Welcome to the Bowkerhouse

May 3rd, 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Tue, 03 May 2011 18:39:00 +0000

Esperanto vs. WebM

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 17:15:00 +0000

Last week Microsoft compared Google's decision to remove the industry standard video codec, H.264, from the built-in HTML5 spec in their Chrome web browser in favor of the open-source WebM video codec, to trying to switch from English to Esperanto.

Esperanto was created in 1887 by L. L. Zamenhof to be an easy-to-learn, politically neutral language in hopes that it would foster peace through international understanding. It was violently opposed by both Hitler and Stalin because they felt it threatened their totalitarian regimes.

WebM is an open-source and freely licensed video codec that Google hopes will spur online innovation by making it more available to individual developers. It's opposed by Microsoft and Apple (among others) because it threatens the income stream the receive from licencing H.264 to content producers / publishers.

Whether or not this ends up being a good move for Google remains to be seen, but I'd say that the comparison was unintentionally one of the smarter statements that Microsoft has made in quite some time.

Ava Walking

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Mon, 10 May 2010 17:48:00 +0000

This is Ava at 11.5 months, walking to her room to get her pajamas on. Or so we thought...

Also, be sure to check Our Pictures section for pictures from Ava's first birthday party! Here's basically what you'll see:

Catching up on Ava Videos

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 02:46:00 +0000

It's been a while since I uploaded any Ava videos, so here's a bunch of them in chronological order...

9 month old Ava plays hide and seek with Mommy:

9 month old Ava falls asleep in her jumper:

10 month old Ava eats a lemon: (First off, she kept asking for it. Second, it was April Fools Day. And third, she seemed to like it...)

10 month old Ava takes a few haphazard steps: (We've been trying to get a good video of her walking, but it's harder than it sounds! So this is what we've got so far.)

11 month old Ava climbs the "Beartooth Staircase": (This is a tribute to my cousin, Rusty Willis, who recently completed the first ever winter ascent of Beartooth Mountain.)

And now for something completely different...

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 20:13:00 +0000

I don't know who this singer is, or when it was filmed, but this is quite possibly the best footage of a vocalist ever caught on tape. Period. Way too good not to be put on my blog. And don't miss his big finish!

The above video may be the best footage of a vocalist ever, but the remix of that footage, included below, is probably the best video of anything ever. But beware - it only makes sense in the context of the above video, so watch that one first. Don't miss his big change-up about 1 minute in:

Maybe I've just been sick for a few weeks too long, but I really, really needed these videos today. Thank you Internet!

UPDATE: As long as we're on the same topic...

And here's Mr. Eduard Khil himself, making the most of his new Internet notoriety:

Baby Gear Advice for New Parents

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 22:15:00 +0000

This post is mainly directed at our friends Dustin and Abby Terpening who are expecting their first child in August. I decided to post it publicly in case any other soon-to-be-parents out there might find it useful.

Too Much Advice
One thing you will notice when you are expecting your first child is that everybody and their dog wants to give you baby advice. And everybody is convinced that their advice is pure gold.

The truth is, every baby is different, and every parent's approach to parenting is different. You really have to take it all with a polite grain of salt and figure out what works best for you and your own baby. Give yourself permission to disregard most of the advice you're given while you explore the exciting world of parenthood. (Except, of course, for my advice below, which is pure gold.)

That said, Kristi and I find great joy in researching and finding the best solutions to life's challenges, and we approached the challenge of parenthood no differently. We found some products and ideas that worked very well, and some that did not live up to the hype. Below are the products that we have found most valuable so far in our extensive 9 months of being parents:

"Baby 411" Book - $11 (Amazon)
The item that hands down belongs at the top of my list has to be the Baby 411 book. Don't let the busy/ugly cover fool you: This book is the most useful book we found on the topic of parenting. It's like an owners manual for babies. Laid out as a reference book, you can quickly find and dispel most of the common fears and questions that come up about your baby, including, "Should I take my baby to the doctor??" The advice within is thorough and well rounded, including brief explorations of multiple viewpoints on the more controversial issues. The chapter on establishing a sleep routine was particularly helpful. We have nearly worn ours out from frequent reference.

