CHARLES (born August 1995 in
Malestroit, Bretagne)
Charles: 2000-07
Here he is, notre chou-chou à
nous tous (you have to understand French to get that phrase, which
translates into something like "here's our very own little cabbage"), in his
Breakers uniform late in 2006. The Santa Cruz
County Breakers is his most recent youth soccer team.
Next, on the right, is his school photo from early spring 2008.
Charles was born at the end of our
1995
summer vacation in La Grée. He
was born in the same clinic as Daphné eight years before,
la Clinique des Augustines, managed by nuns whose spiritual and moral
predecessors had helped allied airmen escape the Nazis during World War II.
Charlie cemented our family. Each of the
older children took to him
immediately, and he had a charmed childhood with all that love. Until the older
reached adolescence, when of course from time to time things became more
complicated!
On the right, on a sled in Tahoe in March 2007.
His number one kick is soccer (tee-hee!),
where he does very well (you might want to check out his competitive
under 10 soccer team in the fall 2005 season) and he
likes most any other sport that he tries. In the photo below left, he's racing
to cross the line first at the Happy Valley School
annual sports day in 2006.
Not forgetting recreational biking,
skiing and video games.
He particularly likes to fool around. Below on
the right, we find him in the dryer at his father's apartment in Irvine during
Thanksgiving 2003. Note that he did not neglect to bring the fabric softener!
And this is the roof of La Samaritaine department store in Paris, August
2003. Needless to say, it is not supposed to be climbed on!
Unfortunately, he seems to have a thing for climbing on roofs!
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The Metro in Newcastle-upon-Tyne terminates at St.
James's Park, where Newcastle United of the English Premier League make
their home. After going to see the stadium in July 2007, and buying a
ball in its store, Charlie could not resist trying it out before the
train started its journey. A voice came over the tannoy: "Please stop
playing football in the rear of the
train!" |
Here he is, climbing again, this time in Grandpa's
doorway at La Grée.
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Happy Valley School
photo in September 2003
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Here's one of his favorites, taken during our 2006
summer vacation at La Grée. |
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Unfortunately, the arrival of the much-desired and
greatly appreciated computer, opposite, did not supersede the TV.
Screens rule: ouch!
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For his ninth birthday, a computer, an eMachines, a
modern version of his brother Nick's, but Charlie
received his four years younger than Nick. It tends to go that way in
the family. The younger boys seem to benefit from everything earlier
than their older siblings.
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Escorting his Maman in San
Francisco, in January 2004.
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Here's another Happy Valley
School photo, this time in September 2000. This is his mother's
favorite of him.
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Here he is with his kid brother during our 2000 summer
vacation, at Disney World in Florida.
He's a pretty nice big brother, as this picture shows (and as do many
others, including here), although
Alex has been known to get bopped more than once or twice!
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Here are two very different moods from one short ferry
trip, across from the mainland to Nanaimo on Vancouver Island during our
Canadian vacation in April 2003.
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The significance of this photo is not
self-evident. On August 19, 2000, in a swimming pool on Key
Biscayne, Charlie showed us all that he could swim unassisted. BRAVO
Charlie!! He couldn't lift his head to breath yet, but he could swim!
By the end of the Florida vacation, he was breathing at the same time as
well. He learned that all by himself.
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