Ava Unwrapping Christmas Gift

This video will be interesting to you if you like to watch babies eat wrapping paper.

Merry Christmas from the Bowkerhouse!

All of us here at the Bowkerhouse would like to wish you a very Merry Christmas with this year's Christmas card!

Please click here to see more information about this year's Christmas Card, or click the "Our Christmas Cards" link in the right sidebar to see our previous cards.

Hooray! Somebody sent me a card!

Now, who was it?

I received a very nice Gmail Holiday Postcard in the mail today featuring a DIY Dreidel, I assume in response to my sharing this article about the offer. But it's not signed by anyone...

It only has two lines in the message area:

Happy Holidays!

. o O ( Awkward... )

Who sent it? Was it you?? [Thank you, whoever you are!]

Scooter Gets a Turn

Ava Trying To Do A Raspberry

You have to give her credit for her effort.

Ava Crawling!

Ava's First Halloween

For Ava's first Halloween her Bonus-Grandma Jan made her an incredible costume as our house cat, Scooter.


Apparently the fake fur was troublesome to sew: so much of it became airborne in the process that Jan had to wear a surgical mask and goggles to keep it out of her eyes and nose.


Being that both Ava and Scooter are high-energy personalities, it seemed only fitting that Kristi and I should team up as her handlers. Jan made us some very official looking patches to put it all together. (Jan basically made costumes for all three of us this year. Thanks Jan!)

Two New Ava Videos

Ava gets her first taste of "solid" food in the form of Rice cereal. She's not impressed:




Ava's trying really hard to work out the mechanics of crawling, and she's almost there!



We've also got several new pictures in our picture section - don't miss them!

Slight Blog Change Notice

This blog was originally started with the idea of being a place I could post about various projects I've done, ideas I've had, and news of general interest about my family. I also included a lot of content and products that other people have created because I thought they were clever or funny or, preferably, both.

You may have noticed that since our daughter, Ava, was born this has turned into the "News about Ava" blog (to the great joy of her grandparents). Very little clever or funny stuff has been posted here for some time.

This post is to announce a new feature for this blog called "Things Brian Thinks Are Interesting". It's a separate section, generated through Google Reader, where I will share all the clever and funny stuff that other people have created. You can access it by clicking the link in the right side-bar labeled, "Things Brian Thinks Are Interesting". There is a separate subscription link for that stuff on that page.

The main blog will continue to be dedicated to news about Ava, and possibly the odd project or two that I might have time to do once Ava moves away for college. (Be sure to stay posted for that!) Our annual Christmas cards will also be featured on the main blog page.

I will also try to be better about posting more pictures on my blog, but for the full picture feed you can always click on the "Our Pictures" link to the right as well.

Thanks for the interest!

Rolling Over! Laughing!

Ava learned to roll over from front to back at 5 weeks, and just in the last few days she's completed the journey by rolling over from back to front at 4.5 months!



And then just last night, to our great joy, she started LAUGHING! For REAL!



This makes me realize; I'm good with where she's at right now. I don't need her to grow up any more: I'm not really that interested in the walking, talking, driving, dating... I think we can just stop right here with the laughing. That's a good place to stop, don't you think?

Ava Baby Talking

Ava is really starting to experiment with vocalizations. In this video, she really gives me an ear full.

New Ava Videos

Ava helping lift herself up and lay herself down as Kristi and her play the Up and Down game:


Ava and Lily "girl talking":

Vow Renewal and Ava's Dedication

Two weekends ago, on the 19th, Kristi and I threw a little party to celebrate a bunch of things:

• Kristi and I have been friends for 18 years.
• We've been married for 10 years.
• We now have a beautiful daughter, Ava, that we dedicated to God.

But the party ended up being a celebration of something else that we hadn't intended; something that, it turns out, is just as valuable and precious and the list above. It was a celebration of our friends and family.

