Happy New Year, Baby!

Waiting for the New Year

Christopher was due around the middle of December, but with Kraemer's history of having late babies, she wasn't surprised to see her due date come and go. "I didn't really expect to meet the new baby until near the end of the month, but when Christmas Eve came and I was still pregnant, I was beginning to get a little anxious to have this baby," says Kraemer. "Christmas morning our church has a living nativity at a neighboring farm, complete with livestock and straw. I threatened to make it 'more authentic' with a birth, but it wasn't meant to be. I'm sure our pastor was relieved!"

By the time New Year's Eve rolled around, Kraemer was getting frustrated for several reasons. Not only did Y2K loom large and foreboding, but she was concerned that if she went too much longer without giving birth, her chances of having a home birth would go out the window because fear of complications with a post-mature baby.

But on the first day of the new millennium, Christopher was born to a very relieved mother. "Christopher was and is a reminder of the hope that babies bring into a family," she says.

According to former New Year's Baby Kristen Stewart, little Christopher has a lot to look forward to by having a New Year's birthday. "People always remember it!" says Stewart. "It's easy to remember how old you are." Plus, as Stewart puts it, "How many other people are awake to yell, scream and party the moment their birthday begins?"