Calvin Ryan Richard Fraser kept the New Year’s baby title in the family, arriving into the world at 6:37 a.m. Jan.1.
Calvin Ryan Richard made his splash six days early on Jan. 1 at his parent’s home, becoming Nanaimo’s first baby of the new year.
The new year’s baby, weighing 8 pounds, 11.5 ounces, is the second in his family to make headlines for being first of the year and among 25 babies born in the Harbour City over the first seven days of 2015.
Last year, there were a total 1247 births, including 67 at home.
Nanaimo Regional General Hospital also saw the birth of Vancouver Island’s first baby, born 1:10 a.m. on Jan. 1 to Ladysmith couple Karli Dusseault and Brandon Folster.
Calvin was due Jan. 6, but like his older sister, 22-month-old Isla, mom Lainey Fraser had a feeling he’d be an early arrival.
“My birthday is Jan. 1 as well. I was the New Year’s baby in Abbotsford when I was born in 1989 and so the whole pregnancy I was saying he better not be born on my birthday,” said Fraser, smiling at the slumbering baby curled up in her husband’s arms.
But Calvin had other plans.
“Near the end, I was like, you know what, he’s going to end up being born on my birthday and sure enough, he was.”
Fraser said her contractions started on the drive back from a midwife appointment and lasted into the evening. They put Isla down to sleep before calling the midwife just after midnight for their planned home birth. He was born in their living room.
“He did a little cry and then he was quiet and I remember saying, that’s okay right?” she said. “He’s just a quiet guy.”
Fraser says it’s neat that they share a birthday but his looks are all his father’s.
“He is a spitting image of [Ben’s] baby pictures,” said Fraser.
But without his ears, “which is probably a good thing,” Ben Fraser added.