The Destination Birth by Alex Bisset
What's It About?
Everyone has their own unique birth story. It is a pivotal moment in life that changes the course of a family’s future. For Alex and Lauren, their own birth story would begin a grand adventure that would present its own twist of fate thousands of miles from home.While reading the dramatic and heartwarming true birth story told in The Destination Birth by Alex Bisset, I was reminded of the John Lennon quote, “Life is what happens while you are busy making other plans.” This is so fitting.
Alex and Lauren Bisset were married in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic and were anxious to start their family since they were both in their mid-30s. Before long they discovered they were pregnant and planning for this huge life event began…
Lauren was super organized, so no stone was left unturned. As Alex tells it, “We each read dozens of books. We consulted with family and friends who had already experienced pregnancy, childbirth, and parenthood. We put together a birth plan. We hired a labor doula. We hired a postpartum doula. We were constructing a nursery. Basically, we were checking everything off the endless lists all the books and websites we studied had recommended, and we were going to be the most prepared, diligent parents of all time.” Well, you see where this is going … best-laid plans and all that.
A Destination Wedding and A Surprise Birth
Lauren and Alex, who lived in New York City, were invited to the destination wedding of Alex’s good friend (Alex was even a groomsman) in Montana. Lauren would be 34 weeks pregnant at the time of the wedding and, since 36 weeks is the generally agreed upon “no fly zone” recommendation for pregnant women, the doctors said it would be safe for her to fly to the wedding. No problem! Except “Baby Bisset” had other ideas!
At 6:52 am the morning after the wedding, everything changed and, as Alex says, “I awoke to my wife uttering the seven words that would change our lives forever and begin the most unexpected adventure we had ever experienced, ‘Babe, I think my water just broke.’”
Not only were they over 2000 miles from home, but they were in the middle of nowhere, with no car, and 30 minutes from the nearest hospital and an hour away from one equipped to handle an early delivery. Add to that a bit of a hangover on Alex’s part … remember, this was early in the morning after a friend’s wedding! Not exactly the best situation.
Humor, Heart and an Unforgettable Story
The story is told from Alex’s perspective as the dad, and his writing is conversational and engaging with lots of humor thrown in. The chapters are short which makes for an easy, quick read and Alex is honest and open about the situation and his feelings. His reflections are candid and his revelations are inspiring and hopeful. He and Lauren are a great supportive couple, and they were helped by a fantastic medical team, as well as friends, friends of friends, and strangers who all came to their aid.
Once their “tiny Montana cowgirl,” named Everly Montana Bisset, was born and ready to go home (after several weeks), there was then the problem of HOW to get home! They naively thought that once she was off the machines and healthy enough to leave the hospital, they would just hop on the next flight home. That was not the case!
With such a young newborn, a commercial airplane was out of the question, a private jet was way too expensive, and such a long car ride in a car seat was just undoable. What was left? A train! Doable! And, so the “Get Evy Home Checklist” began.
Alex says, “We grew as people and entered adulthood … over those 3 weeks in Montana and the trek home … There’s so much we learned and still even more we don’t know, but there are a handful of lessons we’ll never forget…”
Among these include never underestimating the kindness of strangers, knowing that people will always be there for you in a crisis, that family is a life blessing and, maybe most importantly, don’t fly anywhere anytime close to your due date!
On a sweet ending note and in the spirit of gratefulness and giving back, 10% of the proceeds from the sale of The Destination Birth are being donated to the Bozeman-Deaconness Hospital NICU in Montana … bringing it all full circle.
About Alex Bisset:
Alex Bisset was born and raised in Fairfield, Connecticut and has a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Wisconsin—Madison. Alex considers his family and friends to be most important to him, and spending time with his daughter brings a smile to his face every day. He is an avid outdoorsman and adventurer, and loves to exercise, stemming from his time spent as a member of the University of Wisconsin Men’s Varsity Rowing team. Alex has also turned into a bit of a beer snob as he’s gotten older. The Destination Birth is Alex’s first book.
