Lake Co.'s first baby of the new year
The nurses at Lake Forest Hospital got excited when Maria Macias arrived in the labor and delivery area at 8 p.m. Thursday.
"They said, 'We might have the first baby of the year!'" recalls Macias' husband, Jose.
Sure enough, that's what happened.
Juliana Macias was born at 12:55 a.m. Jan. 1, making her Lake County's first baby of 2010 - and also its first baby of the decade.
Juliana weighed in at 7 pounds, 4 ounces and was 19 inches long.
"She's beautiful. To me, she's the most beautiful child I've ever seen in the world," an emotional Jose Macias said.
The idea of having a New Year's baby never even crossed the Macias' minds. Being first-time parents, the Waukegan couple were focused on doing what the doctors told them.
"I didn't even think about what day it was," said Maria, 26, who works as a regional marketing representative at Baxter BioScience in Deerfield.
"She's already a star," joked Jose.
After Juliana was born, Jose Macias wept with joy and told his wife, Maria, "I loved you before, but I love you even more now." He also repeatedly told Maria how proud he was of her, and how much strength she displayed. Maria chose not to have any pain killers during labor or delivery.
"There was no screaming like in the movies," said Jose, 26, a truck driver. "I was just crying. It's an amazing feeling. You cant describe it ... you just have to live through it to understand. I wouldn't have missed it for anything."
<div class="infoBox"> <h1>More Coverage</h1> <div class="infoBoxContent"> <div class="infoArea"> <h2>Stories</h2> <ul class="links"> <li><a href="/story/?id=348012">Northwest suburban's first baby of the new year<span class="date">[01/01/10]</span></a></li> <li><a href="/story/?id=348014">Fox Valley's first baby of the new year <span class="date">[01/01/10]</span></a></li> <li><a href="/story/?id=348008">Aurora-area's first baby of the new year <span class="date">[01/01/10]</span></a></li> <li><a href="/story/?id=347996">DuPage Co.'s first babies of the new year <span class="date">[01/01/10]</span></a></li> <li><a href="/story/?id=347991">Lake Co.'s first baby of the new year <span class="date">[01/01/10]</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div>