Morgan's Poem

This was Morgan's Black and Orange poem that she had to do for school.

Austin can stand up

This is Austin after I gave him a bath and got him ready. He has been standing up by himself for about a week now, but every time I tried to get a picture he would just plop down and stare at me. He's not walking yet, but I'm sure that won't be far off.

The Girls "Sleep-over"

We where all downstairs a couple of nights ago and appearently I mentioned having a sleepover. So the night before Thanksgiving, the girls all moved to the livingroom and watched movies. Carintha slept on an air mattress and didn't sleep very well.

Ashley's funeral

I took these in 2005 at Joseph "Cooter" Ashley's funeral. He was the guy on the San Fran that died after they ran aground on their way to Austrailia. I had known him ever since he got to the boat and we were good friends. He was buried at the family plot in West Virginia. Of the 26 crew members that showed up the this funeral, only 4 were still stationed on the boat. The rest of us had been stationed on the boat with him and we travelled from CT, VA, GA, and a couple of other states I'm not sure of. We just started calling each other and met there the day before the funeral. I was supposed the be on the boat at that time, but thank God, I got off six months early!

This was what the San Fran looked like after it hit the mountain. Cooter flew about 30 feet forward and hit the propulsion lube oil tank. He didn't die directly from his injuries. It was actually when they tried to do the medevac through the bridge hate that he suffucated.

In Austin's room

I took these in Austin's room earlier tonight. He doesn't spend much time in there unless someone else is in there. He likes to be in the middle of everything. Carintha just got him a toy box for his room. I'm sure that will get filled up after his birthday and Christmas. He likes to play with cars so that gives me and him something to play with. I still have my "Dukes of Hazzard" cars, but they are replicas. I used to play with them so much that I rubbed the paint off of them.

How Kaitlyn spends her evenings, most nights.

This is how Kaitlyn spends her evenings, and sometimes her afternoons. I log into Netflix.com and she watches "Caillou" on the computer. She climbs up on the back of the couch and lays for about an hour and a half until it's over. I don't remember when it started, but she's been doing this for a couple of months at least.

Morgan at Spanish Steps in Guam

Strange looking picture of Morgan when we were coming back from the beach in Guam. She looks a lot older than she was for some reason. She was about 4 and some change.

No surgery for me. (Yet)

After driving 6 1/2 hours to Bethesda, MD, only getting 5 hours of sleep in a strange bed with hard pillows, and getting up early to have my eyes examined, I was turned away. Apparently my cornea is 50 microns too thin to do either the LASIK or PRK surgery. 500 microns is the minimum. I came in at about 448. They said they could do it, but if they messed it up, there was no possibility that they could fix it. Not good enough odds for me. Not a big deal, I can still get the toric implants later if I want to, but I think I will keep wearing contacts for a while. Maybe next time I am on shore duty I will try again. I left about 1100 from MD and made it back to CT about 1800. Not bad time considering I drove during the day through NY.

Austin's Bump

Austin was playing in the living room with the girls and he found the candlestick holders that sit on the window sill. Well, he grabbed one and pulled it over on himself. It's hard to see in the picture, but the reddish circle above his left eye is actually a pretty big bump. I couldn't get a profile shot because I can't get him to not look at the camera. Carintha and the kids on on their way to the doctor's office just to make sure he's okay. I'm still getting ready for my trip to Maryland, but should be leaving about 1200 or so.

Austin asleep in his high chair.

Tonight after we at dinner, Carintha left me and the little kids at home while she took Morgan to Girl Scouts. Kaitlyn was playing with Morgans' DS, and I was on the phone with my sister. When I came back in the kitchen this is what I found. I wish I could fall asleep so easily!

Written by my Uncle, Kenny Avery...