• Andi took it upon herself to spend untold hours coordinating the preparation of the event, and also worked her magic baking scones and cupcakes.
• Nick gave us the best part of a day building a large cross for our centerpiece.
• Taylor brought his camera equipment and took amazing pictures of the event.
• Jan saved material from Kristi's wedding dress for 10 years, and with it made a beautiful christening dress for Ava.
• My Dad lent us his truck to pick up the chairs and tables.
• Ray, Lewis and Devon helped load the chairs and tables into the truck.
• Roger returned the chairs and tables for us on Monday morning.
• My Mom made hors d'oeuvres for the spread.
• Karyn and Megan took turns wrangling Ava so Kristi and I could stand up for the ceremony.
• Rick brought sound equipment so we could have music and everyone could hear.
• Mark brought his camera and filmed the ceremony.
• Dave flew in from Michigan to officiate.
• And so many people drove hours from Lynnwood, Spokane, and elsewhere to support us.

What an amazing tapestry of love and helpfulness; what a testament to the value of relationships! Thank you, everyone, who came and helped and supported us, and who continue support us each day! You are our true treasure.

Standin' Tall

(When I say in the video, "She's standing on her own almost," I meant that she was almost completely supporting her own weight. I didn't mean that I expect her to be standing autonomously soon. Her mother and I are strictly forbidding autonomous standing until she's 6.)

4th of July Mega Blaster

So what did you do on the 4th of July?

She's an Ambi-turner!

This morning Ava added to her repertoire of rolling over from her stomach to her right by rolling over from her stomach to her left. It was a big morning in the Bowkerhouse today!

Rolling Over - Caught On Video!

Today Ava rolled over for the third time! She's 5 weeks and 3 days old!

The first time she rolled over was at 3 weeks old. Usually babies that are usually on their backs accomplish rolling over at 4 to 6 months.

We could not possibly be more proud of our little girl (or more nervous about her accelerated mobility schedule...)

Ava Videos

Here's a few videos of Ava for her fans:

Wobble Head Time


Post Feeding Glaze


Stretchy Wake Up

We Have Rolling Over!

(...4 months early)

Today we got home from a walk downtown and Ava seemed a little fussy. So we thought she might want to lay on her tummy for a bit (something we've started introducing her to this last week).

For a while she sat there holding her head up and wobbling a bit, looking around, and then she put her head on the blanket and started kicking her feet. For a bit she looked like she was trying to work out the mechanics of crawling - she even moved herself forward a few inches - but then she started to rock her whole body back and forth. And within about 30 seconds she rolled herself over onto her back!

Kristi and I were a little shocked and decided to consult our Baby 411 book. It says that rolling over from stomach to back is usually a 2 to 4 month milestone for babies that are usually on their stomachs, and a 4 to 6 month milestone for babies that are usually on their backs. Ava is usually on her back, and today she's 3 weeks and 1 day old. So that puts her about 4 months ahead of the curve!

It's a little frightening; We don't want her to be mobile yet!

For that matter, it turned out she's not supposed to be holding her head and chest up while laying on her tummy until about 2 months - and she's been doing that for a week already.

I'm going to post some new pictures in our pictures section tonight, and I'll also post again if she starts suddenly walking or programming in Java Script.

Pronunciation Clarifications

Today marks the one week anniversary of Ava Ray coming into our lives. (It's not really a birthday so we're calling it her weekday.) It has come to my attention that some clarification needs to be made on a few items.

But before I get to those, let me first express how grateful I am to everyone who helped make Ava's birthday so special; All the people who sent us kind emails, posted kind blog comments, left kind voicemail messages, and kindly visited us while we were still in the hospital: Thank You!

We have also been blessed with so many wonderful gifts and flowers and meals and blankets and clothes... It's just been truly amazing to be so blessed by our friends and family! And all that ON TOP OF being so incredibly blessed by God with a healthy, wonderful, beautiful baby. (She is the cutest baby ever, isn't she?)

