Their floors are sticky-mart......

Here are some pictures from our visit to the Kwik-E-Mart in Orlando: I swear I own more than one shirt!

They were all out of Buzz Cola so we got Squishees instead. Big mistake.

It was rad.

Missing my brother

I am missing Jensen a lot these days. I dug up some stuff that he drew just to make myself smile.

I think this one is a wishful thinking self-portrait








Inspired by actual events!



This was a Christmas present to my mom and if you look closely you can

see that it says "Merry Christmas."

The Pedestrian and TV

Ray Bradbury is one of my favorite authors. I was recently watching an episode of 'The Ray Bradbury Theater" (RBT) based on his short story 'The Pedestrian'. I have been really been on a RBT kick ever since Jensen told me that he bought me a DVD set of them right after Christmas. He was never able to give them to me in person but I found them in his apartment after he died and now I have assigned them some special, tallismatic significance to them since he touched them and meant for me to have them and I miss him a bunch. Anyway, Buck walked in while I was watching and we talked about how it is one of his favorite Bradbury stories. It is about a man who goes for a walk at night in a future where people don't leave their houses or their TV sets. The man is questioned by a police as if he is a criminal for not going with the flow by sitting at home in front of the TV. Of course right after we watched it we got all fired up and went for a walk.

The other day on one of the unschooling lists I read there was a link to this article by Ray. He says in the interview that 'Fahrenheit 451' was never about censorship but about his dislike of television. That seemed ironic when the interviewer pointed out that he had a flat-screen TV turned on during the whole interview! I think that Ray Bradbury is one of the greatest authors out there but I don't agree with his comments about TV. I know that watching TV has led me to read things I wouldn't have otherwise found, investigate new-to-me things, and make connections and strengthen relationships with my family.

For example, we are going to Florida next week and we are making a special trip to visit a 7-Eleven because of 'The Simpsons'. For the month of July they are making certain stores into Kwik-E-Marts complete with Buzz Cola and Krusty-O cereal. My little family has had hours of laughter and inside jokes and pop culture and trivia and connections from this show. We are thrilled to be able to see the Kwik-E-Mart. We would sure be missing out if we never watched TV.

I took a Bath....

We went to Bath, NC this weekend. It is the oldest town in North Carolina (established in 1705). The town has almost the same dimensions as it originally did so we were able to walk the whole thing. Blackbeard the Pirate lived there for a while when he got married for the 14th time.

Ian was interested in the graveyard. He has been talking about my brother a lot lately. When we went on a walk a few nights ago he commented at every manhole cover that Uncle Jensen was buried there. I think he must be processing all this new info about death and grieving right now. He tells me that Uncle Jensen is dead a lot. He tells me that he (Jensen) is in a big hole. He tells me that he misses him. I tell him that I have lots of dreams about Jensen and he says, "Me too!"

The best part of the day was the visit to the swimming hole. We found a little state park with a cool spot for swimming. The water was a murky green-brown and salty, but felt great on a hot day. We found tons of shells-some with barnacles on them and some with living creatures still in them! Ian was able to walk all the way out to the edge of the swimming area without the water going over his head. He was thrilled to be in the water with me and Buck. He asked for rides on our backs and called us "Mommy and Daddy Seahorse".

I am so glad to have these two guys in my life.

be sorted @ nimbo.net

Cool! I'm in Gryffindor!

For Jensen

I don't know how else to start this post; My brother Jensen committed suicide. He died on February 9th. He lived in Utah so we didn't get to see each other very often but we talked almost daily. We were close. I just can't believe it.

He was such a cool guy. He was an artist. He taught himself how to play guitar, he wrote songs, he drew, he painted, he wrote stories and poems. He wrote the lyrics for a musical adaptation of the Legend of Sleepy Hollow. He loved music and poetry and horror movies and Vincent Price. He was kind and thoughtful. He was gentle. He was my go-to guy. He knew or would quickly find the answer to any question. He was smart. He prided himself on being funny and witty. He was clever. He was always very loving to me. He encouraged me and loved me and didn't judge me. When he found out how much I loved photography he bought me my first digital camera. He shared. He rooted for the underdog. We had lots of plans together. He was 32.

