His great-grandfather served in the Air Force, his grandfather served in the Navy, his father served in the Marines; and four years ago, James Register followed suit by joining the United States Marine Corps. An Orlando native, Cpl. James Register is currently serving our country on his first deployment in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. Now stationed at Camp Leatherneck, Cpl. Register and his wife Rachael have relied on digital media, like Skype and Facebook, for frequent communication. “I was offered advice (from fellow Marines) to keep in constant contact,” says Cpl. Register. “It’s important to share (with your family) that you are interested in what’s going on at home (despite the deployment circumstances).”

The video chat that transpired on September 17^th was one that Cpl. Register will treasure for the rest of his life. Clutching tightly to his laptop, Cpl. Register spoke words of encouragement to Rachael who was in labor with the couple’s first child. Thanks to modern real-time technology and though 7,000 miles apart, newborn Hailey Nicole Register (weighing in at 7 pounds, 15 ounces) cried in tandem with her camouflage-clad father. “It hit a spot in me,” explained Register. “I can’t really explain it. It gave me new life. It gave me one more reason to keep going even if the world starts crumbling around me…it was a new sense of purpose.”

The couple’s pregnancy began during Register’s hectic schedule of deployment preparations which took him to multiple bases for intense drills. “You kind of go crazy,” Cpl. Register recalled. “You think about it; and you’re like, ‘I’m bringing a kid into the world and I’m not even going to be there for the first three or four months…for her.” As he traveled from coast to coast to complete military training exercises, the Register’s exchanged phone calls and occasional video chats. He admits, “I was afraid something was going to happen (to my wife during the pregnancy). That was always a prominent thought in my head ‘I’m not there; something could happen.’”

Prior to his deployment, Cpl. Register participated in as many pregnancy-related activities as possible, including the selection of baby items and even the baby shower. “It’s not the norm to be at the shower, but I was. It was my opportunity,” he explains. After his departure to foreign soil in July, Cpl. Register continued to read baby books and remained engaged with the gestational progress. “I knew coming into this that no matter what, when she (the baby) came into the world I was going to be there,” said Register. “It meant I’m not coming home to pick up pieces and try to put a puzzle together. I’m there from the start, and I’m going to be there until the very end.”

The due date came and went with no baby and increased nervous anticipation for both parents-to-be. A week later, Rachael began induced labor and Cpl. Register left his work space with one order: “Come back when you have a baby.” However, nature doesn’t abide by military order; the afternoon led into the evening and early next morning, all the while with typed messages and cherished digital images. Finally, 16 hours of exhaustion quickly transitioned into quiet euphoria. A reinvigorated Register hunched over his computer screen to Skype with someone he had never met before ─ his daughter.

“It’s a bunch of emotions rolled into one that you can’t really describe,” said Register, recalling the moment his daughter took her first breath. “Whenever you hear your son or daughter’s first cries and you see them for the first time, it will melt you. It will take down every defense you had up.” Next month, the Registers will celebrate their second wedding anniversary…most likely via video chat. He intends to remain in the Marine Corps after this deployment, return to his Winter Garden residence, and expand his family.

Happy Veteran’s Day

On Veteran’s Day in November (and always), Orlando Family Magazine salutes and honors the service of our brave veterans!

• “Veteran’s Day is a holiday where we cherish our freedom. For those of us who are Veterans, we take it as a sense of pride. (Americans)…Never forget the sacrifices we made.” ─ Corporal James Register
• “As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.” ─ John F. Kennedy
• “Honor to the soldier and sailor everywhere, who bravely bears his country’s cause. Honor to him…who braves for the common good, the storms of Heaven, and the storms of battle.” ─ Abraham Lincoln

We invite you to express your gratitude to all veterans by commenting on this blog.