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HelpNTNB Round 1 CONCLUSIONS
in reply to a message by mirime-veon
(Scores are at the bottom, if you want to skip to that part!)
---
It hadn't been an easy labor. After pushing for what felt like days, a tear that would require stitches, and a false alarm where the baby's heart monitor stopped picking up a beat (it turned out that the monitor had a low battery -- Seriously?! Martin thought), a baby's cry finally -- finally! filled the hospital room. Gabby closed her eyes and breathed deeply, squeezing the hands that held both her own -- the right her husband Martin, and the left her father.
"It's a girl!"
She opened her eyes again. "Really?" All the scans had found what appeared to be a male anatomy, and even before that, Gabby had had a gut feeling that it was a boy. The problem wasn't with painting nurseries or buying new baby clothes -- the couple had preferred to go gender-neutral for those things -- but with names. The couple had already chosen a name for a boy -- Raphael Elias Espino -- but hadn't given any thought to the possibility of a girl.
"Really really. Would you like to hold her?"
The couple exchanged glances, then Gabby said, "Let Martin hold her first. I've been holding her for eight and a half months." Martin beamed.
Dr. Brooks gently placed the baby girl into her father's arms, informing him how to position his hands to best support the head. The baby's hair was curly and black, pasted to her head with white vernix, and her gray eyes stared up at her father through a squished face that was covered in blood. Martin thought she was perfect.
"Have you decided on a name?" asked Gabby's father, Edward.
"Only for a boy," Gabby replied. "We have no idea about girl's names."
"Can I hold her?"
Martin passed the infant to Edward, whose experienced arms cradled her like an expert. Tears flowed from Edward's eyes and got lost in his thick beard as he gazed at his first grandchild. "Hi, little girl," he said to her. He stroked her cheek with an index finger.
"Is she okay?" Gabby said. "She's so quiet."
"So were you," Edward reminded her. "We thought something was wrong with you since you didn't cry when you came out. But you were just fine. And so is she. Look." He passed the baby to Gabby, who laid the baby on her chest and closed her eyes. "You look tired."
"I am tired."
"Don't sleep yet!" Martin said, squeezing her hand. "We need to think of a name."
"Domitilla?" suggested Edward. "She was the wife of the Roman emperor Vespasian. Or maybe the French version, Domitille?" Both Edward and Gabby had always had a penchant for history.
"It's pretty," Gabby conceded. "But I want something people will be able to spell. I don't want my kid to grow up like Max." Gabby's brother, Maximilianus, had always lamented the fact that no one could spell or pronounce his name.
"What about Noemi?" asked Edward. "That's your sister's name, isn't it, Martin?"
Martin shook his head. "I mean, yes, it's my sister's name, but it's really common around here. I don't want her to grow up as 'Noemi E.' to distinguish her from 'Noemi G.' and 'Noemi P.'" Edward was from Maine, where Noemi would be one in ten thousand. Martin and Gabby lived in south Texas, where Noemi could be one in ten.
Gabby nodded in agreemen. "Then what about Maristela, after your mother?"
"That's a nickname. Her full name is Maria Estela."
"Ah... then no." They'd previously agreed not to give their child a nickname as their full legal name, and Gabby just didn't like Maria Estela.
"Maybe Helena, after your mother?"
Gabby shook her head. Even before her mother had abandoned the family and ran off to another state to marry her secretary, she and Gabby had never really been close. "What about Clara?"
"Clara?" Martin had a brief vision of the baby delivering pithy one-liners with a black bob and a vintage dress. "Maybe not."
Gabby wracked her brains. "Agustina is kind of pretty."
"It is, but... I don't know. It sounds too old-fashioned for me."
A few moments passed. The baby seemed to have fallen asleep on Gabby's chest. Edward's thick callused hand laid on the baby's back, while Martin's softer one curled around one of her hands.
Suddenly, Gabby smiled. "Oh... oh, I have the perfect name!" It was classic but not too old-fashioned, it was easy to spell, it was uncommon, and it was associated with the best sort of person. "What about... Miriam?"
Dr. Brooks started. "Me?"
Martin looked from Gabby to the baby to Dr. Brooks. "Miriam..." he muttered, turning the sounds over in his mouth. "Miriam. Miriam. Mimi." He grinned. "I like it!"
---
"Hi, you've reached the home of Martin, Gabby and baby Miriam Elisa Espino, who was born on Tuesday, May 14th, weighing seven pounts, four ounces. We'll be having a sort of meet-the-baby party on Saturday at two. We're pretty busy settling in right now, so we aren't taking guests, but we'll see you on Saturday! Or if it's important, you can leave a message now! Thanks!"
"Hey, it's Max! Congratulations! I'm so happy for you! I'm not really supposed to tell anyone about this, but Sara says she's late, so maybe we're next? Anyway, I'll see you Saturday! I love you Gabby!"
