09/12/2026
**I remember 9/11. 🇺🇸**
I remember being 8 months pregnant, home alone in a cabin in the San Bernardino Mountains while my husband was working out of town.
I remember waking up and realizing my dad was already at my door. My parents lived over an hour away, but they were worried about me—worried about how I would react to what was happening, especially being so far along in my pregnancy—and they didn't want me to be alone.
I remember sitting together in disbelief, watching the television and trying to comprehend what we were seeing.
I remember the fear.
I remember the sadness.
I remember the uncertainty.
But I also remember being incredibly thankful that my parents thought to come and simply be there with me.
And I remember looking down at my pregnant belly, knowing that while we were witnessing such unimaginable loss, I was carrying a new life who would enter a world that had just changed forever.
My son was born the following month, on October 21.
Twenty-five years later, that day is still so vivid.
I remember where I was.
I remember how I felt.
I remember who showed up.
And I will always remember the lives lost, the families forever changed, the heroes who ran toward danger, and how, for a moment, our country came together.
**Never forget. 🇺🇸 9/11/2001**
