Pioneer Zeal

My fourth great-grandfather, Sanford Bingham, was born with clubbed feet.  He walked on his knees until he was 21.  He crossed the plains on horseback and married Martha Ann Lewis two weeks into the journey.  They traveled 1,000 miles on their honeymoon.  When they arrived in Salt Lake they settled in the Bingham Canyon area.  When he discovered a gold nugget there worth $500 Brigham Young advised him to leave the canyon as the saints had come to the valley not to seek riches, but for the gospel. They moved and helped settle present day North Odgen.

My children have scores of pioneer ancestors on both sides of the family and I was hoping to instill in them this week some admiration for all that the pioneers did to cross the plains and settle our valley.

First we talked about what three personal items we would take along if we had to load up a wagon.  The general consensus was "my pillow pet, my blanket, and my scriptures."  Practicality and spirituality.  Not a bad start.

We made our own edible wagons to cross the plains.  We used cookies, marshmallows, and animal crackers.  (Mason chose a camel and a bear to pull his wagon.)

That afternoon I made some bread and the kids worked on making butter by shaking a jar of cream for about 20 minutes.

We enjoyed a hearty dinner (which included the first two tomatoes from our garden!) and I was grateful to be able to cook it in the oven and on the stove instead of over an open fire of buffalo chips.

The rest of my pioneer intentions have drifted away like a mirage in the prairie summer's heat.  I haven't been feeling that pioneer zeal to get much else done.  Perhaps tomorrow we'll try the paper handcart races or maybe even take a 20 mile meander through Wyoming or Nebraska.  On second thought, I think we'll just sit in our air conditioned basement and watch Legacy.