Before Colleen was born, Rosie (right) and her friend Tracy (left) took this picture. That's Reagan in Tracy's tummy, who was born Jan. 2, about a week after the picture was taken.

Rosie's pregnancy was pretty uneventful. She loved being pregnant and worked really hard to eat the right foods and get exercise. Rosie and Troy studied a lot of pregnancy and labor books. Every night, dad would talk to the bulge in Rosie's tummy and sing songs. He also acted as the "food police," monitoring Rosie's every move! (However, by the time she was waddling around in the ninth month, he was more than happy to get her all the frozen custard she wanted.) Troy worked just as hard at being a pregnant dad as Rosie did at being a pregnant mom!

This was the very first picture of Colleen taken after she was born.

When Rosie was 38 weeks pregnant, her midwife asked her to have a sonogram to verify whether the baby was head up or head down. It seems little Colleen was starting to make her willful streak known already! The sonogram showed the baby was head down (which Rosie already knew). The coolest part of the test, though, was the crystal clear picture of the face Rosie and Troy got to see. They both recognized the nose in the picture as belonging to Troy! They couldn't wait to see this little one and find out if he or she really would look like dad.

When the time came and Colleen finally slide into the delivery room, there was no doubt who her dad was! Every once in a while, she shows a few characteristics that might belong to her mother. But, for the most part, she is daddy's girl.

What's in a name?
There was a lot of thought put into little Colleen's name. Troy and Rosie probably went through two or three hundred ideas before they settled on Colleen Amelia. They wanted a named that sounded strong and not too trendy. They liked the idea of naming a baby after a historical or literary figure. They wanted a positive feel behind the name.

After much search the names Colleen and Amelia both rose as potential candidates simply because Rosie and Troy liked the sound of them. Other top names were Marie, Eileen and Catherine.

Rosie fell in love with the name Colleen because it sounded like a strong Irish name to her. However, neither Troy or Rosie could think of anyone in history or literature with the name. The only people with the name they could think of were Colleen Moore, who Rosie knew as the person who donated a miniature collection to the Science and Industry Museum in Chicago, and Colleen from the show Survivor. So, they set out to do some research.

Daddy's little girl.

What they found was that Colleen is a Gaelic word the means "girl." So, although it is certainly Irish in origin, Irish people would not name anyone Colleen, just like an American would not name a daughter Girl. The name was "invented" in the 1920s for silent film star Colleen Moore, of the miniature castle fame with which Rosie was familiar. After that time, the name became popular among Irish-Americans because of its Irish feel. Does anyone remember the series Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman? The daughter in that show, Colleen, is misnamed, since the series was set long before the name was created.

The midwife who helped daddy deliver Colleen.

So, that explains the lack of historical and literary figures with the name. However, Rosie was already sold on the name because it was the first name they both liked that didn't rank in the top 200 most common names for girls! Also, she really liked the idea that a little girl of theirs could take the name and make it her own. Their Colleen could become the first really famous scientist, author, doctor, race car driver, Olympic athlete, business woman, president or whatever she wanted to be! Perhaps her unusual name would help her stand out.

They hoped that the success of the show Survivor would not have much impact on the popularity of the name. Most of the names high in popularity are from movies and television. However, both Troy and Rosie felt those survivors had already had their 15 minutes of fame, so the pretty Colleen from that show would soon fade from people's memories. Of course, the month after Colleen Maynard was born, Colleen from Survivor started appearing on talk shows promoting her new movie with Rob Schneider! (Apparently, she's going for 30 minutes of fame.) Oh well.

Sandy, the nurse who stayed with Rosie and probably kept her from having a c-section!

Since Colleen has been born, she has been known around the house by a variety of names. Dad's favorites are Booger and My Little Black-Eyed Pea. Mom likes to call her Sugar Bug, Bunny or Baby Doll.

The Grandma Brigade
When Rosie was admitted to the hospital to have Colleen, things were a little topsy-turvy. Troy and Rosie had planned on being at a nearby birth center, rather than the hospital, and other parts of their plan for a natural birth were being tossed out the window because of the long labor Rosie was experiencing. So, when Rosie was settled at the hospital, Troy called the parents and asked them to come to the hospital. The possibility of a c-section was starting to loom on the horizon and Troy needed all the moral support he could get.

Colleen's first visitors, from left: Grandma Kearby, Great-Aunt Ramona and Grandma Blankenship.

Rosie's aunt Ramona, who lives nearby, came to the hospital first and talked with them for a while. A nurse for about 50 years, her presence was reassuring. Troy's mom and Rosie's mom arrived soon. After a quick visit with Rosie, they went to the waiting room to let her rest. Since Rosie had spent three nights without sleep, she was out once the drugs hit. So, Troy went to visit with the grandmas in the waiting room.

Peace at last!

After Colleen was born and Rosie and Troy were spending a few minutes getting to know her, the hospital "bodyguard," Dolores, popped her head in the room. A tiny older woman who didn't appear the least bit foreboding, Dolores had quite the reputation for keeping visitors where they belonged. She was stopping by to let us know that there were some very interested white-haired women peeking through the glass doors separating the visitors area from the delivery rooms. Apparently, they had heard Colleen's first words to the world! Dolores said she'd keep them in line until the parents gave the word. Rosie and Troy spent a few more minutes with their new baby and then invited them in. So, Grandma Blankenship, Grandma Kearby and Great-Aunt Ramona were the first people to meet and hold Colleen outside of her parents.