A radical thought..gaming is OK

OK, I need to blather on about video game playing again. :)

People have been responding to the recent onslaught of news coverage that unschooling has received. This is totally understandable with how slanted the first Good Morning America piece was, but now I have a gripe. And it's actually with some of the unschoolers responses.

Unschoolers are coming back with responses like "we don't just play video games or watch TV". Now I know most people need to hear that type of thing, but I really think that that type of thinking just perpetuates the fear.

What's so bad about playing video games? What's so bad about TV? The fear that is generated from those two activities continues to surprise me. People.. think about it. If your child is engaged, don't you think they're getting something out of it? Even if it's more mundane play, don't you think that sometimes people need to relax or unwind?

My son Alec, 17, has played a lot of video games.. and I do mean a lot. He loved the puzzles, the strategy, the humor, the story lines.. even the history included in the games.. (yes, you can learn history from video games) and you know what? He's a smart guy! Really.. you should talk with him. He carries on intelligent conversations and even knows quite a bit about other things that aren't video game related. But, yes.. he played a lot of video games.

I'm asking people to see that our children, just like ourselves, will do other things when they need to do other things. If they don't, and they continue to play; they might end up following that to a career. Really. What are the options? How about computer programming, management, marketing, game creation/drawing, sales.. the list goes on. If they like to play video games, get them lots of games, let them play different types, let them savor the style, the creativity that is there.. or on the flip side, let them see that they are tired of video games and that they want to do something else.

If we continue to badger them or worry, they will never be able to see if they truly like them or not. It might be a passion and it could turn into a career or it might be something they like and then they'll see it as just that -- a hobby. It won't be viewed as something evil or bad. When parents continue to see gaming in a bad light it can turn gaming into a reactive thing -- Mom/Dad don't like those.. I probably need to check it out! ;) Your child isn't doing it for the joy of it. They're doing it because it's such a taboo activity. You know what I'm talking about.

We've spent a lot of time together playing video games and you know what.. it was a great ride. Was it a waste of time? Nope. Are the kids still playing games? Yes, and no.

Alec, our biggest game player, has recently decided that he wants to go to college and then on to medical school. He isn't playing much right now as he's focused on preparing for that. He also loves, loves, loves playing the drums. Figuring out fancy time signatures and tabs is his passion there.

Abbi has also played lots of video games and watched her fair share of TV but is now focusing on learning French. Just last night she was giggling so much over the fact that you can switch languages on Facebook. She now has her language set to French so she can socialize through Facebook while learning a new language! How cool is that??

Kyra, our youngest, who probably learned to read from World of Warcraft, is now considering canceling her WoW subscription because she just doesn't get on there that much anymore. She'd rather be sewing and creating her own fashions.

I don't want people to think that I'm relieved that our kids are moving on to new things....because I'm not. I am happy and excited, but it's more because they continue to find what makes their hearts sing. If they wanted to keep on playing video games I would have been right there supporting them. It's just another interest and who knows, next year we might be right back at it because.....

there's an expansion for World of Warcraft coming out!

Daily Om:Little Gurus

I really like this DailyOm check it out:

http://www.dailyom.com/articles/2010/22993.html

I'm thinking about blogging more :)

And I'll leave you with these pink image. Aren't cameras fun?



The little guru that took the picture



and in action~ this is from my phone camera, but I love action shots so I had to include it!

A Snowy Day

It started like this.. Saddi loves the snow.



And it continued like this ... Kyra loves it too!



An angel!



Crazy huh?


Really fun!

Some WoW fun

We've been having some fun on World of Warcraft again. Alec switched a Death Knight over to Argent Dawn so the 4 of us have been able to run some dungeons. He helped Abbi, Kyra and me get these mounts.

Aren't they cool?



That's Abbi, me and Kyra on our Cenarion War Hippogryphs.

