Memorable Moment Series
I started the “Memorable Moments” series as a weekly painting about special moments of love. I had no idea how special and cherished the project would become. Each one is so different and yet so relatable.
I love hearing stories of the, often small, moments that may have seemed insignificant at the time, and how those same moments have become so important and special months, years, and decades later.
I wanted to create art to document and remember the first moments people enjoyed together, so I started with friends and family. I asked for stories and painted their special moment. The project began to grow and I started to get requests from people I didn’t know. It’s so wonderful to capture these moments for everyone.
Everyone can relate to this series, yet each moment is unique. No experience is the same.
Want to be a part of this project? Submit your story below!
I hope to publish a book when I have 100 moments, Currently I have just over 50, SO send me your story!
Logan
My first "date" with Alex, I flew to California to see him for a week right after Christmas. One of the things we wanted to do was snow camp in Yosemite National park. We packed all our gear in backpacks, rented cross country skis, and started up. Because neither of us really knew what we were doing, right after we left the parking lot, we both immediately fell down with our big bags. We finally made it fourteen miles in, with lots of falling on the way, and set up our tent in the snow. It was already dark, and the tent had a huge rip in it. Freezing, we burrowed in the ground as much as we could and cuddled until the sun came up. This was only the second full day I'd spent with him, and I remember telling him that it was a good thing I liked him, or this would not be fun.
Ciara
The band Rise Against has been a pillar of our relationship. We both love them, continually listen to their music, and have seen them in concert multiple times. When months ago we saw they were playing Red Rocks, the concert was made even more exciting because it would be my first Red Rocks show ever. Our anniversary is September 17th so we used the concert as an opportunity to celebrate our anniversary.
We had a great day. We ran a 5k in the morning then went to Red Rocks early to hike around, check out the music Hall of Fame, and have a tailgate party with our friends. We had great seats in row 15. I was mesmerized by Red Rocks’ beauty and by the incredible sound. It was the most amazing and exciting concert I had ever seen.
During the song “Give It All,” Cooper told our good friend Ben he was about to propose and asked him to record it. I was dancing too wildly and singing too loudly to notice. Suddenly I saw Cooper in front of me getting down on one knee. He pulled out the ring box. Totally taken aback, I just stood there until my legs started to shake, so I kneeled down in front of him. We kissed and hugged. Then we stood up and, embraced in a hug, sang the rest of the song together. Coop and I didn’t cry, but Ben did.
Troy
I proposed to my wife at a Christmas Tree farm with a saw in my hand. How could she say no? We actually found the saw when we were moving and still have it.
Jilli
I was on the way home from a long day of work when I was passed by what seemed like every cop and fire truck in the city. As I drove closer to home, I realized my street was completely blocked off, and the SWAT team had just rolled through. When I asked the cop how I could get home, he replied, "Don't know what to tell you." Frustrated, I tried to take a side street and walk in, all to no avail. I knocked on my friend’s door on that street; he was heading out to his friend's place and asked me to join him. Ready for a beer, I jumped in and was taken around the corner. I opened the door to the backyard (that went back very deep, just as does my farm house). And then he walked outside and into my life. He asked me if I wanted to check out his goats and chickens. Being a pseudo-farmer with goats and chickens of my own, I was excited. It was like I had found someone living the same life as mine. He asked me to be his Bocce Ball partner, and we played games and drank beer until dark. The SWAT commotion was over, but I didn’t stop hanging out.
Apparently, a man had threatened to blow up a trailer park with a gas leak. Everyone was safe, and to this day we still thank that random lunatic because finally ... it happened when I least expected it.
Jeffery
In 2010 while my wife was working as a journalist on a story covering the lifting of Don't Ask Don't Tell, she wanted veteran opinions and thoughts, since that voice had been relatively quiet. In the CSU Veterans Office she was introduced to a few people who said they had one contact currently serving in Afghanistan. They didn't know if he would answer, but told her she could try.
