Dane County's First Baby Of The Year Is An Early Bird
By Tim Cigelske, Wisconsin State Journal
Cathy Smith wasn't expecting her baby to arrive for two more weeks, so she was surprised to start having contractions Friday morning.
Now she and her husband, Richard, are bringing home Dane County's first New Year's baby, born 10 minutes after midnight at the Madison Birth Center in Middleton. The Evansville couple watched fireworks go off outside their window as Evelyn Catriona Smith was delivered. The baby was named for Richard's great-great grandmother.
The newborn weighed 6 pounds, 13.5 ounces and measured 19.5 inches in length.
"It was a joyous occasion," Cathy Smith said on New Year's morning. "It's really, really a great way to kick off the new year."
This is the third child for Cathy and Richard Smith, both 29. Evelyn will join a 4-year-old brother at home. The parents' firstborn was killed in a car accident seven years ago.
This was the first New Year's baby for the Madison Birth Center, which opened its doors in February 2003. It was the 60th birth overall at the Birth Center. The Birth Center focuses on natural childbirth in the care of certified nurse-midwives.
"It's really great because we all know there's this little competition among the hospitals every year," said Natalee Hartwig, a registered nurse who helped deliver the Smiths' baby. Meriter Hospital delivered its first 2005 baby at 2:31 a.m.
At St. Mary's Hospital, a mother delivered her baby by C-section just seconds before midnight. St. Mary's first baby of the New Year arrived at 9:48 a.m. Saturday.
REPRINTED FROM: Wisconsin State Journal; January 2, 2005