So many books, so little time

I love books. Love the feel of them, smell of them, love the look of them.. and shelves full of books... sigh.. don't get me started .. libraries.. bookstores.. I'm not quite sure what the draw is.. maybe it's text or the words. I just want to read it all! :) Maybe it's deciphering what's there, curiosity.. perhaps?

Right now I'm reading Dan Brown's latest, The Lost Symbol. It's OK. I've read some of his other books, the more recent ones-popular ones. I like the history and art in them, but now with this one I'm a bit bored. I'll probably finish it to see what happens but I don't know.. I'm not really loving it. Alec, Abbi, and Tim all read it so it'll be fun to talk with them about it.. so that's cool!

My friend, Laura, loves Charles de Lint. I read one of his short stories in Waifs and Strays. It was really good but I wanted a longer story! "no! I wanna read more about that character!" I'll finish that book. I also have The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley calling me and the rest of Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan. Yes, non-fiction is just as appealing to me. Knitting and crocheting books are so wonderful too.. pretty to look at and also there's that challenge of deciphering a pattern.

What are you reading right now?

It's 2010!

Happy New Year everyone! Wow, so amazing how quickly 10 years can go by.. yeah we hear those words all the time, but as I get older I now know why-they're true! I so remember celebrating the year 2000 as it came in.. Alec was 6, Abbi was 5 and Kyra 2. They were all so little! Wow.. again!

We've gone through so many changes, wonderful changes, so I'm grateful for those 10 years.

This year we celebrated the new year with friends up in Tennessee, it was a good time. Unfortunately I forgot my camera, so no pictures of that.

I do have a picture of this New Year tradition though:


Burning the holiday tree.


Abbi Pyro Traaseth helping..




So yes we had a nice cozy room while the tree burned.. but it didn't quite compare to this heat... some of you may remember this:



The Bemidji Burn!


And Abbi trying to get it to burn more.. gotta give a girl credit


Hope everyone is having a cozy happy new year!

Happy Holidays!

A visit from the tree decorating elves

Wishes of Holiday Peace and Joy to All

Fall Came and Went

We're here.. yes we are.

I'd like to start blogging more again, but then I'm not sure where to start. That's what stops me in my tracks. I hate to leave anything out, but then I realize there will always be some things left out. So I'll just stay simple (that's what I shoot for anyway) and post a few tidbits that are present in my mind... or on my memory card...

So.... fall was upon us, as was Abbi's 15th birthday. 15! No way!


And other big news for her... yes, she's a permit driver



Alec and Abbi got to go to a Metallica concert in October and Clint, being the super cool guy that he is, agreed to take them.. (really thank you Clint! I couldn't have handled that group in concert!) They all returned from the concert with raspy voices and .. "IT WAS AWESOME AND AMAZING" eeping from their mouths. If they could have yelled it would have been in caps.



Also in October we met up with lots of friends in Isle of Palms, SC. Qacei Gold, Chloe and MJ Maier flew into the Atlanta area a few days before and so we were very lucky and got to enjoy them a bit before too. Here are some glimpses from those fun days.

Qacei and Kyra decided to get the Lincoln Logs out.. they're so fun!


Chloe was set for the drive to the beach with her Tomato Soup Chronicles! Can you tell we were packed to the gills.. (weird phrase but it fits..)





Beach time



Crabbing


And of course playing Bananagrams is a must!



And cross-dressing ...


Building a sand fortress... before the tide comes up.. hurry!!

Talking with good friends


Going to Where the Wild Things Are.. which we really liked.


And..saying our good-byes is always hard



We all had a great time.

I'm going to end this post here and next time I'll bring it all up to speed with Halloween, ARGH and now we're getting ready for a visit from Tim's parents.

Hope all is well with everyone out there, Life is still good here at the Traaseths :)

She's leavin' on a jet plane!

