August 8, 2001 -
Every expectant father goes through it. Theres the excitement of finding out that hes going to be a father. Then theres the period of time where constant vigil must be kept of both the mother and her unborn baby. Then comes the anticipation of the actual event. Every father struggles too, with his own excitement, and worry about a new birth.
Such was the case with Lamu, Mari Belles mate. Mari Belle was pregnant, and ready to deliver, and Lamu was getting seriously nervous. Kyle Brill and his family, the owners of Lamu and Mari Belle were also worried. These two llamas were the pride and joy of the Brill family, and the thought of having a little llama around was "the most exciting gift the wife and I could have ever given the kids," Kyle said. With Mari Belle ready to have her baby, the Brill family needed to give her constant attention, and to be ready at any moment for the big event. But it was hard to watch her all the time; so Kyle decided he would enlist the help of the XCam2 to help him keep an eye on the new mom.
Kyle set up the XCam2 WideEye in his barn where Mari Belle spent most of her time resting and waiting, so that he and the family could keep constant vigil on her. "I was so nervous about it that I would wake up in a cold sweat sometimes," Kyle would say, "wondering if everything was okay." Thanks to the XCam2, all he had to do was turn on the TV and watch and see for himself.
Kyle also set up the EagleEye motion sensor to the back of the barn and hooked it up to a chime in each of the kids room, as well as his own. "After all, it was a family thing." Every time the motion sensor went off, the whole family would congregate around the television in the family room and watch to see if everything was okay. "We knew that once Mari Belle started having the baby," Kyle said, "that Lamu was going to get excited and start pacing the floors. That would set off the EagleEye motion sensor and the chimes would go off over and over again, and that would definitely be a sign that something was about to happen."
Then one night it happened, in the middle of the night when most of these events seem to happen. Mari Belle went into labor. Just as they suspected, Lamu began pacing the barn, and the chimes were going off. The family was quickly up. Mom started some coffee, and dad and the kids ran outside so they could all be there to watch, and in Kyles case, assist. The birth took several hours, and it was exhausting. But alas, Mari Belle gave birth to a beautiful girl. They named her Rosie.
Once the actual birth was over, Mari Belle had her hands full (so to speak) taking care of her little one. And Rosie was a handful (so to speak). But thanks to the XCam2 WideEye, they had a video record of Rosies introduction into life. From the day of her birth, to the time shes ready to be on her own, they will have it all on video.
So on behalf of the entire staff here at X10, we would like to congratulate Lamu and Mari Belle, and to say, "Welcome to the world" to Rosie.
Send comments or feedback on this article to xzone@x10.com
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