Temple Square ~ Salt Lake City, UT

June 25, 2009

We were excited to tour Temple Square in Salt Lake City, UT. The kids have never been here and it was time to show them some church history. It was a pretty neat afternoon despite Blake's whining. It was a very warm day and we did a lot of walking.

Our first stop was a tour of the Conference Center. It was amazing. The technology and architecture is stunning. It is so huge too. I can't remember all the cool facts and stats but here are a couple that I did remember... It is made from the same granite that the Salt Lake Temple is made of. The Conference Center is 1.4 Million square feet! WOW I KNOW! and inside they have seats for 21,000 people! It is also the largest theater style auditorium ever built. Truly an amazing building. I think the neatest part about being on Temple Square is that you can feel a special peaceful feeling in your heart. It is definitely holy ground. The spirit of God dwells there and truth is taught here to all nations, tongue & people.

Inside the Conference Center. Up close with the stage. WOW! It was surreal to see where the prophet speaks to the world. This is a place where reverence dwells. Again I feel happy in my heart here! ( the pic isn't very good- but I still like it :)

This is the only family picture we had taken on our entire 2 week road trip. Sad isn't it. Blake is having a fit cuz he wants to run as fast as he can all over the place and it is pretty dark in the conference center. Oh well - it's as good as we'll get I guess.

The halls of the Conference Center are beautiful. This fountain is so pretty and the walls are adorned with beautiful paintings of stories from the scriptures and of our Savior Jesus Christ. Along with statues and sculptures of prophets and Utah Heritage pieces of pioneers & Native Americans. Very Very beautiful. I wish we could have gone at a slower pace to take it all in and enjoy it more, but that little boy sitting at the end of the fountain thought it was a race to every escalator and elevator. GRRR! He might appreciate this place more when he is older. We will try another visit in a couple years.

We are looking down at the pretty fountain and then we are lucky enough to tour the top of the building. The Garden Roof. Here you can overlook the city and there are trees, plants and this neat fountain with a beautiful mural on the back wall . It is a mural of people etched on to the surface of the stone of every nationality with a scripture from the Doctrine & Covenants 133:37 which says "And this gospel shall be preached unto every nation, and kindred and tongue and people."

I love it because in this conference center 2 times a year our Prophet and the apostles teach us what the Lord would have us do, how we should live to have the spirit with us and how we can return to live with God again. These messages of hope and peace are then broadcasted to the whole world. It is amazing!

A couple more shots of this beautiful building. And who doesn't love this little stream running through the middle of the city! WOW!!! Just Beautiful!

Next we went to the North Visitor Center. There was much to see and everything was just beautiful. I love this Statue of Christ. It is very powerful and brings peace to my heart and soul. We wouldn't be here on the earth without our Savior Jesus Christ's sacrifice for each one of us. I love visiting the visitor centers of the church because you are reminded & can learn what is the purpose of life. We owe all we have to the Savior Jesus Christ. He is the only way to return to our Father in Heaven. We are not perfect and will all make mistakes, many of them. But Jesus Christ paid the price of all our sins so we can repent and have joy in our life. I know this to be true!

We came upon this display of Adam and Eve. They were the first people on the earth. As they had children, they taught them the gospel. And here we are following their good example and teaching our children about God and his Gospel today!

There are neat interactive displays about stories in the Book of Mormon. And much much more!
If you have never been to a Visitor Center from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints., I highly suggest going to take a tour. The peaceful feeling you get in your heart is telling you what you learn there is true. It is the spirit of truth and It is AWESOME!!!

We are moving on to check out the Salt Lake Tabernacle. This is where the Mormon Tabernacle Choir meet and sing together. General Conference was held in this building for 132 years. It was originally built in 1867. The roof was refinished a few years ago. It is an amazing historical place.

The gardens in and around Temple Square are breathtaking. The colors so vibrant, bold and bright. LOVE IT!

Taking a look inside the tabernacle. The acoustics in this building are unreal! I am truly amazed at the quality of workmanship that you see in this inspired building. Built at a time before electronics and audio amplifiers, the Tabernacle was constructed with remarkable acoustic qualities so the entire congregation could hear sermons given there, mainly for General Conference. Pretty cool hu?

Me and the kids on the lush green lawn. Happy are we! Happy are we!!

