McALLEN — New Year’s Day is the start of resolutions for many, but for Edinburg parents Sergio Rodriguez, 20, and Juliana Gallegos, 17, it marked the beginning of a new journey.
The couple welcomed a new baby girl, Mia Isabella, born at about 11:15 a.m. Wednesday. For South Texas Health Systems, Mia is the first baby to be delivered at McAllen Medical Center. She weighed 8 pounds and 5 ounces.
Mia is Sergio and Juliana’s second child. She has an older sister who is a year old. The older sibling had yet to meet Mia on Wednesday morning.
“(It feels) pretty good,” Sergio said in response to welcoming Mia at the start of not only the new year, but the new decade.
When Juliana gave birth to her first child, she was asleep. Mia, on the other hand, was born earlier, so her mother was awake through it all and was able to hold her baby girl.
“I held her when they had got her out,” Juliana said. “I got so excited.”
The night before, Juliana watched the fireworks through her hospital room’s windows. She expected Mia’s arrival because her C-section appointment was set for Jan. 1.
“I had a feeling, me and (Sergio’s) mom …” Juliana recalls. “They’re going to tell me New Year’s. Watch.”
While Juliana knew Mia would come on New Year’s Day, she wasn’t expecting just how soon she’d arrive.
“I just expected to have her later in the day, because my C-section was until 11 (a.m.),” Juliana said. “I was supposed to get prepped and everything at eleven, but I got prepped like around eight or nine.”
While joking about Mia hearing the fireworks the night before, Juliana said she knew Mia was going to break her water because she needed to use the restroom frequently.
“She was anxious,” Juliana said.
Juliana’s mother, grandmother and cousin all joined the happy couple. Juliana said Mia is her mother’s second grandchild and her grandmother’s fourth great-grandchild.
As she spoke, her mother, Marisol, put gloves on Mia’s small hands and brought her over to Juliana, calling her “cutie” in Spanish.
“It feels exciting,” Marisol said about Mia being born on New Year’s Day. “She’s my second granddaughter.”
In the neighboring city, the first baby delivered at Edinburg Regional Medical Center was a baby boy.
Parents Kimberly Puente and Tomas Maldonado Jr. welcomed Ezekiel Maldonado at 12:21 p.m. Ezekiel weighed 6 pounds and 11 ounces.
