Elle Marie Gardner is the name. My mom’s middle name is Marie, so that was a major factor.
We left the hospital last night around 9pm or so and got home. So far, Elle’s a big eater and a big sleeper. Like just about any baby, she’ll cry when she wants food, and she likes to be swaddled really tightly.
Here is a collection of photos from yesterday. You can see a bigger version of any of the photos (along with a brief description) if you click on it, and then see an even bigger version if you click on the photo on that description page.
(*We’re pretty sure we’re naming her Elle. We’re not sure what her middle name will be.)
Rhett was a beast when he was born (and continues to be a beast until this day) - so the doctors decided to induce Aubrey a week early to prevent her from being torn in half. We had this induction scheduled for about a week or so - which makes things pretty convenient because we were able to arrange a rotating squadron of animal-handlers to help keep Rhett contained today. We were #1 on the list, and were expecting to be called this morning around 6:30 AM. At around 8:00 AM, Aubrey called the hospital, and they said “Oh, come on in.”
Admitted, and in the room. We have a nice view of the valley.
By hospital standards, the deliver rooms here are gigantic. In the bathroom, it even has a jetted tub - which is a nice feature that I’m sure one person uses every few years. I thought about bringing a speedo and hanging out there for the first few hours today, but I decided that the speedo wasn’t necessary. Everyone here is medically trained and is used to seeing naked people, so I am going to
Dr. Reese, Aubrey’s doctor who is on call today, dropped by and said “Hello.” He talked to us for a few minutes and answered a couple of questions. He said that the second baby usually comes faster - so maybe we wont be here as long?
Surivor “Gabon” starts tonight next thursday. It will be the first season of Survivor broadcast in high definition - which sounds great until you realize that in every episode of survivor at least 10% of the available screen real estate consists of blurred-out boobs and butt cracks. I guess the nature scenes where they juxtapose animals eating each other with castaways talking strategy might better in HD. (I know I can’t wait to see a spider eat a big bug in HD).
Surivor “Gabon” starts tonight next thursday. It will be the first season of Survivor broadcast in high definition - which sounds great until you realize that in every episode of survivor at least 10% of the available screen real estate consists of blurred-out boobs and butt cracks. I guess the nature scenes where they juxtapose animals eating each other with castaways talking strategy might better in HD. (I know I can’t wait to see a spider eat a big bug in HD).
Rather than do a full-on fantasy survivor this season we’re going to go back to the old tried-and-true “pick the winner based on pictures alone.” For bonus points, you can make wild predictions about individual castaways as well.
To view the contestants, visit CBS’s website and go to the “survivor 17 bio page”
As always, post your entries in the comments.
Here’s an example of a proper entry:
“I predict that Gillian, despite her arthritis and dementia, will win. I also make the following wild predictions:
Danny is lazy, and his laziness will contribute to his downfall.
Jessica will sleep with at least one guy on the island. Probably Randy. This affair will end his marriage, but will launch his career as a reality-show circuit star. He and Jessica (Sugar) will eventually have their own show on E.”
The more bold and crazy the predictions, the better. If the predictions come right, a wild and crazy prediction will be worth as many points as guessing the winner of the show.
Today, at 5:30 PM Robert Hogan, my brother-in-law passed away. He has battled various health issues for his whole life, and has been through excruciatingly painful medical procedures to keep him alive to this point. Had he not been such a fighter, he no doubt would have given up years ago. Today, it was finally time for him to say “Goodbye” to us all for the time being.
Rob mastered everything he chose to pursue. From his career to his hobbies, he was always one of the top in his field. Being a guy, I personally admired his ability to rack up unfathomably high scores on video games (car racing games were his specialty, but he was good at them all it seemed). On a post on his blog earlier, Marla posted an image of the high score screen for a racing game in Vermont. Rob held the #1 and #2 score. Those scores were over two years old when she took that picture - and nobody was even close to touching them.
I will miss having Rob around because I miss being able to brag about my amazing brother-in-law whenever I see anyone playing Links Crossbow training on the Wii - and telling stories of how I’ve seen him play the hardest levels on that game and get his multiplier up into the 70’s (which is very impressive to anyone who has ever played that game) - or talking to people about how he can control a Mini-Z racecar with the finesse of an F1-driver. I will never be able to see anyone play Grand Turismo without chuckling at their ineptitude compared to “the master”. (I’m not exaggerating - he would turn the difficulty and realism settings to their max levels, turn the weather on its worst setting, set it to night, and drive on the reverse version of race courses at breakneck speeds on sheets of ice in the game - and make it look like it was a piece of cake - but that’s a story for another day)
For all of us who knew Rob, it is an extremely sad time for us - primarily because all of our future plans have been cut short. We can’t call him anymore to get his input, or show him a new piece of technology and watch him get excited. At the same time, I am happy for Rob. This was truly a situation where death came “as an angel of mercy” and took away his suffering.
Of course, I’m also sad for Marla - she’s lost her other half. She’s now separated from her eternal companion. As much as Rob has been relieved of his physical pain, Marla now has to deal with the emotional pain of the separation.
This past weekend, we went to the Demolition Derby in Spanish Fork. Rhett had a good time. I put together a bunch of the clips I took with my digital camera and threw on a commentary track. It’s hosted over at Apple’s site because I’m too lazy to put it elsewhere.
A woman who made news around the world when she had five pups cloned from her beloved pit bull Booger looked very familiar to some who saw her picture: She may be the same woman who 31 years earlier was accused of abducting a Mormon missionary in England, handcuffing him to a bed and making him her sex slave.
Ryan. Although Ryan had no players left for four weeks, he still managed to win. Here are the final point totals:
Ryan 140 points
Nicole 132 points
Aubrey 122 points
Marla 107 points
The finals points for each player were as follows:
Todd 44 points
Jean-Robert 35 points
Amanda 33 points
James 33 points
Frosti 30 points
Courtney 29 points
Erik 28 points
Jaime 24 points
Sherea 20 points
Ashley 18 points
Denise 17 points
Aaron 14 points
Chicken 11 points
And Aubrey came the closest to picking the winner when she picked Amanda.
Only survivors who are on RyeBlog teams are included in this list.
| Survivor | Points | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Ashley | 18 | Inactive |
| Aaron | 14 | Inactive |
| Chicken | 11 | Inactive |
| James | 10 | Active |
| Jean-Robert | 9 | Active |
| Denise | 9 | Active |
| Todd | 9 | Active |
| Courtney | 9 | Active |
| Amanda | 9 | Active |
| Sherea | 9 | Active |
| Jaime | 7 | Active |
| Frosti | 7 | Active |
| Erik | 6 | Active |
| Player | Point Total | Players active |
|---|---|---|
| Aubrey | 58 | 3 |
| Ryan | 55 | 4 |
| Marla | 54 | 3 |
| Nicole | 47 | 4 |
