This weekend the King Trio went up to Beaver, Utah. Matthew got to wear his boots that Margo & Hank gave him for the first time. He looked quite dapper in his mountain-man clothes.

At 6500 feet, the weather can get downright chilly. Johnny, Cheryl, & Ali Hazelwood gave Matthew this denim jacket for his birthday and he finally got to wear it. Speaking of altitude, Matthew faired much better this weekend. In the past he was considerably more lethargic and visibly uncomfortable. This time, however, we saw no clear signs of discomfort and his saturation levels remained in the mid 90's (which is excellent). Like the rest of us, he slept longer after a day in the outdoors (though he still gets a second wind at bedtime these days).

Clad in his outdoorsman apparel, Matthew was ready for an ATV ride.

Strapped to my chest for safety, Matthew enjoyed our trail ride almost as much as Quixa (who loves to run at full speed).

Matthew's brother, Casey, moved back to Las Vegas this week and our two young men were quickly reunited. Here, Casey is reading to Matthew from his interactive "Leap Frog" book. Matthew was very excited to see Casey.

For brief moments, Matthew can stand and balance on his own. He has even taken to lifting his hands up from the couch (while standing) to test himself.

Matthew and I have been conditioning ourselves for this coming football season. As seen here the physical requirements can, at times, be rigorous. While I will still be manning the remote this season, my protege' has shown promising signs of remote control mastery.

I know this photo is slightly blurry but it is such a quintessential Matthew smile that I couldn't resist.

Some of you may remember our friends Dan, Lucy, and Alison Jiang from San Jose, CA. We met them at UC Stanford during Matthew's first surgery. Their Daughter, Alison, was born with a heart defect similar to Matthew's and she recovered from her 2nd surgery in the bed next to Matthew's. The Jiangs found out last week that Alison has some constriction in her branches and will undergo another open heart surgery on Tuesday. We posted a letter on August 18th from Anna Jaworski on what it means to be the parent of a "heart kid". In addition to her experiences we must add the apprehension you feel with every visit to the cardiologist. Every time your child undergoes an echocardiogram, you must be prepared to be told they need another surgery. Terri and I would like to ask all of our tremendous "Prayer Warriors" to keep the Jiangs in your thoughts and prayers this week.

Dan, Lucy, and Alyson came to visit us during Matthew's 2nd surgery at Stanford last March.

Look, a "rug-rat"!

Matthew likes to get up on his hands and feet. He does this with relative ease but has yet to stand up from this position. He just remains in this position like "Mogly" from "The Jungle Book".

Now that Matthew is mobile, baths have become more frequent. Here Mommy gives him a loving embrace for being such a good sport in the sink.

Matthew appears to have inherited Mommy's "telephone gene". Just wait until he can talk. You will all be in double trouble then.

Some friends were starting to tease us saying that Matthew had a "comb over" hair-do. So our dear friend (and Terri's hair stylist) Tammy came over to give Matthew his first haircut. After pinning a towel around his shoulders, Tammy visited with Matthew for awhile. So would Matthew enjoy his haircut?

No way! Matthew was, to say the least, quite unhappy.

Mommy came to Matthew's rescue. She silenced his cries by reading to him from his favorite book, "Your My Little Love Bug."

Terri even gets a hint of a smile from Matthew.

Matthew didn't hold a grudge and welcomed Tammy's embrace when the ordeal was over.

We've recently had several requests to link Matthew's blog to other sites. We would like to invite all those interested to feel free to link Matthew's blog anytime they wish.

This picture was taken moments after Matthew's latest bath. When I viewed it on the screen of the camera I was so excited I told Terri I could never top this picture! This is the perfect image of Matthew. He's happy and innocently playing with a toy.

After his bath, Matthew and I enjoyed some cuddle time.

When Matthew is in such a good mood it is hard to put him down to sleep.

Last weekend we traveled to California for Grandma Sue's Birthday. As always, my longtime friends (from High School) Johnny, Cheryl, & Ali Hazelwood, were gracious enough to have us as their guests. So what happens when boy...

...Meets girl? (Played by the beautiful Ali Hazelwood)

It makes for great pictures. But, would there be music in the air and flowers everywhere?

Here Ali looks as if she wants to massage Matthew's head. Just as Matthew began to smile at the sensation, what looked like a pleasurable experience...

