thedrifter
06-15-08, 08:46 AM
Birth shared thousands of miles away
By Karin Hill
JONESBORO — Reeve Arce was a long way from home, serving with the U.S. Marines in Iraq, when his wife, Britney, gave birth to their first child in February.
He had to wait more than two months before meeting his son, so this Father’s Day is a reminder for him of how special that first day was.
“I guess I never really learned to appreciate Father’s Day before ... but to me it’ll mean a lot more since I’m a father for the first time,” he said. “And I’ll remember everything I had to go through to see him for the first time.”
Reeve had been in Iraq since September, sometimes going three or four weeks without being able to talk to Britney. And it had been more than a week before her due date since their last conversation, so they were thrilled when he got his hands on a satellite phone just in time to hear her go through labor on Feb. 12.
“She had her cell phone on the bed next to her, and I just sat there and listened for two to three hours,” Reeve said. “And I could hear everyone say ‘push, push, push,’ and then all of a sudden everyone made a lot of noise, and I could hear the baby screaming. I actually cried like a little girl.”
They named the baby boy Asher, after one of the tribes of Israel. Reeve had picked out the name long before they knew she was pregnant. He said whenever he talked to Iraqis about his baby, they tried to convince him to choose an Arabic name instead. But everyone was very happy for him, and some of the Iraqi children gave him toys to take home to his son.
How it all began
Reeve joined the Marines in 2002. Previously a resident of Indiana, he was living in Jonesboro with his father John, a strength and conditioning coach for the Arkansas State University football team.
He met Britney, his sister’s friend, while he was back home for a visit the summer of 2003. A year later Britney moved to Jonesboro, and both attended ASU. They married in January 2006.
Reeve’s deployment to Iraq began in April 2007 with several months of training at locations around the United States. He came home to Jonesboro for one visit in May, and in July he traveled to see the rest of his family in Indiana, where Britney joined him.
Britney became pregnant during that May visit and had to tell her husband the good news several weeks later over the phone while he was training at a shooting range in North Carolina.
“He called me, and we both thought we could be [pregnant],” she said. “I was honestly scared at first because all my family was in Indiana, and he wasn’t going to be here.”
The cell phone had poor reception, so all Britney could say was “I’m pregnant,” and all she could hear in response was “I’m excited.”
“And that was pretty much the whole conversation,” she said.
Just before he shipped off to Iraq in September, Reeve had a 4-day leave in California.
“So I flew out to see him, and he actually got to feel him kick,” Britney said. “We had just found out it was a boy.”
The next few months were difficult for the couple, but Britney stayed busy working and attending school.
“It wasn’t that great of a feeling, but I was excited to be a daddy,” Reeve said. “At the same time I was a little depressed that I was going to miss everything. I was stressed out, but other guys that had their own kids — they were excited for me.”
In December Britney stopped working but continued school at the start of the second term. A cousin came to stay with her for a few weeks, and then her mother arrived in time to help her have the baby.
Britney had mailed Reeve photos of herself on a regular basis so he could see her growing. He rarely had Internet access, so she always included them in the care packages she made for him.
The day she went into the hospital to give birth, Britney took a chance and sent her husband a message on the Web site Facebook. He got the message in time to call her during labor.
“It all worked out kinda nicely,” he said.
The next day Reeve was able to use the computer again, this time with a Web camera that allowed him to see Britney and Asher via her laptop at the hospital. Asher was about 12 hours old at the time.
The final stretch
Reeve came back to the United States in April. After a 10-day stop in North Carolina, he arrived at Camp Robinson in North Little Rock on April 25.
When he got off the bus, Britney ran through the crowd and gave him a big hug. Reeve’s mother walked over holding Asher and handed the baby to the proud father for the first time.
“And I didn’t let him go the whole time we were there,” Reeve said. “I was happy because he wasn’t nervous or weird towards me. He just laid his head on my chest and fell asleep.”
In the weeks since then, father and son have had a lot of time to bond. Reeve said Asher has been a good distraction for him since coming home and has helped him transition back to normal life.
Britney graduated from ASU with a bachelor’s degree in nursing in May, and Reeve plans to finish his degree in civil engineering this summer.
He has two years to go on his contract for inactive reserves with the Marines and said his chances of being redeployed are slim. For now he’s focused on his family, saying he and his wife plan to have more children in the future.