"Happiest Baby on the Block" DVD - $18 (Amazon)
There is also a book by the same name, but being able to watch this guy's technique for soothing a crying baby on video is where the real value is at. This guy can take a hysterically crying baby and completely soothe it in in a few easy steps. And the best part is, it works in real life too! These techniques were a life saver for us during the first 3 months of parenthood. And along with the DVD, you're also going to need...

Swaddling Blankets
Part of the Happiest Baby technique involves swaddling your baby, so you'll need something to do this with. You can buy a retail product called the SwaddleMe by Kiddopotomus that will accomplish this, but we found that some thin, square blankets that a good friend made for us worked better and were more versatile. They gave us 8 or 12 of them, and at first we didn't know what we were going to do with so many blankets, but soon after Ava was born we realized how handy they were. Need a clean place to put baby down outside or on someone else's carpet? Lay down a blanket! Suddenly getting breezy while out in the stroller? Throw on a blanket! Baby spits up on the current swaddling blanket? Grab another one! If you know someone that can surge the edges of cotton fabric, have them make you some. I believe they were about 36 inches on a side.

Along Comes a Baby - store in Bellingham (website)
This is a locally owned store on Bakerview up by the Guide. We have found the people who work there to be very knowledgeable and friendly. They tend to carry only products that they believe in, which is a nice diversion from your typical retail store. Plus, they have a much better online baby registry system than Babies 'R' Us. And if that wasn't enough already, by purchasing what you can through them you'll be supporting a local business. Doesn't that feel good??

Diapers.com - online store (website)
Along Comes a Baby (above) deals mostly in baby gear, not supplies. So for diapers, wipes, formula, cereal, and many other miscellaneous items and toys, we really like Diapers.com. Many people will probably point out that you can also go to Costco, and might even save a few dollars by doing so, but Kristi and I prefer this website for four basic reasons:

It's really easy to find what your looking for and almost every listing includes helpful reviews from other customers that have already used the product.
You don't have to fight the crowds and find parking, don't have to drive all the way out the Guide, and don't have to pay a yearly membership fee.
Free next day shipping if you order over $49 worth of stuff. I don't want to spoil any surprises for you guys, but it's extremely easy to rack up more than $49 a pop for baby supplies if you plan ahead even a tiny bit. In fact, I don't think we've ever paid them a dime for shipping. And it get's delivered right to your door the very next day!
The last reason we use Diapers.com instead of Costco... Honestly? We don't have a Costco membership. We've talked about it many times, but each time we figure out something we need from Costco we add on the cost of the yearly membership and then can't justify the price. We might think differently if we had storage space for the extra 30 lbs of "whatever" that Costco tends to deal in, but as it is we're Costcoless.

"Diaper Dekor Plus" Diaper Pail - $45 (AlongComesaBaby)
Do you remember how revolutionary the Diaper Genie was when it came out? It was the must have baby product of it's day. And when was that, about 15 years ago? The Diaper Dekor is the new "it" for diaper disposal. I honestly never thought I could be so excited about a diaper pail. It takes all the functionality of the Diaper Genie and marries it to the convenience of a simple step top garbage can. It's much less fiddly to use, and uses less plastic per disposal. And when you're done you end up with a super-fun, poop-filled beach-ball instead of a poop-sausage like the 'Genie produces. Who would want a poop-sausage??

BOB Revolution Stroller "12 - $400 (AlongComesaBaby)
The BOB Strollers are somewhat expensive, but they are the best. Everything about it is carefully thought out and engineered to last. With the Infant Car Seat Adapter ($60) it will go from newborn to 70 lbs(!) which makes it literally the only stroller your child will ever need. The "12 model has smaller wheels that make it easier to pack into your trunk, but even still the large, air-filled tires glide with equal ease along supermarket isles and our abundant NW rail trails. The front wheel can be locked and adjusted converting it into a very capable jogger. A fleece seat liner accessory makes it viable for winter use, as does the very effective rain cover. You will not find many of these on the used market simply because people do not give them up. I can not gush enough about this product.

