With al due respect BB, the Notice of Appeal IS filing "the appeal" for purposes of jurisdiction. End of story--no jurisdiction left in the USDC. And believe me, you didn't want a judge like DU mucking up the findings/conclusions any more than she already has.
Her errors are in stone--Covington gets to address them, without her trying to re-characterize them as something they are not.
The briefing of the appeal comes later on a predetermined schedule.