Elise Birth Memories
Elise was at all
times a child we planned on having. We
knew we would be in military training between March and June in 1979, and so
tried, within our capabilities, to create a pregnancy where Jeanne would be due
during that time. We managed to obtain
or goal so that Jeanne was due in either late May or early June.
All went well
for a time. Jeanne was progressing
nicely as I entered the last month of my Engineer Officer Basic Course at Ft.
Belvoir (French for “beautiful woods”) Virginia. With our first two children, Jeanne had
delivered within two weeks of her due date, so Elise should easily come by the
end of June.
As I prepared to
leave for my final training, a week-long practical exercise in the wilds of FT.
A.P. Hill, Jeanne’s and Elise’s
progress seemed to have slowed to a standstill.
By now everyone in my company knew of our daughter’s impending birth, so
it became a nearly daily amusement…every time a medical or any chopper (helicopter)
flew over our area someone would shout “They’re coming for Lambson!” I appreciated their support and enthusiasm,
but none of the aircraft were in fact for me.
The exercise ended Saturday, and we returned to our homes with only a
week remaining in June.
As the final
week wound down with graduation as the focal point, we were becoming
concerned. Elise was now almost three
weeks overdue. Our last hope at military
coverage for the delivery of our child was that I had applied for a 2-year
active duty assignment in Washington D.C. with the Corps of Engineers Office of
the Chief of Engineers. What a relief
when near the end of the week and month and cycle, I was informed that I had
received the assignment, and would stay for two more years in the D.C area. I had actually fulfilled my first assignment
with that office, a trip to Chicago for a meeting of the Chief of Engineers’
Environmental Advisory Board, before Elise arrived July 9th, almost
a month overdue. Oh well, she always had
a dramatic flair during her early years.*
A couple of
amusing postscripts…as we were awaiting her delivery, a few days before Jeanne
and I were taking in a movie at the FBI Academy at Quantico, Virginia, a
beautiful facility that came under the military-government reduced rate. The idea was to get Jeanne’s mind off her
discomfort and the length of her pregnancy.
The movie? Invasion of the Body Snatchers!
After she
delivered Elise in a very normal way, I was headed to the hospital to visit her
and Elise. On the way, I decided to
purchase a book for her to read. I knew
she liked Science Fiction, among other genres, and I wanted to get her
something contemporary. My unwitting
choice drew a look of disbelief when I presented it to her. The book: Alien!