My boy, Brody, is home. At just over 2 days old, he’s making quite an impression in the house. Braelyn has done well with him, but time will tell how well she will adjust to a prince invading her princess territory. But, so far so good!

It truly is quite amazing to experience bringing a human being into the world. Now, I don’t pretend to know what Rebecca went through for the past nine months, but I can tell you the scariest minutes of my life have been the minutes where Braelyn and Brody entered the world. It is such a relief when you first hear the baby cry and the doctors give the all clear signs! Then, it is nothing but joy.

Rebecca was a champ in both the delivery of Braelyn and Brody. I’m sure she was with Spencer, as well. I will admit that I got a bit more brave this time, and watched the whole thing instead of staring at the heart rate and contraction monitor like I did with Braelyn. And yes, I even cut the cord. I must say, it is an amazing thing to witness. As for Rebecca and I, we plan this to be our last one. Heck, I am too old for this!

Brody is very healthy and is doing well. He definitely sleeps a ton, but mixes in some feedings every couple of hours. His cry, despite what some of the pictures in his gallery may lead you to believe, is pretty quiet. As chaotic as it gets around here, he may need to turn the volume up a bit just to be heard. I am only hopeful though that he will grace us with sleep at night. Braelyn has been absolutely a great baby… only two or three real bad nights in her 20+ months with us. I hope Brody falls in her footsteps! Then again, he may make us pay… time will tell but I am keeping my fingers crossed!

Thanks to everyone for their well-wishes and congratulatory remarks over on Facebook and Twitter. It is much appreciated.

While I will head back to the office this week, Rebecca’s six weeks or so of vacation begin. Yeah, right… I know! She will definitely have her hands full. She is a terrific mother. I, as well as my kids, am very fortunate.

Have a great week, and here’s to wishing my father safe travel back to Wyoming tomorrow. I wish he could stay awhile longer, but duty calls….

Tags: braelyn, brody, rebecca, spencer

Brody’s room is coming along… the walls are painted, quite a bit of decor has arrived (but has not been hung). The new carpet is in, the crib, chainging table and rocking chair have been relocated from Braelyn’s room to Brody’s. I have a guy who is going to build me some cool wooden lockers for his room, and those won’t be done for about 4-6 weeks, but that will be the finishing touch. Now, if I could just get his baseball ceiling light working… the fan works, but not the lite. Someday I will master being an electrician. That someday will probably be right after my pops arrives mid week.

Yep, mom and dad are heading here from Casper to be here to welcome Brody into the world. Will be great to have them around to help out. I know Braelyn will love it… though she absolutely loves visiting with ba-pa and grandma on the computer. Webcams make family a lot closer, that’s for sure. And anytime I am on my laptop, Braelyn comes running to talk to ba-pa.

Braelyn is quite the girl. I am nervous as to how she is going to react to having a new brother… one that will inevitably take much attention. There is a 6 month old at her daycare who she isn’t too fond of. I think she will be a great big sister. I know in about 2 years, we’ll love the fact that Brae and Bro are so close in age. Of course, daddy and Spencer will spend a bunch of time with Braelyn while mom is feeding Brody. Ah, the sleepless nights are approaching quickly!

So it was nice to have some football to watch. I did ok with my picks for week one, though I must admit I did not pick the Broncos. Don’t get me wrong, I am ecstatic that they won… I just didn’t anticipate it. Was awesome to see the Chiefs lose again… that’s pretty normal though.

Quickie on politics… I am just so amazed at how many people pretend they know what the health care bill(s) being pushed are really about and what they will do. How could any of us really know how good or how bad the bills are… even our Congress hasn’t even read them! What I do know is I am very opposed to the government running anything more. They fail, fail, fail in everything they put their magical touch on. And I don’t like businesses being punished, nor individuals being mandated to. I love the legacy concept of America being a free-country. Those days are behind us all, I must say.

I do have to give major kudos to President Obama for his 9/11 speech. I was actually quite amazed at it, really. The speech was very thoughtful and sincere and well delivered (thanks, teleprompter!) The amazing part to me was the religious overtures that Obama gave during his speech. He cited scripture and referenced God. Oh, how that must just irritate the left. Oh well, I bag on the buy enough so may as well give him props when he deserves it.