Bonus Fun Fact - BOB is an acronym that stands for "Beast of Burden". This hearkens back to their original product, a mono-wheeled bike trailer (which I've heard is also excellent).

Boppy Pillow - $30-45 (AlongComesaBaby)
This is a "U" shaped pillow that helps you comfortably hold a baby while nursing or feeding it a bottle. Saves a lot of back pain. I'm not actually sure if you can have a baby these days with out getting one of these.

Itzbeen - $26 (AlongComesaBaby)
This is a small gadget that helps you keep track of how long it's been since you've fed, changed, given medicine, etc. to your baby. Seems like a simple enough thing to keep track of this stuff, but when you've got two overly tired people trying to co-manage a screaming baby it gets confusing really quick. Add to that a hospital nursing staff that wants to know how long it's been since ____ every ten minutes... This gadget quickly becomes worth it's weight in breast milk. If you get one a little early you can also use it to time contractions (another simple job made difficult under stress). It was also really handy for us while we were establishing a sleep routine because two minutes of your baby crying in the other room feels like half an hour or torture - this device helped us keep our perspective.

"Blender Baby Food" Book - $14 (Amazon)
Store bought baby food is very expensive and it's pretty easy to make an argument that it's not as healthful as making it yourself. This book makes it easy to make recipes that are age appropriate as your baby grows, and you can freeze the finished product for future use. You'll need a food processor - if you don't have or want a full size one I recommend this 3 cup one by Cuisinart ($45). These baby food freezer trays by KidCo ($10) help you divide the food up into measured portions, and these matching travel dishes ($8) make it easy to transport the frozen food-pucks to day care.

Free Stuff - Free!
By now you are probably getting the idea that having a baby comes with a lot of extra expenses. Regardless of the products I've listed above, taking what ever you can get for free is a huge help and I highly recommend it. Except for advice, which is almost always worth what you've paid for it. (Except for my advice, as discussed above.) Just make sure to do a little Googling and make sure the hand-me-down you're receiving hasn't had a safety recall.

A Good Couples Group - Priceless
Remember back when I said that the Baby 411 book belonged at the top of this list? Well, it does, but it's not the most important thing your baby will need. The most valuable thing you can give your baby is the example of a loving, healthy relationship with your spouse. And an invaluable tool for maintaining your marriage relationship is getting into a supportive group of other couples focused on the same goal. Pay the baby sitter and take care of your relationship - the returns on your investment will be impossible to measure.

Got a piece of baby gear that you're particularly fond of? Share your golden wisdom in the comments!

A Letter to My Nine Month Old Daughter

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 07:07:00 +0000

Dear Ava,

Today you are nine months old. You have grown so much since you were born, and it's been so much fun to get to know the person you are already becoming!

You have an empty diaper box that you love to push around the house. You slide it along the wood floor while you walk behind it. It's so fun to watch you getting ready to take your first steps, finding your balance, and developing the muscles in your legs.

Will I really someday run behind you while you learn to ride a bike, finding your balance in a new way, at speed? Will you really take that leap towards independence? Will I really be able to let go of the seat and watch you ride away? Away towards an ever expanding realm of self reliance?

On Wednesdays your mom goes to a bible study group while you stay in their day care. She tells me that every week you start to get wiggly with excitement as she walks you down the hall towards the room that the day care is in. You already have a nickname with the day care ladies; "The Motor", because you spend the whole time crawling from child to child, smiling and babbling at each of them. What a people person you already are!

Will you really go to school someday and make new friends on your own? Will I have to come out to the family room in the middle of the night to tell you and your sleep-over friends that it's time to stop giggling and go to sleep? Will you really graduate from high school someday, and possibly go to college? Will I be able to keep up with what you're studying? Help you with your homework? Encourage you to keep going when you fail, and adequately celebrate, or even understand all of your successes? Will I be able to humble myself enough to ask you questions when you begin to understand more about subjects than I do?

Lately you've really been enjoying various "horsey" games where your mom and I either ride you around on our shoulders or bounce you on our knees. Once in a while I like to buck you off and catch you and then kiss and tickle you. You laugh and laugh and then ask for more.