"[two voices together] CONGRATULATIONS! [woman's voice] Hi Gabby! It's grandma and grandpa! How's the baby? Are you feeding her enough? Babies need to eat a lot, you know. [man's voice] Your dad never grew out of it! [laughter] [woman's voice] Anyway, I finally figured out how to look at pictures on my phone, so if you want to text me a picture, I'd appreciate it! We don't --"
"Sorry about that! I must've hit the hang up button. I can't remember what I was saying now. Anyway, we love you very much and we'll definitely be there on Saturday! Bye!"
"Hiiii Gabby!!! Congratulations on the baby!!! I can't wait to see her!!! Hi Miriam! Hi little girl!!! Oh, I'm just so proud of you! I can't wait to see you!! Do you want me to bring anything on Saturday? Some wine maybe? It's been months, I'm sure you're dying or some wine! I'll pick up some of that white zinfandel that you like, okay?? Byeee!!"
"Hey Martin, it's Kathy from the shop. I just wanted to let you know that your request for time off has been approved. Congrats! I'll see you in two weeks."
"[in background] -- the other one. No, I said left! [to phone] Hi, honey. It's your mom. Congratulations about the baby. Sorry I can't come over to help you settle in. Things are really busy at the shop but next week things should settle down so we might be able to make the drive next week! How long has it been since we've seen each other? Four years? Five? Oh, and I sent you a gift card to Babies 'R' Us. Give the little one a kiss for me and Marcia. See you around Tuesday, I hope!"
---
A winning name gets 4 points. A name that I particularly liked, but didn't win, gets 2 points. Participation gets 1 point per name with a max of 2 participation points per post.
AudreyEllen - 5 points
Raphael Elias - 4 points
Maristela Juana - 1 point
Julia - 5 points
Benito Elias - 1 point
Miriam Elisa - 4 points
Polyxena - 4 points
David Etienne - 2 points
Helena Myriam - 2 points
SugarPlumFairy - 4 points
Clara Elizabeth - 2 point
Raphael Edmond - 2 points
AhaRememo - 3 points
Obadiah Ebenezer - 1 point
Domitille Euphemia - 2 points
faelsean - 2 points
Agustin Emanuel - 1 point
Agustina Emanuelle - 1 point
2angelgoats - 2 points
Noemi Carlotta - 1 point
Napoleon Esperanzo - 1 point
---
edit: formatting
---
It hadn't been an easy labor. After pushing for what felt like days, a tear that would require stitches, and a false alarm where the baby's heart monitor stopped picking up a beat (it turned out that the monitor had a low battery -- Seriously?! Martin thought), a baby's cry finally -- finally! filled the hospital room. Gabby closed her eyes and breathed deeply, squeezing the hands that held both her own -- the right her husband Martin, and the left her father.
"It's a girl!"
She opened her eyes again. "Really?" All the scans had found what appeared to be a male anatomy, and even before that, Gabby had had a gut feeling that it was a boy. The problem wasn't with painting nurseries or buying new baby clothes -- the couple had preferred to go gender-neutral for those things -- but with names. The couple had already chosen a name for a boy -- Raphael Elias Espino -- but hadn't given any thought to the possibility of a girl.
"Really really. Would you like to hold her?"
The couple exchanged glances, then Gabby said, "Let Martin hold her first. I've been holding her for eight and a half months." Martin beamed.
Dr. Brooks gently placed the baby girl into her father's arms, informing him how to position his hands to best support the head. The baby's hair was curly and black, pasted to her head with white vernix, and her gray eyes stared up at her father through a squished face that was covered in blood. Martin thought she was perfect.
"Have you decided on a name?" asked Gabby's father, Edward.
"Only for a boy," Gabby replied. "We have no idea about girl's names."
"Can I hold her?"
Martin passed the infant to Edward, whose experienced arms cradled her like an expert. Tears flowed from Edward's eyes and got lost in his thick beard as he gazed at his first grandchild. "Hi, little girl," he said to her. He stroked her cheek with an index finger.
"Is she okay?" Gabby said. "She's so quiet."
"So were you," Edward reminded her. "We thought something was wrong with you since you didn't cry when you came out. But you were just fine. And so is she. Look." He passed the baby to Gabby, who laid the baby on her chest and closed her eyes. "You look tired."
"I am tired."
"Don't sleep yet!" Martin said, squeezing her hand. "We need to think of a name."
"Domitilla?" suggested Edward. "She was the wife of the Roman emperor Vespasian. Or maybe the French version, Domitille?" Both Edward and Gabby had always had a penchant for history.
"It's pretty," Gabby conceded. "But I want something people will be able to spell. I don't want my kid to grow up like Max." Gabby's brother, Maximilianus, had always lamented the fact that no one could spell or pronounce his name.
