"Freeway"?
I hope baby Cecilia's parents think again.
What seems cute and special at the moment might be a source of embarrassment for their daughter later.
From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:
The baby's name was supposed to be Cecilia Violet Marie Schulte.
But "supposed to be" doesn't work for a child born in the front passenger seat of a 1998 Toyota Corolla driving through rush hour on I-43.
Her mother, Annmarie Schulte, delivered the baby herself at 7:28 a.m. Monday, moments after she reached down and felt the little head in her hands.
One contraction later, the baby slid out into her mother's arms: pink, still sleeping and - her mother knew instinctively - healthy.
"She's here!" Annmarie exclaimed to her husband, Matthew, who still sat behind the wheel.
...Annmarie looked at the baby and experienced a deep feeling that everything was all right. Unconventional, but all right.
Matthew was not so sure. He looked at the baby and felt the deepest sense of terror he has ever known. He let out a primal scream. He pulled over into the distress lane at the Plainfield Curve on I-94/43. The doulas pulled over after him.
He ran from the car, still screaming. Words finally came. He frantically waved and yelled for the doulas to come out of their cars.
Kogler called 911. McQuitty checked on the infant. The baby turned a bit purple.
McQuitty gave her a breath and rubbed her back. The newborn turned pink again, letting out a tiny mewl.
Everyone cried. Annmarie wrapped her daughter in a towel and held the 7-pound, 4.8-ounce baby to her chest.
Emergency responders arrived, giving the baby a clean bill of health. Matthew clamped the umbilical cord and cut it.
People driving by on their morning commute, having heard about the freeway birth on news radio, rolled down their windows and yelled: "Happy Birthday!"
The emergency medical technicians joked: "You should name the baby 'Plainfield' or 'Freeway' or 'Shoulder.' "
..."I think we really should make her middle name 'Freeway,' " he said.
Well, Annmarie thought, this child has a free spirit. And the name certainly fit the occasion.
So it was agreed. Cecilia Violet Marie Schulte would be Cecilia Freeway Schulte.
"Freeway"?
That's awful!
Pavement and potholes and cars and trucks and traffic jams and exhaust.
I hope the parents reconsider and think about their decision.
They're elated now. They have a healthy baby girl. They have a great story. They can point to the Plainfield Curve as the place where their fourth daughter was born.
Beautiful!
So why would they burden their little blessing with a middle name like "Freeway" and subject her to ridicule?
I think the media attention might be clouding the parents' judgment.
I'm reminded of the King of the Hill episode where Luanne gives birth to a baby girl. The still drugged Luanne announces that she and her husband, Lucky, are going to name the baby after one of their favorite things -- Lasagna.
Clearer heads prevail and the baby is named Gracie Margaret Kleinschmidt.
6 comments:
Ugh. I just wrote out a thoughtful comment and it was deleted instead of posted. I am not going to put so much effort into this post, but want to communicate something: Your judgment of these parents makes me sick. I, too, had an unusual birth story when my first daughter was born 2.5 years ago in Milwaukee, and the media mocked my family. It was really hurtful. Please think about how you would want to be treated if you were suddenly the recipient of so much publicity (most likely unwanted). You sound very behind-the-times to say the least. Children these days have all sorts of names that old fashioned people would pass judgment on. In all actuality, how many people are going to ever hear her middle name, unless she's proud of it and tells people (which I hope she does, because I think it's a beautiful symbol of a beautiful experience)? Please use greater care in expressing your opinions. You owe the new parents and apology.
In terms of the publicity, I don't buy that it was "unwanted."
No one forced the parents to talk to reporters or do TV interviews. They were under no obligation to go on camera and tell their story. I would never know the child's middle name if they didn't decide to put it out there for public consumption.
As far as the parents' choice of name for their daughter goes, I sincerely believe that the child may suffer because of it. And she will use her middle name. She'll need to get a Social Security card. The application requires "full middle name." Many official forms and applications require an individual's middle name.
I simply am stating my opinion that I think it would be a good idea for the parents to reconsider.
Remember, I'm commenting on a story in the NEWS.
You ask, "How many people are going to ever hear her middle name?"
A lot. The story went national.
I think I was fair to the parents in my post, understanding their elation at the special nature of the birth of their daughter.
I don't think offering my opinion that they think twice before naming her "Freeway" is terribly insensitive or hurtful.
I'm her mom and I can say that I don't and won't regret her middle name. As far as the publicity, yes, I agreed to the interviews, but not because I wanted fame... I think having a vba3c is freaking amazing and I wanted other women to know it can be done and not to let a doctor push you into an unneccessary surgery. That is why I went on tv and did interviews, unfortunately, you can't control how they word everything. Anyway... each one of our daughter's names we have picked because they have symbolic meaning to us and so does Cecilia's. We raise our girls to know the power of words and to be proud of where they came from... when I think of freeway..I think of the freedom of travel, limitless possibilities and the ability to go just about anywhere...it's too bad you can only see the negative.
Annmarie Schulte
oh and for the record...my husband did not let out a primal scream and he was not screaming because he thought ther was something wrong with the baby... he was just freaked in general
"Anonymous,"
I have no way of knowing that you are the person you claim to be.
I've had far too many commenters impersonate individuals under the guise of anonymity.
But, to Cecilia's mother and father--
Congratulations on the birth of your baby girl.
Google the Mom now. Actually her name is being withheld, so you'd have to CCAP her, but the blessed mother, yeah..she sexually assaulted her kids and is facing 200 years in prison. Guess she got that fame. sick-o
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