Kilmihil’s little Leo is first to roar in 2013

IRELAND’S first baby of 2013 is acclimatising to life in Kilmihil this week following his birth at 12.01am on New Year’s Day at the Mid-Western Regional Maternity Hospital in Limerick.
Leo Carl Maples wasn’t due until next Tuesday, January 8 but his parents, Carmel McNamara and Charlie Maples, realised on the afternoon of December 31 that their new baby was on his way.
“I was at home and my waters just decided to break. I was about to get something to eat for myself. I was coming down the stairs and bang,” Carmel told The Clare Champion.
“It happened at 2.45pm and I got to the hospital at about 4.15pm. I had no pain until 9.30pm on New Year’s Eve. I was only in labour for two and a half hours,” she added.
Carmel hadn’t time to dwell on the fact that Leo was vying for the honour of being Ireland’s first baby of the new year.
“I didn’t even think about it. All I wanted was everything to be over and done with. The people in the maternity ward were so excited,” she recalled.
The new baby is called after Carmel’s late father, Leo McNamara, who was from Labasheeda.
“An awful lot of people say that he’s got my father’s chin. He had a dimple in his chin. As long as he’s not as contrary as him, that’s the main thing,” Carmel joked.
Leo weighed in at 6lbs 10.5oz. Carmel has two older daughters, Kelly (9) and Áine, who is 17 months old. Leo also has a half brother Daniel, who is aged 19.