Please accept our apologies for not returning all the calls and emails yet - we're finding that time has been slipping away with out a trace while we've been getting to know out little girl!

And that brings me to a few clarifications about name pronunciations that I want to make really quickly here.

I realized that I sent out some emails announcing Ava Ray Bowker to the world but didn't give any clues about how to pronounce her name. I just don't know where my brain was. So here's a handy guide:

• If you are a Gaelic speaker from Ireland, Ava is pronounced Aoife.

• If you live in Bellingham, Wa, Ava is pronounced the same as the well known and celebrated Ava Ray Bowker Day, as seen below:

Also, particularly perceptive Internet adventurers may have noticed the true spelling and pronunciation of Kristi's name as seen here on this very official and legally binding hospital web page here.

So hopefully that clears up any confusion there may have been about that.

In other news, Ava is doing very well. She has been able to move her head around at will since birth. She's also very proficient at sleeping, pooping, peeing, sucking on fingers, arching her back when we try to put her in her car seat, and just generally looking as cute as a button. But before you get too excited about how advanced she is you should know that our baby book tells us that because she's nearly 10 pounds she's also already roughly two months old. Not bad for her first weekday, huh?

Introducing Ava Ray Bowker!

Born May 9th, 2009
10:10am



9lbs 14oz
22 inches

Mother and baby are both doing very well.
We've already seen poop, pee and spit-up!
(The first of much to come...)

We just could not be more happy with her!

Emails, blog comments and voice mails are very welcome.
If you'd like to visit, please call first.

Scooter the Magnificent Act 3

Baby Gear Testing Update

Blanket and Teddy Bear

Boppy Pillow Packaging

Scooter's Rigorous Testing of our Baby Items

High Chair

As most first time parents know, nothing can be too safe for your baby. You want to make sure that everything you are entrusting your baby unto has been tested and re-tested to every safety standard there is.

Changing Pad

Luckily for us Scooter has the same concerns for the forthcoming addition to our family, and he takes his work very seriously. He has been rigorously testing all of our baby items (including any boxes they come in) with out rest or exception and I can't tell you how confident this makes us feel.

Dresser Drawers

It's kind of like being able to order a cat-scan of all our household items before we ever place our child in their proximity.

Car Seat

Rocking Chair

Crib

Stroller

Craddle

Thank you, Scooter, for giving us such peace of mind with your tireless efforts! We salute you!

Swing

Pregnancy Photo Shoot

Kristi and I have these friends named Taylor and Mindy, and they are great, great people. Both of them teach in elementary school, and both of them are just wonderfully generous and thoughtful. We love them!

Taylor also does photography on the side, and he's fantastic at it! So when we decided that we wanted to document our pregnancy with some pictures there was really no decision that needed to be made about whether or not to hire Taylor.

Below is just a single sample of the shoot from the day, you can see a larger sample at Taylor's blog by following this link. If you want to order any prints, shoot me an email and I'll send you the info about how to get to our full album on his site.

God and Science Survey

Click here to see the results!

USA Sitcom Map

What, you don't think this is kinda cool?

Fairy Swatter

Fairy Swatter, originally uploaded by Bowkerhouse.

My good friend at Archie McPhee's sent me this Fairy Swatter, complete with a variety of plastic fairies (sold separately).

Reminds me of a short story I wrote many years ago...

Important Notice to Verizon Users

If you are a Verizon Wireless user, you should be aware that Verizon recently sent you a user agreement update where they cryptically notified you (in the midst of a page full of fine print legalese) that they were about to start selling your personal information to third party partners.

You can opt out of this "service", but they do not provide any instructions about how to opt out, and it's a bit of a maze to get it done. Luckily the good folks at BoingBoing figured it out and posted some on their site:

How to opt-out of Verizon's personal info-selling scheme

I don't use Verizon myself (and hope I never, ever have to), but I thought I'd spread the word to the people that matter most (my readers!).

