jonathan butz

I love the sound of bedtime stories echoing upstairs.

Karen is growing like crazy, stomping about and chattering away, asking for things, telling us things, yelling things, screaming disagreement.

Sarah published her magazine and had a very successful Mom’s Night Out.

VMware is great, really enjoying working with so many people I already know.

Vernal Equinox/Eater/Eostre/Passover - Ham, Chocolate, Sweets

Summer Solstice/Independence Day - Ham, Dandelion Salad, Baked Beans, Dessert

Autumnal Equinox/Halloween/Harvest/Thanksgiving - Pumpkin, Corn, Turkey

Winter Solstice/Xmas/New Years – Goose, Fig Pudding, Sweets, Cookies, Roast Beef, Yorkshire Pudding, Champaign

Sarah and I were watching ‘Parenthood’, sympathizing with the divorced mother struggling to keep her two kids on track.

She grabbed me, suddenly serious and said, “Let’s not do that…for her,” gesturing toward Karen.

While we were talking, Karen had climbed up on the end table by way of a chair and was sitting in front of the lamp, the shade tipped up and framing her head.

She smiled ear to ear and laughed when she saw Sarah and me looking at her together.

Quiet is great when everyone is asleep but not so much when they are away.

I became a dad in a single moment, but thank goodness I do not yet need to explain what boys really want.

Sarah discovered that my hosting provider supports WordPress and remade our family blog using it.

This prompted me to do the same, and I even managed to import my b2 blog posts by upgrading b2 to b2evolve and editing the display templates to display the posts in Movable Type format, which WordPress then imported.

I continue to be amazed at how much my life is shaped by my wife. I have a dog, a house, a daughter and a much improved web presence.

We were sitting in the Pittsburgh airport on seats beside the counter, flipping through separate magazines. At the same moment, each of us raised an arm to wrap ’round the other, bumping elbows and wrists. We laughed long and settled back into our reading with contented smiles.

When I was twenty-eight, I met Sarah, and the rest of my life began.

At my wedding, my brother Christopher delivered the most impressive best-man toast I have ever heard, shoulders wide, eyes shining, big smile and a speech that made everyone happy. We laughed and we sighed, and I’ve never seen my father beam so.

He said that I was happy. And I am happy. So many things that would stress me to dread seem dulled by the happy progress of life.

And I realize after living with him for a year, that I will miss him.