The Thanksgiving holiday was made extra special this year for two local families who welcomed their newborn sons - and new cousins - at Emerson Hospital. Meghan and David Branco from Littleton welcomed Dylan Fitzgerald, their third child, who was born at 8:44 a.m. on November 22. Meghan’s sister, Kerryn Mui and her husband Brandon, from Chelmsford, welcomed Andrew Ryan, their second child, who was born at 8:25 p.m. on Thanksgiving. The sisters and their spouses all grew up in Chelmsford.
“We never thought that we would deliver our babies so close together,” explained Meghan. She was due on November 26, several days after Kerryn’s due date. When her son was born early and just two days before his cousin arrived, the families were grateful they had celebrated Thanksgiving together two weeks’ ago at their mother’s home in Chelmsford.
On Thanksgiving evening, Meghan received a call in her hospital room from her mother who said, ‘You have a friend in the area!’ meaning that her sister was about to deliver her baby at Emerson. “It is fun to be at Emerson together with our newborns,” said Kerryn.
Emerson’s maternity nurses arranged to have the sisters’ rooms next door to each other so they could easily meet each other’s babies and all of the family members could celebrate together. “People have been so wonderful and very helpful,” said David, Meghan’s husband, who was born two days before Christmas. “I understand what it is like to have a birthday so close to a major holiday. It adds extra specialness to the holiday.”
The families chose to deliver their babies at Emerson because Kerryn and Brandon had a great experience at the hospital when their older son was born there two and a half years ago. Throughout their recovery, the sisters had lots of opportunities for skin-to-skin bonding with their babies. In addition, they appreciated that the newborn tests were conducted in their rooms instead of in the nursery so that they could hold and nurse their babies during the exams.
“Having babies during Thanksgiving week, and on Thanksgiving makes us super grateful. We have healthy babies and it’s our favorite holiday,” said David. When asked how the families are planning to celebrate Thanksgiving next year, the sisters laughed and said, “We won’t have a baby next year!” Instead, their one-year-old sons will join their older cousins at the holiday table.
Dylan was delivered by Dr. Christina Pyo of AFA Obstetrics and Gynecology and assisted by labor and delivery nurses Keri Haight and Maureen Fitzgerald. Andrew was delivered by Dr. Vlassis Travias of Concord OB/GYN and assisted by labor and delivery nurses Deb McGonagle and Heidi Felt. Both boys weighed seven pounds, eight ounces when they were born.
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Emerson Hospital is a multi-site health system headquartered in Concord, Mass., with additional facilities in Sudbury, Groton and Westford. The 179-bed hospital provides advanced medical services to more than 300,000 individuals in 25 towns. To learn more, visit www.emersonhospital.org.
