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As Jim Anchower used to say in his columns, “it’s been awhile since I rapped at ya.”
A hardware limitation is my excuse for the month that has elapsed between posts. The hard drive on our Mac is full…three measly gigabytes out of 250 remain available, so I’m not adding any new pictures or video until I figure out the best solution.
Currently, I use our external hard drive only for backup. I think I’m going to move all the video over to the external hard drive and start using mozy.com or some other online backup service where you pay a monthly fee. Anyone have a recommendation?
I promise (I’m talking to you, grandparents) to get some pictures and video of little Jackie up soon. We’re truly having a blast with her right now as she begins her transition from an infant to a toddler.
Everything is going pretty well for Katie, Jackie, the dogs and me. Katie has been busy with her shiny new job at Dewberry. Jackie has been busy trying to stand and walk on her own. Baxter has been busy getting in trouble (we’re working on some behavior issues).
And, last but not least, Robah hasn’t really been busy with anything at all. Just taking it one day at a time.
Robah didn't want to leave our cabin at the end of Sarah & Eric's wedding celebration weekend in Asheville.
Katie, Jackie, Rich, Mindy, and I spent five days at Ocean Isle. It was a rescheduled vacation that Rich put together after my parents were unable to make the first trip we planned. My folks stayed in Boone to look after my grandmother during her fight against congestive heart failure. She hasn’t lived 95 years because she’s not committed to life, and I’m glad to report that she’s almost back to full strength. It was disappointing for us to be beach-bound without my parents (understatement of the year: they deserve a vacation), but they did what they had to do.
The rest of us enjoyed our time at OIB; no one soaked in more of the experience than little Jackie. I’ve included some pictures below. If I had the time to arrange them chronologically, the images would tell a cohesive story. I’ll leave it up to you to organize them from first to last (especially the pictures where Jackie is eating sand). As soon as I have time to edit the video from the trip there will be some live-action memories posted here too.
Our daughter is at a funny stage. She learns and forgets certain behavioral patterns almost daily, but she practices other, more important behaviors almost routinely.
For example, during a couple of weeks in June, she shook her head as if to say “no” with her body language. Regardless of what we said or did during this period, she would respond by shaking her head left and right, seemingly in dissent (and smiling the entire time). After repeating this gesture several times a day for those two weeks, she hasn’t done it again in the past month.
Whenever I hug anyone, I pat her or him gently on the back. This is a common practice in my mother’s extended family, which is probably where I learned it and why I do it still today. When I pick up Jackie, I pat her too when I first hold her. A few days ago, she patted my back in return. This surprising, yet familiar action blew me away because it was both affectionate and learned. I expect this patting to continue for another day or two before she forgets it.
Her forgetting of behaviors is similar with language, except that some of her language development is not learned by rote, in a mechanical, repetitive way; instead, she has started to attach meaning to her babytalk. The first words we heard her mimic were “uh-oh”. She only repeated it when Katie or I said it. After the first time, Katie and I said “uh-oh” just to hear her repeat it, so I don’t think she connected the word with any particular meaning. She said “uh-oh” several times over the span of a few days, but she didn’t say it for several weeks after. Then, a few days ago, she dropped a toy onto the floor and said “uh-oh”; it was almost like she was keeping the phonological memory of the word on a mental shelf until she made a meaningful association.
Her favorite, and perhaps first true spoken word, is the phonetic equivalent of “goh”. Of course, this isn’t a real English word, but it is obvious that she attaches meaning to the pronunciation of “goh”; the first few times she said it were when she saw Baxter or Robah walking by her. She started saying it more often, as if she was calling for the dogs when they weren’t in the room with her.
Lately, she doesn’t say it much at all.
Is it possible that her brain is starting to make retrieval connections between her short-term and long-term memory? I’m no epistemologist, but I wonder if her brain is dividing new knowledge into meaningless (shaking her head randomly) and meaningful (“goh”), and the meaningless eventually gets tossed into her cerebral trashcan. Like “uh-oh” before it, I predict that she will not forget or discard “goh”, because it’s relevant to her daily life in a house with dogs. Instead, I think “goh” will eventually transform into “dog.”
