J. Michael Andresen

Max's favorite new game is to lie in his activity gym and kick. When I set him up correctly, a bulls-eye kick does two things: it activates the shake sensor on the music to advance to the next track, and it shakes the rattle above his head. I was getting some pretty big smiles, which prompted me to take this video, but Max just had one big smile left for the video camera. It happens fifteen seconds in. After that he does lots more kicking, but he's more taciturn.

Here's a fun video of Max playing with his mother and maternal grandparents. It starts with Katie demonstrating her special kiss that she shares with Max. (She touches noses, then each cheek, before finishing off with a big smooch on the lips.) Then the three of them delight Max with fun noises and more kisses. Max flashes his winning smile for the camera. Here are some longer videos of Grandpa telling Max two magical stories that he used to tell to Katie and Laura when they were small. First is Dinosaur Picnic : For an interlude, we have a cute story about Katie. When Katie's father initially told Katie these stories, she took them to be gospel truth. When her teacher said one day in school that no one had ever seen a dinosaur, Katie helpfully explained that her father had seen lots of them when he was a boy. Katie suffered her classmates' laughter and stayed angry at her parents for some time! Max started to fuss a bit at the end of the previous video, preventing the tell...

I went birdwatching for several hours last Friday morning and early afternoon. Katie had visitors all day and very graciously watched Max while I sneaked away for some R&R (refresh and rejuvenate) time. The Black Dog Reserve is part of the nearby National Wildlife Refuge that runs along the Minnesota River. It's been a while since I last posted on my life goals , but I've added on in the interim. It was as I was realizing how much I enjoy traveling but that I don't have the ability to do it as much as I'd like. I thought it would be good to add an "outdoors" life goal that I could accomplish without traveling very far. I decided that birdwatching would be nice. There are 312 species of birds that one can expect to spot in Minnesota. I figured I'd set a goal at 300 bird species that I would like to spot and positively identify in the wild. The reserve is half prairie and half marsh. It was a coolish late morning, and the birds were out in great numbe...

Katie sometimes talks to Max about all the things he can grow up to be. "Will you grow up to be a scientist like Daddy, or a lawyer like Mommy?" she will query. In recent days, though, we think Max might aspire to be a model. He LOVES the camera. Point it in his direction, and he is mesmerized by the big lens, giving it a big smile. He will sit for long series of photographs, changing his expressions constantly so we'll be sure to get a good one. This is Katie's recent favorite series (mostly because she thinks he looks so cute in the outfit): This is my favorite series, based purely on the dynamic range of emotions that Max is capable of. I am especially fond of the last picture. So cute!