Main Beach, the Gold Coast

These are from a month ago when Jim and Jean came to visit us.

It was a chilly winter day, but the sun came out just long enough for us to play on the beach for an hour.

I'll do it myself, dad

Cora officially turned three on the 21st, but we threw her a party on Saturday. And by we, I mean that Mary organized and made all the food while I simply showed up to carry stuff.

Mary came up with another winning cake design. The brilliance of this concept was that we were able to plaster the cake with m&m's and we had to open an additional bag to get enough blue to complete the design. I took the spoils to work with me.

We invited a few families to picnic with us at Rocks Riverside Park and enjoyed ourselves in the sun.


It is hard for me to summarize how grateful I am that Cora is now three. It is just a symbolic mark in time, but it seems to coincide with fairly significant developments in her behavior and growth. We have been going on father-daughter excursions more often and she is able to verbalize her inquisitive nature.

Reason has finally entered the equation. Don't jump to conclusions just yet--our girl is still resolute in her decisions. However, she will now entertain any options we pose to her. So, we now have the tools of bribery and diversion in our parenting arsenal.
She has also been expressing gratitude, which is very sweet to see. 'Thank you' is not just a mechanical phrase we have successfully indoctrinated her with. She now says it with sincerity and at pleasantly surprising times.

Her independence isn't surprising, because she has always been determined to make her own way. "I'll do it myself" is a phrase we hear often. It is a declaration as much as it is a warning to stay out of her way, or wear the consequences.

Good bye terrible two's and say hello to thriving three's.

Bacon

Cole: I don't want eggs, I just want bacon.

me: You need something else in your stomach. Do you know the Spanish word for eggs?

Cole: [looks up at me with unamused eyes]

me: It's huevos.

Cole: Well, what is the Spanish word for Bacon?

100010

My thirty-fourth birthday was on Thursday. It was a long day at work and a few times, I felt the urge to yell into the phone: Dude, back off! It is my birthday and if you don't cut me some slack, I am not going to give you a cupcake.

The day wasn't a total loss however because I received a deluge of "happy birthday" shout-outs on facebook. I also talked with my sister on the phone for an hour in the middle of the day which may have contributed to even more phone calls from high-maintenance projects, but it was worth it.

This year, for me, has been about striving for consistency and constancy. I tend to do things in short intense bursts and then focus on something else. It is a different thing than procrastination, because I am a master at that and I know the difference. This tendency is great for making progress and meeting milestones, but as a strategy it is not good for things like raising kids, being a good husband or maintaining clients.

So I have been trying to even things out. Trying to spread out the good and eliminate the times when I am neglectful or irritating. Consistency is the mark of mastering something; to have the ability to alter performance based on varying conditions to produce a predictable and pleasing result. It is an altogether different goal than training to do one thing for years, reaching the pinnacle, and fading away. The dividends are more immediate and are on an easily appreciated scale.

I have been having trouble writing a list of things that mattered to me this year. There is nothing poignant that really summarized daily life for me other than: good. Things have been really good. We found a nice house to rent in a nice neighborhood and we own comfortable couches. The kids cling to my legs when I come home in the evenings. We eat very well. And most importantly, I think Mary and I make a good team.

The year hasn't been all rainbows and lollipops. We have a new dent in the car, I got a few bloody noses in training when my ego told me I was better than I actually was, and other incidents that have kept me grounded. Mainly though, we have blue skies above us and it is a wonderful feeling. I know it is sappy, but it is too easy to be dismissive and trivialize such a thing.

I miss my family and friends that are so far away from here, but we are living a good life to the fullest.