Best start to year

While most people were revelling in the arrival of the new year last week, a Kwinana family were celebrating an arrival of their own.

Drazen Roberts was due to be born on Saturday, January 6 but minor complications meant he was one of the first babies of 2018 delivered at Rockingham General Hospital.

At 3.05am on New Year’s Day, Tracey Keeys became a mother for the first time, with her baby boy weighing 3.94kg.

The proud mum said she was induced as a safety precaution and was in labour for more than 24 hours before Drazen finally arrived.

“We’re still getting used to it,” she said.

“We only arrived home (last Wednesday) and it’s been really warm during the night, so there hasn’t been much sleep but I think we’re finally into a routine.

“The midwives at Rockingham were really great and we are so thankful to all the staff there.”

Ms Keeys said she expected Drazen to take after his father.

We’ll probably have a little mechanic on our hands, I think, because his dad is really into cars,

“We haven’t had any problems so far and he’s very healthy.”

According to recent Australian Bureau of Statistics figures, festive dates like New Year’s Day and Christmas Day are on the outer when it comes to giving birth.

Outside of February 29, which comes along once every four years, the Christmas period is the least popular for birthdays. September 17, which is 39 weeks after Christmas Day, is the most common day for a baby to be born.

Other dates in September, including 23 and 24, are also common times for a child to be born.