Well, I was that person, and I did reply. Through a series of emails back and forth, probably over a few months, she conducted her interview, and that was the end of that.
When I came home, I returned to being a student at CSU in the fall of 2011. In the summer of 2012 I took an Art History field study in Mesa Verde with a group of students from CSU and UNC. The second or third day of the trip I was walking through a sort of thicket in the campground and came upon a girl reading in a tent. I thought she was cute and struck up a conversation. We talked for a bit and then drove together to "class" in a different part of the park. That night as we were all sitting around the campfire and I was telling stories from Afghanistan, she suddenly connected the dots -- I was the same "Sergeant Jeffrey Dale" she had interviewed. She had actually quoted me several times in the article, which won national press awards. The rest, as they say, is history. We married in 2015 and have a son who turns two next month.
Gena
Bill and I knew each other vaguely for years. When we originally met through a mutual friend, he was married and I was married. We had an amazing dance together at the Wildflower Pavilion at Rockygrass. After that I didn't see him for a long time, during which we both got divorced and moved on. Then, two years ago at Rockygrass, we bumped into each other, literally. We chatted for a minute, and then he texted me through Match.com. All it said was, “Wanna dance?” And that was that.
Ashiila
Danté and I met in college at a friend’s party. We were nineteen years old, and we just clicked instantly.. From then on we have been inseparably together ever since. Getting engaged in New York City was the most magical moment. It was such a special day. We had walked all over Manhattan with friends who live there, and I had NO idea what was in store for me after we crossed the Brooklyn bridge. When we got to the base at the Brooklyn bridge park, to the far left was the Statue of Liberty, at the center was Manhattan, and to the right was the Brooklyn bridge --- all right on the East River. Our friends suggested we take a photo, and that’s when Danté proposed. The entire world went away when it happened ... and it was amazing!
Jeff
Thirty-five years ago Pat and I met at a convention for the "College Newspaper Business and Advertising Management" (CNBAM) in Chicago. We were representing our respective universities (she from the University of Minnesota and me from Eastern Illinois University). We hit it off immediately. The sappy part is the four years we endured a long-distance relationship. Keep in mind that this was before the internet and before free long-distance phone calling. We wrote letters and spoke by phone occasionally. We visited each other as often as we could, but it wasn't until Pat took a job (and an apartment) in Chicago that we were able to confirm what we had each told our friends early on, that we had found the person we were meant to be with.
Pat and I have been happily married for 31 years.
Emily
We usually went on hikes on Sunday, but this particular weekend in early August of 2017, Jake was determined that we hike on Saturday instead. I found it a little strange but didn't think much more about it. We went to our favorite spot at that time, South Mesa Trail near Boulder. It was a normal hike, just the two of us and our dogs, Sasha and Zoey. Sasha had been Jake's buddy and hiking partner for years (prior to our first date), and we had recently adopted Zoey, who was about eight months old. Once we had tackled the most difficult part of the hike, we came to the shady spot with the little creek that the dogs loved to wade in. I was watching the dogs, entertained with their antics, when I noticed Jake was wincing and rubbing his collarbone/chest area. He said his chest was hurting and he needed to dig out some Advil from his first aid kit. As Jake doesn't take medicine very often, I thought his wanting Advil was a bit odd, but I was quickly distracted again by the dogs. The next thing I knew, Jake had gotten down on one knee and was holding a small yellow box in front of me. He told me that the only thing that would fix this pain in his heart was if I would marry him. I was stunned. Of course, I had hoped that we were moving in this direction, but I had assumed that more time would need to go by before he would even think about proposing. How wrong I was! I quickly said yes. Within a minute or two another couple hiking with a small child walked through our area and said, sheepishly, "Congratulations!" seemingly embarrassed to have stumbled into our special moment. During the rest of our hike, Jake told me all about how he'd planned this special day, his phone call with my parents to ask for their approval, and our plans for the rest of the day, including a beautiful dinner. The Saturday hike was all part of his master plan for us to have the whole weekend to enjoy the event.