MAY 2009...

May was a pretty tough month. Nicole was being laid off from her steady job at the LA Opera, with no prospects to work again until late August. This put us in a tighter spot than usual, since I was still out of work taking care of Henry. Nicole's mom was having hip replacement surgery, so Nicole seized the moment to go back home to help out and recharge. The only hitch was we decided I should stay home the first two weeks without Henry, and join them on the third week.

It had been the first time I had been apart from Henry for so long, and although the time alone seemed like a nice break, I was unsure how life would be without them. I started out being fairly productive, tying up loose projects here and there that were sitting on the back burner for months, but I missed them more and more as the days went by.

These above 6 photos were taken by our friend Christina Zwart and sent to me via her iPhone, from Wayland, MA. They were the first few photos I had seen of Henry since we parted, and they broke my heart. It was like I was seeing him again for the first time and I could see the subtle changes in his growth from our absence. He was growing so fast right before my eyes! I missed both Henry & Nicole very much for those first couple of weeks, and these photos really helped me get through those days of waiting.


The first two weeks that Nicole and Henry were away, we tried to Skype each other as much as we could. This was an actual screen grab from one of our live video phone chats.


W. Hartford, CT.


A great day for Golf; Milford, MA.


Duck pond; Milford, MA.








Woods and surrounding paths (photos above and below) near Grandma Phyllis' house.














I didn't have the heart to tell Henry that this was not in fact a magical rock.





There was a small fenced in playground near Grandma Phyllis' house, where Henry found a sandbox to romp in that had a bit of shade.


A fond farewell to Grandma Phyllis' porch


Brattle Street, Cambridge, MA


With our friends Chris & Colleen, about a week before their son, Julien, was born


This keyboard was given to my friend Jeffrey Simmons, donated by my sister Rebecca. Henry just couldn't resist a little tinkle on the 'ol ivories.


Aunt Becky & Alex; Jamaica Plain, MA. We had dinner with them that night. Alex made his famous salsa, and Becky made Sheppard's pie. Henry ate his first kiwi, he just kept devouring slice after slice!








Hanging at the Simmons house for a family BBQ. The airborne child in question is Sanders, Jeffrey's first born boy!











Southwick Zoo; Mendon, MA.


We all went to the Drive-In, also in Mendon, and saw Star Trek while Henry slept blissfully. He did wake up during the double feature, Angels & Demons, but it was well worth it while it lasted.








Back home again in LA, with Henry at the Griffith Park Observatory. We got there early to see the movie in the Planetarium, which he almost made all the way through. Lots of cool constellations to look at, and the narrator was out of control. She sounded like a cross between a female version of Carl Sagan and Carol Channing.

I took the plane back with Henry after that third week, and Nicole stayed behind in Boston an extra week to help her mom out, because the surgery got pushed back. Nicole got to catch up with some friends back home and just relax on her own, but the week away from Henry was difficult for her as it was for me.





Back home, rockin' the brooms.








Hanging out at Artek Sound Studios with our good friend Arthur Alexander.