Joy for new parents as babies arrive on Christmas Day

By Kareem Smith

Several unexpected Christmas gifts were delivered at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) today, in the form of bouncing babies.

When Barbados TODAY visited the public hospital, delivery ward C3, was a hive of activity as two baby boys had already been delivered.

The first Christmas baby was welcomed by 34-year-old Crystal Fagan at approximately 12:40am. His name is Kal-El,  named after the fictional superhero character, Superman. He weighed in at approximately nine pounds.

Speaking to reporters at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, his mother Crystal Fagan revealed that she did not expect to give birth on Christmas day.

“I wanted to get him before Christmas, actually, because I wanted to be home with my family, but he came when he wanted to,” she chuckled, revealing that Kal-El was due to be born four days before on December 21.

She said the labour process began around 2 p.m. on Christmas Eve.

“I was driving and when I got home, I realized the pain kept coming back all the time, so I knew I was in labour. I called my mum and she just told me to hold off a little bit and I came to the hospital and they told me yes, I was four centimetres dilated,” she said.

The mother of two said Kal-El’s birth felt like she was having a first child, who was born 16 years ago.

“Honestly, I wasn’t planning to get anymore [children], but he came, and it was ok…and I’m glad he’s here,” she said.

The second Christmas surprise was born at 3:45 a.m. to thirty-nine-year-old Emma Wharton. Her bouncing baby boy weighed just six pounds and wasn’t expected until well into the new year. Though the child has not yet been named, he joins a household of five other siblings including one sister and four brothers.

Nurses and mid-wives in the delivery wards were expecting a busy day today. They revealed that nearly half a dozen other mothers were expected to give birth.

“I believe it’s a joyous occasion to have your baby born on Christmas day. After all it’s a special day, when we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, I believe that many women would be happy to partake in that event.,” said Nurse Nakiesha Scantlebury, a first-time midwife.

“It’s a bit tedious…It is a lot of work. But to share with the patients…it is good to share in their experience,” she said.

Kaffyann Harewood, Brand Manager of Massy Distribution was also on hand to share in the joy on Christmas day. She presented a number of hampers to the happy mothers.

“We from Massy distribution, just want to give a token of appreciation to the mothers [in the form of] a basket with Huggies products, showing them that we care… it is a pleasure actually going forward every Christmas and giving the moms a token of our appreciation,” she said.