"What about Noemi?" asked Edward. "That's your sister's name, isn't it, Martin?"
Martin shook his head. "I mean, yes, it's my sister's name, but it's really common around here. I don't want her to grow up as 'Noemi E.' to distinguish her from 'Noemi G.' and 'Noemi P.'" Edward was from Maine, where Noemi would be one in ten thousand. Martin and Gabby lived in south Texas, where Noemi could be one in ten.
Gabby nodded in agreemen. "Then what about Maristela, after your mother?"
"That's a nickname. Her full name is Maria Estela."
"Ah... then no." They'd previously agreed not to give their child a nickname as their full legal name, and Gabby just didn't like Maria Estela.
"Maybe Helena, after your mother?"
Gabby shook her head. Even before her mother had abandoned the family and ran off to another state to marry her secretary, she and Gabby had never really been close. "What about Clara?"
"Clara?" Martin had a brief vision of the baby delivering pithy one-liners with a black bob and a vintage dress. "Maybe not."
Gabby wracked her brains. "Agustina is kind of pretty."
"It is, but... I don't know. It sounds too old-fashioned for me."
A few moments passed. The baby seemed to have fallen asleep on Gabby's chest. Edward's thick callused hand laid on the baby's back, while Martin's softer one curled around one of her hands.
Suddenly, Gabby smiled. "Oh... oh, I have the perfect name!" It was classic but not too old-fashioned, it was easy to spell, it was uncommon, and it was associated with the best sort of person. "What about... Miriam?"
Dr. Brooks started. "Me?"
Martin looked from Gabby to the baby to Dr. Brooks. "Miriam..." he muttered, turning the sounds over in his mouth. "Miriam. Miriam. Mimi." He grinned. "I like it!"
---
"Hi, you've reached the home of Martin, Gabby and baby Miriam Elisa Espino, who was born on Tuesday, May 14th, weighing seven pounts, four ounces. We'll be having a sort of meet-the-baby party on Saturday at two. We're pretty busy settling in right now, so we aren't taking guests, but we'll see you on Saturday! Or if it's important, you can leave a message now! Thanks!"
"Hey, it's Max! Congratulations! I'm so happy for you! I'm not really supposed to tell anyone about this, but Sara says she's late, so maybe we're next? Anyway, I'll see you Saturday! I love you Gabby!"
"[two voices together] CONGRATULATIONS! [woman's voice] Hi Gabby! It's grandma and grandpa! How's the baby? Are you feeding her enough? Babies need to eat a lot, you know. [man's voice] Your dad never grew out of it! [laughter] [woman's voice] Anyway, I finally figured out how to look at pictures on my phone, so if you want to text me a picture, I'd appreciate it! We don't --"
"Sorry about that! I must've hit the hang up button. I can't remember what I was saying now. Anyway, we love you very much and we'll definitely be there on Saturday! Bye!"
"Hiiii Gabby!!! Congratulations on the baby!!! I can't wait to see her!!! Hi Miriam! Hi little girl!!! Oh, I'm just so proud of you! I can't wait to see you!! Do you want me to bring anything on Saturday? Some wine maybe? It's been months, I'm sure you're dying or some wine! I'll pick up some of that white zinfandel that you like, okay?? Byeee!!"
"Hey Martin, it's Kathy from the shop. I just wanted to let you know that your request for time off has been approved. Congrats! I'll see you in two weeks."
"[in background] -- the other one. No, I said left! [to phone] Hi, honey. It's your mom. Congratulations about the baby. Sorry I can't come over to help you settle in. Things are really busy at the shop but next week things should settle down so we might be able to make the drive next week! How long has it been since we've seen each other? Four years? Five? Oh, and I sent you a gift card to Babies 'R' Us. Give the little one a kiss for me and Marcia. See you around Tuesday, I hope!"
---
A winning name gets 4 points. A name that I particularly liked, but didn't win, gets 2 points. Participation gets 1 point per name with a max of 2 participation points per post.
AudreyEllen - 5 points
Raphael Elias - 4 points
Maristela Juana - 1 point
Julia - 5 points
Benito Elias - 1 point
Miriam Elisa - 4 points
Polyxena - 4 points
David Etienne - 2 points
Helena Myriam - 2 points
SugarPlumFairy - 4 points
Clara Elizabeth - 2 point
Raphael Edmond - 2 points
AhaRememo - 3 points
Obadiah Ebenezer - 1 point
Domitille Euphemia - 2 points
faelsean - 2 points
Agustin Emanuel - 1 point
Agustina Emanuelle - 1 point
2angelgoats - 2 points
Noemi Carlotta - 1 point
Napoleon Esperanzo - 1 point
---
edit: formatting
This message was edited 5/14/2015, 12:21 PM
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