This is the Assembly Hall. Built in 1877 by pioneers. The acoustics of this building is pretty good too. I love this charming gothic-style building. Today in this historic setting, the Temple Square Concert Series presents complimentary hour-long concerts featuring local and international artists on the weekends.

I had the opportunity to sit on these tiny pews and listened to the General YW Presidency train Stake YW leaders 4 years ago in this building. It was a wonderful experience. I love the details in this hall. The Stained glass windows and the I learned that the wood is all painted to look like hard wood. The pioneers didn't hard wood to build with. They had pine and painted it to look like oak. WOW that is a lot of wood to paint. And I told you the seats are squishy. My knees hit the seat in front of me.

My beautiful Girls outside of the beautiful Beehive House. We didn't go inside this time for a tour because of our dear buddy Blake but here is some info about this place...

The Beehive House was built in 1854 and served as home to Brigham Young when he was President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and governor of the Utah Territory.
Room by room, the story of family life in the 1800s unfolds. Rooms include the playroom, the family store, the fairy castle, and the gracious sitting room, where each evening the Young family exhibited their talents and sang and prayed together. A beehive, which is a symbol of industry, sits atop this charming home and reflects Brigham Young's belief in a strong work ethic.

I have taken the tour before and it was very interesting. We well come back for a tour next time :)

I just love the Architecture here Salt Lake! WOW!! Katilyn is tto cute too :)

We stopped in to visit the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. The Joseph Smith Memorial Building, formerly the Hotel Utah, was built in 1911. This stately building was completely renovated and reopened in 1993. It is named in honor of the man who was instrumental in restoring the gospel of Jesus Christ, translating the Book of Mormon, and organizing The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This cool building has many functions. Here they have the Family Search Center, where the public can work on family history and genealogy. They also have The Legacy Theater where the public can enjoy inspirational regularly scheduled free showings of various church-produced movies, currently Joseph Smith: Prophet of the Restoration. They also have 2 restaurants, A chapel & rooms that can be rented for receptions or dinners. Pretty fancy stuff and very functional. and Beautiful too ;) of course

(PS - I know i have used many of my descriptive words over and over again. like amazing, beautiful etc. I can't help it. I am at a loss for words a lot of the time and words aren't really my thing either. I am just really impressed here in SLC and words escape me. You need to see it for yourself.)

The kids and a bronze statue of our prophet Joseph Smith Jr. What a loyal and humble servant of the Lord. I can't be more grateful for his sacrifice to restore God's true church on earth again.

And last but not least. The Salt Lake Temple! It is glorious and holy. I really love this temple. It is magnificent and the history of this temple is pretty neat here read this...

Four days after entering the Salt Lake Valley on 24 July 1847, Brigham Young designated where the temple would be built, and on 6 April 1853, he laid the cornerstone of the temple foundation. That event marked the beginning of a long construction process.
Many difficulties slowed the building of the temple. Granite was quarried in Little Cottonwood Canyon, 20 miles southeast of Temple Square, and transported to the site by teams of oxen. A single wagonload required four days of travel to reach the temple site.
Work on the temple stretched from years to decades until finally, 40 years after it was begun, the temple was completed and dedicated on 6 April 1893 by Wilford Woodruff, the fourth President of the Church. Today, Latter-day Saints continue to gather in temples throughout the world to worship and participate in sacred ordinances such as eternal marriage.
As you relax amid the delightful flower gardens and gaze at the angel Moroni atop the temple, perhaps you might contemplate the incredible dedication of those remarkable pioneers whose faith in the Lord inspired them to build this impressive and sacred edifice.
There are no tours inside the temple.

We just loved Temple Square and can't wait to see it again someday. My girls are so excited for the time in their life when they will get to go inside and be sealed for eternity to their husband. (I know it is a long time away) But they know this is where families can be sealed together forever. I am so grateful for that knowledge in my life. I am so thankful to the early pioneers and faithful saints who sacrificed so much to build this temple. I am so happy to be a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. My testimony of this gospel has been strengthened just by visiting these Holy Grounds. I feel so happy knowing I get to be with my sweet hubby and 3 great kids for eternity if I live righteously. What a feeling of peace and joy that is really hard for me to explain. I am just so happy. I am blessed!