SITTING LIKE THE BIG BOYS

Matisse-Ciel can't help but wanna grow up fast. You can see him watching his sisters & brother doing amazing things. From walking to talking and everything in between, he wants to do it NOW.



His latest joy has been just sitting up in a chair. There's not a lot of laughing during this action but more pride in his own ability. You can see him waiting for someone to see him mastering this feat.



Out of all the kids he looks for the most approval from his big brother. In a life of untold stories, it's nice to know that he has a built-in best friend for life with Kai. Neither one of them may know this to be true right now, but as time goes by it will become so clear how lucky they are to have each other.

RUNNERVILLE

Let's just say that 2007 was enjoyed with a consistent celebration of eating. I'm not sure if it was from the joy of the birth of Matisse-Ciel, a new found appreciation of sweets, or just plain laziness - there just always seemed to be a good reason to eat something. Claudia joined along with this life style, but she had a built-in excuse: 'Pregnancy'. And, we all know Claudia is a lean machine when it comes down to it.



As January approached, I figured I'd better pick something new and hard to be the exercise of choice if I wanted to get back in shape. I came across a running magazine at the store and the light bulb switched on. It's not easy and most of the time not fun, but in the end it has been the perfect way to get back into things. The celebration pounds are flying off and I'm actually getting stronger each run. I'm not sure if a marathon is a possibility, but I know I can chase down the kids for sure if I need too.

G' Morning Everyone.....

3 DIRECTIONS 1 SPOT

This morning to the right of the deck.



This afternoon to the left....



This evening looking straight ahead.



When the kids say they don't have anything to do, we just tell them to go outside and enjoy the views. Or we give them a list of fun chores they could get into. The views tend to win with options like that.

SPACE INVADERS

The little man's latest joy is driving his Spaceship. It was once just a swing, but when we added the tray attachment, it transformed into what it was meant to be. He has a whole process of first gripping the handles, then looking outside to check for a clean take off, and then he gives us the look indicating:

"All Systems Are A Go!".



Once we launch the swing...I mean Spaceship, all you see is Captain MC enjoying the moment. And, I'm not sure why, but he tends to really love to fly in the nude. We're hoping we can break this before it's time for him to ride his big wheel around the neighborhood.

DER PRINZ AUF DER ERBSE

Matisse-Ciel hat wirklich immer ein volles Entertainment-Programm... man weiss nie, was fuer ein tolles Abenteuer die Kinder mit ihm vorhaben. Meistens muss er den Baby Prinz spielen waehrend die Kinder in Feen-Kostuemen um ihn herumtanzen - hier wurden ihm per Zauberstab alle Wuensche erfuellt... moege er es noch viele Jahre so geniessen... denn eines Tages wird auch er feststellen muessen, dass nur in Maerchen eine Frau einem Mann jeden Wunsch erfuellt :)

DAY DREAMING

The weather hasn't been expressing its sunny side of late. It has really cut into some of the normal activities outside for a Cali kid. Sometimes you can catch Matisse-Ciel staring out imagining what could have been if the sun came out.



When you give a baby stimulants like the ocean at such an early age, I would imagine the come down from that is pretty heavy. We try and explain the sun is just resting and brighter days are on the way. What do parents in Germany tell their kids about the sun?

UNCLE NA-NA

Nathan came down to visit and catch a Lakers game (not sure which one came first :). As always, it was very nice to be able to spend some time with him but it was even cooler to see him spend some time with Matisse-Ciel. You can only imagine the onslaught of photos he receives of the little man, so I'm sure he was glad to touch the real thing.

BAD BOYS...BAD BOYS...

One of the biggest crimes committed in Laguna to date. Someone actually had the gall to put dish soap in the fountain water. The town was a buzz for hours on this one - once the bumbles settled so did the excited over it. Still, this will be the day remembered by many.

TEAM WORK

Kai is always wanting to make something with his play-doh. Finally the girls agreed to be part of his latest creation. During the build of this piece they were very secretive and made sure to hold off on allowing any peeks. Once the project was done, they walked it in the room covered - with a count of 1...2...3...Kai yanked the cover and this piece was revealed. When all three come together, some pretty cool and interesting things come from it.

