• 12 – # of months Noah has lived on his own. He’s just moved again, to south St. Louis which has more activity. Denise and I enjoy grabbing coffee with Noah on most weekends. And there’s that wedding coming up in October 2023…
• 11 – # of Empty Nester months – house projects (two bathrooms) are finally done and we’re continuously decluttering. It’s been years since just the two of us, but Patches the intrepid 21.67-year-old cat says “The nest isn’t empty! Don’t forget that I scream for third breakfast and second dinner every day!”
• 10th and 2nd months – Key events for Denise’s father, Phil Bonzon. Phil died in early February, well outliving the standard prognosis for an organ transplant in 2004. He was well-cared for in his final months at his assisted living residence not far from our house. That enabled Denise to visit several times a week. Phil did get to see Graham in person and we’re very grateful for that.
• 9 – For nine months, Sherman has been back in the office three days a week (at home the other two) and that made it hard to rebuild the office chorus. Pitching the benefits of singing one hour a week irrespective of being at performances, people felt energized the rest of that day. They pulled off two successful gigs, with Sherman accompanying on piano.
• 8th month (August) – Our main SoCal visit (of four visits) was a family reunion at the desert mountain ranch to avoid crowded destinations. “Together time” is greatly treasured, with great food, art, and learning about family history, and glider rides! (That was Sherman’s first and probably last glider ride.)
• 7th day of June – Amy gave birth to Sully on 6/7 to share a birthday with father Drew. Sully has a keen sense of observation, soaking up the world around him. He can’t wait to try everything he sees big brother Graham doing!
• 6 – Sherman’s second volunteer gig at a youth ministry leadership conference, for six cold days in Minneapolis. He also gave a workshop presentation about theology and technology, and had a photo taken of him outside in shorts and flip-flops in 0 degrees.
• 5 –
• 4 – Amy’s a fantastic mom and we're blessed to see her family of four on most weekends. Grandparents being geographically close is unfamiliar for Sherman's side of the family, so we’re always ready for grandparent time and savoring the small moments.
• 3 – At 21 months, March baby Graham has a healthy appetite, both for food and for life. He's so curious and observant about everything and it’s a joy to be part of his growth. He calls all women with short gray hair "Tutu" (Hawaiian term) because that’s what he calls Denise, who has short gray hair. Graham often asks to FaceTime with Tutu and "Nyoo Noo" (his pronunciation of my Chinese grandparent name “Gung Gung”). It’s just like in-person visits plus him showing only one-fourth of his face - much like the FaceTime conversations I used to have with my dad.
• 2nd and 10th months – Our last SoCal trip of the year was visiting with Sherman’s stepsister Rachel's family and doing LA tourist things in October. This trip coincided serendipitously with special recognition given to Denise's father, Phil, from Facade Tectonics Institute. They posthumously inducted Phil into their College of Fellows because their vision is “a future that realizes the potential of the building façade to create delightful, human-supportive, sustainable and resilient built environments.” Phil’s company, Cupples Products, worked on the World Trade Center (Twin Towers) and the Hong Kong-Shanghai Bank. They described his industry contributions as: "if Cupples Products was the college of curtain-walling (façade), then Phil was its professor." I videoed the entire ceremony and even if I hadn't known Phil, I would have gotten goose bumps!
• 1 – as in the One who we celebrate this time of year...
Sherman/Denise, Amy/Drew/Graham/Sully, Noah/Evan
Photo Card Credits
Photography - Evelyn Meyer
Photo Editing - Michael Lee
Graphics - Amy Lee Hanneke
Baby Attention Wrangler - Kent MacLean
Bonus Stuff!
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