Its happened, its finally happened!! After months (actually years) of prodding and poking I actually got Karli to post a blog entry, it is of course incredible and puts me to shame, but of course you would have expected that. Without further ado:

Since I can’t manage to tear myself away from my new baby girl long enough to write you all an email, I thought I would finally write a blog entry. I apologize profusely for not telling each and every one of you our news personally but I hope you understand. I will do my best to email soon but until then know that we are all happy and healthy. If you watch Mark’s video that he has here then that speaks for itself really.

One of the reasons I love knowing another language is seeing the bridge between words and understanding them a little bit better from a different perspective. In Spanish, an infant can be called a criatura which literally means creature. Of course at first I was a little offended, people calling my beautiful baby a creature but now I am starting to see the truth of it. I can understand this as I watch my little 5 day old creature here, Ella Mackenzie Picketts. At times she seems totally out of this world as she snarfs and burrows and claws at the air and at other times she reminds me of little creatures that I know;

• she is like a kitty cat as she stretches her stiff little legs and arms when I take the blanket off of her
• sometimes she is like a chipmunk as she squeaks and clicks when she wants to be fed - - and other times she is like a puppy dog with her wrinkles of extra skin around her knees and butt
• or a basset hound covered in soft fur on her head which I go to kiss a hundred times a day
• or a bird as she wriggles and squirms to be fed, mouth open wide as a homing device for my breast. But one thing is for certain, she couldn’t be one of us humans. So small, so innocent and perfect.

When you think about the word criatura a little more…

I wonder if it came from criar which means to raise or better yet, to create
And is there also a connection to crecer which means to grow
And then there is also creer which is my favorite – to dream

So wherever we have kidnapped this little creature from, I am so glad that she is here. And be it to raise, create, grow or dream…she is all these things to me. To my lovely wrapped bundle , “As I raise you here with me, let us create a world in which you may grow in to become the you that you want to be – may your dreams be the limits of your soul.”

Recent Videos: Picketts 4.0 Release - Masters' Champion

The official release video:



We are all completely in love with Ella and really can't wait for her to meet you in person. Have no fear however...Kristy got me a FlipVideo for my birthday so there will not be a shortage of video here.

Big Brother...


so much footage, and it grows everyday...

stay tuned and have a great weekend

Picketts 4.0 officially released!
Ella Mackenzie Picketts
April 15, 2008 - 7:44 am
Clinica Abel Gonzalez
Special thanks to: Tamara Frankenburg, Jacobo, Juan Carlos Toral, Thom & Pam Pelliccia, to name only a few...

lots more needed here but this will do to get you started...

relaxing with dad

Ella - age 5 minutes (she doesn't look a second over 4)

Picketts 4.0 - the much anticipated release.

More will come soon, as you can likely imagine i have a little bit of footage from this event, so stay tuned.

phew! I really didn't think i was going to get this post finished in time - but it is here and its going up.

I didn't want the release of Picketts 4.0 to happen before an incredible spring break we had with Jeff, Debbie, April and Eric in Cabarete was duly documented. It was relaxing super fun and so great to be together.

As for life back in the capital we had some contractions last Friday which vaulted us into "full ready mode," the bags are packed and the cell phones are never far away. That said we are enjoying the last days with the three of us, full nights of sleep, and watching the excitement in Oliver build around his baby sister. Karli's belly gets lots of kisses each night before bed.
I am slammed at work and trying to get ahead before the arrival - how does it feel like i am falling further behind?