“I’m just glad to be a father now,” he said.
khill@jonesborosun.com
Ellie
By Karin Hill
JONESBORO — Reeve Arce was a long way from home, serving with the U.S. Marines in Iraq, when his wife, Britney, gave birth to their first child in February.
He had to wait more than two months before meeting his son, so this Father’s Day is a reminder for him of how special that first day was.
“I guess I never really learned to appreciate Father’s Day before ... but to me it’ll mean a lot more since I’m a father for the first time,” he said. “And I’ll remember everything I had to go through to see him for the first time.”
Reeve had been in Iraq since September, sometimes going three or four weeks without being able to talk to Britney. And it had been more than a week before her due date since their last conversation, so they were thrilled when he got his hands on a satellite phone just in time to hear her go through labor on Feb. 12.
“She had her cell phone on the bed next to her, and I just sat there and listened for two to three hours,” Reeve said. “And I could hear everyone say ‘push, push, push,’ and then all of a sudden everyone made a lot of noise, and I could hear the baby screaming. I actually cried like a little girl.”
They named the baby boy Asher, after one of the tribes of Israel. Reeve had picked out the name long before they knew she was pregnant. He said whenever he talked to Iraqis about his baby, they tried to convince him to choose an Arabic name instead. But everyone was very happy for him, and some of the Iraqi children gave him toys to take home to his son.
How it all began
Reeve joined the Marines in 2002. Previously a resident of Indiana, he was living in Jonesboro with his father John, a strength and conditioning coach for the Arkansas State University football team.
He met Britney, his sister’s friend, while he was back home for a visit the summer of 2003. A year later Britney moved to Jonesboro, and both attended ASU. They married in January 2006.
Reeve’s deployment to Iraq began in April 2007 with several months of training at locations around the United States. He came home to Jonesboro for one visit in May, and in July he traveled to see the rest of his family in Indiana, where Britney joined him.
Britney became pregnant during that May visit and had to tell her husband the good news several weeks later over the phone while he was training at a shooting range in North Carolina.
“He called me, and we both thought we could be [pregnant],” she said. “I was honestly scared at first because all my family was in Indiana, and he wasn’t going to be here.”
The cell phone had poor reception, so all Britney could say was “I’m pregnant,” and all she could hear in response was “I’m excited.”
“And that was pretty much the whole conversation,” she said.
Just before he shipped off to Iraq in September, Reeve had a 4-day leave in California.
“So I flew out to see him, and he actually got to feel him kick,” Britney said. “We had just found out it was a boy.”
The next few months were difficult for the couple, but Britney stayed busy working and attending school.
“It wasn’t that great of a feeling, but I was excited to be a daddy,” Reeve said. “At the same time I was a little depressed that I was going to miss everything. I was stressed out, but other guys that had their own kids — they were excited for me.”
In December Britney stopped working but continued school at the start of the second term. A cousin came to stay with her for a few weeks, and then her mother arrived in time to help her have the baby.
Britney had mailed Reeve photos of herself on a regular basis so he could see her growing. He rarely had Internet access, so she always included them in the care packages she made for him.
The day she went into the hospital to give birth, Britney took a chance and sent her husband a message on the Web site Facebook. He got the message in time to call her during labor.
“It all worked out kinda nicely,” he said.
The next day Reeve was able to use the computer again, this time with a Web camera that allowed him to see Britney and Asher via her laptop at the hospital. Asher was about 12 hours old at the time.
The final stretch
Reeve came back to the United States in April. After a 10-day stop in North Carolina, he arrived at Camp Robinson in North Little Rock on April 25.
When he got off the bus, Britney ran through the crowd and gave him a big hug. Reeve’s mother walked over holding Asher and handed the baby to the proud father for the first time.
“And I didn’t let him go the whole time we were there,” Reeve said. “I was happy because he wasn’t nervous or weird towards me. He just laid his head on my chest and fell asleep.”
In the weeks since then, father and son have had a lot of time to bond. Reeve said Asher has been a good distraction for him since coming home and has helped him transition back to normal life.
Britney graduated from ASU with a bachelor’s degree in nursing in May, and Reeve plans to finish his degree in civil engineering this summer.
He has two years to go on his contract for inactive reserves with the Marines and said his chances of being redeployed are slim. For now he’s focused on his family, saying he and his wife plan to have more children in the future.
“I’m just glad to be a father now,” he said.
khill@jonesborosun.com
Ellie