Just after 10pm on April 13th, 2022, Laurel and I welcomed the newest member of our family into the world. Introducing Iris Kristine Gardner, birth weight 7lbs 7oz, the first grandchild on either side of the family tree. Hello world!
Iris was born at Legacy Emmanuel hospital in Portland, Oregon after 22 hours of labor. She arrived nine days early, but otherwise her journey into the world was smooth and there were no issues or complications. We wonder if last month's strange weather (including 3” of snow and multiple hailstorms) did anything to hasten her arrival?
Laurel handled the process with an amazing amount of calm and grace. Both mom and baby are happy, healthy, and recovering from their respective experiences.
We were discharged from the hospital around noon on Friday. Since then we have been taking it slow as we try to adapt to life with a newborn in the house. Fortunately Laurel's parents—Don and Kristine—are in town from Sacramento to help out for the next couple of weeks. We are really grateful for their support! For the next 3 or so months, both Laurel and I will be on “baby time” - we're both taking some time away from our respective jobs to appreciate what we know will be a unique time in our lives.
Thanks so much to everyone reading this who sent us gifts, messages, and encouragement over the last few months—it means a lot to us.
Family Newsletter
To keep friends and family up to date on personal-life developments, We've started a little family newsletter on the excellent Buttondown service; we're calling it "Slocial Media."
Social media can feel very public and impersonal, and it is easy for an announcement like this to get lost in the deluge of new! exciting! content! out there. But there is no denying that it is a great way to keep in touch despite geographic separation.
An old-school email newsletter seemed like a good way to have the best of both worlds. We expect to send out a short update like this one every 1-3 months to keep friends and family up to date on what Laurel, myself, and (most importantly) little Iris are up to.
You can sign up and see past newsletters here.