Our daughter is at a funny stage. She learns and forgets certain behavioral patterns almost daily, but she practices other, more important behaviors almost routinely.
For example, during a couple of weeks in June, she shook her head as if to say “no” with her body language. Regardless of what we said or did during this period, she would respond by shaking her head left and right, seemingly in dissent (and smiling the entire time). After repeating this gesture several times a day for those two weeks, she hasn’t done it again in the past month.
Whenever I hug anyone, I pat her or him gently on the back. This is a common practice in my mother’s extended family, which is probably where I learned it and why I do it still today. When I pick up Jackie, I pat her too when I first hold her. A few days ago, she patted my back in return. This surprising, yet familiar action blew me away because it was both affectionate and learned. I expect this patting to continue for another day or two before she forgets it.
Her forgetting of behaviors is similar with language, except that some of her language development is not learned by rote, in a mechanical, repetitive way; instead, she has started to attach meaning to her babytalk. The first words we heard her mimic were “uh-oh”. She only repeated it when Katie or I said it. After the first time, Katie and I said “uh-oh” just to hear her repeat it, so I don’t think she connected the word with any particular meaning. She said “uh-oh” several times over the span of a few days, but she didn’t say it for several weeks after. Then, a few days ago, she dropped a toy onto the floor and said “uh-oh”; it was almost like she was keeping the phonological memory of the word on a mental shelf until she made a meaningful association.
Her favorite, and perhaps first true spoken word, is the phonetic equivalent of “goh”. Of course, this isn’t a real English word, but it is obvious that she attaches meaning to the pronunciation of “goh”; the first few times she said it were when she saw Baxter or Robah walking by her. She started saying it more often, as if she was calling for the dogs when they weren’t in the room with her. Lately, she doesn’t say it much at all.
Is it possible that her brain is starting to make retrieval connections between her short-term and long-term memory? I’m no epistemologist, but I wonder if her brain is dividing new knowledge into meaningless (shaking her head randomly) and meaningful (“goh”), and the meaningless eventually gets tossed into her cerebral trashcan. Like “uh-oh” before it, I predict that she will not forget or discard “goh”, because it’s relevant to her daily life in a house with dogs. Instead, I think “goh” will eventually transform into “dog.”
Every year, in mid-June, Vogel State Park in north Georgia is taken over for an entire week by 50 or 60 Burnses from all over the country. It’s the Burns Family Reunion, and this was Jackie’s first experience with Katie’s great uncles and aunts, second cousins, third cousins, sixth cousins twice removed, and so on. She had a blast.
Before we left for Georgia, I didn’t think the week with Katie’s extended family would matter much to a six-month old baby. Boy, was I wrong. Jackie clung to her parents and grandparents the first couple of days, but after being passed around, cuddled, talked to, doted on, and welcomed by every member of Katie’s family for the first forty-eight hours, the child really started to get into it. A child psychologist or developmental expert could have written a qualitative research paper on Jackie’s transformation. She metamorphosed from shy to soaking-it-all-in. By the end of the week, she didn’t care who held her as long as they gave her full attention and praise.
Thanks to Ben and Janet for paying for the Jones family cabin and to Janet for looking after Jackie every night! Thanks to the entire Burns clan for welcoming its newest member!
Here is a slew of pictures from the week:
This post is a special long-distance hug to Nana, whose sickness this week has prevented her from coming to Raleigh this week like she planned. I realize how difficult life can be for grandparents when illness gets in the way of time with a grandbaby.
Katie and understand that Nana must be really ill; it probably took a lot of self-control and a CDC injunction to keep her off of I-85 North. Maybe the pictures below can be some sort of consolation in lieu of quality Jackie time.
Get well soon Nana!
Jackie loves the song "French Navy" by Camera Obscura.
