photos by Chad Lundquist/Nevada Appeal Paula McMillen holds her daughter, Felicia Lorraine, on Tuesday afternoon at Carson Tahoe Regional Medical Center. The 6-pound, 8-ounce baby girl was born at 8:05 a.m. Tuesday to Paula and Jason McMillen, making her the first baby of 2007 at the hospital.
The parents of Felicia Lorraine McMillen have high hopes for their 6-pound, 8-ounce baby's future.
Not only is she named for her great-grandmother, who was "always so strong and always kind," said Paula McMillen, 31, but Felicia is the first 2007 baby born in Carson City.
Delivered by Dr. Sam Chacon, Felicia Lorraine arrived by Caesarean section at 8:05 a.m. Tuesday, not on New Year's Day, as most hospital staff were expecting. The family was surprised to learn that Felicia was the first New Year's baby born at Carson Tahoe Regional Medical Center. Her parents received a special gift bag from the hospital's auxiliary.
"They told me about half-way through the surgery; I thought they were just joking with me to keep my mind off the pain," said Paula McMillen, who also has an 18-month-old son with husband, Jason McMillen, 32. The family lives in Gardnerville.
Lorraine Scott, Paula's grandmother, didn't live long enough to see her namesake born. She died in August.
"I was able to tell her that I was having a girl and that we were naming her Lorraine," Paula said Tuesday while cradling her new baby. "She just kind of smiled. She was very humble."
Jason, a computer programmer, said it's "still in discussion" whether they will have more children, especially after having two in a row. Paula said both children were a miracle. It took them several years to have their first child. After Kenneth Henry, Paula didn't think she'd be able to get pregnant again.
"I hope she knows how special she is," Paula said to her baby, wrapped in a stripped blanket. "I hope she knows how strong she can be and how smart she can be. I hope I can show that to her. Despite the fact that she has a nerd for a daddy."
It's a joke between the couple, who have been together for 10 years, that she married a computer nerd. Paula is from a blue collar family. Jason earned her father's respect by driving a Ford and drinking a Budweiser with him.
Silently sleeping in her mother's arms, refusing even to open her eyes wide enough for her parents to get a peek, Felicia only cried when they started to unwrap her from her blanket.
"(The nurses) couldn't get over the fact that she's so pink," Paula said.
• Contact reporter Becky Bosshart at bbosshart@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1212.