Speaking of 9/11, that is my mom’s birthday. Of course I called her and wished her a happy birthday, but let this be my public proclamation of such, and that I am so thankful for my mother (and my whole family). She is a tremendous woman who cares so much about her family and friends. I pray my daughter will grow up to be the same way. I am thrilled that Rebecca suggested that Brody’s middle name be Carlen, my mother’s maiden name.

Oh, and 9/12 was the Biggest B’s birthday… my nephew Brandon turned 20! Can’t believe it… I remember vividly holding him and dancing to Lollipop when he was younger than Braelyn is today… what a great kid. He’s off traveling in Europe right now for the next week. I pray he has a wonderful, safe time over there. What a great kid, er, young man he is.

Well, Hoover is laying at my feet snoring, Braelyn has been in (and out) of bed for the past two hours (mostly in, but she did tumble out of her bed tonight), and Spencer and Rebecca just ventured to bed themselves. I guess that is my clue it is time for me to do the same. After a shower, though… I am FILTHY from finishing my firepit today. Will have to throw some pictures up in my gallery sometime in the next few days. Pretty happy with how it turned out. It isn’t perfect, but for never having done anything like it before, I must say I did a pretty damn good job.

Peace to all ya’ll out there in cyber land. Wish us well as we bring another Elledge into the world…

–RElledge

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Today, on what should be such be a day of only joy for Bob and Dixie and the whole family, is also filled with sorrow, as Dixie has requested that no further medical assistance be given to her to try and help her failing heart and kidneys. She is at peace and seemed so happy to have all of her loved ones together to say their goodbyes. Earlier in the day, I am told, she was not very coherent and was having a hard time recognizing people. But not tonight… she knew everyone, hugged and kissed everyone multiple times, and gave everyone some guidance and wishes. For such a weak body right now, she was so strong. She told her son Ed that she is ready to go see her parents and her other two sons who passed years ago… but wanted Ed to understand that it’s ok, and not to be upset with her — she is not choosing them over him. She was telling everyone she will see them again, but now is the time to go see her Maker and her loved ones that have departed before her. Tears were flowing, but so were the smiles. Six great grandchildren were there with her, all at the same time… and she asked each of them to always remember her, and that she will remember them and watch over them. While it was very sombering, it was also the way the day should be… very joyous.

Dixie has battled heart conditions since a much younger age. On many occasions that I have seen her over the past ten years, she has seemed frail. But she has always come around. Now, she is ready to move on and end the pain, and she is clearly at peace with it and helping those who will remain behind become more at peace.

Gabe said it best after we left… he is so happy to have seen her like this tonight… in a much better condition than earlier today… and this is how he wishes to remember her forever.

Nobody knows whether tonight will be the night for Dixie or if it might be weeks away, but tonight, Dixie and her whole family and friends know the love they have for each other, and I am quite certain Dixie will have a wonderful journey ahead… one that will be so much harder on those behind than herself.

Happy Anniversary, Bob and Dixie. Savor the time left, no matter how short. And have a wonderful journey, Dixie. You are a beautiful person. I am honored to have known you and hope you will remember me, too. Today, you taught me a lot about life while in the face of death.

Tags: anniversary, death, Dixie, family, friends, Murphy

He Shoots He Scores!

— RElledge

Sidebar… I referred to the other dog as psycho.  Let me explain.  On multiple occasions, including moments ago, I have witnessed her very slowly and cautiously walking backwards and staring at the floor in front of her as she does it.  It is very methodical.  I don’t know if she is seeing things, or maybe our house is in fact haunted, as Spencer often suggests.  I don’t know what it is, but I must say it is a bit freaky.  Maybe it is from eating too much of Hoover’s crap (yes, she does that all the time and just absolutely disgusts me).  I need to get my video camera and set it beside me as I veg in this chair fiddling on my laptop, so I can video it if she does it again.  I don’t know about her…

Tonight the NCAA basketball selection show is on… this I do look forward to.  I should be putting up a pool on my website, feel free to join.  Don’t know yet if I will, but if I do, you should definitely participate.

