Friday night we drove through Canada and stayed the night in Vermont. Like I mentioned in my previous post, this is a new state for us!
Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream Factory
Our first stop in Vermont was at the Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream Factory. We were happy to know they give tours, with an opportunity to taste a flavor while there!
Our tour started with a movie about who Ben and Jerry were and how they got started in the ice cream business. We couldn't take pictures on the actual tour but it showed us how they make their ice cream and get it ready for distribution.
The tour ended in the FlavoRoom where we got to taste the flavor of the day. And that day the flavor was called "Gimme S'more".
It was pretty yummy! And we definitely wanted s'more! Thankfully our group wasn't at capacity and we had been at the end of the line to get our samples, so we got an extra one!
At the very end, they had a wall with the top ten flavors. They definitely have unique names for their ice cream flavors.
We liked the cows everywhere around the factory. Even the bathroom signs! (Although we are covering up the cow, you can sort of see it behind us.)
Outside and up the hill, they had a Flavor Graveyard. This is where they put flavors that just haven't made the cut over the years. They had funny poems for each one. And I have to admit, some of them sounded very strange and I can see why they didn't last.
And much to the delight of the kids, they also had a playground. We spent some time there before we needed to get on to our next site.
Joseph Smith's Birthplace
Our next stop in Vermont was around Sharon. This is where Joseph Smith was born.
There is a small visitor's center and a large monument there to commemorate his birth. I thought this was a new site by our church, but found out that it's been there for a long time--over 100 years in fact! The monument is 50 feet high and went through quite an ordeal to get placed there. But through the hard work and diligence of Latter-day Saints, it was set in place at the birthplace of this beloved prophet.
The site also had some stones which showed the dimensions of the original Smith home, no longer standing. The door step was still there, however. And the original hearthstone, which was housed in the visitor's center.
We don't worship Joseph Smith, however, we do revere him and are eternally grateful for the work that he did in order to restore the Church of Jesus Christ. One of the best things that he did give to the world was this testimony of Jesus Christ, whom we DO worship.
(And even though there was still a bit of snow here--they had recently had a storm--I was happy to see a few flowers starting to bloom!)
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