couldn’t take pictures inside, but we got a few outside the temple.

 

Benj insisted on getting a cheesy picture of use hugging.

The LDS church has a visitors center near the temple and also owns all of the Newel K. Whitney land and buildings. We learned a lot about Newel K. Whitney. I have a lot of respect and admiration for him after learning about him. We got to visit the store he owned that has been restored to its 1830 condition. Joseph Smith and Emma Smith lived upstairs for awhile. The School of the Prophets also was in one of the upper rooms of this store. It was a sacred room where many revelations were given to Joseph Smith.

Inside the store:

I can’t exactly remember where the next two pictures were taken, but I’m pretty sure they were from Newel K. Whitney’s home. Correct me if I’m wrong because I can’t exactly remember what rooms these are.

This is the creek in which Newel K. Whitney and his family was were baptized.

Newel K. Whitney was fairly wealthy at the time and had a couple little business ventures including his lumber mill and his ashery. He gave a lot of his money to the church. This is the lumber mill:

This is the ashery where they made pot ash and pearl ash, which could then be sold and used to make soap, glass, gunpowder, saltpeter, and a bunch of other things. Ashes were collected, leached with water, and drained. The lye that was drained off was then boiled down in iron kettles making black salts. These salts were heated in large cauldrons where it turned into a big clump of potash.

This is some potash

And some pearl ash:

The Kirtland school house:

Hocking Hills

I almost forgot to post about our adventures at Hocking Hills. It is a beautiful state park with all sorts of caves, streams, waterfalls, and plants. I don’t have very great pictures, but we still had a blast! We went last year with some friends. You can see that post here with some better pictures.

My brother Joseph is like a mountain goat and climbs as high as he can like it’s a walk in the park.