I have stopped taking guitar lessons this month, but plan to resume in a month or two.  Just too much going on with work and stuff that I needed a hiatus from it.  However, I have been messing around on the guitar the past few days… I should be getting lots of practice, considering how bored I am, but my fingers get to hurting and so do my ears since I still suck so bad, so it gets discouraging.  So, I just sit here and mess around on this stupid laptop.

Sad to say, this morning when I woke up I started my normal routine of reviewing MSNBC.COM to see what the headlines are (surprise, folks, I do not turn to Fox for my news).  I couldn’t have been more pissed off reading the article about how Obama is considering taxing some people’s health benefits (aka MINE) to help pay for universal healthcare.  Sure, why not… my taxes are already going to be going up, why not hit me again?  It is truly sad that I actually sat in the chair getting my haircut thinking about outher countries to move to.  I then remember that I do live in the greatest country in the world and would be foolish to move somewhere else.  Nowhere is perfect.  Now, I know Lisa Hilger and perhaps a few other lefties out there will respond with the traditional leftist line of “now you know how we felt for the last 8 years”.  That’s just one of those rehearsed lines, doesn’t prove or disprove any stance, so I am quick to discount things like that.

You know, fact of the matter is, while I do not think GW Bush was the best president, or even in the top few, I can say this… I proudly support the Republican stance on taxes, and whole heartedly disagree with disproportionally taxing the upper class to pay for the lower class.  Don’t get me wrong, I most certainly do realize that there are those who are legitimately struggling while working very hard, and that these people do need help.  I am reminded to my oldest sister’s struggles a few years back when her husband was very ill, awaiting a kidney transplant.  My sister is a teacher (who chooses to teach in a lower economic school, mind you) and my brother in law, at the time, was working for a fire truck manufacturing plant in Casper.  Their medical bills were piling up, and finances were most certainly tight.  But they worked (literally) through it… Mike continued working as much as he could through it all.  They didn’t sit back waiting for the government to bail them out… they perservered.  I am proud of them for that.  They cut expenses, took some hits on their credit, etc. but today they are better people for it.  By the way, I should point out that I am also so proud of my sister for having been an educator for so many years but not a card carrying member of the teachers’ union… er, “professional organization”… you know, the one that protects the very poor teachers that are ruining public education… yeah, that one.  Wow, I am all over the place….

Back to my political talking points… I, Ryan Elledge, support smaller government with less interference.  I support health care for those who truly need help getting it, but I don’t support mandates to small businesses and penalties to those businesses who just can’t afford better plans.  I do not believe in nor support in any way the ACLU.  I love GITMO and the fact that it helps keep the really bad people in the world from doing more really bad things.  I admire and support our troops and their actions, and I pray that they will continue to get the funding that they need… which, by the way, they need more of (I am thankful that it looks like there is a 4% increase in the DOD budget under Obama… while it is not much more, it is more and not less, so that is a surprise to me from the Big BO).  I think unions ruin business… they had there place in history, but now they should be history… and of course I think this because I believe someone who starts a business and puts his/her butt on the line should get to make the rules for the business, not the people working for him/her.  I think the legal system is a mess and contributes to a lot of the pitfalls in our country, including our health care issues.  I support COBRA, but not the new Obama changes to COBRA where employees terminated for cause get 65% of their COBRA paid by the very business who had to let them go (yes, I know the business will get tax credits, but it creates a financial strain on the business).  You know, higher taxes on businesses and making them pay these things ultimately leads to additional layoffs… it is the anti-job creation model.  For those of you who don’t understand what I am talking about, just know that I deal with these things daily as an executive for a tech company which employees nearly 200 people).  I think I am OK with Obama reversing the stem cell policy of Bush, but I honestly don’t know enough about it to really have a good opinion.  I do love the idea that it can help cure other illnesses, and that is why I at least think it might be ok.  I, of course, do not like Obama’s strategy of blaming the last administration for every ill that we have, because the President just does’t have that much power… it takes a joint effort of the three branches, and the Dem’s have controlled congress since 2006.  I don’t like Pelosi… at all.  Ultimate hypocrit right there.  Oddly enough, I hear Dems bashing and fearing here, too… just not sure how she is in the position she is in.  I just throw my hands up on that one.  I do support a major overhaul of the tax system in the United States.  On the surface, I like the idea of getting rid of the income tax and turning to taxation on what you buy… get the drug dealers, prostitutes, gamblers, etc. all paying their fair share (oh and guess what, the rich will continue to carry the tax burden since they have the means to buy more).  I do not believe in abortion, unless the birth would put the mother’s health at risk or in the case of rape.  Better put, I don’t believe in abortion as a form of birth control.  I support the legalization of marijuana, and I actually applaud the Obama administration for pulling the hounds off going after state-legalized dispenseries… and no, I don’t support it because I am a user, I just believe that the government and our jails would be better off with the taxes which would be generated from it being legal, the decrease in prisoners who possess/use/distribute it, and the savings to the budget for not fighting it (you should watch Marijuana, Inc. on CNBC if you haven’t already).

