What a Year!!

It is unbelievable that as yesterday came and went, one year has passed since Dad passed away. The time has flown by and in many ways it seems like just yesterday that he was with us. I can't even begin to count the number of times this year I have thought "I need to tell Dad..." before I reminded myself that he already knows.

When my days are falling apart around me, he has been there so many times to pick up the pieces. BYU Football season wasn't quite the same without him. Our source for the answers to those thought-provoking questions has not been a phone call away. We do know where to go, however, to make an effort to connect our thoughts with his and receive his ever present words of advice. Fortunately his grave marker is not too hard to find.

It has been a year. It has flown by and I am sure the next one will as well. He taught me many things in my life and wanted the best and more. One of his favorite things to tell us was "It's good for your experience" so I guess my experiences are mounting to the heavens. I was reminded during my weekend funk that I need to make him proud so I guess I need to figure out how to get my act together so that I can do that.

In any case, he was one of the best people I will ever know and I am glad to know that families are forever. I love you Dad!

Bombs Away!!!

Friday I got a call from a friend to see if we were interested in flying in the WWII B-17 Bomber from Falcon Field on Saturday afternoon. They had two seats available on a flight. First of all, let's be clear that I am a wimp (Debbie's words after the fact) and I know nothing about planes from any era. I also am afraid of heights and have claustrophobia, but my husband, on the other hand, LOVES planes. In fact, his first question when I asked if he was interested was "Can I take a camera?" So we took advantage of the opportunity and took flight. The plane was the "Sentimental Journey". Needless to say, my husband was a very happy person when he got to sit in the bombadier seat for takeoff. I settled for the navigator spot.

The flight was around 20 minutes in the air. We had a few minutes' delay in taking off, but the problems were dealt with and we were off. Carol was on the ground to take pictures of our ascent. She did a great job of capturing the moment.

We started off the flight in the nose, but the other four people on the flight also got their opportunity for the great view. Once we left the front of the plane, we had to climb under a low divider and onto the catwalk across the bomb bay. It was very narrow! We had been told ahead of time that if we dropped anything down there during the flight we should just leave it there and they would get it after the flight - comforting thought!! Looking at pictures reminds me how narrow that walk really was!!!

During the pre-flight briefing, we were told that we could move around the plane once they reached level altitude, especially in the back of the plane. I thought they were crazy. I figured I would be in my seat, belted in, until we landed. Actually I didn't sit down until it was time to land - it was amazing even to me.


Duane had the opportunity to "shoot a gun", he got to take a ton of pictures (even some with the bomb bay doors open), and he got the opportunity for this once-in-a-lifetime flight. As we were getting off the plane, I told him Debbie would be his best friend forever.

Carol had a great time taking pictures while we were flying and topped it off with pictures of the incoming landing.

"Sentimental Journey" rolled off the assembly line in late 1944 and has been used in a variety of roles through the years. Now it can be seen at the Commemorative Air Force Museum at Mesa's Falcon Field until May when it heads out for its summer tour of airshows and displays. What a piece of history and a treat.

THANKS DEB!!!

Flagstaff Happenings...

So what did we get to do in Flagstaff? Believe me, it was well worth the trip. Just to be able to have no schedules, no deadlines, no demands was fantastic!! We took games and puzzles and a folding table that fit between the beds in our hotel room. Spending more time there than we had originally expected wasn't so bad.

We did venture outside a few times, though. We went on a tour of the Arizona Historical Society Pioneer Museum. The Museum is housed in the former Coconino County Hospital, once known as the "Poor Farm" because many of the patients were indigent elderly men. Some of the rooms are still set up as exam rooms. The collections include artifacts related to the logging industry, livestock raising, and social life of the region. Their winter exhibit is "Playthings of the Past" which includes various means of entertainment through the years. They also have an iron lung on display. That is just an amazing idea that someone could live like that for years on end.

They have other buildings on the site which were associated with the hospital. Carol's new camera has settings that they had fun experimenting with and they took some cool pictures around the area. One of my favorites is this black and white they took of the barn which housed the horses and a milk cow in the early 1900s. There was a lot of snow that morning and they took a number of beautiful pictures around the exterior of the building.

We did change our mind about going to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon on Wednesday because of the weather. There was a storm expected in the early afternoon and we did not want to take our chances getting stuck so we decided not to go. The storm ended up not starting until the evening so we probably would have been fine.

Friday we did decide to go to the Rim, though. Duane was debating, but I said we were going. I was still on a cracker and diet pepsi diet from my bout with whatever had me on Thursday night, but that was something Duane really wanted to do and even though it was going to add a few hours to our trip home, I insisted it was going to happen. It was sooooo cold and the wind was blowing, but it was beautiful and the pictures were worth the time. We only went to a couple of the observation sites because the roads weren't that great. Carol and I got our for a few pictures, then we told Duane to take his time and we would have the car warm for him when he finished.





It was a great trip and I am so glad we went. It was a simple and memorable Christmas for our family!!