It was a year of changes, with a new job and new daily routine as our child started elementary school. We are also inexplicably back to living in unprecedented times as a country, so I spent the year with my jaw clenched quite a bit. Our family experienced a deep loss later in the year. There were a handful of wins, too. When the most pressing daily challenge is convincing our daughter to eat more than pizza and chicken nuggets, things can't be all that bad. 2025 didn't have to be the way it turned out, but we count ourselves truly fortunate.

Here is to a brighter 2026!

  • Had fun with our child during a snowstorm that closed pre-school
  • Attended a handful of hockey games, likely the fewest in several years
  • Celebrated Indy's eighth birthday
  • Went to birthday parties for kids in our child's pre-school
  • Watched a lot of 6U softball for the summer, all-star, and fall seasons
  • Facilitated the VP of Finance track for SigEp Carlson Leadership Academies in Chicago and Atlanta
  • Celebrated our daughter's fifth birthday at a park pavilion
  • Attended pre-school graduation and said goodbye to the care team she had known since she was two and half
  • Had our main bathroom renovated
  • Spent several afternoons at the park near our house, attached to the elementary school, mostly on the swing sets
  • Enjoyed several grandparent visits while my father-in-law received treatment in Nashville for advanced pancreatic cancer
  • Bought a mini-rack for my network equipment, installed LED lights in it several months later
  • Went to several weeks of second-level swim lessons at the Y in Hendersonville
  • Took our daughter to her first professional baseball game in town
  • Attended my fifth Grand Chapter Conclave for Sigma Phi Epsilon in Tampa, Florida, second as a District Governor
  • Placed fourth and picked up an honorable mention in the Nashville Scene's "You're So Nashville If" issue
  • Marked three years with FloQast in June, got a new manager and product manager
  • Met far too few times with local SigEp alumni; hoping to do better in the new year
  • Attended a guitar camp recital for our five-year old
  • Added a fence and three trees to our front yard
  • Went to another Tomato Arts Festival, learned a valuable lesson about explaining to the child about staying close by at big events
  • Attended our second Yum! East festival to benefit the daycare
  • Went bowling with a few local coworkers from FloQast, finished last
  • Celebrated an evening in Nashville with the NUTS! McAuliffe Society for NUTS! Beta
  • Went to few newly-opened restaurants in the neighborhood
  • Started walking our former pre-schooler to kindergarten most weekdays
  • Went to birthday parties for kids in our child's kindergarten class
  • Spent the occasional evening on a beer and Zoom call with technology friends from around the world
  • Turned 42
  • Had one of my district chapters closed for conduct issues
  • Left FloQast after 3.5 years in October to take a new role with Flox
  • Celebrated our 19th wedding anniversary
  • Spent many Saturday mornings taking our daughter to dance class
  • Tried to play games on my phone less, so I uninstalled both the golf and football game
  • Traveled for the first time out of the country to Montreal, Quebec for a work off-site
  • Wrapped up my time as Chapter Finance & Corporate Compliance committee chair for SigEp after our final Conclave report
  • Had my #9 incisor (front tooth) removed, waiting on it to heal to get an implant
  • Walked around East Nashville with a "fairy unicorn princess"
  • Said goodbye to Samantha's dad after a two and a half-year battle with pancreatic cancer
  • Spent Thanksgiving in Knoxville, in a bit of a somber mood
  • Took our daughter to her first movie theater experience, "A Muppet Christmas Carol" at the Belcourt
  • Went to Zoolumination, but needed to cut it short due to cold temperatures
  • Celebrated Christmas in our home, with a Barbie house centerpiece
  • Marked four years as a District Governor for Sigma Phi Epsilon in December