Yesterday I was getting tired and had to put you down, but you weren't done playing. Your lip came out in a pout and you started to cry, as if you were being abandoned. It broke my heart to see you cry from disappointment, but it secretly also pleased me because what you wanted was more time with me.

Will you really have to endure that first, unbearable heart break when your first love inevitably lets you down? Will you really have to suffer through the feelings of rejection and abandonment that life so brutally surprises all of humankind with? Will I be able to offer you a quiet shoulder to cry on? Be able to listen to and feel your pain with out trying to fix it? Will I be able to watch you learn those hard lessons in life and remember that they build character and compassion? Will I be strong enough not to want to kill the boy? Will I remember to set aside what I'm doing so that you can have more time with me?

Today, on your nine month birthday, you started walking around the perimeter of the coffee table, carefully stepping sideways while holding on to the edges. What an exciting and frightening development! You are such a physical and mobile child! What, exactly, is your rush, little girl?

Will I really be walking you down the isle someday while you're holding on to my arm? Will I really have to try and hold it together while a preacher asks me to give you away? Will I really be able to give you away?? Please don't be in a rush, little girl.

Certainly you will always remain nine months old. I'm sure that all these things, and much, much more, will happen, and you will grow up to be an amazing and wonderful and capable woman. But to me, in my heart, certainly you will always remain my nine month old little girl.

I love you and I'm proud of you already.

-Dad

Ava's First Invention

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 22:57:00 +0000

Bonus Video: Ava Feeding Herself (sort of...)

Career Skills Assessment Results for Ava Bowker

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 19:38:00 +0000

Dear Ava Bowker,

Thank you for participating in the Career Skills Assessment Questionnaire and submitting your responses for processing. Our goal is to help you focus your future career decisions based on your areas of greatest strength.

Below please find your results, which we have divided into your 6 greatest strength areas. Below each category are three career suggestions where your particular skills might be best utilized. These results, as well as your original questionnaire and any further correspondence, will be kept strictly confidential.

Climbing

You exhibit great agility in climbing on obstacles and people. Nothing stands in your way, and you are very dedicated to this pursuit.

Careers that best utilize this skill:

Mountain Guide
Arborist
Corporate Executive

Shouting

Your capacity for shouting is only limited by the capacity of your lungs, and will likely increase with time.

Careers that best utilize this skill:

Opera Singer
Cheerleader
Radio Talk Show Host

Chewing
You display great aptitude for chewing. You are not afraid to put anything in your mouth, and everything gets bitten in equal measure.

Careers that best utilize this skill:

Food Critic
Royal Food Tester
Circus Geek

Whacking
Whacking stuff is a skill set in which you also excel. While holding an implement, or with an open hand, you whack stuff with total abandon and seem to derive great joy from doing so.

Careers that best utilize this skill:

Blacksmith
Japanese Kodo Drummer
Mafia Hit Man

Grabbing
You are exceptionally motivated to grab stuff. Large or small, sanitary or unhealthful, you grab things with out prejudice.

Careers that best utilize this skill:

Relay Runner
Assembly Line Worker
Seasonal Fruit Picker

Smiling
Your smiling face is one of your strongest assets. Maintaining a positive attitude and inspiring others to do the same will carry you far even when other skills fail you.

Careers that best utilize this skill:

Good Friend
Loving Daughter
Politician

Ava Unwrapping Christmas Gift

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 17:05:00 +0000

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

Merry Christmas from the Bowkerhouse!

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 18:17:00 +0000

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!

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 05:33:00 +0000

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

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 20:39:00 +0000

Ava Trying To Do A Raspberry

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 05:46:00 +0000

You have to give her credit for her effort.

Ava Crawling!

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 06:02:00 +0000

Ava's First Halloween

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 07:54:00 +0000

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

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 07:48:00 +0000

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

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 23:34:00 +0000

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!

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 15:29:00 +0000

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

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 05:23:00 +0000

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

New Ava Videos

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 05:21:00 +0000

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

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 17:17:00 +0000

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

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 21:08:00 +0000

(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

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 05:47:00 +0000

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

She's an Ambi-turner!

noreply@blogger.com (Brian Bowker) — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 21:58:00 +0000

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!