Ugh, I am done for now, that is too much for anyone to really read or care about on this fine Sunday afternoon.  I just know that I like fairness, and I really don’t feel like we’re heading to fairness right now.  I am not implying or suggesting everything was fair under the Bush administration… no doubt there was some BS that shouldn’t have happened and people playing by different rules, but I would be surprised if anyone could ever convince me that the current changes and suggestions are fair.  Time will tell, I guess… but I suggest in 2 more years when the problems persist, we’ll still be blaming the previous 8 years.

I miss my Braelyn and my Rebecca (the house is a disaster!).  Can’t wait to see you both in a few days.  My thoughts and prayers are with my sister Wenday and her family as they cope with having to put down their dog this past week.

Hope you all have a great week, whether you agree with me or you don’t.

–RElledge

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Speaking of losing… I am in a state of total disbelief on the continued honeymoon period for President Obama. I was going to blog about it earlier in the week, but didn’t get a chance. I read an article on MSNBC.com about how Obama’s popularity numbers continue to rise and are at an “all-time” high. Yet, the same article talked about his policy approval rating heading the other direction. When will the honeymoon period end? This guy is ramroding costly policy through that just doesn’t feel right. Wall Street seems to dislike Obama and his policies, that is for sure. I think if Obama would just stay off the television for a few days, the markets might jump up a bit. And any lefties out there that want to say who cares about what the Street thinks and how corrupt that is… well, the economy needs to care about what the Street is doing. I’ve been looking for a correlation study around Obama talking and signing legislation and the drop of the markets… I’m sure that study is out there somewhere.

Enough on politics, I don’t want to ruin t he rest of my last day before Monday. I am not looking forward to tomorrow. I have to get Rebecca and Braelyn to the airport for their 6am flight. Yep, that means my day will start uncomfortably early, as in that 3am hour. And, while I would like to get back home and snag a few hours of sleep before work, that won’t happen as in the 7am hour I will have to take Spencer to school. Yep, tomorrow morning is all about Ryan’s Taxi Service.

As tomorrow approaches, I am starting to get sad a bit that I am not going to see my baby girl for over a week! I know she will be in great hands in Casper with mom, dad and all the family. And I plan on seeing her everyday on web cam, but not beginning my day everyday seeing her terrorize my bathroom and giving me that cute grin and kiss is going to be weird. Gonna miss my little angel, that is for sure. Rebecca is headed to Maui with most of the Murphy clan. I am staying back here to work and dog sit. Oh, it will be somewhat of a vacation for me, too… I get the whole bed, not just an 1/8th. Well, I guess that won’t be true because I have a feeling Hoover will take most of the bed while Rebecca is out of town.

Speaking of Braelyn, she is coming down with another ear infection… at least her plane ride will only be an hour and a half tomorrow, and we got her on some medicine last night. She seems to be doing fine but you can see it in her eyes that she isn’t 100%. I just hope she will do great for mom and dad. I’m pretty sure she will, but this will be the longest period of her not being with us and it is a bit sad.

Sounds like Spencer and his friend just got up and around. Let the noise of the day begin….

I love reading my niece’s blogs. I didn’t realize just how many LOL’s one could fit into a 500 word blog… I should go back and count, but I think I’ll just guess it was about 50.

Ok, I didn’t really say much this morning but I thought I would check in. Time to clean up this mess in my office. Catch ya’ll later.

–RE

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