The Dunns' Christmas 2010 Update from Tam, Mike and Sarah
Merry Christmas 2010, and Happy Holidays to those who celebrate others at this season, from the Dunns. Ever
since Sarah reached a certain age, our ability to send out Christmas
cards/annual letters began to degrade, and we've not done it for several years. So this year, it's going to be
online. We may not reach everybody, but we hope we'll reach many of you.First, an update for those who haven't heard from us for a long time: Tam is still with the Air Force Association, though she moved last spring after 19 years as Associate Editor at Air Force Magazine to work for their Membership Department instead. Michael is still at The Middle East Institute after over 12 years as the Editor of The Middle East Journal. He is now the second longest-serving Editor in the Journal's 65-year history. Since early 2009 he has blogged for MEI at the Middle East Institute Editor's Blog, which has been quite well-received.
Sarah is now 10 and a half and a fifth grader at Glen Forest School near our home. After two years of preschool, and K through 4 in the Catholic School System at Corpus Christi School, she wanted to try the Public School System and seems to be flourishing. She is learning the Clarinet and is in Band.
Coordinates
Besides Michael's MEI blog linked above, we keep up an occasional Dunn Family Blog
as well, primarily for family and friends. It's mostly limited to
vacation and holiday blogging as we've been too busy to keep it up
regularly. We're on Facebook
(Go here for Mike or here for Tam to friend us on Facebook) and while most of you are
probably linked to us there already, more are welcome. Our family website is still there at tamandmichael.com, though not updated for a while, and some stuff there (like the log of our trip to China in 2001 to become Sarah's parents)
seems like ancient history to us today. To protect Sarah's privacy, our
Flickr Stream and YouTube channel are private, though close family are
welcome ask us for access. You can E-mail Mike here or Tam here.
Now for the events of this past year.
Coco
Our
dachshund, Coco, joined us just before Christmas 2009. He's a sweet dog
but not well socialized; while we're getting him some training, he
still is intolerant of all other dogs. At the vet's, he tried to take
on a Rottweiler. He went with us on vacation, but more on that later.
Thighbone Not Connected to Hipbone
The major event of the year, or at least the most disastrous, occurred June 2, when Michael decided to be a good husband and take out one last recycling bin for pickup the next morning. He slipped on something (probably a bottle dropped from an earlier run) and hit the driveway rather hard. He felt stupid but, when he found he couldn't stand up, even stupider.
He had last had surgery when he had his tonsils out at age four, had had two broken toes, a cracked rib and a few sprains in between. But this time, he'd broken his left hip.
The major event of the year, or at least the most disastrous, occurred June 2, when Michael decided to be a good husband and take out one last recycling bin for pickup the next morning. He slipped on something (probably a bottle dropped from an earlier run) and hit the driveway rather hard. He felt stupid but, when he found he couldn't stand up, even stupider.
He had last had surgery when he had his tonsils out at age four, had had two broken toes, a cracked rib and a few sprains in between. But this time, he'd broken his left hip.
So,
though a generation or two ago he'd probably have never walked again,
he pretty much only lost the month of June and has a new, Titanium hip
replacement to show for it. (We haven't flown anywhere since then, so
the joys of dealing with the TSA remain in the future.) Three weeks on
a walker, a few months on a cane. Now he's pretty much normal except
for sore feet and a hernia, the operation for which was postponed due
to the hip. And an ability to foretell cold weather.
Vacation 2010
But the hip pretty much made the summer a difficult one
for work and family, and Tam and Sarah were supportive though a planned
major trip by car to Missouri, showing Sarah everything in between,
turned into a more manageable trip to the Great Smokies, on doctor's orders. With the dog, which was not the doctor's idea.
This was an adventure that actually turned out better than we expected. Coco was very good about not messing in the hotel rooms: not once. He enjoyed exploring the outdoor areas of each hotel, and only got bothersome when other dogs started yowling in nearby rooms. Our family outings were somewhat cramped, as many places (like the fantastic Ripley's Aquarium in Gatlinburg, TN.), did not take animal visitors. So Michael stayed at the hotel with Coco, while Mom took Sarah to the aquarium. It is well worth a visit if you are in the area. And we all enjoyed excursions to the National Park, various beautiful state parks, and Fontana Lake, with its largest Tennessee Valley Authority dam, that still provides reliable, affordable electric power and water to tens of thousands of residents.
Wishing you a Happy New Year in 2011!
This was an adventure that actually turned out better than we expected. Coco was very good about not messing in the hotel rooms: not once. He enjoyed exploring the outdoor areas of each hotel, and only got bothersome when other dogs started yowling in nearby rooms. Our family outings were somewhat cramped, as many places (like the fantastic Ripley's Aquarium in Gatlinburg, TN.), did not take animal visitors. So Michael stayed at the hotel with Coco, while Mom took Sarah to the aquarium. It is well worth a visit if you are in the area. And we all enjoyed excursions to the National Park, various beautiful state parks, and Fontana Lake, with its largest Tennessee Valley Authority dam, that still provides reliable, affordable electric power and water to tens of thousands of residents.
Wishing you a Happy New Year in 2011!
Michael Dunn, Tam Mehuron, and Sarah Dunn
3300 Red Pine Street
Falls Church, VA 22041-2524
E-mail Mike or Tam