UFA coordinator bringing baby home

Bernard Little, area coordinator for the University Forest Apartments, Atlantic House, Pacific House and Thomas Hall, and his wife, Krystal, will be bringing their baby home to the University of Richmond's campus. The couple is expecting a girl, Peyton Yvonne Little, who is due on Oct. 28, 2010.

As area coordinator, Bernard is required to live on campus and is a resident of UFA. Since finding out the news of Krystal's pregnancy, the two have been hurrying to baby-ready their apartment, and more importantly, their lives.

"Bernard and I have been doing a lot to prepare for the baby," said Krystal, a mortgage underwriter at Provident Funding. "One of the most important things we have done is spending time with one another and enjoying our last few moments with just the two of us."

Along with spending time with one another, the couple has changed their life insurance plan to include Peyton, prepared the nursery -- which will be Pooh Bear yellow -- and attended 11 baby classes.

Bernard said he had been tending to all of Krystal's motherly cravings, which have included ice cream, Frosted Flakes, hot dogs on the grill and any beef, although Krystal said she liked all those foods before.

"I've just been trying to pamper Krystal as much as possible to keep her happy," Bernard said. "One of the hardest things is that if she's uncomfortable I can't do anything, so I try to cater to her in any other way as much as possible."

As far as baby-proofing the apartment, they have cut down on furniture and switched bedrooms.

On Fridays, the apartments can be especially rowdy, Bernard said, so the two have moved the nursery to the back room of the apartment in hope of diminishing some of the noise. The couple placed the crib away from the wall and, depending on the noise, will create an internal sound barrier -- such as the sound of a running fan -- to calm the outside noises. No additional soundproofing has been installed in the apartment.

"So far the neighbors have been relatively quiet, so I just hope and pray it stays that way," Bernard said.

The Littles have apartment neighbors on only one side. Their next-door neighbors said that they were excited to see the baby.

Senior and next-door neighbor Lauren Osterndorf said because the Littles live in a one-story apartment with their bedrooms on the first floor and that she and her apartmentmates' bedrooms were on the second floor, she did not think Peyton's crying would be an issue.

"I love babies so I'm really excited because I want to play with her," she said. "I would definitely watch her."

Senior and fellow next-door neighbor Megan Stephenson said: "I think it's really cute. We're excited and they're friendly neighbors. It feels like a real neighborhood."

As an area coordinator, Bernard is responsible for monitoring designated buildings on weekends and evenings, which he was able to complete at the beginning of the semester, in order to ensure his availability for Peyton's birth.

"I'm really fortunate to work in an office that is so supportive," Bernard said. "Family is so important in our offices and they have allowed me to take as much time as I need."

The couple agreed that although having a baby on campus will be different, they will experience the same growing pains that all couples have.

"Having the baby in October is plenty of time for a trial run and we may find we need to be in an environment more conducive to having a baby," Bernard said.

As for now, the couple has just been celebrating Peyton's coming arrival.

"Not everyone has the opportunity to have children and provide a good lifestyle for them," Bernard said. "We're truly blessed in that regard."

The Littles met their senior year at Bowling Green State University in Ohio as undergraduates. Bernard was student body president and Krystal was financial administrator for undergraduate programming and their offices were across the hall from one another.

They always overheard each other talking in their offices and the two began conversing. They encountered each other more frequently and the rest was history. Bernard attended graduate school in Miami and Krystal moved there a year later. The two then moved to Richmond.

Although it remains unclear, it is believed that Peyton will be the first newborn to live on the University of Richmond campus.

Contact staff writer Sarah Bowers at sarah.bowers@richmond.edu