Big day here at the Traaseth's, Abbi is flying to Massachusetts today. She'll be staying with the Kream's for a while and also the Biegler/Yablonski crew; then she'll be going to Not Back To School camp (in Vermont). This is her first time and I hope she has a great experience. We have lots of friends who have had great times at this camp so we're pretty sure it's gonna be a good time. Abbi's really excited. She's flying without us, but not without a companion, her friend Logan will be joining her in Atlanta from FL so they'll be flying together (makes a mom's mind a bit more calm :)

While she's there she'll turn 15. Hope it's a wonderful time Abbi-doo!

This is an old picture, but I love it. I think it really captures her spirit :) Nothing like the Terminator motorcycle!

Of course it's about video games

Abbi brought this to my attention this morning and I thought it was pretty funny.

It lends itself to: "people, get it through your head, video games do not make people violent" it's a game.

Anyway, short and sweet :)

a few kudzu thoughts

Did you know that kudzu blooms? It's still a devastating plant but I was pleasantly surprised by these flowers, and since it's every where around me, it's nice to see the these little flowers.


When we wonder about what we'll do when Tim changes jobs I always say, "well, we could travel around with goats. For the kudzu!" ;) And then I could make some gjetost too! (it's pronounced Yaytoast) Kyra and I love it!

Drum inspiration

On the last blog post, Laura asked what music Alec was interested in now. I wanted to share this video. He loves this, it's Dream Theater. He still loves Metallica too, and will be going to their concert the beginning of October.






There are 104 time signature changes here, in under 6 minutes. (I think, that's what I read anyway, anyone, feel free to correct me, Alec?) There is also some ragtime music going on in that song, pretty cool. Of course we had to get some Scott Joplin up on YouTube after they pointed that out. :)

And here is Mike Portnoy, their drummer, explaining some of his part.




Another one of their songs is all about mental illness, that also lead to lots of discussion.

Sounds right

A lot of times when I have lots of things going on I really have a hard time sitting down and blogging. Yes, I'm busy, but mostly I have all these ideas swirling around in my head and I can't pick which ones to write about.

So tonight I'm going to do a simple little thing, tell you about some different sounds I've heard tonight. We've just returned from a trip down to Florida, which was wonderful, but I'm very tired. And when I'm tired I tend to be very sensitive (a surprise right?) I tend to hear, smell, and respond to everything, so here's what's swirling around me right now.

Popping sounds from Abbi clicking on different things on Sims3. She's just found a new challenge for that game, pretty interesting.. it's called the Legacy Challenge.

Snoring from Saddi, she was here in Gainesville while we were in Florida. She played and ran with our neighbors' dogs, she hasn't moved from this spot here by me since she came home, 5 hours ago!

Alec playing the drums downstairs, the real drums, and I can feel the vibration on my butt as I'm sitting in the kitchen. He wanted to start up drum lessons so we called a place and he loves the instructor. I'm so glad.

*blurp,blurp* The kids' cell phone making the noise it makes when a text comes through. Kyra has become the all around pro texter, she can text her best friend Samuel in TN for free, and lots of other friends. (if you're on Verizon, she can text ya!) Oh, and for those of you who didn't know we don't have our home line any more, we've gone to total cell phone usage.

Tim walking this way and that, carrying boxes from the garage, opening boxes and mumbling phrases to himself. Yes! He's getting ready to go out tomorrow morning to sell his new heart med, Go Tim!

And me? A cough. Kind of boring isn't it? But I've been coughing the last couple of days, don't know if it's allergies or just having too much fun with my friends. All I know is it's worth it!



This is a flower I saw this morning, it's a little vining flower, so pretty. I was a bit bummed that I didn't have my camera with me, I forgot it! But then I remembered my phone! Rock on :)

Our 4th Celebration

We went up to the Chattanooga area last week-end to celebrate the 4th and see some friends. The Haworths hosted us and the Bowmans and Aycocks joined in too. We had a great time.

Here are some of the kids.



