Date: Fri 15-Jan-1999

Publication: Bee

Author: KAAREN

Quick Words:

First-Baby-Nelson

Full Text:

Newtown's First Baby Of 1999

(with photo)

BY KAAREN VALENTA

When Erin Elizabeth Nelson was born at 2:16 am on January 2, her parents

weren't thinking about The Newtown Bee's First Baby Contest.

Rick and Tammy Nelson, who live on Sleepy Hollow Road in Sandy Hook, didn't

expect Erin to be born until January 10. So when labor began about 3 am on New

Year's Day, it took everyone by surprise.

The Nelsons went to Danbury Hospital about 10 o'clock that evening and Mr

Nelson began a countdown.

"I thought a 1-1-99 birthday would be neat," he said. "But Erin took her own

time." She was delivered by Dr Kevin Mitchell of Candlewood OB-GYN Associates

and weighed in at 6 lbs 5 oz.

The Nelsons had noticed the First Baby Contest in The Bee but it still didn't

occur to them that Erin might have been the first Newtown baby born in 1999.

It wasn't until other members of the Newtown Newcomers Club encouraged them to

enter that they did, just before last Friday's deadline.

The Nelsons have lived in Connecticut for two and a half years, moving here

from Columbus, Ohio, when Rick Nelson's job took him to Wilton.

"We were looking for a nice community, with good schools, and a house in a

neighborhood," Mrs Nelson said. "A lot of houses are being built in Newtown

now, but that wasn't the case almost three years ago. We really looked around

before we found this house, the last one [to be built] in our neighborhood."

Tammy Nelson was born in Ohio but grew up in upstate New York. When she

graduated from Russell Sage College with a degree in physical therapy, she

went back to Ohio for her first job at a hospital there.

She met her husband-to-be through mutual friends. A native of Pennsylvania, he

was working in Ohio on his first job after earning a master's in business

administration at Ohio State. They were married in 1996 and moved to Newtown

soon afterwards. Their son, Nicholas, was born at Danbury Hospital 18 months

ago.

"There are a lot of very friendly people in Newtown," Mrs Nelson said. "We

joined Newcomers and do a lot of things with the club. It has made it so much

easier to fit in. The [Booth] library has lots of good programs, too, and I

also joined the Y[MCA]."

Mr Nelson said he spends most of his free time building stone walls and

landscaping the property surrounding their new home.

"While we were still in Ohio, we were involved in a lot of coed sports, like

softball and volleyball, but there doesn't seem to be many coed teams here,"

he said. "Not that we have the time, now that the children have been born.

We're just your average Newtown family with two kids and a dog [a

three-year-old golden retriever named Bailey]. All we need is a cat."

As winners of the First Baby Contest, the Nelsons will receive many gifts from

Newtown merchants including restaurant meals, gift certificates, a manicure,

flowers, a savings account, and a one-year subscription to The Bee.

Also in the contest for first baby in Newtown were Lauren Elizabeth Keenan,

born to Michael and Elisa Keenan of Farview Drive on January 3; Cameron

Alexandra Carr, born to Kevin and Lisa Carr of Far Horizon Drive, on January

4; and Antonio Joseph Tesin, born to Sue Tesin of Washington Avenue on January

5.