...Turned into a full on hair-pull. Ali grabbed and pulled so hard she reminded me of the children's book called "The Giant Turnip".

When all the adults ran over to intervene on Matthew's behalf, Ali looked around as if to say, "What? What did I do?"

Summer, the Hazelwood's loyal companion, came over to console Matthew.

Matthew was enamored with all of Ali's toys. There is just something about someone else's toys. But Terri and I have realized that Matthew needs a sibling so he learns to share...

"What? You want me to share? With a girl?"

Matthew was recently featured on professor Elizabeth Warren's Website. She is a Harvard Law professor who writes about the middle class. To view this Website Click Here.

A friend from Stanford posted this on her carepage. Being a "heart mom" by Anna Jaworski

What does it mean to be the parent of a child with a heart defect? It means going into your baby’s room a dozen times a night just to check to see if she’s still breathing. It means standing over the crib to watch the chest rise and fall and when you don’t see it move, you begin to panic and put your head down close to your baby’s face to try and hear her breathe. It means that when you don’t see the chest move and you don’t hear her breathing (because your own heart’s beating is drowning out any other sound in the room), you put your finger under the baby’s nose to feel the air on your finger – until you wake the baby and it stirs – and you’re thankful, so thankful that she’s still with you. It means feeling a huge sense of relief when she hears you and opens her eyes and smiles. It means saying a prayer of thanks for another day. It means measuring out her medication and panicking if she spits some of it out. How much did she spit out? One cc? Two or three? Then wondering if you should guesstimate how much more she should have and if you’d overmedicate her. It means checking her nail beds against your own to determine how blue she is today. It means asking your husband, your mother, or your sister, "Do her lips look blue to you?" It means snuggling her in an extra blanket for fear she won’t be warm enough. It means worrying that even a sniffle could cause an infection that could harm her heart. It means taking your baby to the doctor and worrying that she will catch something in the waiting room, so you walk back and forth in the corridor until the nurse calls her name and takes you straight back to the examination room. It means knowing that everyday is a blessing and a gift. It means knowing that you are the luckiest person in the world, just to be a parent. It means cherishing every moment, every breath with such intensity that you feel tears come to your eyes for no apparent reason. It means praying for a miracle to save your baby’s life. It means praying your marriage is strong enough to endure the hospitalizations, separations, and grief. It means praying for the will to live, even if your baby doesn’t. It means your own heart knows a pain, no parent should know. It means feeling weak, helpless, angry, and depressed because your child’s fate is out of your hands. It means feeling strong, determined, and brave because you know you have to be. It means your love knows new unlimited boundaries. It means your pride in your child’s accomplishments is unparalleled. It means your pain has taught you a deeper sense of compassion than you ever imagined. It means we are all united by the same feelings. It means that we all know the mixed up emotions of dealing with death – but more importantly of living with life. It means that even though we are strangers, we are more to each other than friends could ever be. 1996, by Anna Jaworski

This morning Matthew took the time to "stretch out" before his workout.

Matthew is very close to being able to pull himself up. He is getting stronger everyday.

After all that hard work, Matthew needed a little "pick-me-up".

Once recharged, Matthew was ready for some push-ups.

When bedtime came, Matthew was still ready to play. As always, Mommy is a superb playmate.

"Peek-A-Boo"

"I see you."

Matthew was reaching for the camera as if to say, "Gimme that!"

When Terri makes a "roar" sound, Matthew belts out with a big laugh.

Today, our "Man about Town" attended Luke Daynes' first birthday party. Matthew was able to shmooze two extra tickets for his Mommy & Daddy to come along. There was cake, ice cream, and plenty of play time.

While steadying themselves at the coffee table, Matthew & Luke played together like old friends.

Luke couldn't wait to show Matthew the features on his new ride.

Luke was also born with a heart defect. We met the Daynes at UC Stanford while Luke was preparing for his 3rd open heart surgery. These two boys are quite experienced with major surgeries.

While Matthew still doesn't crawl or walk, he has started "butt-scooting" across the family room floor. Even with a multitude of baby toys to choose from, Quixas basket of chew toys looked new and intriguing.

Hey little Mister, the song says, "With a knick-knack patty-whack give your dog a bone"; Not, "take your doggies bone"

In the end Matthew picked the newest and most interesting chew toy. Quixa is very sweet but a dog will only take so much. Therefore, as Matthew gets more mobile, we will have to relocate the doggy toys to another room.