We drove up to Foster's Falls on the 4th to swim and hang out in a swimming hole. The water was wonderful for us northerners. Finally cool water to feel refreshed in this warm water. Note: the swimming pool isn't cool anymore (in our neighborhood) and the lake by us feels like bath water! So we loved the cool water.

Walking to the swimming hole is quite the trek. It's down, down, down...

picture by Laura

and it's beautiful.

picture stolen from Laura

I did NOT like this bridge... Alec kept saying, "remember Donkey and Shrek Mom!" And all I could think of was.. "I DO NOT like platforms.. walkways that move.. EEK!"

another picture stolen from Laura

Sweet friends

guess who took this picture!

The picturesque refreshing swimming hole

Kelli took this picture! Wait! or Tim!

At the top again, just beautiful.




Then we went back to the Haworths and had some fireworks fun!



Silas casting a spell!



I love this one!


It was a great day.

The High Museum

Last week we went to the High Museum in Atlanta and had an amazingly great time. Not only did we marvel at the Monet exhibit, but we also were entertained by a jazz band at lunch. Also, while eating and enjoying the music we got the treat of a group of dancers who decided to stop by. I caught a little bit on video (with my new super phone!) You'll also see our friends Jake and Rachel with us. They visited us last week. We had a great time!




Abbi was in awe of the exhibit. The mural of Water Lilies was amazing.

Finding elbow room

They're still there but I have a feeling it won't be long now.

Look at the guy on the left, he's decided to find a little extra space on the pillar, out of the nest, don't fall buddy! And then look at the 2 on the right, the outside one has his wing around the other one. Close quarters will make you cozy up!


We keep jumping up on our chair that's in the piano room to check on our birds, wondering when they'll fly. We'll let you know when it happens :)

Soon to be leaving the nest

They grow so fast don't they?

And our kids too. I know people say it all the time and I'm one of them. It's so startling some days, usually when I'm seeing them the first time for the day it really strikes me.. can they have grown up this big already?

Alec is going to apply to Gamestop, I'm really excited for him. I think he'd be so awesome at helping people at a store like that. We've been talking about interviewing, what kind-of questions they might ask, what clothes to wear, those kinds of things. He's been practicing driving too which is a new feeling for me.. and another.. eek, he's old enough to do that??

He came up to me earlier this week and told me that he thought he was there. There??.. hmm.. I really wasn't sure what he was talking about but he told me he was feeling ready. I think maybe he was referring to some talks we had had the last couple of years when he would tell me he sometimes worried about jobs or the future. I would reassure him and tell him that I was pretty sure that he would figure out something and that it would come to him at the right time. I'd tell him that I thought he should keep doing what he loves and that I really believed that what he was doing would lead to something.

He also went on to say that he thought he was probably going to quit WoW, wanted to apply to Gamestop and he wanted to work on his handwriting. Wow! He said he's been thinking a lot and planning. He was excited and happy in telling me these things. What a cool kid :)


I did make a suggestion and say that he could keep his character around so he could play it casually if he wanted to, or .. maybe.. he would like to transfer over to the realm where the girls and I play! hehe...

I love these little realizations that our kids have, I feel so fortunate to be a part of their experience.

Need more shoulder room!

We were gone for the week-end and I wondered if our baby birds would be gone when we got back, but they're not! They do look like they'll be taking off soon though.

And... there are 5 up there!


We've discovered some interesting facts about these birds. Both parents feed them and sat on the nest when they were tiny or hatching. And the more interesting/gross fact -- the parent will keep the nest clean by grabbing birdy poo and flying away... efficient, but we were kind-of in a ... ewwww stage while watching.

Last week I was worried that they were going to fall out because they looked so unaware of their surroundings, kind-of wobbling around; now they seem to know right where they are, they even turn around when they have to do their duty, as to not get it in the nest.. only on my porch.

I think these 2 adult birds are BUSY..

Here are the babies wanting more food.

Daily Birdy Pics

You can almost see all 4




Feed ME!



Off to get more food.


And 2 of my babies. A sea of legs!