Paris... summary

Paris this year was quite different then the other years. First, I stayed 6 weeks instead of the usual 2. It was still too short for my taste but much better than the other years. I finally had time to... well...do nothing!

Second, the presidential election drew out such passion from everyone that no matter which side you were on, you would find yourself debating about which candidate should win with your neighbor, baker, taxi drivers, etc. The outcome pleased a good majority and seemed to create hope and a new energy that had seemed to be lost.

Third, I got to see my high-school friends. Zozo, who happened to overlap her stay in Paris with mine for a couple of days. Dinner at her parents with my parents, Sam and Nathan was amazingly good: Avocado cream with foie gras, Gigot, and TWO deserts, a Meringue à la crème et fruits rouges and pots au chocolat.... hummm. And Nathan grew a fascination for Monsieur Z.'s conversation.

I happened to be there for Youmna's birthday and finally met her cute 3-year-old daughter, Oriana. Then, I made a surprise visit to Aurore, I had not seen for ~15 years, at her kid's store, Louping.

We visited our common friend Jean-Pierre and met his wife and lovely daughter Chloe.

Last but not least, while walking in my neighborhood, I hear someone whisper my name in the random chance it would be me, and there was Aurélie! Her daughter Elisa, 8 months, is the most gracious baby I had ever seen. Charming everyone all the time. Nathan tried to chase her but was at a slight disadvantage... for now!

This also gave us the opportunity to use Aurélie's services as a photographer to get Sam in some shots with Nathan and me.

Finally, Nathan was there to be introduced to everyone my grand-parents, both recovering from being in the hospital; my aunt and cousins, Jordan and Ruben; the Feders --Laurent and Stéphane, for once, were both in Paris in the same time so we spent a Friday night together.

Plus all the milestones Nathan went through while in his second home: rolling over, scooting backwards (see where he goes now without adult supervision!), 2 teeths, and saying "ma-ma-ma" (tried to teach him "pa-pa"but he's smart he knows where his food comes from ;-)

And yes, I shopped -- how could I be in Paris and not shop! Here is how my luggage cart looked like coming back to San Francisco --by myself with Nathan. Heureusement, Sam has a "big" (enough) car!

Second tooth is here

Just 10 days after the lower right incisor made its way through Nathan's gum, its little neighbor, the lower left incisor, decided to come out. No more gummy smiles!

Don't Worry, be Happy!

So based on what you read here, a lot of you might think that Nathan is just this perfect kid who never has a "bad day." Well, he does. But even when he's in a rage he's still a real cutie!

And now it's documented. So someday we'll be able to show this to his girlfriend.

Oh what a difference 4 months make...

I was sharing a few thoughts with a friend of mine in an email on the subject of daddy-hood after perusing some old photos of Nathan and it got me thinking (again) just how amazing the whole experience has been.

I can’t get over how big Nathan is getting… so fast. One minute he’s this little raisin-y looking thing (er, angel) with huge eyes, the next thing you know he’s this big smiling chubby little angel with huge cheeks, reading the economist!

Meeting Youmna and Oriana

My school friend Youmna came to visit Nathan and I with Oriana, her three year old daughter. Nathan loved Oriana's beautiful curly hair and kept pulling on it.

Première quenotte (First tooth)

Nathan has been teething for a while now and today, at 4 and half month and one day before Sarkozy officially becomes the new French president, we discovered that the lower central right incisor (incisive centrale droite) was coming out! If the remaining 19 teeth happen the same way, I say "Vive the amber necklace".
In the Grand Rex parking elevator, I commented to my mother that Nathan had a weird "thing" in his mouth -- a white spot on his gum that looked like a sore. Then, I forgot all about it until later in a store, Aubert (not recommended by the way), I hear Mom scream: "Ça y est il a une dent!" ("That's it, he's got one tooth")
Once home, my dad confirmed, so we drank champagne. Yep, that's how we celebrate the first tooth in a dentist's home!

"Do you think the car will fit...?"

Parking isn't easy in Paris, especially now since their mayor is reducing the number of spots to encourage people to use the bus.

But Linda has the touch (and a teeny tiny little car...)

Nathan gets some exercise

Once the weather cooled down a bit we were able to go out for walks around the neighborhood.

Nathan relished the opportunity to get a little exercise.

Nathan turns over -- and grabs his feet!

Today was a pretty big day in Nathan's life... not only did he successfully (and repeatedly) roll over from his back to his tummy, but he grabbed for his feet when he was in the tub.

Yay, Nathan!

May Day

We woke up this morning to yet another French holiday -- May Day -- and because no one (practically) was working, Robert thought it would be good to go out for lunch. Robert and Linda invited us to a nice Italian restaurant and after a few glasses of rose wine, Robert decided that Nathan was going to be the "President of the United States of AmeriCA!" (emphasis intentional, accompanied by the closed fist "victory sign" shown in the picture).

Nathan thought that was pretty cool.