Our Families
Those to whom we owe everything. Here's our immediate families. We love each other more than we typically say out loud, but we know :) .
David's Family
Left to Right: Justin, Aubrey, Dad, Madeline, Mom, Malachi, Melody (Buster), Kyle, Cassandra
Li's Family
Left to Right: Mom, Dad, Chengcheng (nephew), Can (brother), Yuan (sister-in-law)
Grandma and Grandpa
Janeen and Jim
Memories of Li's grandparents
Who helped to raise Li
Janeen
David's grandmother
Grandma has been a fan of Li since they met. She's always cared about me and encouraged our family to stick together. She's considerate and strong, yet tender. We're beyond excited to be planning our vows with her present!
Li's Grandparents
The dearest in Li's childhood memories
I spent many years with grandparents in the countryside as a child. Those sweetest memories warm my heart even decades later. Their love story and married life was a fairy tale to me and gave me faith to simply believe in love in a rapidly changing culture.
David Sr. ("Big David')
David's dad
My dad is the best example of dependability I know. Everything Dad ever did was for our security and well-being. I especially admire the discipline and conscientiousness that enable him to serve his local community as a small business owner. For 33 years they've been the hands-down best place for music lessons, instruments, sheet music and music accessories. He's also an impressive home gardener with expertise in herbs and pest control. He's also the reason "dad jokes" are a thing.
Yinhua
Li’s Dad
My dad is a very loving father and a faithful husband. He loves gardening (flowers, pumpkin. etc), and literature. Dad recited long paragraphs of ancient poems to me as bedtime stories when I was a child. He loves fishing too. I grew up eating lots of fish. He retired around 50 and started a second job with my aunt.
Carrie
David's mom
Mom is the best example of patience in my life. She's definitely shown grace waiting for me to find someone like Li. She is patient in conversation, always making sure she's letting others speak first (except when she's got a signature witty remark). She's a total magician with crafts, patiently piecing together bits of thises-and-thats to show love to family and friends using anything she has around the house. This is clearly where Cassandra gets her artistic talent... If I had to admire one thing most it's her unconditional support. What else could anyone ask for from a mom?
Xinrong
Li's mom
She is a very determined and forward-thinking woman. She worked hard to provide the best education for me and my brother. She worked as a teacher for a few years after college, later switched to her city’s water-supply department until retirement at 51, to take care of her grandson.
Mom taught me how to read and how to knit. As I grew up, she has always given me the full responsibility and freedom to make my own decisions, for which I am most grateful.
Aubrey
David's big sister
We are 3 years 11 months apart (NOT 4 years). Growing up we were great pals who played together often. Then Aubrey became a teenager and I joyfully learned my role of Little Brother. It required me to push her buttons. Though it was only a phase, I did well in that role and she's now as tough as they come. I'm grateful to have learned lessons in navigating life as a family from Aubrey and her courageous husband Justin. Through it all, they've endured and have raised three awesome kids: Malachi, Madeline, and Melody.
Can (“ts-an”)
Li's brother
He is one year younger but he loves to protect me. He always let me choose the TV program when we were kids. I loved to run as a teenager and he ran with me whenever he could.
After graduation from electronic engineering in 2011 , he worked in Shanghai for a few years, where he met his wife (in the same company). After their first son was born, they decided to move back to Hubei to be close to family. He built a new company with support from investors. Three years later, he gave up the CEO position and built the second company with his own investment. He is taking care of my parents because I chose to live abroad. I am so grateful for him and proud of him.
Cassandra
David's younger sister
She's generous and sneaky smart, but it's her talent/humility combo that continually bewilders me (and most everyone). Those two traits for sure go to "11". I love my family equally, but knowing Cassandra is happy, healthy, and successful in her own eyes has always been uniquely special to me. I'll never cheer harder for anyone than I do for Cassandra. I couldn't be happier than I am seeing how well she's cared for by Kyle, a match for her so perfect it's hard to believe. But I get it now and, experiencing it with Li, I'm even happier knowing Cassandra and Kyle have the same joy.
Yuan PenG
Li’s sister-in-law
Yuan is a beautiful, intelligent and loving person. I admire her. She helped and supported my brother's every big decision. She put her career on hold for two years to raise their first son and to take care of my parents. We are so blessed to have her as part of our family. They are married for 5 years now (time flies).
She gets along with my mom so well that my mom talks about her more frequently than she talks about my brother.