news-record.com

GREENSBORO — When Cameron Paschall arrived at The Women’s Hospital at 6 a.m. Thursday, she was sure she’d have a New Year’s Eve baby.

But Walker Linton Paschall had other plans. He entered the world at 1:01 a.m. Friday, becoming the first baby of the new year born at the hospital.

Walker isn’t the first in his family to make such a momentous entry.

His maternal grandmother was the first baby born in Morganton in 1940, Cameron Paschall said.

“We have a family tradition now. We have another New Year’s baby,” she said.

Walker weighed 9 pounds, 7 ounces and was delivered by cesarean section to Cameron, 32, and her husband Stephen Paschall of Greensboro.

Walker was due Dec. 27. Cameron said she had skipped the chapter in her pregnancy book about cesareans.

Having arrived at the hospital at the crack of dawn, Cameron thought for sure Walker would arrive Thursday.

“Seemed like plenty of time to me,” she said. “Apparently, it was not.”

Walker dozed peacefully next to his mother’s bed on Friday afternoon, unaware of his parents’ frequent loving gazes. Stephen Paschall, who works in the News & Record’s interactive department, had all his technological gadgets nearby to record the special moments. A Flip camera captured Walker’s frowns during his first bath, and Paschall’s laptop was used to quickly get the photos on Facebook.

Walker is the first child for the Paschalls, who have been married eight years. The Paschalls knew they were having a boy, but both said they didn’t have a preference.

They also agree on one other thing: Walker will likely have a little brother or sister.

“I think we’d like to have at least one more, eventually,” Cameron said.

Contact Jonnelle Davis at 373-7080 or jonnelle.davis@news-record.com