Green beans? Yecch.
Green beans = nasty
Strawberry mustache? I know...it's kinda weird.
Jackie with Mom in the pool -- the baby is doing her best Dick Jones imitation.
Jackie and Dad tasting pool toys
Jackie and Dad lounging
There’s good news and bad news. The bad news first: Jackie and I did not make the trip to Tennessee this weekend for Sarah & Eric’s wedding. Katie went, but we felt the ten-hour trip with one day between travel days would just be too much for the little one.
The good news is that Jackie and I were able to make the fourth annual Tour d’Coop, which showcased more than 20 different urban chicken coops inside (hen-side) Raleigh’s I-440 beltline. Six of the coops are within a one-mile radius of our house, so Jackie and I set out on foot/stroller to check them out.
I’ve had an interest in having chickens of our own for a couple of years now, and it was great to see the diversity of fowl-friendly accommodations so close to home. Like any type of pet, the chickens and their dwellings reflect the people who own them. Some coops were elaborate, even to the point that they matched the architectural detail of the adjacent houses. Other coops were simpler and less ornate. Every chicken owner we met today had a simple process for feeding, egg-gathering, and composting. The really interesting part was the small backyard footprint that each coop required — some had three or four chickens in less than 100 square feet.
Today’s tour convinced me that as long as there’s no co-mingling with Baxter and Robah, chickens would be a great addition to our family. I hope to start working on our coop sometime in the next year. On the other hand, Katie has already reminded me of the other changes we want to make to this house. For some reason, she seems to think that home-improvement endeavors might be higher on the list of priorities. Katie’s flan was killer; I think the only way to make it better would be to start with home-laid eggs.
Just a quick pat on the back to Katie, who whipped up a homemade flan for Family Supper Club a couple of weeks ago. I’ve never tasted a better custard in any form. She may be a working mom with a lot going on, but she still has the skill set and energy to crank out good eats!
I’ve got to admit it’s getting better. It’s getting better all the time.
Five years ago today I married my true boo and I’m happier than ever to be Katie’s husband. Thank you Katie. I love you.
I know what you're thinking, but it isn't cheesy if you really mean it.
Baxter, Robah, and I had an epic frisbee session today. No records were broken, but that’s primarily because I didn’t push them too hard. Their individual and combined records are detailed below:
Consecutive catches by Baxter: 11
September 25, 2007
Avon Drive, Raleigh, NC
Consecutive catches by Robah: 6
December 6, 2008
White Oak Road, Raleigh, NC
Consecutive alternating catches by Robah and Baxter: 10
October 10, 2008
White Oak Road, Raleigh, NC
If you’re not impressed with these numbers, keep in mind that a single frisbee route is in the range between 70 and 90 feet. In a single session, Baxter will run around 50 routes, and Robah around 30 routes. That’s the equivalent of Baxter sprinting a mile-and-a-half. Robah runs close to a mile during a session. Our poor grass.
Here’s a diagram that illustrates our playing field:
I did, however, have to pull Robah aside today and talk to him about never taking a play (or throw) off. It’s not that he has a bad attitude or the kind of prima donna approach to the game that seems so common among today’s elite receivers. But, there are times when he doesn’t finish a route and he’s been known to take his disc to his favorite patch of grass and rest for awhile in the middle of a session. His brother Baxter, aka Psycho B, is a frisbee-chasing machine; his motor never stops. I wonder how Roy Williams handles it when Hansbrough is running circles around a teammate in practice.
I haven’t set up the camera to record Bax and Robah snagging frisbees, but Katie did capture Baxter’s weird sleeping position a couple of weeks ago:
There is other Burns family scoop — Eric proposed to Sarah recently and she accepted. We’re very excited for them. Anyone who knows them knows what a good couple they are, and what a good wife and husband combo they will make.
Congratulations you two crazy kids!
There was ice in the mountains...the picture doesn't do justice to the rocks on her finger.
I think I spent the dog food money 