Andy's Story

Andy's First Computer Repair

He couldn't walk yet and talking was a long time away, but at 1 year he crawled around our old computer, played with the cords in the back and kept checking the monitor to see if he fixed it yet. We thought it was cute, little did we know...

Vacuum Drawing

Toddler Andy was never interested in scribbling with crayons, markers, or anything. Then one magical day in November 2002 he picked up a pen and drew this, and made his sign for "vacuum." It was at least another year before he picked up pen and paper again.

Double Fisted

A sign of the true addict.

Finally a Vacuum of His Own

A rechargeable vacuum he could hang on his bedroom wall.

The Evidence Mounts

Not one to pick favorites, Andy keeps the growing vacuum collection all together. Notice also the hand mixer and Baby Mozart video on the table, the rice cooker in the background and the "busy box" we made for him with hardware store gadgets and a "safe" outlet, because the Fisher Price version wasn't interesting enough.

Early Reading Material

Besides appliance ads and manuals, Andy did find some pleasures in children's books. In "Good Dog Carl" he always went straight to the page where Carl dries the baby with a hair dryer; in Dr. Seuss's "Sleep Book" it was the candle page. Since he wasn't talking he went and got one of our candles to make sure we understood what the appeal was.

Andy's Wall of Vacuums

Or, How He Learned to Read. Bissell, Hoover, Eureka... Sundays were special days, the day the vacuum ads came out and we could add to the wall.

The Science of Cooking

Andy was an early fan of the Food Network, we put a TV in his room so he could go to sleep with Emeril. He was quite the help in the kitchen.

How a Blender Works

age 3 I think.

Andy's EV

Still not talking, but an extension cord makes a great toy. And oh yeah the Little Coupe. He is 10 now and shows me powerpoint presentations on the benefits of the electric car. We think he sat in on too many alternative fuel conferences when in utero.

Santa!

Santa had to come home with Andy and Daddy on a shopping trip. Santa had to sleep in Andy's room for months...for some reason he had a year or so when he insisted on sleeping on the floor.

Sewing Machine!

Toys just didn't cut it.

Juicer

When Andy's preschool class was going to put on a performance, I desperately wanted him to wear the shirts they had made and go with the program. So I bribed him with a juicer. He performed on stage beautifully!

Fish Tank

I bribed him with an aquarium if he would wear tshirts and shorts during a short family vacation to the beach. Must have been when he was about 4. Love how he was inspired to draw, and how the emphasis is on the filtration system.

Powerplant drawing

"Power plant bringing electricity to a house." Inspired in March 2005 by a visit to the Tallahassee electrical generating plant open house, and my contacts in the city utility department were kind enough to give him a videotape.

Crosley

After trying to fix an old suitcase player obtained at an antique store and discovering ABBA in the process, Andy gets a reproduction Crosley player. Beginning of Kindergarten.

Looking for Lighthouses

Lighthouses become a mini-obsession. For his 6th birthday we went to the St. Augustine Lighthouse. He was upset he didn't meet the height requirement to climb it, but got to see a Fresnel lens close up.

Mommy and Andy

Mommy visits First Grade classroom. First grade meant attending school all day, and mommy came every day for lunch to make that possible.

How a Popcorn Popper Works

Feb. 2008

The Activist

When he was in second grade we caught Fast Food Nation on TV and he already knew high fructose corn syrup in EVERYTHING ticked his mom off. So he started a letter campaign. A few companies wrote him back. Now when he sees labeling "no high fructose corn syrup" or the ads trying to say it is the same as natural sugar, he smiles with pride.

First Computer

Nana and Papa bring him his own computer, March 2008. He is wearing his Animusic tshirt, another new obsession; music and computer animation come together.