I still can't believe he is gone. I went to his funeral. I went through his things in the apartment where he died. I came back home. I've already put his things in my house. Life is moving on. But I miss him. I wish I could talk to him. I wish he had called me that day.

He had been suffering from depression for 14 years. He felt that his life had become unbearable. I wish I could have shouldered some of the burden for him. I know that I did help him I but wish I could have done more. I wish he was still here.

This is how I like to think of him now: happy and free and light. Floating like a leaf on the wind. Flying like a bird, legs swinging and the wind in his hair. I am not sure what waits for us all after we die, but I hope it includes peace for Jensen. I miss him and love him everyday.

Jensen Reed 11/14/1974-02/09/2007

The End of October

We have been so busy in the last couple of weeks. That is not the norm for us but we are enjoying it nonetheless.

At the end of October we took Ian to the NC State Fair for the first time. Buck was able to change work around for the day so he came with us. We had basically counted on not riding anything but Ian surprised us by asking to go through the funhouse and on the ferris wheel. It was a cool moment to be up in the air on a glorious day with my little family.

He and I shared a big turkey leg and corn, we looked at cows and various poultry, and Ian rode a real pony. Ian's favorite thing at the fair though was the cow robot. There was a plush cow who was riding on a mini John Deere tractor. The cow could talk and he could hear us talk too! Ian spent a long time just watching the cow from the sidelines. After a while he felt comfortable enough to approach the cow. He talked to the cow a bit and gave it a pat on the head before running off.

There can be only one

HowManyOfMe.com

There is: 1 person with my name in the U.S.A. How many have your name?

It's been a while

I almost forgot I had a blog. I haven't written in over a year now. Ian is almost 2 and a half. He is lots of fun and very chatty. Some of his favorite things now are: cars and trucks, Star Wars "guys" (action figures), his supey Superman cape, drawing, dancing, singing, trains, swordfighting with Dad and hanging out with friends and family.

We went to Virginia earlier this month. We all really enjoyed visiting Jamestown and Busch Gardens. We were pretty tired by the time we got to Williamsburg on the last day so we left early.

Ian is always learning new stuff and testing out new theories. In this picture he was plugging his ears while humming and talking to hear the difference in sound. We love to paint together, he enjoys sorting silverware and listening to music. He is cool.

Do I have to think of a title?

So I have been bad about writing.....We have been having a fairly busy summer. Ian and I spent the last week of June with the in-laws. We had a good time and Ian had a couple of "very important" firsts while we were there. While at Wendy's one day he both learned to drink from a straw and dip a fry in ketchup. He has been wanting to use a straw for a while now so that was cool. The dipping was a fluke. I had done the typical mom thing of breaking up fries and some burger into small pieces and putting them on a napkin in front of Ian. We were all chatting and not paying attention to the boy. All of the sudden he grabbed a fry out of his aunt's fry box and dipped it in her ketchup and ate the whole thing. For some reason my aunt started crying at this (since it is a rite of passage in American culture) and so I snapped a picture.

We went to Nottley Lake in Georgia one day during our visit. Ian didn't think much of swimming but enjoyed running around and tripping over a concrete culvert that drained into the lake. At lunch he would have nothing to do with the hard boiled egg or hot dog that I had broken up for him. He grabbed a whole hot dog and started eating away. In my head I always think "Baby eating hot dog = Choke! Choke! Fire! Alarm!" but he would not be deterred from doing it himself. This is one of those times when I just let him do it himself and keep a close watch on the proceedings.


We are heading to Florida this weekend for our official summer vacation. I am hoping that we will be able to see the shuttle launch on the 13th. It has always been my secret wish to be an astronaut. I will turn 28 while we are in Florida. I will write and post pictures upon my return.

