Mahoning County welcomes first baby of 2021
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BOARDMAN -- Ashley Sellars joked with her fiance, Vincent Lebron, on Thursday about having a New Year's baby.
"I was messing with him, 'I hope you're ready for a baby on the first,'" she said. "Sure enough, that's when she wound up coming."
Sellars, 26, gave birth to Kattleya Lebron at 4:36 a.m. Friday at St. Elizabeth Boardman Hospital. The first baby of the new year born in Mahoning County weighed 5 pounds, 7 ounces and was 19 inches long.
Since Sellars' due date wasn't until Jan. 16, she hadn't seriously considered the possibility of a New Year's baby. She went into labor early Friday morning, and her doctor performed a C-section because Sellars had placenta previa, meaning the baby's placenta partially covered the cervix and blocked the birth canal.
"I worried something might be wrong with her, but she came out a healthy child, God bless," Sellars said. "She'a a tiny little girl, but she's a perfectly health child."
Lebron, 36, wasn't there for the delivery, but he arrived at the hospital after finding someone to watch their other three daughters -- Promise, 6, and twins Alicea and Lola, 5.
"I'm happy she's here and happy she's healthy," he said.
Lebron said he wasn't worried about being outnumbered in a household that now has five females.
"I'm used to it," he said, adding that three of his four children from prior relationships also are girls.
The name Kattleya was inspired by a character played by Zoe Saldana in the 2011 film "Colombiana."
"We both liked the name and never heard it before," Sellars said. "It's also an orchid flower, which is awesome to find out. I didn't know that (when it was picked), and orchid is one of my favorite flowers."
Having a child during the COVID-19 pandemic means that none of Kattleya's siblings have seen their baby sister yet. It also added stress during the pregnancy.
"I was scared I'd bring it (the coronavirus) home, but we have our jobs to do," Lebron said. "It was difficult. I didn't want to get her sick or any of the kids."
The first baby born in Trumbull County came a couple of hours later when Lincoln McClung was born at 6:31 a.m. Friday at St. Joseph Warren Hospital. He weighed 8 pounds, 6 ounces and was 20 1/4 inches long.
Lincoln is the third child of John and Tiffany McClung of Cortland. When their daughter Madison was born 18 years ago, Tiffany's water broke on a Sunday and she didn't deliver the baby until Friday.
"This was worse," Tiffany McClung, 40, said.
"They induced her about 3 p.m. yesterday (Thursday) afternoon, and she had some pretty hard labor," John McClung, 42, said. "She tried three or four times, pushed and pushed, until they said let her rest. She was asleep four, five hours, and I assumed she'd have a C-section. They came in at 6 and said let's try try one more time, and he was able to come out then.
Madison and Zack, 13, were excited when they first found out they were going to have a baby brother.
"The parents were in shock for a long time," John McClung joked. "It's just kind of hitting us now."
agray@tribtoday.com