Meet the first babies of 2019 who arrived seconds after midnight
A number of babies were born in Ireland just seconds past midnight as we welcomed the New Year.
Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda had the pleasure of bringing the first Irish baby into the world just three seconds past midnight.
Parents Michelle Montague and Simon Cox welcomed their baby girl Maeve who weighed 7lbs 4oz shortly after midnight.
Midwife at the hospital, Ciara Dunne, said that both mother and baby and doing well.
We were all ecstatic when we found out this morning that the first baby was born here. Mum and baby are doing great.
"We're all proud."
The National Maternity Hospital (NMH) in Dublin saw a baby born just 27 seconds after midnight.
She weighed 8lbs 5 oz.
Cork University Maternity Hospital welcomed a baby boy into the world just minutes after midnight. The baby weighed 7lbs 9oz.
Marie and Niall O'Brien, from Grallagh, Grange, Co Waterford welcomed new years baby boy Joey Kieran O'Brien, born at four minutes past midnight.
Conor and Aisling McKenna, from Milltown Malbay, Co Clare, became first-time parents to the first baby born on New Year’s Day in the mid-west region.
Mary McKenna, weighing 7lbs 5oz, entered the world at 2.20am at University Maternity Hospital Limerick (UMHL).
For Conor and Aisling - who are both primary school teachers - it was “a very positive experience”.
Conor, a teacher at Inch National School, explained: “things started moving around 4pm yesterday”.
The 10-hour delivery “went very well” he said.
Praising staff, he said:
We had a very good consultant, Dr John Slevin, and midwives, who helped us through it. It was all a very positive experience, and we couldn’t speak highly enough of the staff here in Limerick.
"Conor, who was present for the birth, described it as “good, very different, but very positive.
“Aisling is doing great at the moment. I’m feeling great, over the moon,” he added.
Praising his wife, he said: “I’m very proud of Aisling. She had done a lot of preparation over the last few months (and) it all paid off for her so I’m delighted for her.”
