EACH year a handful of miracles occur on Christmas Day at Warrington Hospital, when parents get the greatest present of all – the chance to finally meet their newborn baby.
And 2024 has been no exception, with six babies in total being born on the same day as the birth of Jesus Christ.
We spoke to the families of five of the babies who were welcomed by Warrington Hospital’s maternity ward on December 25.
‘It was a big shock’
Baby Addison Farren pictured with mum Phoebe Farren (Image: Supplied) Phoebe Farren, 18, from Bury, welcomed her baby girl into the world at 9.05pm on Christmas Day.
Baby Addison, who shares the same surname as her mother, was not due to be born for another two months, but came eight weeks early to the shock of Phoebe. She weighed only 3lb 14oz at birth.
Speaking on the birth of her newborn, Phoebe said: “It was a big shock, I was not expecting it at all. I did lose a lot of blood and had to have a blood transfusion but everything is okay.”
Referring to baby Addison’s condition, she added: “She is getting a lot of support at the moment and we are both still in hospital but she is OK.”
‘She is a dream’
Baby Maia-Raye Chambers (Image: Supplied) Jade Llewellyn, 33, from Latchford, welcomed her third child and first daughter at 2.52pm on Christmas Day, despite holding out for as long as she could to make sure she could see her two boys open their Christmas presents.
Baby Maia-Raye Chambers was not due to be born until January 2, but came early to the surprise of her family, weighing 6lb 7oz.
Jade described her chaotic Christmas morning, waking her two boys, aged fourteen and four, up early at 7am in the hope of watching them unwrap their gifts.
“I started getting contractions at 4am,” she told the Warrington Guardian. “I was waiting for the kids to open their presents and then had to go straight to the hospital.”
“We came home the day after she was born on Boxing Day because she was all fine. She is a dream, she has been absolutely fantastic.”
The mum-of-three told of being convinced she was having another boy when she first found out she had fallen pregnant, adding that Maia-Raye is an ‘amazing’ addition to their family.
‘It feels like a miracle’
Baby Rome Aspden (Image: Supplied) Katie Lowe, 27, and Matty Aspden, 25, from Worsley, Manchester, met their bundle of joy, baby Rome Aspden on Christmas Day evening in Warrington Hospital.
The couple, who are set to move to Warrington in the coming months, welcomed Rome at 8.35pm, despite Katie’s waters breaking two days prior on December 23.
She told how her and dad, Matty, had wanted to avoid the date of Christmas Day, initially hoping she would have been there as an early Christmas present, with Katie’s due date set at December 19.
However, just under a week later, Katie was induced at 9.50am on the morning of December 25.
“The birth went OK. I had gas and air and morphine. The midwives were amazing, one of them stayed with us for an hour over the end of her shift to make sure we were OK.
“We had midwives Maria and Isabelle, one of them gifted us with a knitted Santa hat and cardigan for the baby to wear. Another midwife Lauren joined us later to help with the birth.”
Baby Rome weighed 7lb 12oz at birth and was able to go home the next day on Boxing Day.
“It feels like a miracle,” Katie said, referring to him being born on Christmas Day.
“It just feels so special now, the day,” Matty added.
‘I feel like I can enjoy Christmas Day again now’
Baby Millie-Mae Antonia Buckley (Image: Supplied)For Jemma Ball, Christmas Day has been tainted since the loss of her Grandma four years ago.
But the birth of her baby daughter this December 25 has brought a whole new meaning and happiness to the day.
Jemma, 32, from Walton, welcomed her third daughter Millie-Mae Antonia Buckley eight days early and weighing 7lb 11oz at birth.
A long birth, the mum-of-three was admitted to Warrington Hospital on December 22 to be induced, but did not go into actual labour until 4am on the morning of Christmas Day. She was born hours later at 11.31am.
Giving the touching backstory to her newborn’s name, Jemma said: “Her being born on Christmas Day was a bitter sweet thing. She was named after my grandma.
“My grandma went into the hospital on Christmas Day four years ago and never came out and so Christmas has been quite a sad day for me the last few years, but this has changed this for me.”
She continued: “I feel like it was all meant to be and that my grandma has done this so that I can enjoy Christmas Day again.”
The mum added how ‘amazing’ Millie-Mae has been since her birth, naming her the ‘best baby I have ever had’.
‘We have welcomed our third boy to the family’
Baby Matei Moraru pictured with his two older brothers (Image: Supplied) A family of four has grown to five as of Christmas Day for Latchford resident Irina Dronic.
The 28-year-old experienced the best present of all when her baby boy Matei Moraru was born in the early hours of December 25 at Warrington Hospital.
Her and dad, Radu, had been given a due date of December 18, but to their surprise, their newborn arrived at 12.37am, with Irina having only entered the hospital minutes before at midnight.
Matei weighed 3lb 46oz and the couple described their happiness of him being born on Christmas Day.
“We thought that it would be a girl but we have three boys now. He is good and growing healthily,” the mum-of-three said.