Saying a fond farewell to a local legend:
Austin Avery

By: Kenny Avery

When country music fans both young and old, sit around spinning tales of their favorite stars, the names Roy Acuff, Benny Martin, Curly Box and Charlie Daniels are bound to come spilling off someone’s lips.And most knowing country music fans worth their price in ticket money to the Grand Ole Opry will suddenly realize that these names are all synonymous with fiddle-playing.To the city dwellers, and unknowing country music fanatic, a fiddle is known by the name: violin. Again, true, knowing country music fanatics know that a fiddle is an humble-spirited instrument that’s mostly played with callused hands. Hands that have paid their share of dues and have had their share of having the brass ring sliding from their deserving hands when it came time to reach for it on the carousel of life.Hamilton, Alabama resident Austin Avery is no stranger to country music. Or the fiddle. Or to callused hands made that way from years of manual, low-paying labor and too, having ‘the brass ring’ slide out of his hands when it came to reach and grab his share of gusto from the one-way trip called life.Avery, 89, now passed from this world, would sometimes recall the first time he actually held a fiddle in his hands. “I was cutting up so much that my mother handed me my dad’s fiddle and set me in the middle of their big bed complete with mattress stuffed with goose feathers and told me to occupy myself.”Avery was seven years of age when this life-changing event happened and from that moment on it was a relationship (he and the fiddle) that would endure for the remainder of his life.Austin came from a big family, six in all, that farmed the land for their living in Hamilton in the Marion County’s infancy.Austin was the only boy in his family of his parents, James and Ida Belle Avery and sisters, Ludie, Etta, Evie, and Arvilla.“I never thought much about being the only boy in a houseful of sisters--we all played games and got along pretty good when my dad didn’t have us working in the fields or something else to keep us from being idle.” Avery recalled.But it was Avery’s love for the fiddle that kept him out of teen mischief as he would steal away by himself and practice one song at a time until he had mastered the song and then he would find another song as a challenge to his eager mind and fingertips.As Avery explained, “Not everyone can be a fiddle player. It takes a world of patience and an ability to accept failure often.”As he grew older and more experienced, he found himself entering fiddling contests in the area of New Hope, a small community near Hamilton.He won first place in several fiddling contests and attributed his talent of fiddling to, as he is quick to say, “The Good Lord.”Austin Avery was more than just another fiddle player. Far more. I personally have watched his life over the years and watched him excel in various occupations--auto mechanic, carpentry, brick laying, machinist, and a farmer. All of these occupations were all self-taught. Austin did not hold walls of certificates of higher learning from various colleges and teaching institutions.Austin had a very valuable gift: knowing how to live life and know what to do when it came time for him to do something either for his family or a neighbor.During his 89years, Austin has seen his family grow into housefuls of kids, grandchildren, and great grandchildren at Christmas and birthdays. And during any given holiday gathering someone is bound to say “Paw paw, get out your fiddle and play us a tune.” And he did on many occasion as he would get out his fiddle and play with a pure, natural style with that would make Roy Acuff, the Dean of the Grand Ole Opry and Charlie Daniels, who fiddled the devil out of Georgia turn green with envy as his fiddle bow caressed the strings to tunes like “Billy in The Low Ground,” “Sally Goodin,” and “Uncle Penn” come to life.Avery, who long-since retired from work both public and private, was simply content to enjoy day-to-day life with his only love, Mary Dean Lee Avery in their quaint home in Hamilton, Alabama.But ever so often, someone like Eugene Taylor, another Hamilton fiddler, years younger than Austin, will drop by for a Saturday evening jam session in Austin’s living room.Granted, Austin would not have made his home in Hamilton if with his talent for fiddling, he would have made a good living in the early 50’s playing with bands at state fairs and rural concerts. And possibly tasted fame in Nashville as a solo artist.But he made a sacrificial choice between pursuing his dream of fame in fiddling or just working to see that his family’s needs were met and to make sure his children were raised right before they left home for lives of their own.Austin seen his share of trouble and adversity in his 89 years of living and he has enjoyed numerous days with joyful events, but one thing has remained a constant in Austin Avery’s life: his fiddle playing.I say, with all love and respect, that I watched Austin’s life over the past 89 years and how he slowed down on doing some things that we all take for granted.That’s how life is. I should know Austin well.Austin is my dad.And I am proud of him.Austin left us on September 25, 2006 and he left me with one question: How do you properly say farewell to a legend?You don’t.If you have any sense, you will learn to appreciate them while they travel through your life.Because legends are like shadows, they are here and gone before you know it.

Who Austin got his name from...

Austin got his middle name from my Great-grandfather, Austin Avery. This was taken when we brought Morgan to Alabama to meet everyone in Alabama the summer after she was born.

This one was taken in December 1987. I'm assuming it was when we did Christmas at their house that year.

Me after bootcamp...

I have no idea who took this picture, but this was my barracks room when I was going through Subscol in July 1999. They have completely renovated this building now and it doesn't look anything like this anymore.

Lots of Leaves!!

I spent from about 10:00 this morning until about 3:00 this afternoon raking the front yard. Carintha had taken the kids to the store and got home about 12:00, so obviously the girls had to play in the leaves when they saw the pile. It didn't really matter, the wind was doing more damage than they were.

Kaitlyn playing, sort of.

This was taken in May 2005 when Kaitlyn was about 2 months old. She had just learned to raise up on her elbows. It took her a while to get to were she could actually play with things, instead of just look at them.

Devil's Hopyard State Park

This is one of the trails at Devil's Hopyard in East Haddam, CT. We go there to cook out, and then take a hike on on of the trail's. We usually do the orange trail because it goes to the Vista that over looks the valley. This is Me and Morgan. Kaitlyn is on my back in her backpack. We've had it since Morgan was a baby!

This is Carintha and Morgan. We hadn't had Austin yet.

This is Morgan at the Vista. She was mad at me for some reason, but I don't remember why. The pictures here aren't anything like being there in person.