New Year's Baby -- Champion miss wins prize for 2012

Jacelyn Josephine Baker, the "First Baby of the New Year" 2012, is surrounded by her family, mom and dad Lacey White and Steve Baker of Champion, and brother and sister, Cayden and Addisen. Steve works at DSK Irrigation in Imperial; Lacey works at Pizza Hut in Imperial. Jacelyn's grandparents are Kim and Bill White of Champion and Joanie Powers and Steve Baker Sr., both of Brentwood, California. Her great-grandparents are Wynona White of Imperial and Jerry and Irene Steele of Sterling, Kansas. (Connie Jo Discoe/McCook Daily Gazette)

CHAMPION, Nebraska -- She was early -- 18 days ahead of her due date. But she was also late -- seven days late for a traditional "New Year's Baby." But that's what pretty, petite Jacelyn Josephine Baker is -- the McCook Daily Gazette's first baby of 2012.

Lacey White wasn't expecting the new baby until Jan. 25, and because Cayden and Addisen had arrived on exactly their due dates, she went to work on Jan. 6 as usual.

"I started having contractions at work," Lacey said, "so I called the doctor and went to the hospital." Her contractions were three minutes apart, and then they stopped. "I wasn't having any more contractions, but I kept dilating. I guess she wanted to come," Lacey said, smiling at her new daughter.

Jacelyn Josephine Baker was born Saturday, Jan. 7, at 3:46 a.m. MT, weighing 5 lbs., 13 oz., and measuring 18 1/2 inches long. She was delivered by Dr. Jose Garcia at Chase County Hospital in Imperial.

She's a good baby, her mother says. And her daddy, Steve Baker, agrees. "There's very little crying. She sleeps a lot, and when she's awake, she's just hanging out looking at everybody," he said.

The little girl will have plenty to watch, as big brother Cayden, 7 1/2 years old and a second grader, and big sister Addisen, 4 and in preschool, hover close by, absolutely fascinated. "She's cute," Cayden says. "After she grows up just a little bit, I'll teach her to walk," Addisen promises. Both think they'll keep her.

Her name is "kind of made up," Lacey explained. "Joseph is Steve's middle name, and the 'Lyn' part is after Steve's aunt." Steve's taken to calling her "Baby J."

Steve said they were surprised that their baby, born a whole week into the new year, was still the Gazette's honor baby. Jacelyn is definitely the latest-arriving New Year's Baby in the 86-year history of the Gazette's "New Year's Baby" contest. Before Jacelyn, the latest "First Baby" winners were each born on Jan. 4 -- Erica Dawn Quinn, born in 1986; Nicholas Eugene Lepper, in 1999; and Chloe Marie Weber, in 2009.

As the Gazette's first baby of the new year, Jacelyn wins a package of goodies from the Gazette and Community Hospital of McCook, USave Pharmacy and Medical Supply, McCook Clinic PC, MNB Youth Services, Schmick's Market, Walmart, Tri Valley Health System and Cambridge Memorial Hospital, Quality Urgent Care, Mark's Pharmacy and Weskamp Floral and Gifts.