Thirty two hours into 2014, a baby boy entered the world as planned and became the first baby born at the Kootenay Boundary Regional Hospital this year.
Rylan Raymond Sousa was born seven pounds and 10 ounces into the arms of proud parents Theresa and Nelson Sousa on Jan. 2 at 8:35 a.m., following a scheduled C-section.
“It was a nice surprise when we found out he was due around New Year,” said Theresa. “But we sat waiting through Christmas just in case I went into labour and had him before the scheduled cesarean.”
The Sousas reside in Castlegar, but Theresa hails from Trail and has plenty of family on hand to dote on the bundle of joy, including brother Kaiden, who will be four in April.
“He was all giddy when he first saw his mom,” said Nelson. “He ran up to check her belly because he was a little confused,” chuckled the father of two. “Now he definitely doesn't want anyone else but us to take Rylan home.”
With their first child, the couple decided to go the nine months without knowing the sex of the baby.
This time around was a different story because after her second trimester ultrasound, Theresa decided she wanted to know the answer to the gender question before the birth.
But how she found out was unexpected.
“I had the results from the hospital in an envelope in my purse,” she said. “We were going to wait until Thanksgiving when we were with family to open it,” Theresa explained. “But without me knowing, Nelson took the envelope out of my purse.”
The reason for the stealthy letter retrieval was the doting Dad made a big plan for the boy-or-girl reveal unbeknownst to his wife of five years.
“I was old fashioned at first and didn't want to know,” said Nelson. “But Theresa did, so I took the envelope and handed it to the Pastry Shop and asked them to make us a cake and ice it pink or blue.”
So, the girls at the bakery were the first to see the baby's gender but they also had a trick up their sleeve.
That night, Nelson reserved their usual table at Amore's Ristorante for a special date night, and asked the staff to decorate the window seating with pink and blue balloons to further add to Theresa's surprise.
After a romantic dinner, the cake was carried to the expectant parents’ table.
Upon opening the cake-box, Theresa and Nelson were both surprised to see an elaborately decorated cake of purple, pink and blue.
“It kind of tricked us because the booties were different colours and all it said was 'It's a ...,'” said Theresa. “It wasn't until we cut into it that we saw the centre icing was blue.”
Debra Barembruch, part owner of the Gulch restaurant, said the glowing mother-to-be was completely surprised when the cake was brought table-side.
“When they cut into it and discovered the baby was a boy, it brought tears to all of our eyes.”
Trail's New Year's baby, with wavy light brown hair and rosebud lips, is a spitting image of big brother Kaiden Raymond.
Besides being second generation Canadian Portuguese with maternal and paternal grandparents immigrants from the Azores, both boys are bestowed a very special legacy.
The two young Sousas have the middle name, Raymond, in memory of Theresa's father Raymond Carreiro, a Trail man who tragically passed away in a car accident when she and her siblings were children.
“Theresa always speaks so highly of how her father pampered the girls and her baby brother,” said Nelson. “She says that he always treated them like gems. And we need to honour that.”