(The kids on our balcony at The Hotel Del Coronado with the flag flying in the background.)Seven years ago this morning we were so excited. Only one more day until our kids first trip to Disneyland! We had been busy packing and planning for several days. I was getting Halley ready for school and happened to have the TV on that morning. Unbelievable. That is what I remember, not believing what I was seeing could really be happening. The first plane had already hit. It could be a terrible accident. Watching, on national television, the second plane hit the tower, we knew there was nothing accidental about this day.
Our phone started ringing, family and friends were worried about our trip. We were supposed to fly out the next morning, September 12. There were so many people worried about loved ones, so many lives lost, how do I worry about a trip to Southern California? Later that day, we decided we would still try to go. All planes were grounded, and that carried on to the next day. We had a rental car reserved at LAX, so I called to see if we could pick it up at the Salt Lake airport instead. We were able to get a car and ended up driving to California.
(For homework, Halley's teacher made her a book. She told her each night she needed to write down something about her day.)I had mixed feelings about being away from home during this time. We didn't get to see the sun up to sun down news coverage, or all of the special programs. However, what we did get to see was amazing. We were in Disneyland for the National moment of silence. Every ride shut down. There was total silence, IN DISNEYLAND. After our days in Disneyland, we drove to San Diego. Hanging from EVERY overpass we went under on the freeway, were patriotic signs, flags, etc. All handmade by someone thinking of the victims of this horrific tragedy. When we entered Legoland, there was a giant American flag made out of Legos.
In Legoland, they have replicas of several US cities. New York City is one of them. The twin towers were gone. This was about 5 days after September 11th. All flags in the Lego cities were at half-staff. We were able to fly home. The police and military presence inside LAX was unbelievable and a little nerve rattling. These were the things my kids remember. Had we been home, they would not have sat and watched media coverage. It was like their own history lesson, that we all will remember forever.
