Happy Birthday, SonShineIn!

Thirty-three years ago this morning, I awoke in labor at 5:00 am. By 7:00 am Onkel Hankie Pants and I had driven the short distance to the hospital in our new-to-us red Saab. In retrospect, it's hard to believe I was worried about not having made sandwiches for the father-to-be to munch in the labor room. SonShineIn, our first child and only son, made his appearance at 9:58 am. Onkel Hankie Pants was back home just as church let out. (Our church was about two doors away from home. The minister had noticed our car was gone when he walked the dog, had called the hospital, and announced in church that the birth was imminent. So the congregation was waiting with congratulations.) He called my parents in Maine right away with the news, but couldn't reach his own parents till later in the day, because it was Danish Day (in Minneapolis, the Sunday closest to Grundlovsdag) and they were at the picnic. Here's a photo of the young man at a Danish Day a few years later. If you ever go, you will see a lot of blondes in red and white clothes.
He was the first grandchild on both sides, and so has shared with his parents the privileges and burdens of being the firstborn. We named him for OHP's maternal grandfather (a good Danish name) and for my father, who was named for his uncle, who was named for a turn-of-the-century Maine poet and writer.
Below are photos of those he was named for:














These thirty-three years have not been entirely without worries - that comes with the territory of parenting. But overall I think things have turned out quite well. We've just come to the end of a month-long visit from SonShineIn as he decompressed from a stressful year at work. It's the most time we've had just to hang out with him in ten years or more, and it's been a lot of fun. Just as when he was three years old, he amazes even his parents with his articulate discussion and wide range of information on many topics. Rusty the dog quickly adopted him as his new best friend, and has been somewhat disconsolate since his buddy went home. And several projects around the house and grounds have been completed to a high standard -- I'll try to photograph them and post them this week.
Happy birthday! We are richly blessed to have a son like you. And here are a few more favorite photos from years gone by: