Published: January 02, 2009 10:42 pm      

New Year’s baby born late in day; ahead of schedule

CUMBERLAND — Much to the surprise of his parents, David Patrick Kitzmiller Jr. became Cumberland’s New Year’s baby for 2009.

“One couple came in at 6 (a.m.),” his father, David Kitzmiller of Mount Storm, W.Va., said. “We came in at 4 (p.m.) and we had the baby before she did.”

Born at 7:37 p.m. Jan. 1, baby David was 19.5 inches and 7 pounds, 1 ounce.

Mother Helanna Kitzmiller said she’d already had a few false starts around Christmas time, with false labor Dec. 22 and Christmas Day. This was the same as when she was pregnant with their now 2-year-old daughter. She joked that she had “stubborn kids.”

“I told my husband David that we weren’t coming down (to the hospital) any more until I had real labor pains,” Helanna said.

Baby David wasn’t even due until Jan. 9, she said, but he was born healthy, if a bit early.

Helanna also said her daughter very nearly shared her birthday with a holiday as well, as she thought she was going to deliver on Valentine’s Day two years ago, but ended up giving birth six days later.

Though baby David managed to be born on the first, Helanna said she was surprised that her son was the first baby born in the county on New Year’s Day, as he was born in the evening. She said that where her father lives in Florida, the first baby was born close to midnight.

She added that, personally, she didn’t care whether her son was the New Year’s baby, just that he was healthy and “finally here for us to hold and talk to.”

“I’m very happy to have him here,” father David said.

Baby David also has two older half-siblings on his father’s side, along with an older sister.

Contact Sarah Moses at smoses@times-news.com.