Cheers!

Baby Mop

Although this product doesn't appear to be for sale at this time, it's a brilliant idea! Just think; finally you can break those pesky child labor laws right in your own home!
Source.

Become a Horror Movie Psychopath

by Electrocuting Your Face!
Only $36.99



This super-creepy product is real and you can buy it here!

Source.

Kristi 3rd Trimester

Kristi 3rd Trimester, originally uploaded by Bowkerhouse.

A weekend trip to Seattle and a sunny day lent itself to a little photo-documentation of the pregnancy.

Isn't she super-cute??

Scooter the Magnificent Act 2

Did I mention Scooter really likes to problem solve? He figures out this multi-part solution pretty quickly too!

A few years ago I saw a show about the 10 smartest animals in the world. Squirrels were on the list at #10, but cats weren't (a fact that we used to tease Oscar about mercilessly). But I think this demonstrates that Scooter could best the average squirrel with out too much trouble.

Look Like a Tool

Now only $299.95!

Third Eye Video Camera

Scooter the Magnificent!

Scooter the Cat is rounding out his bag of tricks in hopes of hitting it big in the circus one day.

Today's trick: Climbing a 6 foot ladder!

Watch Scooter laugh in the face of personal safety in the video above!

Bonus: This is the Toby mentioned in the video; a very talented cat in his own right!

The RITI Coffee Printer

Here's a cool submission to the Greener Gadgets Design Competition: A printer that uses coffee dregs for ink and no electricity!

When you are finished with your morning coffee you mix up the ink for the printer using the spent grounds and some water. Then you generate the energy needed to print by manually sliding the ink cartridge (sticking out of the top) back and fourth. And when you're done you have, I'm guessing, a mono-tone brown print out that smells like coffee and smears if you get it wet.

Awesome! Starbucks should totally jump on this product!

The Sh*tty Gold Mines of Japan

Reuters Headline: Japan Sewage Yields More Gold Than World's Top Mines

Basically they've discovered that by refining the ash from incinerated sewage they're able to pull out 1,890 grams of gold per ton of sewage. Compare that to the output of the Hishikari Mine, one of the world's top producers, which puts out 20-40 grams per ton of ore.

Does this just work for Japanese people, I wonder, or should I start thinking twice about flushing all my valuable waste down the toilet?

I had a cat once that used to poop in the fireplace, I guess I never fully recognized it's value.

Mapping Twitter Usage Durring the Superbowl

I'm not a football person, nor do I have a Twitter account, but I do find the following page fascinating!

Twitter Chatter During the Superbowl

Select the terms you want to zero in on in the left pane and then hit the blue "Play" button just to the right of that. It plays through the time line of the Superbowl expressed in frequency of Twitter terms and location in the U.S.

I don't know what use this data might have, nor why they would want to collect it, but my analytical brain does little cartwheels every time I watch it! Why am I so enthralled looking at data that I could care less about??

I'm also slightly disturbed that, based on this data, Montana hasn't yet found the Internet...

The Armstead Snow Motor

Take a look at this demonstration video from 1924 (no sound). What a truly clever looking device! I wonder why we don't see this design out in the wild today?


Armstead Snow Motors from Seeking Michigan on Vimeo.

The original patent application was filed by a Seattle resident in 1920 and can be viewed here.

I've found one rumor that Henry Ford bought up the patents and the buried the project, but I can't in any way substantiate that claim.

We Have Kicking!

This morning, while we were yet lying in bed, I was able to feel our daughter's first kicks inside her mother's belly! Kristi says that this is the first time she's felt something that was a definite kick instead of just a flippy, rolling motion. AND I GOT TO FEEL IT! I'm so excited!

Now, some fathers would start rambling on and on with claims about what a good soccer player their daughter is going to be, or how she might be showing early signs of an aptitude for running. You'll be getting no such ridiculous sports prophesies from me; I'm thinking Ninja!