LITTLE PIGGY

This is by far Claudia's favorite part of Matisse-Ciel. I catch her all the time looking and kissing his feet. She loves to tell me how amazing it is that he has 10 toes (each kid has 10 toes by the way). Every time she tells me I act as if it's the first time and reply "I know honey it's so cool".

HEARTBEATS

Sometimes we can't help but forget that Kai is only 5. He jumped from the baby to Big Brother, in what seems like a blink. It has been so cool to watch Kai process the addition of his little brother. You could almost see his heart outside of his chest. Each beat expressing different emotions. What his heart has shown the most is that he continues to be a cut above and someone that each member of the family is lucky to have.

Never Gets Old

Took a nice sunset walk on the beach in Laguna today... you would think that we've had our share of sunsets and could no longer be impressed by this simple daily planetary motion, but each one is different and special and we will never tire of the beauty of nature.... just like you'd think that with our admitted slightly excessive archiving of Matisse-Ciel's smiles we'd be close to having seen it all... but each smile, sparkle, giggle and even furrowed brow is always new and always a miracle.

GIFTS FROM THE HEART

With Claudia's birthday come and gone we looked back at the best highlights. There were cute cards and special kisses, but one gift stood out from the rest. Kiana & Mika had been planning for some time to make something special for the occasion. With a recent gift from Santa being a collection of sewing gear, it was an easy decision on what to make.



When I say there was no help from Papa, I mean there was no help. Between the two of them they designed, cut and sewed this purse together. Claudia ranked it easily her favorite present to date. The girls were so happy to be able and present this present in the morning of Claudia's birthday. I'm really looking forward to that special tie come my B-day.

NO PAIN...NO GAIN

Today we had Matisse-Ciel's 4 month checkup. We knew this one would come with yet another series of shots. The last time he was showing off and took 4 shots with almost no reaction. This time 2 was the max for joy, with shot 3 & 4 bringing on some sad face tears. Being the tough guy again, the tears only seemed to last about 10-15 seconds. He then started making a noise that seemed like him trying to say "Enough With The Shots...Please!"



While we drove home he was a little quiet in his seat. It was almost like he was trying to find a happy place in his mind to forget about the pain. When we parked and opened the door, this is the love he gave me. Even after we take him into the lions den, our boy gives us nothing but crazy love.



STATS

WEIGHT: 15.5
HEIGHT: 27.0

WHERE'S THAT JUICY LIP?

We are appreciating all the action habits Matisse-Ciel is going through.. his excited bicycle kicks, his left & right air jabs and him pushing his popo (baby bum) off the floor.



The newest, and what seems to be his favorite habit, is sucking that juicy bottom lip. He never gets tired of it and has even moved away from having any fingers in his mouth. Every now and then we actually have to pull it out and make sure the lip is doing okay. We're looking forward to the next discovery but with his current love affair it may be awhile.

A NATURAL

There's no doubt that Kiana has stepped into the Jr. Momma role pretty nicely. She seems to have taken the job as her right of passage. I know that may sound heavy for a 10 year old but to see her in action, one can understand that statement. She's a natural in so many aspects of the tasks she takes on.



She's even very helpful with Mika and Kai on explaining the best way to hold him or carry him around. You can see them look to her for leadership or just plain help if Matisse-Ciel is getting to heavy in their arms. What I like most is not all the help but seeing how happy she is to be with him. His life journey to date has been a pretty sweet ride.

Ice Capades

Claudia thought it would be a great idea to start the new year with an adventure. She has dazzled us with stories of her early ice skating moments as a child, that we were all pretty excited to see this former champion. Once at the rink, she informed us that she would not be able to skate, due to having to watch Matisse-Ciel. Now I figured that was going to be my excuse and had already picked out a nice spot to hang out.



With the little ones cheering 'Papa...Papa...Papa' I really didn't have a choice except to put my life at risk. Surprisingly I didn't break my neck and I was also able to save Kai from taking some tough tumbles. Kiana & Mika both carried that gifted gene Claudia has and seemed to have no problem whipping around on the ice. Claudia promises to show off her skills the next time around.

RED IS THE NEW BLUE

The red sky is starting to become one of our favorite new sights. The best part is that we only have to travel to the backyard to see it. Another cool part is that it stays long enough to enjoy some tea and some good conversations.



Here's a shot from the window in front of Matisse-Ciel's crib. I'm starting to understand more and more why he's able to sleep so peacefully.