Yesterday was Mr. Man’s 6th birthday! I’d like to write a lot but the truth is, pictures said it better. For posterity’s sake I’m reposting a video I shared on Facebook yesterday where I celebrated in pictures. Why pictures? It’s so much easier to show how much this little man has meant to me than to write it…but then again this entire blog has been an effort to do that.
Okay, full disclosure, the headline was meant to be jarring. There’s some truth to it though. For those who treat Memorial Day as more than a day off or an excuse to double the caloric intake, Memorial Day can be downright depressing. Nearly 3 million American soldiers have been killed our wounded defending our freedom . 3 million! To put that in perspective, that’s the population of America’s 3rd largest city, Chicago.
Memorial Day is a reminder of the true sacrifice these men and women have made. The reason that I often have mixed feelings about Memorial Day is really because, when I look back at my contribution to freedom, it’s really quite small. Mostly, my contribution comes in two ways. First, I have a responsibility to teach my children the value of freedom and to care for my neighbors the best I can. The second is a bit more personal and a bit more painful. My contribution comes in the form of loss. It’s not the ultimate sacrifice, please don’t misunderstand me, but losing my friend Tim remains incredibly painful and a constant reminder of the fact that freedom isn’t free.
I wish we didn’t need a Memorial Day. I wish I could contribute more to freedom. I wish I could pick up the phone and call my friend Tim. So yeah, Memorial Day does suck…but I’m so thankful for it.
Yesterday, Ry-guy had the chance to march in the Newington Memorial Day Parade. 
This was a great chance to see the great community that is Newington, CT and a chance for his T-ball team to bask in the spotlight a bit. The team started the parade by throwing candy to the crowd. Luckily, before the parade started I grabbed a few pieces of candy from the bag and kept it for Mr. Man. That was his stash. As the parade route winded down, Ry realized he was down to just a few pieces. Without missing a beat he looked at me and said, “Dad, we can take from the pieces you put in your pocket and I’ll find a different treat later, these kids need candy now.” In an instant, my heart warmed. I gladly handed the candy over and Ry handed out the last of his emergency stash. For all the frustrations I have raising kids, that was pretty cool… pretty cool.
I run the risk of getting incredibly preachy here and, well, so be it. Jenn and I receive weekly emails from Coop’s teacher. In those emails she shares with us an anecdotal story of something Cooper did and explains what areas of developmental 
growth he’s displaying. This week’s message included a picture of a “Pirate Map” and a note that he did things like; use his fingers and hands, communicated clearly, shared with friends and showed imagination. That last point really made me think!
I don’t want to get all Peter Panesque but this picture reminded me that some of the most creative people in the world leveraged their imagination to solve problems we didn’t even know we had. Can you imagine a world without a smart phone? In 1992 you could.
So, this silly little pirate map made by a three year old actually has spurred me to approach today’s challenges with just a little bit more imagination. Today I’m going to spend one more minute engaging that ‘ol imagination that had me sailing the seven seas looking for treasure. We’ll see what happens, this could get interesting.
Mother’s Day 2015 has come at an exciting time for our family…. our new house is nearly done and summer is fast
approaching. As we get ready for more changes in life, it’s a good day to take a step back and reflect on the one person who keeps it all together.
The Austin clan has had its share of challenges over the last few years but, through it all, we have the love of one strong and beautiful woman to keep us sane. I spent a few minutes trying to find a beautiful quote to sum up how I feel about Jenn… I think, Mr. Coop-A-Doop said it best when he said, “I love my mom, love love love, my mommmmmm.”
You’re right Coop, and I love your mommmmmm too!
I struggle with these types of entries..mostly because the internet can be an inviting way to share information but you can run the risk of being way too open a book. I don’t hide much, especially in my blog, because I’ve really benefited from being able to go back and relive memories…both good and bad. With that said, I will put this warning… proceed with caution as I’m about to put an entry into my life’s journal that comes with a “Too Much Information” warning. You’ve been warned.
