AUGUST 2008...

Friends & Family...back home



AUGUST 16, 2008.....



Henry, composing his first two compositions, back home. No kidding...listen HERE!




Homeward bound! Shortly after this was taken an airflight attendant told us to keep Henry off the tray table. What evs!




Henry & Nicole, waiting at the Logan airport, on our way back home from Boston.




Henry & his Aunt Rachel, at the hospital.




Henry, his Aunt Becky, & Grandma Jane, at the Hospital, Brockton, MA. My mom has been put into permanent care for her MS, so this was her second time being with Henry.



We got Henry this toy giraffe, named Sophie (who is French) for his plane ride to Boston. We were getting our local fried clam fix with my sisters Becky & Rachel at a restaurant in Brockton called the Lobster Hut.




Hanging out with my friend Jeffrey & his wife Randi, who were expecting a little one of their own, Milton, MA.



Henry & I, on a back path, enjoying some flowers together, Milford, MA.



Henry & Uncle Marcus!



Henry having some dinner at Grandma Phyllis'.




Taking a bath, old school style, at Grandma Phyllis'....



Nicole was also in town for her 20th High School Reunion, and one of her best friends, Darah, invited us out for a swim at her local Country Club.



Henry with Aunt Becky & Uncle Alex, Jamaica Plain, MA.




Keeping sharp, practicing at Grandma Phyllis'.



Howdie partner!



I'm more Punk Rock than YOU are!


JULY 2008....







Our trip to Needles, CA......







Here at a rest stop, on our way to Needles, CA for a weekend getaway with our friend Brandi. Little did I know it would reach 115 degrees! Nicole is into that sweat it out, Bikram's Yoga stuff, so this was a walk in the park for her. For me...not so much. I mostly stayed inside in the AC and played Wii tennis until my wrist almost dislocated. I'm not a huge fan of extreme dry heat nor AC. This is why I could never visit Houston.



Henry having fun down by the beach in Needles. The river was too cold for him, so he hung in the shade, with his floaty boat.



We hit the pool as the sun was going down, and if you stayed low in the water, you could feel this cool, misty breeze blow over that was amazing. The pool had been heating up from the sun all afternoon, so it was like warm bath water. I have to admit, this was a divine combination.


JUNE 2008....

Nicole & Henry at a Tea House in Montrose, CA......
photo:Jill Aske

That's Henry & I at the Gloria Ross Daycare where I played some Nursery Songs to a small group of toddlers (Henry is to the right of me in his carseat).




Our cat Olive, here in the bedroom. Right from the start, she's been a patient, mothering companion to Henry. Even when Henry tries to pull her fur and gave her a whack, she's always understanding and takes one for the team. I've never seen her once hiss or lash out at Henry, and backs off gracefully when he gets too rough. Olive's sister, Lucy, couldn't be bothered. She's always a safe distance away for a quick getaway.



Henry the Lady Killer!

June 11th, 2008.....



Henry at his favorite local hangout, Nibley Park. This was his first day on a bucket swing, and he LOVED it. He's often mesmerized by looking up at the trees, possibly because they're NOT palm trees. He also likes checking out what everyone else is doing around him, especially the ladies.



Robot love! A gift from our friend Shelley, Henry would often snuggle with Robot on the changing table.

June 28, 2008.....



Henry's first time in the pool, getting swimming lessons, over at the Rose Bowl, Pasadena. He was a bit mellow about the whole experience, although I knew he was enjoying it, he just wasn't as rambunctious as some of the other infants.

June 29th, 2008.....



Henry sees his first horse! This was at Nicole's friend Marie's house out in Palos Verdes, which I missed out on. It sounded beautiful out there.

MAY 2008.....



We kept hearing about these "activity mats" with dangly things on top, so one day I went a little crazy and got it into my head that I would make my own. I used our clothes rack, some plastic links, whatever dangly stuff I could find, and duct taped a makeup mirror to the top so he could see himself. It actually worked, and held his attention for a while. This was when I decided we finally had to have one. It was a great way to keep him occupied for a few minutes, sometimes up to a half an hour, which seemed amazing at the time.




I picked up a part-time job on Saturdays at a local contemporary arts gallery in Atwater Village called LittleBird. The owner, Mylissa, was really gracious by letting me bring Henry to work with me. It was a little money I could tuck away on the side to help buy art & music supplies, and help pay for my rehearsal space. The table he's sitting at is called a Babee Tenda. It's a really cool feeding table on wheels. We still use it to this day.

MAY 15th, 2008



Henry's first train ride at the Travel Town Trolley Museum at Griffith Park. The park itself is pretty small, only a half a dozen trains, but this trolley goes around the perimeter, which lasts about 5 mins. Henry was so excited and kept saying "woo woo" like a train whistle. They even had this old train conductor in full uniform with pin stripped overalls and matching cap. I wanted to get him a conductors hat, but they were too big.



Almost every day during the week, when Nicole went back to work at the LA Opera, I'd take Henry and we'd all meet up for lunch. I didn't want Mom to go a whole day without seeing Henry, so this was a nice way to break up our day and give them some needed bonding time.

APRIL 2008....


April 13th....One of the first days Henry starts to sit up on his own!









Henry modeling his first wave of cloth diapers. This particular brand is called "Fuzzy Buns". I love the snaps.



This is Nicole's very fashionable sling she got at the Rockin' Baby Store, In Eagle Rock.



Hanging out at the country club. Hey, where's my scotch?


MARCH 2008.....

Our 1st trip home with Henry...Boston, MA




Taken on the plane back home.....




Hanging with Auntie Becky in Jamaica Plain....





Our friends Chris & Colleen also came to visit during our stay in Providence.


We spent a few days in Providence, RI with our friends Dave & Brooke, and their two boys Dash & Grey. They were appointed Henry's official godparents, and now reside in Toronto, Canada, with a new addition to their family....Sira!


We had dinner with our friends Doug & Christina in Wayland one night (their two boys, Zach & Charlie are not pictured here). They hosted our wedding in their backyard back in '04.


Here with Nicole's mom, Phyllis, and her brother Marcus.



Dad just wants to eat you all up, you're SO CUTE!





Nicole & Henry with our friend Marisa. She's in band called Moedog Darling.

I just love the perfect triangle they form in this photo. We had BLTs that day.....


MARCH 21, 2008



Henry's first photo shoot! The infamous "bear" photo was taken during this session.





MARCH 26, 2008





Henry's first day on the Muppet Keyboard...he would later go on to compose his first 2 compositions! (see August 2008)



This was the first carrier that seemed to work for us, the Baby Bjorn. Our friend Shelley gave us this, rescued from a thrift store in east LA. This began our morning routine of walks around the neighborhood. Henry loved looking out at everything, and was the perfect vantage point to flash a smile to whoever was passing by.