Mother's Day

We had a gorgeous picnic on Mother's Day. We had my aunt and cousin in town for the weekend and on Sunday we drove them halfway home. We met my mil at a rest stop and had a huge picnic for lunch. My mil went all out-she fried chicken, made cole slaw, potato salad, and brownies. She also brought strawberries, grapes, tomatoes, chips, carrots, dip, and watermelon! It was great fun to watch Ian eat his first slice of watermelon;he mostly ate the rind and of course he made a mess. It was such a beautiful day and we sat in the grass and talked and played for a few hours before we loaded up to drive back home.


In other news, my sister had a baby boy on May 10. He was 7lbs. 11oz. and he has ten fingers and ten toes. She hasn't picked out a name yet, but she better tell me soon:). This is her fourth baby (and her third boy!). Now there are 8 grandkids in the family and Ian isn't the youngest anymore. Welcome to the world, Little One!

Are you going to the Renaissance Faire?

I guess it has been a while...there's not too much going on here. We were kept very busy at the end of March and the beginning of April by the Renaissance Faire. My husband teaches Medieval martial arts (swordfighting, hand to hand combat, whip, etc) at a school here in NC and they always have a booth at the Faire. Last year's faire almost coincided with Ian's birth (but we missed it by a week) so I guess Buck would have been telling me to push while wearing chain mail :). Anyway, we had a good time at the faire this year but I am glad it is over and I am glad that I have my husband back! Here he is in his armor:

And here is a picture of Ian after sharing ice cream with me.

I started going to Curves last week. I am loving it so far. I feel more energetic, I am in a better mood, I feel less sore, I just feel great in general when I go. I have only gone 5 times so far but I think I already feel a difference. I am starting to firm up a little bit. I hope I lose weight but even if I just continue to feel better it is worth going.

Easter

I hope everyone had a good Easter. The Easter Bunny came to visit and left us with a basket full of candy (which is almost gone now...), a duck, and a book. The book is "Poems to Read to the Very Young" and it's illustrated by Eloise Wilkin. She illustrated my all-time favorite kid's book "The Visit". Just another way that my husband, A.K.A. the Easter Bunny, shows that he is paying attention and that he loves me!

Happy Birthday to Ian

My boy turned one on Sunday! We stayed with my in-laws for a long weekend to celebrate his birthday and we just got home Tuesday night.
He wasn't all that thrilled with the cake and ice cream but he liked opening presents and chasing my mother-in-law's dog around afterwards.

I can see him changing on an almost daily basis now. It is exhilirating and more than a little scary. I love having a one-year-old...but it feels weird to think that he is a toddler now. I still can't get over that. He definately has preferences and desires of his own. He loves music, he is intersted in animals, he loves to hang out with both me and his dad. He loves to bump foreheads with people (ouch!) and thinks fake sneezes are really amusing. He has a personality and a sense of humor. He dislikes waking up alone, getting his diaper changed (but who doesn't?), and having pens and scissors taken away from him. We love having him in our lives and look forward to many more years of excitement and joy with him.

Just press play!

*Edited to add* I have been trying to post this since Tue but Blogger wouldn't let me!

When I was a little girl we lived in Saudi Arabia. I had to go to private school since there weren’t any English-speaking schools around. My parents put chose a British school for the first two years we were there (3rd and 4th grades). We took all sorts of interesting classes but one of my favorites was music. On my first day of class the teacher asked if anyone knew how to play the recorder since we would be learning it that year. “Sure I do, “ I piped up, “you just press play!” It really didn’t occur to me until after she passed out the instruments that I had said something weird. I totally thought she was talking about a tape recorder!
Buck brought home a recorder last night. He works at a bookstore and sometimes he gets freebies. Yesterday he got a new, unopened recorder from work. I am having all sorts of fun trying to figure songs out. I can play “Jingle Bells” and “Hot Cross Buns” so far. Ian is enthralled with the recorder. He doesn’t quite know what to make of it. He laughs when he hears me playing it. He wants to try too but he doesn’t understand how to blow through the mouthpiece yet. He basically chews on it and hums like he is playing a kazoo or something. This is one of the best parts of being his mom, getting to watch him open up and learn about the world around him.

