Favorite time of the year

Nothing soothes the soul like spending time in the mountains on a beautiful fall day with your family. I have many fond childhood memories of family drives into the mountains to look at the leaves, walk the banks of a river, and have picnics off the tail gate. My dating years with Chris were spent flyfishing on the Provo, or camping on the Green or simply (and most significantly on September 22, 1996; the day Chris proposed) hiking to Ruth Lake. So is it the mountains and nature that put me at peace or is it because it is associated with so many wonderful memories? Either way, it's one tradition that we will continue to nurture for as many days we are blessed to have together.

I pledge allegiance to the flag

My dear friend Laura has the best blog and today she is asking her blog readers to share their 9/11 memories. I was so grateful for the opportunity to share our experiences. Although heart breaking to reflect on this day I think it demonstrates respect and so much love to our country and the families that lost so much that day.

My memory the moment it happened:
My mom called me and told me to turn on Today. Chris was in the tub and I was basically reporting to him the events as they happened. When the second plane hit we were both in shock. We had to turn off the tv at 7:30 because he was on his way to class and I was driving to Antimony with my aunt, uncle, and dad for my great grandpa's funeral. While driving we weren't able to see all of the images on TV but we did hear the reports on the radio. It hit me hardest when the plane crashed into the Pentagon since 2 days prior my mom and I flew home from DC (we were in DC for a conference I had attended).

Other 9/11 memories:
I wasn't at work the day it happened since I was en route to central Utah for my great grandpa's funeral but I was told that every was huddled around the tv's in trading. The market obviously closed that day and Jeff Cardon informed everyone that they were welcome to go home and spend time with their families. We worked with many people in the towers and were deeply sadded to discover how many friends we lost that day. Later in the week I remember being in a company meeting where Jeff shared his thoughts and I remember feeling so proud of the company I worked for and how they were handling the situation.

Approximately 9 months after 9/11, I had a conference in NYC. We stayed in the financial district but was a few blocks from ground zero. The building across from us had sustained some damage and had a lot of work being done to fix it. We noticed some men on the roof and then realized they were actually policeman. Later that day Chris and Levi found out that the policemen had discovered some unfortunate evidence related to that day.

Every time I'm in NYC I try and stay in the financial district but at the very least I visit ground zero. It's always a humbling, reverant experience.

Pictures I need to post:
Me in NYC by myself at the statue of liberty - a stranger took a picture of me with my camera and was able to get both towers in the background (picture taken summer of 01).
Pictures from my first trip to NYC. Melanie and I laying down on the ground of WTC and taking pictures of the 2 towers.
Pictures from my trip with Chris and Levi shortly after 9/11.