I love my kids. I’ve been so blessed to watch them grow from their first day until now. They’ve brought so much joy and love into my world and I wouldn’t trade a moment with them for all the money in the world. God talks of this joy when he says,
“Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward.”
With all of that said, I believe God had a view from the cheap seats… a bit. He sends Jesus to the world but sticks him with Mary and Joseph during the infant years. Potty training? Yeah, that was Mary. How about the MMA style wrestling with friends and brothers? Yeah, Mary. I said it, I love my kids. I’m blessed to grow old with them and, as I enter the back half of my 30s, I still have the energy to keep up with them… sort of… and enjoy life together. I don’t, however, have the energy for more broodlings.
So, it is with absolutely NO hesitation, that I march toward my 36th birthday in August with the love of my two boys and my wife and a gun with no bullets. Today I officially decommissioned my battleship and sent my Petty officers to their early retirement. To the crew, thanks for 35 great years and two beautiful children…your legacy lives on and I, for one, salute you.
There’s a funny thing about time. It’s fast when you want it to be slow and slow when you want it to be fast. In my 35 years of life I’ve learned only one thing about time, namely you can’t control it. When I look at how quickly our builder is building
our new house, although it’s fast, it’s seemingly just not fast enough.
When I look at Mr. Doopster’s three years on this planet, I’m reminded about how fast things are moving! It’s a great day to celebrate Cooper’s 3rd birthday! It’s also a good time to remind myself of William Penn’s excellent quote,
“Time is the resource we want the most and yet the one we use the worst.”
A good thing to remember as time continues to fly by!
We met earlier this week with the electrician for the new house we’re building and, may I politely say, I should’ve been an electrician. The guy was really knowledgable and helpful in guiding us through the tough decision-making process but, I have to tell you, this was a very humbling experience. I had no idea how many outlets and lights are in a house! Each one offers you the “unique opportunity” to pick a style and a placement. Of course, that “unique opportunity” comes with a unique cost. 
With all of that said, I couldn’t be more excited for this to come together. There’s the skeleton of the house we’ll call home. It was nearly two years ago that we left our home in New York for The Land of Steady Habits (yes I’m protesting The Constitution State) and, though we still miss our family and friends in New York, this family has landed on its collective feet and we’re looking forward to the future.
I’d write more but I think I have a dollar sign stuck in my eye…
“I have a tip that can take five strokes off anyone’s golf game. It’s called an eraser.”
–Arnold Palmer
So, we’re back from a wonderful vacation in Tampa and smack in the daily grind. I’m happy to report that the hint of Spring is in the air though and we’re all pretty excited to get outside. No, the weather isn’t mid-80s yet but you don’t need a jacket. 
I had a long elaborate post designed to talk about how it’s important to reflect on accomplishments and always remember to celebrate your victories. It was going to go on to talk about how, even small victories, should be granted their moment to be celebrated. Then I realized that it’s early, I’m still on vacation mode and I was about to walk a fine line between being creative and pontificating. So, I’ll stop there and share this cute video of Cooper celebrating his victories… I’d like to say you should celebrate no matter how you accomplish your victory but there was some real immoral behavior…cute though.
Each day of our lives we make deposits in the memory banks of our children. – Charles Swindoll
I’d like to say that I always live life remembering this quote by the Christian radio host but, the truth is, I don’t.
Each day of our lives we make deposits in the memory banks of our children.
– Charles Swindoll
I’d like to say that I always live life remembering this quote by the Christian radio host but, the truth is, I don’t. The day to day often finds me forgetting that each day I’m creating a legacy that will live on in the memories of these two boys. Each day, with each action, you add (or diminish) that legacy.
With that said, legacy building can be a real pain in the a@#. I’m exhausted from two straight days in Legoland and Disney World! Yes, my legacy is growing…as is my back ache. All worth it… I’ll say tomorrow.
Ry and Coop Dot Com 