Lets go to the movies

I got to see a good friend of mine this weekend. We hadn't seen or spoken to each other in over a month. I regret this since I love her dearly and I want to see her more often! We are movie buddies--we see movies with each other that no one else will see with us. But more importantly we are great friends. I like that she is who she is; she doesn't care what people think of her and she is happy with herself. She knows what she likes but she's not pushy about it. I think she likes me because she thinks I am wacky and funny (wacky is sort of a lame word, isn't it?) and because she can be herself around me. When Ian was born last year we didn't see each other very much. I was a new, overwhelmed, busy mom, and she thought I didn't want her company. Not true! I was just in too much of a daze to poke my head out and tell her so. I really look forward to spending lots of time with my friend C this year. I am so glad that Ian is almost one (on Sunday) and doesn't need me quite so much. He is happy to stay home with Buck and he can fall asleep without me nursing him down. Oh yeah, we saw "Robots" at the movies. It was cute.

Why do people let time get in the way? I thought about C over Jan and Feb when I didn't speak to her, but the longer I waited, the harder it got to call. I thought, "I bet she is mad that I haven't called her by now so I better not call at all." I imagine that she was thinking the same thing. I just wish that I could be more direct with people and say what I mean (and I wish others would do the same with me).

At Christmas I saw my older brother who I hadn't seen in a long time. The night before I left we talked for hours and had such a great conversation. We realized that we have a lot of the same anxieties. We like a lot of the same things. We are so alike! If we weren't brother and sister we would probably still be friends. Why then do we let time and place keep us from keeping up with each other? Maybe I will give him a call tonight.

Farmers Market

Ian and I went to the farmers market today. We were the only 2 shoppers in sight so I tried to buy one thing from a lot of people. We always try to buy fish at the farmers market. They have fresh stuff from the coast. We also visited a nursery. There's not much to see yet. It is too cold to have the colorful bedding plants out yet. We settled for some seeds instead (sweet alyssum, cosmos, and morning glory). Tonight we went to BJ's. Our membership runs out on the 31st and we don't plan on renewing it so we stocked up on tons of stuff. I also found lilies-of-the-valley at BJs of all places! They are my favorite flower but I never seem to have luck with them. Oh well, I will plant them tomorrow and see how it goes.

I heard Ian playing in the kitchen last night. I was next to him in the living room typing away on the computer. When I went to check on him I found that he had pulled out every plastic grocery bag we own and spread them out on the floor. I ran for the camera and then cleaned them up. I find that distraction is the best method for keeping him out of trouble at his age. I just turn on Blue Oyster Cult's "Godzilla" and he starts jamming. Buck changed the lyrics from "Godzilla" to "Go Ian" so now he loves that song. Hey, it works for now!

bags, bags, everywhere! 

Maybe I will give it a try

I was originally going to just put pictures of my son on this blog but perhaps I will write too. I feel so vunerable when I see my own words in print, like they are going to come back and bite me in the butt someday. I have always been the type of person who wants to be a peace keeper. I don't want to offend anyone or rile anyone up. Oh well, I guess I will just say what I think.

I am 27 years old, I have been married for almost 6 years to my wonderful husband Buck, and we have an almost one-year-old son (he'll be one on the 20th) named Ian Reed. I live in the southeastern part of the United States. I have a degree in forestry but I doubt I will ever use it. I wish I had gotten my degree in horticulture instead. I like to garden but I usually get overwhelmed by the weeds and all of my plans so my garden doesn't look the way I want it to. I am a stay-at-home-mom, I love to read, scrapbook, garden, and hang with my boys.

That's me for now.

Ian on the couch