We had such a lovely weekend in Idaho and Utah. This has been planned for YEARS!
I will never forget when we heard the announcement about the Montpelier Idaho Temple. I was in Rock Springs with the kids – less than a week before we made our big move to Colorado – and Mark was driving to Colorado for work. I couldn’t believe it! Almost instantly, Mark called me (who had been listening to conference on the radio) asking if he had heard correctly.
It was the most wonderful surprise.
Mark grew up in the Montpelier area. He went to middle and high school there and it was a huge part of his life. I never would have thought that tiny community would get a temple. We are so happy for everyone that is there. And so happy we were able to have a little mini Berning reunion to celebrate this big moment.
Memory Lane
We haven’t driven through the Bear Lake Valley in a couple of years. In all honesty, it is a bitter sweet experience for Mark and I and we kind of avoid it. Not because we don’t love it there or miss the people. It’s actually BECAUSE we love it so much that we tend to avoid it. It hurts to go back and think on how life could have been. A life that we really loved and the only place that ever felt like we could put roots in.
I will make it short by saying, it was hard to drive through the area. We don’t love the development of everything and miss how it used to be. It feels like so much has changed and it’s just one of those places that I want to keep frozen in my memory. But Bear Lake will always be where our family’s story began. First hand holds, first kisses, first I love yous, engagement, first homes, bringing home a baby, all the things.
Studebaker’s Pizza
My sister-in-law, Teresa, got an AirBNB for our families to stay together in Bloomington. It was such a perfect set up. We got there first and were so hungry that we dropped off our things and immediately made our way into Montpelier.
We stopped and had dinner at Studebaker’s. Fun fact – this is where Mark took me on a date before he proposed. It’s casual and fun and tasted so good!
We then stopped at the grocery store, and we were there about two minutes before Mark was stopped by an old friend. I was so happy he was able to reconnect with so many people this weekend.
We ran into my other sister-in-law, Jenny, at the grocery store and we all made our way back to Bloomington.
There ended up being 21 of us! It was all our family, and parts of Mark’s two sister’s families. This has been such a fun couple of months to be able to see one another so consistently with all the weddings and family gatherings. We have never had a time like that, and it has been lovely to have that frequent interaction with one another.
The kids were in heaven having a game room/garage to play in with their cousins!
Montpelier Temple
The next morning, we had breakfast and then made our way to the temple. It was stunning. All the details were just incredible. The stained glass and woodwork were so beautiful, and we loved the nods to the lake with tiles, coloring, and the stained glass. I think my favorite room was the sealing room. Beautiful.
Outside was so lovely. It was truly the perfect day. Mark and his sisters found so many old friends, and it was so fun to see them interact. We took LOADS of pictures. Mark has been really interested in photography and so for his birthday we got him a nice camera. This was his first real experience with it, and it made me laugh when the “official” photographer came up to him asking him questions about his camera.
We are so happy for this beautiful House of the Lord and the blessing it will be in this community. Some of the very best people are here. The kids asked about a hundred times if we could move back here.
Beach and Home
We had to say goodbye to Jenny and her family at the temple because they were taking their daughter up to Rexburg for school. But we were so happy for the time we had with them.
The rest of us went back to Bloomington and had lunch. Then everyone made their way to the beach, and I stayed behind with Lydie and Griffin (our niece’s son). Later, Kiley (our niece) came back, and it was so nice to talk for a couple of hours.
The rest of the night was just relaxing. We ate, played, and chatted. It was perfect.
Georgetown
The next morning, we had breakfast and loaded up to go to Georgetown. Georgetown is the small community where Mark grew up. We went to his old ward’s Sacrament Meeting and, again, it was so nice to just watch Mark. I am really happy their family had this opportunity.
We had packed some sack lunches and after Sacrament Meeting, we walked across the street to the park and ate. We laughed way too hard about Mark and Teresa going down the slide. Old school playgrounds are the best.
North Ogden Home
Then we had to part ways, and we left to go down to Utah. Mark’s parents recently moved out of their home and so the family is now in the process of going through their home and selling it. It is hard with us living so far away and we wish we could help more. We are grateful for all the work that is being done by his siblings.
We are working on scanning all the family documents and pictures. It is a big project, but we are grateful to help and make everything accessible to everyone.
It was hard to walk through the home. It is true what they say – it is the people that make a house a home.
Gus and Darlene
BUT we could not be happier for Gus and Darlene and the new place they are living in. We were able to visit them in Layton, and we were so happy for the time we were able to spend with them. We got ice cream in their lobby and were able to talk before they went to dinner.
Brian
Then we were able to go and visit Brian who lives in the apartment building next door. We are so happy for him and how settled he is getting. It was such a great visit.
Draper
Finally, we made our way down to Draper. It was a LONG day but a good one. My sister, Melina, was there and we stayed with my parents. We crashed hard and then were able to see my other sister, Megan, and sweet little Nora the next morning before we left.
A wild but wonderful weekend.
