Mormon Battalion Historic Site

The highlight (and reason) of our trip to San Diego was, of course, our visit to the Mormon Battalion Historic Site where my parents are serving as directors. Wow! This place is spectacular. . . stunning. It's high-tech. It's interactive. It's like Hogwarts with talking portraits that walk right out of their frames, indoor storms, campfires, a stampede! (not even kidding). Now. . . add guns, dress-ups, and cannons. Panning for gold. And It's a boy's dream come true.

My dad took us on an early-morning private tour before the center opened to the crowds of people. I mean public.
Lucky us. Since they have had over 70,000 visitors in the last six months. Which is about 10,500 a month, which is almost 2,500 a week, which is about 360 a day - every day of the week. (Just doin' that in my head. I'm sure Nate will correct my math later). But sheesh! My parents have been busy.

The boys gladly signed up as honorary battalion members. They took it very seriously. As you can see.


And after that adventure (I wish I would have taken more pictures of the tour but I was so dazzled by the whole thing I totally forgot) here's where they spent the rest of the day. Getting rich.


Panning for gold.


Rule #1 of gold hunting: It always pays to know the right people.


Grandpa Tim used his sea shell trick and "planted" a few gigantic nuggets. The sister missionaries hadn't made the connection that these boys were related to the man in charge and were seriously impressed, amazed, even confused to see their bigger-than-ever stashes of gold.


But just like the real Mormon Battalion, there were also bricks to be made. . .


there was washing to be done. . .


water to be drawn. . .



And, of course, always time for a little music and fun.

My poor poor mom. She broke (shattered) her elbow while biking a couple months ago. She had surgery three days before we got there (two screws and a wire). So she didn't fiddle. Or wear her pioneer clothes. But never fear. My mom is tougher than nails. She was still chopping apples and packing lunches for us all (and re-stringing the violin) - one handed. Her broken arm also meant she got to hang out with us a little more than she would have on full duty. Lucky us.

I couldn't pull Clayton or Brigham away from the gold panning long enough to fiddle with me. But Isaac loved it and performed again and again.


So serious.


Check out how awesome he is after zero rehearsals.
What can I say? . . .



HAhAHAhahahaha. . . I laugh every time I see this picture. What's Brigham doing? I'll tell you. He's yelling, "Ready! Fire!"
Didn't anyone tell that kid NOT to look down the cannon shaft when somebody is firing? These kids need some serious lessons in proper artillery handling. . . uh, or not.


Believe it or not, there are more cannons inside (as well as all sorts of interesting artifacts). Isaac is asking me in this picture if it's okay if he fires off the cannon. Which means he's asking permission to make a lot of noise. Cause a scene. Hey, at least he asks now.


And here he is in the lookout tower.


and driving his covered wagon.



Inside, there are interactive screens with Mormon Battalion games, information, and ways to look up your ancestry.



Nate found information about his great-great-great grandfather, Edward Bunker, pictured below (front row, second from the left) with a group of Mormon Battalion survivors. Can't you see the family resemblance?


The building itself is a work of art. I loved the windows, furniture, beautiful tapestries, the classic Spanish adobe archways. . . the details were amazing.




We also hiked up to the Mormon Battalion State Monument overlooking the valley.




We loved our visit to San Diego. Especially the Mormon Battalion Center. The boys want to be in the Mormon Battalion because they think that means they can live at the visitor's center all the time. We miss you, mom and dad. And can't wait to go back!


Sending all our love. . .

.