Just two minutes after the beginning of 2023, BC’s first baby of the new year was born in Abbotsford. At qathet General Hospital, the first baby of the year waited a couple more days to make an entrance.
On January 3, the local hospital recorded its first birth of 2023 at 2:53 pm, when parents Hanna Madden and Garrett Huber welcomed their baby boy into the world. Maclean Emmitt Huber weighed six pounds, 15 ounces.
“Garrett and I are over the moon,” said Madden. “When our baby was born, Garrett announced to me that the baby was a boy, and suddenly everything in life seemed to make sense.”
Perhaps a sign of good things to come, Maclean has been eating like a champ, according to his mother, and qathet’s first baby of 2023 has been letting his parents sleep more than they expected.
“He sleeps well, and is a pretty happy baby; he’s been a dream come true,” added Madden. “Mom and dad are endlessly in love with our new little man.”
Maclean is the first baby for the couple, but he had a few furry four-legged members of the family as part of his welcoming committee at home.
“All of our pets are welcoming him wonderfully, our dog Sullivan and two cats, Hank and Henry,” explained Madden. “Maclean is also lucky to have both sets of very excited grandparents in town, Katja and Dan Huber and Jessica and Don Madden. Plus he has lots of aunties and uncles, and great-grandparents here, too.”
Both parents are thankful for the team of caregivers who helped bring Maclean into the world.
“A massive thank-you goes to the hospital in general, and especially to our midwife Eline, and nurses Emma and Sarah, who were all a part of the delivery of our beautiful baby boy,” added Madden. “We can’t remember how we lived without him before he was here. Mac arrived 10 days early, which just means 10 more days of loving him.”
Approximately 40,000 babies are expected to be born in British Columbia in 2023, according to BC’s Ministry of Health.
