He thought he was giving himself plenty of time to make it back to the United States for the birth of his first child, but Army Sgt. Francois Clerfe's daughter made sure he cut it close.
Clerfe was in Iraq, and hopped on his first flight Dec. 23 for Kuwait. He ended up taking 10 flights and traveling 8,000 miles, finally making it to Monterey, California, on Dec. 31 — more than a week ahead of his daughter's Jan. 9 due date. Not long after he arrived home, Clerfe went for a walk with his wife, Natalia Svistunova, and she almost immediately went into labor.
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