Nick the Networker

Remember Graham - January 7th 2009

We spent a wonderful morning enjoying breakfast with family and then went to the park to release balloons, remembering Graham.  Several friends and family from around the country joined us by releasing balloons as well.  I posted a few of their pictures as well.  We continue to make significant progress with Graham's Foundation.  I'll be sending out a more detailed update soon.

         

Giving Thanks...

At a time when many of us are feeling the impact of the economic crisis, it is more important than ever to give thanks for all that we have in our lives.

 

I am incredibly grateful for Reece's miraculous development.  She continues to amaze us every day.  She just turned two on Sunday and we have decided that she is "truly" 2. We will no longer correct her gestational age due to prematurity.  Jenn just posted a bunch of pics from Reece's birthday party.

 

I am also grateful for the generosity of our family in Ohio, helping Jenn look after Reece during my work trips.  Jenn has a bunch of pics from our day at the pumpkin patch and trick-or-treating this fall.

 

Speaking of work, I continue to love my job, the people I get to work with at PwC and the software vendors I support, Sun, Symantec, CA, Aveksa and Sailpoint. When I do travel, I always try to make some time to grab a coffee or drink with friends so let me know if you'd like to visit.

 

A big thanks to my cousin Diane for sharing her musical talents with me and helping me bring a few of my poems to life with my first two recordings, Oh My Graham and Bend. 

 

The application for 501c3 status for Graham's Foundation is officially on its way to the IRS.  A big thanks to Jeff Spivak and Ruth Holzman at ReedSmith for all their hard work and donation of their time.  I promise it will be time well spent!

 

To help with the startup expenses for the Foundation, I have a limited number of DNA11 portraits available at a special discount.  DNA11 creates unique, one-of-a-kind pieces of art based on your DNA.  You can check it out and make your purchase here. Also, my great friend Gene Seidman and Hayley Alexis are donating 20% of their sales if you mention Graham's Foundation with your order.  Gene makes amazing one-of-a-kind cuff links and Hayley makes beautiful jewelry.  They will make a beautiful, unique and thoughtful holiday gift and help support Graham's Foundation.

 

I also appreciate StoryofmyLife.com featuring our journey with Reece and Graham, titled Our Wish Was Simple.

 

I shared earlier that I am working with Jak Plihal, professional coach and founder of Being Solutions.  The results have been fantastic and I am taking it up a notch for 2009.  I am working with Jak to form a group of no more than 8 that will work together for an entire year.  Interested?  Let's talk.

 

At Conference Guru, Rachel, Jen and Shawn continue to negotiate amazing deals on some fantastic conferences like the Entertainment Gathering in Monterey, Connections at CES, O'Reilly Emerging Technology and several Executive-Only conferences from Frost & Sullivan, just to name a few.  Don't see the deal you want, just ask. As always, use friendofnick to save an extra 25%.

 

Most importantly, I am grateful for all the wonderful people like you that are a part of my life.  That makes me a very, very rich man indeed.

 

Quick Plugs:

Vanguard - create a balanced portfolio of stock and bond index funds.  Keeps the investment expenses low and helps make it easier to sleep at night.

Sitekreator - simple, elegant do-it-yourself websites.  Happy to make an intro for you.  All my websites were designed by Sk.

RogersSeidman - created the logo for Graham's Foundatioin.  Can do that and so much more for you.

218 6th Street - Our house is still available.  It is getting great reviews but we all know about the current real estate market...

Reece is Two!

Our little miracle turns two today.  It is hard to imagine that Reece and Graham were born two years ago.  In some ways it seems like yesterday, but in more ways it seems that the journey has been much, much longer. 

Reece has had so many developmental breakthroughs the past few months that Jenn and I have decided to no longer differentiate between her corrected and actual age.  We recognize that she will have more of a challenge fighting germs and bugs for at least the next several years, so we continue to wash, wash, wash, which is probably a good habit anyway.

Jenn posted a bunch of pics from the fall including a visit to the pumpkin patch, celebrating halloween and enjoying the falling leaves as well as pics from her birthday party.

My musical debut: Oh My Graham and Bend

I visited my cousin, Diane (Schomp) Carderelli and her musical clan a couple of weeks ago and they were kind enough to lend me their musical talents to help me record a couple of my favorite songs:

Oh My Graham: vocals by Diane and me, lyrics by me and music by Diane with Diane on guitar

Download Oh My Graham

Bend: vocals, music and lyrics by me, Diane on guitar

Download Bend

Our Wish Was Simple

Storyofmylife.com recently featured our story, Our Wish Was Simple, on their website.  Looking back, it helps remind me of all I have to be thankful for in my life.

Reece is Walking!

Jenn and Reece are back from Ohio and Beignet is back from spending the summer at her breeder in Northern California.  I was fortunate to be able to spend much of my time in between trips with the girls in Ohio but it is nice to have all of us in one place...but we sure do miss all of our family back in Ohio.  As you can imagine, there are plenty of great pics from the entire summer.

Of course, the big news is that Reece is walking! For several weeks she had been walking with the assistance of two hands, then one hand and now mostly with a request for a pinkie every now and then. On Sunday, she took 28 steps without any help. Two days later, we can't count fast enough! Everyone tells us we'll miss the crawling stage, and I am sure we will, but we're obviously thrilled at her latest milestone.

 Jenn, Nick and Reece celebrating July 4th  

New Pics of Reece's visit in Ohio

Finally!  We made it to Ohio!  Reece got clearance to travel and we are spending the summer visiting friends and relatives.  Reece is learning so much, so quickly as she watches and imitates.  Very exciting for all of us!

June 2008: Ohio.

Don't be offended if the parent of a micro-preemie...

is a little vigilant about germs and asks you to wash your hands before touching their baby or disinfects their baby after you interact with them.  The reality is that it is an incredibly uncomfortable situation for the parents.  We should know, we have been dealing with it for the past year with Reece.  For the most part, on the advice of our pediatrician, we kept Reece away from the public.  It made it easier on us, but was also an important factor in her not getting sick.

Well, as many of you know, we recently got the okay for Reece to travel.  Our pediatrician did warn us that she'd probably get sick, but that she was stronger so more able to fight it.  Sure enough, a week into our trip to Ohio and Reece got the sniffles.  The next day (this past Wednesday) we were in the emergency room, as Reece's oxygenation plummeted to the mid-80's.  For the next 5 days she will be on daily steroids, amoxycillan, motrin and breathing treatments every four hours.  She is doing much better, thank goodness, but it was scary.

So just in case you wonder if we parents of micro-preemies are a little vigilant with germs, we are, and for good reason.  The cost is too great not to be.

Oh My Graham

Written by Nick Hall.  Composition and performance by Diane Cardarelli (Nick's cousin)

Download oh_my_graham.wma

A Very Special Cinco de Mayo

We had a special reason to celebrate on Cinco De Mayo this year...Reece's doctors discontinued her night oxygen!  After 18 months of supplemental oxygen she is completely free!  We are elated and celebrating this major milestone!  

What a miracle!  

We are preparing for our first trip to Ohio where Reece will finally get to meet many family members.  We have waited over a year for this opportunity and we can't wait to see everyone!

 

See more pics of Reece!