The Gathering

Last night, we had a gathering. It wasn't a party, because that would imply that its cause was something happy. Andrew's original due date is Tuesday. We wanted to acknowledge this, and we wanted to have as many of the people who have been so helpful to us over as possible. It was a good evening and a bad evening and a sentimental evening and a fun evening and a horrible evening all at the same time. I miss my baby boy more than anything.

You may recall that the Girl's only true brewing adventure was in creating the "Itsaboy Chocolate Stout" we made in honor of Andrew. Yesterday was the day we unveiled it. Pouring it was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. I uncapped it and cried. I shook the entire time I was pouring it. It took me a full five minutes to abate the tears before I could pour it. I need to keep a bottle forever. The Girl also broke her "no alcohol" thing and had several of them. She likes it, which is the ultimate honor for this particular beer for me.

The Girl also bought a cake from Costco. At some point, we cut it, and it was probably one of the hardest things she's ever had to do. It was for me, I know. I know I just didn't want to disturb the perfectness of the cake. Cutting it felt wrong. Cutting it felt like cutting out a piece of my heart.

Despite the tears, the evening was wonderful. We're so grateful for the people that came. We're grateful for their support over the last several months. We missed the people who couldn't make it. We enjoyed our time with the people who did. The evening was exactly the memorial we wanted to have. It was the perfect honor for our baby boy.

We miss you, Andrew. We miss you terribly. We're sorry you can't be with us. We're doing our best to celebrate the forty-two minutes we got to spend with you. We love you.