Jennifer Rose Wagoner, born at 4:20 a.m. at St. Mary's Hospital, was the first baby born in Jefferson City on New Year's Day.
With a head full of dark hair and a small, perfect face, the infant was born to Heather and Jordan Wagoner, a young Jefferson City couple.
Only 7 pounds, 13 ounces and 19¾ inches long, she is already the apple of her parents' eye. Cuddling the infant in his arms, Jordan Wagoner, 26, looked content.
"It's what I always wanted," he said.
Both the pregnancy and the labor went smoothly, Heather Wagoner, 22, said on Thursday. Her labor was scheduled to be induced at 7:30 a.m. on Dec. 31, but the young mother waited until mid-day for a room to become available, she said.
"I was due tomorrow (Friday), but they wanted to go ahead and induce me because I have high blood pressure," she said.
Her contractions started at 2 p.m. Wednesday and active labor didn't conclude until 4:20 a.m. Thursday, when the baby was born. She said it took about 15 minutes of pushing to finish the process.
"I wasn't scared," she said. "But there was a lot of pain and I was ready for it to be over."
"You were a little scared, before the epidural," Jordan said.
"I got the epidural a little too late," she said.
"It was horrible."
This is the young couple's first child. Jordan is an auto technician at Joe Machen's Capital City Ford Lincoln; Heather works at the Walgreen's on Truman Boulevard. He grew up in the Rolla area and is a graduate of Linn State Technical College. She is a Blair Oaks High School graduate.
The couple met on an online dating site and have been married since last Jan. 18.
They both are delighted to be new parents.
"We wanted it and were planning it," Heather said. "It still hasn't quite sunk in yet."