CONCORD, N.C. — The new year started off with a bang for Jonathan and Rachel Cannon.
The couple welcomed their son on New Year's Day at 12:06 a.m. Baby Cannon was the first Atrium Health baby of 2024. He was born at Atrium Health Cabarrus, weighing 7 pounds, 3 ounces, and was 19.76 inches long.
The Cannons did not find out the gender before Rachel gave birth, so they are still deciding on a name for the baby boy.
"We have it narrowed down to at least boy names and then the ones we like and then we can call him those boys names," Rached said. "So it's getting there. It's a it's a work in progress. It's hard."
"I guess it's our tradition," Jonathan added. "We did the same thing with our first son. We didn't pick a name till he was like two days old. And they were like, you have to pick a name before you leave the hospital."
Cannon family welcomes first Atrium Health baby of 2024
Giving birth on New Year's Day was a surprise to the couple since Rachel wasn't due until Jan. 8. Rachel said she started having contractions at 7:00 a.m. on New Year's Eve, but thought it was false labor. However, she decided not to go to church as the contractions started getting stronger.
Rachel later realized she was in labor and needed to head to the hospital.
"We were hanging out with my sister, her husband, and our son. And it just kind of happened," Rachel said. By the time she got to the hospital, Rachel was already six centimeters dilated.
The Cannons said their three-year-old son is excited about being a big brother.
"We FaceTimed him earlier," Rachel said. "His face was priceless. It was so sweet. We've been talking to him this whole time. Like, 'hey, you're gonna help change diapers and help feed' and, you know, just kind of trying to get him used to it."
While baby Cannon will celebrate his birthday on New Year's Day, the Cannons are no strangers to holiday birthdays. Rachel's birthday is on Valentine's Day and their older son's is in November, so sometimes it falls on Thanksgiving.
When asked what they hoped 2024 would bring to their new baby and family, they turned to their faith.
"I just hope that we can just, you know, pray a lot about it and do whatever God wills for this child's life," Rachel said. "I mean it's obviously a gift and we want to follow Jesus in leading this child through the whole year."
Other hospitals reporting New Year’s babies include:
- Atrium Health Carolinas Medical Center with a baby born at 12:07 a.m.
- Atrium Health University City with a baby born at 12:43 a.m.
- Atrium Health Pineville with a baby born at 1 a.m.
All of the Atrium Health New Year’s babies received a commemorative beanie and swaddle blanket.