Pine Straw

Reuben loves pine straw. It's hilarious. I give him a strand and he's happy as can be. On our walks he's figured out how to pull it off bushes we pass. The kids got skills.

Me vs. Nature

Yesterday the highlight of my day was another porch adventure. Reuben and I were hanging out and I noticed a stag beetle - giant pincers and all. I went to brush him out of the way and he was quick enough to hook his talons into my sandal. He clamped on tight and took a defensive pose. It looked a lot like this video.

I handed Reuben to Abby and proceeded to try to pry him off with my keys. He grabbed the keys with his mandibles and pretty much wrestled them away from me. So then I got a big stick and finally got him to walk off my shoe and onto another stick. He took his own sweet time about it.

So basically I got beat up by a bug.

An Inordinate Fondness for Beetles

Today Reuben and I were sitting out on the porch and we noticed a large black bettle stuck on his back. I flipped him over and he dutifully marched in tiny circles around our feet. Reuben watched intently then started to laugh and laugh. We spent the next 15 minutes following the circuitous route of our new friend. I'm going to say friend although there was some evidence that Reuben had a strong desire to put him into his mouth. But I kept the interaction friendly.

I was surprised by how entertained Reuben was. JBS Haldane, a british genetist and evolutionary biologist is reported as saying that if there is a creator, he has an inordiante fondness for beetles. (There are more beetles species than any other species of animal - I've seen as high as 1 out of every 5 species is a beetle but that's unsubstantiated because I'm too tired to look it up right now. Robby can ask his girlfriend for me) Anyway, I suppose Reuben has a shared interest with God.

From my research the beetle we met was a Scarite or Ground beetle. Really very beautiful when you take the time to look.

A Pox Upon Us

Reuben developed a pretty serious fever a few days ago and it hasn't let up. Recently spots have popped up all over his body. It's a sad sight to see so I'll spare you and not post a picture. I think he's improving and it's just a pesky virus but it's no fun trying to wait it out. Amy said Eliza got Fifth's disease at about the same time and it had similar symptoms. Sounds right to me. Anyone else had experience with it?

I like it's name. Apparently there are five classical rash-infections: measels, rubella, scarlet fever, fourth's disease and fifth's disease. I guess whoever named them wasn't really a creative type. I'd love to name a rash disease. There'd be so many juicy choices.

In other sad news, our car, maybe out of sympathy to Reuben, has recently succumbed to ill health. I feel very grateful that I was able to catch a ride to SC with my family on Saturday instead of driving down alone with Reuben as I had originally planned. It spared me the adventure of being stuck for who knows how long in some desolate truck stop of NC - though that probably would have made an awesome blog post.

The Dark Side

Sometimes I feel like there are times in life that are like passing through the dark side of the moon. There is an unpleasant impenetrable darkness of uncertainty. But we'll come around soon enough.

Happy Day!

The day we've been looking forward to finally arrived, Reuben's head grew large enough to fit a bike helmet!

Fivel style.

The Great 8

Reuben turned 8 months on Wednesday. I tried to sit him on the couch to get his picture but in the last month he's fine tuned his mobility and developed a strong and independent will. So the best I got was a shot of him doing his darndest to try to crawl away.

Reuben has also developed what I like to call the stare glare. He usually employs it to unnerve people on the metro. He picks out his victim then seeks eye contact so he can peer into the depths of their soul. It's unsettling. Under the weight of his fixed gaze, I've seen some people get up out of their seat and move away, others fumble for their blackberry, a few have unsuccessfully tried smiling and teasing to break his concentration, and several have laughed nervously and said things like "Well, you're sure a focused little fellow, aren't you?" Reuben simply continues his evaluation - even when I talk to him or try to move him away. I got a picture of him giving it to me when I wouldn't give him the camera.

But overall he's a happy kid. We've started sharing our food with him and he's a big fan. He loves his dad's crepes. (Don't we all)

For the Fourth of July, Aaron Reuben and I headed down to SC to be with my family. Reuben LOVED the beach. Sullivan's Island's gentle waves and warm water makes it an ideal beach for babies. Reuben walked (with our assistance) straight into the water, plopped himself down and spent the next few HOURS playing with the water and sand.

Grandpa tried to take Reuben for a walk but he wanted to stay in the water.

About an hour later....

And an hour after that....(You can see the tide has come in)

It was fun to visit home. Now that Amy Steve and Eliza are in Lexington, I feel like such an exile. I'm looking forward to going back.

Beautiful Blue

I'm pretty sure I broke my little toe. Reuben and I were eating lunch. I went to the kitchen to get some water and on the way out I tripped on a chair. It was surprisingly painful. Painful enough that I rolled on the ground crying Oww! Oww! Oww! I pulled myself up and tried to limp hop to a chair. Reuben found this HILARIOUS and started to laugh hysterically. Now my little toe points out instead of in and is a beautiful shade of blue similar to the color of the cobalt tarantula. This should please Dave who is on the hunt for blue purple and especially GREEN pigmented mammals. Help him out if you can.

Blog Bog

When do you blog? I blog when I have something I really don't want to do. Like right now - I should be working, or cleaning, or sorting and packing boxes, or writing, or painting, or doing research or responding to messages. When I have so many things I need to do that I either lay on the bed and stare at the ceiling or work hard to think of a pointless blog posts to while away the time.

If I have something that is in dire need of attention then I venture into facebook. I HATE facebook. Hate it. I think I created the account so I my subconscious could punish myself while procrastinating. So maybe I'll see you on facebook in an hour or two.

Cobalt Tarantula

Did you know there are blue tarantulas? The Cobalt Blue Tarantula (Haplopelma lividum) is native to Thailand. I learned about it in a book Reuben and I checked out at the library. I have no idea what the book was called or anything that was written in it. We simply looked at the pictures and were satisfied BUT now I would really like to know what book it was so I could find it again.

Ha! I tracked it down. The book is Living Color by Steve Jenkins. His work is awesome.

Help! Poor Relations!

It looks like we may spend the fourth of July weekend with my family which reminds me of my beloved comic strip Moomin by Tove Jansson. You can see more of her comics here.

Slim June

In the month of June my friend Rebecca ran a weight loss competition. (Maybe she wanted some better looking friends?) Participants paid 5 dollars and whoever lost the largest percent of their body weight got the pot - $125. Aaron did a great job and lost 7.2% of his body weight - over 20 lbs. He came in second. So no money but a job well done.

And here's another picture that just happens to show Reuben's many teeth.